Home Sweet Home...

So now I'm back in the good ol' USA... I got back last night, just in time to see some of the last few 4th of July fireworks from my window as I flew into Atlanta. The whole family (except for Eli and Mattie, who are in Germany these days) came to the airport to pick me up. I can't believe how BIG they've all gotten! Sophia was barely talking when I left... and now she puts complete sentences together!

At this point, I'm just glad to be home... but I'm sure I'll start missing China soon! One thing's for sure... I've got to go back one day!

Things don't always go as planned...

Well, I was planning to go home today... but that didn't exactly work out. When I got to the check-in counter, I realized that my passport wasn't in the wallet-thingy where I usually keep my important traveling documents. I searched through my backpack and other luggage, but no luck. I had a copy of my passport, but that didn't help me out at all. SO to make a long story short, I contacted the US embassy in Beijing, and they told me about the procedures I would have to go through to get a new passport and an exit visa from the Chinese government. (You need a visa to LEAVE China?! Who knew??) I won't go into detail, but it's a LOT of red tape, and it was going to take about 2 weeks. The first step was to report the loss at the police station, but when I got there, I was told I needed an official letter from my Chinese university, confirming that I was a student, and that I had indeed lost my passport. By the time I got back to campus, it was about noon, and all of the offices and classes take a break between 12 and 2 every day. I decided to use that time to check my room at the dorm and my baggage, in case I'd misplaced it while packing. I searched my room, but didn't find anything (except a sock and a missing tube of mascara). About 30 seconds after I started looking through my luggage, I FOUND IT! (prayer DOES work!) :) Where was it? In a handy side-pocket of the backpack I was originally planning to take as a carry-on. I had put the passport in there so that it would be "easily accessible" when I got to the airport. (It's always a pain to have to dig through your backpack each time!) I realized that that backpack was too big, so I stuffed it inside one of my checked bags, and forgot to transfer the passport to my other backpack. (It's so typical of me-- putting somewhere where "I'll remember where I put it", and then forgetting where it is.

The good news is that I don't have to wait around for a replacement passport, but the bad news is that I did miss my flight (I found the passport 2 hours AFTER my plane left), so I had to reschedule. Because the first part of my trip (Wuhan to Beijing) isn't actually a Continental Airlines plane, I won't know for sure until tomorrow morning at 6 AM (6 PM, Ga time). Today has been such an emotional roller-coaster. Sadness about leaving China and my friends here, excitement about coming home, panic, apathy, an overwhelming sense of relief (mixed with feeling incredibly stupid), and now I'm at relief and uncertainty.

Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers. :) If all goes well, I'll be home by tomorrow (Friday) night! (Which is Saturday morning, China time.) I'm hoping to get back in time for the 4th of July... keep your fingers crossed!

My time here in China has been incredible... but traveling here and going back home have been hands-down some of my worst travel experiences ever.

But right now, I'm just trying to keep a positive/optimistic attitude... it makes the whole situation a little more bearable. Hopefully the next post will be from the States! :)

Where did the time go?

Well I can finally check the Great Wall off of my list of "Things to See in China". It was incredible. That thing just keeps on going and going forever! And as you can see in the background of the picture, it's anything but straight! I got to see a lot of other interesting stuff while I was in Beijing... T'men Square, the Birds Nest and Water Cube, the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace... I'll put up some pictures and tell you more about it when I get a chance... but I'm leaving for home bright n' early tomorrow morning, so I need to get back to my packing! See you (well, some of you) SOON!!! :)