Journey to Caleb: Nine Travel Tips and Other Miscellany

The last post before leaving China, I mentioned that I would provide at least one posting for the travel benefit of those who are making this journey in the near future. Please feel free to ask questions of anything you want to know that I haven’t covered, and I will tell you what I can.

First observation: Things Sleepy. Jet lag is a drag. It is now 12:30 AM on what is now our official 2^nd day back, and I am wide awake after waffling all day between random bouts of narcolepsy and periodic spasms of insomnia. Make the most of the time you are actually coherent, as in the few days your body adjusts coherency will be a valued commodity.

Second observation: Things Poopy. While Caleb is our third child, I had forgotten the inherently mysterious and powerful qualities of baby poop. If there is a leak, baby poop will find it. If you are in your last pair of clean clothes and running late for an anything important, baby poop knows and will somehow spring forth to remind you of its magical Houdini-like properties. We could trim millions from NASA’s budget by using baby poop instead of engineers and complicated equipment to find microscopic leaks on the Space Shuttle. This is powerful stuff. That said, when you receive you new child, ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS bring a spare diaper, some wipes and a change of clothes for baby. If you are so much as going downstairs to get a diet coke from the 7-11 across the street from your hotel you will need money for the diet coke, and the required “equipment” for the baby. My general rule of thumb is this: if you are going further than you wish to carry a drippy, poopy baby, at arms length bring the “equipment.” Remember, the likelihood that baby poop will display is magical qualities is directly proportional to both the urgency of your appointment and your lack of proper “equipment.”

Third Observation: Things Musical. As much as I fully intended to absorb as much Chinese culture as I could, it was great to hear some familiar tunes at times. I brought a little cable that lets me play my iPod through my stereo or any other device that has “RCA” inputs (the little red, white, and yellow plugs you see on the front or back of your TV or sound system). No, I didn’t bring my stereo. I just plugged one end of the cable into my iPod, and the other into the front (or in one case, the back) of the room’s TV. Yes, I know it’s geeky, but I was a rockin’ geek. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, go to Circuit City, Radio Shack, etc., and tell them what you are trying to do. If you paid more than $10, you are paying way too much. If you have a 5th generation iPod or newer, get the three prong RCA cable and you can watch any movies or videos you have downloaded.

Fourth observation: Things Electrical. Don’t bring a “converter.” Instead, just by some “plug adapters” so that your American plug will fit into the Chinese wall socket. It’s like this. The bad news is that Chinese electricity is on different cycles and volts than US electricity. They run 220 volts, and we run 110. I have know idea what cycles are, but I someone told me they are different. What this basically means is that the electricity in China has to be “converted” so that it doesn’t blow your US stuff up when you plug it in. The good news is that most of the stuff you will want to plug in already comes with its own converter. Your laptop, iPod, kid’s DVD player, camera, etc., all have a little “box” that is either in the middle of your cord or at the end of your cord where it plugs into your wall. This is one instance where it pays to read the fine print. Look at the writing and read it. It will probably say something like this: “Input: 110 – 240V ~ 50/60Hz.” Now, I’m not an electrical engineer, nor do I play one on TV, but I understand this to mean that you can just plug these kind of items into a wall. Since I had the converter, I didn’t take my chances. But, I wish I had known this before I spent $40 on a Brookstone converter that blew out three days into the trip. I could have saved myself a bunch of trouble in trying to track down a converter in the hotel. Just be sure you have enough adapters to plug in whatever you want to plug in and be sure that your “box” will actually handle the Chinese volts. So, unless you are splitting atoms, you’ll be fine. Just read the fine print first.

But wait, there’s more!! For the gentlemen, each bathroom has a special plug that puts out the right volts for your electric razor. For the ladies (and I guess some gentleman) each bathroom is also equipped with its very own hairdryer. In terms of curling irons, you’re on your own.

Fifth Observation: Things to Wear and Wash. Plan ahead and pack light, light, light. There is no point in packing two or three week’s worth of clothes that you will have to carry around with you. Bring clothes you can wear several times before washing. Those who live and work around me, will be relieved to know that this is not a practice I regularly engage in.

Have your laundry done by a service outside of your hotel. The hotel is very proud of their laundry service, and you will pay accordingly. In Nanchang our guide directed us to a laundry service that picked up and delivered. We later discovered one right outside of the hotel (Tiffanies). In Guangzhou, there are enough laundry services to wash the clothes of everyone in China. In Beijing, you will need to ask your guide or adoption agency how you might find one.

For the new family addition, most of those who brought lots of clothes for baby were unable to use the majority of them. You really won’t know your new child’s size until you meet him/her. Your guide will take you to Wal-Mart (yes, there are lots of Wal-Mart’s in China), or some other big store where you can stock up on proper attire after you have your new bundle of joy.

Just remember, if you pack it you will have to carry it at one point or another.

Sixth observation: Things for the Kids. We traveled with a five and nine year old. Both of them greatly overestimate their ability and desire to carry their own stuff through an airport. When the chips are down, and everyone is tired, hungry and irritable, in the middle of an airport, this is one of those battles that you as a parent really can’t afford to loose. As much as you might be tempted to say, “Fine, we’ll leave it right here,” you cannot. As much as you might want to be the gracious parent and carry junior’s stuff for him or her, your hands will be full of all the important stuff you didn’t check, or you will be pushing an overflowing cart with the luggage you did check (because you will not follow the Fifth Observation). We got each of our kids a rolling backpack for their carry on. They were so excited you would have thought we just gave them all the tea in China. It is basically a backpack, but also has wheels and a pull-out handle like most rolling luggage. We got ours at the Bass Outlet. You can also get them at LL Bean. The advantage to this over the kid’s version of the suitcase looking carry on is that you have way more pockets for organizing and easy access. Plus, the bag also can double as a cushion/pillow in tiring times or for rides on the cart things.

Seventh Observation: Those Cart Things. In US Airports those cart things cost money. And it seems every time you go through a checkpoint you have to give up the one you have and then pay if you want another one. In China, the cart things are free and they are just about everywhere. Take advantage of it. Heck, get a cart for each piece of luggage and have a parade. Let each kid get a cart and have races in them. One of my fond memories of childhood trips to Germany is when my Uncle Wilhelm and I took turns pushing each other in one of those cart things at the train station. Let the kids have some fun. Besides, they will have been cooped up in a plane and will have some steam to let out. Trust me, if this activity were illegal or frowned upon in China we would have found out.

Eighth Observation: Things to Drink. Don’t drink the water from faucets in China. While you probably won’t end up with General Tsao’s Revenge if you do, note that none of the Chinese drink their own water. When in Rome, do as the Romans. When in China, do as the Chinese. Drink bottled water, tea, or beer. Like laundry, your hotel is also very proud of their bottled water. They might provide you with some complimentary bottles, but these won’t be enough. In Nanchang and Guangzhou, Holt (our adoption agency) provided us with bottles of water at a fraction of the price from the hotel. Beijing, though, is an entirely different story. Go to a corner market and you can get a case of water for your room, for less than half of what the hotel charges for one bottle. Just leave the extra water, unless you want to be strip searched at the airport for transporting suspicious liquids. Which leads to my last observation for tonight – or this morning.

Ninth Observation. Things Not to Bring on a Plane in China. We were told that in mid March someone was caught trying to sneak explosives onto a plane in Beijing. To say that airport security is a little high strung right now is an understatement. When they say “no liquids on the plane” they really mean “no liquids on the plane.” There is none of the US 3 oz. and under stuff. This applies to toothpaste, those little energy boost drinks, lotions, etc. It is by the grace of God that I was able to carry on some saline solution for my contacts, and some milk and baby food. You cannot even bring bottled water on the plane. However, they will give you more water on the plane. If you are afraid you will loose it, check it.