Then we were told that due to bad weather the plane was cancelled. I returned back with my luggage to the hotel and met other people. Next day was the same, and the day after. One day, we were about to enter the plane. A number of foreign people were living at the airport, we would get some food there (rice and spinach in aluminum trays). We would keep a fine humor; there was a very witty Englishman all the time making me laugh making jokes with the poor Chinese. There was a guy from Hong Kong having some fun with us too.
Finally, one day, we entered the plane and it took off. We finished our plane meal and were joking about our counting system for the previous days: going to the airport: 1 point, check in: 2 points, waiting room: 3, boarding: 4 points, leaving: 5 points – Bingo!.
No, I said, 6 points: arriving to Beijing.
Suddenly we could hear some Chinese from the speakers, the voice seamed worried, Chinese people there also became worried. It was a very bad sensation, specially the food in the stomach started to remove, I felt sick, I thought we were falling down.
No, we were just back to Harbin airport. Beijing weather was too bad for the plane to land there.
China's understanding
Mostrando entradas con la etiqueta Harbin airport. Mostrar todas las entradas
Mostrando entradas con la etiqueta Harbin airport. Mostrar todas las entradas
sábado, 4 de diciembre de 2010
domingo, 28 de noviembre de 2010
Buying a plane ticket in China in November 1993
I picked up my luggage and went to airport to buy a ticket to Beijing.
Can you believe that what I saw there was one of the most astonishing and depressing experiences I have ever had? Chinese people, though having had a 5000 years old culture had not learnt yet to queue. They would just go to the ticket window without making up a line and all at once trying to get attention of the vender behind a very small window protected with iron bars. Violence was beyond any description, everybody was pushing each other in different directions in order to get closer to the window. I was terribly shocked and down, I would not know what to do, I did not even dare to move. I was about to cry thinking that I would never leave that place as I would never leave my luggage and enter into that terrible turmoil . After a long while looking in despair at the amazing spectacle, I started to move around.
Later, when in China I had lot of opportunities to notice that problem Chinese people have. For instance, when in the Beijing universities, waiting everyday for the self-service meals you would need to get closer to the one before you as to put the bodies together and the one behind you would do the same. If you would let some space between you and the one before, somebody would, and would feel entitled to, to enter in between. It seems there at the universities were taking place the first steps in development of the queuing systems in China.
After a while I met a Russian guy, he was one of the people I had known the night before (I suspected he belonged to the Russian mafia, as he tried to convince me that mafia in Russia was very beneficial and playing a well needed role considering the circumstances in Russia by then). I asked him about how to solve the situation; it was so easy: actually, given that situation in China, foreigners were allowed to buy tickets in the hotels, I just had to go to Harbin city (30 kms away from the airport) and buy the ticket in a hotel there. Great. We picked up a taxi and I bought a plane ticket to Beijing. Later that day, I should leave. I checked in and expected to leave.
Can you believe that what I saw there was one of the most astonishing and depressing experiences I have ever had? Chinese people, though having had a 5000 years old culture had not learnt yet to queue. They would just go to the ticket window without making up a line and all at once trying to get attention of the vender behind a very small window protected with iron bars. Violence was beyond any description, everybody was pushing each other in different directions in order to get closer to the window. I was terribly shocked and down, I would not know what to do, I did not even dare to move. I was about to cry thinking that I would never leave that place as I would never leave my luggage and enter into that terrible turmoil . After a long while looking in despair at the amazing spectacle, I started to move around.
Later, when in China I had lot of opportunities to notice that problem Chinese people have. For instance, when in the Beijing universities, waiting everyday for the self-service meals you would need to get closer to the one before you as to put the bodies together and the one behind you would do the same. If you would let some space between you and the one before, somebody would, and would feel entitled to, to enter in between. It seems there at the universities were taking place the first steps in development of the queuing systems in China.
After a while I met a Russian guy, he was one of the people I had known the night before (I suspected he belonged to the Russian mafia, as he tried to convince me that mafia in Russia was very beneficial and playing a well needed role considering the circumstances in Russia by then). I asked him about how to solve the situation; it was so easy: actually, given that situation in China, foreigners were allowed to buy tickets in the hotels, I just had to go to Harbin city (30 kms away from the airport) and buy the ticket in a hotel there. Great. We picked up a taxi and I bought a plane ticket to Beijing. Later that day, I should leave. I checked in and expected to leave.
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