7:42 am

We are in Qingdao. We made it in yesterday afternoon (China's time). It was a LONG trip & every one's glad that the plane trip is over. We were able to see the Grand Canyon an hour and a half after we left Colorado Springs -that was really cool! We got lost at LAX and everyone we asked sent us down a new direction. After walking for an hour we finally found Tom Bradley International. Before we boarded Korean Air, we had to go through the metal detector. The lady who was in charge started yelling at us. I went first after I finally figured out what she wanted. As I got through the detector, she started yelling. I turned around to see what she was yelling at and I accidentally bumped into the detector. That got her attention and she yelled "What you have!?" I said "I don't have anything, I bumped into the metal detector". She said "You clothes too big, must search!" So that was the highlight of LA. We landed in Korea and as soon as we stepped out of the airport, the first thing that hit us was the humidity. Living in Colorado really spoiled us. I didn't realize that the humidity could be so bad. Everyone was drenched within 15 minutes. We stayed in a Best Western in Seoul, Korea. It was a nice hotel & we slept good despite the hard beds. (Here at the hospital we are sleeping on box springs - no joking). The next morning we went downstairs for breakfast. We were in for a rude awakening....for breakfast they had a buffet. We had soupy scrambled eggs, boiled bacon, little wienies, and fruit. (they also had corn but for breakfast we passed). With the exception of the fruit, nothing else tasted anything like American food. Being next to the airport, it was expensive. We paid 122.00 US dollars for that "breakfast". On the plane from Korea to Qingdao we were served a rice platter (garnished with some type of raw meat & pink fuzzy stuff) & some kind of either meat or vegetable cut into strips. Despite the smell, I had to try it so I could say I did. The rice was nasty but edible. The pink stuff stunk as bad as it tasted. The red meat/vegetable strips was down right disgusting! It was hard but chewy & very spicy. I couldn't make myself swallow it! When we arrived in China, they x-rayed our bags and pulled us aside to look through our DVD's. Apparently they wanted to make sure the movies were appropriate. We got through customs and met Jack for the first time. Jack is one of the translators. He's a very cheerful guy and we immediately liked him. Leaving the airport we almost hit a car. If I don't have heart failure from their driving, it will be a miracle. They swerve in and out of traffic - don't know what the speed limit is - they probably don't have one. They all go one speed though.....FAST. After we took Courtney, Nick & Mom to the hotel, Jack took us to the hospital. The first thing we noticed was the smell. The people are really nice & friendly but the smell is something that I will never forget or get out of my clothes. We are in room 9 on the 8th floor. We have a great view of the mountains from our window. We met a few Americans and everyone is so nice. After we dropped our luggage off at the hospital, Jack took us to the RT Mart. It is a 7 story shopping center that has everything. Jack grabbed a shopping cart & off we went. We started on the 2nd floor which is the grocery section. To get the the 2nd floor, we had to take an escalator that has no steps - just a steep floor that moves. Nothing really looked familiar except the fruit (well even some of that was unfamiliar). Instead of packs of chicken, they have unrefrigerated bins with chicken parts - legs in one bin, breast in another, etc. People were picking through the chicken legs looking for the good ones. It looked unsanitary and all I could think of was salmonella. We bought chips, crackers, grapes, plates, cups, soda, napkins, plastic silverware & containers. Everything was pretty cheap compared to the US. Photo's: 1st - looking out over the Pacific Ocean on Korean Air 2nd - Courtney in Seoul, Korea. Waiting on a bus to take us to the Best Western Hotel. The humidity was bad!! 3rd - Our first experience with an Asian toilet at the airport in Tokyo, Japan. 4th - Nicholas drinking his first Asian Coke on the plane going over the Pacific Ocean. 5th - In Los Angeles, California at LAX - That's the plane we took to Seoul, Korea. 6th- Courtney, John & Brandon waiting for our flight in Los Angeles.