myTrip

On the way to myHotel

mh71 — Wed, 9 Jan 2008 16:00:00 GMT

As I stepped out of the airport, the first thing got to me was the weather. It was like -2 degrees celsius.

Note: - Getting a taxi is not a problem in Beijing. The only problem is communicating with the driver as many taxi drivers are not able to communicate in English. So you have to be creative here with sign language, the unofficial one of course. So, if you do have any contact who is able to speak the language here which is Mandarin, you don't have to worry.

Eventhough taxi drivers do not speak English, it does not mean they are not cooperative. They are willing to take their time and more than happy to assist you to find out your destination. All you do is call your contact over your handphone and pass the phone to the taxi driver to speak to your contact to give direction in the language. After that you should be okay. As for the taxi fares, all taxis are equiped with meters and the fare I would say is quite reasonable too. You can easily ask for receipt after payment for your record or claim.

The moment my taxi drove out of the airport I noticed that the traffic was getting a little heavier. There were cars everywhere but they were smooth flowing. I was excited seeing many luxury cars especially the American brand such as Buick, Chrysler and even Lincoln. It was just around 7.00 AM when we left the airport heading to the hotel.

Note: - One thing about Beijing road is that they are so wide with at least 3 lanes on each side and to me it looks like highways from where I come from. Quite impressive I would say about the traffic system here in Beijing and everyone seems to follow order. The only thing that I feel quite weird is all cars are left hand drive because the road system is left hand drive. So it was kind of funny sitting on the right side of the car as I am so used driving on this side back home.

One other thing about roads and buildings in Beijing is that all their buildings especially for accomodation and roads leading to it all look the same and very familiar. So it would be quite hard to distinguish one street to the other and often confusing to set a familiar landmark if you wish to go around on your own.

But be rest assured that there are plenty of taxis around. I would say getting a taxi would not cost you more than 10 minutes to wait but all you need to do is be alert and look out for the taxi. The good thing is they are not that strict that you must wait at a taxi stand. As long as you wait by any road side and wave for the taxi surely you will get one as any taxi will stop by and pick you up.

My trip to the hotel which I was supposed to live in for the next at least 3 weeks was situated quite a distant from the airport. On my way there I wasn't thinking of anything other than enjoying the scenery and building as we were passing by them. There were many banks around such as Bank of Beijing, Agricultural Bank of China, China Construction Bank and shopping complexes.

Probably due to the cold weather I saw everybody walking very fast in the streets. There were a lot of people travelling around by bicycles and I was quite amazed that these bicycles have their own special lane by the road side. But I didn't see any motorcycles around.

Note: - Public transportation is quite easy in Beijing. Apart from taxis and buses you can also take the train or the tube as it passes along the city.

I was relieved once we arrived at the hotel. It was situated in an urban area and I saw familiar outlets brand such as MAKRO shopping outlet next to the hotel and Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) (Although I don't eat the chicken as it is non HALAL I can take the potato fries/mashed)There were also small bakeries and local shopping centre nearby the hotel.

Arriving at the Airport - PART THREE

mh71 — Wed, 9 Jan 2008 11:00:00 GMT

- Beijing Capital International Airport -

Yes. After a very long planning at last I have arrived in Beijing, China. The moment I stepped out of the plane into the terminal I felt a sense of relief and that everything was going to be okay from there onwards..

The weather was freezing cold. It was minus 2 degrees Celsius. As I walked into the terminal of Beijing Capital International Airport I felt a sense of urgency. I was looking for a toilet!

Well the truth is this, every time whenever I got on a plane, right after take off I would rarely move around let alone walking up to go to the toilet. It was like all system jammed when I was in the air. So in other words during the 5 and half hours flight last night, I never got up out of my seat to go anywhere.

Luckily the airport was well planned and not as confusing as any other airports around the world. The signs are all big in size for all to see and the direction was very accurate.

So getting to the toilet wasn’t that hard to find and it was clean too and very spacious. Then it was back to walking towards the Immigration counter.

Again my mind was racing and heart was pounding. I didn’t know why. But I knew that my passport was 7 months to expire and my Chinese visa allowed me to enter China before the 8^th of February 2008. So I had nothing to worry about. As I was presenting my passport to the Immigration officer, I realised that …

I was right! It went on smoothly. Not a problem at all. But why shouldn’t it be? I was a legitimate visitor to the country and I was on a legitimate visit. Perhaps it was the overwhelming feeling being in a country with a totally different ruling system and having a reputation of being strict on rules and regulations made me a liitle nervous.

Being a Malaysian I couldn’t help but remembering the recent case of a Malaysian woman who I believe hailed from the state of Kelantan, Malaysia who was convicted of drug trafficking in China and apparently she had been convicted and sentenced to death. It is such a sad story to hear but being a lawyer myself I am fully aware and understand of the implication of breaking the laws especially of a foreign country and especially over drugs. Even if the lady was caught in Malaysia instead, she would certainly be receiving the same sentence upon conviction. The way I see it as a lawyer I always believe that the law has no mercy on anybody. Be that as it may my prayers and doa’ goes to the lady who is now I believe is in prison somewhere here.

So as I picked up my baggage, my associate and I headed out towards the Custom check point. We had nothing to declare although I was a bit cautious as I'd brought with me a one month supply of nutritious drink made out of fruits and vegetables. Well it was always better to be cautious, I thought. I strolled my trolley of bags entering the no declaration custom check point and again it was very smooth. No checking at all.

I must say that so far that day upon arrival I was very impressed with the system around the airport especially in the aspect of cleanliness. It was so comfortable and you would automatically feel welcomed.

This time around we were approached by a few people asking us whether we would want to take taxi. This surprised me a bit as during my first visit before we were never approached by anyone. Maybe it is close to the Olympics 2008 and foreigners are expected to arrive.

I will tell more about taxis in Beijing later on but suffice to say that at the time of arrival we had already made arrangement to be picked up at the airport by our Chinese counterpart namely Ms. Hope. But she was nowhere to be seen at first when we both came out from the arrival hall and we were hoping for Ms Hope to come.

Not long after that after a few text messages I managed to locate her standing in front of the arrival hall. We both were very happy to meet each other at last after all the due process of planning and promising in our emails to each other. It was a pleasant beginning and as we walked out of the airport we took a taxi to go to our next destination which was … our hotel.

.....

Note: The weather was merciless. It was so cold beyond description. I wasn’t complaining in fact I really enjoyed being in this kind of weather. It was certainly below 0 degree Celsius. But it was also sad to note that during the winter season in Beijing, it was dry too, very very dry. It was hazy with dust that can only be seen on cars in black colour. Perhaps what they say about Beijing being one of the heaviest polluted cities in the world is so true. Factories churning out smoke during daytime are plenty and can be clearly seen around us. So my advise is … make sure you drink lot and lot of WATER.

Gallery: private

mh71 — Wed, 9 Jan 2008 10:00:00 GMT

private

Arriving at the Airport - PART TWO

mh71 — Wed, 9 Jan 2008 07:02:00 GMT

Okay, I walked pass the Immigration check point smoothly without any problem and the timing was perfect to board the plane. The flight, MALAYSIA AIRLINES No. MH370 was waiting for us at Gate C35 that night. As we walked pass the free duty shops in the terminal and closing in to Gate C35, I saw the plane that would take us to our destination. I reckoned it was such a small plane for a six hour journey. It was an Airbus for sure. ‘Can it withstand the long journey?’, I asked myself.

Anyway as I was lining up before entering Gate C35, there was a little commotion going on in front of me between a passenger and the Immigration officer who was handling the last checking and screening of hand luggage and boarding passengers before entering the plane.

It looked as though the passenger was really annoyed with the treatment he received from the officer. He kept telling the officer, ‘Wah kamu tak tahu saya siapa ya. Buat saya macam ini ya.’ (You don’t who I am. You can do this to me). This kept going on for some time and as I was lining behind him it really looked like he was provoking the officer to make the mistake of replying back at him, which the officer didn’t do. He kept his cool. Apparently the Chinese man passenger wanted the officer to put his things back in the hand luggage and asked the officer to apologise over the matter. And apparently the subject matter that started the whole commotion was over a toothpaste!

What irked me most was the way the passenger talking loudly so that everyone can hear how authoritative he was. I felt at that moment how I wish I had the power to stop the clock and slapped the annoying man silly with a large big trout!

As I boarded the plane, my seat was by the window seat no. 35H. Mmm… same number as the boarding gate C35. I am not a superstitious kind of person but anyway the similarity does make me wonder.

So, at around 12.50 AM on the 9^th January 2008, Flight MH370 took off from KLIA heading to Beijing Capital International Airport. It was quite a smooth take off. For me taking off is always a horrific experience. It is just like a near death experience to me every time a plane is taking off.

As the plane increases its altitude, I looked down by the window thinking of home and family. And that day was a very significant day to me and my family as it was my wife’s birthday. Happy Birthday… sayang.

...

Time: 2.00 AM …

The plane was slightly shaking and the seat belt sign was switched on by the pilot. I knew this was trouble. True enough just a while after that the plane was experiencing turbulence. It was rough and tough. I couldn’t sleep and kept looking at my watch. Time was moving slow very, very slow.

…

Overall I could rate the journey as hectic and troubling. There was a time when the cabin crew were asked to be seated by the pilot and by that I already knew what it meant which was the plane will shake even harder. And it did. It felt just like in a motor boat going through heavy waves. But the thing was everybody was calm unlike me who felt nervous as hell. Maybe everyone else was sleepy, I said to myself.

As for me I just couldn’t sleep during flights. I tried reading but I didn’t feel good and listening to music was even worse. It felt like committing the biggest sin ever to listen to music at time like that. So what I did was I thought of God and kept praising God in my heart.

…

Time: 5.00 AM …

Breakfast was served. I forgot to mention that earlier on just after take off we all were served with a turkey sandwich with butter. It was just nice. Breakfast too was okay to me. I had fried rice with fish in tomato sauce, that's what I think it was. And I consumed it within minutes. While being served with breakfast there was an announcement over the air that hot drinks would not be served due to the unstable condition of the plane. Imagine that, how bad could it be?

Just around 5.30 AM the plane was already in its final descent and as it was going down it was shaking quite hard for a couple of times. And then around 5.50 AM there was another announcement confirming that the plane was going to land as per schedule. At last!

As I looked over the window, I saw the city lights and road lights over Beijing. It was still dark when the plane touched down on the ground. I reckoned it was a hard landing especially during the braking. Then after that the plane was moving towards the terminal. It was only after almost 20 minutes then the plane finally halted at the terminal at exactly around 6.35 AM.

Arriving at the Airport - PART ONE

mh71 — Tue, 8 Jan 2008 23:30:00 GMT

So at around 10.00 pm the day after I was supposed to leave, at around the same time the day before, my wife drove me to the airport. I was running a little late than schedule this was because honestly, I was dragging myself to move.

Being a family man as I am, leaving my wife and kids behind was not an easy thing to do. Of course I have done that before a couple of times but it was for a different reason now. For a start this trip was unlike before. As I said in the introduction earlier, this was supposed to be my trip to success. So, failure is not an option.

Arriving at the departure hall, Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) at around 10.45 pm on Tuesday 8^th of January 2008 was the moment of truth for me.

Actually this trip was planned many, many times and very long ago. But as they say the road to success is never easy, that is what actually my associates and I have been facing. We were supposed to fly to Beijing to meet another associate of ours who has been stranded there for almost 4 months, as early as October 2007 but due to financial constraint on everybody’s part, the plan had to be postponed a couple of times.

Until that very night when I met my associate who handed me my E-ticket in hand with my name on it and confirming that we would be flying that day and also having presented it to the counter to obtain my boarding pass, I was quite unsure of whether the trip to Beijing would ever take place.

So after the traditional saying goodbyes to our friends and my wife who has given her undying support and love for me to take up this challenge, I muster the strength to enter the departure check point together with my associate who is also a good friend of mine. As I was standing on the escalator going down the Immigration check-point, so many things entered my mind. Will I be okay? Will I be stopped at the Immigration because of whatever reason I might not know. How silly it was but I can’t help to have all these feelings flowing down from my thought to my heart.

The Aborted Journey

mh71 — Tue, 8 Jan 2008 23:30:00 GMT

I was supposed to leave for Beijing, CHINA on the 8th of January 2008 just after midnight.

So on that day, Monday, I already did the mind-setting of leaving my home and family for some time to complete an unaccomplished mission in Beijing, China. It is a work related journey, one that would take me out of the sunken ship, so to speak!

All things were packed from my house and then my wife and I moved the kids to my parents’ home nearby. We returned home and I just picked the luggage up easily. I think this time around I was prepared because I wasn’t anticipating anything major from my trip unlike before with so many anticipations and so much expectations. I have been there once before around a year ago. I knew the people who I was going to meet and the places I was supposed to be at. And as for the weather upon checking the internet, it’s like the best weather for me… freezing COLD! I like.

Note: - http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/ is the best website for checking the time as well as the weather around the world. For those who are 1st time travellers, this website has everything from accurate timing to weather forecast, currency converter as well as meeting planner. It will be easier for those who carry around the up-to-date internet gadgets. Most of all it is easily accessible and user-friendly if you know what I mean.

So as I left my parents’ house, I received a call from my associate telling me that the trip was postponed due to some technical error. Apparently our flight was booked one day later. Luckily it wasn't a day earlier, I thought. What a surprise, but it was a pleasant one because it would mean that I got to spend another night with my family. The good thing was that I had already packed up my entire luggage so it wasn't a problem to wait for just one more day.

So, another night and another day for me and my family and I would say it was well spent. I went to the office to complete some outstanding matters and some time with the kids. I got to pick them up from school too that day.

However later on that day, the feeling of nervousness overcame me because of the almost 6 hour trip in a plane made me quite unstable throughout the day. Although I love to go places but I really hate air travelling. The more I took the plane the more unpleasant it was for me. Call it phobia or whatever, that’s just me.

Anyway, it was such a relief that I had packed the day before the actual journey as I was never an organised nor a coordinated person when it comes to packing and travelling. I am always a last minute guy to do everything but not this time as I managed my time well. Thanks to the wife of course.

So when the trip was postponed that day to another day, it was the moment that I truly appreciated and experienced a true quality moment with my wife and kids. Imagine this, you have already packed up and ready to leave, in fact kissed and hugged everyone around you and thinking in the head that you would not be seeing them for another 3 weeks or so and as you are driving out of the house and thinking, ‘If only for just one more night I could be with them, I will cherish the moment’ and suddenly you get a call telling you that your trip is postponed to the day after!

Yeah i know. That’s how I felt that day. My prayers were answered and there I was back at my parents’ home with my wife and kids sleeping over for just another day.

What a blessing.

Introduction

mh71 — Tue, 8 Jan 2008 12:00:00 GMT

Assalamu'alaikum,

This is my first entry in my journal. I am so happy to have found this website where i can pen down my memories & thoughts while i am away from home.

This isn't my first trip abroad, actually I have been away abroad a couple of times. But this time around I am putting everything in writing so that not only me but my kids can also cherish and share my experience later in their lives. God willing.

So, i share my story with you all especially with my dear wife & family.