We arrived back at the apartment around 9:15PM on Monday night. We were exhausted and tired from being on a 14 hour flight in cattle call economy coach class plus a 2 hour drive from the Shanghai airport. After about 11 hours…I’m over it! It also doesn’t help that Delta is using their 747-400 aircrafts much more often for this flight (more bodies more $$$ I suppose) which do not have video on demand. But, we survived and arrived safely and that is the goal.
We did a bit of unpacking, showered, and went to bed around 10:30. I woke up around 3:30AM, attempted to go back to sleep, but was unsuccessful. I got up around 4:00AM and did a bit more unpacking, and some school work. Mark got up at 6:30 when the alarm went off. He is off to work today. Poor guy had no milk or OJ for breakfast so…he made do with my oatmeal.
I have a big day ahead. I phoned my friend Val to see if she was attending the monthly EAS (Expatriate Assoc. of Suzhou) coffee at the Renaissance Hotel. She had another engagement so we chatted a bit and made plans to get together tomorrow. So, Mr. Shen arrived to pick me around 10:15 to drive me over (I would have walked…but it looked like it may rain). It was wonderful to see so many of my friends! There were lots of hugs and chatting, and catching up on what was new. At noon, a few of us decided to go to lunch before Mahjong started at 1:30. Off to Zappata’s we went. It’s a Mexican place that offers a great lunch deal and there is plenty of offerings to choose from. Lunch was delicious and then off to play mahjong. I got high hand!! Must be beginner’s luck because I sure needed a bit of a refresher! We all put in 10 RMB (around 1.50) so I won the pot! So…lunch for me was a freebie!
After mahjong, I had to stop off at the market to get some essentials. The fridge and cupboards were pretty bare! Of course, I forgot to put a shopping bag in my purse..so charged for bags! Grrrrr… I really have to remember that I have to carry everything but the kitchen sink when I venture out! Back at the apartment a little before 5:00PM… Mark calls at 5:15 to say he is on his way and it’s Indian for dinner!!! Score! No cooking for this chick!
Dinner was delish…as usual at Indian at the Cross. The traffic to get downtown was horrendous as they are still tearing it all up for the installation of the subway system. I’ll tell you, our driver Mr. Shen should get hazard pay! He’s a Gem! We are very blessed to have this man in our lives in China. He is my “go-to” guy when I need him. I brought him back a couple of pairs of Levi’s and an Itouch to show my appreciation for all he does and he was very appreciative and thankful. It’s the LEAST I could do! Mark let him know the gifts were from the “Big Boss”…not him! It’s a running joke with all of us….Mark is Mr. Shen’s boss…but I’m the “Big Boss! LOL! I just want to keep him happy and make sure he continues as our driver because decent ones around here are not easy to come by! So this girl will make sure Mr. Shen is a happy guy!
So…of course I can barely keep my eyes open by 9:00PM and it’s off to “Dreamland”. It was a good day and I am looking forward to seeing Val tomorrow. Hopefully, I’ll sleep in a bit longer!
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