Hello from Beijing

We made it and we are absolutely exhausted. The 14 hour flight from Chicago to Beijing was pretty taxing as it was difficult to get comfortable. I actually slept less than Lila and she only got a couple hours of sleep. I usually don't have a problem with sleeping just about anywhere but not on this flight. When we first boarded the flight the first class passengers went left toward the front of the plane and we went to the right. We were pretty excited to see how awesome the seating was in the first cabin until we learned that was business class (not us), we were fortunate to land in economy plus seating which is one step up from economy seating as that was what we had purchased. On the way home I am concerned we won't be as fortunate and we will have little Aubree on our laps as well...needless to say it will be a true test of parenting endurance. The movie selection was pretty poor and I actually ended up watching "When Harry Met Sally" and "Toy Story"... doesn't United Airlines realize it is now 2010!!! I started out being fascinated by the automated map that showed where our plane was on its flight path as well as elapsed time and time remaining. At first it was fascinating to see we were flying straight north out of Chicago and didn't start to veer left until we were over the Hudson Bay. Eventually I found the map to be less fascinating and more of a torture device as it constantly reminded you how far we still had to go. Clearing customs in China was a breeze and not all that intimidating as we had heard from others. They did make you go through an infrared scanner that checked to see if you were running a temperature but otherwise it wasn't all that thorough. We met up with our guide Laura who is an extremely nice local young lady. She basically whisked away to a driver that was waiting and took us to the hotel. She assisted with check in and followed us to our room to make sure it was okay for us. I have attached a picture of me with Laura that we took in the lobby. The room is pretty nice but it has some unique twists. First a sign says don't drink the water as it is not suitable to drink, and the thermometer is only in Celsius so you have to convert to Fahrenheit. There is a slot inside the door where you have to place your room card key in order for the power to work in your room. There are many different power outlets but none like the good old USA, thankfully my adapter fit one of them. Tomorrow we tour the Summer Palace and plan to see the Pandas at the zoo. I just looked out the window and I can't believe it but it is snowing....Ughhh will winter never end. I will have plenty of pictures and stories to tell regarding our tours tomorrow. We are just a few days from getting Aubree!!!