Great timing about the dust storm. I will have to check where I can get such a mask nearby. I bet some of them are sold and are rip offs which are ineffective, right? I hope I can detect which are really good ones and which not so much. We are indoors today mostly, trying to recover, but even so, I feel some dryness in the throat that is unusual...must be the dust. We are too tired to do sightseeing today anyways. I hope it goes away soon, so that it leaves my poor cold-damaged throat alone in time for the examination and surgery.
The journey was not pleasant. First flight was delayed already, so it was very close to meet the second, that one was mediocre but ok and ended in Bejing, where we had a lot of "fun" with chinese security. Luckily we had 3.5h transit time, because we needed all of that to have every bit of out hand luggage opened, examined, checked, analyzed, returned to us to pack back in the bags and then open the bags again with the same stuff going on until our stuff was all mixed up and partially lost or damaged. We had to undress to the underwear and be checked over again. We had to explain what all the stuff was in our bags - especially all the medication we carried to be sure to have it if the main baggage would get lost and the inhalator I carried to keep my airways hydrated during the return flight. I guess they thought the inhalator was for using illegal drugs and all the medication would be illegal drugs too or something. The connectin "almost-domestic" flight to Seoul was clearly designed for Chinese with the seats so small that we barely could move. At some point (I think it was when the horrible food arrived) we just had to flash.laugh and could not stop because it was just too absurd and we were so tired. ICN airport then was gigantic - one has to walk and walk and take a train and walk and walk some more to get to the baggage claim. And it is about an hour drive by bus from the city.
So I guess my advice, especially for those who have no legal name/gender change or are not post-GRS yet - avoid Bejing at all costs - they seem to not know what international transit is and I dont even want to imagine what would have happened if upon undressing they would have discovered apparent "mismatches" between my appearance, passport name or gender and body configuration. Drug smugglers that use a false identity would probably have been their guess... Crazy people...
Oh and the dry air in the planes was horrible for the throat and nose
But we made it, somehow have to make it back with the slight hindrance that upon return travel I canot talk myself out of it again.
So it con only get better now here I guess - tomorrow is the examination and then hopefully a good surgery on Wednesday.
Haley - where will you stay? If you stay at Phil House, we surely will meet. I will be at the clinic probably only on Tuesday, Wednesday and a week later on Wednesday.
