So we arrived home after a fortnight in Queensland, and Ellie was delighted to see her room again, and in particular was thrilled to see that all her toys were safe and happy. Even though it was pretty late, she said hello to every single toy and pulled them all out over her rug. She also did a basic inventory of every room in the house, yes the bath was still there and so was the fridge!
Monday was a slow day, and we took our time all recovering and just being glad to be home again. Mike had found us a new apartment in Shimao, and all was looking good to having a relaxed week before heading over to the UK on Friday for the summer holiday. While we were away, he'd started preparing for our move, so many boxes were packed, and some things were dismantled. As far as the mundane parts of returning from holiday go, we unpacked the cases and started the washing. I started packing boxes for some more of the big move too, which we understood would be taking place on our return from the UK.
Tuesday was equally relaxed. We started preparing what we were taking on the next trip and we continued packing up peripheral things for the move. I took Ellie out that afternoon around to a friend's house, whose daughters Ellie had been asking about while we were away. As I sat there quietly drinking tea and talking about Australia, and just having a bit of a relax I had no idea what was unfolding at home...
Mike had finally heard from the real estate agent, who has known since May about all our travel plans, and found out that our current landlord had leased our place again from 1 August, as indeed our lease expired on 31 July. We also found that our new lease at Shimao wouldn't take effect until 1 August - as the school would not pay double rent for even a day! We then asked what suggestions they had as they knew we were going to the UK on Friday! With some negotiation, managed to arrange access to our new apartment to one room on Thursday afternoon, where we could store all our stuff while away. We also had to 'check out' of our current apartment, and graciously they agreed to check us out on Thursday night, but allow us to stay until Friday morning. Phew.
So calmly put Ellie to bed. Then frantically started serious packing - everything, all the plates, cutlery, cooking stuff, the things you do need on a day to day basis. Wednesday was spent packing everything else, but trying to leave Ellie's room appearing outwardly normal until the last minute. Bless our Ayi for staying back for a couple of extra hours to help with cleaning as we finished each room!
Thursday the removalists came at 11am and needed to make 2 trips to our new place. The real estate agent then had the audacity to ask us if she could come earlier to check us out, so she could go home earlier. I really haven't conveyed how poor the service was with these guys... how many times we reiterated that we were travelling, that we had kids to consider, that safety was paramount, that we didn't like brocade wallpaper or heavy Chinese furniture, that we wanted to be walking distance from school, that it needed a full size oven, that we wanted one bedroom to have a single bed (we have settled on just having the 3rd King Size bed removed), etc, etc. I really wish I'd pushed the check out time to later, just to be annoying, but we passed it all with flying colours.
Friday 9am, we dropped the last keys we had in the letterbox and headed out to Pudong airport again... goodbye China, hello Wales!!
PS - about the airport - it was a breeze with 2 adults! Ellie could run around with one of us, and the other sat with Jamie and the luggage...
Thursday 16 July 2009
Wednesday 15 July 2009
... and back again
I was pretty sad to leave Mum and Dad at Brisbane airport. It was a wonderful 2 weeks with them, and they'd been wonderful carers of my darling kids while I completed a week long course in Hervey Bay. Ellie had been pretty cute too, saying to them that she'd "come back quite soon" when they said they were a bit sad she was heading back to China.
My flight to Sydney was lovely, and the views from the plane were stunning, but arriving in Sydney was bedlam. Our only saving grace was a trip on the motorised buggy that drives along the concourse at the airport to get us down to the international transfer section. All went swimmingly until we got off the bus at international - then there was suddenly NOBODY around. We were the last off the bus, and so all other passengers had gone, and the only way to get up was using escalators. There was a lift which was not operational. Ellie is not quite 2 and a half - she hasn't had that much experience with escalators, not enough to do it without holding a grown up hand... what hand could she hold? I was carrying the hand luggage, Big Ted and had Jamie strapped to me... in the end I put the luggage on the escalator, grabbed her, pulled her on, let go and flung the luggage off at the top and then grabbed her arm and lifted - lucky no dislocations!
Then we proceeded through the customs and immigration sections. Ellie had a harness on, something that I've always abhorred, but I needed it for on my own, and I knew it in advance. We were ushered into the 'quick' or 'special assistance' queue, but it was neither. And in the blink of an eye Ellie slipped out of my grip (while holding Jamie, the carry on luggage and Big Ted) and raced into the general queue. I screamed out for her to come back, and a lady in a uniform stepped OUT OF HER WAY. I lost it then. I yelled at the woman why didn't she stop her, with a few choice expletives thrown in for good measure as I barged past banging the carry on into people and dropping Big Ted. Fortunately another passenger in the queue worked out why I was behaving like a lunatic and grabbed Ellie's arm and held onto her until I got there. I then manhandled her (and Jamie, and the carry on) back to our space in the special assistance line retrieving Big Ted along the way. And as I went past the uniformed lady who had let Ellie escape told me she wasn't allowed to touch passengers - GRRRRR, I nearly decked her, fortunately no hand was free.
Through customs finally and got a trolley. Put all carry on and Big Ted into trolley and then hoisted Ellie into the baby seat. Finally felt like I was in some form of control. Then over the loudspeaker: "Paging X, Y and the De Borde Family, recently arrived from Brisbane. Your flight QF129 is awaiting departure. Please go straight to the terminal or contact Qantas ground staff". WHERE WERE ANY OF THE QANTAS GROUND STAFF?? Anyway, ploughed on and reached the gate, where I promptly burst into tears. By now both kids needed nappy changes, I needed something. Then suddenly all these lovely Qantas ladies were around, gave me a glass of water, took my luggage, and assisted me in changing the kids before we boarded.
Finally collapsed into my seat, got kids sorted out, and we were off! Shanghai bound! Luckily for me the lovely family who helped me out on the way over were on our flight home too. So arriving in Shanghai, they were most helpful in herding Ellie in the right direction, as well as making her keen to walk. When other kids are around Ellie is a great little walker, when there aren't she just wants to be carried.
Best bit was coming through into the concourse and seeing Mike. Ellie just ran to him. We were so glad that there were no issues for us with respect to swine flu quarantine, that had been my angst that we would have been locked in quarantine for the 5 days before we headed to the UK!!
I was so happy to have my family together again!!
My flight to Sydney was lovely, and the views from the plane were stunning, but arriving in Sydney was bedlam. Our only saving grace was a trip on the motorised buggy that drives along the concourse at the airport to get us down to the international transfer section. All went swimmingly until we got off the bus at international - then there was suddenly NOBODY around. We were the last off the bus, and so all other passengers had gone, and the only way to get up was using escalators. There was a lift which was not operational. Ellie is not quite 2 and a half - she hasn't had that much experience with escalators, not enough to do it without holding a grown up hand... what hand could she hold? I was carrying the hand luggage, Big Ted and had Jamie strapped to me... in the end I put the luggage on the escalator, grabbed her, pulled her on, let go and flung the luggage off at the top and then grabbed her arm and lifted - lucky no dislocations!Then we proceeded through the customs and immigration sections. Ellie had a harness on, something that I've always abhorred, but I needed it for on my own, and I knew it in advance. We were ushered into the 'quick' or 'special assistance' queue, but it was neither. And in the blink of an eye Ellie slipped out of my grip (while holding Jamie, the carry on luggage and Big Ted) and raced into the general queue. I screamed out for her to come back, and a lady in a uniform stepped OUT OF HER WAY. I lost it then. I yelled at the woman why didn't she stop her, with a few choice expletives thrown in for good measure as I barged past banging the carry on into people and dropping Big Ted. Fortunately another passenger in the queue worked out why I was behaving like a lunatic and grabbed Ellie's arm and held onto her until I got there. I then manhandled her (and Jamie, and the carry on) back to our space in the special assistance line retrieving Big Ted along the way. And as I went past the uniformed lady who had let Ellie escape told me she wasn't allowed to touch passengers - GRRRRR, I nearly decked her, fortunately no hand was free.
Through customs finally and got a trolley. Put all carry on and Big Ted into trolley and then hoisted Ellie into the baby seat. Finally felt like I was in some form of control. Then over the loudspeaker: "Paging X, Y and the De Borde Family, recently arrived from Brisbane. Your flight QF129 is awaiting departure. Please go straight to the terminal or contact Qantas ground staff". WHERE WERE ANY OF THE QANTAS GROUND STAFF?? Anyway, ploughed on and reached the gate, where I promptly burst into tears. By now both kids needed nappy changes, I needed something. Then suddenly all these lovely Qantas ladies were around, gave me a glass of water, took my luggage, and assisted me in changing the kids before we boarded.
Finally collapsed into my seat, got kids sorted out, and we were off! Shanghai bound! Luckily for me the lovely family who helped me out on the way over were on our flight home too. So arriving in Shanghai, they were most helpful in herding Ellie in the right direction, as well as making her keen to walk. When other kids are around Ellie is a great little walker, when there aren't she just wants to be carried.Best bit was coming through into the concourse and seeing Mike. Ellie just ran to him. We were so glad that there were no issues for us with respect to swine flu quarantine, that had been my angst that we would have been locked in quarantine for the 5 days before we headed to the UK!!
I was so happy to have my family together again!!
Tuesday 14 July 2009
From China to Australia...
Last month I embarked on a massive undertaking to take the two littles to Australia on my own. We were flying from Shanghai to Sydney, then to Brisbane. We arrived at Shanghai airport to find out that our flight had been delayed 2 hours due to late incoming plane. No problem, was OK to manage Ellie and Jamie for the extra time, with the added bonus - so to speak - of a dinner voucher, eating always helps fill in the time.
When the 2 hour delay was up, we meandered down to the gate, only to find out that due to a quarantine issue the plane was delayed a further half hour. By this time I had met a lovely lady who was also travelling alone with her 2 kids... her advantage (in my view) was that they were 8 and 10 and understood the delay bit and did not run away like a bat out of hell. My advantage was that these 2 little girls entertained Ellie, whom I could not run after while carrying all our carry on luggage plus Jamie! What was really unfortunate was that the plane was then delayed a further half hour 3 more times - so all up we were delayed for 5 hours!
Getting on that plane was a blessed relief, as Ellie was now contained. Also as it was now after 11.30pm she was also dog tired - so sleep on that trip was constant. I could then focus on how excited I was to be getting back to the west!!
Since living in China, I have held Australia in very high regard. Every time something has caused us some level of difficulty, I have always thought "That wouldn't happen in Australia". I have missed drinking water straight from the tap; I have missed the road rule that it is illegal to hit a pedestrian; I have missed being able to express myself clearly and concisely. Arriving in Sydney, my illusion was quickly shattered.
Herding Ellie through customs to the domestic transfer was awkward. No one official was there to help me, as with two small children collection of luggage off carousel was not easy, I had managed to acquire a Qantas stroller in the international airport, and a lady actually told me I couldn't take it through customs and over to the domestic airport (I decided that I was not going to be shot if I disobeyed that instruction, so I kept it anyway). I was disappointed at Sydney airport for the lack of service, the filth in the toilets and the general state of disrepair. (And it is considered to be owned by my ex-employer which made me all the crosser.)
Arriving in Brisbane was a joy! Mum and Dad were standing at the top of the boardwalk waiting for us to disembark. Finally things were easy - didn't have to worry about Ellie running off (although it took a bit to pry her off Dad's neck), they were there to help with the luggage, and then down to the Gold Coast for a week of relaxation! NOT!
After having had success with getting Jamie's citizenship sorted out, I then proceeded to contact various government organisations to get him included on our Medicare card and apply for the baby bonus. Unfortunately both of these things are unavailable to him. I had understood before we left for Shanghai that we were entitled to the baby bonus, especially as our income test was going to have dropped significantly... what everyone before I left that I spoke to neglected to tell me was that we had to be living back in the country before he is 6 months old - I thought I had language barriers in China! Medicare - again not eligible until he is resident, but once resident will be eligible immediately. At least St George let me open a bank account for him (opened with the AUD equivalent of his modelling job in China)!
We had a family trip to Seaworld - largely for Ellie's benefit. But even this was disappointing - it has been over 15 years since I last went to Seaworld, and I think they have not done any work on it since then! The audio system at the Penguins feeding display wasn't working; the audio at the waterskiing show was dreadful and the show was out of date and had little continuity; the food available was all expensive 'fast food' junk - and Seaworld have the audacity to announce that from 1st July you aren't allowed to bring food in; the toilets / facilities weren't spotless. Having said that we had a good day, Ellie loved the dolphins and the aquarium, and it was her first time having unlimited rides and she particularly enjoyed a Big Bird ride which was only for kids, so she got to go on it alone!
The other thing that bothered me in Australia is the rubbish. If someone drops something, or misses the bin, they leave it. In China litter doesn't seem to exist, but there are people who have jobs that are responsible for keeping a strip of public road clean and tidy, and they are proud of their job and do it well, and for that you see nary a cigarette butt. Similarly public bathrooms.
I had another moment in Coles which made me laugh. I was cooking a Chinese feast for my family and needed some Chinese cooking wine (3RMB in Shanghai) and looking at the selection of Chinese ingredients made me laugh. I remember being bewildered by choice when we first arrived in Shanghai, but now am aware of the slight differences between things and know what I like! I also had an altercation with a checkout boy - I won, but he wasn't happy, and it was all to do with a ten dollar note, and a pile of coins.
There were lots of good things too...
I loved catching up with so many members of my family and lots of friends while we were there. And appreciated the effort that you made to come and see us, especially to meet Jamie.
I loved the beautiful Australian countryside - we drove to Hervey Bay from the Gold Coast and some of the scenery was stunning - the Glasshouse Mountains and all along the Fraser Coast. (No we didn't make it across to Fraser Island - next time.)
I loved breathing fresh, clean air and drinking tap water, and not having a coronary each time Ellie had a sip of her bath water.
I loved driving on the right (read proper, correct, ie left) side of the road, and having a go of Dad's new BMW.
I love the blue skies.
When the 2 hour delay was up, we meandered down to the gate, only to find out that due to a quarantine issue the plane was delayed a further half hour. By this time I had met a lovely lady who was also travelling alone with her 2 kids... her advantage (in my view) was that they were 8 and 10 and understood the delay bit and did not run away like a bat out of hell. My advantage was that these 2 little girls entertained Ellie, whom I could not run after while carrying all our carry on luggage plus Jamie! What was really unfortunate was that the plane was then delayed a further half hour 3 more times - so all up we were delayed for 5 hours!
Getting on that plane was a blessed relief, as Ellie was now contained. Also as it was now after 11.30pm she was also dog tired - so sleep on that trip was constant. I could then focus on how excited I was to be getting back to the west!!
Since living in China, I have held Australia in very high regard. Every time something has caused us some level of difficulty, I have always thought "That wouldn't happen in Australia". I have missed drinking water straight from the tap; I have missed the road rule that it is illegal to hit a pedestrian; I have missed being able to express myself clearly and concisely. Arriving in Sydney, my illusion was quickly shattered.
Herding Ellie through customs to the domestic transfer was awkward. No one official was there to help me, as with two small children collection of luggage off carousel was not easy, I had managed to acquire a Qantas stroller in the international airport, and a lady actually told me I couldn't take it through customs and over to the domestic airport (I decided that I was not going to be shot if I disobeyed that instruction, so I kept it anyway). I was disappointed at Sydney airport for the lack of service, the filth in the toilets and the general state of disrepair. (And it is considered to be owned by my ex-employer which made me all the crosser.)
Arriving in Brisbane was a joy! Mum and Dad were standing at the top of the boardwalk waiting for us to disembark. Finally things were easy - didn't have to worry about Ellie running off (although it took a bit to pry her off Dad's neck), they were there to help with the luggage, and then down to the Gold Coast for a week of relaxation! NOT!After having had success with getting Jamie's citizenship sorted out, I then proceeded to contact various government organisations to get him included on our Medicare card and apply for the baby bonus. Unfortunately both of these things are unavailable to him. I had understood before we left for Shanghai that we were entitled to the baby bonus, especially as our income test was going to have dropped significantly... what everyone before I left that I spoke to neglected to tell me was that we had to be living back in the country before he is 6 months old - I thought I had language barriers in China! Medicare - again not eligible until he is resident, but once resident will be eligible immediately. At least St George let me open a bank account for him (opened with the AUD equivalent of his modelling job in China)!
We had a family trip to Seaworld - largely for Ellie's benefit. But even this was disappointing - it has been over 15 years since I last went to Seaworld, and I think they have not done any work on it since then! The audio system at the Penguins feeding display wasn't working; the audio at the waterskiing show was dreadful and the show was out of date and had little continuity; the food available was all expensive 'fast food' junk - and Seaworld have the audacity to announce that from 1st July you aren't allowed to bring food in; the toilets / facilities weren't spotless. Having said that we had a good day, Ellie loved the dolphins and the aquarium, and it was her first time having unlimited rides and she particularly enjoyed a Big Bird ride which was only for kids, so she got to go on it alone!The other thing that bothered me in Australia is the rubbish. If someone drops something, or misses the bin, they leave it. In China litter doesn't seem to exist, but there are people who have jobs that are responsible for keeping a strip of public road clean and tidy, and they are proud of their job and do it well, and for that you see nary a cigarette butt. Similarly public bathrooms.
I had another moment in Coles which made me laugh. I was cooking a Chinese feast for my family and needed some Chinese cooking wine (3RMB in Shanghai) and looking at the selection of Chinese ingredients made me laugh. I remember being bewildered by choice when we first arrived in Shanghai, but now am aware of the slight differences between things and know what I like! I also had an altercation with a checkout boy - I won, but he wasn't happy, and it was all to do with a ten dollar note, and a pile of coins.
There were lots of good things too...
I loved catching up with so many members of my family and lots of friends while we were there. And appreciated the effort that you made to come and see us, especially to meet Jamie.
I loved the beautiful Australian countryside - we drove to Hervey Bay from the Gold Coast and some of the scenery was stunning - the Glasshouse Mountains and all along the Fraser Coast. (No we didn't make it across to Fraser Island - next time.)
I loved breathing fresh, clean air and drinking tap water, and not having a coronary each time Ellie had a sip of her bath water.
I loved driving on the right (read proper, correct, ie left) side of the road, and having a go of Dad's new BMW.
I love the blue skies.
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