Tidbits From the World

Final exams next week… Monday: Listening Comprehension; Tuesday: Reading Comprehension; Wednesday: Writing; Thursday: Spoken Chinese.

The topic of today’s article is my journey from Montreal to Xi’an, in March 2009.

These were my luggage… one backpack, a suitcase and a shoulder-strap bag.

I said good-bye to my dog for the last time before departure…

But she yawned at my face!

Then I hopped into my father’s car. He drove me to Montreal Pierre-Elliot-Trudeau Airport.

This was no direct flight. There would be two stop-overs: one in New York City and one in Beijing.

The first leg of the journey was Montreal-New York City, a short 45-minute flight in a small aircraft.

In that kind of short-distance flight, you don’t get a meal on-board. All you get is a can of Coke.

A couple of seconds after take-off, I could see my house (in this photo, in the upper-right corner) and the prison nearby… in the lower-left corner.

The same building pictured from two different angles.

Manhattan Island, New York.

I had 4 hours to kill in the airport…

At first glance, this picture looks innocent.

Until one notices the picture that was left over on the tarmac!

Time for a meal at McDonald’s.

…

“Why are our fries THE GOLD STANDARD? -Because only a select number of potato varieties make the cut. I’m loving it ®”

“Here’s to YOU. A toast to your wisdom, clever drink buyer – You have selected a classic fountain beverage, precisely mixed for maximum refreshment. I’m loving it ®”

“There is only ONE BIG MAC.”

Here is an interesting example of how a public personality can be viewed in complete opposite ways in different parts of the world. In China, this man is considered as an assassin, a terrorist, a separatist, a slave-owner and a religious extremist, whereas in the West, he is considered as a great philosopher yearning for peace. He was the Nobel Peace Prize-winner in 1989.

The waiting room…

A Chinese traveller plays basketball on his laptop.

The marvellous Boeing 747, one of the largest objects to fly on Earth.

Three meals were served on board. The first meal: a sandwich and a drink (a soft drink, a juice or a Chinese red or white wine (Great Wall)).

Rice, vegetables, some meat, a piece of bread, a salad, a dessert and a drink.

Noodles, vegetables, meat, bread, salad, fruits salad, and a drink.

We flew over the Arctic Ocean.

Mountains in Asia.

Somewhere in Mongolia, a town stands in the middle of Gobi desert!

Beijing. We are flying over a whole new district under construction. How many towers under construction can you see?

It is forbidden to smoke in airplanes, anywhere in the world (except maybe in Tajikistan, according to a Tajikistani student who said in the classroom that he smoked in the plane on his way to China). So, I wonder why do aircraft manufacturers still include ashtrays in their new planes.

Now, it’s time for the last leg: Beijing – Xi’an, in a good ol’ Chinese plane…

That is, a plane why no leg room at all, and three seats on each side of the rows, in economy class.

Really not the place you want to be if you are claustrophobic!

The flight had a duration of a little less than two hours.

Voilà! Arrival at Xi’an.