Flight and Arrival in Beijing

Our adventure started on November 12, 2019 when our flight left DFW airport at 10:35 in the morning. Upon arrival at the gate, we met a couple of the other VIPKid teachers (and family members) mostly since I had worn my bright orange “Teacher Twila” shirt. TIP: There will be a list of flights in the Facebook group and you can see if anyone else is on your flight. Wearing my VIPKid shirt made it easy for us to find each other. So if you can, wear orange or a Dino sticker or something that identifies you as VIPKid. We grabbed some breakfast as I wasn’t sure if/when the meals would be served on flight.

We had a direct flight on American Airlines from Dallas-Fort Worth to Beijing. The flight was right at 14 hours long. We were served two meals and a snack. A few hours into the flight the overhead lights were dimmed and the windows were tinted to simulate “night time” to help acclimate to the time difference. There was a huge choice of in-flight entertainment including music, movies, and games. I caught up on several movies that I had not seen yet including: Pokemon Detective Pikachu, Dark Phoenix, Dora and the Lost City of Gold, Isn’t it Romantic, and The Hustle.

We arrived in Beijing around 3pm. Getting our luggage and the immigration check was relatively simple. There were machines that took your fingerprints before you got to the agent. I had some difficulty getting them to read my prints until the assistant came and used a baby wipe on my fingers. The person from China Highlights transfers was waiting for us as we exited the secured area. We had to wait for awhile as they sorted out a mix-up caused by delayed flights. We waited next to a vending machine and Isaac and I tried a couple of the drinks. He ended up with a Minute Maid orange juice (we noticed the logo after he started drinking it) and I had some kind of a peach flavored juice. Many of the vending machines do not serve the drinks cold. If it doesn’t specifically say “cold” chances are that you will get a room temperature drink. Soon, we piled into a van and headed for the Penta Hotel.

Check-in at the hotel was very easy. Since we were arriving in several smaller groups, we just went up individually, showed our passports, and were given a room key. (This was a bit different in Shanghai as we all arrived at the same time.) It was about 6pm when we were checked in. We took a few minutes to put our things in the room and freshen up a bit before we met several other teachers in the lobby to go explore to find some food.

We wandered down the street where the hotel was located and there were many food selections. A couple of them looked pricey and a couple looked more like “street-food”. We chose one that wasn’t too crowded mostly because it had an English menu with pictures. The server could speak just a little English. Ordering was accomplished mostly by pointing. This would be very difficult if you had diet restrictions and you need to ask questions before you order. My son and I actually ended up with a very tasty meal including drinks for less than $9. I had the twice-cooked pork and he had a beef bowl. As a side note, getting silverware is not always easy. We had practiced using chopsticks before the trip and used chopsticks throughout the trip. You might get a spoon, but forks seem to be pretty rare.

After our meal, we went back to our hotel and prepared for the next day. The first night in China was a bit restless. We were both awake off and on throughout the morning hours. I think the jet lag getting to China was not as bad because we had stayed awake much of the flight and we were going to see so many new and exciting things. I did have some “gummy” melatonin chews that we took each night before bed, and we took a probiotic each morning to try to avoid any tummy issues.

Take Aways:

Wear something to identify you as a VIPKid teacher to find your travel companions quicker.
Immigration was not very difficult and they are prepared for large groups. We had a very smooth experience arriving in Beijing.
The travel agent made things at the hotel very seamless as well.
Look for restaurants that have menus with English and/or pictures.
Practice using chopsticks so that you aren’t lost if they can’t provide a fork (or bring some plastic silverware).
Melatonin, Allergy Medicine, Ibuprofen, Imodium, Tums, and Probiotics were in our bag for the trip. (Thankfully we didn’t need the Imodium or Tums but you never know!)
Your sleep schedule is going to be messed up….but it will be worth it.

Introduction to VIPKid Field Trip (November 2019)