Thursday, February 15, 2007
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Lost in Deportation?
Life works in mysterious ways, personally I often feel very alienated in airports or on plane rides. I'm sure I have been on planes at least a couple hundred times, and the feeling is still the same. Its probably because airports/planes often signifies that you are leaving someplace or someone behind. My soul would often have a sense of vacantness or emptiness during the time between airport to airport.
Well today, I rather had a very interesting experience in this PVG airport. When I got off the plane in PVG, I dashed as always to the immigration(I know my ways in this airport, I know the quickest lane out etc etc) I stood in line flilled in my form..and franticly trying to get my ID out it time. Alas.. its my turn..but wait..where is my ID.. I dug and I dug...nothing.. its ok..I'll just stand aside (but still in line of coz)..and wait till I find it. Minutes passed, the immigration officer told me to go to the back of the room so that I could find space to open my carry on luggage to continue to find my ID. Sigh.. well.. no choice then. So I walked back to the end of the room....
Half an hour later, I painfully realised that I lost my China ID card. So I walked to the guard on the side and told him my situation, there he radio-ed someone..saying I lost my card..and told me that the ground crew will try to check on it . 20mins later..this other lady..came to him and told him the same case, apparently she has a flight to catch at 9pm, it was just 4:30 by then so still tonnes of time. Then after a while I realised that there is this girl..that was sort of waiting too. Then she started to grow very impatient then not long after the crew returned her passport back to her. So in my mind, I was thinking hmm..so ok..it can't be too bad..."ERRRRRRRRtTTTT" ..wrong..
So after 2 hrs or People's Magazine and Vogue reading, I chatted up the lady who also lost her passport. And I asked the guard, is there any possibility fo rme to go thru. The FM(Shanghai Airlines) person finally came to find me, and accompanied to the visa office. Well let me tell you folks.. HK ID doesn't mean shit..in China..eventhough I told them that i had another ID which was my working permit, but it was in my office, they did not care. And for you Canadians out there, you are not welcome here either, eventhough we are the friendliest bunch. Your passport doesn't mean shit either without a visa. So now that I realized I have no alternate way to charm my way thru the customs... I call my BOSSSSSSS...which I really didn't want to do... and she goes.. why didn't you tell me earlier??? And now..my cell is out of battery and reach.. so she sent a person from MU to take care of me..and that she can call that person's cell to get in touch.
Now..my stupid plane had already turned around to HKG, so i have to wait for the news if they found my ID or not. The last flight back to HK is 8:30, and the plane would touch down in HK is 7:30, so it means if they can find it, then I don't have to go back. But if they don't, I have to catch the plane back to HK. DRAMA......
And from all this time, I was chatting up with the security guard. So what do to talk about with someone in which you find that you have absoulutly nothing in common with?? "The development of Shanghai, AND Celebrity gossip" Thank god for the tabloids...
So its around 8, and I finally recieved news that they found my ID, from the MU person, not FM. Then the whilst sitting and waiting for my ID to get on the return - return flight, which is due to arrive at 11:00, 2 MU managers came down to find me, then brought me to the VIP lounge in the departure hall, I went thru stairs with the security, went thru the security post, put my stuff thru the metal detectors AGAIN, i didn't have my boarding pass, so the MU ppl just goes..she's a passenger, and they let me in. Then we walked to the VIP lounge with coffee tea snacks and internet access.
Morale of the story "Don't be an idiot and lose your freaking traveling docs, and know the right people if you are in China"
Well today, I rather had a very interesting experience in this PVG airport. When I got off the plane in PVG, I dashed as always to the immigration(I know my ways in this airport, I know the quickest lane out etc etc) I stood in line flilled in my form..and franticly trying to get my ID out it time. Alas.. its my turn..but wait..where is my ID.. I dug and I dug...nothing.. its ok..I'll just stand aside (but still in line of coz)..and wait till I find it. Minutes passed, the immigration officer told me to go to the back of the room so that I could find space to open my carry on luggage to continue to find my ID. Sigh.. well.. no choice then. So I walked back to the end of the room....
Half an hour later, I painfully realised that I lost my China ID card. So I walked to the guard on the side and told him my situation, there he radio-ed someone..saying I lost my card..and told me that the ground crew will try to check on it . 20mins later..this other lady..came to him and told him the same case, apparently she has a flight to catch at 9pm, it was just 4:30 by then so still tonnes of time. Then after a while I realised that there is this girl..that was sort of waiting too. Then she started to grow very impatient then not long after the crew returned her passport back to her. So in my mind, I was thinking hmm..so ok..it can't be too bad..."ERRRRRRRRtTTTT" ..wrong..
So after 2 hrs or People's Magazine and Vogue reading, I chatted up the lady who also lost her passport. And I asked the guard, is there any possibility fo rme to go thru. The FM(Shanghai Airlines) person finally came to find me, and accompanied to the visa office. Well let me tell you folks.. HK ID doesn't mean shit..in China..eventhough I told them that i had another ID which was my working permit, but it was in my office, they did not care. And for you Canadians out there, you are not welcome here either, eventhough we are the friendliest bunch. Your passport doesn't mean shit either without a visa. So now that I realized I have no alternate way to charm my way thru the customs... I call my BOSSSSSSS...which I really didn't want to do... and she goes.. why didn't you tell me earlier??? And now..my cell is out of battery and reach.. so she sent a person from MU to take care of me..and that she can call that person's cell to get in touch.
Now..my stupid plane had already turned around to HKG, so i have to wait for the news if they found my ID or not. The last flight back to HK is 8:30, and the plane would touch down in HK is 7:30, so it means if they can find it, then I don't have to go back. But if they don't, I have to catch the plane back to HK. DRAMA......
And from all this time, I was chatting up with the security guard. So what do to talk about with someone in which you find that you have absoulutly nothing in common with?? "The development of Shanghai, AND Celebrity gossip" Thank god for the tabloids...
So its around 8, and I finally recieved news that they found my ID, from the MU person, not FM. Then the whilst sitting and waiting for my ID to get on the return - return flight, which is due to arrive at 11:00, 2 MU managers came down to find me, then brought me to the VIP lounge in the departure hall, I went thru stairs with the security, went thru the security post, put my stuff thru the metal detectors AGAIN, i didn't have my boarding pass, so the MU ppl just goes..she's a passenger, and they let me in. Then we walked to the VIP lounge with coffee tea snacks and internet access.
Morale of the story "Don't be an idiot and lose your freaking traveling docs, and know the right people if you are in China"
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