WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20^TH – SHENZHEN TO HONG KONG – MY FAVORITE PLACE IN THE WORLD!
Everyone was in the lobby on time and we left for the border crossing.  I was hoping it would be much simpler this time since we were leaving a communist country and going into Hong Kong.  Ha!  Not so.  We drove for about 10 minutes and were already at the border.  When we came in, the border was about 30 minutes from the hotel, so I thought it was very strange that we arrived so quickly.   Had to take all our luggage and gear off the bus and go through passport control and security scanning, then back on the bus.  They took our little departure slips out of our passports.  When we got back on the bus – Ivan (our escort) told us that we had to go through two border crossings.  Supposedly the border where we came into Shenzhen was not open until 6:30 am, so that’s the reason we had to go through 2 different border crossings.  We drove for about 5 minutes and had to do the whole process again….only this time we had to fill out arrival cards again.
Arrive exactly on time at the airport and Delta would not allow them to check in as a group.  I stayed until everyone was checked in and went through the security line.  The drummer had to come back out because they would not allow him to carry on his bag with all his drum sticks in it!  Amazing.   Guess he was going to terrorize the plane by poking the pilot in the eye with of the sticks.   Or maybe they were just afraid he might decide to “play” something.  LOL.  Anyway, he went back to the counter and checked it.
I had about 30 minutes to wait for my car from the hotel.  Got some coffee and changed money while I waited.  I was very apprehensive about the hotel because Iris said the rooms were really “old”.  I didn’t remember that as the case.  I was glad I had upgraded to a premium room for my stay and was hoping it would be nice.  When the driver pulled up to the front door, I realized it was NOT a hotel I had stayed at in the past.  It looked nice but it’s inside a shopping mall and very inconvenient to access.  The hotel where I have stayed is just a couple of blocks down the same street. 
My room wasn’t ready so Iris met me and had breakfast while we waited.  The person from the travel agency who was going to try and get me another Visa came and picked up my passport and paperwork.  He promised to have it back to me by 6 pm that same evening.  Sure hope it works out or I won’t be shopping in Shenzhen with Iris.
Iris went up to my room with me so she could see if it was worth her paying the extra money to upgrade.   She said mine was ten times nicer than hers.  We checked at the front desk and she was able to pay a little more per night and upgrade.  Went to her room and packed up her things and left them for the bellman to move once her room opened up.   We also stopped by and checked out the Health Club and found it to be very nice.   My room is HUGE with a fantastic view of the harbor.  I have a big king-size bed that is the most comfortable I’ve ever slept in, a desk with wireless that is slamming and a huge bathroom with a separate shower and tub and double sinks. 
We walked down Nathan Road (the Golden Mile) so I could show her all the shops.  The only purchase I made was several watches.  The cost was 3 for 159 HKD which is less than $21 U.S. ($7 each).  They are just “costume” watches but really cool. Iris purchased some sparkly bracelets.  I told her to wait until AFTER she sees what we can buy in China before spending her money here.  I did take her by my tailor (the one Charlie Daniels uses) – Peter Ng – and introduced them.  I think she’s going to come back and have a suit made while she’s here since she doesn’t leave until Monday night.  I had told her about the “spitting” problem in Hong Kong.  Evidently it’s getting better because I’m not seeing as many signs warning of a fine for spitting.  FYI, there is so much pollution that everyone’s lungs are “clogged” and they constantly spit – even out the windows of the high rise buildings.  When we were walking down the street, she felt something hit her head and totally freaked out.  Since we weren’t near any tall buildings and were actually under a tree, I figured a bird got her.  Never saw anything in her hair though.
We took the Star Ferry over to the Hong Kong side.  Lots of waves because there is a MAJOR typhoon headed this way!  More on that a little later in this report.   Hong Kong keeps “reclaiming” land so the landscape is constantly changing.  I made one wrong turn when we got off the ferry and we never found Exchange Square where all the buses are located.  We walked for a couple of miles!  Finally grabbed a taxi and said “Stanley Market” please!   The first thing we did upon arriving there was eat lunch.  Really great pizza restaurant where we had a healthy salad and light pizza and a portion of the price when to support breast cancer through the Pink Ribbon program.  Walked around the market for about an hour but didn’t purchase anything.  Waiting for China trip, of course.
Took a taxi back to the hotel and I was going to try and sleep for an hour before we went out to dinner.  THAT didn’t happen.  First I had a coughing attack (still haven’t figured out if I have a cold or it’s just allergies!).  Then when I dozed off, my friend Anders called.  I gave up and worked for about an hour and then met Iris.  The concierge recommended a Thai restaurant for us that turned out to be awesome.  We both had the green curry and it almost set my hair on fire.  Iris didn’t think it was hot at all. 
After dinner we took a taxi to the Night Market on Temple Street.  She was going crazy for all the copy bags, especially the Jimmy Choo’s.  I warned her that the quality isn’t as good as in China but she bargained on a couple anyway.  They wouldn’t come down to her price, so I was able to save her from herself and come away empty-handed.  
We went back to the hotel and she was going to work out in the gym and I was going to jog before meeting at 10 am for breakfast.  We take the train to Shenzhen tomorrow to shop, shop, shop.
Before going to bed, I checked on Typhoon Megi.  It has now been upgraded from “severe” to “super”.  It is the strongest typhoon in the South China Sea in 20 years and is expected to hit Hong Kong on Saturday – the day I am supposed to fly back to Nashville!  Not sure what I’m going to do about that…
J

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2010  - LEAVING HONG KONG.
Up at 4:30 am and ready to go at 5:30 am.   Car was waiting for me and I arrived earlier than I expected.  No problem checking in and all looks good to fly.  Guess Typhoon is hitting land somewhere else.  No news at all on it.
Went to the Lounge to answer emails.  I can sign on to Internet Explorer but can’t sign on to my AOL account!  Very frustrating. 
Had an email from Michelle who was on the tour with us.  She took over my responsibilities of “getting everyone back to Nashville” when I bailed.  Evidently when they landed in Salt Lake City, Clinton’s blood pressure was through the roof…something like 220 over 180!   They had a 5 hour layover so Michelle took him to the emergency room.  They gave him medicine to lower it and he felt good enough to fly to Nashville.  Have Penny checking on him today!
We boarded on time but left a little late because of the typhoon in the area.  It was turbulent as we flew out but not nearly as bad as I expected.  The plane is one of the newly reconfigured aircraft with the seats that lay flat which is nice….I thought.  Whoever designed the old aircraft must have also planned this one as it is pretty non-functional.  There’s nowhere to store any items except in the overhead.  The trays are located in a bin inside a panel and even the flight attendants were unable to pull them out.  It was about a 10 minute process to get it open.  The seat is the most uncomfortable I’ve ever had in first class. When it does recline to a flat position, there are two gaps – one right along the hip line and one at the bottom.  No way to ever get comfortable unless you had several pillows to put underneath your body. 
As we boarded the flight, there was a final security check and they took all our water away from us!  I wasn’t’ too concerned since I’m thinking, “Hey, it’ Delta business class and they’ll take care of us”.  Forgot what had happened on the flight over.  Not ONCE did the flight attendants voluntarily offer to bring me water.  I always had to chase them down. 
I did watch a really fun movie with Hugh Grant and Sarah Jessica Parker.  I think the title was “Do you know the Morgans”.   Worked for several hours and then slept for several hours.  Feeling a little stressed about going through Customs in Detroit.  
I watched almost all of another movie “Julia/Julie” about Julia Child.  It was great!  I got to meet her at the David Letterman Show years ago when I was up there with Waylon Jennings.  I remember how funny she was even back then.   And she was sitting in a chair in the dressing room with her knees apart and you could see all the way up her skirt.  Funny, the things we remember about these chance “celebrity” encounters!  LOL.  Unfortunately, the flight attendant had to pry the headset off my ears for landing and I didn’t get to see the end of the movie, darn it!
Landed early in Detroit so we must have made up quite a bit of time in the air.  My bag came out (I had stuffed EVERYTHING into one very heavy bag thinking I would be less “suspicious” if I only had one piece of luggage!”) and I thought my heart was going to jump out of my chest when I went through Customs.   I was sure the guy would take one look at me and send me to be searched.   Fortunately, he didn’t ask any questions and I raced to the bag re-check area.  Whew.  Now I wish I had bought lots more knock-offs.  Would have made great gifts!  LOL
Our plane was sitting at the gate for two hours before we ever boarded.  But we boarded on time and then the pilot came on to say that there was a mechanical problem with something on the plane that they use to “start the engines”.  He did not think it was something that could be repaired but maintenance had been called.  He said they were “looking for another aircraft” for our flight.  An hour later, they were able to repair the plane and we departed.  Landed an hour late in Nashville and guess what…..my bag was the ONLY one not on the plane.   They only had FOUR hours to load it so I can see how it was “misplaced”.   According to Delta, they would deliver it to me sometime after 8 am.   If it was going to get lost, I wish it had been lost between Hong Kong and Detroit.  Then I wouldn’t have had to take it through Customs.  LOL.   Had a text from Iris and she took went sightseeing at the Peak and in Hong Kong today.  She also went to the Ladies Market in Mong Kok and bought more designer shoes.   She was concerned that her watches were not working, so she went back to Shenzhen. I reminded her that the watches won’t work unless they are being “worn” if they are the self-winding Rolexes.   Last I heard from her, she was buying MORE stuff from Allan! 
Anyway, at around 10:30 pm, they FINALLY delivered the bag.  Glad to be home and love on the “Z’s”.  They are like different children entirely now that they have the tubes in their ears.   Much more “playful, talkative” and eating all the time.   Hope to be home for several weeks before heading back to Iraq with Aaron Tippin.
Jude