Destination: China

Bruce and Peter awaiting luggage in the Shanghai airport

[Ed.Note: A team of 13 travelers, led by Peter Lim, are touring China on the annual fall Presbyterian Mission Heritage vision trip. Twelve participants are from First Presbyterian Church, Wilmington, NC, which has a 100+ year history with the city of Jiangyin. One participant is from Whitworth Community Presbyterian in Spokane where Peter lives. The team blogger, Bruce Gibson, will be sending entries as time and internet availability permits!]October 17-18 Travel Days Enroute to Guilin, China The Wilmington team arrived at the airport at approximately 4:15 am. Our bags were tagged for Pudong airport in Shanghai and we hope that the tags will guide them all to our destination. We flew to Charlotte, connected with our flight to Chicago – Ohare and then flew non-stop from the windy city to Shanghai, a mere 14-1/2 hour flight.

We were met by Peter Lim at the airport in Shanghai and did some touring while we waited out our 7 hour layover. We rode the Maglev train into town. That was a nice experience. The Maglev train travels at speeds up to 400 km/hr (250 mph) by levitating over a smooth track using repelling force of two magnetic fields. It is German technology and is a demonstration project in China. We were joined by Jan from Peter’s church in Spokane just before we left for Guilin. Glad to have her with our group.

Coming upon 35 hours of travel, the weary team awaits the final leg of their journey.

After a dinner in the Shanghai airport, we boarded for our 2 hour flight to Guilin. We were met in Guilin by a light rain and the bright face of Tracy our guide for the next two days. We arrived finally at our hotel in Guilin about 2 AM Friday morning, 35 hours after leaving Wilmington. Quite a journey so far. A lovely hotel room and an inviting bed were welcome sights.

Peace and Faith Bruce