The following morning was a quick wake up, before hitting the subway (pre rush hour) to catch the airport express. It’s was a seamless option, rather than get stuck in beijing commuter traffic and pay 3 times much. Hong Kong airways had tough time checking us in; automatically assigned to different seats as Emily was travelling on her maiden name.
After some negotiation we were off, with a stop over in Hongkong.
Beijing was amazing. It was great to come back to after so many years and explore the sights and tastes with Emily. I was also a refreshing change to be able to speak some mandarin, interacting with people on a different level, and ensuring we paid the local price. 8yrs of learning Mandarin wasn’t a waste. It’s true, the only way to learn a language is to be immersed in it. China we will be back !

Vietnam here we come !