There's No Place Like Hostel

In the months leading up to China and Aaron and I getting married, we decided that we should probably travel around China just a tad; because going over and staying holed up in Beijing seemed like a waste. We planned to go to Nanjing, Shanghai, and Zhenjiang before heading up to start school and do actual productive things. Starting in Shanghai seemed like a good idea, so we decided to fly into Shanghai and then just take a train up to Beijing after. But for some silly reason it was cheaper to fly to Beijing first, and then Shanghai after. This was slightly puzzling but who's to argue with cheaper tickets? We ended up finding out that the only flight we can take is one with a whopping 14 hours layover in Beijing. Yeah… that might have been a mistake. We basically sat on a folding chair for the whole 14 hours. Getting on the plane felt like heaven in comparison. And then when we finally got to the Hostel, it kind of felt too permanent; like wow, we're staying here for longer than 24 hours? I don't feel comfortable with a shower and a place where I can lay down and its still socially acceptable… Stay overnight at an airport? Check! And never to do it again. It was a good growing experience, but kind of one of those things that you never want to do again, and gives you permanent bragging rights to boot. The only thing that tops that is an almost equal amount of time in a train station on –if humanely possible–more uncomfortable chairs… Oh wait, we did that waiting for a train to Beijing… Call me crazy, but at least you know I'm adventurous.

(Just so you know those smiles are a little fake since we've 

been in the airport for around 8 hours by now)

Here are a couple pictures of the lobby in Shanghai