Call Me "Ms. Flexible"

OK, anyone who knows me well is laughing.....a bit driven, type-A, uber focused at times....flexibility is not on my top ten lists of attributes....

But if I have learned anything about planning at trip as a FIT (and having read plenty of blogs to drive this point home....) is that independent travel to China requires quite a bit of flexibility, and that is what has BEEN FORCED UPON ME!!!!!

CTS tried to convince me that one to four days before travel to Xian they MIGHT be able to get these train tickets. But we weren't willing to risk it. I felt bad for Ian...this was HIS sidetrip. But the warriors have been there for a mighty long time. Needing no excuse to return to China, we will find a way to pay them a visit in the not too distant future. We are flying to Hefei instead of taking the train to ChaoHu. More logistics to figure out!

So we have added two more days to Beijing, and if the pollution doesn't kill us, we will find PLENTY to do during this time. A short list of Beijing's "To Do" items would take a good week, and now we have a fighting chance of seeing many of them, girls willing.

My other undertaking today, also unsuccessful, was to unlock my phone so that I could take it to China, purchase a SIM card, and be able to use my cell phone while in China. I will do a separate post on this...it is very possible to do this and with the right phone, a very smart way of having ready communication while travelling. But my Nokia phone does not support China telecom's frequency. We are looking into purchasing a phone...Ian thinks we might be able to use this on future trips. If it is afforable, it will be a good move. FITs need mobile communication!