August 1, 2022
Day G1: Missing a Flight at the Hangzhou Airport
After a month of lockdown recovery, it was soon time to overcome another challenge: the mental lockdown. This is where life goes supposedly back to normal but all around there are signs that it doesn't. Daily or near daily covid testing is a fact of life and most businesses want anywhere between a 24-72hr negative test result to enter. So you get into a habit of testing on the street regularly. Aside from this, there have been sporadic covid resurgences and the rumor mill constantly grinding away about a return to lockdown.
The mental aspect takes longer to overcome, in fact it could take years. Counselors for lockdown PTSD are booked solid and it was impossible to make an appointment as they were all dealing with the same clientele. I found another form of therapy in group fitness which slowly reopened and by the end of July in 2022 I felt ready to do a proper trip.
I booked a two-week trip in the Shenzhen and Guangzhou area with the bike in hand and the following boxes to tick off:
- Continue the group fitness in Shenzhen
- Revert back to healthy food diet and lose the lockdown fat
- Partying in Guangzhou at Party Pier, specifically Zapata's
- Ride the bike from Guangzhou to Shenzhen
- Spend quality time with my wife who would join me near the end of the trip
The trip started by packing up the Montague folding bike and setting off for the train station. It felt weird traveling along as the past three months I had spent so much time with my wife in this shared lockdown experience. Her help had been enormous and I couldn't have survived lockdown without her. At this point I began to wonder if I had lost my ability to travel alone and all the street smarts needed to pull off a trip successfully with a bike no less.
It was a hell of lot of work to lug that bike around the train station but I got on and the trip was off to a supposedly smooth start. The train arrived in Hangzhou and that's when things got crazy. There was no clear way to exit the train station, and I kept getting blocked and told to "register". I had no idea where, but eventually got directed to an area where "registration" consisted of scanning a QR code and filling out a detailed form, all in Chinese of course. Most I could read and an attendant helped me translate the rest. They wanted to know all the details of where I had been including what seat I took on the train and my plans. The idea was simply to get to the Hangzhou airport for a cheaper flight to Shenzhen (70% less apparently). I was hoping to ride, but all this time lugging around a heavy bike from checkpoint to checkpoint in the broiling hot weather was eating into my plans.
After all this registration, they wanted me to do a covid test which was conveniently set up in the station. Fair enough, but I had just done one the day before in Shanghai. Not one to argue, I did the test anyway and took a photo of my passport saying I had done the test which would grant me access to exit the station. And so I did.
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It was interesting to see far less mask wearing, about 50% or less, and people in the shops weren't wearing them either. Hangzhou felt like another world and they never had a lockdown which would explain this rather relaxed attitude. Maybe that's why they were so strict at the train station.
I hardly got much distance in then it was time to call in a taxi. The guy was chatty which is what I didn't want. This meant I had to make up a story about where I work etc.. and not let on that I had come from Shanghai. I knew enough about Hangzhou, our neighboring city, to pull this story off.
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Once at the airport it was being renovated beyond recognition but it was still easy to access. The challenge would be getting in. Since applying for a Hangzhou health code, it wasn't clear if my covid tests from yesterday would be linked. The news said that just recently the central government mandated it so that all covid tests are recognized nationwide. This was a very positive development since before it was all based on local city health codes. The system must have worked as my 24hr negative test was linked and I checked in. The train station test would end up being useful for later as you'll see.
Check-in was smooth and the bike all ready to go and through security was a breeze. With lots of time to chill and finally time to relax after all the adventure of just getting to an airport in a neighboring city, I decided to enjoy Starbucks. That ended up being a huge mistake.
With around 25 minutes to flight departure time I mosied over to the gate and by the time I got there it was 15 minutes before departure. Well the gate was closed. I couldn't believe this. It could have all been avoided by just skipping Starbucks or getting to the gate faster. Even worse, the gate staff had all abandoned their posts and just fucked off. The entire section of gates was abandoned with all the other flights having left also.
I was able to recall that this is how they do things in China, it is pre-punctual. The planes will leave early. It was a shock to the system to re-adapt to travel after the lockdown. Also with all the years and years of delayed flights before covid it seems now with so few people traveling there is nothing to delay the planes anymore.
This was a huge pissoff but there was nothing to be done except get back to the airline counter and explain what happened. Even security was like why are you going back, there is still time before departure. I told them most definitely there is not.
They re-directed me back to the ticket office where thankfully it wasn't too much of a penalty to change the flight to the next one and that would leave in just over an hour. So I hustled back to oversize luggage and explained to them what was happening since they had obviously pulled my luggage. I got the new boarding pass and they laughed and put my luggage through again. I asked the counter agent, "Is this normal the planes will leave early like this?" She said "Yes, next time you need to make sure you're there 20 minutes early or they'll close the gate" I heard her say this to several other passengers so clearly this was a thing.
Finally I got on the flight and it left early of course. It would have been the same time as if my first flight was only delayed by a little.
Today's ride: 30 km (19 miles)
Total: 1,636 km (1,016 miles)
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