i was an expat in shanghai, pudong for 3 years
with a maid, driver, apartment
i flew upstairs in 747s 10s of times direct flights and got to know the pilot
the seats reclined into beds
would wake up as a the sun was coming up and breakfast was served
the best memory I have is a US customs agent looking at my passport after 13 months abroad, looking up at me eye to eye and saying “welcome home”
love my county
So glad you’re home, too. Wonderful memories.
I’m terrified of airplanes so IBM Research used to send me cross country multiple times a year by train. I’d bounce off the walls of the compartment for the first day, then gradually relax and get to my meetings a few days later in condition to start all over again.
As an avid devourer of Chinese dramas, I see Shanghai scenes frequently and am most surprised by the level of smog out the high rise windows. Can you feel that in the air you breathe there?