Boarding the plane

You chose a Chinese airline because it was cheaper.

"Nihao, welcome on board," the flight attendant said, her accent thick but warm. Your first chance to practice Mandarin.

{lock "Enter hello as lowercase letters" answer "nihao"}

You managed to say hi back.

{if game:chinese_proficiency >= 5}

Your tone is decent—she’s impressed and flashes you a playful smile.

{else}

She barely understands, but a smile still spreads across her face. She appreciates the effort.

{endif}

{endlock}

She asks for your boarding pass. It always annoys you a little—you know how to board a plane, and the request just reminds you that you didn’t get to choose your seat at check-in.

"62B," she said.

Your seat is on the left side of the plane, but it’s the middle one—B. No great view outside, no easy access to the aisle. One of the worst spots. As you make your way through the cabin, your native language fades. Almost everyone is speaking Chinese. You catch only fragments of rushed English from the flight attendants and pilots, as is airline tradition. Your first culture shock.

The flight will be long—almost 11 hours. And after landing, you’ll have to board another plane before reaching your final destination: a "small" city recommended by a coworker for its culture and authenticity. Still, it has over 5 million inhabitants. Anyway, you can’t arrive soon enough.

62B. Your seat is right there. You stow your luggage in the overhead compartment and settle in. For now, the row is empty. Since you were one of the last to board, you might even stretch out or lie down—if there are no turbulences.