Day 10 - The Longest Day, Part 2

EVA Airlines was running a bit late departing for LA. We were scheduled to leave at 6:43, but they didn't even call us to the plane until 6:20. One nice thing about this airline is they let the elderly and small children board with the first class folks. When you're talking about a plane that seats 380 passengers (double-decker), you'll take any advantage you can get. So we were sent to the front of the line. As Adam would say about anything that comes out in Lego Magazine, "Sweet."

The flight didn't take off until 7:10, which didn't bother me at the time. Right after we got in the air, Sandy asked if that meant we would also be 27 minutes late arriving to LA. If only that were the case . . .

When we made our reservations, we picked a connecting flight to St. Louis that was 3 hours after the Taiwan flight arrived to LA. A month after it was booked, they moved the departure time 1 hour earlier. At the time I was thankful for getting home an hour earlier. But now, after our experience in LAX the first time, I started worrying that we would cut it too close and not make our next flight. Jon told me it wouldn't be a problem. So I quit worrying (for the moment).

The flight was pretty bumpy, as we rode the jet stream back to America. EVA Air served a meal first thing, which was pretty good. They even had special child meals, but we sometimes questioned their choices. For instance, all 4 meals our kids ate (2 breakfasts, 2 something else) contained macaroni salad. That isn't exactly my idea of kid-friendly food. Macaroni and Cheese, yes. Macaroni salad with kidney beans on a lettuce leaf, not quite. But the upside was that the child meal had sweets. Supper had M & M's. Hard to eat pasta salad when you're looking at a pouch of M & M's. Alex started eating his, then fell asleep holding one in his hand. (8:30 pm). Adam and Anna held out a little longer before falling asleep (9:30). Mom and dad joined them about 10:00. About 3:00, Sandy woke up smelling something and realized Alex had wet his pants. Every single night, she had put a pullup on him, and he had not wet it once. The one night he went to sleep too fast to get him changed, he had an accident.

What a dilemma. On the one hand, we want Alex to keep sleeping. On the other hand, the smell from his clothes is keeping us from sleeping. Agreed: We have to do something. Sandy had one last pullup with her (no extra pants), so I made the decision as head of the family to take him to the back of the plane, yank off his wet pants, and quickly clothe him with the pullup. We didn't want to carry around wet clothes, so she agreed I should stuff them in the trash (I wonder what the stewardesses thought about finding those in there later?) Returning Alex to his seat in nothing but a pull-up and t-shirt, we covered him with a blanket, and he slept another 2 or 3 hours. When he woke up, he wondered what happened to his pants. Here he is later on the flight, sans pants:


With all three kids asleep in one row, Sandy and I finally got to sit together and talk. Then they showed Racing Stripes on the plane monitors, so we watched about half of it before falling asleep again.

When we all woke up, sometime around 12:00 p.m. in LA, we were served our breakfast. So far, the meals had all been tame, even if a little strange. On the first trip, Sandy noticed that there were two choices for breakfast: scrambled eggs and rice soup. On the way there, she picked scrambled eggs. On the way back, she wanted one more taste of China and picked "rice soup". Big mistake. She couldn't enjoy any of it. There was some kind of brown stuff that looked and tasted like shredded wool. Some spicy vegetables that she couldn't identify had to be washed down with water. A weird roll that looked doughy and raw. And fortunately, the kids didn't eat all of theirs and she ate what was left.

As we got closer to LA, I was getting nervous because I couldn't remember what time the flight was to leave. Our printed tickets still had the old time written down, and I couldn't find my updated itinerary. As soon as we touched down in LA at 3:55, I called my mother-in-law to check the itinerary. When she told me the plane was leaving at 5:35, I got more nervous. Plus, our plane was stuck on the runway. Apparently, they were waiting for runway traffic to clear before we could park. So I called Mike Worstell for advice. He told me we would make it, but not to piddle around.

We finally parked at the gate around 4:15 pm, and then had to wait at the back of the plane for the other 350 to disembark. Getting off the plane, I asked about our stroller, which we had to wait about 5-10 minutes for them to retrieve. I seriously thought about leaving it behind. But it had served us well, so we waited. Loaded up with carry-ons and children (and Alex still with no pants), we headed for the line to be checked into the country. A considerate lady put us in a short line because she saw that we had kids. Too bad the short line was slower than the long line. I really think the purpose of the lines when you get into a country is not to check your passport as much as to give your luggage time to be sent to the baggage claim.

Anyway, by the time we got through the line, the baggage still wasn't there. It was being sent to 2 adjacent baggage claims, so we had to watch both of them. We finally got it all collected, loaded up, waited in another line, and walked to the next terminal to hit our connecting flight. On the way, Sandy pulled some dirty shorts out for Alex to wear over his pull-up.

4:50 pm: I have no idea where to go in American Airlines Terminal 4. I try four people on two levels before they finally show us where to put our bags. Then we have to walk back somewhere else. Very poorly laid out, especially when you have a plane to catch.

We thought the baggage would be easy: five bags, already tagged for STL. All they have to do is go to the x-ray machine, and we're home free to head for security. Sandy pulls them up to me, and I hand them to the baggage officer two at a time. She walks with two and takes them to the machine. As I hand her numbers 3 & 4, I say, "There's one more right here." She must have forgotten, because number 5 didn't make it to St. Louis. More on that in 5 hours . . .

Through security, shoes off, shoes on, laptop out, camcorder out, boarding passes out, blah, blah, blah. It's like going through a maze, a torture chamber, and the sidewalks of Taipei, all at the same time.

5:20 pm: A long walk to gate 42A, where we find that they have assigned us to seats that aren't together in the plane. So we wait some more while they reassign us to the back two seats: ones without windows or power adapters.

5:25 pm: We board the plane. One lady is in the next to the last row, where two of us are to sit, with the other three behind. Our kids are all talking at once. Sandy notices there's no overhead storage and no window. I turn around to see the lady stand up and ask the stewardess if she can sit somewhere closer to the front (in other words, further from us!) Ouch. Fortunately, it isn't full, so they move some people around for her, then they find us seats closer to the front and to windows so we can see. Very thoughtful.

10 minutes to spare, so I call my mother-in-law so she won't worry and I call Mike to make sure he remembers when and where we are arriving in St. Louis. We're hot, sweaty, and smelly, but we're headed for home.

What a spectacular view out the windows. While David and Adam played NBA Live against each other, Sandy and Anna were enjoying the view out the window of the ocean, the beaches, and the mountains. Later, they watched lightning in the clouds as we passed through a thunderstorm. Sandy set her watch ahead to Central time after leaving LA. At that time it was still broad daylight outside and seemed like morning to us on Taiwan time, but she explained to Anna that it was actually bedtime back in Missouri. Weird, huh.

The flight was faster than expected. At 10:45, 20 minutes ahead of time, we hit the ground in St. Louis. Only Alex had been to sleep, and only for a few minutes. It was enough to recharge his batteries, though. It was a big, long walk from Gate 32 through the main terminal to the baggage claim. The kids were running on fumes. Adam collapsed once under the weight of his backpack (exaggerated, I'm sure). We found Mike and waited for the luggage, and waited, and waited. After being good most of the trip, the kids were fighting, just like at home. Must be something about the air in Missouri.

11:15 pm: We have four bags, but one is missing. Mike takes the four out to the car, along with Sandy and the kids. I go talk to the baggage claim people. Two others from Taipei had lost bags as well, so I didn't feel bad. They promised to deliver them to us by the next day. They were in Los Angeles, ready to fly to St. Louis. No problem, it's their money and we won't wear the clothes in it before tomorrow anyway.

11:35 pm: We drive out of the parking garage and I'm starving for Taco Bell. Mike finds one, and we hit the road headed west. A good time of talking all the way home. Alex was the last kid to fall asleep, but everyone but Mike and David were asleep by the time we hit Moberly at 2:00 a.m.

Tyler had been housesitting for us (and is staying with us a few more weeks this summer). He had the house in super shape, and even made a welcome sign:

Dezi had made cinnamon rolls for breakfast. We were blessed to be well taken care of this entire trip by our friends on this side and that side. Most of all, blessed by God that whatever happened, he kept us safe and made it all work out.

I sent a quick IM to my mother-in-law telling her we had arrived:
dfincher (2:01:10 AM): made it home
dfincher (2:01:14 AM): 2:00 am
dfincher (2:01:18 AM): kids are asleep
dfincher (2:01:25 AM): parents are awake and smelling pretty bad
bearbranchbakers (8:02:25 AM): Wonderful !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
bearbranchbakers (8:03:08 AM): Wonderful you made it home okay, not that you smell bad.

It took us 45 minutes to get to sleep, but we had five hours of sleep before waking up ready to go at 8:11 am.

David was back to work, Sandy was doing laundry. Adam was up at 9:00 am, and Alex and Anna were finally roused from slumber at 11:15 am.

The bag arrived at the college at 4:15 pm, safe and sound.
Sandy took a quick nap from 5:00 - 5:30.

Other than that, everyone was back to normal. The kids were asleep by 9:00 pm and we're headed there by 10:00 pm. Thanks to your prayers, we don't believe in jetlag.

Coming back to America, we found several things to be thankful for:
1. Drivers who obey the traffic laws
2. Central air conditioning
3. A washer and dryer that can do large loads of laundry
4. Television without Chinese subtitles
5. Having your own yard to mow (thanks Tyler) and vehicles of our own to drive
6. We didn't have to walk anywhere today!
7. Being able to communicate with anyone we see, using our own language
8. Wonderful friends in Taiwan who treated us to a lifetime of memories
9. Encouraging friends and family in America who prayed for us
10. A faithful God who is on the throne, watching out for us all

Next time: Back to California in 26 days.

Day 10 - The Longest Day, Part 1

Sandy and I wished each other happy anniversary at 12:00 am and I started the timer on how long our anniversary will last. I think it's 37 hours long, but I get a headache trying to figure it out.

Adam and Joshua were up by 6:30, but the rest of the kids stayed in bed until about 7:15. We planned to take it very easy on the final day: buy some souvenirs, go out for lunch, get packed up. We got everything piled up near the door and counted five suitcases, six carry-on bags, and a stroller. Piece of cake. Anna had her braids pulled out, leaving her hair nice and wavy.


Anna has kept a little journal for the week that I wanted to share with you. (spelling corrections with Anna's permission)
5/21/05: I went to the airpot! It took awiyal (awhile)! My ears papt (popped)! I evin hade gum!
5/23/05: I sleeped along time. I woched (watched) t.v. I got to eat on the airplane.
5/26/05: We went on the rofe (roof). We aet spgetey (spaghetti). We went to the tolest (tallest) belding (building) in the world.
5/28/05: We plad (played) with the pagls. I played with Bethaine.
5/29/05: We winte (went) to chines church! I got to play a murcu (maraca)! It was fun!
5/30/05: We went on the subway! We went to brgrking (Burger King)! We went on a taiks (taxi)!

Jon told us their favorite place for buying souvenirs is called Handicraft Market, near Chiang Kai Shek Memorial. We made I think the fifth walk to the MRT terminal at Yungan Market. I wouldn't trust myself to find it alone, but it wasn't bad with a leader. My goal has been to avoid causing or participating in an accident on the street, and we have thus far been successful.

During the walk I chatted with Jon about the benefits of short-term trips like ours. Sandy and I have never been convinced of the benefits of expensive trips for a week or so. Jon reassured us that it will be beneficial in the long-term to all of us, and the field here. I think it's most beneficial when you know someone on the field like we do. It would be hard for me to get excited about showing up just anywhere without any established relationship with the workers there. But maybe that's just me.

11:00 a.m.: We wanted to spend a little more time with the Pagels, so they met us at the market, where we looked around a very nice gift store. Alex wanted his picture taken with this statue of something.

The advice from Jon and Scott was that the most expensive stuff is on the second floor and the least expensive stuff is in the basement. We headed downstairs. After loading up on goodies, we tried to move the nine children and 6 adults together out the door.


12:15 p.m. (11:15 p.m. Sunday night in Missouri): We walked down several block and crossed several streets, looking for Burger King. Burger King here tastes a lot like in America, but I can't get used to Coke Light (Diet Coke). It just doesn't taste right. The kids loved the Star Wars toy, and it was nice to have another taste of America. The manager spoke some chinese, and was very helpful. A super-sized Whopper combo was NT $114 (about $3.50 USD), which was very fair. One nice thing about the restaurants here in Taiwan is that you can buy one drink and then they give you little cups to share with your children. So we bought two drinks to take care of five people. Another thing I'll miss about Taiwan.

We said another goodbye to the Pagels, then snapped a picture of all the kids standing in front of Darth Vader. Some were happier than others.


Catching two taxis back, we drove 10 minutes back to the apartment. On the way, we drove past the Presidential Palace, one of the local tourist destinations we didn't get to visit. So much left here to do, but time's up. Maybe we'll have to come back again sometime.

Hanging around the house in the afternoon, Sandy seems a little restless. While the kids are playing, I'm typing, Jon is snoozing, and the ladies go shopping. They pick up Hello Kitty slippers for Anna, then go back for cold fruit drinks. One more taste of Taiwan before we leave.

3:00 pm: The kids are watching Transformers Energon (Chinese subtitles). All of a sudden, Jon and I negotiate an even trade of my new Sony Clie for his new Dell Axim. Apparently the Clie will run a program that will enable him to draw any Chinese character and have it defined. So I make the trade and quickly move stuff off of mine and onto his.

3:30 pm: Jon takes off on the scooter to pick up the van. We start moving bags downstairs. Everything fits easily, and we load up for the 40 minute drive to the airport. I see my first accident of the trip, right on the corner by his building. A taxi hit a scooter. A man in a shirt and tie is arguing with the taxi, parked right in the middle of the intersection. I speculate that the scooter must have caused it, but Amy says the taxis are usually at fault. They get a little aggressive sometimes. No one is hurt, apparently.

The kids are playing with Transformers and we have to stop for gas. 92 octane unleaded costs about $3 per gallon here, which is why most people either drive scooters or walk. Cars are tremendously difficult to afford because of high taxes, limited parking, and expensive fuel. Here's a nice bonus though: After spending about $45 on gas, we receive free bottled water from the gas station. 6 bottles, enough for all the kids and one for later.

The trip is uneventful, though Jon and I talk about their ministry in Taiwan and his class to teach in the Fall at Central. He's doing Personal Evangelism for us again, which is a required class, offered either throughout the semester or in a one week concentrated form.

4:40 pm: We arrive at the airport, which is much more peaceful than I'm sure Los Angeles will be in 14 hours. Time for goodbyes, and tears start to fall. Our kids are ready to get home, but sad to leave the Ralls'. Adam says, "I wish the Ralls' still lived in Moberly." He's not alone, but our wishes often have to be submitted to God's plan. I think Joshua is taking it the hardest, at least on the outside. They decide not to walk us into the airport, because there's really no place for them to go. So we load up the cart, pass around hugs, and walk away satisfied. An adventure still awaits us, and it will provide its own stories. But this part of the adventure has been tremendously satisfying. I'm sure I'll reflect more on it later.

5:00 pm: Security is a breeze. Everything's done, and I sit down at 5:30 pm with lots of time to wait for the plane. The Internet is hot here, which is good. Sandy and the kids look around at some neat stuff they can tell you about later

5:43 pm: Still waiting for the plane to board in 15 minutes. Here come 15 stewardesses in their green suits. I can't take a picture, because Sandy has my camera. She comes back for a credit card so she can buy another souvenir.

Next stop, LA.

Next time: The Longest Day, Part 2

Day 9 - Worship, Part 2 (English)

12:30 pm: Amy made us a yummy, mostly American meal. Trying some local fruits was a blessing (wax apple, pear apple). She had even made chocolate chip cookies. The ingredients here are slightly different, so the texture and taste of certain things don't quite match what we're used to. But it was nice to have something more like home.

While writing my morning blog, Jon came in and asked if I would play the piano for him to sing "I can only imagine" at the end of the evening service. I had played it at UA for Tracy Roach to sing a couple of years ago, so I agreed. Jon and I left at 2:30 to ride a taxi over to the church. Before we left, I asked Jon if there was anything I could do to help with the worship service. He had already asked me to do the communion meditation, and now to play the piano for his song. He said, "Not unless you could play bass for the songs." I laughed it off!

While we were at practice, Sandy looked out the balcony and saw a god parade. Using binoculars, she could see tall puppets, people dressed as super tall mascots, fireworks blasting, and drums keeping the beat. Sandy thinks they are stupid to watch people worship something made by a man. Jon thinks it's disappointing to see religious people devoting themselves to such an empty ritual. Amy just thinks it's sad.

When we arrived at the church, we rearranged the seating in a more intimate setting, with candles, tables, and groups of 4 and 5 seated around the tables. Jon determined that they were out of grape juice. He headed to buy some, but I volunteered to go buy it by myself. So Jon pointed out the window to where the grocery store was located. He told me exactly where in the store to find the juice. I asked him the word for grape juice (putowjr) and pronounced it a couple of times. He said, "Try not to talk!" Ouch.

3:15 pm: Grabbing the grape juice was no big deal, and I was actually proud of myself to pull it off. When I got back, I sat and listened to Chad (keyboard), Scott (guitar), and Jon (drums) play through the songs. I just couldn't help wanting to participate. The bass was beckoning me, sitting there in the stand. I remembered Jon's words and worked up the courage to ask for permission to play. Now, I've never played the bass in my life, but I understand the basics of it. I know which notes are which strings and knew all the songs. They gave me permission, and that was all the encouragement I needed.

5:00 pm: Sandy got there right as the service started and when I told her what I was about to do, she couldn't believe it. She took this picture to prove it:


It was great to sing some of our favorite songs: Heart of Worship, Here I Am to Worship, Create in Me a Clean Heart, Meet with Me, Lord Reign in Me, and a few others. Chad did a great job leading and I thought we sounded pretty good, actually. Maybe the missionaries were just being nice to me, but Chad did say that if I ever moved here, I could play bass every week! It's tempting, let me tell you.

One nice thing about their worship service is that they leave space at the back of the room for the kids to express themselves in worship. Anna wanted to play an instrument in the band, so I gave her an egg and she shook it while she sang.

Left to right are Cherry Messimer, Anna, Molly & Angie Pagel, Bethanie Pagel, and Caitlyn Edwards. After singing, the kids went upstairs for classes (taught by Angie and Bethanie Pagel) while we had the sermon, more singing, and communion time.

Scott Pagel preached about heaven and led into us doing "I can only imagine." After a few more songs, I gave a communion meditation from John 4:35-38. They did communion in an awesome way. Pitchers of grape juice were at the front, with large plastic cups and circular loaves of bread. Alex had fallen asleep on Sandy's lap, so I went to the front and poured two cups and brought back two circles of bread. After everyone gets done, they sit around the tables and fellowship.

What a blessing to share with our friends (old and new). The kids were great and the experience was memorable. Sandy cried again during the worship, and we had a few warm goodbyes before leaving.

6:40 pm: Jon really wanted us to see the night market, and this was the last chance to do it. The plan was for Amy to take the kids back to the apartment while Jon walked us through. But Adam and Joshua really wanted to spend time with their dads, so the five of us went off walking. The night market is similar to the day market, only louder, smellier, and stranger. Scooters drive through the walkways, and all sorts of knock-off merchandise is for sale. Can you tell which brand this wallet is ripping off? Look carefully.

David bought a tie for 100 NT ($3.15) and we looked for Hello Kitty houseshoes for Anna. No luck. Here's a sample of the interesting stuff we turned down:
Gelatinous giblets with with fresh lime:

Roasted corn on a stick:

Colorful fish in a cup:


The sights, smells, and sounds were certainly forceful. We kept the boys close and kept moving.

7:45 pm: Adam was looking forward to another trip to McDonald's, so we made our fifth trip in 6 days. Adam and I have grown fond of the apple pies, which are different than in America (fried instead of baked, very crispy and tasty). Sandy had corn soup, which was very good. I tried their fried chicken. Chinese people really like chicken, so McDonald's serves it. It's ok, but their burgers are better. It basically costs about $1 for a wing/leg piece. The corn soup and pies are $.60. A chicken sandwich is about $1.25. One thing to get used to about McDonald's in Taiwan is that they request you to separate your trash before you throw it away. Most restaurants here clear the table for you (no tip required, either!) But McDonald's is Western enough that they expect you to clean your own table. But it's more work than in America. There's a tank for dumping in your extra ice and drink. There's a container for food scraps (they feed them to the pigs). Then there's a place for recyclable waste (the cups, fry containers, and sacks). Finally, a section for general waste. Here is Adam trying to sort it all out.


8:15 pm: The kids got ready for bed and waited anxiously for the final installment in Jon's "Fabulous Five" stories. Every night, he has told them the story of the fabulous five (Jumping Joshua, Super Sean Skywalker, Amazing Adam, Unbelievable Anna, and Groovy Alex the Great) and their attempts to stop The Evil Dr. Eyeblack and his evil henchmen Shagubi and Radubi. In tonight's episode, the fabulous five find out that Dr. Eyeblack has plans to work in both Taiwan and America, so the team will need to split up. Jon told them that Joshua and Sean would have to stay in Taiwan and Adam, Anna, and Alex would have to return to America to keep it safe. The kids loved Jon's animated style and creative plots. He promises to send e-mail updates to the fabulous five.

8:45 pm: Sandy wanted to see Allen and Cherry Messimer's apartment, so Amy walked us over there while Jon stayed with the kids. We walked 10 minutes in a light rain before approaching their beautiful new apartment complex. Five buildings of 12 floors each house approximately 500 people. This is the apartment where Casey and Molly Bell will live when they arrive in a couple of months until they find their own place. After seeing the apartment, I told Allen I would let everyone know that they are living in the lap of luxury. The place is beautiful with its own exercise facility, theater, courtyard, game room, reading room, artwork, flowers, 3 story parking garage, and so much more. Two security guards watched us on over 40 security cameras, all feeding into three flat panel monitors. Amazing. We found out that they got a sweetheart deal on their rent because the landlord wanted Christians to live there. God is good!

It was encouraging to see Allen, Cherry, and Kirstie getting used to life in Taiwan.

10:15 pm (9:15 am Sunday in Missouri): We walked home in the mist. That part of the city seemed peaceful. Jon says they have no worries about crime. I saw my first policeman, who had pulled someone over. There was honestly not one person I encountered in the 10 minute walk who made me uncomfortable or the slightest bit fearful. Still, I felt better accompanying the ladies instead of sitting at home while they were walking the streets.

After arriving home, we talked about evangelism, people to pray for here in Taiwan, and generally dreaded tomorrow, the last day. It's not going to be easy in any way.

Tomorrow: Day 10 - The longest day