World Men à la Mode

Chapter Fifty-three - Grandpa

        You found yourself waking up to the sound of the pilot politely asking passengers to fasten their seatbelts for landing over the intercom. You had never unbuckled yours, so you weren't too worried about the announcement. You nudged Alfred awake and checked on your friends, grumbling out the announcement about the seatbelts to the ones that were just waking up. Alfred tried to go back to sleep, so you smacked him lightly on the arm.

        "Five more minutes, dude..."

        "I want five more minutes too, but we'll be landing soon. You've gotta stay awake."

        "No..."

        "Yes. That's final."

        Alfred whined and begrudgingly stayed awake, leaning his chin in his hand as his elbow was perched on the armrest of his seat. You leaned your head back and took in a deep breath, the air feeling almost stale from being recirculated for over seven hours. Once off the plane with your carry-on and in the airport, you took in a deep breath. It felt nice to finally be off the plane and to stretch your legs. Alfred wasted no time in booking it to the baggage claim area so you could meet with your new local guide.

        Speaking of the local guide, you caught your first glimpse of him as you rounded a corner to get to your bus. He wasn't super tall like some of your other tour guides, but he still had some height to him. His hair was long and dark, pulled back into a low ponytail that flipped over his shoulder. His eyes looked brown but also amber colored in the lighting. Clothing him was a fake green tank top with matching cargo shorts and brown sandals. He smiled kindly at the group.

        "Ni hao! Welcome to China! I hope you enjoy our fine cuisine and our sights!" he started, giving the group a small bow. "My name is Wang Yao, or as you Westerners would say, Yao Wang. You can just call me Yao."

        "He'll also respond to Grandpa," Alfred joked, which earned him a smack on the back of the head from Yao.

        "Aiyah! You youth have no respect for your elders!"

        "You don't look that much older than us though..." Darcy mumbled.

        "I'm still older," Yao replied, crossing his arms with a huff. "Anyway, we are starting with a biking tour this morning after breakfast and will be stopping at the Ming Dynasty Tombs. You have free time for lunch and explore an antiques market before we go to the Beijing Zoo. We'll then have dinner and a crafting class."

        You and your friends nodded and boarded the bus with all your luggage. Yao talked about himself a bit on the ride to the restaurant and asked you and your friends questions to get to know one another better. After breakfast, the group was dropped off at the bike rental shop while your luggage was taken to the hotel. Yao led the group on a sightseeing tour of the city, allowing you to view some of the destinations you'd see in the next two days. You biked through narrow streets and passed temples and museums until you reached the Ming Dynasty Tombs.

        Yao rattled off the history of the thirteen tombs, including who was buried there and who wasn't and why. You listened and looked around, mind eventually wandering to other topics until it was time to hop back on the bikes and drop them off at the rental shop. Yao then walked the group to an area to grab lunch and showed you where you could find the antiques market. You grabbed a quick meal at a fast food chain, finding the possibility of obtaining a rare antique more exciting than eating. Unfortunately, you were unable to find anything that you could justify spending a large amount of money on.

        Back with the group, you returned to your bus and made your way to the Beijing Zoo. Trips to the zoos were some of your favorite excursions so far, and you knew this one wouldn't be a let down. Yao handed out maps once inside and pointed out exhibits that you had to view. Well, you didn't have to, but he said he at least had to see the giant pandas. You had to agree with him on that, and while the rest of your friends and Alfred went off to view other exhibits, you travelled with Yao the the giant pandas enclosure.