I had a reservation for a non-smoking room, but the room was gone when I checked in at 9:30 pm after a long journey from the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Tough luck, or bad service.
The air in the hotel room smelled stale, so I turned on the fan. The air smelled worse, with clear indication of hard pollutants. My throat hurt. My brother said his was hurting because of the poor air in Hangzhou, our beautiful hometown.
I was too tired, after a long journey. I went to sleep...
When I woke up at 3 am, the smells felt so real. I thought for an hour, and decided to open the windows (on the 16th floor). It was still dark outside, and the air was cool. I imagined what the sky would look like had it not be dark, smog?
Smog was the first thing I recall whenever I think of visiting China. When our plane started to descend at PVG, the sky simply disappeared, thanks to smog. (But, my brother said it was fog, according to the weather report. I am a meteorologist, and I know the difference between smog and fog.)
It's spring here, and it's NOT YET a silent spring. I can hear the birds chirping.
My throat is dry, and my lung hurts now. But, I am probably imagining things now....