Getting back that afternoon was a different matter. I left CRI confidently, took the subway to Muxidi, but couldn't remember which exit to use. Taking a chance, I looked for the bus. When it arrived, I said to the conductor the one Chinese word I had been told would get me out of trouble - "Youyibinguan," which means Friendship Hotel.

The conductor beckoned me aboard, but 10 minutes into the journey, I had a feeling I was going the wrong way. The skyline wasn't even slightly familiar. At each stop, a recorded voice was obviously naming the stations in Chinese, followed by five English words, "Get off the bus now."

I started feeling anxious but stayed on, thinking the Friendship Hotel would appear soon. After almost 40 minutes I feared the worst.

This time, everyone got off the bus. It was journey's end. I realized my tones must have been wrong and the conductor thought I had said the name of another hotel which was near the final stop.

I hailed a taxi, and when I said "Youyibinguan," I could tell from his reaction he knew where to take me. After all that travel from Babaoshan to Muxidi and now to this now unknown (to me) locality, I wondered where I was.

I soon found out. Less than one minute into the journey, the taxi passed a familiar landmark. It was the CRI building. I was back where I had started.

Editor:Xiong Qu