Finally Home

I love street art wherever I find it. Qingdao had lots of it. This painting was actually on the grounds of our hotel, The Castle, as you can see from the bus stop painted into the picture. The sort of European-looking girl has a bunch of suitcases. The painted title is “Finally Home.”

It’s a little weird for a hotel to have a home-themed artwork in its gardens, even though the “home away from home” thing is pretty overdone. But after a nearly 24-hour travel day getting from Seattle to Qingdao, we certainly felt like we had finally reached home when we opened the door to our room somewhere around midnight local time. And while we were in Qingdao, we certainly were comfortable in our home base.

I know it’s just advertising. But the almost Ghibli-like naivety of this picture does capture how I feel about the Castle. Only some of us have lived there, but for my family, Qingdao is our home in China. And the Castle is our home in Qingdao.

Today I am leaving for a similar trip with my younger daughter. I hope we find ourselves as cozy and welcome somewhere in Norway when we finally reach our beds tomorrow tonight.