"Time Travel" - Seeing the Sunrise Twice in One Day
I'm talking about crossing the international dateline. You know, that imaginary line in the middle of the Pacific where Tuesday turns into Wednesday (or vice versa). I used to travel to Asia quite often on business, and we'd pass the international dateline each way. Going there, it didn't seem like a big deal. I'd leave Chicago about 10 am on Saturday, and arrive in Hong Kong about 4 pm on Sunday. It was around 3am Sunday back home, so it wasn't so confusing. At least it was the same day. But it was a step into the future - we'd go through a day and a half about 18 hours. Coming home though - that was a marvel. I usually had a 7 or 8 am flight on a Sunday morning, which means getting up before dawn to pack and leave for the airport. I would watch the sunrise over the harbor while I finished packing. I'd get on the plane and fly to Tokyo - in just about 4 hours, it was already 3 pm in Tokyo! Again, the day was going fast! Soon after we left Tokyo, it would be night. I don't sleep well on planes, so I'd read, watch a movie - an occasionally look out the window, to total darkness as we flew over the ocean.
Then, after about another 4 or 5 hours, I'd start to see a few twinkling lights on the horizon - houses or streetlights along the coast of Alaska! Within minutes, it seemed, the sky would get lighter. Soon, the orange glow of the sun peeked through the clouds. Another sunrise - and it was still Sunday! A step back in time, to an earlier point in the day. I always marveled at seeing the sunrise twice in one day - and it was never really the same sunrise! I'm not a morning person, so any sunrise is a marvel to me - but these were always special. It was like another fresh start - a "do-over" for the day. It took me years to understand the concept of the international dateline (I still don't understand it fully), but it still amazes me that you can leave Hong Kong at 8 am and arrive in Chicago at 8:05 the same day (now that there are non-stop flights). Time travel is truly a remarkable thing.
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