The tour continued this past week with one of the most epic legs of the trip yet. 4 stops in 6 days in 5 states. I don’t know what I was thinking when I scheduled it that way. Ya know how sometimes you plan stuff out thinking…”oh yeah, it’ll be fine, we can handle it” and then you’re actually IN it and thinking…”omgwtfjdkslf;hwfh” It was sorta like that. It all started with a loooong flight into the middle of Virginia.
We flew a normal sized jet to DC, where we then transferred to that little toy plane you see up there. It was all of our first times on a propeller plan (probably won’t be the last) and I must say it was quite the experience. Knowing that 5 foot blades of steel where spinning at a gajillion RPMs just 5 feet away from your face (only separated by the cabin wall)…good gracious. And yeah, on these smaller planes, you feel the flight a lot more. When I say feel the flight, I mean like.. you feel every bump and vibration like you’re connected to the engine. The landing was probably the hardest touchdown I’ve ever felt, I thought the wheels collapsed or something. But hey, not trying to scare you! haha. If you’re ever on one of these in the future, no worries. Just think of it as…more interactive. =P Who knows, maybe Wong Fu will have its own personal plane like this someday?? haha, yeah right. (I’d get a jet over a propeller anyway) har har.
Anyway, we finally got into Harrisonburg after being picked up from the airport by a JMU driver. (It was our first time we had someone holding up a sign at the airport waiting for us. “Wong Fu” it said. sigh) A very nice old man, we had a good convo on the 1 hr drive about how he’s seen the city change and all from when he was younger.
JMU (James Madison University) is a beautiful campus! That’s us standing next to a life size statue of James Madison. Yeah, he was short, but dang, could he write a constitution! We were lucky and had superb weather: sunny, breezy, not cold or hot. The sky was blue, the leaves were red, and their campus (which I thought would be all historical and old) was actually suuuper new. The people were also a lotta fun, they took us around campus. I hafta admit too, it was probably the most diverse group we’ve met on this tour. The organizing club, and also the multicultural student affairs office were all involved and we got to meet and hangout with all types of people. Yay for diversity (something WF is definitely keeping in mind for the future)
After JMU we had flew out to NJ. Rutgers was up next and also the start of a 3-events-in-a-row portion of the trip. It was our 2nd time there, and in fact, we were in the same building as last time, 3 years ago. This event was a little different because we were just part of a bigger talent show the club, TASA, was having. We were special guest judges and “performers”…meaning, we just said a few words and showed some new videos. Afterwards, the meet and greet was just bananas, but we got through however many hundred chose to wait in line. It was a lotta fun.
No time to rest, we had to drive up to Connecticut the next day for a show at Yale. We drove by NYC, so sad I know, that we didn’t get to stop by this Autumn, but we’ll be back NYC. We just drove straight past Manhattan to New Haven. How many of y’all recognize this tollbooth?
Yale was another great event. Check out that super scholarly room we were in. Made me feel smart just standing in it. (Hey Mom and Dad, your kid went to Yale, sorta). I was actually surprised. I thought (yes I gave into stereotypes) that the crowd at Yale would be more mild mannered (Ivy league smart kids ya kno?) But they were actually super lively and so much fun to talk to and share with. I learned that night from the students we hung out with that Yale kids know how to work hard, and play hard. That’s the ultimate combo. Not everyone can pull that off.
That night, we only slept for about 2 hours, because we had to leave the hotel at 4am, drive to the Hartford airport an hour away to catch our 6am flight to Dallas. We had a show the very next day. ughhh, and we were exhausted. It was probably one of the most painful mornings and travel of the trip. But I’ll save that cheery post for later. This one got way too long.
November 13, 2009 at 12:32 am
Thanks for the picture of Doug and Russell from UP! ^_^…
And i spoke to the Asian American Student Association at Vtech about not emailing you guys back. lols.
November 12, 2009 at 8:12 pm
Haha, I loved it when you said “Hey Mom and Dad, your kid went to Yale, sorta”
I think I shall do that…when I go visit colleges over winter break…
then my parents can’t complain that their kids didn’t go to stanford or northwestern or caltech or wherever..
Glad to hear you guys are having fun!
November 11, 2009 at 11:41 am
Thanks for coming to Rutgers! For a person whos been following you
guys since the beginning it was cool to see you guys.
Wish you guys were longer but you guys were great.
Love the new vids.
November 11, 2009 at 7:53 am
Come to Sydney, Australia! You have quite a huge following down under, so maybe it’s worth checking out. Not to mention the gorgeous beaches…
November 10, 2009 at 5:59 pm
Next stop. Paris. :]
You guys are AWESOME.
I support going to Maryland also, and NYC is a must, more specifically, NYU, but Paris first.
November 10, 2009 at 5:54 pm
when you guys get home, go be girls and soak in a nice, hot bath and eat some ice cream. that’s the good life~
November 10, 2009 at 5:08 pm
Come to Duke! Yale doesn’t have anything on us when it comes to the “work hard, play hard” model.
Glad to hear you guys are having a good time despite your crazy schedule!
November 10, 2009 at 8:35 am
Six days of blurry goodness, all for the love of the fans. Damn nice, Wong Fu.
November 10, 2009 at 4:35 am
smiliar experience on the “toy plane”…
surprisingly, it was quite stable (perhaps we assumed it should be really scaring)…
but nice experiece indeed
November 9, 2009 at 11:38 pm
Thank you so much for coming out to JMU! It was really fun getting to see you guys after watching all the videos since 2005! I can’t wait to see more from you all and wish you the best of luck in the future because you guys are really sweet and talented!
November 9, 2009 at 11:36 pm
I recognize and I am very familiar with that toll both on I95. It’s in New Rochelle, NY near my house. After you cross the George Washington Bridge, it’s the only toll both in NY, not considering the 8 dollar toll on the GWB.
I meet you guys in Rutgers. I was wearing the black tie and let you guys keep the sharpie for other people’s autographs. I tried to make it to Yale also, but it was too far from where I work.
I hope to catch you guys again here on the east coast. Best of luck on the rest of the tour.
Kent
November 9, 2009 at 8:42 pm
Whoa what a tight schedule! I can’t imagine how tired you guys are. Take good care, can’t wait for more videos!
November 9, 2009 at 7:43 pm
while I feel grateful that you guys are taking tours and meeting us, I also hope that you guys take good care of yourselves! It was soooo great meeting you guys ^^.
have fun and stay well~
November 9, 2009 at 6:43 pm
Seconding the request for Wongfu to come to Maryland.
November 9, 2009 at 5:44 pm
SWEET!!
COME TO MARYLAND COLLEGES… DO A TOUR HERE. ^_^
November 9, 2009 at 5:41 pm
i wish you guys were there longer at the TASA event. but overall, it was great meeting you guys!
i’m surprised you guys aren’t wiped out from all this touring. how did you do it? heh.
hope to see you guys at rutgers again. and good luck on the rest of your tour (: