Disaster: American Girl's Attempted Entry to China (Failed) & Quarantine in Hong Kong

Sooooo... I love Hong Kong. I'd describe it as a very British New York Chinatown completely slammed with Chinese people all speaking Cantonese (and decent English). Especially if you are in the subway, it is just like London's Tube filled with Asian heads bobbing around. But I supposed I digress....

Yesterday I tried to return to Shenzhen from Hong Kong after two days with my dad sightseeing and (a lot of) shopping in HK. Too bad the hotel we stayed in had a 13th floor which we happened to live on-- I'd like to blame it on sheer bad luck rather than our own negligence-- because apparently my Chinese visa (remember how I got my American citizenship and after so much celebrating can't enter China..) had only one entry time on it, which I used up coming into Shanghai from America. Thus we were quarantined at the Shenzhen harbour waiting for the next boat to HK (which consumed 8 hours of the day filled with a lot of anxiety, stress, tears, and mostly just regret that I wouldn't be able to return to Hefei to say a proper farewell to my grandparents). We opted not to wait the requisite 4 days to rush another $150 visa to China, and so now I am flying out to Thailand tomorrow from Hong Kong. My luggage luckily made it from Hefei (thanks to Daddy's business connections) to here, and now packing is going to consumer this whole day (well, and probably more shopping, you know me). It works out quite well considering how large of a blunder it was to try to enter China without the necessary documentation. (Lucky I didn't get sent to jail, right? I even thought about swimming to China's border, but alas, the police held my passport while we were quarantined to prevent such a ridiculous move.) I just find it amazingly ironic that while I held a Chinese passport for the last 11 years, I always met trouble crossing any border (and I did cross a lot of borders in that time), but now, my American passport gives me trouble entering what I'd like to call my motherland. I suppose the Olympics did cause so much stricter guidelines on entering China. Now I am only 2 hours late in arriving at BKK International Airport, but still 7 hours ahead of my travel partner. :) Well, I'm off to more preparation-- I do believe I bought too many things in Hong Kong to stuff into my giant backpack and even another suitcase.... I'll write once I have more time in Thailand!