box?

at least it started out that way. this is what i have so far.

this is becoming a very interesting experiment in airport security. i left the factory in china with some product sample (essentially a white plastic-type substance in grains, with a bit of powder in it as well) - well 25 kg of product sample to be precise. i've got to get it to our facility for some testing next week, and was seriously doubting it would make it.

at check-in in chengdu today, i was nearly the last person to get on the flight on account of the thorough inspection of the package. first i had to open all of the wrapping, present the msds (which the factory gave to me in only english), watch the staff translate all of the words they were unsure of. then some more staring, smelling, touching, and then my favorite.

to test the explosive property of the contents, they decided to put a flame to it and see what would happen. however, instead of taking a small sample out and attempting to light it, they stuck the lighter in the entire bag of product. i suppose the fact that i wasn't running for the door when they did this instilled a bit of confidence in their procedure.

only made it as far as tokyo tonight, so had to clear customs with the box at narita. more opening, staring, touching - fortunately no lighter test this time.

of course, now i have to check into american airlines directly tomorrow for the flight home. i can only imagine a firm "no" will be the answer, if i know my country's approach to security.

oh well, i'm not personally paying out of pocket for all of this transit expense, and it's been pretty entertaining overall. stay tuned.