Roommates, roommates, (Well, just one.)

Mike Danger

I've been trying to make plans to pick up my new roommate from the airport tomorrow, but I just checked my inbox, and he didn't send me the gate number/flight number of his flight. Is there any way that I can pull up the arrivals at Logan International for tomorrow? (I tried their site, and I can't seem to get anything beyond today.)

Furthermore, he is coming from here (it's his first time in America). Are there any mores/manners I should be aware of? I don't want to get off on the wrong foot.

Improvolone

If you know the airline, just call the airport. They might be able to give you a passenger list to confirm the flight, but no promises.

Thanatos

Yeah, you're going to have to at least know the airline, and even knowing that and what city he's coming in from, it would be a bitch and a half to figure out which specific flight it is at Logan, which is a huge fucking airport.

Project Mayhem

Not familiar with your airport, but at Lambert International there are really only 2 areas you'd pick someone up at. You can't get anywhere near the gates without a plane ticket.

Thanatos

Project Mayhem wrote: »

Not familiar with your airport, but at Lambert International there are really only 2 areas you'd pick someone up at. You can't get anywhere near the gates without a plane ticket.

Right, but if he doesn't know the flight number or gate, he probably doesn't know what time he's coming in. Which would involve camping out for hours at baggage pickup.

lifeincognito

Check the current day's flights and times. Hopefully you know where your roommate is coming from so just match up flights from the most recent business day. Airports are creatures of great habit and I'm fairly certain flights follow a pattern for each day.

VisionOfClarity

Oddly enough on Monday my new roomie arrived at Logan Airport. Mine came from Kentucky though, not China.

Cauld

You're going to need at least one more piece of information. His originating airport would cut it down a lot. There really aren't many ways to get from China to Logan, since there's a limited number of flights from Asia to North America. That being said, he could be going through Japan, Canada, or even some other countries (like Korea). He might be stopping in San Francisco, LA, Seattle, etc. just to name a few. If he's flying direct there should only be a couple choices.

If nothing else try calling his parents if you know his home phone number. They'll likely know his travel plans. It would certainly suck for him to arrive and be pretty stuck. If he has some cash he could get by, but it would be really nice of you to meet him at the airport to help out. Also it can be very daunting to show up in a huge airport if you have no idea what to do or how to do it.

Reiten

If he's coming off an international flight, things get a lot easier since you can wait outside immigration. However, if he had a domestic connection then that won't work.

Passerbye

I've had the pleasure of knowing many foreign exchange students, since UH Manoa was crammed with 'em, so I'll try to help you on the cultural side.

Be polite, obviously, but not in an assuming way, if that makes any sense. Americans have this tendency of assuming that if someone wants or needs something, they will ask for it. In most Asian cultures this is not the case. In fact, depending on his personality and how much research he's done into living in America, you may have to ask him what he needs and tell him that if he needs anything, he can ask you.

If you become good friends with him, you'll find that, as is the case with most Chinese men, he will be much more comfortable touching you than you may be touching him - hugs, pats on the back, that kind of thing.

As well, Americans have a rather large sense of personal space compared to most other nationalities. As a result, he'll be standing/sitting closer than you may be used to. As well, if you're constantly subconsciously scooting out of range to maintain your sense of personal space, he may take offense. If this seems to be the case, just explain yourself.

First and foremost, be honest, be patient, and be yourself. Explain everything in basic terms. Don't assume that he'll understand what you mean. Unless he's actually lived in the US before, he may not understand what everything means, even if his English is perfect. He just doesn't have the cultural background. By the same token, you don't have the cultural background from China.

Mike Danger

Thanks for the comments, guys. I did manage to locate him at Logan with the help of some friendly information desk guys. (Turns out that 99% of the flights from China come through United, which has a terminal more or less to itself at Logan, so it wasn't too bad finding him--it was harder to find an info desk person who knew what was going on than it was to find him. :P)

If you've got any more cultural-type stuff, let me know. I missed some of the later replies, but I seem to have gone by a lot of the stuff you said here (I gave him my cell/home phone numbers, said to call if he needed anything, invited him to come back to my place on Saturday since international students' orientation isn't until Sunday.)

One thing, out of curiosity: he brought gifts for everyone in my immediate family: a fancy earthenware-looking cup for my father, tea for my mother, a fan for my sister, and these...I don't really know, they look like Christmas tree ornaments, but he said he doesn't follow any religion. They're shaped like the Fuwa, and there's a big loop on the top like you're supposed to hang them from something. The thing is, I don't know what. (The packaging is all in Chinese.) Anyone know what I'm talking about? I'll post some pics later. (I'm kind of embarassed to ask him.)