Eleven-year-old Gao Caiyun never wants to see Hong Kong again.
The mainland girl has been stranded with her eight-year-old brother Qiu and mother Mo Qingfang at Chek Lap Kok since it opened on Monday with no food, no money and nothing to drink except water from the tap.
They hope to leave today for a new life in the United States.
The family intended to change aircraft in Hong Kong, but when they had to wait two hours to get off their China Eastern plane from their Fuzhou hometown during Monday's first-day chaos, they missed their connecting China Airlines flight to New York via Taipei.
'The airline said there were no seats available so we had to stay here,' said Ms Mo, 33, in the airport passenger terminal yesterday. 'We spent a lot of money on the tickets so we didn't have any left for food here - we thought we wouldn't need it.' The family had saved for five years to go to New York to join Ms Mo's husband Gao Jinjung, 40, who works as a chef in a restaurant.
Mr Gao had gone to the airport in New York to meet them and did not know why they were not on the flight until his wife called him yesterday using a Post reporter's mobile phone.
After the family's plight was reported, China Airlines gave the family three $90 coupons so they could get something to eat.
