On Friday afternoon, Suzi, Samuel and I flew from Nanjing to Guangzhou, where we are spending the rest of our time in China. All adoptive families have to spend week 2 in Guangzhou because this is where the American Embassy is located. The flight was pretty uneventful, especially for Samuel. We chose the window so he could be amazed at our flying. He was amazed by the back of his eye lids. Seriously, before we took off and until we landed. Hooray for sleeping babies! We made it to the airport where our guide was waiting with our itinerary for the week. We checked in to the Garden Inn and began the 2nd leg of our trip.
There are 9 families here who are with Lifeline, the same agency as us. We all stay at The Garden Inn (5 star hotel) because Lifeline gets an amazing group rate. On Saturday morning, we met our group in the lobby at 8:20AM. From there, we took our tour bus to the Guangzhou medical clinic. Samuel had to go through an evaluation before leaving the country. This is one of the requirements for adoptive families. The examination included a general well-check, measurements, and ENT. If your child is over 2 years old, he must have blood drawn for a TB test. Phew! Samuel did well but it was exhausting for everyone. That took about 3 hours.
We drove back to the hotel and then had to meet in a conference room at the hotel for more paperwork. This took about 2 hours and was helpful in getting prepared for our consulate appointment Tuesday. At that point, he and I were both at our limit. Suzi was busy getting food for us, as she has been doing often. Thank you, Suzi! Samuel and I ate in the room and took a good nap later in the afternoon. I think I remember ordering room service for dinner when we woke up. What a fog!
This morning we met our group downstairs at 9AM for scheduled sight-seeing and shopping. I was pretty bummed to see that no time had been carved out for worship. When we were here last year, we went to an amazing worship service but that wasn't in the cards this time. We made 2 stops before returning to the hotel. First, we went to the Chen Family house which is now a Chinese folk art museum. It's definitely one of my favorite places to visit in China. I had 2 chops made (a chop is a carved stamp that has your name in Chinese characters on it), one with our family name and one for Samuel because the other 4 kids received them on our last trip.
I also purchased a scroll for Samuel, just like one that we had made for Emily last year. The artist paints it right in front of you. Get this... I walk in to the shop that I was familiar with from last time. I immediately saw the cart full of hanging scrolls to display ordering options. I walk up to thumb through and Emily Hope's scroll was hanging right in front. I don't mean the same print or pattern. It said, "Emily Hope" and her birthday and Chinese name (Gao Yu) was written in Chinese! I guess they duplicated the one I ordered last time I was there and had been using it as a display ever since! There I was, in China, seeing the exact scroll that is hanging in Emily's room. For a minute, I really thought my mind was playing tricks on me.
After the folk art museum, we were driven to the market where they sell jade, pearls and other items, all at amazing prices. I purchased wedding pearls for my girls last time but did not spend any money here this time (except for a few small gifts). After spending an hour at the market, we were driven back to the hotel. Suzi went to the store for coffee creamer and water. Samuel and I went to McDonald's with 2 other families. That's about all we could handle. We are resting now and plan to just take it easy tonight and most of tomorrow.
Tomorrow (Monday), some families have their consulate appointments. We will rest until they are finished. Then we are going on a Pearl River dinner cruise at 5:30. It's not really as nice as it sounds but it's good to get together with the other families and just relax a little.
Our time here is dwindling. We will be on that long flight home before we know it. God has been so gracious and has provided for all our needs. We are comfortable, well-fed, and in good company. Samuel is making great progress. He was terrified of everyone but is warming up to Suzi quite nicely. Quite inconvenient for your baby to be terrified of someone living with you! Poor Suzi (and Samuel). I'm so thankful for her patience and for his growing to know her.
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| Totally stressed on the flight ;) |
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| At Samuel's medical |
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| My view the second I walked in. Unreal. |
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| Artist painting Samuel's scroll |
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