Last day in China

We are down to the last day in China. We are all looking forward to getting back home and getting back to the normal routine. We are just packing up now and ready to leave in the afternoon via train to Hong Kong. We’ll stay in a hotel in Hong Kong tonight and then leave that hotel in the morning for the airport. We have an 11:45am flight from Hong Kong to San Francisco.


Yesterday we went to the US Consulate for the citizenship oath, so Nathan will be a US citizen when we go through immigration in San Fran. For all of us taking the oath, the consulate official said that all the visa paperwork is on track. We will get Nathan’s passport with visa prior to going to the train station. We could not take photos inside the consulate office, but we have a few from the outside. Otherwise we did some more swimming and shopping yesterday and watched a movie in the room.


We feel very blessed that our trip has gone so smooth. Thanks you all for your prayers, we definitely know that God has watched over us.


--Craig

Weekend Photos

Street Mall

Micah and Craig relaxing in the room

 

 

Micah and Little bro

Abby and Little bro

At the zoo - Micah planning out the trek

In the Safari park

Deer, it's as bad as Wisconsin in November

 

feeding baby white tiger

Pandas, at last

DJ Abby

first Abby kisses Nathan

then Nathan kisses Abby back

these are my sandals that are ready for the garbage can

these are my new shoes.  Don't laugh, I couldn't be too choosy with my shoe size in China.

Qing Ping market - turtles

Qing Ping market - puppies

Qing Ping market - Chinese medicines and herbs

Qing Ping market from the hotel roof

kids enjoying the pool

all 3 kids watching TV

yes, I can make it

there is nice smile

Weekend in Guangzhou

Saturday we had the medical appointment required for the adoption and visa. We walked there from our hotel at 9:30. There were 4 families there from our agency (AAC). Two are staying at the White Swan and us and another couple staying at the Holiday Inn. The exam, ears nose & throat, and height weight stations went O.K. But it sure got loud and chaotic. The vaccination part took forever. We finally got out of there by the time it closed at noon. Nathan ended up needing 4 shots. He didn’t enjoy that much, but he got over it quickly. In the afternoon we spent several hours swimming in the outdoor pool on the roof. The weather was perfect for it (upper 90s). Outside of our hotel we have the Qing Ping market on one side leading to Shamian Island. Shamian Island is where the U.S. Consulate is located. The Qing Ping market is a traditional Chinese street market. This market has pets on a few streets (dogs, cats, fish, birds, mice, chipmunks, bunnies and some exotic things). On the next couple of streets were Chinese medicines (herbs, roots, etc.). We bought a little doggie to bring home. Just kidding! We did feel a bit sorry for the animals in this heat. At one shop it looked they were trying to revive a kitty. We bought some dried star fish for show-and-tell.

On the other side of the hotel is a street mall. Mainly clothing, but lots of specialty shops. This is where all the locals shop so the prices are set and you don’t need to barter. There are also lots of variety of restaurants (including American ones like KFC, McD, Pizza Hut and Papa Johns). I purchased a pair of shoes because my sandals split down the middle from my excessive walking. I would not buy these shoes in America, but they were the only pair available in my size. Jackie could not contain her laughter when I came walking down the hall in the mall that the sales clerk picked out for me. Actually I have been laughing too. But they feel comfortable and not a bad price. The mall is normally swarming with people. The other AAC family staying at the Holiday Inn described it as busier than New Orleans during Marti Gras (and he lived in New Orleans for several years). Our guide informed us that 12 million people live here in Guangzhou.

On Sunday we went to the Safari Zoo. It was about an hour van ride there. We shared the van with the other AAC family from our hotel. They have 2 twin bio boys (age 6) and adopted a 5 year-old girl. We got to the zoo at 10 am. Half the zoo was made for riding in a car or train and the other half was made for walking. We started out on the safari train. It was pretty neat ridding though all the areas. We saw deer, zebras, rhinos, giraffes, hippos, lions, tigers, and some exotic birds. Some of them came right up to the vehicles. In the walking section we got to hold and feed a baby tiger. But the best part was seeing the pandas. They had several and we got to get very close to them while they were feeding. The temperature really started to climb and we decided to leave before 2pm. Overall it was very cool and Micah and Abby really enjoyed it.
Monday we did not have much planned and we really relaxed. We visited the markets and did some more swimming in the hotel pool in the heat of the day. I will post some pictures soon. Nathan is doing pretty well. Today is our 1 week anniversary with him. His cold is getting better and he continues to be more comfortable with us. He still hasn’t let anyone but Jackie hold him, but he does give us all a kiss and he loves playing with everyone.

Next up on Tuesday we go to the consultate for the ceremonial oath, then Wednesday we start our way home after we get Nathan's visa.

--Craig

Pictures from Friday

Almost packed and ready to leave our room Changsa

Leaving hotel (Anna, our Changsha guide, is in the middle)

Getting ready for the train ride

Abby playing DS on the train

Jackie, Nathan, and Micah playing DS on the train

inside the train

arriving in Guangzhou

waiting in the Holiday Inn lobby

Nathan showing his personality

Nathan showing his personality

In Guangzhou

What a great day Friday was for us. Nathan really started to come out of his shell both in the hotel room in Changsha and once we got to our room in Guangzhou. He was walking around and playing with different things that he found. He was smiling and even laughing. It was wonderful site to see. Abby and Micah loved having fun with the little brother and mommy appreciated the relief of not having to hold him all the time. Nathan even slept the night in his crib which gave us all a good night sleep.



We left our hotel at 2pm and went to the train station. This train station in Changsha was newly built in 2008 specifically for the G train. The G train was really cool traveling up to 350 km/hr (which I think is close to 200 miles/hr). The ride was really smooth and for anyone that is not real wild over planes, this is the way to travel. I know they have talked about putting one of these between Chicago and Minneapolis, now I can’t wait. The country side was really beautiful. Similar to what we saw between Nanchang and Changsha, but we saw more hills and mountain ranges. The train route was built right through the hills, so it stayed pretty level. When we got into Guangzhou it was 6pm. We were surprise that Judy Wu met us at the train station. Judy is the lady that arranged all of our travel and everyone always speaks so highly of her. She had met Nathan in the orphanage and talked with his foster mom, so this gave us an opportunity to find out much more about his situation. The foster mom lived only a block from the orphanage and she would take Nathan there many days a week to get some social interaction and play time. Judy recalls her saying that she had 2 biological kids and she thought that they were a bit older although the foster mom was not very old. Judy figured that he was with her right up to the day that we got him.


It took us an hour through the traffic to get to our hotel. It was dark by the time we got in. We are in the Holiday Inn Shifu which is not on the island (like the White Swan), but it is only a few blocks away. This hotel is surrounded by markets which will be nice if we want to do some shopping, but one of those places where you need to hang onto your wallet. The security and policing is extra high right now in preparation for the Asian Games this fall. Judy advised us to always carry our passports in case we were stopped.

This morning (Saturday) we go for Nathan’s medical exam and vaccinations. We got a vaccination book from the orphanage, so hopefully the vaccinations will be less based on what he has already had. Either way we are bracing for the worse.
Abby wanted me to add her favorite memory.  On the way to the train station we saw kids (with their moms) pooping and peeing in the street. Micah and Abby laughed pretty hard over that.


Overall we feel much better with Nathan coming out of his shell. It also feels good to be on the last leg of this journey.  It feels like the weight of the world has been lifted off. Nathan still won’t let me hold him, but I think it is just a matter of time now. Thanks for all of your prayers; they have definitely worked as God is watching over us.

--Craig  (pictures of Friday to follow)

Finishing up in Changsha

Yesterday I went with our guide Anna to do shopping and visit an embroidery museum. The museum was very interesting. The work was amazing and unfortunately, I had my camera but no cartridge card. Each piece of work looked like an oil painting. I was told that at least 2 people will work on one piece of art that will take up to 2 years or more to complete and work with 745 different threads of color at a time. The embroidery scenery consisted of landscapes, flowers and people (President Bush, Mona Lisa). It was amazing how life like each piece looked. I was also told each piece is worked in natural light in order utilize thread that closely matches the scenery. After our museum visit we went to Wal-Mart. Wal-mart here is not like ours, but the concept is similar – one stop shopping. I tried to purchase Craig a pair of shoes since his one sandal split down the middle. Unfortunately, size 11 is rare here in China. The store staff did find a high top shoe in a sz 11. Our guide laughed out loud and called it a boat. I didn’t purchase these – wouldn’t look too good with shorts and Craig was glad I didn’t. Our guide also brought me to a section where customers can purchase live species for dinner. I saw turtles, bull frogs, snakes, eels, and a baby sting ray stretched out on ice. There was also a large wooden counter top of chopped up fish – blood, scales, & heads all there for the taking. It was interesting. I recall seeing similar in Guangzhou. I’ll make sure to have our cartridge and take pictures to post. Nathan did well with Craig, Abby & Micah while I was gone. After reading the Bible, I am feeling better today about our future outlook with Nathan. We both have been feeling very vulnerable, lonely and isolated. Then add on top of the worries of our son’s delays. I was having feelings of despair and doubts. After reading Job Ch. 38 & 39 along with Matthew 6:25, 28: 16, 19:23, & 11:28, I am feeling much better and I should have been reading my Bible all along. I hope I am not coming across like I am some great Christian. I am certainly not. I wanted to share the hope, when you ask God to lead you to the scripture you need, He will. We soon leave for our next destination. Craig is excited we’ll be taking the g-train which travels at 200mph.


--Jackie

Day 3 as a family of five

Today was pretty relaxed and fun day (well maybe except for Jackie).  We went to the Changsha amusement park and zoo in the morning.  Abby and Micah really enjoyed it, especially the zoo.  We did not dare to try the amusement rides, but we enjoyed the beauty of the park on this wonderful day.  The temperature was not too bad (smoggy and overcast) and there was a nice breeze.  Nathan didn’t take to the stroller; he still is really mainly content in mommy’s arms.  We tried some different ideas with Nathan, but we mainly got the spicy Hunan side of Nathan to show.  Boy does he know how to scream.  Anyways, the zoo was really neat.  It’s not that often that you get 2-3 feet from all these animals (tigers, lions, zebra, giraffes, exotic birds, etc.).  Although it did seem like they had very little room to move in their cages.   In the afternoon we tried bowling in the hotel’s bowling alley.  Nathan showed us more personality than before.  He smiled, clapped with us, and even leaned over and gave Abby a kiss.  Some small break-through feels like a miracle.  Although Nathan still won’t go to anyone but Jackie, and he still wines/cries if she is not standing while holding him.  Anna tried to hold him too, and got the same reaction as the rest of us.  I think there are signs that this is all his way of dealing with the changes in his life, and not a developmental disability, but only time will tell us for sure.  We also heard of another adopted girl recently that had pneumonia and clung in the same manner to her new mommy.  I don’t think Nathan has pneumonia, but we will try to have him checked out in Guangzhou.   We tried a Pizza Hut pizza for supper.  We couldn’t figure out how to get just a sausage or pepperoni, so we ended up ordering a plain cheese pizza.  It was actually much like in the US except it had almost no sauce.  It was a real treat.   We love and miss you all.   --Craig

Day 2 & 3 Pictures

Questions before the judge

Nathan's footprint stamp

Final paperwork before the notary

Time for a little ping pong (or table tennis as they call it China)

Nathan's first oreo

Entering into the Changsha amusement park and zoo

Strolling in the park

Feeding the carp

 

Anna trying peek-a-boo (chinese style)

Check'n out the monkeys

Never been 3 feet from a tiger before

bowling

Nathan playing with towels as Abby watches on