Touring in Guangzhou

The picture above is a poorer section of Guangzhou. As per typical, the city streets have shops all around on ground level with residential apartment like units above. Haphazardly between these quasi residential/commercial areas is either fancy skyscraper buildings or large new construction as seen in the background behind the bamboo screenwall. The city's are really quite clean for the massive amounts of people. There is an odd thing about this picture - this picture is not as densely populated with people as most areas. The area in Guangzhou where we spent most of our time was more a tourist trap. The "real" Chinese people other than shop Owners were busy in other sections of town, leaving this area for foreign guests. Tara and I almost compare parts of Guangzhou to Cancun - it is really beautiful, but touristy, and the people are pandering to you, all to make the sale. "For you... special price - big discount", they really know how to work a sale. Tj and I were walking around and a young girl working in a shop can out and asked if we were brothers.... She went on to say I couldn't be TJ's father because I couldn't be more than 27. Needless to say that is where I bought all my souvenirs....

This was a scene inside the Thai restaurant, the same place where TJ ate a pigeon dish. The people in the background all gathered together while we ate our early dinner, to practice their English. It was really funny listening to them working on this as a group... It somehow made me feel better knowing how hard we have struggled with our Chinese....

Yes it's true - McDonald's is in China. Along with Starbucks, Wal-Mart, Pizza Hut, KFC, and Even AmWay!!! Somethings are just plain wrong. China should keep their bad toys and we should keep our .......... stuff. Amazingly enough these places are always busy here and really are much better facilities here than in the U.S.. In reality as much as I believe it is a travesty to have these entities in China - honestly after a period of time a familiar sign and identifiable food substance is quite refreshing and comforting!

Any guesses on the tallest building in Guangzhou? It is the Amway head quarter's building.... I had fun with our guide on this one. You'll have to ask me about the details.

This was a view of a huge shopping area in the center of town. Lots of exterior vendors, specialty shops and a major multi-story mall that would make any mall in the U.S. pale in comparison. These people know how to shop! This shot of the central walkway through the mall area was much more representative of the vast amounts of people and traffic we experienced. The hustle and bustle reminded me of New York and East coast. People everywhere doing there own thing. We all held hands and stayed very close together so that we did not become separated.

The weather was simply amazing. While in Guangzhou we suffer through the 60-80 degree weather, while only 10-30 degrees at home with snow and ice to boot....

Guangzhou

The playroom at the White Swan is the size of 2 conference rooms and it is filled with toys and a TV with a dvd player...I am surprised the kids would leave , but with so many things to spend the last of their money on... The hotel we stayed at definitely caters to all of the Americans that have to pass through Ghangzhou in order to file visa and citizenship documents for their newly adopted children. Mattel fills their room with toys and sends every adoptive family ( who stays at the hotel) home with a "Going Home" Barbie ( Barbie complete with her back haired baby.)
A covered walkway. The boys went out exploring to the "forbidden zone" We called the area across the bridge this as our guide last year instructed us to never cross the road - Tom couldn't stand it htis time and ventured out wiht ht eboys. They found a spice market selling scorpions, horns of various animals and the thing they have all been talking about - lions feet. I woul dahve loved a picture - I was home trying to get toddlers to sleep...okay I was sleeping too :o).
The hotel offers toddler beds ( Ty talked Tian into letting him sleep in it) - Trace thought it was part of the jungle gym. Needless to say, he is all boy and LOVES to wrestle

Trace loves everything we put in front of him - here we are eating a Thai restaurant -plesae ask TJ about his dad's face when they brought out the roasted pigeon. ( It was the ENTIRE bird- missing only the feathers) I ahve to admit it was actually very good. Sorry no picture - we forgot in all the excitemnt of Tom's reaction.

Last look at Guiyang

Last view of the landscape through the airport window

It was sad to leave Guiyang - the capital city of Trace's province. We are leaving without ever having a chance to se the place where he was left by his birth mother...Hopefully someday we will go back and find it. It was 5+ hours from our hotel and there was not time to go. I am disappointed for him. The day we visited the place where Tian was left was a hard for her at 13 months as it was outside the orphange ..memories for babies are stronger than we realize, so perhaps it is best - it may have stirred up a lot for him especially after having such a loving foster mother...



On we headed to Guangzhou - a city in mainland China just across from Hong Kong. We, along with MANY other adoptive families, stayed atthe beautiful White Swan hotel. The picture is in front of a Koi pond/waterfall that adjoins the dining area. Trace was determined to throw rocks into the water everyday and Tian figured if he could do it - she wasn't about to miss out on the fun. It makes the breakfast so much fun :o)



In Guangzhou we were able to visit the Chen family gardens and school - a fitting place to see as Trace's last name assigned to him was Chen. It was built by this family as a school for all Chen children where the family supported it by donation and the children were educated free. In the '50's, during the Cultural Revolution,the land was taken by the government and the area is now a museum... the details in the architecture are characteristically detailed and the gardens breathtaking. The pictures show the entrance decorated for New Year

Home at last

The chopstick king

Tian and Trace playing kitchen at home


Trace feeding the dog ( AGAIN!!) -

Can you guess who Kela's favorite is?


We are home!!!! Trace is doing great - still adjusting to the time change, but everything else seems to be falling into place. Tian has decided she likes him - he is a very willing tea party companion (aka victim) . He loves sipping little drinks of water and eating goldfish. I am surprised ,as I thought sharing all of "her" things here at home would be the most difficult, but so far she has loved it. I think being home with him is more of what she imagined than having to adjust on the road.

TJ, Trevor and Ty are glad to home and have enjoyed having pizza and more pizza. Auralee, our dear friend who watched our house while we were gone, had pizza waiting for us when we walked in the door. It was WONDERFUL!!

We have been doing loads and loads of laundry and I think everything is out of the suitcases and the last few souvenirs are finding there places.

Trace had been to our pediatrician, who so far has given him a clean bill of health - minus a nasty sinus infection and pending lab results, but overall he healthy ( YEAH!!.) She is very familiar with Chinese adoption as her brother and his wife have 2 little girls .( What a coincidence - in our little town to have a pediatrician who is well versed in health issues of Chinese babies! You would think "someone" had a hand in all of us finding each other...) She is pleased with the repair done on his lip and is setting up appointments with an ENT, cranio- facial specialist etc so we can start the ball rolling to repair his palate. Even with a sinus infection and a major cleft ( meaning his cleft extends through the gum line, all the way back and actually divides his uvula ( the hangy thing at the back of your throat ( Ty said I should tell people what that is :o)), his ears are healthy, so we are counting our blessings. He is already using some English words ( more, eat, mama, mine, and his first word and favorite: "no") He is using sign language as well ( please, more, drink and eat )

Our first morning home he discovered that he LOVES waffles ( not maple syrup though). Kela ( our old crabby dog) decided she likes the new addition, who thought it was fun to throw pieces of food at her.

Tom's dad and Tessa came Saturday for a quick visit - it was wonderful to see them. They have just returned from a visit to England -so we especially appreciate them making the drive with jet lag. Tian would not leave poor Tessa alone - I think she was making sure Trace knew she was her grandmother first!!

We are now getting ready for Trace's Sunday debut, do you think I can find any of the boy's old Sunday clothes that will fit him?!!! I did find the sailor suits...por kid he is a US Citizen for 4 days and we drafted him.I will let you know how he does, we woke up both babies up at 8 hoping they would take a good nap before we leave for church at 12...we'll see if the gamble pays off.

What a Circus Act....

YOu will never believed what happened today. We were quietly (okay,well not so much) walking around the tourist traps, - chasing Tian, who had not slept enough, carrying Trace who was alternately eating Goldfish crackers and dropping them down my shirt ,as well as singing becasue he knew Tian wanted me to carry her, and Ty was trying to convince Tom and I he should have EVERY sword, knife or battle ax he saw, when a reporter stopped Tom to ask a few questions. He had spotted us before ( I think we were being stalked) and wanted to interview us for a news story. I thought we were being so discreet... We answered some questions about the adoption process,then he asked if his photographer could take a few pictures after he finished his tea. Tom asked where he would like to meet us and he said he would have no trouble finding us!!!! Should I be insulted ?!? I stepped in a shop to look at baby clothes, the boys waited outside for us and the next thing I knew he was interviewing the boys - heaven knows what they told him - TJ probably recounted the monkey/finger tale....anyway, they took several photos and offered to email them to us. Nothing too exciting and we went on our way, and I know they were following when Tian had a meltdown because she did not want some of the goldfish she wanted ALL of them, now! Needless so say, she had a screaming time out ( where she sits in place and just screams( it works for her. After a few minutes she is back to herself)) I am sure those pictures, me sitting a few feet away and Tian sitting screaming., made it inot he article....Hopefully, we didn't end the CHinese adoption program in one fell swoop.

We had a fun afternoon and enjoyed some Thai food ( sorry Leah we thought of you at least) - nothing to exciting Tj will post pics later...as he order pigeon (whole, head included pigeon)
for dinner
I still didn't think we were that much of a spectacle - are we?