Just hangin out

Between the thunder storms and Sophie's naps, we have been spending quite a bit of time in our hotel room. We are staying at a Sheraton, so it is not too bad, although it is more of a business hotel. When we go outside we always see Mercedes Benzs, Land Rovers, and even a Rolls Royce parked at the entrance. There are some very wealthy people here in China. Our hotel in Beijing had a Lamborghini and Ferrari dealership down the street.

Sometimes when we are trapped in our room we just look out our window for entertainment. Traffic is usually bad, but gets worse during the rain. Words can not describe how insane the aggressive driving habits of the people can be. There are no rules of the road, there more suggestions. I have had to close my eyes on more then one occasion when in our taxi.

Today we watched a few workers putting up a new billboard more then 5 stories above the street. Sometimes they would use harnesses, sometime not. I get nervous just watching them.

The other day we watched window cleaners repel from the roof.

We did get out this morning (Thursday) and went back to the civil affairs office for an official ceremony where they presented us with an adoption certificate.

After that we went to an embroidery museum/showroom. Hunan is well know for there embroidery. Evidently, it is a vanishing trade, because it is so time consuming.

Sophie took a nap in the taxi on our way to Yuelu Academy.

The academy, a place where Confucian scholars taught, has been around since 976. Mao Zedong even went to school here in Changsha.

Its official, she is a Gardner

It was confirmed that Sophie is officially a Gardner when we took her to Pizza Hut for dinner on gotcha day and discovered that she can hold her own when it comes to pizza.

Actually, it occurred when we went back to the adoption affairs office after the one day "harmonious period" and completed all the Chinese paperwork.

Sophie did not object to her foot print on the adoption certificate so we interpret that as meaning she is willing to live with us. She tolerates us I suppose, but we do LOVE her.

The orphanage director was also at the office. We had an opportunity to speak with her through an interpreter and found out that she is in charge of a smaller, special needs orphanage. From little clues observing Sophie, it would seem that Sophie was well cared for at her orphanage.

We have not ventured out of our Hotel that much. This is the raining season here, and there has been no shortage of it in the last day. At one point in the afternoon, the wind picked up, the sky grew dark and the rain came pouring down. It was kind of funny from our vantage point on the 10th floor to see all the people on the street trying to run to get out of the rain. Since it was about dinner time we opted for room service.

We did manage to get out at one point yesterday and snap a few pictures of Sophie in a garden that the hotel has on the 6th floor.

We did discover that Sophie does not like baths.

It is almost 8:00 and we are getting ready to head down for breakfast. Sophie had a rough night. When we got her she had a runny nose and cough. We have been trying to treat it but it appears that she is still suffering a bit. Not sure how much of it is the cold and how much may be the grieving process that she may be going through, which is very typical.

Gotcha

This afternoon we took a 15 minute cab ride to the adoption affairs office for the Hunan province. Each province in China has the office in the corresponding province's Capital City. Sophie traveled over 8 hours from her orphanage along with the orphanage director and a couple of the nannies. When the taxi arrived at the office, we were escorted to a waiting room and were told Sophie was already in the building. Even though it was a short wait, it seemed like forever. For many of you who have experienced adoption, you may know the feelings of anxiety that can suddenly come over you. We were no different.

Then she came into the room....

After the director placed Sophie on the ground, she cried and wanted to go back to the director and shunned Tamra for a moment. No worries on our part, that actually is a good thing to see because it shows she was able to form some kind of attachment.

It is a wonderful thing to experience and no amount of words can express the moment.

Sophie is deciding if Chris needs to shave the goatee off.

We all agreed that Chris will keep it this time.

There were a few tears

After filling out the paperwork, we made it back to our hotel room where she became a little more friendly.

She loves the blocks

We have been waiting since November 1st to pinch those checks.

A pleasant surprise

Today started out early for us. We both woke up at 4 am and could not go back to sleep. We used that time to Skype with our kids. They enjoyed seeing us, but we were trilled to see them even more so. Technology is truly amazing. I also got the chance to talk with my parents this morning. They reminding me that when they lived overseas in the Philippines, they used a reel-to-reel audio tape recorder to tape one way conversations with their family back in the states. After taping it, they would have to package it up, send it by snail mail and wait weeks for a response. Occasionally, they would be able to use short wave radio, but the conversation would be very limited.

After breakfast we got a pleasant surprise when we attended the orientation for our next phase of the trip. Our guides gave us an update on Sophie complete with pictures. How cute is that smile?

After lunch with our travel group, we headed out to Tiananmen square and the forbidden city. Lots of people all around, but nothing compared to the 1 million people they say it can hold. It also boggles my mind of how much labor went into constructing the emperor’s palace.

After walking what seemed like 2 miles, we boarded the bus and headed to a silk factory. Pretty neat stuff. I had no idea how a silk worm cocoon could be used.

This evening, we took a subway and traveled to a theater to watch a show. Again, on the way over we hit it during rush hour. Never a dual moment. The show was a production based on a boy growing up in a monetary and learning the art of Kung Fu. It had a good display of martial arts and even had the English lip dubs that reminded me of Saturday morning Kung Fu theater when I was a child. For some reason even through half the study was Chinese, the performance was in pre recorded English with the actors mouthing the parts. Some of the actors looked to be only 10 years of age but had phenomenal skills.

So now its back to the hotel and getting ready to pack for our flight to Changsha.

Friday
Scorpions anyone?

A view from our room

Walking through a market at night

Saturday

When in Rome.....

Local girl wanting a picture with Tamra

Chris ready to head back down

Tamra pointing to how far she got.

A visit to a jade factory and showroom

Cut from one piece of Jade

Amazing

Birds Nest

Enjoying a ride through a Hutong on a rickshaw

Read the small print ALWAYS. Especially when it is really important.

So, I was wondering before we left home what we would do in Seoul, South Korea for our 3.5 hour layover. Turns out we did not have any time to spare between flights. And no, our flight actually arrived in Incheon International Airport on time. The problem started when we dropped off our rental car and checked in at the LAX ticket counter. The lady asked us where
we wanted our baggage to go. Well, I thought it would be obvious and responded,

“Beijing of course.”

She informed me that was not possible. She said that we would have to pick up the luggage when we arrived in Seoul, go through customs and then go back to the check in counter, have the baggage checked back in, go through security before ultimately boarding our next flight to Beijing.

“That does not make any sense” I said.

Well that’s what you will have to do since your flight to Beijing departs from another airport. “What?”

She proceeded to explain, “You see you fly into Incheon International Airport but you depart from Gimpo International airport to fly to Beijing.”

I looked back at my itinerary and the airports and sure enough - two different airports. Thus, read the small print. So I steal Tamra’s Iphone and start searching for ways to transit from one airport to another.

She turns to me and says, “Did you just google how to transfer between Incheon and Gimpo?”

Maybe I did, but I did find that there was a commuter train running between the two airports. It was the train or a 45 minute taxi ride. Well let’s give it a shot, by Planes, Trains and Automobiles we will get to Beijing. After landing at Seoul, collecting our baggage and going through customs (about an hour) we raced frantically trying to find this train. At last we find it after a quarter mile of walking through endless corridors. We go to the ticket counter and of course they only take cash. That would be Korean Won mind you. No currency exchange around, except back at the airport terminal. So I leave my wife in a foreign country for a second time (she never really forgave me for the first time I did that 2.5 years ago) and race back to the currency exchange and get 10,000 won. Finally, we boarded the train. Did I happen to mention it was a commuter train. Every stop, more and more people poured on. Here we were with suitcases and carry ons and wall to wall people on board headed off to work. Additionally, there does not appear to be any personal space in Asian countries. We did eventually make our flight but were rushed the entire time. The upside to the entire thing was a chance to see parts of Seoul from the train that we would not have been able to see otherwise.

Chris upon boarding the Train, pointing at the stop we have to get of at.

A few veiws from the train

And we are off

Hello friends and family,
We are getting ready to drive down to Los Angeles to catch
our 13 hour international flight. We
depart just after midnight and have a 3.5 hour layover in Seoul, South Korea. Then on to Beijing for the last two
hours. I thought I would just send a
quick note of our schedule. We would also
appreciate your prayers as we go on this journey and for our children that
remain behind.
Apr 04 Lose
a day crossing the International Date Line
Apr 05 Thursday
Arrive in Beijing at 9:50AM
We will be staying at the Beijing Novotel Peace Hotel which
is a stone’s throw away from the Forbidden City
Apr 06 Friday Explore Great Wall and Hutong Lane
Apr 07 Saturday Adoption Orientation and Half day
tour of Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City.
Apr 08 Sunday
Fly to Changsha in the Hunan province
Apr 09 Monday
(Your Easter Sunday) Meet Sophie at the Civil Affairs Office
Apr 10 Tuesday Go through the adoption
registration and notarization procedures at the Civil Affairs Office
Apr 11 &12 Wednesday Free day
Apr 13 Friday
Pick up Sophie’s Chinese passport and fly to Guangzhou in the Guangdong
province
Apr 14 Saturday Visa paperwork check and Medical
check
Apr 15 Sunday Free day
Apr 16 Monday medical clinic follow up for TB test
results
Apr 17 Tuesday US Consulate visa appointment and
Oath taking ceremony
Apr 18 Wednesday Pick up Sophie’s Visa
Apr 19 Thursday
Fly back Home. If all goes
well then we will be arriving at the Fresno Airport on Apr 19 on American Airlines
flight 3045 at about 6:45 PM