Zhengzhou Day 5

Today I was feeling very adventurous and asked our guides where I could go shopping. I wanted to negotiate prices and shop somewhere non-touristy (i.e. not Wal-Mart). Vivian wrote down the name of an outdoor market called Are Chee Guong Chong. Something in there means the number seven  I think. I was able to talk another family into going with me so we walked out of the hotel and got a taxi. I showed the driver the piece of paper with the market name in Chinese and he asked me something to which I told him "I have no idea what you are saying to me." He gave me the thumbs up and ten minutes and two dollars later we were dropped off at the market. 

It was cramped, crowded, and dirty in there but there were all kinds of goodies. I was armed with my calculator and ready to shop.  Everyone was eating street food and it smelled really good but I was told DO NOT eat anything from street vendors so I didn't. I bought a few things and thoroughly enjoyed going back and forth with the vendors on the prices. They showed me a price on their calculator then I would show them a lower price on my calculator and we would go back and forth until they gave in.  I don't know why I love that so much but it was really fun. Two women with two children were very interested in us. They were pointing at us and talking about us then came up and started touching us and talking some more. They did not speak English but somehow I had a conversation with them. They wanted to know about the family I was with  and kept pointing at me and the family's new daughter and then touching our hair and pointing some more. I think they were asking if the baby was with me because we both have black hair.

Somehow we managed to get a taxi back to the hotel. That night I went to dinner with several families to a place called New Island Coffee, which sounds like it was just a coffee shop but really they had all types of food. I took a chance on something called hot pot chicken and it came to me on fire. The flames weren't visible in pictures but this contraption was on fire.

Unfortunately my food came long after everyone else was done eating so I felt bad that they were done and were waiting on me to finish. Regardless this meal was really good! Another great day in Zhengzhou.  

Zhengzhou Day 3 & 4

Today the families (and me!) went to registration and the notary office to finalize adoption paperwork. Then we went to apply for the children's passports so they can fly to Guangzhou then USA.

Registration

Notary Office



Applied for the children's passports here

 I ate dinner with three families and Xia at the Holiday Inn Express which was next door to our hotel. I had steamed dumplings and the beef noodle bowl (really good!). After dinner Xia and I walked to a mall to look around. Even on a Tuesday night at 8 PM there were people and cars everywhere. Crossing the street is an event. Stoplights and crosswalks mean nothing! We made it there and back unharmed. It is such a production walking around here. The next day was a free day. I went to Wal-Mart and a park with some families. The park was beautiful and the kids enjoyed running around. 

Walkingto Wal-Mart

Watch out!

Beautiful park

We got pizza for dinner and although it didn't taste exactly like home it was pretty close!

Gotcha!

Today all ten families in our group received their babies. They age from fifteen months to thirty months. One baby was sleeping and two others did not cry but were stoic. The rest screamed and cried which is usually what happens. They are scared and confused.  I was on camera duty for two families and of course their babies arrived at the same time! I don't know how I managed but I got hundreds of pictures of both. It was truly magical and emotional, overwhelming and joyous.  It was really special to be part of the day. Of course i was crying; you'd think I was getting a baby too! There is something intimate and indescribable about witnessing families forming and bonding. Food is typically the first thing that comforts the children and most of them eat three times as much as adult. They are confused and scared but Cheerios are the universal language of love and trust.



Here we go!



It was an exhausting day for everyone, most everyone took a nap and fell into bed early. I went to dinner with Xia, she is the director of our Charity Department and works in Denver. She travels to Henan Province every other month. It was fun to see her in China!

She took me to a Sichuan restaurant that was so good. I told her I wanted something spicy and she did not disappoint! There were little green peppers in the dish and they made my lips numb. Mmmmm my mouth is watering just thing about it. It the best thing I've eaten in China. After dinner we rode a public bus to a mall. It cost about  $0.12.  Most public buses I saw were at maximum capacity but the bus we took wasn't too crowded. Before our stop Xia told me we had to stand right next to the door to jump off at the next stop. Xia wanted to buy some boots at the mall. We went in countless stores, shopping and laughing. Every time Xia tried on a pair of boots the sales person would tell her they are on sale. They are 20% off, they are 50% off. I don't think any prices in China are set in stone. We also went to a nail shop to get manicures but they would only do gel nails for me which I did not want. I felt like maybe they were trying to get me to spend more money in there and that's why they kept telling me only gel nails. Who knows. We decided to forgo manicures and left the mall. Outside there were hundreds of women doing a synchronized dance routine. Xia said they were exercising. How did the know the moves? It reminded me of the Chinese Electric Slide. I guess everyone knows the steps to that! (well, except me). It was so nice and cool outside we decided to walk back to the hotel. It was still early so we went to the White Horse Sports Bar in the hotel. It was a wonderful day. Of course I thought about what it would be like if I had adopted a child and I was wistful.

Zhengzhou is a bustling city. It's a little cleaner than Beijing but the driving is still crazy. There are electrical bikes and Vespa type mopeds everywhere and you better watch out because you will be run over. Most men smoke. Men do not doors for women or let you off the elevator first. If you catch someone's eye and smile they never smile back. They just stare at you. Pretty much everyone stares at our group though. Even after thousands of children have been adopted internationally from China people still stare and and cannot understand why on Earth people from other countries would come to China to adopt a child, especially one with a medical need. All the children in my group have a medical need such as left lip, cleft palate, heart disease, developmentally delayed, club foot, malformed fingers, and extra digits (six fingers). Each and every one is precious and perfect.

Zhengzhou

We left early for Beijing and it was snowing! It may snow once a year in ATL so it was really exciting to see snow in China. Traveling through the airport with nine families is quite a production! Luckily George Michael helped us all get checked in and through security. Security in China is very different than in USA it seems. For one, you do not have to take off your shoes in China (or S.Korea). Also they really get their hands in your pants and everwhere else on the pat down.  I prefer the scanner any day. The Beijing airport also did not allow any liquids in carry on luggage and when we checked our luggage they had lots of questions about shampoo, applesauce, and a fan. I am pretty sure those are not odd things to find in luggage. Ok maybe the desk fan was a little odd.

My first thought about Zhengzhou was that is was less polluted and less crowded compared to Beijing. The flight was like a roller coaster and I was concentrating on not throwing up. The bathrooms only had the squatty potty unless you used the handicapped bathroom. Let's just say there was a line for that stall. Also, just in case you are planning to traveling to China soon, please note that most public bathrooms do not have any toilet paper. Or soap. You learn quickly to bring tissue and hand sanitizer with you whenever you leave the hotel.

 Our guides Yi Sha (her Chinese name) and Vivian (not her Chinese name) greeted us at the airport led us to our bus. We drove about 30 minutes to the hotel and they went over the schedule for the day. Going to the bank to exchange money and going to Wal-mart to get formula or any last minute supplies for the babies. On the ride to the hotel I was still feeling sick from the plane ride and I knew what was going to happen, I just didn't know when.  That old familiar feeling. Motion sickness. Despite my Motion Eaze, ginger, and dramamine concoction. As soon as we got the hotel I threw my passport to someone to check me in and ran for the bathroom. It was being cleaned and thus I couldn't go in. A lady told me to go up to the third floor. I ran up the stairs and barely made it. Not only did I get sick but got a bloody nose, too. I got my room key and laid down for a couple hours. I gave some money to another family to exchange it for me. By the time everyone was back and it was time to go to Wal-Mart I felt fine. It was about a 15 minute walk but it you also have to dodge people on electric bikes. They will mow you down.

 chicken feet



crock pots full of food at Wal-Mart



 

dried fish, chicken, and I don't know what else

The families got formula and snacks for their children. I was overwhelmed. I didn't have a grasp on the money yet. There were whole fish on ice every where. You have to bring your own bags in Wal-Mart and grocery stores in China so we were all loaded down carrying stuff on the walk back to the hotel.

Everything is an adventure. It's all new and exciting, foreign and a little intimidating. The entire trip thus far is really about tomorrow when the families will meet their children. They have loved them from afar, spent countless hours staring at their photos. They are more than ready. I can't wait.

Beijing Day 2

Today we left the hotel bright and early. It was cold and rainy. We headed for the jade market. We got a lesson in jade walked by many workers polishing jade. I learned that jade is white,green, purple,red,black, yellow,and orange. I thought it was only green. There were thousands of pieces of jewelry for sale. I foundation beautiful bangle bracelet that fit. It was green and white. Of course they start out high on the price and you go back and forth with them.they would only come down to $340 so I had to walk away. That was way more than I wanted to pay. I found lots of pretty things but too high (sorry K!). There is another jade market in Guangzhou.

polishing jade

Next up the Great Wall of China. It was amazing. It was also raining. I climbed what seemed like a thousand steps but the steps are all uneven so some were a few inches high and other steps were two feet high. In the rain. I have noticed that Chinese people do not adhere to the 'stay to the right' philosophy. So I was holding onto the rail for dear life and people were coming down holding onto the rail. We had a stand off a few times. I will try to post pictures later-I am having technical difficulties. Unfortunately because it was raining none of my pictures are great but rather foggy. Oh we'll-I came all the way to China so rain or no rain I had to climb the wall. I didn't even come close to the top and commend the folks that did.coming down was scary enough in the rain. Tiffy I would like you to know I have burned lots of calories here!!!



Next we went to a traditional Chinese lunch. I thought I was eating chicken but it was duck. I tried some rice liquor and it was awful. I could feel it going down and it made me hot. It was obviously popular because they sold it there and many people bought a bottle. I also saw it in Wal-mart. Otherwise lunch was very good except a random plate of French fries. Every meal here including breakfast has French fries. 

Then we went to the Birds Nest, the site of the 2008 Olympics. It was very crowded and a popular tourist spot. It was also pouring rain so challenging to get a good picture. It still felt awesome to be there and there was excitement in the air.That night we attended an acrobatic show. It was amazing. I loved it even though I was exhausted. Went back to the hotel to have a little dinner then fell into bed. Flying out early in the morning to Zhengzhou, Henan Province (pronounced like Jing-joe, Hunan).

Beijing Day 1

We left the hotel at 8:30 AM and headed out for a hutong tour. This is basically a tour of an older home in Beijing. We rode on rickshaws to the neighborhood which was uncomfortable as it just didn't seem right to let a little elderly man pull me and another grown man around. He was huffing and puffing the whole time.

Our tour guides George and Michael (I combine their names and call them both "George Michael")  assured us that this is for tourists and not to feel bad for them- just tip them a few dollars. Within a couple of blocks I probably saw 200 rickshaws. They were mostly just lined up on the streets, the men talking and not actually pulling anyone.  We reached the hutong and received a tutorial on the entrance way to these homes. The numbers, pillars, number of steps, and statues out front tell everything about the family- their social status, occupation, wealth, etc.

We got to tour a home. It was really interesting. There are several little rooms surrounding a courtyard. There was a sitting room, bedroom, art studio, and pigeon room. What? Yes a pigeon room. This particular family has two hobbies- caligraphy and training prize pigeons. I am not sure what they trained the pigeons to do exactly but they had received many trophies which they proudly displayed. This family had a side-by-side refrigerator which we learned is rare in China. They also had many birds, dogs, and cats. Check out the fat cat in the middle!  

 Art studio

 Ikea kitchen

court yard

Next we went to a silk factory and received a lesson on how silk is made from silk worms. They had all types of silk comforters, duvets, scarves, ties, and dresses. It was all pretty and very interesting.

Next we had a delicious family style lunch at a restaurant I know would not pass American health code standards. It was really good, especially a dish of spicy asparagus. I couldn't figure out exactly what I was eating but it was super spicy and asparagus was the main ingredient. I don't think I want to know what it was! Next we went to the Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. The Forbidden City was where the emperor lived so it's not really a city but common people weren't allowed in the gates so they nicknamed his grounds the Forbidden City. It was quite opulent and sad to think that the emperor had so much wealth and he had 9,999 bedrooms and his people were starving to death.

The Forbidden City

We got back to the hotel around 5 PM and I fell asleep by 7 PM. My internal clock is still not right! I am having a great time here. All the families are lovely and welcoming of me into the group. 

A few observations on Beijing-

1. There are no rules on the road. I get anxious riding on the bus because we come so close to hitting cars, pedestrians, etc. We do U turns in major intersections, head straight into on coming traffic, cut people off, cut in line,  and run every red light.

2. Most men seem to smoke. My hotel room is non-smoking and it smells like smoke and has four ashtrays. I confirmed it in non-smoking and they said yes. Somehow I don't believe them.

3. I thought only the blond hair/blue eyed folks would be popular but our whole group is quite popular. I have taken numerous photos with strangers. They come up and get their camera out and boss me around in Chinese. I actually understand that they want me to pose with them and throw up the peace sign. Today one lady was especially bossy (takes one to know one!) and kept telling me to move because she didn't like the background of the picture. A few times I thought people wanted me to take their picture for them but no, they want to take a picture with me.

4. Since we are a large group (about 30 people) we get some stares especially since we have two Asian children with us (both previously adopted from China). I noticed people kept coming up to George Michael and asking him something, he would respond and then they would  walk away or stare. Mostly stare. So yesterday I asked George Michael what they are asking him. He said some people want to know are we Americans? Some want to know are those children Chinese, Korean or Japanese? Others want to know how George Michael speaks English so well.

5. There are lots of dogs running around here. They all seem like they know where they are going. They cross the streets with crowds of people and no one pays them any attention.

6. I have seen more McDonald's and KFC around here that anything else. They are everywhere.

7. With so many cars here I have yet to see one gas station.