Today is our last day in Nanjing.
We relaxed around the hotel packing for us to fly out this evening.
Denise met us at 2:30 to try and get our flight information worked out...again...no luck. We also found out that Jason's phone will not call out, even though he paid the extra money to use his phone in China. Then we found out that we were not allowed to call out from our hotel room. Besides Skype, technology was not working in our favor during the trip. At least I was able to see my Cohen each day. I have to say....I am getting a little homesick. I want to see my Cohen and get home.
We were sad to say good-bye to Denise and our diver in Nanjing. They were amazing!!! Denise was so sweet to get Melanie a little gift. We were so excited to give them both gifts from TN and tipped them well for being awesome!
We got Melanie's passport at 4:00 and headed to the airport. Our light from Nanjing to Guanghou was NOT GOOD! There was a four hour delay and they actually told us that it may not arrive at all. Once we got on the plane, it stayed on the runway for almost 45 min. They gave us our dinner on the flight and then within ten minutes were taking it away from us because we were approved to fly. The guy in front of us was not kind. He flew back his seat and hit Melanie in the head and turned around and stared at her like it was her fault. It was a plane full of businessmen going home for the weekend and were not happy for the four hour delay or the fact that our very tired 22 month old screamed at the top of her lungs for an hour and a half. She finally fell asleep the last thirty minutes of the flight. On top of that...the not so kind man sitting in front of us decided to let out the loudest fart in the world when we were standing by our seat to leave...he turned around as to blame our Melanie for the occurrence. We were happy to get off the plane and get our luggage...at 2:00 AM!!! Honestly, I think they took the plane somewhere and forgot that our luggage was on there. But...we were VERY thankful when we saw our sweet facilitator Lily patiently waiting for us.
As we arrived at our hotel at 3:00 AM...we were taken away by its beauty!!! Oh how beautiful The Garden Hotel in Guanghou was!!! It smelled good...food was amazing...customer service was fabulous...our room was perfect! They even gave a gift to Melanie, had a crib already set up in our room, and gave us a stroller to use for the week. The Garden Hotel was the only premium 5 star hotel in Guanghou. I think we actually saw some royalty and a famous rapper while we were there. What a blessing...especially after our plane trip.
Our guide is Lily - she is so kind. So off to bed we go at approximately 3:30am. Thank goodness our appointment the same day was not until 11:00.
Monday, July 8, 2013
Thursday - June 27, 2013
Today is another relaxing day!
We Skype called everyone (G, Papa, Cohen, YaYa, and Papa) and ate breakfast. We tried to confirm and work out our flight issues for the way back home. No luck! You know our trip has gone so smoothly. The only issue we really have had is booking our flights and confirming them. We did however sign up for Skymiles with United and Delta so that we could earn some free flights in the future.
Today we went to the mall. It was huge...I lost track to how many floors it had. There were dancing waters set to music and a play gym where kids could play. Many of the kids had the huge water squirters and were squirting the kids across the walkway. There were tons of food locations and tons of clothing stores. There was one entire floor dedicated to kids items. The prices in the mall were VERY reasonable compared to the US. We have decided that when we come back for the next China trip where Melanie can see where she is from, we are going to set aside some money for a new wardrobe. We could seriously change out our entire wardrobe in China for the same price as four outfits here in the US. Clothing is so much cheaper, however, housing is so much more expensive.
We picked up McDonald's and headed back to the hotel.
Denise met us at 3:00 and took us to a traditional Chinese garden. The city where Melanie was born (where her orphanage is located) is famous for their gardens. The one we saw today was from the Ming Dynasty. Very pretty! Everything has a purpose and meaning - from the carvings in the wall and bricks, stone designs on the ground, to the type of trees, bushes and plants they have. This area of China is very spiritual in everything they do...from the evil dispellers at the front of businesses to the curvy walkways, to the numbers. They have curvy walkways to keep the evil spirits from getting to them...so they would get lost. The number 8 is the luckiest number, while the 4 is very unlucky. Many people will pay extra just to have the number 8 in the license plate, street address, or number on their employee badge. The particular garden we went to today was famous for their picture of this dragon. The person that made it did it in one stroke. See the Chinese language is written by "strokes" You learn strokes when you are in Kindergarten and First Grade. This dragon was done in one stroke and was famous.
We then left the garden and went shopping for Jason...he wanted some red blossom tea. Today we were able to see up close and personal the living conditions and environment of the real Chinese people. My parents had lived in Taiwan for two years when they first married. My mother warned me about the lack of cleanliness around the living areas. She was correct. The restaurants and hotel were VERY clean...not the living conditions around the city.
Another thing that was funny to me was their driving. There really are no rules when driving in Nanjing. I have never seen cars, scooters, and buses get so close to each other in my life. They also LOVE honking their horns. New York and Puerto Rico are the most patient drivers compared to Nanjing. But...we never saw a wreak and no one yells at each other. They just accept the fact that they will get cut off, they lay on their horn, and move on. The majority of people drive scooters...with no helmets. They put their kids in the laps with no helmets as they drive very fast down the road. When it rains they have these special rain jackets that cover their hands and arms while they drive in the rain. Also...they are very creative in how they transport items. It is amazing how many items they can strap down to a scooter and still drive.
While in China, the sun really does not shine due to pollution/smog. You see it is out there behind a fog...you just cannot see it. Women like to keep their skin white, so they carry around umbrellas to protect themselves from UV rays and to keep from getting burned.
Today was the first day my stomach did not feel well. We stayed in for the night.
We Skype called everyone (G, Papa, Cohen, YaYa, and Papa) and ate breakfast. We tried to confirm and work out our flight issues for the way back home. No luck! You know our trip has gone so smoothly. The only issue we really have had is booking our flights and confirming them. We did however sign up for Skymiles with United and Delta so that we could earn some free flights in the future.
Today we went to the mall. It was huge...I lost track to how many floors it had. There were dancing waters set to music and a play gym where kids could play. Many of the kids had the huge water squirters and were squirting the kids across the walkway. There were tons of food locations and tons of clothing stores. There was one entire floor dedicated to kids items. The prices in the mall were VERY reasonable compared to the US. We have decided that when we come back for the next China trip where Melanie can see where she is from, we are going to set aside some money for a new wardrobe. We could seriously change out our entire wardrobe in China for the same price as four outfits here in the US. Clothing is so much cheaper, however, housing is so much more expensive.
We picked up McDonald's and headed back to the hotel.
Denise met us at 3:00 and took us to a traditional Chinese garden. The city where Melanie was born (where her orphanage is located) is famous for their gardens. The one we saw today was from the Ming Dynasty. Very pretty! Everything has a purpose and meaning - from the carvings in the wall and bricks, stone designs on the ground, to the type of trees, bushes and plants they have. This area of China is very spiritual in everything they do...from the evil dispellers at the front of businesses to the curvy walkways, to the numbers. They have curvy walkways to keep the evil spirits from getting to them...so they would get lost. The number 8 is the luckiest number, while the 4 is very unlucky. Many people will pay extra just to have the number 8 in the license plate, street address, or number on their employee badge. The particular garden we went to today was famous for their picture of this dragon. The person that made it did it in one stroke. See the Chinese language is written by "strokes" You learn strokes when you are in Kindergarten and First Grade. This dragon was done in one stroke and was famous.
We then left the garden and went shopping for Jason...he wanted some red blossom tea. Today we were able to see up close and personal the living conditions and environment of the real Chinese people. My parents had lived in Taiwan for two years when they first married. My mother warned me about the lack of cleanliness around the living areas. She was correct. The restaurants and hotel were VERY clean...not the living conditions around the city.
Another thing that was funny to me was their driving. There really are no rules when driving in Nanjing. I have never seen cars, scooters, and buses get so close to each other in my life. They also LOVE honking their horns. New York and Puerto Rico are the most patient drivers compared to Nanjing. But...we never saw a wreak and no one yells at each other. They just accept the fact that they will get cut off, they lay on their horn, and move on. The majority of people drive scooters...with no helmets. They put their kids in the laps with no helmets as they drive very fast down the road. When it rains they have these special rain jackets that cover their hands and arms while they drive in the rain. Also...they are very creative in how they transport items. It is amazing how many items they can strap down to a scooter and still drive.
While in China, the sun really does not shine due to pollution/smog. You see it is out there behind a fog...you just cannot see it. Women like to keep their skin white, so they carry around umbrellas to protect themselves from UV rays and to keep from getting burned.
Today was the first day my stomach did not feel well. We stayed in for the night.
Saturday, July 6, 2013
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Today is a relaxing day!
We ate breakfast at the buffet, and again I will say our hotel has a lot of food. There is everything from fruit, cereal, custom omelets, custom fish/meat and noodles, tons of rice options, tons of meat options, pastries, bread, juices, yogurt, sushi, veggies, and so much more.
We were going shopping with Denise today, but her schedule was changed. So we walked around the downtown street area. We went to Confucius temple where there are a ton of tourists. We purchased beautiful silk and brocade table runners and chop sticks for gifts. We got a hand made fan from a local artist that we will hang in Melanie's room. It has cherry blossom flowers on it. Melanie's Chinese name means little flower. So we thought it would be perfect for her room. As we walked around, the local smells started making us very sick, so headed back to the hotel.
There are some things about China's culture that are different from ours. The parents have the babies and toddlers wear these pants that are split at the crotch area, with the private area exposed, so that they can squat in the streets to use the restroom. We actually witnessed children "taking care of their restroom needs" in the streets. The people around thought nothing of it like it was a normal part of daily activities. We also noticed that all the girls hold hands or link arms - whether they are friends, partners, or mother/daughter. Some also dress alike.
We have learned a lot about the evil dispeller - dragon. Chinese people believe that they are descendants of the dragon. Many businesses and people will put two evil dispellers at the entrance of their business or home, or with a tassel in their car. They believe in wards off the evil spirits.
At 3:00 Denise met me in the lobby to give us all our important papers for Guangzhou. She also emailed Jason all the photos from Tuesday and worked it out for us to check-out at 4pm on Friday. Denise is awesome!!!
Melanie still cries when it is time to go to bed...but she sleeps the entire night.
As of right now, we are officially Melanie's guardians. We become her adoptive parents once we finish our US consulate meeting.
We ate breakfast at the buffet, and again I will say our hotel has a lot of food. There is everything from fruit, cereal, custom omelets, custom fish/meat and noodles, tons of rice options, tons of meat options, pastries, bread, juices, yogurt, sushi, veggies, and so much more.
We were going shopping with Denise today, but her schedule was changed. So we walked around the downtown street area. We went to Confucius temple where there are a ton of tourists. We purchased beautiful silk and brocade table runners and chop sticks for gifts. We got a hand made fan from a local artist that we will hang in Melanie's room. It has cherry blossom flowers on it. Melanie's Chinese name means little flower. So we thought it would be perfect for her room. As we walked around, the local smells started making us very sick, so headed back to the hotel.
There are some things about China's culture that are different from ours. The parents have the babies and toddlers wear these pants that are split at the crotch area, with the private area exposed, so that they can squat in the streets to use the restroom. We actually witnessed children "taking care of their restroom needs" in the streets. The people around thought nothing of it like it was a normal part of daily activities. We also noticed that all the girls hold hands or link arms - whether they are friends, partners, or mother/daughter. Some also dress alike.
We have learned a lot about the evil dispeller - dragon. Chinese people believe that they are descendants of the dragon. Many businesses and people will put two evil dispellers at the entrance of their business or home, or with a tassel in their car. They believe in wards off the evil spirits.
At 3:00 Denise met me in the lobby to give us all our important papers for Guangzhou. She also emailed Jason all the photos from Tuesday and worked it out for us to check-out at 4pm on Friday. Denise is awesome!!!
Melanie still cries when it is time to go to bed...but she sleeps the entire night.
As of right now, we are officially Melanie's guardians. We become her adoptive parents once we finish our US consulate meeting.
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Today we have a ton of paperwork at the Civil Affairs Office.
We woke up super early because our bodies are still on TN time. Melanie, however, slept ten hours. Before going to the civil affairs office, we Skyped with G, PaPa, and Cohen and YaYa and PaPa. This was the first day they saw Melanie. Cohen was so excited...he tried to make her laugh.
Today was a super rainy day. We answered our interview questions with the register and signed our papers with the red thumbprints. We then met the notary to finish our papers. We received some important papers and her immunization records, which are in Chinese. We gave our two gifts to the register and the notary. Yesterday, we gave the gifts to the orphanage workers and director. All of our gifts to them were made in TN...candies and foods.
After our appointment we went shopping. Nanjing is famous for their carving skills and stones. We went to two locations looking at their red stone and jade. We purchased two gifts for Melanie...one for her 16th or 18th birthday and one for her wedding day.
After we returned back to the hotel, we grabbed naps. Melanie did not want to eat and had a hard time napping.
Then we headed to McDonalds and KFC. We are finding that Melanie is very picky with her eating right now. She does not like anything spicy or with seasoning. So we got a huge variety of food to try...hamburger, chicken nuggets, veggie soup, rice, mashed potatoes and gravy and warm soy milk. So she loved the chicken nuggets without the breading, carrots from the soup, potatoes without gravy, rice, and the warm soy milk.
Well because of our long naps, we could not sleep. Melanie was up late because she would not sleep. Jason crashed and so Melanie and I looked at magazines. When I would turn a page, she would turn a page. She loves to mimic everything we do. So Melanie finally crashed in our bed and literally kicked us out of our bed. We could not sleep so we stayed up all night chatting in the sitting room!
We woke up super early because our bodies are still on TN time. Melanie, however, slept ten hours. Before going to the civil affairs office, we Skyped with G, PaPa, and Cohen and YaYa and PaPa. This was the first day they saw Melanie. Cohen was so excited...he tried to make her laugh.
Today was a super rainy day. We answered our interview questions with the register and signed our papers with the red thumbprints. We then met the notary to finish our papers. We received some important papers and her immunization records, which are in Chinese. We gave our two gifts to the register and the notary. Yesterday, we gave the gifts to the orphanage workers and director. All of our gifts to them were made in TN...candies and foods.
After our appointment we went shopping. Nanjing is famous for their carving skills and stones. We went to two locations looking at their red stone and jade. We purchased two gifts for Melanie...one for her 16th or 18th birthday and one for her wedding day.
After we returned back to the hotel, we grabbed naps. Melanie did not want to eat and had a hard time napping.
Then we headed to McDonalds and KFC. We are finding that Melanie is very picky with her eating right now. She does not like anything spicy or with seasoning. So we got a huge variety of food to try...hamburger, chicken nuggets, veggie soup, rice, mashed potatoes and gravy and warm soy milk. So she loved the chicken nuggets without the breading, carrots from the soup, potatoes without gravy, rice, and the warm soy milk.
Well because of our long naps, we could not sleep. Melanie was up late because she would not sleep. Jason crashed and so Melanie and I looked at magazines. When I would turn a page, she would turn a page. She loves to mimic everything we do. So Melanie finally crashed in our bed and literally kicked us out of our bed. We could not sleep so we stayed up all night chatting in the sitting room!
Monday, June 24, 2013 - Today we get Melanie
Today at 2:30 pm (1:30 am in TN) we will get Melanie.
We first headed to the breakfast buffet. I have never seen so much food on a buffet in my life!!!
We met Denise at 1:40 in the lobby and headed to the Civil Affairs office. Within five minutes, we got Melanie. She was content but would not look at us. She had a yellow Koala bear sipping cup, that she would not let go. She wore a coral top with a rabbit on it and baby blue leggings and red and white sandals with socks. Two staff ladies from the orphanage brought Melanie, not her nannies and director. They could not answer too many questions about her life and health because they did not take care of her. We filled out our paperwork and changed her very dirty diaper. We took her passport picture and headed to the grocery store for more diapers, wipes and bottled water. The grocery store was interesting...they had an escalator for the shopping carts. Things made in China were so much cheaper than the states. We also had to pay for the plastic bags to hold the items we bought....this is everywhere in China.
After shopping we headed back to the hotel for more paperwork. Not sure what we signed...everything was in Chinese and nothing was in English. Once we got back to the hotel, Melanie started looking at us and Jason was able to get her to laugh. We found out quickly she could walk!!! She loves to play the give and take away game. She would give us her bottle, sippy cup or toys and then take them back and stack them up on the table. Melanie loves the strawberry-apple puffs!!! She loves watermelon!!! She does not like ice cream and cold things. We walked everywhere. We walked around outside in the downtown square area and the three stories of stairs at the hotel. She would grab our finger and walk EVERYWHERE!!!
Melanie was tired when we got back to the room. We gave her a bath...which she hated. Jason walked her around the room for two hours to get her to go to sleep. Her crib was by our bed...she still screamed when we laid her in her crib. However, she finally slept all night...for ten hours... with no problems.
Jason and I crashed for the night...but woke up wide awake at 1am. Welcome to Jet Lag!
Melanie has huge bug bites around her wrists, ankles, and rear end area, which we immediately treated with a cream from the doctor. She was also very dirty in those areas. We quickly found out that evening that she had never had a bath. No lice...no scabies. She does have three Mongolian spots...one on her rear end and one on each ankle. She is 21 pounds and looks very healthy. No fever...eats good...no physical problems. Her cleft lip was repaired beautifully. Her cleft palate is open with a few teeth in the roof of her mouth. She does very well to get any food that gets caught in the palate. To our surprise...she does not have dysaudia (hearing loss). She can hear great!!!
We first headed to the breakfast buffet. I have never seen so much food on a buffet in my life!!!
We met Denise at 1:40 in the lobby and headed to the Civil Affairs office. Within five minutes, we got Melanie. She was content but would not look at us. She had a yellow Koala bear sipping cup, that she would not let go. She wore a coral top with a rabbit on it and baby blue leggings and red and white sandals with socks. Two staff ladies from the orphanage brought Melanie, not her nannies and director. They could not answer too many questions about her life and health because they did not take care of her. We filled out our paperwork and changed her very dirty diaper. We took her passport picture and headed to the grocery store for more diapers, wipes and bottled water. The grocery store was interesting...they had an escalator for the shopping carts. Things made in China were so much cheaper than the states. We also had to pay for the plastic bags to hold the items we bought....this is everywhere in China.
After shopping we headed back to the hotel for more paperwork. Not sure what we signed...everything was in Chinese and nothing was in English. Once we got back to the hotel, Melanie started looking at us and Jason was able to get her to laugh. We found out quickly she could walk!!! She loves to play the give and take away game. She would give us her bottle, sippy cup or toys and then take them back and stack them up on the table. Melanie loves the strawberry-apple puffs!!! She loves watermelon!!! She does not like ice cream and cold things. We walked everywhere. We walked around outside in the downtown square area and the three stories of stairs at the hotel. She would grab our finger and walk EVERYWHERE!!!
Melanie was tired when we got back to the room. We gave her a bath...which she hated. Jason walked her around the room for two hours to get her to go to sleep. Her crib was by our bed...she still screamed when we laid her in her crib. However, she finally slept all night...for ten hours... with no problems.
Jason and I crashed for the night...but woke up wide awake at 1am. Welcome to Jet Lag!
Melanie has huge bug bites around her wrists, ankles, and rear end area, which we immediately treated with a cream from the doctor. She was also very dirty in those areas. We quickly found out that evening that she had never had a bath. No lice...no scabies. She does have three Mongolian spots...one on her rear end and one on each ankle. She is 21 pounds and looks very healthy. No fever...eats good...no physical problems. Her cleft lip was repaired beautifully. Her cleft palate is open with a few teeth in the roof of her mouth. She does very well to get any food that gets caught in the palate. To our surprise...she does not have dysaudia (hearing loss). She can hear great!!!
Saturday & Sunday - June22 & 23, 2013 - Today we left for China
We have been packing and unpacking our suitcases getting ready for our long journey to China. So Friday night, we did not go to sleep hoping this would help with jet lag. The packing took much longer than expected because we were trying to stay within the weight limits of our luggage so that we did not have to pay the enormous fees for going over 44 pounds per person. This is harder than you think!!! Many things on our check list had to be left home.
At 4:30 am we packed the car and headed to my parents house. We said our good byes to Cohen (this was soooooo hard) and my dad drove us to the airport.
Our first flight to Chicago was one our late. We then flew from Chicago to Bejing...this was a 13 hour flight. I have to say the airplane food has gotten better since the last time I flew. We were hoping to get some sleep....however that did not happen. Our United Airlines economy seats were not the most comfortable. It was great watching movies and I read one book on the way (The Wedding....a must read for The Notebook lovers out there). Due to the lack of sleep...we were very tired when we landed in Bejing. We noticed two things when we landed in China...their version of air conditioning is totally different from the US (it was not air conditioning) and the pollution smell I was warned about. But...you get used to both pretty quick. We then caught another flight from Bejing to Nanjing (two hours). Nanjing was the province Melanie was born in and where we would pick her up. Our WONDERFUL facilitator was Denise. She picked us up at the airport and took us to our hotel. Our driver and Denise were fabulous!!! The hotel was 40 min. away and it was called the Mandarin Garden Hotel. It was a 5 star hotel and we stayed in a suite. For our home away from home for five days, it was great to have the space...a bedroom with a King bed, two bathrooms, and a sitting room. The hotel was clean and the staff was friendly. We learned quickly the language barrier and was thankful for Denise to do our talking for us. As soon as we got settled in the room, we exchanged some money and headed to Pizza Hut for dinner. The exchange rate was 6.1....so our US $100 currency was $608 yuan. The rate slightly changed each day.
There is a 13 hour difference between Tennessee and China. So when it was 3pm in China it was 2am in Tennessee. We left TN on Saturday morning and arrived in China Sunday night.
At the end of the day, we praised God for the safe trip and that we did not get sick!!! Tomorrow is the big day...we get Melanie.
At 4:30 am we packed the car and headed to my parents house. We said our good byes to Cohen (this was soooooo hard) and my dad drove us to the airport.
Our first flight to Chicago was one our late. We then flew from Chicago to Bejing...this was a 13 hour flight. I have to say the airplane food has gotten better since the last time I flew. We were hoping to get some sleep....however that did not happen. Our United Airlines economy seats were not the most comfortable. It was great watching movies and I read one book on the way (The Wedding....a must read for The Notebook lovers out there). Due to the lack of sleep...we were very tired when we landed in Bejing. We noticed two things when we landed in China...their version of air conditioning is totally different from the US (it was not air conditioning) and the pollution smell I was warned about. But...you get used to both pretty quick. We then caught another flight from Bejing to Nanjing (two hours). Nanjing was the province Melanie was born in and where we would pick her up. Our WONDERFUL facilitator was Denise. She picked us up at the airport and took us to our hotel. Our driver and Denise were fabulous!!! The hotel was 40 min. away and it was called the Mandarin Garden Hotel. It was a 5 star hotel and we stayed in a suite. For our home away from home for five days, it was great to have the space...a bedroom with a King bed, two bathrooms, and a sitting room. The hotel was clean and the staff was friendly. We learned quickly the language barrier and was thankful for Denise to do our talking for us. As soon as we got settled in the room, we exchanged some money and headed to Pizza Hut for dinner. The exchange rate was 6.1....so our US $100 currency was $608 yuan. The rate slightly changed each day.
There is a 13 hour difference between Tennessee and China. So when it was 3pm in China it was 2am in Tennessee. We left TN on Saturday morning and arrived in China Sunday night.
At the end of the day, we praised God for the safe trip and that we did not get sick!!! Tomorrow is the big day...we get Melanie.
Blog and VPN blocked in China
Well many of you that are following our blog to get updates while we were in China are wondering what in the world happened. We had all intentions to do a daily update on the blog, however, China blocked our VPN and our blog while we were over there. This was very strange as other adoptive families were able to access their VPNs. We were so bummed we could not send updates, pictures, and videos.
While in China I kept a daily journal of everything that happened. So keep posted....I will be posting each daily journal posting. The title will be the date.
While in China I kept a daily journal of everything that happened. So keep posted....I will be posting each daily journal posting. The title will be the date.
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