journeytomia

Together Day!!!!!

2006-07-09T17:39:00.000-07:00

I forgot to add yesterdays post to this site, so if you want to see it, you can go to http://www.babyjellybeans.com/web/do/site/photo?ID=101339 and read it. i was in a hurry so I forgot to update both. Sorry!! Anyways, here is the post you've been waiting for!!!!

Yesterday we left the hotel at 7am and headed to the airport. I'll skip the flight details and skip to around 11:30am where we were met by our guide Bob. We raced to a van outside and met another family though i am not sure who they were. Bob told me we'd go to the hotel and freshen up, grab some paperwork, the orphanage gifts and cameras then head to the Civil Affairs Building at 2pm to meet Mia. We got everything together and then waited downstairs for the St Johns. They were going to ride with us but the hotel bellhop misplaced their luggage so Bob took us on ahead of them and they followed after. It didnt matter because we waited awhile in the CAB and the St Johns weren't too far after. We waited in a very hot, stuffy room for what seemed like forever but was probably only about 10-15 minutes. Another woman had met her child on the elevator going up so they went ahead and brought that baby into the room for her. The rest of us waited. Soon, a lady came up to the couple next to me and said they were bringing her baby in. Bob told me they would bring Mia in about 3 minutes. I heard the baby belonging to the couple next to us screaming her head off as they walked her down the hall and laughed that Mia would be like that too. Then I looked up at the baby coming in. I jumped up and screamed "that one is MINE!!!!" and grabbed her. She cried and cried and cried....the whole time we were there. I gave the orphanage director and doctor who brought Mia the photo album I had made of the other Huazhou girls who had been adopted. They loved seeing the girls and remembered them all. I could not understand them but they would point and smile then say something to each other, and say things like they were remembering the child. She pointed to two of them and pantomimed her walking them and then pointed to the room we were in. Bob walked back in and she had him tell me she remembered bringing those two girls to this room personally. She told me one of the girls was hen piao liang, which is very beautiful. They gave the book back to me and I had Bob tell them it was for them to keep and they seemed very happy to take it with them. in exchange they gave me a photo album and camera I had sent Mia in Oct, and a photo album they had made for me with pictures of her. They also brought the list of questions I had sent and Bob translated them for me.

She would not stop screaming, crying, kicking and trying to get down when we held her. Finally we were able to leave, which was good because we were all dripping with sweat. At the elevator I asked Mason to hold her for me and when he grabbed her she turned around and reached for me. i grabbed her back and she hasn't cried since as long as i hold her. She still doesn't like Mason at all. At first she would let him touch her or even sit next to her. Now he can touch her and be by her but he cannot hold her or push the stroller when she is in it. Also I cannot leave the room, i have to be with her at all times.

We did some paperwork at the hotel, which from what i read was some papers saying we agree to foster her until the adoption is complete. After that we met Marjorie, James, Sophie and Matthew St John, and Mark, Kari, Kam and Benjamin Ottenbrite for dinner at the Cow and Bridge Thai restaurant. The food was GREAT but there were some weird things on the menu to say the least, like goose feet, pig neck, ostrich livers and more. The St Johns and Ottenbrites are wonderful company and their children are super cute. Benjamin is so handsome that he is downright pretty and gets mistaken for a girl by everyone. Sophie has those huge cute cheeks but isnt as big as she looked in her pictures.

Speaking of pictures, if you havent already skipped this post to get to them, here are pictures from yesterday! We have more video than pictures of it because Bob took the video but we were both too interested in Mia to stop and take pics. We got a few though and here they are!

2006-07-06T17:12:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we got up at 3am and couldn't go back to sleep. We went down for breakfast at the hotel which was really nice. We then did a little bit of walking down Wangfujing street where we bought a battery charger and Mason got some sandals. At 9am we met Maggie and the Brennan family in the lobby. The Brennans are really nice and we like them a lot. The first thing we did was the Temple of Heaven. That is where the emperor used to go to worship the god and say prayers for a good harvest. Back then the emperor had declared that only he could directly talk to the god and that he would speak on behalf of all the people. There were different parts that served different purposes, such as a hall for prayer, a hall for fasting, a large area with fire pits for burning oxen for sacrifice, and a place where the emperor would stand to talk directly to heaven because the way its built it magnifies your voice when you stand on it and say something. Around that is the echo wall where if you whisper something on to the wall, someone else standing along the wall can hear it. It was really neat being somewhere and knowing back then only the emperor himself was allowed there at all.
Outside the temple of heaven is a park. Its amazing! Not so much because of the park itself but because the people who hang out there. Maggie said the senior citizens pay like a monthly membership to be there in the park. They do tai chi, dance, play cards and chinese chess, ribbon twirling, tai-ji ball (I think that is how you say it), sing, and play music. Its just amazing how many of them are out doing these things. They would always invite us to join them too, they loved showing us how to do things. There was an 85 year old man who was dressed like a maiden and did a traditional chinese maiden dance. He was too funny. A little boy loved us and stopped us to take a picture with him. He took one with me and Mason, then one with Joe Brennan and another with Pam.

After that we went to lunch at the same restaurant as yesterday only this time the Brennan's joined us. Next we were supposed to visit Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City but plans got changed a bit and we went to the Lama Temple. We couldn;t take many pictures there because it is very disrespectful to take pictures of the buddha. The tibetan buddhists decorate very ornately with lots of color and style. It was really nice. In one of the rooms was the tallest thing I've ever seen in my life that wasn't a building. It was a buddha statue carved out of a single piece of wood. 75 feet tall! You couldnt even see it all if you stared up at it, you really had to crane your neck. Outside the Lama Temple we had a run in with the vendors. Pam, Joe and I were standing there alone and they swarmed us. We kept saying we didn't want things but they persisted and would shove things in our faces and follow us around. They circled us so it was very hard to move away. Finally most of them backed off when Maggie came back to us but they still followed us out of the place shouting at us to buy things. We and the other family did get a watch but that was what started it off, they saw us buy one thing and swarmed us.
After that we went to the Pearl factory. The pearl store guide asked us to guess how many pearls were inside one oyster she held and the winner would get a pearl from inside. I won because I guessed 9 and everyone else guessed lower, but it was way over 9. Since 9 is a lucky number in China I got two pearls for double happiness. We looked around a bit and ended up buying a few things. I got a nice small necklace of good quality pearls and Mason got a single black pearl on a chain. I would love to know what they would cost back in the states. The store had a photo of Eva Longoria on the wall and when I asked they said she'd been there last year and shopped. She's Gabrielle on Desperate Housewives for anyone who doesn't know.
After that we went to dinner at the most amazing restaurant. It was a large building with a concrete pathway. When you enter there is a bridge with water and trees on either side (yes inside the bldg) and a bench. I got to have my picture taken with the concubine's hat on :) Following the path there are different rooms where you eat. We went into ours and were served a large meal family style. There were fried pumpkin sticks, fish, pork and pea pods, chicken, steamed veggies and lots more. After we ate a girl in a traditional costume came in and danced for us.
We were supposed to see the acrobat show after that but there was an accident that blocked the roads so we went back to the hotel instead. Mason and I went and walked down Wangfujing street again, only further this time. Shopping in the non government stores is crazy. You can't walk without a clerk screaming "hey you like? you like? come here I show you! please dont go, come I just show you! see? very pretty? you buy, okay?" One lady asked us where we were from and we said America, so she asked what part. Mason said Houston like Yao Ming. They knew him and a man standing with her pantomimed basketball. Then he told everyone "they know Yao Ming! He is their friend!!!!" and they all thought that was really cool. We tried to explain that we don't know him, we're just from Houston like where he plays. I don't think they got it. I'm sure they excitedly told everyone they met a friend of Yao Ming last night! The streets are absolutely PACKED at night. It seems everyone pours out onto the streets at night. Its like all the cars and bikes stop and everyone walks outside in droves. The place is lit up with signs and large tv screens like Time Square. Any of you visiting here owe it to yourself to walk around here at night. Just don't make eye contact with the vendors :)
Mom, if you are reading, there is a large beautiful catholic church down the street. We took pictures of it in the day and at night when its lit up. I think you will recognize it in the pictures. Its so pretty.
Okay, on to the pictures and I'll get ready to go down for breakfast! The pictures are slow so check back to this page later and there will probably be more as i can't upload them all before I have to go.

Miss you all!!!!!!!!

To view pictures from yesterday please visit this link - http://www.babyjellybeans.com/web/do/site/photo?ID=100796 I'll be updating with more pictures later too, since they take SO long to upload. Check back for more.

2006-07-05T14:28:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we arrived in Guangzhou and then flew to Beijing where we were met by our guide Maggie, who is amazing. We weren't t the hotel too long before she arranged to take us out for lunch at a local chinese restaurant. We ate alone while Maggie, her friend and the driver patiently waited for us. We have kung pao chicken and a plate of beef, a bowl of dumplings, some steamed spinach leaves (we think) and some watermelon. They gave us enough to feed a whole family! She said normally waitresses don't get tips in china but these had stayed late and kept the place open just for us so we gave them a few dollars.
After lunch we went to the Bi Yun temple, or temple of the azure sky. It was amazing. There were two HUGE carvings of warriors called I think Heng and Ha who guard the temple. They were massive and very intimidating. You could see the mountain in the background and there were many pagodas along the walk. In different pagodas you would find large buddha statues, or guardian statues. Inside one was statues of the 18 arahats who were disciples of Shakyamuni Buddha and in another room were bronze statues of 500 arahats. I took several pictures but I don;t think they were properly convey the beauty and tranquility of the place.
Maggie said that not many american tourists visit the Bi Yun temple so the curious stares we got came as no surprise. People here seem very curious and also a bit shocked at Mason's tattoos. Just about everyone does a double take, and some point and whisper to their friends. Mostly when we smile at people we are met with a very friendly smile and nod in return.
Some things that were not exaggerations about China -
the bed is hard as a rock. You couldnt jump on this bed without spraining an ankle!
the driving is scary. If you are brave enough to look out the window while being driven around, you are in for a shock. It seems like people are going to run into you or kill the hundreds of pedestrians and bike riders every single second. Mason says they drive in survival mode. There are lots and lots and lots of people on bikes, scooters and motorcycles. Many buses and cabs too but not as many as the cyclists. Maggie said many people cant afford a car here and owning one is a sign of wealth.
the weather is just like Houston. Hot, muggy, humid...you can't walk around too much without sweating. Feels just like home except at home I'm inside with the AC on all day.
Well, I am going to try to upload some pictures now and maybe lay down. We fell asleep at 6pm yesterday and woke up at 3am. Maggie will be calling us at 7am to get dressed and have breakfast then meet her and another family downstairs to visit Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. I will update more later!

To view our pictures from yesterday, please click the following link - http://www.babyjellybeans.com/web/do/site/photo?ID=100311 and scroll down to the bottom of the page.

waiting to board

2006-07-03T21:06:00.000-07:00

We're sitting here with the St John family waiting for boarding to start. We have been here since 5:15pm cali time and its now 9:05pm. Boarding won't start until probably 11:30pm or so. I'm glad we have Marjorie, James and Matthew here this time to keep us company! That and the worlds worst $30 quesadillas. Food in LA is pricey! We're exhausted so hopefully we'll sleep all the way through to Guangzhou.

Safe in LA

2006-07-03T18:35:00.000-07:00

We made it safely to LA not too long ago. The flight here wasn't bad, hit a little bit of turbulence but otherwise okay. They played an Antonio Banderas movie called Take the Lead which was by far the worst part of the trip, aside from the loud mouth behind us trying to score with the girl next to him.
We waited forEVER at the houston airport and now we're waiting even longer here at LAX. Its 6:35pm here (8:35pm Houston time) and we cant check our bags for another hour. Then we have to wait here until about 11:50pm (1:50am Houston time) before our flight leaves.
We tried calling the kids at Mason's parents house but the pay phone ate our money and said it didn't recognize the number. Bah. We'll try again later and hopefully get through. In the meantime I hope this post lets everyone know we're okay. I'll update again in China!!!
Love and miss you lots Jacob, Gage and Skyelar.

Travel Schedule

2006-06-17T16:56:00.000-07:00

Here's what I have so far after buying plane tickets and arranging the tour of Beijing. I am still trying to arrange a visit to Huazhou and Mia's orphanage while in Guangzhou, and a trip to the zoo there too.

Travel Schedule

7/3 Leave Houston 3:45pm and fly to LAX, arrive 5:15pm. Leave LAX 11:50pm for Guangzhou stop over (lose 15 hours in flight due to time change)

7/5 Arrive in Guangzhou for flight change at 6:20am. Leave Guangzhou airport at 8:20am and arrive in Beijing at 10:55am. Meet guide who will take us to the airport. Walk or take cab to the shopping district.

7/6 Forbidden City/Tiananmen Square, Lunch at a local family's house, Hutong PedicabTour, Temple of Heaven, Dinner (Peking duck), Kung Fu show

7/7 Great Wall (Mu Tian Yu section), Sacred Way (Ming Tomb), dinner at Mongolian Restaurant

7/8 Summer Palace, Lunch, Bi Yun Temple

7/9 Leave Beijing at 8:45am, arrive in Guangzhou at 11:55am, meet and receive Mia at the Civil Affairs Office Begin adoption paperwork

7/14 receive adoption paperwork and Chinese passport

7/17 medical exam and visa photo

7/18 Consulate appointment

7/19 receive U. S. visa, 4pm Swearing-in-Ceremony, leave GZ at 9pm for LAX. Arrive in LAX at 6:50pm

7/20 Leave LAX at midnight for Houston, arrive at IAH at 5:40am

Travel Journal

2006-06-12T22:00:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! I have set this journal up so that I can post about our
trip and upload pictures for everyone to see once we are in China. We
just received our TA today so I'm in a crazy panic trying to make sure
everything that needs to be done actually gets done. I'll post more
when I know more!