So This is Hefei

Our travel group left the hotel in Beijing at 5 this morning.  Had a sack breakfast on the bus and sang Happy Birthday to Maryn as we headed to the airport.  We all went through the group check in seamlessly, even the family of 8 with their 9 suitcases.  Some in the group were headed to the same provinces, same cities; others were headed to the same provinces different cities and two families, including us, were headed out on their own to different provinces.  Our flight from Beijing was 120 minutes, so I heard the pilot say.  Our guide, Jane, picked us up and took us to the hotel.  She spent an hour with us gathering paperwork, explaining the process for tomorrow and telling us about the orphanage.  She is so relaxed and confident, and we appreciate her experience so much.  To be correct, perhaps she spent more than one hour with us because she started off by calling someone, named Peter, to pick up our laundry.  He had to wait a few minutes while Jane was on the phone because we tried to tell him "no starch," but couldn't find it in the dictionary.  Jane was on the phone with the hotel kitchen to tell them what to make for us and also wrote it down so we could arrive at the hotel restaurant and just hand them the paper that says grilled chicken,white rice and steamed broccoli.  Don't even think about making that for an arrival home celebration dinner! 

 

Jane told us that Hefei does not have a lot of tourists and foreigners like there are in Beijing so people will look at us, and please don't be offended.  Remember yesterday I mentioned the stir that was created by our large group and the adorable kids traveling with us?  Well, they've got nothing on what Tom and I are getting here.  We walked down the street this afternoon, and she was right.  Stares, pointing, cell phone photos, and an occasional smile.  We didn't go far before we turned back and not just because the road construction blocked our way.  I'm not offended, but I don't love it, and I'd much rather be in the room.

 

It's time to go to bed and get a great night of sleep, please, Mr. Sandman.  We have a big day ahead of us tomorrow.  Jane will pick us up at 9 a.m.  Don't be late.  While you're all winding down tonight we'll be winding up tomorrow morning.  Four months to complete a dossier, 40 months of waiting and a lifetime of dreaming are about to come together with a little girl in a government building in China.  

 

Please send prayers to heaven and the other side of the world that Maryn's heart and mind are prepared for the overwhelming transitions she will have to make, and that she will come to know how special she is to us.  We're another step closer to meeting Maryn.  God is good, all the time.

 

 

Sheng Ri Kuai Le, Maryn!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MARYN!  Today is our little darling's birthday.  Tomorrow we meet.  Originally, when I realized we would not meet her until the day after her birthday, I was bummed, but I realized this way we'll have two occasions to celebrate - her birthday and Family Day.  That's even better.

 

I'm in the lobby waiting for everyone to gather at 5 a.m. so we can go to the airport and on to our provinces.  We were told to be up at 4, but we didn't last past 2:30.  No rest for the excited!  

 

Enjoy a few more shots from yesterday. 

What a Great Day!

Sorry, this didn't posted the other day because it had too many attachments.  These are the events of July 31.

 

We are thrilled and exhausted.  A combination of jet lag and touring today from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.  Started at the Temple of Heaven, then to lunch where they were informed ahead of time to "bu fang weijing" (don't cook with MSG), then on a tour of the remaining hutong district in Beijing.  Rode in a rickshaw, of course, and that guy had to work hard to haul us around.  I said to Tom, "Isn't it amazing, to these people, this is regular life and to us it's "We're riding in a rickshaw in China!"  Climbed 69 of the steepest steps (that is, until tomorrow when we do The Great Wall) to the top of the drum tower.  More importantly, we all survived the climb down the steepest steps.  After that we went into an ancient alley area nearby where we bought a seal for Maryn that has her American name and the characters of her Chinese name which she can use to stamp on paper.  The guy cut the letters and characters into the stone while we watched.  Too bad the first time around her put the n in Maryn sideways.  Filed off the bottom of the seal and started over getting it right the second time.  Our guides were there to tell him how to do it correctly.  We finished the day at an acrobat show.  I'm eager to get to the gym and limber up so I can try some of those stunts myself.  Piece of cake.

 

Tomorrow we are going to The Great Wall, Forbidden City, and TianAnMen Square.  Today we toured with one other couple.  Tomorrow there will be 36 of us, including 6 children.  Can you believe I'm writing of these places we are seeing?  This is the trip of a lifetime.  We are embracing it and loving every moment.  It's unforgettable . . .  and we're another step closer to meeting Maryn.

 

A Great Wall Indeed

We started at TianAnMen Square this morning with half the city of Beijing and had to wait for quite a while to go inside the Forbidden City.  In the meantime we were a freak show of sorts to some of the natives.  I expected it would be so for the adorable little and not so little blonde boys waiting with us, but what are they doing asking to take pictures with Tom?  Some of the kids in our group didn't mind having their pictures taken at first, but then they made their way to the middle of the group so people would stop touching them.  It's not easy being a celebrity.  Sometimes it even makes you bury your face in your mom's legs and cry.  When the wait ended, we entered the Forbidden City with half of China and shuffled our way to the other side.  Took pictures of the sea of humanity, but it just doesn't capture what real life is giving you. From the Forbidden City we went for Peking duck then a long bus ride to The Great Wall.  It was exciting to get there and more so to climb.  Just wish you could cut your way through the air pollution to see it.  I walked up quite a way and managed to get back down, too, with my legs and my lungs fully functioning.  Check off two of the Seven Wonders of the World, that is if the Grand Canyon is one of them, too.

 

Tomorrow we leave at 5 a.m. to fly to Hefei, and all the families are ready to move on to their respective provinces.  We're hoping for a little down time before Family Day on Monday.  Another step closer to meeting Maryn.

A Demanding Following!

Okay, you want more, so here's a few tidbits.  We are reasonably fresh and ready to head out this morning in a few minutes.  Seeing more people who must be traveling with us at the hotel breakfast buffet.  We'll meet shortly.  We truly our having a wonderful time.  Can't wait to see more today.  So many people in the park yesterday.  We were in one of the buildings around the temple of heaven, and a little Chinese boy came right up to me looked me in the eyes and said, "Hello."  I responded with "Ni shuo yingwu ma?"  (Do you speak English)  He responded very clearly, "Yes."  I said, "Hen hao."  (very good)  We gave each other big smiles and off he went.  So fun.  All our work learning Mandarin has been worth it.

 

Here's a few shots to enjoy.  One is our hotel room . The other is just a taste of what traffic can look like here.  More later.

Land Ho!

We're here!  The trip wasn't bad.  Sat next to a nice woman headed to Australia, and once we started chatting, we didn't stop.  The next leg we had plenty of room and abundant pillows to make ourselves comfortable.  Once we went to sleep, it went quickly, and I woke up with no idea how much longer we had to go.  Asked for breakfast, and the flight attendant said to eat quickly.  Turns out the landing gear was already down.  That's the way I like to travel!  Waited four hours in Guangzhou, then a 2.5 hour flight to Beijing.  Feeling good enough to try out the gym.  Walked down the street to buy water at 7/11 and survived crossing the street four times!  That's not easy to do.

 

We'll eat dinner in the hotel tonight and tomorrow we have a day of sightseeing:  Temple of Heaven, hutong tour with authentic Chinese dining (for us that means chicken and rice) and acrobat show.  Each day a step closer to meeting Maryn.

Final Boarding Call

All our bags are packed, we're ready to go. We're leaving on a few jet planes. We're going to get our little girl! Oh, the many months, years we've waited to declare that. The suitcases are finally waiting by the door. Not a sweeter sound to be heard than the final zip of a suitcase.

To those of you who have waited patiently with us, we say thank you for being there every step of the way. Confucius said, "The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." We couldn't have done it without you. Xie xie women de Zhongwen pengyou, Coral, Jean and Louise. Thank you to our family and friends who will miss us while we're gone and will be there to rejoice with us upon our return.

From Max Lucado's book, Grace for the Moment, July 28

DON'T BE TROUBLED

"Just prior to his crucifixion, Jesus told his disciples that he would be leaving them. "Where I am going you cannot follow now, but you will follow later: (John 13:36)
Such a statement was bound to stir some questions. Peter spoke for the others and asked, "Lord, why can't I follow you now?" (v. 37)
See if Jesus' reply doesn't reflect the tenderness of a parent to a child: "Don't let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust in me. There are many rooms in my Father's house: I would not tell you this if it were not true. I am going there to prepare a place for you. . . . I will come back and take you to be with me so that you may be where I am going" (John 14:1-3).
Reduce the paragraph to a sentence and it might read: "You do the trusting and I'll do the taking."

The person who trusts the Lord will be blessed. (Jeremiah 17:7)

We've got a long way to go to get to the other side of the world, but we're keeping our eyes on the prize.

Toodles till TianAnMen Square!