Day 12: Guangzhou

I shortened the title of my recurring entries.  Whoomp, there it is.

A prelude:  we've received a bunch of personal emails that have been amazing and have done wonders for our very souls.  Thank you to all of us that send personal messages over Facebook or by email.  They mean so much to us.

First, a short video interlude!  Sorry, I can only post video that I took on my mobile phone since our super new camcorder has out-supered the little Windows XP laptop that we brought that only ever otherwise ran the sound at my band's gigs.  It really can't handle the HD video... I'm working on it.

This is an intersection in Zhengzhou, across from where our hotel was.  Now imagine that those scooters are all cars, and you basically have a busy Beijing intersection.  The rules of a China intersection are that there are no rules.

Now imagine that those scooters are the neurons in my brain when I sit back and realize that there's this completely adorable little girl asleep next to my adorable wife on a bed in a hotel room in China.


Yesterday's Recap

Yesterday was one of the optional trips that we can take while here in Guangzhou, and of course we want to do all of them (except for the dinner cruise, but nobody went because it interfered with bedtime). Yesterday we did the Guangzhou city tour which included the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees, which was amazing, featuring a large central pagoda that is unfortunately closed to enter because it leans a little bit to the side.  Apparently this is some sort of structural hazard.

This temple was extremely beautiful and Jen relates a moment that I missed:  while I was off somewhere else, one of the monks, in full robes, passed by Nora being goofy, took her face gently in his hands, and touched his forehead to hers.  Many adopting couples visit this temple while in Guangzhou and the monks are happy to leave their blessings on the children.

The next stop of the day was at the Chen Clan Academy, one of the oldest surviving family houses in China.  today it serves as a museum full of jade carvings, embroidery, and other art from that era.

I'll post some of mine and Jen's pictures...  I didn't get to go inside because it was my turn to walk around with the little baobao...  she was super tired and over stimulated and just wanted to be held and walked around, but was quickly reaching the Land of Unconsolable Spazzing when Jen came back, picked her up in the baby carrier, and she went right to sleep.

We finished our tour with a stop at (of course) a shopping center, where there was some nice jade and porcelain tea sets and lots of very pretty things.  I walked to the little market across the street and bought a Coke Zero.  There is no Diet Coke in this country from what I can see, and Pepsi Light (my preferred foreign diet beverage) is very difficult to find.  My life is an empty shell without my precious daily caffeine fix.  Hey, if I'm being forced to give it up cold turkey, I may as well stay off it.

The rest of the day was more daddy time so Jen can feel better and then we had a pizza party in Jason and Christie's room... three couples got together with the new kids and we actually ordered Papa John's.  It was pretty good.


Today

Bringing us to the present, I only had two goals for the day, and the first was going to visit a supposedly reputable pearl shop, but you can't help being kind of skeptical in a shopping center that was SIX FLOORS OF JEWELRY.  There was gigantic sea of pearl shops, agate, jade...  It was all very pretty, however, and we trust our guides to help us buy good quality stuff.

Hmm... am I hungry for pizza, chicken, or BRUCE LEE'S FIST???

Sneaky picture of some very armed guys who don't know the gun rule about not pointing your gun at things.

Yes, enough pearls to have the raw ones in giant bags on the floor, like almost all of the other jewelry shops.

This last photo is an example of why I eventually got nicknamed the "pack mule," carrying my man-bag with camera gear, full diaper bag, and baby carrier attached via carabiner, and sometimes baby.  I am learning to be PREPARED for things, should things occur.

My second goal of the day was to give Jen the afternoon off.  She's been working so hard with this little girl and is sick besides, so I took Nora for the last half of the day so Jen could sleep.  We went to the playroom, the outside play area, and then the Liu Hua Lake Park, which is a beautiful park where I also saw people practicing Tai Chi, playing table tennis (every court was full), badminton (same) or exercising in the outdoor exercise equipment.  I absolutely love that aspect of the Chinese people.  (shot these with the photo feature of our camcorder... didn't want to bring the Nikon as well)

Haven't you ever wanted to see the great scenery with the special feature?  I think this sign broke my brain.

I read this sign and had to immediately move Nora further back from the bank.

Liu Hua Lake and Guangzhou.

Lots of daddy time today, lots of great time with my girl.  Today is good... if only Jen would get better.