Date: Wed, 26 Jun 2002 16:30:08 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Greetings from China !
We are here in Beijing! The flight over was very smooth. We got a free upgrade
to business class, which was great. Before we even sat down, they were offering
us champagne. We had hot face towels, free wine, endless food, etc. Katie said
it was "better than a restaurant" and Charles said "this is a nice airplane".
After we arrived, we just settled in at the hotel, then ate at a nearby
McDonald's. It is now 7:00 AM on Thursday. We will eat breakfast at the hotel,
then do sightseeing in Tiananmen Sq. and Forbidden City.
The only problem so far is that we got locked out of our room last night -- just
when we were all very tired and ready for bed. We were worried it would take
hours to fix the broken door lock, but they fixed it in about 10 minutes.
We will send another update soon.
Date: Fri, 28 Jun 2002 05:31:38 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Update from China
It is now Friday evening here. We have had a great 2 days of sightseeing.
Yesterday, we went to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City (a large
city-within-a-city where the emperors used to live). Katie was quite a hit in
Tiananmen Square. Many Chinese people told her how beautiful she is. A class of
11-year old girls was especially excited to see her, and wanted to talk to her
and have their pictures taken with her. They were visiting from another province
of China, so they may not have seen many Western girls before.
Today we climbed a section of the Great Wall. It was quite a workout, since it
is built on a steep mountain ridge. We only made it up 1 out of 5 climbing
sections, but that was enough.
Our local guide Rose (assigned by our adoption agency) has been excellent. She
is friendly and helpful. Our only regret was discovering that we are not the
first people from the New World to climb the Great Wall. As we walked up, we
were surrounded by Americans everywhere we looked.
Date: Sun, 30 Jun 2002 23:49:27 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: We have a baby !
It is Monday afternoon in Nanchang. We have Hao Lin (Elizabeth) with us now, and
she is awesome.
The flight from Beijing was very smooth. I was a little nervous about flying on
intra-China airlines,
but they were great. It was a Boeing 737, cleaner and newer than in the US.
Since the trip was only 2 1/2 hours, it seemed like nothing after the flight
from Chicago. Plus the food was better and healthier than a US airline.
As soon as we arrived at the hotel here, Hao Lin was already in the lobby
waiting for us. I recognized her right away from her photos. We spent some time
talking to the orphanage director, then made a bottle for Hao Lin and took care
of her in our room. Hao Lin seemed to be comfortable with our family right away,
and we liked her right away also. It is common for babies to be afraid of their
new family, or lonely for their orphanage caregivers, but that was not a
problem. We all seemed to click quickly. Charles and Katie have really taken to
her and been very helpful. Hao Lin loves the attention they are giving her.
This morning we went to several provincial offices to complete the Chinese
paperwork for the adoption. That went smoothly and we were back at the hotel by
10:30. Now Hao Lin is taking a nap, and Charles and Katie are arguing over the
TV. Later we may go in the hotel pool. The hotel here is beautiful, by the way,
one of the nicest we have stayed at anywhere.
All in all, meeting Hao Lin / Elizabeth and making her part of our family has
gone incredibly well. I am at a loss for words to describe how smoothly it has
gone. She likes being with us, we love her, the kids love paying attention to
her, she likes their attention.... Everything has clicked.
We now have several relaxing days in Nanchang before traveling to Guangzhou.
Date: Wed, 3 Jul 2002 22:41:56 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Update from China
Everything continues to go well. Hao Lin (Elizabeth Lin) likes to eat and sleep
as her main activities. She seems content and likes watching her big brother and
sister.
We had a great experience yesterday, visiting a local fish farmer. It was a
small house outside of the city, with a fish pond that the family harvests. Like
growing a crop, but it was fish. We were just looking at their farm, and they
invited us in to see their house. It was quite different than Bedford!! Charles
and Katie were fascinated. We gave the farmers some US coins as a gift. They
invited us to stay for lunch, but we declined. (We were concerned about eating
local food that might make us sick, and we did not know how much extra food they
had.) It was nice to get away from the
tourist
attractions and meet some real people.
Today we took a walk on a pedestrian mall and looked at the local shops. This
afternoon our guide is taking us to a palace that happens to be across the
street from the hotel, so we can walk there also. Then we will have dinner with
another adoptive couple we met in the hotel. The woman grew up in my home town
and we went to the same schools, although 2 years apart.
Chuck (with Katie sitting next to me moving the mouse)
Date: Sun, 7 Jul 2002 00:25:10 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Update from China
We are now in Guangzhou (arrived Friday night). We are here to do paperwork for
the adoption at the US Consulate. Everything is going great. Hao Lin / Elizabeth
is doing very well. We are teaching her to laugh and play, which may have been
in short supply at the orphanage (although we have every indication that she was
well cared for).
Only problem so far was a 3 hour delay in the plane from Nanchang to Goungzhou.
It was tiring and frustrating at the time, but not really a big problem. The
airline even served a box dinner to everyone while we waited in the terminal.
On Wednesday, we will take the train to Hong Kong for some short sightseeing and
the flight home. Hope all is well with everyone there.
Chuck (and Charles sitting next to me at the Internet cafe.)
Date: Sun, 7 Jul 2002 00:37:01 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Impressions of China
Here are some impressions of China, based on the 3 cities we have visited....
- No one in China is overweight. We have now seen thousands of Chinese people,
and none look like couch potato Americans. I believe this is because: a) The
Chinese walk and ride bikes everywhere. They are just more active we are. b)
Their diet is better. It is rice, vegetables and fish. (Maybe I should learn
something from them myself.) So perhaps the 55 McDonalds in Beijing and 44
in Goungzhou (really) are not the best development for the Chinese people....
- Chinese cities are dirty and clean at the same time. People often clean the
streets and pick up litter, so the streets and sidewalks are much cleaner than
Boston. On the other hand, many of the older buildings are dirty and dark with
soot. I also saw open piles of garbage in Beijing -- often right next to the
clean streets.
- The cities have a stark contrast of Old China and New China. Old China is very
small old row houses and crumbling industrial buildings. New China is gleaming
new office buildings and hotels. The two Chinas are often right on top of each
other, with very poor housing at the base of a modern high-rise. We have this
contrast in US cities also, but not as close together as here.
Date: Mon, 8 Jul 2002 22:55:15 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Update from China
It is our last full day in Guangzhou. Tomorrow we take the train to Hong Kong.
It is also possible to fly, but the train is only 90 minutes, so we decided it
would be more fun. It will probably be faster than flying anyway since we'll
avoid 2 airports. Plus we will get to see the countryside as we go.
Today we get the final paperwork for Elizabeth from the US Consulate, which will
be the end of the HUGE amount of paperwork we have done in the US, Nanchang and
here.
Not sure about our email access in Hong Kong, but will try to find some.
Chuck (with Charles and Katie next to me)
Date: Wed, 10 Jul 2002 22:57:39 -0700 (PDT)
We are at the top of Victoria Peak, overlooking Hong Kong Harbor. The tram ride
up was quite the experience! See you all soon.
Date: Fri, 12 Jul 2002 18:18:11 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: We are home with our new baby
We just got home from the airport. We are all safe and sound, but quite tired.
Will write more when we recover a bit. Thanks to whoever put balloons on our
house -- Elizabeth loved them!
Date: Mon, 15 Jul 2002 09:15:34 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Adoption update
We had a good weekend, getting adjusted to being back at home and getting over
jetlag. Elizabeth probably had the hardest time, although she does not perceive
there to be a problem. She just wakes up at 2AM, ready to play. We are trying to
convince her that this is now nighttime, but this might take a while. She seems
to like our home, especially swinging in the backyard. She was laughing out loud
at this new activity, which she may never have done before.
I'll send a link to some photos, when we get those posted.