Day 12 - Guangzhou Hot Zoo

Wow, it has been so long since I have blogged I think I have forgotten how. Barry has been monopolizing it so far....Actually it has been a joy watching him and hearing his side of our story. For most of our journey he was pretty quiet and now he is hooked! I will say, he has had the more exciting end of it though. I am not sure what he shared the last time, but we do apologize for not blogging every day like we were. We are not very pleased with the hotel we are at right now. We have to pay the equivelent of about $15 per day for internet access. It is pretty pathetic. Also, all of us, but Barry have been sick. Just about everyone of us in our group as had a swore throat, cough and head congestion. I think all the babies from our Lianjiang orphanage have been to the clinic at least once and most were diagnosed with bronchitis. Last night I couldn't sleep unless I had a throat lozenge in my mouth. I don't really recommend sleeping with one, but sometimes you just got do what you gotta do.
Today we went to the zoo here in Guangzhou. In the words of little 5 year old Olivia, "The zoo was sweating!" Even our ice cream cones were soggy! The humidity is just about unbearable and we were all dripping. The poor little babies were miserable, but they were all great little troopers. We saw a panda, bears, a lion, tigers, monkeys, an elephant, hippos and rhinos. Even though it was hot it was good to get out and finally do something. Meredith was glad. It also made the pool feel even better today.
Meredith has been such a wonderful help and we are so proud of her and how she has travelled. She is really enjoying all the babies and the other children that came on the trip. In the afternoons when we are waiting for the pool to open many of the families hang out in the hallway since there isn't a common area. We call it a hall party. People bring out their snacks, babies and toys and we all just sit around talk and play. It is so amazing to see how all of the babies interact and love their mommies and daddies.
It is also amazing to think that we have had Melina now for 8 days. It seems as if we have had her from the beginning. She is so precious to me. When I hold her she will intently study my face and sometimes mimic my mouth movements when I talk. She has the sweetest voice. I love her dearly. Well, enough of writing, I know it is the pictures you really want! By the way, there is a baby panda in the background in one of the photos with Meredith. Make sure you click on the photos so you can see him.

Day 11 - Several Rainy Days

We haven't posted in a few days so I thought I would take a few moments and provide a few pictures and give you guys an update on what's going on here. On Sunday, May 20, we had to switch hotels from the White Swan to the Dong Fang hotel. We believe we had to move because of renovations. It sure sounded like they were going to come through our ceiling several days while we were there. We actually like the room here at the Dong Fang hotel better than our room at the White Swan. But all in all we much prefer the White Swan. The pool here at the Dong Fang is cool though. See the picture.

Sorry we haven't posted the last couple of days. We haven't been busy. In fact, its been pretty boring. It's been rainy that past several days so we've had to stay in our rooms a lot. Also, for some strange reason, that beautiful pool is closed between 10:30 am and 3:00 pm. We totally don't know why this is. This sure makes it difficult for those of us who have older kids like Meredith. We've tried to make the most of it though. In fact, we had a little hall block party this afternoon waiting for the pool to open. One high point of our trip needs little caption. See the picture. We were actually quite glad to have a burger from McDonalds. Taste the same to me. Thanks for caring so much for us. Continue to pray for a safe trip home and a smooth transition to our normal lives. We love you all.

Barry, Shanna, Meredith and Melina

Day 8 - The Famous Red Couch

We started our day as usual with a great breakfast after Melina slept for about 10 hours. We then went to Friendship Park where we played our breakfast off. The afternoon was rainy so we napped. But this evening we had a birthday party for the kids who have already turned one and we took pictures on the famous red couch in the White Swan Hotel with our new additions.

I am still amazed at how easily you can make friends. Meredith met this little girl at the park and they hit it off well. The little girl only new a few words of English, but she and Meredith played so well together. When the little girl wanted to do something different, she would simply wave to Meredith to "come on" and there they went. This little girl was probably about 10-12 and full of life and energy.


As I mentioned earlier, we also took pictures on the famous red couch. Enjoy the photos. We will post again tomorrow night after we move from the White Swan to the Dou Fang (not sure how it's spelled) hotel. Much love to all.

Day 7 - Lots of Shopping

We finally had a day where we did not have to go anywhere and do anything. And so we didn't - except shop. We have presents for lots of people. Because this has not been a very exciting day - going here and there and everywhere - we don't have a lot of new pictures. But I thought I would post a few items for you nonetheless. There is a video at the end though that is precious.

Have I mentioned that we have had a wonderful breakfast each day we've been at the White Swan? I really don't know what I am going to do when I get home. I've had scrambled eggs, bacon, apple juice, watermelon, oranges, hash browns, etc. every morning since we've been here. Shanna and I were talking about this at breakfast and she said that I had to get all I want now because it's Raisin Bran and Rice Crispies when we get home.

We did see a couple who apparently are getting married so I took a picture of them with Meredith.



Hope you enjoy. We do.

Day 6, Part 2 - Melina Laughing

Here's some video for you to check out.

Love to All.