Day 15 - Many tours!

Today we started our day with the free breakfast here. We then jumped on a bus and went to Tiananmen Square. There were no protests today. There were many police and soldiers. After that, we went to the Forbidden City. It was interesting to see how the emperor lived. We then went to a Chinese restaurant. They served us fish. I love fish but this one did have the head and tail on it. I just ate the middle. It was good! Next, we visited the Great Wall. This was my favorite part of the trip. It was a beautiful day today and we could see for a long way at the wall. The Great Wall is 3500 miles long all together! Sometimes it is called The Great Cemetery because many people lost their lives while building it. The steps were not even. Some were normal and some were like trying to step up three steps at once. Rick and Jinnae climbed almost to the top where we were. They had to stop because Jinnae refused to go on. Just joking. :) Actually, the steps were getting steeper and Rick decided it wasn't a good idea to take Jinnae any further. Rick and Jinnae made it to the fourth watch tower out of six. I waited for them at the second watch tower which was pretty high up!

We have a new guide here in Beijing. Her name is Grace. She is very nice. We really miss our previous guide, Kelly.

On the way back to our hotel, we drove slowly through the Olympic village. It was cool!

Rick, Jinnae and I are looking forward to flying home tomorrow.

We will be arriving at the Grand Rapids airport at 8:53 pm. We will be on United Airlines Flight 664. See everyone soon!

Day 14 - Flight to Beijing

Today we had to get up very early to leave for Beijing. The city we left, Guangzhou, was having the Olympic torch come to it today. We had to miss it.

We got up at 4:30 am and left at 5:15 am. Jinnae did not appreciate being taken out of her crib so early. We got to the airport and on the plane with five minutes to spare again. We are getting good at making it at the last minute. Once again, Jinnae loved the plane ride. The flight was very smooth. On all of our flights, I think it is interesting that the two smoothest flights have had women pilots. Go women! Rick likes to remind me that on both of these flights we did not arrive at our destinations early. I'd rather have a smooth flight and be on time, rather than a bumpy one just to arrive a few minutes early. :)

We spent much of the day on a plane or in the airport. When we finally settled in our hotel here in Beijing we all took a nap. When we woke up, we took a walk through the city and found a Subway and Baskin Robbins. We had sandwiches for dinner and ice-cream for dessert. Jinnae likes mint chocolate chip ice-cream like her mom.
By the way, I ordered a ham sandwich with just pickle at Subway. I received a ham sandwich with everything but pickle! Sometimes the language barrier is difficult but it gives us good stories. Actually, I am quite amazed at the amount of English that many people here know. We continue to have people stop us on the street every day and tell us thank you for adopting Jinnae. They always ask her age and what province she is from. The babies in her province are known for being well fed. She gets a lot of jokes about her chubby cheeks. :)

In the evenings, Rick reads Jinnae either the China Daily newspaper or a book called, Living Simply. She likes it.

Tomorrow will be a big day of touring. We will visit the Great Wall, Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, and the Olympic stadium. We will be gone from 9:00 am - 6:00 pm. It is a good thing I am good at making bottles on the road. A thermos comes in handy. Jinnae likes her bottles warm still. That is what she is used too. I tried to cheat once and she became very angry. We'll make those changes later not while we are on the road. :)

We will be flying home on Friday. It has been a great adventure, but we are looking forward to coming home.

Day 13 - U.S Consulate

Today we went to the United States Consulate here in China. Jinnae received her visa and will become an United States citizen when we land on U.S soil in Chicago, Illinois. Yay!
Jinnae had the giggles a lot today.
We have to get up real early tomorrow and leave by 5:45 am for the airport. We should be in Beijing around noon and then get settled into a hotel there.
Please pray for a smooth flight.
We will post again from Beijing if we are able too. :)
We come home on Friday. We will be flying into the Grand Rapids airport at 8:53 pm. We have had a lot of fun but are ready to come home.
Love and miss everyone.

Day 11 and 12

Blogger was shut down for a day. They said they would be shut down until after the Olympics. So I posted on My Space yesterday. That address is myspace.com/carnationsarebeautiful. You can check that out for days 11 and 12.
Jinnae had a doctor's appointment. She is in good health and weighs 17 pounds.
I found the Made in China t-shirt for Jinnae. I thought it was funny. She wasn't so excited about it. :)
Life is good.

Day 10 - YunTai Garden

Today we visited the YunTai Garden. It was a beautiful place. There were many plants, flowers, trees, waterfalls, and streams. It was all decorated for the Olympics as well.

We had a nice stroll through the park. It was very hot. We all sat down for a treat afterwards. Rick and Jinnae had ice-cream and I had a bottle of water.

In the afternoon, we had to do about two hours worth of paperwork to get Jinnae's visa. Then, as I was holding Jinnae, she went to the bathroom on me! How it came out of the diaper, I do not know! All of a sudden a stream of water was flowing down her leg and onto my skirt. It must be the generic diapers I bought here. So, we gave her a bath and this time she was ok with it. She was laughing because I was cracking up over the situation. At least we weren't in a rush to go anywhere when it happened.

This evening we ordered Papa John's pizza for dinner. We then went shopping around the island. Shopping is different here because you can negotiate the price. Rick is good at that. :)

All in all, we had a great day!

Day 9 - Chen Family Temple

Today was the first day it rained since we have been in China. We visited the Chen Family Temple. After that, we went to a jade store.

In the afternoon we rested and then we went out to eat at a Thai restaurant called The Cow and Bridge. Rick ordered roast goose red curry and bird's nest with coconut milk. I ordered fish cakes. Jinnae had steamed eggs. We all enjoyed our meals.

In the evening, we went shopping. It was fun!

Jinnae loves when her dad tickles her and does a great big belly laugh. It is so adorable!

Jinnae is getting her fifth tooth in. It was a little painful for her today. She was a real trooper though. Love and miss everyone.

Day 8 - Flight to Guangzhou

Today Rick, Jinnae and I had to get up early, get ready, eat breakfast, check out of the hotel and quickly get on a bus to the airport. After checking our bags and going through security, we got on our plane with 5 minutes to spare. Whew! I wasn't sure how Jinnae would do with her first flight, but I had nothing to worry about. She loved it. She looked out the window, took a nap, and was very happy. The only time she was cranky was when we were at a complete stop waiting to get off. She definitely doesn't take after her mommy on flying. By the way, Rick was very helpful in getting Jinnae ready this morning - he did a good job but as you can see, forgot to snap one

snap. :)

When we got off the plane, Jinnae had a very wet diaper, I took her to the bathroom to change her only to find out there was no changing table or any counter space. So, I then took one of our suitcases and used it as a changing table right in the middle of the airport. I got some funny looks but she needed her diaper changed. I notice being a mom has made me less worried about what others think, you have to do what you have to do.

We then took another bus to the White Swan Hotel which is on an island. It is very humid here, and we did not see the sun at all today. It is very smoggy. This hotel is very nice. After settling in we went for a walk and got some dinner at a restaurant called Lucy's. This restaurant had both Chinese, American and Thai food. Rick ordered a Thai spicy pork and I ordered a cheeseburger. Yea, cheeseburger! Jinnae enjoyed mashed potatoes just like her Aunt Sally. This evening we had a knock on our door and the hotel staff delivered us some chocolate. Life is good.

Today was very busy and we are quite tired. We look forward to getting some good rest tonight.