Peanut and PopTart: wǒ lèile, wǒmen zǒu le ba jiā…..

on the first plane to Raleigh! I hope everyone back home can translate that
one somehow, but seeing how long we have been over here you can probably
pretty much tell what it must stand for! I apologize for not getting a post
out to you all last night, but due to technical difficulties (yea right, I
fell asleep!) we were delayed until to tonight!

Monday was the day we got the TB test read at the medical office on Shamian
Island. After breakfast we met as a group for the short walk over to the
office and a quick ready of the test location, which as negative for
everyone in our group! After getting the good news so of our group ventured
out for some local sightseeing just off the island which others, Ann Marie
and Aiden included, headed back to the hotel so that the young ones in the
group would not miss their nap which we all know is super important to
keeping a child (and their associated family!) happy! Savannah and I went
with others for a walk through the local herb and medicinal markets where
vendors offered wares such as the benign seeds, roots and vegetables used in
many Chinese soups to the exotic items such as scorpions, seahorses and
bats. It was truly amazing and something to behold! A little further in we
went through a section that dedicated to pets such as puppies, kittens,
turtles, and fish. Anything you wanted from fish tanks to pet clothing was
available for purchase! Pet Smart has nothing on this street! To finish
off the walk we went into one of the oldest shopping districts in Guangzhou
where the city was actually started. As it was close to lunch one of the
other families asked if there was some place to get pizza nearby. We were
totally in luck as I led them to the exact Pizza Hut that my friend and
fellow Deadhead Paul Marcus partook in when we were here in 2006! It was
like déjà vu as we sat down to enjoy our meal and made for a great story to
share with Savannah! After finishing our meal we headed back to White Swan
for some rest before our friends visited from their hotel in downtown
Guangzhou. Around 4:00 Mary Alice and her beautiful daughter Helen visited
us for some playtime and shopping on the island before enjoying dinner at
Lucy’s. A great time was had by all sharing stories and laughs and before
you knew it we had passed 3 hours and it was well past the kids bedtime! We
whisked Mary Alice and Helen back to their hotel and scurried to get the
kids to bed before we endured a meltdown of epic proportion as Ann Marie had
already enjoyed a little of Aiden’s stubborn side during the afternoon nap!
Besides having the request of playing with a shopping bag while going to
sleep we all went right to sleep with the sounds of the Beijing Angelic
Choir playing in the background. I awoke around 1:30 am local time to hear
the sounds of Beatles I had totally dozed off and missed by time to Blog!
Oh well I thought, there is always tomorrow night and I shutdown the Mac and
pulled the covers back up over my head!

On Tuesday we had plans to visit to local zoo. After rising and enjoying
breakfast, Savannah and I made our way downstairs to meet with some of the
others to leave for the Guangzhou Zoo and Safari. The zoo is outside the
city and is really a neat place to spend the day. We did a fabulous safari
ride where we were able to see close up many animals such as deer, giraffe,
zebras, bears and lions from the comfortable confines of a trolley. After
this we visited many other exhibits and shows that allowed us to see
elephants, white tigers, koalas and the main attraction, the Chinese pandas!
It was a spectacular visit and should not be missed if you are in the area!
Upon our return to the White Swan we whisked off to downtown for a visit
with Mary Alice and her daughter Helen. They are staying at the Garden
Hotel so after the cab ride and a short visit in the hotel we were off to
enjoy a wonderful Italian meal at Buongiorno’s where we all enjoyed the fine
fare and a great bottle of Chianti! After that we hit the local Häagen-Dazs
for a celebratory scoop or two before returning home after a long evening.
A quick bath and a little bedtime coaxing brings us to the current time that
is just after midnight!

Tomorrow we are headed to the jade market in the morning (hide your credit
cards!) and then we are off to the United States Consulate to being the
process of brining Aiden home as an official citizen! Wish us luck and once
again, stay tuned to see what happens next on our great adventure! Also, I
will post lots more photos on our family website when we get home, so check
there for more on our trip in early 2011!

Till then……

Michael (Did I just see a dog in sneakers?), Ann Marie (should I take the
couch medicine that has no English directions or dosing instructions?),
Savannah (I only need one more stuffed animal Daddy!) and Aiden (Every day
the little orange bowl in the hotel room has more chocolate! Awesome!)
Kennedy