Today was fun because we got to see Guangzhou's famous Statue of the Five Goats in Yiexiu Park. The goat is Guangzhou's symbol because of a legend that says the Gods sent five goats to Guangzhou carrying rice, which is supposed to prevent famine. A few years ago, the statue was struck by lightning and the fortunetellers predicted that a great tragedy would occur. Shortly after, SARS struck China. As a result, to avoid any further SARS infections, the city of Guangzhou installed a brand new lightning rod to prevent the statue from being struck again.
Below the statue, we found a bunch of people playing Hacky Sack. Simon introduced us to his friend, a Hacky Sack master who invited the older kids to play Hacky Sack with him. The Hacky Sacks in China are made of a series of metal washers with colorful feathers attached to the top. It was great watching the kids play and burn off some energy, and the babies giggled as the Hacky Sacks flew through the air.
After visiting the park, we went to a jewelry market with five floors of stores selling jade, pearls, agate and other precious stones. It was a little overwhelming, but Simon helped us navigate our way to a really nice pearl store where we bought necklaces for all of the Meyers girls. We will save Maddie's and Wendy's for their 16th birthdays.
Since shopping ran long, we ate lunch in the hotel room again. We had one can of Chef Boyardee Noodleroni left, so I called the front desk to see if there is a microwave in the hotel. A few minutes later, a member of the housekeeping staff showed up at our door with a microwave on a wheelie cart. She brought an adapter, plugged it into our wall and then left. We didn't speak each other's language, so it was pretty humorous to watch this all transpire. Bill checked and the hotel said there is no charge for borrowing a microwave. Cool! (In Beijing, the room service staff actually took the Noodleroni somewhere and heated it up for us and then brought it back on a tray.) I was prepared to eat cold Noodleroni, so it's nice to know many hotels will help you heat your food.
In the evening, we ventured out with another family in our group to try the Macau Street Restaurant, which is known for its BBQ pork. We also enjoyed fried rice and noodles. Maddie and Sabrina kept daring each other to try new foods as they swirled around on the lazy Susan, including rose petals and parsley. On the walk home, both girls decided they wanted to change their names. Maddie is now "Courtney" and Sabrina is "Tori." Compared to our toddlers, these preteens seem so grown up.
Then, it was back to the hotel for a bath and early bedtime because we have to get up early for our U.S. Consulate appointment tomorrow morning. This will be our last official appointment to complete the adoption on the U.S. side. We can't believe Wendy has been with us nearly one week!
Wendy is just beautiful and looks as if she is doing well!! I follow alot of blogs, and soak up all the information that I can-one thing that cracks me up, and maybe you can help answer.....Why do all the children in China do the "peace" sign when posing for pictures? It's hilarious when the little ones do it, and your little has it perfected!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations!!
Ann, that is so funny. I hadn't even noticed Wendy was doing it. Maybe it is a coincidence. I think the peace sign is just a cool gesture teenagers do, but you are right: we saw it a lot in Beijing.
DeleteI want to thank you SO much for all your details of your trip. You are amazing for blogging with so much explanation each evening. I log on in the evening, Pacific Coast time, to hopefully find another blog post from you. I asked you a couple questions about a week ago about debit machines, etc., and you were so kind with your thorough and prompt answers. All your information is proving to be immensely helpful for when we travel, probably at the beginning of June.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much! I read a few blogs before we left and they really helped me prepare, so I'm just trying to pay it forward. Also, I want to have a good record for Wendy, and I'm afraid if I wait too long, I'll forget all of the details. Blogging also helps me process all of the emotion of the journey, so I do it for selfish reasons, too. Thanks so much for reading. I hope you get your travel date soon!
DeleteI missed a few days here, so am glad to be catching up. I'm going to be sad when your trip is over, I enjoy checking in and reading about your days! Maybe you can stay longer?! lol
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by my blog and for the kind comment, no am not a designer, but I do like making things look pretty if I can:) Thank you, you are so kind!
Glad things are going well and Miss Wendy is able to express through crying a bit, she's so precious. And how wonderful for Maddie to have made a new friend!!