Travel Journal

Last Travel Journal Entry

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 03:04:00 +0000

Hey everyone~

We have created a new section for Home Updates. You can access it from the home/front page of our site. All further updates will be posted there. Thanks very much for visiting and Happy Birthday America!!!

Hello Everyone....from HOME in the USA!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 09:33:00 +0000

Good morning at 5:00 AM! Hey at least she made it from 8:00 PM in the crib (all night)! That's two nights in a row that she has slept relatively all night. What does she like now that we are home?

~ Peanut butter
~ Milk
~ Cheerios
~ Pringles
~ Peanut butter and jam sandwiches
~ Her WaWa's (dog in Chinese) we have three dogs and she loves them, especially our boxer Bren. She always wants him where she is.
~ Her GeGe (Guh-guh, big brother in Chinese) The first thing she asked for this morning when she woke up was her brother. He was staying with his grandparents in Florida and was supposed to leave Sunday morning to come home. They decided to leave Saturday night and supprise us. We were very supprised and very happy to see them.
~ Swinging
~ Riding in her stroller
~ Eggs both scrammbled and hard boiled
~ Gerber graduates stars in both banana and strawberry
~ Orange juice
~ Gold fish (or Stouffers Whales)
~ Oranges
~ Popcorn
~ Peaches
~ Brown Rice
~ Corn chips

We are having so much fun with her. Watching her experience all the new things is so much fun. It is best to let her wake up on her own. She is much happier that way. She loves to get her food from head to toe, if she can. Each day brings another surprise and big laughs in response to her hysterical actions. She never stops moving unless there is food in front of her or she is sound asleep. She loves to feed her food to the dogs (and they love her to feed them)! Enjoy some of her best pictures.

We're coming home!!

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Wed, 30 May 2007 20:06:00 +0000

Yesterday was our last day in Guangzhou and this morning we are packing up and getting ready for the LONG flight home. Please pray for us that the flight goes smoothly and that Olivia is calm. We are looking forward to going home. We have really enjoyed our time here and will remember it forever, but there is no place like home.

Yesterday we got to do some more shopping in the morning and then right before lunch, Olivia and Baba got some more pool time while Mama shopped. After lunch we all packed up and headed to the US Consulate here in Guangzhou to get Livi's Visa and have the swearing in ceremony. 57 families with their children all filed into a large room where they looked over our paperwork and then did a mass swearing in. No cameras or other electronics are allowed in the room so we don't have pictures. But, there was a camera crew there from Reuters doing a story on adoption and they were allowed to film the ceremony. Livi fell asleep on the bus on the way there and didn't wake up until after the whole ceremony. She didn't miss much.

From the consulate we headed to another mall that had a Pizza Hut in it. Our guide, Amy, said that since we had eaten all Chinese food for dinners in Guangzhou, we should have some balance and eat American. It was very good. One of our travel mates was having a birthday and his wife surprised him by ordering a cake from a local bakery and bringing it out after dinner. He was very surprised and the cake was delicious.

We headed back to the hotel then and crammed in a few more hours of (you guessed it) shopping. This morning we are up bright and early (4:00 AM) to get ready to catch our 8:30 flight. We will see you all in the USA!

Chen Family Temple and shopping

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Tue, 29 May 2007 22:33:00 +0000

Livi and Daddy in the pool

Gate at the Chen Family Temple

Livi in the room

Daddy with Olivia by the waterfall

Today was another full day in Guanzhou. After breakfast this morning we did a little shopping in the shops around the hotel. From 11 to 12 we had to be in the room because our guide was taking our paperwork to the consulate. She called around 11:20 to say that everything was in order and our paperwork was good. Yeah! That means today around 2:30 we will be going to the US Consulate for our appointment there. We should then get Livi's US Visa and leave tomorrow morning for home.

We have to leave the hotel at 5:30 AM for our flight to Hong Kong, but we will be in Charlotte by 7:00 PM on the 31st. We can't wait to get home.

Yesterday after our paperwork was OK'd we spent a little time in the pool. Well, Baba and Livi spent some time in the pool. Mama took pictures and sat on the side. The pool was great. As we expected, Olivia loved the pool after a few minutes of nervous trepidation. As we were leaving to go to lunch she kept pointing back at the pool and saying "I want, I want" in Chinese (We have learned this phrase well, as we hear it all the time). At least she knows what she wants.

After lunch at Lucy's again we set out with our Guide Amy for the Chen Family Temple. We took a nice tour of the temple in the 95 degree heat and then headed for the pearl market. The pearls were very inexpensive there and we picked up a string for Livi's 16th birthday. Then we were set loose in the "Open Market". It really wasn't what we were expecting at all. Amy told us that we could bargain here but nobody would negotiate on prices. And it wasn't very open, it looked more like a large mall with about 6 floors. Livi fell asleep at the pearl market and slept in her stroller all the way through dinner. She was very tired.

We ate dinner at another Chinese restaurant. One of the items they brought out to eat was snake. We declined, and said thanks very much. Neither of us found much to eat at that dinner, but tonight we might be going to Papa John's or Pizza Hut.

We just can't believe that we only have one more day here before we head home. It has been quite an experience. One we will never forget. I don't know if I will get a chance to post again so thank you all for following our journey here and we can't wait to see you when we get home.

Day 2 in Guangzhou

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Mon, 28 May 2007 22:04:00 +0000

Breakfast at the White Swan was fabulous. French Toast, scrambled eggs, hashbrowns, fresh fruit. We really enjoyed a great American breakfast buffet.

Breakfast Buffet at the White Swan

Meeting up with Friends in Guangzhou

Olivia's Medical Examination was after breakfast. We stood in a room full of adoptive families going from station to station where they would do various health checks like squeezing a squeaky toy to see if she turns her head. Unfortunately, Livi was not OK with this. This little girl has been through a lot with doctors and hospitals and as soon as she saw the ladies in the whites coats, the tears started. They didn't stop until we were out of there. She kept saying "doh, doh, doh" (which means go) and pointing towards the door out. The doctors checked her medical records and looked at her legs and hands and wrote some things down under recommendations that we can't read.

Get me outta here!!

With the medical exam out of the way we had the rest of the morning free. On the way back from the exam office we stopped at a little store called "Cute Baby". Well, this described Livi perfectly so we decided we must stop and take a look. Because our guide never took us anywhere to shop in Fuzhou, Mystina has been itching for some shopping. We picked up a few cool outfits for Livi and then found a nice stroller for her at another store.

Shopping with my new friend Jenna

A store just for Livi

At lunch, we ate at the world famous Lucy's restaurant. This place is famous because they serve good western style food. We are on our own for lunch while in Guangzhou, so we will probably eat here every day. Mama had a grilled cheese sandwich (they even cut off the crusts) and Baba had a grilled chicken wrap and fries. Livi ate a bowl of chicken congee and helped Baba polish off his french fries. It was delicious.

In the afternoon our guide took us to a tea house and bonsai park, and then a shop with lots of souvenirs and crafts. We got a traditional silk outfit for Livi and some things for Gramma and Boppa. We are shopping at an "open market" today, so I am sure we will buy some more. After the shop, we got to see the 5 goat park. This is a beautiful park with a large statue of five goats in the middle. I forgot to take our camera with us so I didn't get any pictures of it.

Olivia is doing well, but yesterday was kinda rough for her. She had gotten used to taking it easy in Fuzhou with all of the free time we had. She took a short nap in her stroller while at the tea house, but she was fussy most of the day. The other people in our travel group are very understanding. Also, I think that the exam was not a good way to start off the day. Hopefully today will go better. Only two more days until we leave and we are ready to come home.

An update on Bonding...

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Sun, 27 May 2007 23:36:00 +0000

I just realized that I haven't mentioned how things are going with bonding for a while. We know that God prepared this little one for us. Bonding is going very well with both of us now. Livi will sometimes prefer one or the other of us but she does not have a problem coming to us or looking us in the eye. She calls for "mama" and "baba" and smiles when we answer her. Thank you for your prayers, they are being answered. We can't wait for you all to meet her in person.

We made it to Guangzhou (finally!)

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Sun, 27 May 2007 21:53:00 +0000

Hello from Guangzhou. We thought we would never make it. Really, it wasn't that bad but we did have some trouble leaving Fuzhou yesterday. We left the hotel yesterday at about noon to head to the aiport to catch our 2:40 flight. We were going to eat lunch on the way at McDonald's.

We arrived at the aiport at about 1:30 and got all of our baggage checked. We were thankful to be on the way to Guangzhou. Then our guide said "The flight may be delayed because of weather". We couldn't understand why as the sun was shining outside on the way to the airport, but soon the rain started. It rained really hard and the lightning was flashing. Soon we heard an announcement that our flight was delayed because of weather. So, we sat in the airport for over 2 hours waiting for our flight to leave. This may not seem like a long time, but when you are in a strange place and are trying to occupy a 2-year old it was not fun.

Finally, we did get on the plane. Olivia did relatively well, since this was her first time on a plane. She was OK until about 45 minutes into the flight. Then, I think the pressure, along with her being nervous and hungry got to her and she got really fussy. She kept whining and saying bao (hug) and asking to be picked up. But we were descending and she had to remain in her seat.

Once we got on the ground in Guanzhou, we were met by our driver who promptly handed Mystina a phone. It was our guide, Amy, who said she had waited at the airport as long as she could but she would meet us at the hotel at 8:00 PM for dinner. By this time Livi was starving and she really dove in at the restaurant. This little girl can eat. She loved the bamboo dish, with mushrooms and veggies. Also, she enjoyed some plain rice and some delicious sweet potato muffins.

We picked up some needed supplies at 7-eleven across from the hotel before retiring to our room. Olivia was so exhausted she skipped the usual 1-hour flopping and flailing and went straight to sleep as soon as we got into bed.

On tap for this morning is her medical exam. Then, this afternoon, we are going shopping. I don't have any pictures to post this morning as there wasn't much to take pictures of yesterday. Hopefully we will see more today.

I must say, we are very happy to be in Guangzhou, but we were sad to leave Fuzhou yesterday. We didn't enjoy a lot of the time there, be we realized we were taking her away from her original home and her birth mother. We pray for her birth mother and hope she is at peace about her decision.

Well that's all for now. We only have three more days here before we head home. We are looking forward to seeing everyone again, especially our little boy. We have been talking to him nightly on the computer, but we can't wait to see him and for him to meet Olivia.

Adoption Certificate and Passport

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Sat, 26 May 2007 01:51:00 +0000

There is not much to report about yesterday. We just went to the police station to get her passport and adoption certificate. Which shows her name, Olivia Xin Yun Zummach!! It is nice to see the document that says she is actually ours. This is our last day in Fuzhou and we are on our own. We will go over to the park for awhile. We go on to Guangzhou tomorrow where we will meet up with our other travel mates. We will get to do some shopping and some shopping and some shopping! :o) Oh and did I mention that we will do some shopping?
Anyway, when we went to the police station we saw several other families there that are adopting as well. AMERICANS!!!! We almost cried. We had begun to think that we were the only adoptive family in the city. These families were all at another hotel. They invited us to their hotel for dinner. Oh was it nice to talk to some other American, Adopting Adults!!!!

Well we look forward to our next stop and then to bringing her home to see all of you. Sometimes she is such a riot! She loves to make us laugh. Have a wonderful weekend.

A very good day

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Thu, 24 May 2007 22:27:00 +0000

Yesterday was a very good day. We had a "free" day, which means we were pretty much on our own as far as entertainment and transportation until supper. We decided to stay in the room (By the way, for those who were asking, we are in the Golden Resources International Hotel) for as long as possible and just spend bonding time with Olivia. This was the best decision we could have made. Previously, she did not want to spend much time in the room. She would get fussy and ask to "go" and point towards the door. But, yesterday we started with a bath, which she allowed me (Ken) to give her while mommy was in the other room posting. She LOVES being in the tub and playing in the water.

After the bath, we got to talk to Micah using Skype (this has been wonderful for us). Livi loves to see her "gie gie" (big brother) on the computer screen and Micah really enjoys seeing his "mei mei" (little sister). All throughout the day yesterday she kept pointing at the computer and asking to talk to "gie gie".

The rest of the morning we spent playing games and just having fun in the hotel room. It was GREAT. She really opened up to baba and even began crying when I left the room towards the end of the day. What a difference a day will make. One of hers and our favorite games shows that she trusts us. She will make an "O" with her mouth while standing up and then go "Oh Oh Oh Oh" and fall into our arms. It is sooo cute.

What a beautiful Smile

She's a cutie

Ridin' the horsey

Blowing bubbles in the room

We enjoyed the morning playing but had to go to lunch at the buffet again. Livi had some noodles and bread and then it was down for a nap. After her nap we went out for a walk to get her out of the room. The sun was shining for the first time since we got here, which made it much prettier but VERY HOT. The temp showed 35 C on the sign in the park (95 F) and it was very humid. We couldn't go very far before we had to turn around and come back.

For supper we went to Pizza Hut again (YEAH!). Mama had cheese pizza again while Baba and Livi shared a pasta dish (she ate most of it) and a salad. She loves peaches from the salad bar. Mama and Baba agreed this was the first time we felt really full since we have been in China.

A very nice Pizza Hut

Olivia having her first bite of Pizza

Thank you all for your prayers, comments and emails. We look forward to reading them every day.

We are going to get Livi's passport today and going to an "electronic market" this afternoon. Should be fun.

Fuzhou Day 3

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Wed, 23 May 2007 22:49:00 +0000

Thank you so much for your emails, comments and posts. It means so much and we really need it. Adoptions are not seen very often here and so we get many probing stares. Some will eventually smile, some look very angry and others will set their children down to play with Livi. And still others will try very hard to communicate with us.

Wednesday morning we had free time so we went to the park right across from our hotel and walked a little. There were lots of pigeons that were not scared of us at all.

Mommy and Livi at the Hot Springs Park by our hotel

Hot Springs Park

In the afternoon we went to the Fuzhou museum of history. Then to the residence of a high ranking official that ended the selling of opium by the British to the Chinese people. Starting the Opium War. He is considered a National Hero. We then went to a traditional tea ceremony. Neither of us are fond of tea and we both burnt our tongues. But it was neat to see their tradition.

Us with the Lady at the Tea House who showed us how to make tea

We also visited the West Lake Park. This park is on a lake that was made in 282 AD and was part of ancient Fuzhou.

Mommy, Daddy, and Livi at the West Lake Park in Fuzhou

We have done almost no shopping so when we get to Guangzhou, we will probably go crazy! We truly can not wait to get to Guangzhou and be with the other two families that we traveled to China with. We feel so ALONE here. At times it makes us very nervous.

My greatest challenge is the food. I have been eating mostly rice. But I did enjoy the eggplant dish that we had in Beijing. But tonight for dinner we get to go to PIZZA HUT again. I AM SO HAPPY! Yesterday we had lunch here in the hotel and it is NOT westernized like the breakfast buffet is. The most "out there" food item I have to tell you about is, brace yourselves, the pot of "Madicinal Ox Penis" (that's what the sign said!). I did not stir the pot to see if the sign was accurate. Anyone hungry?

When we received Olivia, she was 95% potty trained, but has reverted quite a
bit because we have been putting diapers on her. It is just to hard to keep a 2
year olds clothes clean when using "squatty potties". When not at the hotel it is
extremely rare to see a western potty.

Bonding is going exactly contrary to what I expected. I thought Olivia would just
fall in love with Ken, but she is totally a mama's girl right now. If I start
to walk away from her to do anything, or to go out of her sight at all, she
screams and cries "Bao" (hug). And when I come back to her and Ken hands her to
me she wraps her arms around me and holds on for dear life. Although I must add that as I am typing this, she is having a great time in the tub with Baba helping her. So I need to let him do the fun things with her.

She is VERY active. She doesn't like to be still for very long. And is very strong willed. Sounds like fun for a 14 hour plane ride back to the GOOD OL' USA huh! ;o) She is also very small as we had expected. She has tiny little hands and feet. She wears a size 4W shoe, 18 months are absolutely just right on her now, and 2T is still big.

When we received Livi, she had been very well prepared to meet us and called us Mama and Baba almost immediately. We received a lot of information about her and many pictures of her life in the past 9 months. She had a teacher that she was very close to, who wrote a little life history about her. She has been in foster care with 6 different Christian families. They have been caring for and teaching her many things about God and how to pray etc.

Please continue to pray for her attachment process. We miss you all very
much and can't wait to get home.
Mystina, Ken and Olivia

Livi's first full day with us

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Tue, 22 May 2007 22:15:00 +0000

Family shot at the Entrance to the Zoo

Mama and Livi at the Zoo

Olivia is doing well. Yesterday, after a good night's sleep, her personality really started to come out. We are seeing many smiles and she loves to play games with Mama and Baba. We sit on the bed with her for about an hour each night before she goes to sleep just playing with her toys and playing peek and tickle and copy. We are also seeing her stubborn side and that she is testing us alot. She does not like to be told "bu" (no in chinese) or have anything taken away from her. She is starting to show a preference for mama, especially when she is crying. She did cry a little more today, as I think she is still grieving her loss of her caregivers.

She is a very active little girl and will tell us if she is tired of sitting still by saying "go" and pointing. She speaks many words in Chinese and frequently our guide will translate for us. So far he has heard her say "very good", "I don't want that", "I want down", etc. She also tells us when she needs to go potty (niaou) and poopy (bian).

When we received her, a woman who said she was her teacher gave us a book of photos from the last 6 months or so. Also, she gave us a CD-ROM with more pictures and the disposable cameras we sent in Livi's care package. They also gave us the clothes she was found in and all of the other items we sent in the care package except the picturebook.

Yesterday, we had a much easier day than the day before. We got to see some of the sights in Fuzhou. Fujian is a very beautiful province, with very lush green vegetation. It is also, VERY humid here so we were sweating all day yesterday.

First, we went to the Fuzhou Zoo, also known as Panda World. The zoo was very small and has only a few animals. There were 5 Giant Panda's and a group of the "Lesser Pandas" or Red Pandas. It was very cool to see these amazing animals in person.

Giant Panda half out of its cage

Family Shot on a Banyan Tree at the Temple

After Panda World we went to vist a Buddhist temple here in Fuzhou. This temple was built in 867 AD so it is over 1000 years old. It was a very beautiful and peaceful place and we enjoyed seeing the exquisite buildings and even a 900 year-old tree.

Daddy and his little girl napping

The rest of the afternoon was free and we were able to take a good nap. After the nap we played in the room for a couple of hours before going to dinner in a restaurant in the hotel. Olivia really enjoyed some rice and a steamed egg dish that she devoured. We are still figuring out the things she likes and doesn't like.

After dinner we borrowed a stroller from the hotel and got to take a walk in the Hot Springs Park next to the hotel. She really enjoyed riding in the stroller. The park was full of people just walking around or doing synchronized dance. We got many stares and a few people stopped to talk to us. Most of them only spoke Chinese, but one couple asked us in English how old she was. Many people smiled at us and one lady said she was beautiful.

After the park, we retired to the hotel. After her first bath Livi again needed both of us on the bed to go to sleep. She tossed and turned for about an hour before finally going to sleep. She is a very restless sleeper and she rolls all over the bed flopping around like a fish sometimes.

Olivia in the tub

The Princess has arrived...

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Mon, 21 May 2007 22:22:00 +0000

First, I won't bore you with a long explanation of the day. We know you just want to see pictures. So here they are.

Ok, now that we have that out of the way, let me tell you how the day went. First, Olivia (or XinXin as the nannies call her) is just perfect. She is very healthy and active and is doing quite well with us. We had a few hours of crying and whining when we first received her, but we got the first laugh after about 30 minutes and she has been very happy since then. Our guide was surprised at how well she is adjusting. She loves to be held by either Baba or Mama and sometimes prefers one or the other.

The day started out with breakfast at 6:30 with only 15 minutes to eat since we had to leave the hotel at 6:45 to make our flight. We then left Beijing about 30 minutes late. We were the only two non-Chinese on the plane, which was a little scary, because hardly anyone would smile at us. Since we arrived in China, we had not been alone anywhere, so this was the first time. We also experienced a very bumpy ride.

When we arrived in Fuzhou (Pronounced Fu-joh) we met our guide Angus outside of baggage claim. He immediately told us that Livi was waiting for us at the hotel. It was about an hour ride from the airport to the hotel and then we had 30 minutes to get ready to meet her. We did not expect to get her so quickly. Angus told us to meet him on the 26th floor at 1:30 pm. We arrived on the floor only to find that the Adoption Official was there along with the director of the orphanage and two of Olivia's nannies. Livi was just running around and playing on the floor. She was dressed very nicely and her hair was perfect. We then had to sign all of the adoption paperwork right then. Usually this is completed the next day after receiving the child. Neither of us had eaten anything since 6:30 that morning but we were bussed from the hotel to the adoption affairs office and then the notary and registration office.

We completed all of this by about 4:00. Then Angus took us to a "supermarket" here. This supermarket was a 5-story building with each floor about the size of a US grocery store. This store had everything, from food to electronics to clothing to sporting goods and housewares. We bought about $100 USD worth of clothes for the orphanage as a gift. Then we asked Angus when we would be eating, as we were getting very hungry. He proceeded to explain where the best places to eat were and pretty much said good luck you are on your own. We then explained that we had paid for a travel package which included 3 meals a day.

After much confusion and debate he called someone at the travel office and finally got verification that, yes, we were supposed to have all meals paid. We were starving by this time, since it was about 6:30 pm and we hadn't eaten in 12 hours. We had a very nice dinner at PIZZA HUT right near our hotel. Pizza Hut here is a very nice restaurant with very different foods. Mystina had a small personal cheese pizza while I had spaghetti with salmon and asparagus in a white sauce and a salad. Livi ate about half of my plate and some peaches and watermelon from the salad bar.

We came back to the hotel, and at one point, I had to go downstairs to the front desk to ask about internet access. Mystina had a hard time consoling her while I was gone. We then called Micah and Gramma and Boppa on the computer, and played a little and tried to get her to sleep. She would not lay down unless we were both on the bed with her and she was touching both of us to make sure we didn't leave. She went to sleep about 9:30 pm and is still in here crib sleeping this morning at 6:50.

We are supposed to meet our guide this morning at 8:30 in the lobby of the hotel to go to Panda World, a local zoo that has real Pandas. I have never seen a live Panda before, so this should be interesting. We will try to post some pictures tonight to let you know how it was and how Livi is doing.

Please continue to pray for us as we get to know this little princess.

Seeing the sights in Beijing...

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Sun, 20 May 2007 12:48:00 +0000

Today was a VERY full day of sight-seeing in and around Beijing. It started this morning at 8:30 as we set out for Tian An Men Square and the Forbidden City.

Tian An Men Square is a very large square plaza that is sometimes used for political gatherings. It can hold up to 1 million people and is a hub of activity. Across the street from Tian An Men Square is the "south gate" of the Forbidden City. This is really the Palace used by the emporer's of the Ming and Ching Dynasties. It is a very large complex with many large buildings that was home to the Emporer and Empress, the Emporer's concubines, his family and all of the servants (about 2000 people in all). It was originally started in the early 15th century and many of the buildings have been recently renovated or are in the process of renovation. It took us two hours to walk through the palace and viewing the major sights like the Emporer's throne room, etc.

After leaving the forbidden city we went to a jade factory where we were shown how Jade formed, the different colors and qualities of jade, and how to tell them apart. Then we were free to shop the factory for jade jewelry, trinkets, and other carvings. The jade was very beautiful, but also quite expensive, so we didn't buy much.

After the jade factory, we ate lunch and visted a cloissone factory and saw the process used to make beautiful vases and many of the decorations in the forbidden city. Then, it was off to the Great Wall of China. This, to us, was the highlight of the day. After a little rain earlier in the day, the sky cleared and we saw blue sky. The temperature was very comfortable and perfect for a good climb up the wall. The picture of the wall shows the wall where we climbed up from the base. We went all the way to the last tower up on the left in the picture. It was quite a hike but the view was beautiful.

After, the Great Wall, we went to dinner at a Peking Duck restaurant. The chef actually came to our table and cut the duck in front of us, and then the waitress assembled the "duck wraps" including a piece of duck, cucumber, onions, and duck sauce in a thin tortilla-like wrap. I had to try a bite just to say that I did it, but I really enjoyed the sweet and sour fish that was served. It wasn't very pretty to look at, as you can see by the picture, but it tasted very good. The food here is served to the group so no one orders individually. They just bring all the food out and place it on a lazy susan in the middle of the table. If you want something, you just turn the table until what you need is in front of you and dish it out onto your plate. The plates are about the size of a saucer in the states, so you can only dish out a little at a time. The food is very good here, but it is hard to get very much because of the small plates.

One of the most exciting parts of the trip today was the ride from place to place. The Chinese have some very different methods of driving which had us all gripping the armrests on our bus. There are lines on the road and traffic signals but they don't seem to mean anything. If you want to change lanes you just move over and hope someone else stops. The horn is used a lot as a warning signal and a "get out of my way". Also, pedestrians do not have the right of way here like back home. People, bicycles and vehicles all share the same road and routinely come within inches of a collision. It is quite hair-raising, but miraculously we made it through the day in one piece.

All in all we had a great day experiencing the culture and food of our daughter's country. We enjoyed it but are ready to move on to the reason we came here. Tomorrow morning we will fly from Beijing to Fuzhou, which is where we will receive our daughter. Probably around 2:30 PM here tomorrow (2:30 AM EST in the states) we will get Livi. We will try to post pictures tomorrow night so when you wake up on Monday morning you should be able to see us with her.

Thank you everyone for your prayers and support. We really appreciate the comments and emails. Please continue to pray for us today and tomorrow while we meet our daughter for the first time. Pray that she bonds with us and that our transition goes smoothly.

Hello from Beijing!!

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Sat, 19 May 2007 08:15:00 +0000

We Made it through the 13+ hour flight. It was relatively smooth sailing until the last 45 minutes and the landing was especially rough. It was so bad that Mystina left the flight attendants a little gift in the paper bag (EWWWW!). Other than that and being exhausted (we didn't sleep much on the flight) we are OK.

Our guide Tom met us at the airport and got us to the hotel. We are all checked in and have a few hours to "freshen up".Then we are going to dinner with the other two families in our travel group at 6:00 PM here (AM there). I will try to add some pictures to the post later of our trip. We have experienced the longest day of our lives. We are going on 23 hours of daylight and we have another 4 hours to go.

One more day and a "wake-up day" before we get our little girl. Tomorrow we will be visiting the Great Wall, Tian An Men Square, the Forbidden City and the Jade Factory. It will be a full day so we will post tomorrow evening.

Also, we are not able to view our blog because of the limted internet access here. If you want to send us a message, please email us. We also are getting e-mails from our guestbook entries, so you can post messages there if you wish. Feel free to leave comments, we will definitely read them later.

Update: I have now added some images to the post. Also, I have figured out a way to view comments, so go ahead and post all you want. The images in order of appearance are:

1. Mystina and I at the Airport in Washington D.C.
2. The plane we flew from Washington to Beijing on
3. The Beijing Aiport
4. Tom, our guide while in Beijing
5. The lobby of the hotel (Wangfujing Grand Hotel)
6. View of the Forbidden City from our Hotel window
7. A picture of everyone from our travel group at dinner tonight

Travel Itinerary...

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Fri, 11 May 2007 13:39:00 +0000

* May 18 – Depart the US (from Washington D.C.)

* May 19 – Arrive in Beijing in the afternoon

* May 20 – Sightseeing in Beijing - The Great Wall and Forbidden City (day allowed for adjusting to time change and culture shock!)

* May 21 – Gotcha Day!! - travel to provincial capital city (Fuzhou) and meet Olivia (she will remain with us from that point on.)

* May 22 – Register adoption and apply for Livi’s passport

* May 23 – 27 – Sightseeing, bonding with Olivia (waiting for her passport to be ready)

* May 28 – Travel to Guangzhou, city where US consulate is located. (Livi's medical examination in preparation for visa appointment.)

* May 29 – Visa appointment at US consulate

* May 30 – Visa is available at end of business day

* May 31 – Travel home (via Hong Kong)

Hello and welcome!

noreply@blogger.com (Ken and Mystina) — Sat, 21 Oct 2006 00:47:00 +0000

This is where we will post our travel log when we are in China receiving our little Chinese angel.