With less than a (business) week till we depart, our time is now spent trying to find things to do while we wait for our consulate appointment on Wednesday. We had a few errands to run today, mostly restocking our formula and beer supply (both staples of good parenting). Then we killed some time in our room and the playroom while our daughter decided NOT to take a nap. She was happy-go-lucky until it was time to board our river cruise tonight, then she had a minor melt down. This didn't last long and she predictably passed out in mid-screech about five minutes into her tirade. After we set sail, she woke up ready to party on the boat, so we all headed up to the Lido Deck. We had a nice ninety-minute float that included a decent dinner and time to chat with our fellow travel families. The highlight was Guangzhou all lit up with holiday lights. It was particularly fun to see the White Swan from the river's perspective. The ole girl is distinguished landmark. The views from the upper deck were impressive, but Marin's favorite part of the voyage was the juggling clown in the dining room.
We were also excited to finally see Jason, our CCAI guide from three years ago. He and his current group were with us on our cruise. We shared lots of pictures of Helena as a big grown-up four-year-old, and also introduced him to Marin. He is now married and still happily working for CCAI. We mentioned to him that we thought we remembered he was dating a girl, when we were here last time. And with a twinkle in his eye, his reply was "yes, I think a few girls, but I picked the right one to marry."
Please excuse the runny nose pictures but we thought they were too cute not to include. We also included a picture of one of the orange trees, which are all over town, and are a sign of the upcoming Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival to the locals. People were out in droves today, doing their holiday shopping. The stores are packed with all of them playing the same Happy New Year sound track. By the time we leave, we should know the words by heart.
We are very excited about our day tomorrow. The three of us, and our representative Grace, will travel an hour and a half southwest of Guangzhou to visit Marin's previous digs, the True Childrens Home. We have a list of questions and and we hope to have lots of good info to share in our next post.
We were also excited to finally see Jason, our CCAI guide from three years ago. He and his current group were with us on our cruise. We shared lots of pictures of Helena as a big grown-up four-year-old, and also introduced him to Marin. He is now married and still happily working for CCAI. We mentioned to him that we thought we remembered he was dating a girl, when we were here last time. And with a twinkle in his eye, his reply was "yes, I think a few girls, but I picked the right one to marry."
Please excuse the runny nose pictures but we thought they were too cute not to include. We also included a picture of one of the orange trees, which are all over town, and are a sign of the upcoming Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival to the locals. People were out in droves today, doing their holiday shopping. The stores are packed with all of them playing the same Happy New Year sound track. By the time we leave, we should know the words by heart.
We are very excited about our day tomorrow. The three of us, and our representative Grace, will travel an hour and a half southwest of Guangzhou to visit Marin's previous digs, the True Childrens Home. We have a list of questions and and we hope to have lots of good info to share in our next post.
Wow, it has been so amazing to watch Marin's expressions change so much in the last few days. She is such a little gem!
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