China Trip - Post 11 - Liuhua Exercise park, Chen Clan Academy and Folk Art Museum, and squatty potties

Sunday was another touring morning. We headed out early to the Liuhua exercise park. Wow is all I can say. Hoping our photos will give you some idea of what a cool place this was!! It is obvious why the Chinese are in good health, live long, and are usually not overweight ( we all know the food selection has a large part to do with this too). This park is a typical weekend hangout for many - particularly older people and families. There are people everywhere and they are exercising. No fancy exercise clothes or shoes, just movement and stretching going on everywhere.

There are colorful playground-like equipment all around for muscle strengthening and stretching, a beautiful flowered walking path all around a lake, people doing sing-a-longs, tai chi, fan dancing, sword routines, ping-pong (the boys were invited to play!), Chinese chess, a children's playground, amusement park type rides, dance halls, boating, radio controlled boats to play with (we thought of Uncle Allen!) - it was such a rich visual of lifelong exercising. Really cool.

Our next stop was the Folk Art Museum of the Chen clan. Apparently, about half the families here in this city share that last name. This was a beautiful building with such intricate art work displayed of all sorts of mediums. Some of the displayed art was old but most are more current. Often the actual artist is there - we saw a paper cutter sharpening his scissors about to do his craft (we weren't even aware that his art was actually paper cuts - see the red artwork below - they were so intricate!!)

Oh yeah, almost forgot to mention. Used my first squatty potty. Just had to. I tried pigeon, I must try the potties. All the sites we have visited have squatty potties. I have helped Xiaoting with some. Tutu skirt and all she did just fine. After seeing how its done, I figured I would give it a go (literally). No problem. It is actually a brilliant idea. Ladies who do the "hover" over public toilets: you would appreciate the ease of this method. You don't touch a thing (and truth be told, squatting is easier on the thighs than hovering!). A woman is in the bathroom cleaning and mopping constantly so it is very clean. But if you ever give it a try, take your own tissue. That is never provided!! Luckily, I knew that...hehe...

Our afternoon was a napping one and resting up. John and the bigs went to a two story Starbucks for a drink, and we went to a yummy meal at a Malaysian restaurant. Super yummy with lots of curry (which John and I love!). We were joined by a woman and her daughter who arrived yesterday. They are with our agency and their entire two week trip will take place here as their son is from this province. They are from Georgia and will meet their 6 year old son who has muscular dystrophy on Monday.

Enjoy the photos.

China Trip - Post 10 - Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, Medical Exam, and eating roast pigeon

Saturday was a busy day. On the adoption front it was medical exam day. Each Saturday morning here in Guangzhou, all the children in town for the second half of the adoption process (first half Is what happens in the child's province - for us that was last week) need to be seen at the clinic for a four part medical exam. Sarah's idea was to go to the exam on the later side of the morning as there were two huge groups from two different agencies that would be there and we might miss some of the crowd.

So our first stop was a site seeing one. The beautiful park which is the home of the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall. Simply a beautiful park with amazing banyan trees, flowers, people doing tai chi, families strolling. Very beautiful and peaceful. We tried a stroller for this excursion at Sarah's suggestion. Xiaoting was having none of it at first, but then thoroughly enjoyed the ride - especially if Ben pushed her.

From there we traveled to the medical clinic. Well, we had not beaten the crowd as there was a huge adoption group there. There were also many local citizens there. It was noisy and busy and a bit chaotic with nurses and crying and people in lines everywhere. Made me appreciate our pediatrician's office!

Sarah was able to have us in and out in an hour - she asked if we could jump into lines since we were the only ones waiting with our agency (paperwork with the larger group was all together so for us to jump in was not a problem and no one minded). There are four parts to the exam (as well a a photo) - ENT exam, temp/weight/vision exam, bloodwork (TB test), and physical/review of special need with the physician. We were able to get through each and Xiaoting was so cute and grown up acting through it all. A real trooper. It was hot and noisy yet she was a rock star.

For me, this visit was very emotional. This adoption trip is so much like a glamorous site seeing tour (it's just how the process is here - we didn't choose that) - so different from our Ethiopian trip which felt more like a mission trip - a "rescue" of sorts. I cried nearly every day in Ethiopia. The poverty was everywhere, beggars were coming up to you everywhere you turned, we visited and saw the orphanages with so many children starving for a family - it was gut wrenching. Our experience here is so different. We have seen two beggars. Yes, just two. One in Wuhan with no hands, and one last night with lame legs. Two.

Now we are visiting cities and no doubt the villages might be a very different situation. But there is poverty here. It is of a different kind and without wanting to offend China or Chinese people, I will just say that the poverty is one of the spirit - and of great loss with regard to families due to the rules and strict laws on family size, what is lucky and not lucky, conformity, and the desire for perfection. These things are just a result of the history of government over the years and of a society which interestingly, appears to try to look more western (gone are the typical Chinese scenes - at least in the cities - that one thinks of seeing in China - it is increasingly western looking).

Now back to my tears at the clinic. I looked around at all the special needs kids (today in China most international adoptions are of kids with special needs - some more severe than others - some as simple as a birthmark). There were children in wheelchairs and children with clefts. There were children with deformed ears, missing limbs, crossed eyes, decaying teeth and all I could think of was Jesus.

These children were being healed. No I don't mean they were being healed of their handicaps there at the clinic necessarily, tho many will be after they get home, but they are being given life and hope and family. Most of these children have no idea (like our daughter) of what lies ahead for them and what a gift they are being given. Many of these children were abandoned under sad situations by mothers who lovingly gave them up as they couldn't care for them. But some were abandoned because they were different and thus bad luck or a curse. To see so many families loving on these special needs kids was overwhelming to me and I just couldn't keep the tears from flowing.

The rest of our day was left to exploring our hotel - the playground there, the ping-pong court, the gym. We went to a huge and very crowded (there was a big sale going on there) grocery store to stock up on water bottles and snacks and went on to an early dinner where most of us tried roast pigeon. Having grown up in NYC, this was a bit hard for me to think of doing as all I can think of is those dirty NYC annoying pigeons (I am not a huge bird lover as it is...except when cooked lol). It was actually quite tasty! All in all a good day. Enjoy the photos!