In China
All Days  |  Previous Day  |  Next Day

Saturday, August 4, 2012 When I was younger there was a sign hanging in my Grandpa Shep’s garage that said, “This car climbed Mount McKinley”. We are now the proud owners of t-shirts that say, “I climbed the Great Wall of China” and all the bragging rights that go with it! P90X and Insanity have NOTHING on the workout we got today….We came….we saw….we climbed…and climbed….did I mention, we climbed…But before we get to that.... We started off this am with a nice workout in the “gymnasium”….BIG mistake! HUGE! We indulged in our breakfast buffet and had some FaceTime with Adam – much to the amusement of those around us. We got on our bus and headed out of the city. Traffic in and out of Beijing is pretty much NYC traffic: Bumper to bumper. And if you do not MOVE it…. First stop was a jade factory. We learned a little about jade and how it is made from our guide “Ida”. Men do the carving, and women the polishing. Since there are no longer schools that teach this trade, it is handed down within families and is usually a team of husband and wife working together. After our “lesson” was over we got the sales portion of the day. They are gooood….very gooood! The salesgirls were amused by my wrist size but spun it quite positively telling me I could wear a “special” oval shape bangle. Jim said the “price” was special and got it off PDQ. It was interesting how they got the bracelets on and off – plastic bag over our hand and slide – opposite to get it off. I did manage to find a few small things for EmmeClaire but holding out for later in the trip as we have an inside source telling us we have more to see…and BUY. (Side note: it is MUCH more difficult to refrain from buying Gotcha Day gifts for a GIRL in CHINA than a BOY in KAZKHSTAN! There is just so much more to choose from here….for good or bad….but will accept donations at anytime for her Gotcha Day gifts….just let us know….anyone? Anyone?) After the jade factory we headed to the Great Wall of China. Trying to select 6 pictures from today was hard…..we have about 250 plus video! Just amazing. According to our coordinator Uncle Zhou we were on the “easier” route. (Side note: We have reason to believe he may have not been entirely honest about the route….more than once he said, “Just one more set of steps.” How many times can you have “just one more set”?) All I can say is if we did the easy route…..I never want to attempt the harder route. It was crazy how one step would be normal height and next would be 1/3 the size but the next one would be higher than my knee. I am glad I am in half way decent shape; otherwise it would have been ugly. Some of our group turned back as it was quite hot and humid and were starting to feel it. We trudged…. danced…. dragged…. even ran (for all of about 10 steps) upwards. We were grateful to find at the highest point someone selling popsicles. Never has a popsicle tasted so good. Amazing. I would take one of these any day – peach flavor with ice cream inside. Now stop and think about what I just said. HIGHEST point (of our side)…Someone selling popsicles. Only way to get there is…..climb. Your commute to work does not seem so bad now does it?? Oh and apparently Jim’s status as BIO (Big In Olentangy) extends to the Great Wall of China as more people wanted pictures with him. I won’t tell him that on the way down a mother came up to me asking (through smiles, pointing, and nodding) to take a picture with her two daughters – do not want to hurt his ego. Well, everything that goes up….must come down. And down…down…down…we went. And after carrying our lock all the way from C-bus, we were able to add it to the chain (see picture). Of course Nana has add 2 red ribbons with Adam and EmmeClaire’s name embroidered on it. Yes, we have the fanciest lock on the Great Wall of China. Uncle Zhou promised to check next time he goes back to see if it is still there. The significance is that you are “locked” in love….well, we adapted it to include our very special children. He also suggested next time we come back…..yeah. Next time I am starting at that end, as the locks are only about 5 min from the bottom on that side. It would definitely NOT be something for anyone with any heart issues, knee issues, etc (though we might all have them now from doing it) but I am sure glad we did it. And despite the dripping sweat (yes, sorry but it was a lot of water weight gone by the end) we had fun. At one point a certain individual tried say, “I could have done this a lot easier yesterday…when I was only 36 years old!” Oh geez….some people will find ANY excuse! Next stop….LUNCH. Another huge feast at a place called “Friendship Village”. A huge feast of assorted Chinese foods was laid in front of us. According to Uncle Zhou, most of the meat served is pork. Next came….the birthday cake and happy birthday being sung in Chinese by the wait staff. Oh and someone got a CROWN to wear…King Tourist? The cake was delicious though I have never met a cake I did not like. It was very light and the icing was more of a whipped cream – not overly sugary. We were given HUGE pieces….yeah, I did not have any trouble finishing that off! Hey we earned it! Downstairs various vases, plates, ornaments, figurines, etc. of “Cloisonné” being crafted. Talk about a job requirement being “unbelievable amount of patience”!! It was meticulous work. According to the guide it can take 3-4 days to create the design on a medium size vase. The prices in the next room make more sense once you have seen the process! Speaking of the next room…more shopping! Seeing a trend? Again – accepting donations for EmmeClaire’s souvenirs…

The Great Wall of China Before the climb picture Pete Pan getting ready to climb Jim and random person Pete Pan enjoying a popsicle at the top EmmeClaire and Adam’s Lock Happy Birthday!!

Next we were on the road again and headed to Beijing Olympic Park. Saw the “Ice Cube” and the “Birdsnest” from afar. It was quite busy in this area so we were not able to get very close. I have some pictures but will post those at a later date. And finally back to the hotel. It was awfully quiet coming back…..hmmm like maybe people were tired? Birthday boy has been snoring away since I started typing this. Rough being older! We are all headed our separate ways tomorrow. The first family is set to leave at 9:30 AM via train to their daughter’s province. The rest of us do not leave until after 4 PM. We are very lucky to have not only another family headed to the same province as us but this is trip #4 for them. Both EmmeClaire and their little boy are from the same orphanage. Uncle Zhou said the orphanage is about 3 hours away. I think the second workout of the day is starting to catch up with me so I better get a move on it. Thanks for all the emails! We really appreciate it!! Next stop: Zhengzhou, Henan Province…current home of EmmeClaire!! Some other observations: -Most signs include English and Chinese. Not sure if that will continue to be the case but so far it has been. -Bananas in short supply. None of breakfast bar and we looked at grocery store last night – only 5-10 very green ones. However I saw the neatest invention and if it was not for the 44 pounds within China flight rule I would be buying one. It looks like a plastic banana but actually opens and you put your banana inside to protect it. Anyone finds one of these in the US, you know what to buy me for my next birthday…November 17th by the way….. Adam: We are so proud of your Happy Gram from school! Keep up the good work! Have fun at the Purple Strides Walk on Saturday with Aunt Jill, Uncle Mike, and Beans. We are headed to EmmeClaire’s province tomorrow. Hope you and Beans are enjoying your new capes. We sure could have used those capes today trying to get up the Great Wall of China! Pete Pan did a good job and did not complain the whole trip up though I think he had pixie dust that helped him a little! We miss you lots and will talk to you again soon on FaceTime!

Website by myadoptionwebsite.com