Thursday-Friday,
December 13-14, 2007
Today our day began in Nashville on Thursday morning with
our flight to
Washington @ 8:15 am and ended half a world away in
Beijing, China.
For two and a half years we have anticipated and prepared
for this trip
but nothing could fully prepare us for the challenge of
traveling so
far as a family. When we boarded our plane in Nashville we
were already
tired due to the excitement of the coming day. We woke up
around 4:00
am with two excited boys who had never flown before and 24
hours later
we arrived with two tired but experienced flyers. None of
us slept
very much so we arrived very tired and very excited about
what was about
to happen. When we left Washington for Beijing we traveled
almost due
north and passed over the North Pole but since it was dark
outside the
boys didn't get a good look to see if they could find
Santa's house.
We traveled with several other families from Washington
that we will
spend the next couple of weeks with in China. We also
traveled with 19
toddlers and babies which reminded us that they were beautiful
and also a
handful at the same time. When we arrived our agency tour
guides helped
us get to our hotel. Traveling through the streets was
much like
traveling in Brazil with cars going everywhere and horns
blaring. After
arriving we got to our beds as quickly as possible. The
only side trip
was a trip to the local Walmart type store where we
realized clearly
that we were not at home anymore. We look forward to
seeing more of the
city tomorrow.
Saturday,
December 15th, 2007
Today was our first full day in China and we are now less
than 48 hours
away from uniting with “Our Little Blessing”. We awoke at
around
3:00 am this morning and no one could go back to sleep.
Since 3:00 am
is 2:00 pm back home it is easy to understand that our
bodies are a
little confused. Breakfast was better than expected and
everyone was very
glad that it was not that different from what we would
have at a hotel
buffet in the states. We then began our tour of Beijing.
Our first
stop was Tian'anmen Square and the Forbidden City. It was
certainly strange to be in a place that we had read and
saw so much about over the years. It was also a great
educational experience being in the middle of such
history. This area has buildings that date back at least
600 years. The square is incredibly large and filled with
tourist, vendors and soldiers. The Forbidden City's
architecture is an incredible site to behold. It gets it's
name from the fact that it was both forbidden from the
general population to enter and also forbidden for it's
residents to leave the City. We then had our lunch and
then went to a pearl dealership. We finished our day by
visiting the Silk Factory and the Summer Palace. On the
way back to the hotel we go two Duck dinners. Tonight we
are again tired but look forward to Gotcha Day on Monday. |
Inside the Forbidden City
The Bird's Nest Olympic Stadium
At the Summer Palace
Entrance to the Forbidden City |
