Happy Birthday Jane!!

It's Sunday March 9, and Jane celebrated her 32nd Birthday ;). Today was our first full day of R&R since we started on this journey. The ladies went out for a short shopping excursion while Steve had a short nap. Steve was relieved to see that only 1 bag returned in Jane's hand - not sure where she hid the rest. :) Like the other big cities we have visited thus far, Wuhan is extremely vibrant and full of life (and people!).

We met the Loten family who arrived late afternoon from Beijing. Fontana took us all to a large Walmart-like supermarket (Carrefour) for drinks and snacks. The store was filled with shoppers. For dinner we joined up with the Lotens for some delicious dumplings (Jiao zi) filled with egg and tomato, pork, and fish, and to Jane's surprise when we returned, the hotel had left a lovely fruit and cream birthday cake in our room.

The Lotens are getting ready to meet their daughter Alice, and we are getting to bed early tonight so that we are well-rested to meet Quinn tomorrow at 10am. We are all very excited about welcoming Quinn into our family, and the girls are looking forward to playing with him. What a birthday present!!

See you tomorrow when we officially become a party of 5.

Moving Day

Sorry to disappoint all our blog-obsessed friends out there. Today's drive from Jiujiang to Wuhan, though pleasant, was no match for the Mount Lushan experience.

We arrived in Wuhan around Noon, and were greeted with masses of cars and people out and about in the city - not only is it the weekend, but it is also Woman's Day in China. This 3,500 year old city is a booming metropolis in central China, situated on the banks of the Yangtze River. With a population of around 9 million, Wuhan is considered a commercial centre for finance, industry, trade and science, and is seen as an "intellectual centre", home to several well-known educational instituions. For Steve's beloved wife and niece, and apprenticing Hannah and Stephanie, this apppears to be a shopping mecca. For Steve, the resistance is futile and he is hoping that Quinn will help restore some balance.

The much-anticipated meeting of Quinn is scheduled for 10am Monday (10pm Sunday your time) at the Civil Affairs Office in Wuhan. On Sunday, we will meet the Loten family who are also receiving a child from Shiyan SWI with us and will be our travel mates for the rest of the journey. We are looking forward to meeting them when they arrive in Wuhan Sunday afternoon, after which we will head to the supermarket for a "big" shop that our ever-faithful guide, Fontana, has arranged for us.

The weather Sunday promises to be sunny and about 22C - sorry to all those back home in Southern Ontario who have been hit by yet another snowstorm.

Stay tuned....

A Walk in the Clouds...

Today was our much-anticipated adventure up the Lushan Mountain.

Lushan Mountain is famous for its magnificent scenery, a poet's and photographer's dream throughout its history. It is located in the northern part of Jiangxi Province, to the south of the Yangtze River and northwest of the Poyang Lake. It has a history of over 2,000 years and is made up of 171 peaks, the highest peak being the Dahanyang Peak which towers 1,474 meters above sea level. Historically, the mountain has played host to many signficant political meetings, and has offered shelter and retreat for monks and priests practicing Buddhism, Taoism, Christianity, Catholicism and the faith of the Orthodox Eastern Church.

Jane was a little apprehensive as we started our ascent, but figured it couldn't be all that bad. Well, note for Bonni & Lynn - you didn't do it justice!!! Or should we say, you didn't warn Jane enough!!! The twists and turns during the early part of the trip up had Jane and Jennifer gasping and grabbing at the arm rests in the van. As the fog grew thicker, the anxiety increased. About 30 minutes into our ascent, we asked our travel guide if we were almost at our destination only to be told that we were not even half way up!!! A Gravol seemed to be in order, but was saved for the trip down. Just after the half-way point, there was some chuckling going on in the front of the van between the driver, our guide and Steve. After some arm-twisting, Steve finally noted that the driver said he was glad it was foggy or the ladies would have been a wreck. It was assuring to learn that our driver was very experienced having made over 100 trips a year up the mountain, often in the fog.

The fog was also worrying Steve, the thought of not seeing a thing at the "summit", playing with his photographer-for-a-day psychy. We could barely see 20 feet in any direction - just enough to pick up the oncoming, descending vehicles at a moment's notice.






Immediately following our arrival at the top, the fog miraculously/magically cleared, opening up a window to a beautiful town nestled in the mountain's grasping arms. After a leisurely stroll along a man-made lake and through some historic gardens, it was off to "Brocade Valley". A beautiful walking path led us to some of the most spectacular scenery we have ever witnessed (even Flat Stanley and Flat Jessica were in awe). The photos from our China coffee-table book came to life before our very eyes. We followed the trail around the mountain for about 2+ hours, stopping many times for photographs, before arriving back at the van. Hannah and Stephanie were real troopers and did not complain or ask when we would be finishing until very near the end. Hannah, Stephanie and Jane were the least daring of the bunch when it came to going out on rocks for photo ops, but Steve and Jennifer got some beautiful photos of the mist rising up from the lower valley. The end of our hike on a fairly crisp and chilly day at the mountain, was also the arrival of rain, so we decided to forgo the "2nd half" of the tour.




Having felt completely fulfilled with the experience at Mount Lushan, we decided to leave a carrot dangling for a return to this amazing place. Our trip down the mountain was less eventful and we made it back to our hotel in time for a late afternoon nap.

Tonight, we took one last walk around this wonderfully charming Jiujiang city. We purchased some tea from a tea shop, while Hannah and Stephanie played with the shop owner's 5.5 year old son. Children are amazing - language is no barrier to having fun, and we suspect/hope that Quinn's transition into our family will be made easier with the help of Hannah and Stephanie. We again enjoyed the action-packed streets and brightly lit signs as we made our way back to our hotel, following a short shopping venture.

After returning to our hotel, we settled in for a delicious hot-pot meal. This was the girls' first experience with this type of meal, and they thoroughly enjoyed the food - or was that playing in the pots :).

It's off to our rocky nests for our last sleep in Jiujiang. We will truly miss this city, which has a warmth about it that will stay with us for a long time. Off to Wuhan in the early morning in eager anticipation of meeting Quinn on Monday.

A Day to Remember in Jiujiang

Today was an amazing day in Jiujiang and one that none of us will soon forget.

At 9am, we were met at the hotel by the orphanage Director, Mr. Cao, and we all ventured off to the Jiujiang Social Welfare Institute (SWI), the orphange where Hannah was cared for in the first 9 months of her life. Hannah was a little nervous about the visit but started to relax as we neared the complex. The sights along the drive to the orphanage brought back memories of 2000, especially remembering the sign at the gate of the orphanage - "Love in the World".

After departing the van, Mr. Cao led us up the front walkway. There was a big banner across the roadway welcoming Cao Meng Si (Hannah) back to her roots. While we all gazed up at the banner, firecrackers popped up the road in celebration of Hannah's return visit.

We met several of the children currently residing at the SWI, many with special needs, as well as several babies, both healthy ones and those having special needs. It was wonderful to see them all. The side-by-side cribs that Hannah and her friend, Kira, occupied, were still the same as back in 2000 (and in the same location). We were taken to several other areas within the orphanage including a rehabilitation room and a beautiful outdoor playground with padded floor, both of which were constructed within the last 3-4 months through some kind donations.

When we arrived in the meeting room to talk to Mr. Cao, we all received some beautiful porecelain gifts - there was even one for Jennifer. We felt very comfortable talking to Mr. Cao and Miss Yu (the orphanage Secretary, formerly the Vice-Director). We asked Mr. Cao the questions that Hannah had prepared. After receiving a hot-water bottle that the Nannies had used to keep her feet warm, Hannah was warmly greeted by one of her caregivers, who was very happy to see Hannah. A few minutes later, a second Nanny appeared, Hannah's primary caregiver (she was the woman who held Hannah when we first met her in the Gloria Plaza Hotel in Nanchang).

As she embraced Hannah, genuinely remembering her from back in 2000, she was filled with tears of joy, which prompted tears in all of us. From the moment that Hannah met the 2 Nannies, all of her apprehension and nervousness surrounding today seemed to disappear, a smile painted on her face from ear to ear. As with Stephanie, Hannah had completed a circle of love with her return.

Along with Miss. Yu and another staff member, we then proceeded to the supermarket to purchase some supplies for the orphanage according to their needs, with the help of a few Jiujiang families. We picked up diapers, forumla and other essentials for the orphanage, and they were very grateful for them. On the way back to the orphanage, we hopped off the van and walked to the location of Hannah's finding place (what once was one end of the New Bridge, is now a small island of shrubs in the middle of a very busy intersection).

We then returned to the SWI for a wonderful lunch. The fish was out of this world! Even with the head staring back at us, Jane filled her belly!

On full stomachs, Mr. Cao then took us to a couple of local sites, the Pipa Pavillion and the Xunyang Tower.


As seems to be the case on all our excursions with the pleasant, spring-like weather we are experiencing thus far, the strolls through these 2 pavillions were extremely relaxing.

In the evening we walked up the street from our hotel to do some grocery shopping and the dreaded shoe shopping. We also had a nice walk into the centre of the city for some "western" eats, experiencing a bit of the night life and bright lights on our travels. It seemed to jump out of nowhere in contrast to the "blue collar" town we have witnessed in the daytime.

Tomorrow morning, an adventure up the art-inspiring Lushan Mountains awaits us.

...We All Scream for Ice-Cream!!

On Wednesday, we started our day with a visit to the Teng Wang Pavilion. The Pavilion, first built in 659AD, sits on the banks of the Gan(jiang) River. Poems written by the Tang Dynasty (618-907AD) poet, Wang Bo, helped to make the tower famous. The 9-storey tower has been rebuilt and repaired 28 times since its inception. The weather Wednesday was again very pleasant, making for a relaxing visit. The views from the tower were fantastic, and we could see the new growth of Nanchang across the Gan River. As part of the tour, we also saw a small show in the pavilion with music and dance.

Following our visit to the pavilion, we grabbed some (again) delicious lunch. The spicy chicken was sizzling hot, but very tasty – Jennifer bowed out early, and the pumpkin “cakes” were delicious.

After lunch, we started our journey to Jiujiang, Hannah’s birthplace. The drive up from Nanchang was very scenic, with hills and mountains surrounding us in the distance. Along the way, we spotted some collapsed structures from the recent ice and snowstorms in China.

Jiujiang is a cultural and historic city situated on the crossing of the Yangtze River and the Beijing-Kowloon Railway. The 2,000 year-old city has a population of just over 4 million, and is traditionally known as an agricultural region with the outputs of cotton, rapeseed, silk, fruit and aquatic products. From our waterfront hotel window, we witnessed how the Yangtze River provides a passage to move goods in and out of the city. The bridge that crosses the Yangtze River is the largest on the entire river, and is a passage by rail to Anhui province, and by automobile to Hubei province.

The hotel (Chevalier) was quaint, nothing too fancy, but clean. The beds were literally like “sheet” rock, harder than any other bed we have slept on in China – but that’s just part of the experience. After settling in our hotel rooms, we had a lovely, relaxing walk at the edge of the river in the late afternoon. Whether related to our arrival in Jiujiang or not, Hannah seemed to be very free-spirited. To our delight, when picking up some groceries in a small shop, we hit the jackpot…15 cent ice-cream bars!!! This is going to be a very yummy stay in Jiujiang with unusual flavours like Tarot and Green Pea ice cream!!

Well it’s off to bed (??) to rest up for our special visit to Hannah’s orphanage.

A Sunny Stroll in the Square...

Our whirlwind tour of Jiangsu province ended today with our early morning (ughh!) flight to Jiangxi for the 3rd leg of our journey. We had a quick 1 hour flight to Nanchang, the capital of Jiangxi province where Hannah was born. Nanchang is situated about 65 km south of the Yangtze River on the Gan(jiang) river, and has a population of approx. 4 million. The 2, 200 year old city is rich with history, is surrounded by beautiful mountains, hills and plains, and is noted for its porcelain from China's famous porcelain capital Jingdezhen.

Hannah is very excited to be in her birth province and is looking forward to her orphanage visit on Thursday of this week. Our excitement is also mounting as we get closer to meeting our son on March 10th. He turned 3 on March 2nd - we will enjoy celebrating his brithday, along with Jane's and Steve's who both turn 32 and 33 respectively within the next 2 weeks :).

After arriving at the Nanchang airport, we proceeded to Nanchang, a short 20-25 minutes away. The drive seemed much shorter than we remembered back in 2000 - our guide suspected that there have been new roads built since then, offering a different route. We rested in our hotel rooms (Jin Feng hotel) for about an hour before venturing to the Civil Affairs office to apply for permission to visit Jiujiang Social Welfare Institute on Thursday. They were expecting us, and we completed the necessary paperwork and received a keepsake welcoming banner from the Civil Affairs office. Hannah hugged the banner to herself and couldn't wait to get out of the office to open it and read it. We received our itinerary for the day on Thursday and will look forward to visiting the orphanage.

We (including Flat Stanley and Flat Jessica) visited the People's Square in Nanchang, the second largest square in China next to Beijing's Tiananmen Square. The Square honours the famous August 1, 1927 uprising led by the late Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai and other Chinese leaders. The day has since been celebrated as the founding day of China's armed forces, the People's Liberation Army. We walked around on a beautiful sunny day, taking in the sites and sounds.

We enjoyed a delicious lunch of dumplings and hot pork buns - Hannah, Steve & Jennifer were in heaven, and Jane even enjoyed the pork buns.

We then went on to the porcelain shop to do some shopping. While we would have loved to purchase more, the thought of having to carry lots of porcelain in our hand luggage, with plenty of shopping still to do in Jiujiang, Beijing, and a "new city" in Wuhan, helped us to escape without blowing our budget. Jennifer wanted to bring home a 6 foot porcelain vase, but we managed to talk her into settling for a photo with it instead :-)

Tonight we are laying low in preparation for a visit to the Teng Wang pavillion tomorrow morning, some lunch, and then off to Jiujiang until Saturday.