Cadence is 13 months old today. What a wonderful day to begin our journey! Today we left Norfolk at 7:00 am and flew to Chicago. From there, after a 4 hour layover, we flew to Beijing. We had breakfast in the airport at Chili's -- yuck!

Tom was suitably sedated for both flights. The one from Norfolk was on a tiny plane, and it was bumpy. The plane to Beijing; however, was large and dark. We both enjoyed the flight -- at least as much as one can enjoy spending 14 hours in one seat! The food wasn't bad, and there was plenty of it. At 1 in the morning Norfolk time, we were having lunch and preparing to disembark. The time difference is exactly 12 hours, so I never had to even change my watch! We both managed to get a little sleep and arrive ready for the trip to the hotel.

Day 2

September 5, 2005, Monday

We actually arrived in Beijing today. Our travel agency had someone meet us. He was kind and helpful. When we looked across the row of cab drivers and tour guides waiting, he looked at us, smiled, waved, and held up our names. He said he knew who we were by the documents folder I carried. These are our adoption papers and they will go everywhere with us when not in a safe!

The driving (or should I say riding) in China will take some getting used to. Tom and I weren't nervous, but most people will be. There is no concept of lane though there are lines, and signaling seems to include a polite succession of horn blasts followed by swift movement. I never saw any signs of road rage, but if someone was lane changing, they were cutting off numerous people. I understand that it is similar when walking.

Our guide pointed out the large amounts of construction going on, in preparation for the 2008 Olympic games. Also, he pointed out a section of the city, about the size of our Pembroke Town Center, where 700,000 people live in apartments. We also saw carts people were using to gather sticks from some poplar trees. There was a young boy jumping around and running between trees. For a split second, it was all very Kung Fu movie-like.

We asked our guide for dinner recommendations as we have three evenings to feed ourselves. He recommended a restaurant about 3 blocks away. Then he walked us there. This was our best view of Beijing yet. There were open air markets, a school that rents rooms to guests as a way to make money, and interesting people everywhere.

We're still trying to get the tipping procedure down. That was awkward. After our guide left, we called home, showered, and went to bed! That was 6:00 pm local time.

Day 3

September 6, 2005, Tuesday

This morning I was up at 2. Tom was up by 4. The view of the city in the night, outside of our window is amazing. This morning we watched the locals doing their morning exercises in a little park across the street.

We had breakfast at the buffet. They served rice, noodles, and sushi. There also served baked beans (a little under cooked) and hard boiled eggs. We had a carbtastic breakfast! The tea is incredible. We are leaving now to go on our first tour.

Today we saw the Summer Palace and The Forbidden City. They were both beautiful, and we hope to post pictures as soon as possible. My impression is that the early emperors didn't use a lot of furniture, but what they had was intricate and of the finest quality available at the time. The Forbidden City actually burned down 300 years ago, so what we saw was the second build. The Summer Palace was a summer home for a ruthless princess who ruled through two 6 year old emperors. The single most interesting site was the boat she built with China's military money. It was made of marble.

The hardest part of the day was the sales pitch at the pearl factory. The pearls were beautiful; however, they do not take “no” for an answer. We will not be needing $550.00 worth of pearls as much as $550.00 worth of diapers for some time. Our package included a lunch buffet. Tom and I ate Kung Pao chicken and french fries. We drank a Coke and Pepsi respectively and felt like singing the Star Spangled Banner when we had our first taste.

This evening we went to a Kung Fu theater. The story was intriguing and the stunts were amazing. Tom is of course in heaven.

We skipped dinner for sleep once again. We watched American Pie 3, and found out that one of its characters is named “Cadence”!

Day 4

September 7, 2005, Wednesday

Today we managed to sleep until the alarm went off for the first time. We ate boiled eggs and fried rice again, but found out there is a place on the buffet to get an omelet. Maybe tomorrow!

The weather in Beijing has been lovely. The temperature has not gone passed 85, and there is usually a nice breeze. It is rare, however, to see a blue sky. The sky is a constant pale to deep gray with the pollution cover. Even over the mountains at the Great Wall, there is no color in the sky. I understand that with their new controls, this is a big improvement. Outside of many places we have visited, children stand and collect bottles, cans, and paper from those passing by. I believe this is how they make a living; however, recycling seems to be a serious business here.

On our way to the Great Wall, we stopped at a jade factory. There stuff was beautiful, and we purchased a circular jade stone which means “family union” on a red thread for Baby Cadence. Afterwards, at the Great Wall, our guide told us he would wait for us in the coffee shop. At first we wondered why he would not be going, but then we began the climb! We walked straight up -- some ramp areas and some steps. We had to stop about every 5 minutes to rest. Most people didn't have to stop, but Tom and I are both wheezing a great deal because of the pollution, and it was a necessity. We have some beautiful shots of the surrounding areas. At one place, we have a picture of someone doing Kung Fu exercises in front of a giant statue of General Kwan, a sort of “patron saint” of martial artists. Afterwards, Tom tried his hand at bargaining for a couple of t-shirts (“I climbed the Great Wall” -- what else?) and a statue.

Afterwards, we had our best meal yet! We had some sort of spicy chicken, beef and broccoli, steamed dumplings, and cake! It was like a yellow angel food cake. In another part of the restaurant, we visited a cloisonne factory and saw hand made carpets. Selling is the order of the day here!

Next we saw the Ming Tombs, where 13 of 16 Ming emperors are buried. The landscape was beautiful. This area entails 13 buildings, open to the outside, with giant tablets or stones acting has head stones. These are several stories high. After passing through these buildings, there is a large hill, where the named emperor was laid to rest in an underground palace. These have not been excavated.

Also, at the Ming Tombs, is a museum containing artifacts from the tombs. These are at least 300 years old and offer details about the emperors' way of life. Tom and I were sound asleep before we reached the hotel.

Once again, we opted for sleep in lieu of dinner.

Day 5

September 8, 2005, Thursday

Today we are leaving Beijing and traveling to Hong Kong. We are looking forward to a quiet flight. We have managed to add one set of pictures. These are pictures of Beijing.

Our flight was uneventful, and we have arrived safely. We are staying at the Kowloon Shangri La, and it is AMAZING! We have a great view of Hong Kong, remote control AC and lights, our own floor attendant, and marble counters in the bathroom. We were greeted with a basket of hot tea and 2 kinds of kiwi – which we can eat because we can peel them!

In the airport, we waited for the Jordans (Chesapeake residents in our adoption group we met just before leaving town) to arrive, then shared a cab to the hotel. Once again, we opted for nuts, fruit bars, AND kiwi in the room and went to bed early. This was the first fresh, uncooked food we've had since we've been here.

Our internal clocks are still a little off. It is 5 in the morning and I've been up since 2:30 am. Tom and I are planning to watch a movie tonight in an effort to stay up a little longer.