Our first full day in Guangzhou was spent having breakfast, then getting Nicole's visa photo, then off to her medical exam, some shopping on the way back, then touring the hotel for the rest of the day. This hotel boggles the mind. There are hundreds of families with adopted children everywhere. The White Swan Hotel is so renowned for adoption families that Mattel actually made a special Barbie Doll, which the hotel gives to families free. We have a picture of it further down in the post.
This is the view from our breakfast table. The waterfall is going down into a pond with small little rivers going around the breakfast area.
First stop after breakfast was the lounge by the reception desk. Our group met there and then proceeded to a photo shop across the street to get our babies visa photo. As you can see, there were other groups waiting as well.
After the photo session, we were then off to the local medical center for adopted children's physical. As you will see, Nicole was NOT fond of this part of the trip. She cried quite a bit even though there was nothing painful encountered, just a combination of fear, hunger, and tiredness I think.
The first exam was ENT which Nicole made clear, her throat is working just FINE! Lungs are OK too.
Next stop was a double check of Nicole's ID picture, she quickly confirmed it was her. Next was checking her weight, body length, and temperature. Oh, take Nicole's temperature, you would think they were branding her with a hot iron. She did not like the thermometer under the ole armpit one bit.
Nicole's weight was 16 lbs, her temperature was normal, and we don't know what her body length was, she and all the other babies crying made it a bit hard to hear what they said.
Nicole had a short wait before undergoing a complete exam of her body and having the doctor listen to her heart.
This was the worst part for her as she let the doctor and the rest of the building know, her lungs were working really well.
After the exam, we headed back to the hotel and took a photo of the park along the walkway we were going down.
We also stopped at a few shops along the way. One I found interesting was this seafood market. Everything is kept live in fish tanks. There was fresh (large) lobster, which I know Pastor and Robin would love for us to bring back. Also, fresh flounder, snapper, puffer fish, scallops, and finally...
Live EELS!!
After arriving at the hotel, Nicole decided she had been put through quite a bit and needed a much deserved nap.
After she woke up, we took a tour of the hotel. The White Swan Hotel is truly amazing. In the center of the hotel is a huge garden with a waterfall flowing into a pond filled with colorful carp fish. The vegetation all around the garden is very plush and tropical.
After the garden, we walked around admiring the incredible jade artwork that is everywhere in the hotel. The picture below is different colored jade all cut in various forms of sea life. There are fish, crabs, lobster, etc., all in jade. You can buy this but first you will need to sell you house!
The photo below is of a ship all in jade which I had Kelly stand next to in order to get an idea of how large it is. Ships like this one in jade are quite common in the stores and we did buy one. Much smaller though.
Another impressive piece of jade artwork is this castle. It must be 10 foot tall!
We did quite a bit of shopping and just walking around admiring all the jade artwork and custom woodwork throughout the hotel. It is really something to see.
Below is a picture from our room of the Pearl River. It is hazy this time of year but I also suspect there is a fair amount of smog in there as well.
Below is the 'Going Home Barbie' doll that Mattel made especially for adopted children staying at the White Swan Hotel. Talk about a collector's item! We are sure Nicole will treasure this later on when she is older. The picture is of the front and back of the box.
China does celebrate Christmas, although it is more for the children than the celebration of Christ's birth. There are Christians in China but as one would expect, their main religion is Buddhism.
Later in the day I went to fill out the visa application paperwork for Nicole and so today we are to wait in our room while from 11 - 12:30 while it is being processed, in case there are any problems and they need to reach us. Afterwards, we have a tour schedule to a local Buddhist temple, a Folk Art Museum, and then the Guangdong Provincial Art & Crafts Shop. Should be interesting.
Our love to all. In two more days we will be on our way home.