First Real Smiles, Even a Giggle or Two..
This morning Faith gave us several smiles. Her eyes go from big to tiny. It looks as if she blinks and curls up her little button nose. It is the cutest thing and difficult to describe. We discovered that she likes raspberries (aka belly farts) blown on her belly. The kids even got a little laugh out of her. We thought we hit the jackpot and made a real breakthrough, but this afternoon she seems to be getting pretty cranky. It could be a tummy ache, teething or the signs of grieving her old life. Did we mention that she has a cold and terrible cough, along with all of the other babies from her orphanage? I am beginning to wonder if it is something more serious, such as an ear infection. So, please keep Faith in your prayers during her transition and while she is fighting this cold
She does not like being put down, so we do not. We can only imagine what she is feeling. Her life has taken a drastic turn! Some people would say she is going to get spoiled, but we have a lot of time to make up for. She never got all that holding and comforting in infancy.
Today we toured the city of Chongqing. It is such a beautiful city!! It is famous for its Banyan Leaf paintings, which we got to see today. We bought two of them to give to Faith in the future. They are also famous for their hot peppers and spices, which have yet to experience. We got to see a spectacular theater and town square. Government officials were the only ones that could meet in this building until it was open to the public in the 1970's. We also got to visit the Three Gorges Museum. They are building a dam on the Yangtze River (the third largest river in the world) that is to be completed in 2009. It will destroy and wash away around 2 million homes. It will be the biggest dam in the world. It will be five times bigger than the Hoover Dam.
Tonight we went on a river tour around the peninsula. Chongqing is located between two rivers, the Yangtze and the Jialing. It gave us a spectacular view of the city. The kids hung out with some of their friends during the cruise. They were certainly the center of attention. For about 15 minutes, people were taking pictures of them. The kids are starting to feel famous!
Other interesting things we have not had a chance to mention:
 | The Chinese use dinner plates that are the size of our saucers. No wonder most of them are skinny!! |
| The napkins (in most restaurants) are proportionate to the plate size, maybe about 1/4th the size we are use to. Good thing we have not eaten a Chili-Cheeseburger! |
| Service is unbeatable in China. You have people just waiting for the chance to help you whether it be at a store or restaurant. |
| Speaking of service, unlike in the United States, you pick out what you want to buy and then you are given a receipt. You must pay for those items and then come back to retrieve them. Some exceptions to this custom are Wal-Mart and Carrefore stores. |
| The bathrooms rarely, if ever, have toilet paper. Although most of them have those automatic hand driers, which seems ironic, as I have not seen many wash their hands. |
| The children of potty training age wear split pants and have their butt checks exposed to the outside elements, including the freezing cold. This is so they can squat down wherever they are and relieve themselves. The rest of their bodies are so bundled up that it reminds one of the kid in the movie "The Christmas Story". |
| Chinese people love to gather around American families that are adopting Chinese babies. They are very curious!! Many of them have never seen Americans with Chinese babies. You literally can get surrounded by a lot of Chinese ladies, mostly seeming to approve and giving smiles and thumbs up. It is quite sweet and they obviously are very caring. |
Chongqing
