Monday, November 26

From Mike: what a difference a day makes. When Eli woke up this morning we were braced for the worst. Instead we got a suprise; when he opened his eyes Eli was looking right at me and I started to say "hello" with a foolish looking grin on my face. He looked at me and started to repeat the word, his first word in English grinning from ear to ear. Jodi came running out of the bathroom to join in the fun and the three of us kept repeating hello to each other. Since he seemed to be in better spirits we tried to introduce him to a shower since he was so sweaty from the night but he was having none of that. We opted for a washcloth bath as an alternative. Then he started to say "Laushi" which means bathroom and we got our second surprise of the morning, he's already potty trained, mostly that is. After dressing we went to the cafeteria for breakfast and he devoured a plate of sausage, fried bread in the shape of a happy face, and hard boiled egg. It was great watching him eat on his mom's lap. Speaking of her, the amount of Chinese that she can recall has been a tremendous asset. It has made this transition more successful since she can ask him things and translate what he needs or wants. This really helps keep the stress low. Not that it's necessarily been high for him. There were a dizzying number of offices and forms to complete and everything needed to have stamps on them for some reason. He played with his matchbox cars almost the entire day and rarely left his mother. In fact, he must have reached for her about a half-dozen times by my count. He even gave his first kiss to her without being asked to. After the initial reaction to the separation, it has been almost indescribable the difference with him. Throughout all the offices and stops to complete more paperwork and pictures he had to take he was smiling and moving. The one exception was the fingerprinting office. He didn't like that and had his first tearless crying incident. I have been absorbing as much of the culture as I can while completing the adoption process. I wanted to tell you about transportation in China. It is really hard to explain but I will try my best. The lines on the street appear to be suggestions only as the cars zigzag about constantly. Also apparently not necessary are turn signals. At one point I noticed a car with the right blinker on taking a left handed turn. Speaking of the cars, the most visible brands are Asian manufacturers (Kia & Hyundai from South Korea and Honda & Toyota from Japan). There must be a Chinese manufacturer as the decal is not something I recognize. Most "foreign" cars are European; Peugeot, VW, BMW, and the occasinal Audi. The most common American brand are Chevrolets and Buicks. I have yet to see a Ford. That includes the trucks. There are no Silverados, F Series, or Dodge Rams. There is a "truck" but it is hardly what I would call full-sized. It is narrow and it's tires are no bigger than those on my riding lawn tractor and based upon how frequently we passed them their engine must be a 4 cylinder. Not that people use only trucks for hauling. One popular transporation tool for work is a 3 wheeled motorcycle that has a truck bed attached. They are often laden with water bottles, produce, and cardboard for recycling at least 6 feet high. Due to the traffic and expense, many Chinese choose alternate forms of transporation. There are city busses and they are packed to the gills with people. I don't know how anyone gets out at a stop. Another cheap form of transporation is the moped. They are probably more common that the bicycle based upon my unsceintific observation. And they are often tricked out with gloves on the handlebars and wild colors. One I saw had an extended seat and a family of four was riding, without helmets I might add. What is most interesting is that bikes and mopeds can be on the streets or sidewalk, no bike only lanes in this country. With all the swerving and mopeds, bicyclists, and foot traffic I was surprised that we made it through out day unscathed. There were some close calls with other merging cars and the people on two wheels or foot that ignore traffice signals. However, I suppose the slow speed keeps these to a minimum; our top speed wa a whopping 55 kilometers per hour which is just barely above 30 mph. This was apparently quite fast as we were often passing people because our guide said we were in a hurry!