Guangzhou Day 3 – Monday Nov 2rd

Guangzhou Day 3 – Monday Nov 2rd
Today Nora and I started the day with a walk to Shamian Island seeking good light for photos and a cup of Starbucks coffee for me. The coffee in the room is instant (ok for one cup but not enough for the day by far), and to order a cup of coffee at the Hotel café it’s 38 Yuan (about $5.70). Yesterday’s breakfast buffet was around 188 Yuan (about $27) so I really won’t be doing that too often. My Starbuck’s medium Café Latte was 26 Yuan so around $3. Before the trip I made this little cheat-sheet to help me convert Yuan to US Dollars without having to do the math.

Yesterday when we went to the Carrefour Supermarket I also pickup up yogurt, crackers, and peanut butter and so along with a Cliff bar that I brought along, Nora and I had a nice little breakfast in our room before our walk to the Island. Side note for anyone traveling, Cliff and Luna Bars pack much better than a typical breakfast bar because they’re so dense, you just can’t crush them.

I don’t think Nora had really been feed that much solid food; according to the instruction sheet that came from the orphanage she was just drinking a thick sludge of formula and rice cereal. She really didn’t seem to understand that a spoon needed to go into her mouth at first. With Isabel I kept her on exactly what she had been fed at the orphanage. I can tell I’m a lot more comfortable Mom this time around; Nora’s enjoying baby food, yogurt, rice noodles, steamed eggs, rice congee, rice, crackers, etc…

One of Jodi and Keith’s twins got a stomach bug last night so she’s taking it easy today which meant that it was just Keith, Katelyn, Nora and I went to visit the Six Banyan Trees Temple. It’s a Buddhist Temple that we also visited during Isabel’s adoption trip. However unlike the last visit, which was last day of Chinese New Year and one of the busiest days of the year at the Temple, today it was quiet, peaceful and very beautiful. The nine story tower is a replacement of the original, but is still around 300 years old.

We were all treated to a blessing from one of the monks.

Nora’s been a real joy. She got a great laugh and is generally good natured, although I’ve seen some hints of a spicy temper. Girls from both Hunan and Chongqing are said to be spicy girls. Two spicy girls in one house could mean trouble for Mom.
Tomorrow (Tuesday Nov 3rd) is both Nora’s 1st Birthday and her appointment with the American Consulate. On Wednesday she takes the oath to become an American citizen. This little girl has a busy week ahead.