This is the first time CB has used Bridge of Love Adoption Services, and the service has been truly amazing! On top of the several gifts the girls have received (hats, T-shirts, puzzles and toys), they provided us with water in our hotel room and on the bus every day. We haven’t had to buy any water yet! The guides have been so helpful – even taking care of getting our laundry done in Beijing since the hotel prices are quite high. I got about 25 pieces of clothing cleaned and ironed and delivered to my hotel room for less than $40. Everything was wrapped in its own bag as well, which was great for re-packing. Anything we need done, they take care of it for us. I haven’t been to many other countries, but I can truly say that the service we receive in China is far above anything we’ve ever received at home.
This post is going to be fairly long since I haven’t been able to post for the last 2 nights. On Wednesday, we checked out of the hotel in Beijing and headed to Jinshanling where we finally walked the Great Wall of China. This was a new location for Tom and I so we were thrilled. It was about 3 hours from Beijing, so there are very few tourists there and we had the Wall almost to ourselves. We had lunch at the foot in the town and then headed to the gondolas.
The gondola ride was about 10 minutes and then we had to hike another 20 minutes or so up to the wall. What a fabulous view of the wall from all angles! It was just amazing. We walked along the wall for about 45 minutes (Tom was way ahead and we couldn’t catch up anyway). Along the way, there are self-appointed guides who follow you along, hoping for a tip once you get back to the gondola. I was a little annoyed at first, but I soon realized I was very glad to have her with us. She was a young woman who spoke some English and since I was holding Avery’s hand the whole way (the wall is quite rough and some of the stairs are very steep and crumbling), I was quite exhausted by the time we turned to head back. She held Avery’s hand the whole way back so I only had to fend for myself and make sure Quin wasn’t too far ahead of me. The heat was almost unbearable (the rainy days have ended and we’ve had scorching heat for the last couple of days) and we were all soaked with sweat. I was so glad to have her with us. We tipped her and also bought some postcards and a book (this is where they make the most I think) since I was so grateful. In talking with her along the way, I found out she was from the local village (along with all the other “guides”). The funniest thing was while we were riding the gondola back down the mountain, we could see them running down along the pathway – and they beat the gondola down! If I had known that, I would have walked down – the gondolas were a little scary.
Next, we headed for Chengde where we stayed the night. The city is quite beautiful, but the hotel was not the greatest, so I was glad it was just one night. The beds were like the ones in Changzhou when we adopted Avery - it felt like we were lying on a board! Anyway, we were all so exhausted from our hike on the wall, that we slept 10 hours. I really needed that!
On Thursday, we visited a Buddhist temple in the morning called Putuozongcheng. It was completed in 1771 and is an exact replica of the most sacred Buddhist temple in Lhasa, Tibet. It was a bit of hike up to the top, but with breaks along the way, we all made it and took lots of pictures of the building and the view. The girls even had an ice-cream at the top which stopped the whining for a while. We left the hotel at 8 am that morning to try to beat the heat and crowds, which was great. By the time we left, there was a huge line up to get in and the clouds had dispersed so it was getting really hot.
After lunch, we made the long ride back to Beijing for a Peking duck dinner. Alice, our guide in Beijing, who didn’t travel with us to Chengde, met us for dinner. It was really great to see her again.
From the dinner, we headed to the Beijing train station for the overnight train to Xi’an. This was an experience I’ll never forget. The train station was a complete zoo! It was so packed with people, that I was terrified we were going to lose one of the kids. We were each pulling our own suitcases and Tom and I had a bag and backpack as well, so we couldn’t hold their hands. They were real troopers. A couple of the kids were crying and scared, but Quin and Avery stayed calm and just followed along. The cabins in the train are pretty much what you would imagine. No frills. Just 2 bunks and a small space in between. We had to shove the 4 suitcases under the 2 bottom bunks and the backpacks on an overhead shelf. A few other families paid extra for the bunk in their own cabin (if they had fewer than 4 in their family), but we didn’t have this luxury so had to use every square inch of the cabin. The bunks were as hard as the floor, but at least the sheets and blankets were clean. Once we were settled in though, it was fine. The train left around 9:30 and the girls were asleep by 10:30. It was an 11 hour train ride, so we arrived in Xi’an at 8:30 this morning. By the time we got to our bus and then to the hotel, it was 9:30 and we were all ready for breakfast! The buffet was awesome and we've now checked into our rooms.
Since the internet is working much better here in Xi'an, I've posted a few pictures from Tuesday as well. Will update again this evening about today's events.
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