Tourists in Guangzhou

We were disappointed that our reps had not planned one of the tours that the Collins had gone on when they were in Guangzhou. They had told us how great it was and we thought we might get to since we were here for the entire time. Jason said they have too many new people coming in this weekend to take us. So since we had warmish weather and most of the day free, we took matters into our own hands and took a taxi to Baiyun Mountain and Yuntai Garden.

While it was overcast, today was much warmer than the past week, so we really enjoyed wandering the park-like area on top of the mountian, doing some major people watching and catching a trained bird show. The view was hazy due to pollution or mist or both, but the air smelled clean. Of course, we took the "ropeway" (gondola ride) up and down, opting out of the long hike either way. And I handled it very well Nikki and Katy, I only fussed once when Dad stood up to take a picture and made the car tilt. (Those who know me well, are familiar with my deep-seated fear of gondola rides and ferris wheels.) We were on top of the mountain at lunch time and there were many "snack bars" but not a word of English on any of the menus. We ate ice cream. Ailah was NOT impressed.

After we came back down the mountain, we spent about 90 minutes wandering Yuntai Garden a beautiful botanic garden at the base at the base of the mountain. Besides a really cool looking greenhouse with strange, exotic plants like cactus, there were several acres of gardens, waterfalls, fountains and statuary. It was a very peaceful day of touring, I highly recommend it to all adopting families.

We ended our day with a group dinner at "the Thai restaurant." This place does have a name, but nobody seems to know it or use it. It is something like The Cow and Bridge. (No, I can't explain that. At least not the cow part. Maybe the bridge part because it is right across the street from the bridge between Guangzhou and Shamian.) Again, I think Jeff enjoyed it more than me. And Ailah again enjoyed her steamed bean curd. This stuff just looks nasty whether you call it bean curd or tofu. I repeat, yuck. It was a fun time with our group.

Ailah had a good day. She seemed to enjoy the peaceful nature of the mountain and the garden. Not so much the crazy scene in the restaurant at the end. It seems she is very uncomfortable with noise and chaos. Seems to really overstimulate her and she gets cranky. As soon as we left there she was her cheerful, smiling self again. Until Jeff tried to put her to bed. She is getting worse and worse about letting Jeff do things for her. It's hard to not give in and take her, but I really don't want her to be that dependent on me. I get plenty of snuggle time. She was in the sling the entire time we were at the mountain and the gardens and she really liked that. I am finding it really hard when I can't set her down to let her walk for a few minutes. I've never had a child this old and this heavy that couldn't walk so it is a learning experience. I should be in great shape by the time she is self-ambulatory.