First Day in Guangzhou

We arrived pretty late last night into Guangzhou. It was too late to really get a feel for the area. We have an amazing view of the Pearl River from our hotel room
Guangzhou is the final stop for all Americans adopting from China so there are lots of families here with little ones. It is so inspiring to see all the new families being forged here. It is also nice to have a breakfast that is not spicy.

We spent our first morning here getting an examination for Juliana. All of the children were measured, weighed, and given a quick once over. After the exam we had all the necessary documentation to apply for Juliana's visa. David spent the rest of the morning filling out even more paperwork. Now we wait for the application to be processed and we take an oath on Tuesday which will make her an American citizen once she steps on American soil.

After a morning of paperwork, we were ready to venture off the island we are staying on. We went to the QingPing Market-- it is the local pharmaceutical shop. The Chinese use various herbs, bugs and reptiles for medicinal purposes. They boil them and make a "wine" out of them. The wine is sure to kill whatever ails you. A quick warning, the following video is not for the faint of heart.

The open air market was fascinating to some (David wants to go back and see the areas we missed), I will be better off scrubbing out most of what we saw there. I am content to stay on this little island and do some shopping. There are lots of little baby stores catering to the adoptive families. And there is this...