A Lazy Day on Shamian Island

Happy Friday to you! We have wrapped our Friday up and we can officially say that we have 1 more week to go before we go home! We cannot wait!

Today was a lazy day on Shamian Island due to us not having any appointments or activities scheduled. The guides were busy running to the airport to get 3 other families that have been in different provinces, as well as taking them to their medical appointment and doing some paperwork. As for the Sislers, we did a whole lot of nothing. We did some shopping, Rose did her napping, Lillian did some swimming, and we did a alot of walking around the island.

On to the pictures!

These are some pics of Rose this afternoon as we were changing her. The first day, she didn't like it when we changed her, mostly because she didn't trust as you (in my opinion). Now, she likes being changed and it gives us a good opportunity to tickle her and make her laugh. She still doesn't have an audible laugh, but I'm sure it will come along.

This is the dog of a local store owner on the island. We see him almost everyday and we usually stop to give him a scratch or two. We miss our Lolly dog!

As usual, Lillian strikes the pose!

Our two girls, strolling about the island.

Here are some scenes from the island. The first two are some of the building on the island. These two building are located behind guarded gates. Because the U.S. Consulate used to be located on the island, these buildings may be the housing for ambassadors and consulate workers to China, but we really don't know for sure.

There are statues located all over the island. Below, you will see one of these statues, as well as one of the street-scapes located behind it.

Everyday, there are dozens of fashion photography sessions taking place on the island. Usually, they are wedding scenes. Lillian and the girls love to see the beautiful dresses, as well as the beautiful models themselves in all their different poses. Lillian usually has to stop and gawk for a few seconds.

Ahhhhh, Lucy's Bar and Cafe! This is where we have eaten at least once a day since we've gotten to Guangzhou, except the one night we ordered Papa John's pizza. Lucy's is a typical Bar & Grill that serves western style food. The food is almost American, but not quite. We can't wait to get home and not have to go out for every meal!

More statues. Lillian says all the statues are creepy, especially this one. I love how the artist has portrayed a foreign family coming to China to adopt a baby. The woman is very hefty, and the man is very old. I'm sure that there is no stereotyping going on here. (Can you detect the sarcasm?)

The pictures below show the highlight of our day. There is a park that runs along side the Pearl River and it is always filled with people. The sidewalk is probably 12 feet above the water. At one point, there are stairs that lead right down into the water. As we approached the stairs today, we saw a woman throwing a plastic bottle way out into the river. We then saw a Golden Retriever run down the stairs and jump into the river after the bottle. He swam a good 20 yards out into the river and then back he came, bottle in mouth. They did it over and over again. We must have stood and watched them for at least 20 minutes. It reminded us of the many times we used to do the same thing with our Irie girl (golden retriever) in her younger years. It really brought back some great memories of her. We sure do miss her!

Below are pictures of the White Swan hotel, both at day and at night. This hotel is our current home and is usually the home to most families that come to China to adopt children. You see them everywhere. We've met people from Tennessee, Georgia, Washington state, Ohio, Florida, Minnesota, Hawaii, two families from New Mexico, and a few others. It is so easy to talk to these people because we all share a common bond. Just yesterday, we met a family from Memphis and their newly adopted, 14 month old girl. After talking to them for a few minutes, we discovered their baby is from the same orphanage from where Lillian, Kari, Sophi, and the other 6 babies within our first adoption group came. It's just amazing.