Guangzhou has so much to offer. Yesterday, we explored a quaint part of the city called Shamian Island. It’s an island that is surrounded by the Pearl River on one side and a canal on the other. The architecture was beautiful and looked like what you would see in Charleston, SC. We shopped around several stores and enjoyed walking around the historical sites.
This morning was a monumental day. We had our appointment at the US Consulate where our paperwork for Violet’s visa took place. Our guide is very efficient, so she had us there early so we were first in line and got the first number for the interview. Everything went smoothly! We now wait two days and will receive Violet’s US Visa on Thursday morning before making the trip home.
After the consulate appointment, we went with two other adoptive families to the Safari Park, which was one of the highlights of our trip. There was a 30-minute train ride that took us on a safari to see countless animals – giraffes, rhinos, elephants, hippos, etc. This was much more impressive than the Animal Kingdom one back home! Another favorite was Jurassic World, where they had enormous robotic dinosaurs. Brody would’ve loved it! This zoo also had the only panda in the world to give birth to triplet pandas back in 2014. It was pretty cool to see those!
Tomorrow is our last day in Guangzhou. Our plan is to take a cable car up White Cloud Mountain in the morning. This should offer some incredible views of the city as long as the weather is clear. We’ll then start packing up so we can depart for Hong Kong on Thursday, where we’ll spend the night, and then make the long flight home on Friday.
These past 10 days with Violet has been special. She is such a happy, funny, and sweet little girl! She is also adventurous with new foods – watching us as we eat and then opens her mouth up wide wanting to try a bite. In fact, she loves food so much she only wants to read the in-room dining menu book at the hotel. We brought a few kids books, but the menu is apparently way more fascinating. She points to the words along with me – it’s adorable. We’re also thankful that she loves to be held for a bottle and rocked to sleep – two very special bonding experiences with her.
We love her so much!
Enjoy some pictures below:
1 Comment
Guangzhou was our home away from home both times for us – but we are getting to see, through your experiences, places that we never saw when we were there. Now, we have to go back!! Thanks for allowing us to journey with you…Violet is so adorable!! We’ll be praying for a safe trip to Hong Kong and a smooth flight home.