Sllloooowwww internet connection but at least we're connected again. Through the mountains we were without cell service too.
Ok, there is so much to tell. Soooo much. No chance of covering it all.
First, Jack was never really a guide, we had that wrong 10 years ago, or we were duped or tricked. Either way... Jack was an official from the Govt. He was appointed to create an adoption protocol because he was working in adoption affairs and had some background in travel services. So, we were some of the first families to arrive and get an appointed guide, before our time families arrived through travel agents and floundered through the system. Jack perfected the tours, meals, buses, paperwork etc. to meet families needs so that they could put energy into the new child and learn the child's culture. Also would explain why he would feel so fondly for our girls and remember our family so clearly.
He is all over the place right now. Lots of ideas, some to make money, some to help the kids here. Some ideas like more student exchange with Canada. I told him families would happily host kids but that I didn't know many families who would send their kids to China. He agreed safer in Canada but perhaps it would work for older kids?
So scattered. We met after breakfast this morning and headed to a Hakka village. Loved it there. Very welcoming. I'm a bit of a rock star here. People were wanting to touch me, practice their english, take my picture on my own or with them. Wild. Some wanted to say they'd never seen anyone like me. Yup, I'm an original all right. Wishing I'd kept my long dark hair, I might have blended better. Lili blends right up until she speaks. They look horrified that she can't understand them. Jack thinks the kids should learn more mandarin. Lili didn't agree.
At the Hakka village we learned all about tea, saw the bushes, the drying process, had two tea ceremonies, met the farmer who grew the tea, his wife who sells the tea and bought some tea from them to take home. We now have enough tea for a life time. Nicole...farm fresh ooo-long tea coming your way! I know I'm butchering Chinese words with my version of spelling. You get the idea. Lili didn't love the tea so much but I did.
Jack ordered our lunch and then kept demanding they hurry up and bring it. I think we waited maybe seven minutes. Braised tofu, yummy, beef and peppers, Jack declared it unedible so we didn't try it, young bamboo shoots, they were ok, fried rice, I think we've literally eaten that at every meal except the pizza and finally Hakka dumplings that were amazing. I'm guessing a recipe will be hard to find :)
Jack is as pushy as ever. A force to be reckoned with.
Once again we are his trial. He is wanting to put together a heritage camp and he's testing Lili and I out for what we think is cool, interesting and possible. So far, we totally approve of the island, Xiamen in general and the Hakka village. He also wants us to try Gaiping (cultural religious region) and Changting city tour (political cultural center with long history). The mountains are stunning. I think it would be great to add some farming information too. I'm facinated by all the rice growing in the mountains. Just as much tobacco but not sure that needs to be on a heritage trip.
Oh, saw lots of oxen today too.
We were watching the news with Jack at dinner and the flooding in China is just crazy. We were in another storm today, up in the mountains. Eric, just like the flash floods we've had to pull over for. Jack just kept on driving right through it.
We had boofee (buffet) for dinner here at the hotel. We literally did NOT recognize most of it. I tried a few of the harmless looking things with Lili telling me repeatedly that I shouldn't eat things I can't identify. I think I ate deep fried okra with onions, tasted like a crunchy onion ring. Very yummy she wouldn't try it. Adventursome eating is over I guess. They serve free food and appies in the evening, might take Lili back down for a bedtime snack if she stays awake.
Lili must be feeling better, she is running all over the room with an empty pop bottle pretending it flies and is a weapon. Too funny. She NEEDS to run, just run. There is no where to run on a trip like this and no allowances made.
The drive from Fuzhou to Changting used to be 11 hours of rough driving. It's now 7 on new highways and only 5 1/2 from Xiamen. Changting is a small district, only 250,000 people. We didn't see much because it was dark when we pulled in but it looks huge to us. The hotel is big, quite impressive. I told Jack about their on-line ad stating there was hot running water and he laughed. I think someone could come to China and make a living just walking around hotels and correcting signage for a fee.
Rice.
The main house. Built in 1912. I told Jack and our guide that it was newer than our house and they were tremendously surprised by that.
Our guide, no english so Jack had to translate. I couldn't figure out why we needed her but then finally clued in that he was pumping her for dates, times and information for the future Heritage Camp he is planning for next year :)
The lady lives in the big main house. Jack demanded that she let us go upstairs to their personal space to look around. He paid a fee but we got to go.
The original house owners. The house holds about 14 families, all of one family. There are many families still there. Our guide grew up in the Hakka village and they all have the sur name of Lin.
Totally fascinating. There were lots of round Hakka houses and even some smaller square ones. We were able to go in a few of them.
Tiny yards, filled up. People are living there while we're taking a look see and pictures.
More tea.
Can you see the spigot out of the ground? That is the kitched bathroom, right there on the sidewalk. This boy washed his hair under that tap while we sat listening to Lili's concert.
Really. I had to praise Lili for not laughing.
The new Director of Changting is a man, I don't think he's going to like the femmy gifts I brought, Jack says no problem, he has a wife. For that matter, Jack might not like the things I brought for our guide Penny, he also has a wife.
Jack's wife works for/with Love Without Bounderies! I read their blog everyday and I get the facebook updates all day long. So connected to Jack in so many ways. Totally lead here.
The staff and Director are so excited to see Lili that we came to Changting a day early. Jack seems very excited too. It's hard to have fear and anxiety with this level of excitement going on. The Director is coming tomorrow morning to eat breakfast with us. No pressure there. Then we will go to her finding spot and the orphanage later. The Director has already invited us for dinner. I've told Lili to just go with the flow, things change with Jack quite a bit. He's still hyper and animated.
At the Hakka house there were performances and it rained so we had a second tea ceremony and missed the show. When we got there they told him is was over and he told them Lili was Hakka home for a visit and she needed to hear the music of her people. They quickly gathered up and gave her an individual show! When you hear Jack, even if you can't understand, you can tell from his tone that he is demanding. Ok, and the performance was amazing. One man has won many award all over China for playing music with a banyan tree leaf rolled up and blowing on it. One man was playing two horns by blowing through his nostrils. I asked Jack why they were doing that and he said they are showing off. Typical behaviour for Chinese men to prove they can do things people say they can't.
Lesson of the day from the mountainous region "where there is water, there is money".
I think Jack told people all day long that Lili was adopted by me and was here to visit. People were doing a deep repect bow to me all day. Not sure how much Lili sees of that. Mostly we were trying to keep up with Jack. If we lag behind he yells 'come now Shelley, you can see that later'. Not once did I get back to see anything later :)
Jack was visiting an orphanage when he met his daughter, they had no plans to adopt but she was healthy and cute and he wanted to bring her home, so called his wife and she said yes. So sweet. Don't you all wish it could have been so easy?! She was five months old and he gets questioned all the time about why he didn't adopt special needs. It's the same everywhere now I guess. He says he has friends asking him to help them adopt all the time but that there really aren't any healthy kids, they are all special needs now.
The bulk of the kids in SWI are mentally challenged and he doesn't feel they will get adopted.
He got a call today while we were driving, a family is in process of returning the five year old daughter they just adopted and it happens so infreguently that the staff didn't know what to do. He was feeling so sad for the girl today because she was in tears and sad. The family adopted two kids on one trip, a boy and a girl. I asked if she would be able to be adopted again and he said yes definitly that they would try to find her a family. She has some mental challenges too. Sounded like he was describing autism but he doesn't know that word. I told him I thought autism was perhaps families biggest fears. He's going to look it up later.
He also got a call today from a family from Holland that just arrived at an orphanage without official permission. He granted permission but wonders why they didn't call him first.
Jack isn't sure how many kids are at Changting but he thinks around 10. Some mentally challenged and staying there for life and some were smuggled children. The police are still searching for their parents and they can't be adopted because they are not orphans. He was telling me today that 50 smugglers were just put to death. I asked him how they could stop the smuggling. He said keep killing the criminals. I told him that lots of parents believe that as long as we keep adopting the kids the smugglers will keep kidnapping them. He looked at me like that was crazy talk.
So, it turns out that Jack was born and raised in Long Yan, which is an hour before Changting. He grew up speaking Longyanese and Hakka. He did great with the Hakka today. Thinking he pretended to not always understand 10 years ago to avoid tedious questions about the children that he would consider irrelevant. He is NOT a detail man. He graduated from middle school (our high school) and then got to go to university (only top 5% got to go) and form there the Govt. placed him in a postion in Fuzhou.
He thinks we should stay in Long Yan on the way home to try the hotel there. His 85 year old father lives in Long Yan still. I told him we'd love to meet him. The hotel we're at in Changting is very nice, very clean, quite new.
He still is not particularily interested in hearing about my kids, too boring I think. He does take the time to tell me what they need and how to raise them though :) I don't need to worry about what they eat or how much, only that they excercise enough and then food doesn't matter. They will eat what they need. Ok. Also, no video games because then they can't concentrate on studies. Whatever. I said what about bright kids that aren't struggling in school, still no video games, no none. As Lili is in the backseat playing her ds for the entire five hour drive. I don't think my techy kids are going to put the gadgets down anytime soon. Also they need more studies and classes and mandarin. He says all Chinese people would agree. Ya, um, we just haven't actually found a moment in Canada that they've ever needed Mandarin, I agree it would be nice but not important.
Miss Fei goes to camp today! Have fun Hunny. I love you, I miss you, see you in a few days!
Fei sent me a picture of our finished kitchen! What a surprise. I live a pretty dull life, sort of the same thing over and over again. I don't think I'm prepared for many more surprises. Eric, the kitching is gorgeous, turned out even better than I was expecting. I showed Jack, he loved it too, so did the ladies serving us tea during a rain storm today :) Isn't technology amazing. Sitting in a Hakka Village, the only caucasion person in sight, drinking fresh tea while looking at an e-mail of our new kitchen! Almost as cool as saying goodnight to Jia from the Great Wall.
From Lili - Um, eh, ah, been some crazy days. I have a stupid cold, not feeling the greatest but feeling better tonight. Jack is very bossy, he's nice, he is taking good care of us. I like him. The Hakka village was very cool and to see that everybody looks like me. I hated the tea but the ceremony was good. It was cool to see how they made the tea. Can't wait to see Changting tomorrow. Fei, have a great trip to camp, I hope you have a lot of fun and be safe. Daddy, I miss you, and Jia, and Jenny and I miss you all.
