April 13, 2012 Guangzhou first day

It was another grueling day of travel. According to David, "All we do in this freaking country is wait in airports." Lol. We had another flight delay, and we sat in the airport for 3 hours, and it wasn’t really that bad. It just annoys some of us (not me, I’m immune) to be constantly stared at and questioned by strangers. We look odd, and they are extremely curious (my words) and extremely rude (David and John’s words). I suggested to John that he just sit with his ear buds in his ears and pretend that his MP3 player doesn’t have a dead battery. Or maybe he could be honest, and say, I really don’t want to answer your questions, it makes me uncomfortable. I remember after Kenny died, total strangers would come up to me and ask the rudest questions, such as, "How are you paying your mortgage?" And "Can I have his new golf clubs. I know he’d like me to have them. "I guess I developed a thicker skin after that debacle, and I also just chalk it up to cultural differences. The best part of the whole trip, according to David, is watching Chinese KungFu movies. John loves to watch them, and David makes up entire dialogues, in English, to go with the scenes. Really, it could make anyone almost wet their pants. If you don’t know him, David has a warped sense of humor. In the midst of what is a stressful time in any family, an adoption, David brings levity. David inserts what he thinks is appropriate dialogue, but he says things like "I am Santa Claus. Wait, I will get my red suit and defeat you!" By the way, the flight from Harbin to Guangzhou was no picnic. DangTong refused to sit in his seat, and was only happy on my lap. The seats on this plane were very close together, and it was impossible to lower the tray table to eat with him on my lap. And it was hot. But when I tried to shift him to his seat, next to mine, he screamed loudly and kicked like crazy. I quickly acquiesced, just to avoid more attention. Did I mention that he’s a momma’s boy? Finally, DongTong agreed to torment Baba for awhile, and I switched DangTong for Fu, KangChao. Fu, KangChao usually looks for space between us. While all this was going on, John and Ben, of course, just slept on the plane; traveling is old hat to them. Interestingly enough, the fact that DangTong really, really wants his momma has influenced Fu, KangChao. Up until now, he’s pretty much rejected both David and me, and he has only responded to our teenaged son John. We understand that this is normal for a child who feels he has been "stolen" from his foster parents. His loyalties indicate that he had relationships, we know, and that is good. But today, Fu KangChao is beginning to ask me to pick him up (I carry DangTong everywhere), and he suddenly kissed me on the airplane, for no apparent reason. So, Fu, KangChao seems to be picking up on the cues that I’m a good momma, and maybe he should also get in on the action while the getting is good.

We finally arrived in Guangzhou, and at the Garden Hotel. Hooray! Civilization! The Garden Hotel is a westernized hotel, where even the maids and room service speak English. We will have electric all the time (unlike in Beijing) air-conditioning (which didn’t work in Jinan), and all the western amenities. I can even order wine with dinner!! Whoo Hooo! The hotel in Harbin is second rate, at best, and honestly, I’m tired of camping. The endless hours in the hotel will be much more tolerable now. Also, we just found out that there is another family here who has a son John’s age, who was also adopted 2 years ago. If they get alone, this part of the trip might be great!