I would walk 500 hundred miles just to be......

We traveled a long way today, We Were in the car for around 12 hours. It's a new law that you must travel to the childs original orphanage
to have their passport photo taken so we drove there took a photo looked at her orphanage and came home. but wow the sights we got to see.
Traveling through rural China that was interspersed with huge city after huge city.
We would look off in the distance and see what we thought was a mountain in the distance and as we got closer and the smog cleared (slightly)
We would find it was another huge city. Many of them brand new but never lived in. Like maybe 50 hi rise apartment buildings 30-40 stories tall
started but never finished. I had seen something about it on tv once but it was weird seeing them in person.
The city we finally arrived at to get Lukes passport photo was like a ghost town. Like walking through New York city in one of those apocalypse movies.

In route we passed a huge concrete and steel tower that we were told was almost 400 meters tall. Second largest only to one in tokyo, Japan..
The enormity of the structures they build here blow my mind. But with almost 2 billion people at your disposal I guess the skys the limit.

 

As to the orphanage we visited, it is half orphanage half old folks home. Big, but pretty run down. The room we went in we recognized from the pictures they sent us of Luke. I counted 20 kids in the room. Most of them just laying in bed. But there was a 4 year old boy that caught Andrews and my eye. We got the camera out and played with him and we both agreed if there was a way we would like to take him home.

If I understand right 4 is the oldest child they allow there so he will be having
to transfer to a new home soon. It's an emotional ride every day here.

While we were there we needed hot water for a bottle so we asked them to prep a bottle like they usually do. When they brought it out it was super hot. I asked Andrew
to hold it for me and the outside was too hot for him to even hold. Imagine how hot it was on the inside....
We had all watched earlier with amazement as our driver had sucked down a bowl of soup so hot that the steam surrounding his face looked like he was taking a shower.
I guess it's just part of the culture here.

Hannah has adjusted well and is becoming a great little helper. She thinks Luke is funny and laughs and laughs at him. But after a long day as she gets tired she needs
a little extra attention from all of us and of course she gets it.

I wish I had pictures here of Elizabeth when she was a baby. This kid not only acts like her he looks like her. Thumb sucking and nose tapping included. Of course he's not
as pretty as Elizabeth (few are) but he's a boy so he doesn't need to be. He does seem to have the same sweet demeanor as her though. I needed another easy going kid :)

 

 

 

 

 

no seat belts for the long car rides

a roadside restaurant.. most of the Chinese food here is spicy which most of my family doesn't like.
Elizabeth found a new love for tophu and fried rice here.

 

outside the gates of the orphanage

the street near where Luke was

Lukes bed (empty!! YAY!)

New big sister

Just a random shot of some pigs for your enjoyment