Family Day, May 4, 2009
Phil and I woke up from our first night in Nanning, the capital of Quin’s province of Guanxi, to a very sunny, hot morning. We had breakfast at the hotel buffet. All the hotels have a buffet comprised of Asian and Western dishes. Phil got his customary eggs and bacon, while I tried some noodles along with a hard boiled egg and some fruit. In the breakfast area were other couples with children. I kept looking at them trying to imagine that that would be us just the next morning.
We met our guide Sarah in the lobby at 10:00 a.m. to go to Minority Park, a small urban park that features traditional dwellings and some artists from the different minorities. Guanxi Providence, which is in Southwestern China is considered one of the most ethnically diverse areas of China. At the park there were at least four couples in wedding attire getting their photos taken. Sarah said that couples traditionally take photos in the spring, even if their marriage is not for 5-6 months.
The couples were in a mix of western and Asian bridal costumes and they did a circuit of the park taking photos. We had seen a few couples while in China (one couple having their photo taken outside the Bird’s nest at the Olympic Park), but the here in Nanning there were wedding couples everywhere.
While Beijing felt like places I have been in the U.S., the climate of Nanning was so different. I loved seeing all the palm trees and towering bamboo. Even though Beijing and Nanning are both big cities (Nanning has a population of about 8 million), Nanning felt much more like the idea of China that I had in my head. In Beijing there were cars zooming everywhere. In Nanning many people traveled by moped or scooter.
There were even parallel “side” streets where the bikes could go without the cars. The moped would zip by, sometimes with a whole family, sometimes with a huge pile of goods. I saw a man driving and a woman riding behind, holding a larger wicker rocker. There were also a lot more bicyclists here, some also with large loads, things for sale, things they were simply transporting. I found it very interesting to just watch the controlled chaos of everyone streaming in and out passing by.
After the Minority Park we took a cab to People’s Park, which is just a block from our hotel. People’s Park is a large park complex adjacent to
a beautiful lake. There was a small zoo (about 5 exhibits), a games area, a Ferris wheel (in the distance, which lit up at night and we could watch from out room), and lots of people walking or taking a siesta or paddle boating in the lake. We walked around for a while, essentially killing time, and then we walked back to our hotel enjoying some shade from the bamboo trees along a tree lined path by the lake. We went for lunch with Sarah at a large restaurant.
The restaurant was long and had 20 or so different windows into kitchens, each making a variety of dishes, some impossible to comprehend from the pictures.
I went with noodles, which seemed a safe bet (although a bit hot for a very hot day) and Phil ended up with fried rice. He was happy when he saw the window at the far end with Western looking food. I would say that Phil is a somewhat picky eater and he was not overly enamored with most of the Chinese meals we had.
After lunch we returned to the hotel for about a two-hour siesta before meeting Sarah once again, this time to go to the Guanxi Civil Affairs Office to finally meet Quin.
I was so nervous, sitting around waiting, knowing that everything I had been dreaming about for these past three years was about to come true in just a short time, knowing that when I next returned to this room life as I knew it would be entirely different, worrying about how scared Quin would be and if I would be able to comfort her.
Finally it was time to go, I gathered all the paperwork, the gifts of appreciation to give to the Civil Affairs officers, the Orphanage Director, and her Foster Parents (who we would not get to meet) and off we went. The CA Office was in a building that seems like an old hotel. We went up a few floors and were ushered into a small, hot room. We were the only ones there for about 10 minutes. Our guide, Sarah, came and went a few times. She said she saw Quin and it wouldn’t be long. About four other families came in--they were with a different agency. There were three other couples and a single woman with her friend. I thought they would bring the kids in there, but then Sarah said we were to go to another room. This room was larger and little more formal. I went over the window and sat my stuff down (there were no couches or chairs) and then as Phil nervously tried to figure out the camera, in came a little girl with pigtails of curly hair clutching a something that looked like a melted, jellied otter pop and I had my first glimpse of my girl. Quin’s nanny brought her over to me and told me I was her mama. Quin took everything in. She was not crying, just curious and a little cautious. I pulled out an orange kitty cat stuffie and gave it to her. She held it for a bit and then went exploring, with me following. She went over to touch a statue of a lady (if I remember correctly) and then across to the other side of the room. By this time other families had come in and where waiting for their kids. Quin walked behind some people and I leaned around and smiled at her, playing peek-a-boo and she smiled and played some more. Finally we made our way back to our stuff along the wall. Phil was filming, but got a bit choked up and so we don’t have it all on tape. I was so worried that I would cry, that she would cry, but I held it together. I signed a few forms, she let me pet her back and then it was time to go. Quin wasn’t ready to leave and didn’t want to walk, so I picked her up, finally getting to hold my daughter in my arms. She cried as we left the room and got into the elevator, but as we got into the cab she calmed down. There are no car seats (and few backseat belts) in China, so I held her on my lap and we went back to the hotel.
The moment of truth all came when we got to our room, our guide left and we were, for the first time, alone as a family. Quin was calm, curious and happy. The orphanage director said she hadn’t had her nap that day, so I expected her to be cranky, but she was great.
We fed her Cheerios (a few at a time), Phil read to her and got her to say her first English words, “Go Do Go.” It was only later that we learned that the word for dog in Chinese is pronounced go, so she was really saying dog dog dog). Quin had a lot of fun putting stickers on herself and baba (Phil).
We met Sarah for dinner and she helped us to order food. Quin just had steamed rice. Her paperwork said that was what she usually ate for dinner. Congee (chicken stock rice porridge for breakfast), milk, fruit, rice and noodles were her main foods. We were soon to discover that she will eat just about anything and has a big appetite. After dinner Sarah and Phil went out to Walmart to shop for some essentials (like sippy cups for Quin, coffee for Phil, and milk tea for me, amongst other things). Quin and I were left alone, which was scary and special all at once. Quin and I drew (doodled) and played with a ball I brought. She let me put her pajamas on (some kids don’t want to have their clothes changed at first, so I was very happy that she had no issue with that) and then we played together some more, which mostly involved Quin running up to me and throwing herself into my arms. She was happy and laughed and laughed. I felt so lucky and blessed.
Finally it was time to go to sleep. There was only one bed. I laid down in the bed next to her and sang “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” over and over. She would just gaze at me and reach up to touch my face. It was such a wonderful bonding experience. We went to bed like that most nights in China. She fell asleep pretty easily and slept all night—what a blessing.
I have read so many stories about when people first meet their child. So often the children cry and cry and sometimes it takes days or more for them to start really calming down, sleeping, etc. I was expecting that this might be the case with Quin and I was just so very happy with how perfectly wonderful our first day was together. Meeting Quin was the best moment of my life.
Pictures from our hotel about one hour after we met Quin.
