Our humble abode.

Check out our view. Think New York only smoggier and busier.

A Little Site Seeing

Qianling Park at the bell/drum tower.
Landry is in love with water/shui (sounds like shwey) and fish/yu (sounds like you). I think that is why Yiefei took us to this park because of the lake. He was in heaven. He kept saying shwey-shwey and da-you. "Water, water. Big Fish!"




Yes, I know this is upside down. I actually took it upside down looking over the rail as he was calling out about the water and fish.

This photo is of Jason and Yiefie sitting in old Chinese chairs. Great for your posture she says.


Macaques/Monkey Park
Home to over 500 wild Macaques Monkey's. It was pouring down rain when we visited this park but the few minutes we were there were amazing. These monkeys are everywhere and very aggressive. They are after food, so Yiefei made sure I had our goldfish snacks put away. I think I would have freaked if one decided to climb on top of me for a snack. This park is like any other park, so we were amazed that the monkey's don't wander away, but Yiefei says they never have. So wish it hadn't been raining and we would have been able to stay longer than 5 minutes. What a sight.

#3 of the Yingchun Inn

In China it is illegal to put children up for adoption. They also still enforce the one child rule. You would totally understand why if you could see how many people live here. It is hard to explain the masses. Because of the laws, unwanted children are abandoned. Landry was abandoned in room #3 of the Yingchun Inn here in Guiyang.

Jason set off on a little search and find mission with Yifei while I stayed back at the hotel during Landry's nap. Hopefully I can do justice to this story and if not Jason may correct me later.

We tried to find this Inn on the Internet with no luck so I was a little unsure we'd be able to find it but
THEY DID!!!

Jason said the reason we couldn't find this Inn on the Internet is because it isn't like an Inn in the U.S. Each room is only large enough for a twin size bed and nothing else. The rate to stay a night is only 30 RMB or less than 5 American dollars.


When Jason and Yifei arrived they were able to talk with the girl who found Landry. She was only 17 at the time and now 20. She told them that she was in charge of getting rooms filled at the Inn and would go to the street to help reel in guests. She remembers getting 2 women in their 40's with an infant to take the room for the evening. Later that evening she started hearing a baby cry and after an hour and a half decided to check in on room #3. Landry had been left and the ladies gone. Landry was then taken by the police to the Children's Welfare Institute then placed in foster care. The lady at the Inn also told them that she suspected that the women were not from this part of China but more West because of their dialect. It is common for women to travel far from home to abandon their babies so they are not found later and not recognized.

The girl was so happy we found her and wants us to bring Landry by on Friday. She said she still feels terrible and a little responsible for bringing the women in. Thinking things may have had a different outcome if she had not persuaded them to stay. I think it makes her feel more at peace to know he's with a good family.

We plan on visiting. I've just got to see this place.

Back to the Civil Affairs Office

We had to return to the civil affairs office to get Landry's official birth certificate and offer our "donation". A relief to get rid of that cash we were carrying around. Check out the wad of bills we had on us. This "donation" is for the orphanage to help buy supplies and pay bills. We were given a certificate and pictures were taken of our generosity.




This is Yifei our guide/translator.

Gotcha Day

The Story Continues.....

Did want to let you know that everyone else in our group went to a different province than we did. Most went to Gansu but I think 2 other families went to other provinces. We are in Guizhou/Guiyang city alone and are getting the royal treatment from our new guide/translator Yifei (sounds similar to Evie). Guiyang makes me think of New York but busier if you can believe it. Not an American in sight other than ourselves. Again we are the local celebrities and stalked by the Chinese paparazzi.

Okay, on with the show......... After our quick lunch with Yifei we were driven to the Civil affairs office to meet Landry and his foster family. We walked into a very smokey building to hop on the elevator to the 13th or so floor. Walked into a small 2 room 70's-ish office and there rocking on a little play horse I could see him. Wasn't sure exactly how the entire event was to go so I hesitated to run over and snatch him up even though that is what I would have loved to do. We stood in the doorway asking Yifei what we were suppose to do. She said "go on in and meet your little boy". So we slowly walked in and said hi as he looked at us like we were from another planet. Probably the first time he had seen Americans. His foster family knew immediately who we were so they tried coaxing him near us. He just stared and then made a bee line to his foster grandmother who had just retuned from the market with something for him and another little one to eat. Some wonderfully smelling products of Duck wings and chicken feet. Couldn't believe how they were eating the meat off of these slimy bones but they loved it. We left him alone as he ate and we sat with the grandmother to ask some questions. Basically his likes and dislikes, bed time routine etc. All questions translated by Yifei since they knew no English. We then took some photos, signed a few papers then the foster family got ready to leave. Landry was very close to his foster grandfather ( all older men are called grandfathers even if they are not related. Ya-ya means grandfather). Ya-Ya kissed and loved on Landry and then Landry cried as they left but only for a very short while. He settled down quickly but continued to call for Ya-Ya. Heart breaking. We were able to get their email address and promised to keep in touch.

Landry at that point was ours. This was our "Gotcha Day". The day Qingke became Landry and now part of our family forever. We brought him back to our hotel with no car seat. He just sat in the middle of the back seat between us. Seemed so strange to me as we would never take our little ones anywhere without a car seat in the US. We took him to our room and immediately took his clothes off. We were told to leave them on by our agency because it is the last familiar thing they have but while we were at the Civil Affairs office he had an accident and had no diaper on. He was soaked plus covered in duck wing odor so we just had to bathe him. We stood him in the tub where he cried this deep but quiet cry. We tried to get him to sit but he would have nothing to do with it so we rushed and then I wrapped him a towel to put PJ's on. I rocked him while in his towel to help comfort him and within just a few minutes he was fast asleep. Deep sleep. We put a diaper and PJ's on the limpest human alive and he never woke up until we had to wake him the next morning. Since then he's giggled, grinned, played, eaten everything in site, Skyped with family and transitioned like a champ. Our guide seems to be amazed at how well he's done. I too am amazed at what a great God we have who has blessed us with this sweet spirit. Just can't wait to get him back for you all to meet.

There is still more to do here in Guiyang so the story will continue along with photos as soon as I can get them downloaded. Truly working as fast as I can so bare with me.

Photo Success!