To Beihai

Day 8 - Visit to Beihai City (Thurs. 6/24)

We checked out of our hotel in Nanning around 9:30 am and unfortunately had to wait nearly an hour for our guide to arrive. Once he arrived we left Nanning for a three hour drive to Beihai City. This is where Lia's orphanage is located, where she lived with her foster family, and where she was found. The drive was on a very nice highway with little traffic. We passed many rural villages along the way. Some of the area was mountainous and some was farmland. It was a good feeling to be out of the city. We arrived at our hotel, the Shangri-La, around 1:30 in the afternoon. Our guide helped us check in but then basically told us he would meet us the next day at 9:30 am for the orphanage visit. We were told we would only be able to see the outside of the orphanage. Here we were in our daughter's city and left on our own. We were extremely disappointed with our guide. The hotel was older but we had a nice big room that overlooked the bay and a wonderful swimming pool next to the ocean. Since the guide did not help us to get lunch we ate some noodle dishes we had brought (similar to Ramen noodles) and then went down to the pool. There was no one else swimming. The pool even had a small waterslide for kids. Andrew had a great time. The water was nice and warm (which I liked). Paul mostly sat at the edge of the pool with Lia. I had brought stacking cups for her to play with so we took a few to the pool. We got her to start pouring water from cup to cup and by the time we left the pool she was playing on the step of the pool and had gotten quite wet. She still wouldn't get into the water or let Paul get in but hopefully we will turn her into a water girl soon enough. Paul was of course just dying to get into the water! He promised Andrew that after Lia went to bed they would go swimming together. After swimming we decided to get dinner. The hotel restaurant prices were very high so we got directions to a nearby restaurant. We walked and only had cross one section of road. It was busy but mostly with electric motorbikes. We found the restaurant and went in. After we were seated and we started looking at the menu, we tried to ask some simple questions. The waitress called over another waitress and she spoke maybe four or five words in English. Of course I forgot the translation book at the hotel so we just sort of winged it. Luckily most of the menus in China have pictures. We ordered a dish that looked like a sweet and sour dish (it was sweet and sour pork, that was very tasty but the meat had bones in it so it was hard to eat), and broccoli. We also tried to order just rice or noodles, however I had pointed to a picture of another dish with rice in it (there are no pictures of just plain rice or noodles) and that is what we got. We don't know what it was exactly, but it was some type of rice, vegetables and meat. It was not our favorite dish. Bedtime was again very hard for Lia. I took Andrew to the pool so Daddy could get her to sleep and then we switched places and I stayed in the room so Paul could swim with Andrew. Unlike daytime, the pool was busy with people. The hotel seemed to be more alive at night, with people in the lobby, the business center, and the pool. It was really nice being outside in the warm weather at the pool. Paul and Andrew had a great time together. It was a very nice relaxing setting.

Oh, and a couple of side notes: One of the pool attendants really got a kick out of watching Andrew swim. He was a very kind young man that could speak some English. Also, at one point during the day while swimming a group of attractive young women employed by the hotel walked by the pool area and also seemed to really enjoy Andrew. Later, we saw them at the hotel restaurant and one of them mentioned what a good swimmer he was. Andrew told me he saw them at the pool looking at him and he thought they were so beautiful that he wasn't paying attention and bumped his head in the pool! Andrew has been of interest to many people. Chinese people from rural areas and smaller cities do not see many western children. They are very interested in him and have also taken photos of him.