Lions and Tigers and Bears….

Alright, no lions, but we did see the other two while at the zoo today.  Although the Guangzhou zoo was not quite up to the same standard as Animal Kingdom, it was cleaner, and much bigger than some zoos that we have been to in the states.  We came face to face with giraffes, monkeys, goats, and llamas.  The kids had a blast feeding the goats, which apparently is much more exciting in a zoo setting since when we are home they are never really thrilled to be asked to go outside and feed the chickens and alpacas!  Oh well, maybe Zoe will see the joy in it back in Vermont.  We had a great time, but with the temperature and humidity at what seemed like an all time high for the last two weeks, we were glad to be back on the bus.  It was so hot that the fresh pressed bamboo juice (yes, you read that right), that a local street vendor was selling even looked appealing!

As we mentioned before, the Garden Hotel that we are staying in is right in the middle of everything.  Food choices, although not all appetizing, are abundant.  Today, for lunch, we chose KFC.  We were short on time as the bus was taking us to the famous Pearl Market.  This is essentially a wholesale mall, five stories in height, filled with hundreds and hundreds of small stores, all selling only jewelry and precious stones.  When we were here with Sofi's adoption, Chrissy and Sofi were able to each get beautiful pearl necklaces, and ear rings made of high quality fresh water pearls, for literally pennies on the dollar as compared to the price in the U.S.  We were very excited to locate the same store that we did over seven years ago, and watch Zoe's necklace be made, one pearl at a time.

Our guide, Jack, took our group, which is now five families strong, to a local authentic Chinese restaurant.  Jackson dove right into the rice noodles, which he will tell you is his favorite, and filled up. He said they were delicious, and Adam then told him that the bowl he ate up was also filled with shrimp and squid!  He shrugged, and said they were still awesome.

We received some tentative positive news today regarding visas.  The families that have been stranded here for the past few days have had their paperwork processed, and our guide said that things look good for us to still be on track to come home Thursday.  It's difficult at times to wish these next few days away, since we may not ever be back here.  At the same time, we are anxious to have Zoe on U.S. soil, in her bed that has been empty for so many months, and to have her meet the large group of family and friends that have been encouraging us, praying for her, and supporting our journey.