We are in Nanning

Well, we made it to Nanning, where little morgan is. We met Ecko, the ISS worker here. She is very sweet. It was so nice having someone to translate for us. She had a driver set up after we arrived here, she took care of the rooms, and then she took us to a local grocery so we could get some snacks. She was very helpful. We just lost power and we're not sure why. Anyways, we will get little one tomorrow at 2:45 pm. Ecko said that her lip was not repaired so that is good. So, when you all wake up Monday morning, little morgan will be here with us. I'm hoping to post some pictures, but this internet connection is so slow! Well, have a wonderful day. Good night. We have actually stayed up until 8:30pm tonight, so maybe, we can sleep until 5am. Until next time. Love to everybody.

We made it to Hong Kong!

Hello everyone, we made it to Hong Kong yesterday. This place is huge! We didn't realize there were so many mountains here. It was refreshing to see some green and palm trees. They drive on the wrong side of the road, which was also surprising. Our guide had told us that Hong Kong was originally owned by the British, so I guess that would explain things. The hotel is nice, but no heat! They did bring us a portable heater, which helped things. We seem to be on a schedule of going to sleep at 7pm and waking up at 3am. It's very odd. We are hoping to get off that schedule since it's impossible to do anything. Well, this morning we will head back to the airport and fly to Nanning. We will meet with the ISS worker, Ecko this afternoon. We will get little Morgan tomorrow afternoon! The day is almost here! Well, we will write again this evening or tomorrow. I have to tell you, we really miss home. We thought Americans were rude, most asian people really don't care if they cut in front of you or hit you. The plane ride was very uncomfortable. Not the ride, just the atmosphere. They burp outloud, push on your seat, pull on your seat everytime they get up, cough without covering there mouths. It's just very different. One thing that really amazing Renee and I is the men do not allow the women to go first. That is really strange. Aunt Danielle, the rock has been secured! Save bail money! Debbie, we met Maurice. He is so sweet. He left a package at the desk when we arrived and left a note with two of his books. He called later than evening and we met him downstairs in the lobby. We wanted to have dinner with him, but his friend fron Singapore was meeting him. We had a great talk. He thought we already had Morgan. He was so nice Debbie. It was great meeting him. Thanks Debbie. We will write later.

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The Great Wall and Tinnamen Square

Well, we went to the Great Wall today. What an amazing site. We went to the Mitanyu (spelling?) part. It is supposed to be less crowded and not so many tourist. I'm sure after today, we will be feeling it in our calves and upper thighs. When they say steep, they mean steep. We did take a cable car part way up to the great wall, which was greatly appreciated. On the way there, I got a little car sick, so I was happy to exit the vehicle upon arrival. We went through a great farming village. Our guide was telling us that the village doesn't have heat, so they still use wood burning stoves. it has a really bad odor. She was also telling us that this winter isn't as cold as previous winters. We used the toilet at the Great Wall. That was an experience in itself. On one of the stalls, there was a sign that said "for old chinese people" and it was a western style toilet. Pretty comical. The smell in the bathroom is enough to make you risk getting a UTI. Glad I brought the travel toilet paper, cause there was none! Also, no soap, but they did have sinks. I was afraid to turn on the water, so the germ x towels worked great. Well, enough about toilets. The great wall is such an amazing site. When we finally got to the wall, it was so still and quiet. I can only imagine what it must look like in the spring and summer, when everything is green. it must just be absolutely beautiful.
After the wall, our guide took us to an authentic chinese restaurant. We had soup with bamboo, mushrooms and chinese cabbage, white rice and noodles with chinese vegetables and chicken. It was very good. After that, we asked them to drop us off at Tinnamen square and we would walk back to the hotel. We were unable to see General Mao's tomb since it is only open in the am, but we did take pictures of the outside. We met a very nice couple, Tom and Caryann. They are in Beijing as students at the International College. They are learning English so of course they wanted to practice. They said we were very warm and friendly. They invited us to have tea also. They were telling us that most American's they try to talk to usually walk away from them because they think they are trying to sell something to them. I can completely understand that cause I am always a little leery when they start speaking to us, but they had good energy.
Well, tomorrow we will be off to Hong Kong for one night. Then to nanning, where little Morgan is. Miss everyone. Love to you all

1st day in Beijing cont.

View of room as soon as you walk in.
Outside of the Forbidden city
Forbidden City

Well, we ventured outside this morning and went to the Forbidden City. It's very busy here. There are police everywhere. They have one policeman on every street corner. If you are walking in the street and the light is going to change, they start blowing their whistle, it about scares you to death. If you weren't walking fast then, you will be. The older chinese are very interested in us. They come right up to you and start staring at you and talking to you. Of course, all we do is smile and keep walking. We met three chinese natives that are from Mongolia. They wanted us to go to a tea ceremony with them so they could keep talking to us and practice their english. They were very sweet. They told us how to get to Tinnamen square. You can't just walk across the street (impossible), you have to walk underground. They were telling us a lot about Beijing. They wanted to know if there were a lot of chinese in america. We found that very interesting that they did not know that. They said it was very hard to get a visa to the US. They said it was easier to go to Canada or Australia. I asked them if that was because of our gov't or theirs. They said it was the chinese gov't. The one thing that really bothered us, was they really try and push their merchandise on you. It can get very annoying. You say no and they keep pushing. You hate to be rude, but it does get old. We came back to the hotel to use the bathroom. I know everyone is probably laughing right now, but unless you want to squat, you have to pay to use the western toilets. it was only a couple of blocks, so we came back. We will venture out again soon. Until next time.

1st day in Beijing

Good morning everyone, or I guess it is good evening. Well, we woke up very fresh and ready to go. We had a little problem with the transformer not charging the computer, but our room valet (how fancy) came and brought us a transformer that worked, so go figure. Anyways, I didn't blow up my curling iron yet, which is good. We went down to the breakfast buffet and had fresh pancakes, croissants, rosemary potatoes and cranberry bear claws. We actually met the chef on the elevator and when I was searching for my food, he was laughing at me, cause I'm sure I looked lost. He said, you want pancakes, I said sure and he just smiled. I just knew he was thinking, silly american, she has no clue. Right? Anyways, it was delicious. We took a few pictures of the inside of the hotel. It is so beautiful here. We are going to venture out in the chilly weather and explore a little now. I will try and post some pictures this evening when I have a little more time.

We're in China!

We'll after being awake for over 24 hours, we are finally here! What a trip. We got delayed in Detroit (surprise!) for about an hour, of course, the plane was already loaded, so we were stuck on the plane. It was a miserable 13 hour trip. The plane was completely full. There might be 6 inches between your legs and the seat in front of you and of course the people in front of you are going to have their seat reclined back, the whole 13 hours! Even when we ate, they didn't budge. By hour 10, we were really getting ansy. Of course, leaving an hour late put us late in Tokyo. When you get into Tokyo, you have to go through security again, I guess they think you might have had someone airmail you a bomb or something. The people at Tokyo were really friendly. Even though we were late, the plane waited for us to go through security and board. I think it was the most thoughtfulness I've ever seen with an airline. Usually, they tell you, you are screwed. So, we made it to Beijing along with all of our luggage! We waited an hour at the airport, and our ride never showed. So, we call Aunt Betsy asking her to call AAA to see what they can do about it, since they arranged it. They really weren't any help, so we called the place again and got a woman on the phone that said she was going to send a driver right away. he was there in about 15 minutes, it was great. We saw lots of christmas decorations, which seemed kind of odd to me, but it was neat. They had a season greetings sign downtown that was all lit up. You think people drive crazy in the US,you should see them here! OMG, it was scary! Well, the hotel is called Raffles (part of International Beijing Hotel), it's very elegant. There is a bedroom part, sitting area and a huge bathroom. They also left some cool chinese slippers, that were are taking home, of course. Ok, so, we made it (thank God), and we are exhausted and need to sleep. I'll write more tomorrow. Love everyone