First day in Guangzhou

We had a good flight to Guangzhou last night, and Rachel Guanglan did great, at least until the long busride from the airport to the White Swan Hotel on Shamian Island. She was so tired (we got in after 10 p.m.) that she was almost deliriously giggly. She was as happy as can be but way too loud for 15 minutes or so. Once we got up to the room, she protested a bit before falling asleep. She had a great day today, although she didn't take a nap, so she went to bed just a short while ago, at about 8 p.m. here.

Guangzhou feels like we're halfway home. In terms of the length of our stay, we are halfway through our time in China. But more than that, it feels more like home, partly because we're reunited with so many other families, and partly because we had such a great experience here two years ago. So far, so good this time around too. Rachel had her visa photo taken and her TB skin test administered. She didn't even squirm, let alone cry, when the nurse stuck the needle in. She just watched with great curiosity.

Afterwards, she played for a while in the outdoor playground on the island, mostly with Chinese locals. She started out shy and ended up taking over the operation of the tornado slide, being a bit bossy in instructing other kids how to play correctly and enforcing a rule about not climbing up the slide. Mommy was approached by two 12-year-olds on school break and their moms, who encouraged them to practice their English on me. I got to try out some more Mandarin and was given a passing grade. (Cantonese is more common here.) Frankly, even modest attempts to speak Chinese are appreciated. People are so polite that they compliment your pronunciation when you tell them "I understand very little Mandarin."

Photos here include Rachel and Mommy on the plane, Daddy looking on as Rachel plays with her Barbie and Chinese baby doll (Mattel sponsors a playroom here and gives Barbies to all the kids), Rachel at Starbucks and in the park, and finally by the waterfall and pool in the White Swan, If she looks like she is sweetly appreciating the fish, you need to know that the moment after the photo was taken, she leaned over, said "Psssshhhh!" and spit into the pond.