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Updates:

Have started something new - a BLOG! Check it out on the links page.

Still writing the last Travel Entry

Now posting on the Home Updates page 01/31/09

Email from the website is not working. My personal email address larawade@sbcglobal.net

China Time:

Travel Date: 1/20/2009
Subject: White Swan Hotel and the Famous Red Couch Picture

What we did today:
The White Swan is another beautiful, five star hotel in Guangzhou. It is located on Shamain Island and has been a place where many families stay. It has become an adoption tradition for every group to bring their kids to the hotel to take their picture on the famous red couch. Since today was the last time our group would all be together at Shamain, we planned to meet at 11:45 before our bus would be leaving for our red couch photo.

This sounds so innocent and so harmless. What could possibly go wrong? Show up, take the picture, done! Did you forget whose picture we are trying to take?!?

First of all, we had to wait for everyone to arrive. Then someone had to find the red couch. Personally I wasn’t involved in that part of the quest, but it seemed to take FOREVER. In the lobby of this elegant hotel was a beautiful waterfall and fish pond.

All the children were enjoying watching the fish either from a rocky platform or from a small bridge. All the children except Keziah Huidong! The rocky platform looked like the perfect walkway into the water. Fortunately, I know that mischievous look in a child’s eye and caught her right before she stepped into the water.

As she and I began to wrestle over whether or not she would be taking a plunge, Christopher suggested that I take her over to the bridge with the other children. Surely this would be a safe alternative? The short railing that served as a deterrent for all the other children stood only as an obstacle to be overcome to Keziah Huidong. She tried at first to just step over into the water. Nope! Mama was right there. Then she knelt down like all the other kids…only now she was trying to dive head first into the water. Bummer! Mama had her by the waist. Since she couldn’t manage to wiggle away, she just decided to spit on the fist. No joke! Did you know that goldfish don’t like to be spit upon? They all kept swimming away from her.

Finally someone found a red couch. There was still some dispute as to whether it was THE RED COUCH, but by now I just wanted to finish the picture and be done. All the children in our group were being arranged on and around the couch. Keziah Huidong thought this was all terribly funny to watch…while lying on the floor. The standing room behind the couch was now full, the couch itself was full, but there was one spot left on the floor in front of the other children. Plop! Now quick take that picture. Too slow! A few photographers may have caught her in the picture, but she quickly crawled away and laughed at all the other children posing for this auspicious photo. After the masses cleared, I tried to plunk her down for a solo shot…but she was not cooperating. Gotta love this spicy girl!

Photos... (click image to enlarge)

Outside the White Swan Hotel