I woke up at 3:45 on Friday, November 25th, ready to get our baby girl. Steve had me at the airport by 5:00. We said our quick good-byes and I was headed upstairs to go through security to get to my gate. There's a lady sitting there that I had helped downstairs get checked in. She was going to Pennsylvania to meet a friend of hers. We struck up a conversation and come to find out....the friend she was going to meet was missing their LEFT FOREARM!!! Of course, then I had to tell her all about Desi. A coincidence? I think not:-)
Onto Chicago. I found my flight pretty quickly after a brief ride on the shuttle bus. As I entered the gate area I located ONE other American family. As I went over to them, that's when their book titles got my attention. ADOPTION!!! Yippee!!! Another adoptive family. I introduced myself and we had a wonderful conversation while waiting for our flight. Now the flight to Beijing. UGH!!! I guess it went ok. The guy sitting next to me NEVER spoke a single word. He grunted at me a few times when he needed to get by to use the bathroom, but that was about it. The in-flight entertainment was awesome. Never thought I'd play Solitaire on a t.v. screen on an airplane:-) There really was a LOT of things to choose from to do. I even listened to some books on audio. It helped pass the time....a little. I really wanted to sleep on the flight but I don't think I slept more than an hour. The food was absolutely HORRIBLE. Last time we flew here the food was pretty good. Not this time.
After landing is Beijing the real nightmare began. I made it through customs/immigration just fine, went downstairs and caught the tram to find my luggage. (BTW, the new airport is a nightmare to get around in--very confusing.) I had this fear that my luggage would not make it here but thankfully it came out pretty quick. Next I had to check-in for my in-country flight to Lanzhou. I asked person after person and they sent me on a wild goose chase. I finally found the Domestic Flight counter. Thank goodness. NOT! It was only for China Air. I was flying China Eastern and IT was located in Terminal 2. Now you would think Terminal 2 would be somewhere "close" to where I was at, but this was not the case. I had to go back across the airport, down 2 flights of stairs and next thing you know I was OUTSIDE!!!! I mean really OUTSIDE!!! I had left the secure area somehow. Shoot:-( I found a lady outside and she pointed me to Bus 5. I took off to board as it was trying to leave. The driver loaded my bags into the outside compartment and I had made it. Then the driver asked me where I was going. I told him and he said I WAS ON THE WRONG BUS!!!!!
Off I go to find someone else who can help me. After about a quarter of a mile walk, I finally found the bus was I was supposed to be on. At least I thought that anyway. It is wall-to-wall people. I somehow manage to get my 43 lb bag, 22 lb orphanage donation and my carry-on (which I'm sure weighs more than 15 lbs) on the bus. There's nowhere to hold on. As the bus takes off I am thrown into people, into the luggage and pretty much wherever I land, as he is driving like a maniac. I am thinking it is a short 5 minute drive to Terminal 2. Boy was I wrong. About 15 minutes into the ride and getting further and further away from the airport, I began to feel the tears well up in my eyes as I now believe I am again on the wrong bus. My heart was racing, I was going over and over in my mind the scenarios of where I was going, etc. I was praying harder than I have prayed in a long time. People were staring at me -- and NOT just because I am the only white girl on the bus. I was about to sob. That's when I started seeing airplanes out the bus window. Then I seen the tower. Praise you Jesus, there was TERMINAL 2!!!!! By this time I am literally drenched in sweat from head to toe. I get off the bus and just stood there for a few minutes to allow the cool air to filter across my face and through my clothes. This shouldn't be this hard:-(
Ok, so now I'm in Terminal 2. I'm thinking this is GREAT. I find China Eastern, check-in and catch some zzz's while I was for my flight. Wishful thinking. I started at one end of the HUGE Terminal and make my way to the other asking different people where I can find China Eastern so I can check my bags. Each time all they do is look at my ticket and tell me is that I'm TOO EARLY!!!! After walking around for literally 45 minutes (with my 80 lbs of luggage -- sweating again), I finally, FINALLY, locate China Eastern. I get to the counter, ready to unload this huge piece of luggage when I hear those words again.....YOU ARE TOO EARLY!! Come back at 8:00 p.m. What? It's 5 minutes until 5. What do I do until then? Where do I go? Isn't there someplace I can wait? Nope. Terminal 2 is used for Domestic flights and there are seriously people everywhere. Not a seat to be found. I finally gave up, threw my coat on the floor against a wall and sat. THREE hours I sat in the floor. I refused to move. They were cleaning the floors around me. I didn't care. I was tired, I was hungry, I was thirsty, I had NO yuan to buy anything with and nowhere to exchange money. So I sat.
Finally at 7:45 I peeled myself from the floor and made my way back to the check-in counter. With tears welling up in my eyes again, I asked the poor girl, "Am I still too early?" She looked at my tickets and said those wonderful words, "I check you in now." Praise Jesus!!!! She also checked in the 22 lb orphanage donation for me and didn't charge me for this extra piece of luggage. Another praise!!! At 8:00 I was finally about to board the last leg of this extremely long day.
The flight into Lanzhou left the airport early and arrived early too. I was so glad because I was thinking I was going to get a great night of sleep and be well rested when Desi came to me that afternoon. I made my way down a couple of flights of stairs with the other passengers. BTW, I was the ONLY white girl on this flight. I wasn't the least bit intimidated though. Everyone was really very nice and accommodating. We all gathered around the baggage claim area and I heard all these people behind me waiting for their friends/family, etc. I was looking forward to seeing my guide too. It will be nice not to be on my own and have someone take care of me. I only waited about 5 minutes for my bags to come through, waited in line to have everything checked and was ready to meet Melody. The problem, Melody is not here. I think, that's ok, we are early. I wait. And I wait. All the passengers and their families are gone. The taxis are leaving. The employees are leaving. No Melody. Finally I look around and they are shutting off the lights. I am not kidding. I am standing there alone.
Then a young guy and girl and an older gentleman come through the gate. More tears as I ask them if they speak English. The girl says yes, but that she's not very good. I don't care. I need help. After telling her my situation she asks me if I have a phone number for my guide. YES, yes I have their number. She calls. She is talking so fast that I can't even begin to understand what she is saying. It appears to get heated. She hangs up the phone and begins to talk to the guy and older gentlemen. She won't even look at me. Oh God, what is happening? She finally tells me that she's waiting for her to call me back. I thank her for waiting with me and helping me. She tells me to take my bags and sit down while they work this out. I sit down and I begin to pray. I tell God I do not know what is happening but HE does, I tell Him I am scared and HE knows, I tell Him that right now HE has to take over and help me because I am helpless.
Her phone rings, she again is almost yelling into the phone. She comes over to me and hands me the phone. It is a guide named Steed. He tells me to wait in the baggage area. He is on his way but it will take him ONE HOUR to get there. I say ok, I mean what else was I going to do. The young woman gets the phone back and there's a lot more talking/yelling. She eventually comes back to me and says that she and the younger guy are going home for the night. I need to stay there and wait for Steed. The older gentlemen is the night watchman and he is going to stay there until Steed arrives but he will be working in the back. When Steed arrives he will open the door for him. They leave.
As I sit there, alone, the few remaining lights in the airport begin to disappear. Not only am I ALONE, but now I am sitting there in the dark. I see people walking by the doors just to my right. They are looking in at me. First there was just two, then they seemed to come out of nowhere. I don't know the exact count, but more than 15 people were peering through the glass at me. Will someone PLEASE wake me up from this nightmare? They eventually leave. Then I see the police. Lights are flashing outside. The officer comes to the windows and looks at me too. Surely this cannot be happening to me. I watch the clock as the minutes tick away. We landed at 12:15. I was left alone at 12:35. It's now 1:45 and still I wait. I see a shadow coming from the baggage area. It's the older gentlemen. He motions me to gather my bags and he opens the door. He's outside waving and I see the car lights. It is Steed. He has finally arrived. Praise, praise you Jesus!!!! He apologizes over and over. At this point, I am pretty much in shock. All I want to do is shower and lay down. My body is exhausted. My eyes are bloodshot and blurry. I want to throw my arms around this man and tell him how glad I am to see him, but all I can do is just load my things into his car and try to make small talk.
We arrive at the hotel around 3:00 a.m. The nightmare is not over. They didn't think I was getting here today until noon and so they haven't booked me a room. Seriously. Thankfully Steed is able to secure a smaller room for me for the one night and I will move to my larger room later today. I was finally able to lay down a little before 4:00 this morning. I was awake again after only 3 hours of sleep, but Desi will be here soon and so I'm ok.
After sleeping only 3 hours I got up and packed my things to move into my larger room. There are little (if any during certain hours) television stations that are not completely Chinese, so relaxing in front of the tube wasn't an option. I wanted so desperately to go back to sleep but it just didn't happen.
My guide showed up at 11:30 and said that Desi would be here at 12:30 so we needed to get some paperwork done. 12:30? Geez!!!! We ran downstairs, switched my room and back up here to sign some documents. She left me at about noon and went downstairs to wait. While I was waiting I tried unpacking and getting some things ready. About 12:35 there was a knock at the door and there she was. She came in like she owned the place and made herself at home. I didn't cry (not sure there were any tears left after my travel nightmare). She was very good while the Orphanage Director and nanny was here. She hasn't cried yet. Even when her favorite nanny left she never made a sound (insert concern here). We played with moon dough and colored some pictures. So far she has been very quiet and stoic unless Melody talks to her in Chinese, BUT when the car stopped earlier after we had gone to the supermarket, she was trying to get out of the seatbelt and was yelling mama at ME!!!!!
I can tell she is a diva already. We had to have our pictures taken for her passport. There was a comb and bobby pin laying on the table next to the chair she was seated in. She picked up the comb, "did" her hair and had me put the bobby pin in. Thank goodness I brought lots and lots of bows because she really seems to like them.
She is very sick. She's got a horrible cough, a NASTY nose and I'm pretty sure she probably has an upper respiratory infection. They left medicine with me, but I'm thinking I will probably start her on Dimetapp and hope that she starts feeling better. She's taking a little nap right now.
Here are some VERY interesting things so far:
She told Melody "nyow, nyow" (aka: I gotta pee). Melody and the driver, pulled down her pants, held her over a drain on the side of the street and told her to go. I stood there shocked to my core, even though I have seen split pants and I know they do this, but she's almost 4 years old!!!! She peed like a champ, they wiped her right there and we were on our way. We won't be going out too much here!!! LOL
I hope to get more sleep tonight but I have a feeling I am going to be up with a sick baby:-( She sounds absolutely horrible:-(
Your prayers for us both are greatly appreciated. I complete the adoption tomorrow and she will officially become ours!
***This is all that she sent in the email. She also wanted us to let everyone know that the only way she can receive messages at her email, maryinar@yahoo.com, so if you would like to send her a message you can that way.
FINALLY- a picture, which is always worth a thousand words :)
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