From Guangzhou to Hong Kong

I haven't been able to blog because I've been sick. It's been aweful. So, I'll just back up a little bit and start from Wednesday events.


Wednesday at 10am, we picked up the approved visa allowing Hope to leave China and her legal documents in this special, "Do Not Open" envelope better known in the adoption world as the "brown envelope."

At 3pm, a bus load of us headed off to the Chinese Consulate of Guangzhou. Once there, we were put in a big room with at least 50 or more families waiting to be sworn in. Between the exhaustion and finality of it all, I teared up. We were not allowed to bring cameras, so that moment was not captured on tape. How unfortunate.

For the next 3 hours, we traveled to Hong Kong by bus. Now, leaving Mainland China was tedious. You get out of your bus and you go through the Chinese border patrol. A porter takes your luggage and runs them through a scanner. Did I mention that I was stopped once at another security check at the Beijing airport because I had diaper cream in my carry-on. The guard had to smell it and everything.
Back to crossing the border- after the Chinese border. You get back on the bus and go half mile. Then you do it all over again. You get off the bus, no porter this time. You walk your luggage (all six suitcases and baby in a stroller) through and you get checked by the Hong Kong custom's gate. Then you get back up on the bus and travel somemore.
We finally get to our hotel near the HK airport on Lantau Island. It was beautiful and luxious accommodations, but we were utterly wasted from the bus ride to even notice. This was the last night that we'll see our AWAA families. Everyone would go there own way back to their homes. I was sad to see them go, but again utterly too exhausted to exhibit any emotions. We got some quick dinner and went to bed. What we discovered is the "highway robbery" that occurs at most of the restaurants (excluding "dinky" little noodle places and fast food places)in China/HK. The minute you sit down, they will charge you $10/person for tea. Even though we didn't order tea, just hot water. So, that's $30 for hot water for 3 adults. Then, they give you this little dish of peanuts which you never asked for and apparently it will show up on your bill for $10. Faith is allergic to peanuts, why would we even want it. Appreciate Chevy's chips and salsa, at least it doesn't cost you $10 for it. And they include some kind of service charge on the bill as well. Even though it's HK dollars or yuan. It's still money.