Hey ho, hey ho, its off to China we go!

I really should be asleep

I really should be asleep but I'm hearing that there are some KLBs out there needing some bebe photos so I will just try to quickly upload some from today, yeah right "quickly" it takes forever! However, I'm not one to let down a KLB in a moment of need and as a fellow photo hog I understand the need only too well.

So today the weather was absolutely perfect, sunny, warm but with little humidity.  We had nothing scheduled today except that we had to be in our rooms between 11.30 and 12.30 just in case our guides needed to telephone us with any questions on our consulate paperwork - after that we were free to wander at will or go with the group to the Zoo.

We decided we would skip the zoo and have a leisurely day and then meet up with the group this evening for the cruise on the Pearl River.

Lulu has been blossoming!  Every day she grows in confidence and is more and more relaxed with us.  It is very obvious that this little girl has been well loved and everyday she is showing us something else that she can do.  For the first few days she would not bear any weight on her feet at all, my instinct told me that it was all part of her the shock of all the changes but as those first few days passed and she still couldn't stand I did begin to wonder.

However, now not only is she happy to bear weight on her legs but she actually seeks out your hands to hold her so she can practise walking.  It is very clear to us that she has had this skill for a while and just didn't feel safe enough with us in the beginning to show us her stuff!  The squeeky shoes have been endlessly entertaining for her and really encourage her to place her whole foot down, since her preferred tippy toes walk doesn't produce the squeek.

I know from the posts I have made on this blog it must seem that I am shoe obsessed its really just that it is the easy stuff to write about when I'm tired as it doesn't take too much brain power.  This has been the most wonderful experience of our lives, it has also been terribly emotional, the people here have been so overwhelmingly kind and whilst I can intellectually understand the need for China to control her population growth and therefore the "one son, two child policy" it is a very different matter to be here and actually see how it effects people's lives. 

I had hoped I would love Lulu on sight but didn't expect to, I had hoped I would love China but knew I might find it less enchanting up close.  As it turns out I am very much in love with both.

Okay, too tired and we have a photo call at 9.00 for the infamous red couch pictures so I will stop and just try to post a few photos to tide you over.  For those of you who are waiting for your journey to meet your daughters in China, I know how hard that wait is but all of that really does melt away once they place her in your arms.  Don't be disheartened you will be here before long and trust me the view from here is truly beautiful.

Photos in the album to the right "Bebe fix" and yes Mum & Dad these photos are for you too, especially the ones with all the hair grips!

We now return to our normal viewing program

Hi all, I'm sorry I haven't been keeping up with the posting, I think I heard my Mum's groans of disappointment all the way over here in China.  I will try to go back and fill in some of the blank days with photos at least but for now I'll just start with today.

I was able to persuade Lulu that maybe her "bedhead" hair situation might be improved with the help of a "Hello Kitty" hair accessory.  I decided to start out with just the one and will gradually build to the full dozen by the end of the week.

Today we had to take all the babies to have their medical exams and so I decided this required an extra special outfit and picked out this ensemble for Little Miss Lulu. 

This is an outfit I feel sentimental about because it is an example of the kindness of strangers, I had ordered the top to be be embroidered with "lulu" and the trousers to have the big "L" on the back pocket.  A week or so later I had a call from the lady who makes these outfits, the shop where I had placed the order had forgotten to ask me whether I wanted a long or short sleeve shirt, well I sort of ummed and arrhed and then decided to go with the long sleeves (big decisions I know!).  I asked the lady how long she thought it would take as I was hoping to take it to China and she was so genuinely thrilled for us when she heard we were adopting and promised she would get it to us before we flew.

Well sure enough the parcel arrived in plenty of time only not only was there a long sleeve shirt but also a short sleeved one along with a note of congratulations and another gift.  I thought that was such a lovely thing to do, I have never even met this lady!  The outfit drew many compliments and the doctors sure knew which baby was Lulu.

So back to the plot, after breakfast we all headed over the road to the photo shop to have the babies photos taken for the American paperwork and then onto the clinic for the medical exam.

I have added an album of photos, which should appear on the right, we are a group of 14 families and I was amazed how quickly and smoothly the process went.  I had expected that we would be there for hours but it was all done and dusted very quickly - I think that there is a lot of work that our guides do on our behalf to get us through the necessary proceedures as fast as possible.  The physical exam certainly gave Lulu's lungs an excellent work out.  Then it was a leisurely stroll back to the hotel via Simon's favorite coffee place (yes he already has a favortite coffee place here).  Then it was room service noodles for Lulu.

After a refreshing nap it was onwards and upwards!

First stop the bank to pick up the big bucks for the squeeky shoes expedition.  This guard was so nice and whilst we waited he practised his English on us.  Apparently he had only been taking evening classes for a little over the year so I was very impressed with how good he was, obviously not as fluent in English as I am in Mandarin but than I'm just a natural linguist ;) The only trouble was that he liked to spell out different words and ask me if he had done it correctly - well as you know spelling is not my forte, I'm pretty sure he was right everytime but I just hope he doesn't try to correct his teacher when he spells "Brittish" for her - hey its nearly right and I get confused when people spell out loud - no spelling stars for me.

We headed for Sherry's Place which a friend had recommended for squeeky shoes, it is a tiny little store in a rather beautiful courtyard (although I'm sure it has seen better days).  My friend didn't steer me wrong, cute shoes, great prices and such a lovely sales assistant.

Hmmm, we need these ones & these ones and oh yes these fit we better have these too.

Here is Lulu in her styling stroller that the kind lady at the laundry shop lent us.  Just perfect for those serious shopping trips.

But you know maybe it really is possible for a girl to have too many shoes? NAH!

"I need these ones in all sizes 14 throught 38 please"

Guangzhou - squeeky shoe capital of the world, where you can shop all night to appease your Squeeky shoe habit - not that I have one you know, I mean I can stop any time I want, well maybe after this one last pair and THEN I will stop.

Must end for now but I will post more asap and I promise I have been sampling more of China than just the sqeeky shoes.  Lulu has been doing great and I will try to post some pictures of the smiles which are starting to come more and more often.

 

Culture Smulture

Culture smulture, we're only here for the shoes!

Much to our delight the Lulu monster did some good chowing down at breakfast this morning.  Lulu prefers the full service style of food delivery and under no circumstance is anything to be presented on a spoon, its fingers or you might as well forget it. I think she is used to be fed with chopsticks but having zero skills with the chopsticks myself I fear I would poke her eye out if I attempted to do so.

After yesterday's major hit with the noodles we provided "She who must not only be adored but also obeyed",  with noodles, scrambled eggs, new potatoes and broccoli and washed it all down with apple juice and water.  It was a huge relief to see her eating, now if we could only get something out the other end my joy would be complete!  Yeah, yeah, just wait till you go get your little pumpkins you'll be talking poop along with the rest of us.

The girl just loves those noodles.

So after a hearty breakfast it was onto the important stuff - shoes!  On the bus to the bebe store Smile, our wonderful Hunan guide read out a poem written by some adoptive parents about their daughter, its actually a poem I have come across before and I had thought it was nice enough but right now its enough to send a girl over the edge, talk about tear fest!

Now as you all know I'm not one to brag (much) but I have to inform you that the Lulu Monster was a seriously big hit at the Bebe Store.  I think I got extra points from the clothing police for her woolly hat.

This lovely little hat was knitted many months ago especially for Lulu.  I had mentioned on an expat message board how much I loved little hats on babies and just a few days later two beautiful hand knitted bonnets appeared in our mailbox.  It was such a kind and thoughtful thing to do and I promised myself that when we finally made it to China I was taking one of those bonnets with me and here it is - a perfect fit too, so thank you very much Auntie Cel (and Cel's Auntie who did the actual knitting).

The baby store.

Note the blanket - a desperate attempt to avoid the wrath of the Chinese clothing police.  Obviously way to much bare baby arm showing I was undoubtedly in serious danger of being given a stiff warning but thank goodness for the woolly bonnet which I am sure saved me from being written up.

"so I thought you said there was going to be  shoes, I'm not seeing any shoes"

"Hey its that shoesies I spy over there?"

"Nope just strollers and clothes, who does a baby have to talk to round here to get some shoes"

It was at this point that we spotted a very handsome man and if Lulu wasn't already "involved" with a certain young man I think telephone numbers would have been swapped.

And so to the shoes, now no drooling ladies!

The boxes are almost as cute as the shoes.

On our way out this family made a beeline for Lulu, and we had a great time admiring each others beautiful babies.

I believe the expression is "shop till you drop?"

Sweet dreams all.

Because I know your all just about the photos!

This one is from last night, I'm too tired to figure out how to lighten the image but I hope you can see it okay.

Oh yes we did make her wear that hat!

Could she be any more gorgeous, I don't think so.  And of course being this gorgeous is tiring work.

 

As you can see it was an exhusting day but we got a few more glimpses of the real Lulu today as she begins to adjust to her world being turned upside down.

I'm so tired I have to just post these photos and go to bed but I have so much to tell you, I'm hoping to get a chance tomorrow to write more.  In the meantime, thank you all so much for your wonderful, funny, loving and kind comments and emails I really appreciate them all and I'm so touched by the resounding welcome you have given Lulu, and yes she is every bit as gorgeous in real life, only even more so!

Today's the day!

Its about 4.30 am and I can't sleep, I've been on the same dream loop for the last couple of hours it involves lots of paperwork and crying babies and I keep not having the paperwork exactly right.

Last night the rest of the travel group arrived, it was lovely to see them all but it brought on a strong case of the butterflies knowing that their arrival meant we were now so close to meeting the babies. 

I felt like the cordial host showing them round "our" Dolton, it sounded like the Beijing hotel had been a less than wonderful experience so it was lovely to be able to assure them that they were going to just love the Dolton.

They told us that on the bus Rose (our guide) had handed out the completed questionnaires from the SWI.  These were the lists of questions we had all included in our care packages to our babies and were all about what our babies liked to eat, what they liked to play etc. etc.  Of course I had to see Lulu's at once so we tracked down Rose and began to read about Lulu. 

It was strange because for the last 8 weeks we have only had the photos and Lulu's growth report and around these I have invented a personality for Lulu and now here was a piece of paper telling me that whilst I had been fantasizing about holding those tiny little hands in mine "Chen De Yu does not like to have her hands touched" doesn't like to have her hands touched?  How will I ever be able to keep myself from touching those beautiful little fingers.  On the upside she sleeps for 10 hours! They better not be pulling my leg - I told you our child was an angel, oh and her favorite food is cake - that's my girl!

The form also clearly states that Miss Lulu is no social butterfly "Chen De Yu does not like to play with other children", I bet all those other children have been trying to touch her sweet little hands and they know how she hates that!

Rose told us we are all to meet in the lobby at 9.00 to go to the Apollo to buy baby supplies.  I will try not to be too smug as I show everyone all the supplies we have already amassed - just wait till they see our "baby changing station", I guess I'll just saunter round the children's shoe department while they stock up on diapers.

Then at 11.45 we will meet the babies at the Civil Affairs Office. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . meet.the.babies!  Oh my that's in about 5 hours from now, I feel so nervous but then I think of Lulu getting up this morning and taking that long bus ride here with all the other babies and their nannies.  They will most likely have never been in a bus before, and then they will be handed to their parents whom they ever never seen before and who they certainly haven't been thinking about.

I wonder what my report for Lulu to read would say "Debberoo to hates to have her feet touched and does not play well with right wing conservatives"  then under the food section "Debberoo loves all things chocolate providing its Cadbury's, will throw a hissy fit when presented with Hershey's kisses". 

Still feeling nervous, I hoped typing would calm me and I suppose it has a little.  I just don't want Lulu to be too scared but I know she is bound to be pretty terrified, I want her to like us but I know not to expect her to.  I hope I will be able to comfort her, what can it be like when your whole world disappears and you are left with strangers who are unlike anyone you have ever known?  I hope the transition isn't too terribly hard for her. 

Well, Simon is sleeping, not one to ponder the unknown!  I bet he cries like a girl when we get there though!

I promise I will upload the photos as soon as I can, keep your fingers crossed for me and send Lulu comforting thoughts so she won't be afraid - maybe include some cake just DO NOT touch her hands!

9.30pm

Totally exhausted, utterly amazed and deeply in love.  The Lulu monster is finally asleep in her crib (who knows for how long) so I will quickly post photos and then try to write more tomorrow.  The only disappointment of the day was that we didn't get many good photos, you really need to have another person come along with you solely to get photos.  So without further ado here is. . . .  . Little Miss Lulu

Okay, that's your lot for tonight!  Tomorrow we have to go back to the Office of Civil Affairs to do paperwork so I will try and post more in the evening.  Simon and I are forever grateful to Lulu's birth parents and the people of China for allowing us to become her parents, we will love her always (even when the little stinker won't let us put her down even for a moment) and try to be the very best parents that we are capable of and we will ensure that she grows up proud of her wonderful Chinese heritage and her British heritage too!  We love you Lulu now and forever and we hope tomorrow is a less scary day for you but you are a real trooper and we know your going to be just fine.

Helloooo Changsha!

Well, despite being sooooooo tired last night I still found myself waking throughout the night, I just felt so nervous and kept going over and over in my head the list of paperwork we had to bring with us.  I know I've packed it all and also duplicate copies for back up but  I keep imagining terrible scenes where we aren't allowed to have Lulu because we are missing a vital piece of paperwork!

Last night before we went to bed our Panda Phone arrived, I don't know about anyone else but I had always imagined that these would be ummm shaped like a Panda, I figured you would talk into the Pandas belly button and listen out of his mouth and they would be covered in black and white plush fur and maybe have a bamboo case.  Well they don't and they aren't - shocking eh?

So here is ours.  Simon's cell phone works over here but in a panic of "what ifs" we decided we should get a Panda Phone too for back up.  This way I can send Simon to the store and Lulu and I can call him from the PP with anything we have forgotten to put on the shopping list, diamonds, precious gems, Mercedes Benz - that kinda thing, the essentials.

When we woke up (early) this morning we both rushed to the window so that we could get our first glimpse of Changsha in the daylight.  There is a cloud of white smog that hangs in the air but nothing too bad.  The streets below have a lot of trees and the crazy traffic doesn't look quite so crazy from up this high.

We keep hearing firecrackers going off, its so jolly, I guess they must be for weddings or birthdays or maybe they have heard that we arrived?

At one point we heard music coming from outside and when we looked out the window there were people doing exercises out on this square.

 

 

So today we headed out to explore a bit of Changsha and to check out the closest baby store to buy diapers etc.  The weather is really nice, for walking around, warm enough to not need a coat (which is lucky since I didn't bring one) but not too hot and sticky.  The scary thing is crossing the road but we came up with a good technique, you do NOT venture across until there is a Chinese person that you can stick close behind, we try to pick the oldest person because we figure if they've survived that long they probably know what there doing.

The sidewalks have lanes for pedestrians and for bikes but cars just take detours on these when the urge so takes them, especially taxis.  Its okay once you get used to it but very unnerving the first time you suddenly realize there is a car on the sidewalk with you.

Changsha doesn't seem at all touristy, its lovely wandering around and just seeing people go about their business.  There are modern shops and office buildings side by side with little hole in the wall stores that look like they've been here since forever.  Some buildings are shiny new and some look a bit tired and old. 

All the shops we went in were very quiet, I guess everyone else is at work.  We got a few stares and giggles from children, they love to come up and show off their English by saying "Hello".  Its nice because you feel like a bit of a celebrity but without feeling too conspicuous.

 

This seems to be our local bakery, I liked the little girl on the poster,although the way she is sticking out her tongue makes me wonder whether she likes the cakes here or not.

 

While we were out exploring we came across these window cleaners, it was a bit nerve wracking watching them.  They are just sitting on a plank of wood held up on rope!

 

We came across this indoor market, it opened out into a courtyard type area surrounded by apartments.  Everyone's washing was hanging out to dry, I would think it must be very hard to get things to dry properly in the humidity of the summer here. 

At the market we bought a little backpack to use as a diaper bag and a pair of bright pink boots for Lulu.  I think the boots are probably going to be too small but I don't care they were too cute to leave behind.  Everyone has told me that you "must" bargain with the vendors over the prices but I just don't have this skill. I just can't do it, especially when the prices are so low already.  My version of bargaining goes something like this.

Vendor " The price for these adorable boots is 300 Yuan"

Debberoo "Okay, I'll give you 400 yuan but not one cent more"

Vendor "Umm, er right, er 400 yuan"

Debberoo "Lets meet in the middle, how about 750 Yuan"

Vendor - confused look, starts to back away from crazy lady

Debberoo "Okay, okay you drive a hard bargain, I'll give you 1000 yuan but only if you throw in this backpack marked 150 Yuan for another 1000"

See - you really don't want to send me in to do your negotiations.

 

 

 

 

There are lots of bicycles, scooters and motorbikes everywhere.  The bycycles are often loaded up and we saw a lot of these tricycles which seem to make very good delivery vehicles. 

The bicycles "built for one" frequently have at least one extra passenger and sometimes two.  The passenger is often a child - its a bit scary to see but they seem to have perfected the art of hanging on!  Here is another tricycle, this one loaded up with bottles for recycling.

At lunch time lots of street vendors appeared with fresh fruit and yummie looking goodies. We saw a lot of stalls selling these white things on sticks and couldn't figure out what they were, finally we decided they must be water chestnuts (yeah, yeah alright I know you knew that at once).  It was very tempting to try something from the street vendors but we just couldn't risk getting sick on this trip, so we just looked longingly.

The little boy in that last photo had just been given a lollipop, and we were all laughing at how cute he was.  We had a great time, we found the Apollo Store which is just a few minutes walk from the Dolton and can you imagine my joy at finding REAL Cadbury's chocolate!!!  We are soooooo moving to China to live.
Stash for us from the Apollo, the crisps are "French Chicken" which is exactly like Walkers Roast chicken back home and Cucumber which is just delish and Crab which Simon loved.

Please "Behold the Cadbury's"!!" I think we should have a moment of silence here so we can all take in the beauty of the chocolate.

Next -  the Baby's Stash - cos in 3 more nights sleep we will have Lulu, I'm soooooo nervous!  I'm so glad that we decided to skip Beijing and come here early though, its just so nice having time to find our way round here and get settled into the hotel before the babies arrive.  As per KLB advice I bought the Pampers Premium diapers and they seem just like the ones back home.

The only thing we couldn't get was the formula because we don't know yet what Lulu is on currently. Oh blimey, I can't believe they are really going to let us have her, please let our paperwork be okay.

So, after spending the day wandering around Changsha and jumping up and down for joy that the Dolton is so wonderful we headed to the Second floor restaurant for dinner.  For awhile we were the only ones there, we were out numbered by staff by about 10 to 1.  The people here at the hotel are so nice and luckily for us dumb non Mandarin speakers their English is pretty good.

The food was totally delish, we just ordered from the menu but as we were sitting there we realized that all around the wall of the room there were plates with examples of each dish on them so you could see exactly what it would be like, the kitchen was just behind and every now and again there would be a spectacular flash of flames as someones dinner was prepared.

Teddi Blu decided to skip the tour of the city but joined us for dinner, which he throughly enjoyed.

 

 

Thunderbirds are GO!

And we're off! 

The last time I felt this nervous was when we were on our way to Brookline to see a photo of Lulu for the first time, actually that was nothing compared to how nervous I felt this morning.  So many emotions, so strange to know that finally we are on our way to China, so exhausted from rushing to get everything organized in this last week and then this morning knowing that today was the day!  So hey ho, hey ho it really is off to China we go.

As we crammed all the luggage into the back of the jeep it was surreal to think that the next time we do this there will be another little human being along for the ride - un-be-live-able!!

It was a beautiful sunny morning and we arrived at Providence with plenty of time, after a little "discussion" with June, a particularly grumpy Continental rep, we were able to get our luggage checked in marked priority to give us the best chance of getting our bags back in time to catch our connection in Beijing to Changsha. 

Then off to the gate to wait for our flight to Newark, which of course was delayed, not exactly the start we were hoping for!

All was well though and it wasn't long before we were on the way to Newark where we met up with another couple from our travel group who had also decided to fly a day earlier than the others.  It was so lovely to see them and very comforting to be with people who were going through all the emotions we were.

I had been dreading the 14 hour flight to Beijing but it turned out to be a breeze.  Once we were on that plane I was able to relax and start to really enjoy the ride.  I actually started to feel really excited instead of just nervous and anxious about all the things we hadn't been able to get finished before leaving and worrying about what I might have forgotten to bring.  Now I think about it I'm not sure what I was doing for all that time but it really was an enjoyable flight.  I made sure to avert my gaze when we were boarding and walking by the first class seats, that way economy didn't look so bad when we got there.  We had great seats and there was the most gorgeous little baby boy Daniel sitting across from us who kept me entertained for much of the time, his mother was from Changsha and was very excited to hear we were on our way to bring our daughter home. 

They had the screen on showing the flight path of the plane, I have to say that for the longest time it looked to me like it was projecting our anticipated ground impact location and time with a red plume of fire spewing out of the plane but Simon assured me this was not the case.  After a while it began to look like a picture of a plane attached to a red thread - ooooh spooky a sign.

Simon slept whilst I passed photos of Lulu round the plane, everyone was in agreement that she is a most beautiful bebe and that we are sooooo lucky to have her.

As soon as we landed in Beijing we rushed to catch our flight to Changsha, our flight actually got in about 15 minutes early and between having seats at the front of the plane and our luggage coming off first (thanks to the priority stickers - yeah Simon) we had plenty of time to catch the flight.

Beijing airport is bright and modern and like most airports gave you the feeling that you could be pretty much anywhere in the world.  We actually did very well finding our way from the health check, to baggage claim and through customs but then when we got to the second floor and were looking for the check in desk we must have had the "clueless tourist" look because a young man in an official looking uniform swooped in on us and shepherded us to the right desk (actually we were almost there) and then onto where the departure gates were.  In our defense I would like to say that we had been traveling for an awfully long time at this point so we were easy pickings for him - trust me when I say his charge for his "help" was enough for a nice down-payment on a pony! 

Ever mindful of my duties as trip blogger I snapped these photos of stores at Beijing airport, I just hope you all appreciate my efforts because I felt like a right wally.  Everyone one around me was giving me pitying looks I'm sure they were thinking "poor girl obviously doesn't get out much if she's never seen a fruit store before".

It wasn't very long before they started boarding for our flight and it seemed a shame to have to leave Beijing without ever having set foot outside the airport but hopefully in the not too distant future we will be able to return for a proper visit to the capital of China, only by then we will be a family of three!  Maybe we will be able to find that guy again and have him make a donation to Lulu's pony fund!

I loved watching the "red thread plane" on this flight as it took us closer and closer to where Lulu is, the flight attendants were so nice and their English was excellent apart from when they were wishing us an "emergency" flight, I just crossed my fingers and hoped that they weren't thrill seeking flyers and had actually meant to say that they wished us an "enjoyable" flight.

After the Newark to Beijing flight this two hour one felt like a short hop and luckily it did turn out not to be an "emergency" one but we were both starting to feel a bit travel weary. Once we landed in Changsha though the excitement of having made it here perked us up, I just found it amazing to think that I was finally here in the city where we will meet our daughter for the first time.  By now it was about 7.30 pm and it was dark outside and it started to dawn on me that I actually had no idea how far the Dolton hotel was from the airport or how easy it was to get a taxi or how much it would cost to get there, so much for my planning skills.

However, once outside we immediately saw the Taxi line, it was a very strange procedure there were about four gentleman in police style uniforms who all gathered around the one waiting taxi to help supervise the proceedings.  I'm really not sure quite what their purpose was but they were very nice and helpful.  Luckily we had at least had the forethought to print the hotel address off of their website so were able to show the driver where we wanted to go.  I loved our driver he was just the sweetest man and he so wanted to be able to talk to us but between our non-existent Mandarin and his non-existent English we were limited to lots of "Okay" and "Xie Xie", I did wonder about throwing in a "wo ai ni" for good measure but decided perhaps best not.

The driving was just as alarming as I had heard it would be but I felt perfectly safe with our lovely nodding, "okay, okay" driver at the helm, on reflection I think my feeling of safety was more due to the fact that I was now too tired to care rather than any actual level of safety.  I guess Simon must have been white knuckling it in the front because I noticed at one point the driver took Simon's hand and placed it onto the grab handle to hold "okay, okay".

The road from the airport seemed very new and in excellent condition, we passed through a toll gate and when the gate didn't open "okay, okay" driver slammed the car into reverse and then appeared to be about to charge the gate when thankfully someone appeared and raised the gate for him.

Looking out the window I could see the dare devil bike and scooter riders whizzing by, initially I thought they had no lights on at all but on closer inspection I saw that some did have lights but they were so covered in dirt that they were hardly visible.  If ever there were roads where you want to be sure you can be seen its the ones in Changsha.  It all seemed terribly dangerous with cars swerving and bikes crossing willy nilly in front of oncoming traffic but somehow it seemed to work.  I wondered if the dirt on the bikes came from riding on dirt roads further out of town but now I believe it was probably just from all the smog and pollution here. 

From what I could see Changsha seemed to be mixture of modern and old all mish mashed together.  My faith in "okay, okay" driver was not misplaced and he delivered us safe and sound to the Dolton and left us with hearty handshakes and much chortling and "okay, okays".

So finally we were here at the beautiful Dolton hotel, we were a bit too tired to take it all in but the lobby was beautiful and very impressive but best of all the staff were all so friendly and soon had us checked in and our luggage taken to our room. 

And there it was, THE CRIB, could it really be that in just a few days time Lulu will be tucked up in there!

Before I finish I should just mention our travel companion for this trip was Teddi Blu who had a rip roaring time on the flight and if you click on the photo album on the left you can follow him on his travels.