Waiting for CA

Herein begins the long wait for CA.  We have completed all the other official requirements and now are simply waiting for our consulate appointment and the visa that will be issued the following day.  Unfortunately we must wait until Thursday and Friday for this, which means a long week for all of us.  (Some of us are really ready to not be living in a hotel room any more.)  Saturday morning we went to Carrefour, where we found a few things to entertain the kids.  We had lunch at Papa John's and dinner at a Mexican restaurant called Tekila.

Sunday we went to Shamian Island to attend the 11am service at Christ Church Shamian Island.  We had lunch at Lucy's and spent the afternoon walking around, playing on the playground next to Lucy's, resting on the red couches at the White Swan, and doing lots of running and jumping.  We had hoped to meet up with other adoptive families for dinner, but never found them.  Everyone was drooping in the cab on the way back to our hotel.

Our 'red couch' photo

Monday we got adventurous and figured out the subway system in Guangzhou, which took us to the Safari Park.  So much fun!  The subway turned out to be pretty easy - stops announced in both Mandarin and English and a lighted map that shows you exactly where you are on the line.  There was a free shuttle bus from the Metro to the Safari Park and back.  We spent a full day walking through the park, riding the 'safari on wheels' tram and then walking back to the South exit for our bus back to the metro.

Faith has been with us for over a week now. We've seen a bit of mischievousness the last couple of days - teasing her siblings, dashing out from under a hand on her shoulder, with a grin on her face - which we are taking as a good sign of further comfort in her new environment.  But she continues to only nod in response to our attempts to engage her.  I'll be happy when this phase is behind us.