US Soil... At Least for an Hour!!!

Today we had an appointment with the US Consolate to process Li's citizenship and apply for his visa to enter the US. To Michelle and Eve- you guys did not prepare me for the sheer terror of entering the building! There was a mob of people (Chinese) trying to push their way in. Luckily our guide was able to get the attention of the guards and we got to go directly in the gates (membership has its rewards:)). 

Once inside, the appointment was fairly anticlimactic. They took Chris' fingerprints and we had a simple swearing in ceremony. 

Li wore his first tie for about 5 seconds! 

Now we just wait for the visa to be printed, which takes about 24 hours. 

So here's where the fun begins: on Wednesday morning Chris begins to fly home from Guangzhou (luckily) with layovers in Beijing and Dulles. 

Once we have the visa in hand, Kelly, the kids, and I have a car service that is driving us to Hong Kong (approximately 2 hours we are told). We spend the night at the Marriott by the airport where we will run the children down!! Then we are scheduled to leave Hong Kong around noon and have just 1 layover in Chicago (which Kelly and I now affectionately have dubbed salad land!!) 

In Chicago we say goodbye to Kelly. (Listen for the sigh of relief from Kelly- she's not used to non stop kid noise). Then the kids and I fly home to Nashville. Luckily, if all goes as scheduled Chris will be home and able to pick us up at the airport. And we are already dreading Li's first ride in the baby mobile torture device (aka, the 5 point harness). 

Because China censures internet usage, we have only been able to post to the blog via our 3G connection on Chris' cell phone. Once he leaves, I probably won't be able to post unless Hong Kong has different rules. So, don't worry if you haven't heard from us in awhile. I'll definitely check in from Chicago. 

Now.. What to do with 2 bored kids in a hotel on a rainy day while waiting for a visa to arrive...........

Good News Henry!! He Likes Cats!!

Correction: Run for your life Henry!!! He's obcessed with cats!! We visited the Shamian Island- which is by far the coolest part of town. The man made island was originally built to keep all the foreign businessmen out of China, and somewhere along the way was under British and French rule. So the architecture is beautiful, kind of New Orleans meets Charlestown. 

There wasn't much to do on the island but shop- so Chris resumed his need to bargain with the shop owners. And that is where Li found the kitty. It was love at first sight, and Chris and I were thoroughly relieved that he wasn't allergic ( one of the things that would have been disasterous since we have a 14 year old cat named Henry that we are not interested in giving away). 

Although the kitty tried to get away, Li followed him around for at least 30 minutes, and there were serious tears when we left. 

While shopping we also got the kids some traditional Chinese clothing. 

Oh- and we learned how to say Caramel Frappacchino in Chinese: Caramel Frappacino!! Ha!! 

This was the end of the Chinese Labor Day holiday, so back to business tomorrow (thank god!!).