Guangzhou - With New Eyes

We said good-bye to Hong Kong this morning. Hong Kong is a great city and we wish we could have seen more of it. We left there saying we would definitely be back some day. Even Mackenzie and Meghan were sad to leave.

Our plane arrived on time in Guangzhou and the staff from the Victory Hotel were there to meet us. We then met "Uncle Bill" (as though of us who know him fondly call him), Sunny Ridge's staff person in China. It was so good to see him, and even though they weren't sure who he was the girls ran up and gave him a big hug.

The Victory had a shuttle bus waiting for us and it was nice visiting with Bill all the way back to Guangzhou. As we came upon Shamian Island we could look across the bridge and see the very familiar streets that we walked over and over in 2003. I couldn't believe how glad I was to see it. Suddenly, an island that I couldn't wait to escape from in 2003 looked much different to me. It's hard to describe. It was almost like coming back home. I would never have dreamed I would feel the way I feel about coming back to this island.

We checked into our hotel (the new Victory - not the same Victory we were in before with Mackenzie) and then headed down the streets down to our favorite hang outs while we were here last time, Lucy's! While we walked I could remember the feeling of taking Mackenzie into all those shops and looking at clothes. As I looked at the Americans walking by with young China dolls in their umbrella stollers I had to smile because I knew what they were feeling. I remember when Melinda, me, Mary Klasen, Cindy Cairns, Marilou Noonan, and Lynn Haynes walked around just like they did - with our hearts full of joy and our heads full of questions. And I had to smile when I thought about how I wondered back then "Will Mackenzie like being my daughter? Am I going to be a good Mom, or do I just make a good Aunt?" As I looked at those new Moms tonight, I could tell they had very similar questions running around their heads. It was like fear and joy written on their faces all at once.

Tomorrow at 4:30 we will be joined with Raegan Jean Biggs at the Civil Affairs building in Guangzhou. Mackenzie will be going with us to meet her little sister. Tomorrow...we'll be pushing the umbrella stoller with a beautiful little China doll in it, and one walking beside it. How could this island NOT feel a little bit like coming home.