Let the Adventure Officially Begin!

Happy Easter, everyone!

We made it into Changsha (pronounced Sha Sha) last night, but we had internet problems and were not able to post until just now.  We were really afraid that we were not going to be able to post from here, but Philip found a way.

Before I get into our adventure, let me finish a few thoughts from our time in Hong Kong.  We spent out last morning at Chef Mickey's again.  Today, I noticed that they had congee on the buffet.  In Olivia's paperwork, it is clear that she eats a lot of it, so we thought we should give it a shot.  They had plain congee (the white one in the back) and flavored (chicken, pumpkin, and sweet corn).  We tried the plain variety.  It tastes like watered down grits, but instead of grits, it's rice.  Here are a couple of pictures:

After breakfast, we headed out on a walk to visit the other Disney property in HK.  It was a beautiful day, and it is a beautiful hotel.

On the way, we ran into some cyclists and landscapers.

After we got back from our walk, Ansley did some swimming.

There were two things that I left off of my observation list:
1.  Just like Americans, the Chinese LOVE their smartphones.  They are on them 24/7.  Oh and they also LOVE to take selfies!
2.  They also LOVE cameras, and I don't mean the point 'n click variety.  They love expensive, paparazzi-style cameras.

Our taxi ride to the airport was interesting, to say the least.  The HK taxis are older looking Toyota sedans.  Our driver was really nice and only drives taxis part time.  He is a student full time.  Because we had so much luggage, he actually bungeed the trunk down.  Yikes!  We weren't sure everything would make it in one piece, but thank goodness, it did.  Again, no car seats, but they do have seat belts!  The highway was very nice in HK with very little traffic.  (They drive on the "wrong" side of the car/road in HK.)

We spent a few hours in the airport waiting on our flight to Changsha.  As I mentioned earlier, the HK Airport is super-nice…..the nicest airport I have ever been to.  It was like Green Hills Mall meets Airport.  There were stores such as Coach, Tumi, etc.  We also found a little children's play area.  Ansley made some friends from Australia that were a little older than she is.  They were discussing where they were from.  Ansley said, "I'm from Nashville, and I live near Belle Meade Children's Center."  Of course, they had no idea what she was talking about.  They had fun guessing what country she was from.  It was cute.

Now, let me be clear, folks.  After spending only a few hours in Changsha, let me say that these observations were based on our experience in Hong Kong only, and I feel that we were spoiled there.  It is clear that it is a whole.new.world here.

The flight to Changsha was uneventful, despite the little child screaming in the seats next to us.  But, that was okay…..it will probably be us in a few days.  They did serve us seaweed egg albumen cookies.  Needless to say, the Martindales did not try these cookies.  Ansley fell asleep on the flight and didn't really wake up until this morning.  It was interesting trying to maneuver everything while she was sleeping.

The Changsha Airport is brand new and 6 times the size of the old one.  We made it fine through immigration, and all of our bags made it!  Our guide is "Vicky," and she is just wonderful.  Her English is awesome as well, which is a very good thing.  You see, the signs that we saw in HK with both English and Mandarin are no longer.  No.more.English.  We have a driver while we are here as well, and we got everything loaded into the van.  This is where the adventure really began.

Vicky explained to us that Changsha is growing.  Not only have they recently built a new airport, but they are also building new highways, apartment buildings, and a brand new subway system.  I have some thoughts on the growth, but I'll save that for a later post.

It is cooler here in Changsha than it was in HK, and they are calling for rain while we are here.

I don't even know where to start with describing the traffic.  Let me just ask that you pray now for any time we have to get in a vehicle here.  It was Sunday night around 9pm when we were in this traffic, and it was horrendous.  The Chinese drive here like they stand in line.  They don't care about lanes; they cut people off; they honk their horns incessantly; etc.  They also ride scooters and bikes with no helmets, no lights, and people just cross the roads (walking) whenever and wherever they please.

We learned on the ride here that we will meet Olivia at 3pm today.  They have to drive approximately 6 hours to get to Changsha from Ningyuan County, so that is why it is later in the afternoon.  Vicky has been to her orphanage and said that it is nice, but very small with not a lot of children.  We probably won't have a lot of time with the orphanage workers today, but tomorrow we will have more time to ask them some questions about Olivia.

Now let's talk about the hotel.  We are at the Dolton Hotel.  It has a very impressive drive and lobby, but it is badly in need of a renovation.  It smells musty, like moth balls, and the air is very wet feeling, almost humid.  Luckily, I brought some Lysol and stick-ups, but they aren't really helping.  The bed is another thing.  It is the hardest bed I have ever seen.  We have a larger room/suite with a bedroom separate from a little living area.  We have a king size bed with a crib for Olivia and a rollaway for Ansley.

 This is the bedroom before the crib and rollaway were added.  The bed sits very close to the floor.

Here is a picture of our hairdryer….can't wait to use it!

I can't wait to tell you of more adventures from later today and to introduce you to Miss Olivia.  I hope each of you has a wonderful Easter.  We are missing our church on Easter and our traditional family meal.  See you soon!

Jill