Today was a day of learning for us - learning about Eleanor Zitao's hometown of Hefei and its people. We visited several places that gave us a more complete idea of what Hefei is really like. First, we visited the memorial temple of Lord Bao, an official from the Song dynasty who was known for his excellent moral character and judgment. His hometown was Hefei.

Zitao decided her Baba's was a good hand to hold for most of the day today. It was very sweet to watch the girls with their daddy - he had a small girl on each hand for a good part of the day.



The temple is surrounded by a beautiful park, which includes this lake (Lake Baohe). Genevieve and the other girls fed the fish in the pond later on with some stale bread. We also visited their small gift shop, and bought a few things (one notable item was a book of photos of the Hefei area).

Zitao has been dragged all over creation in the first few days of being with us; with each new day, her face brightens a little more. She is usually rather somber walking around town with us; she has never had these kinds of experiences before. She is ANYTHING but somber at the hotel room, though, and she is truly darling as she follows me around repeating words and laughing at my Mandarin. She loves helping me wash things.... I wonder how long THAT will last! I love playing with her hair and dressed her in her new clothes today, too - I wonder how long she'll be patient with her mommy fussing over her, too!

After visiting the temple of Lord Bao, we went to a local bookstore and shopped for children's books. We found several that were written in English and Mandarin with both pinyin and Chinese characters. Eleanor has been enjoying thumbing through them, and they are serving us well in terms of language learning, too. She is becoming more vocal about repeating what she hears, and she's not as afraid to let us know what she wants as she was in the beginning.

We were tired and Gennie was grumpy, so we ordered room service for lunch. After lunch, David and Troy (Troy and his wife are also adopting through Heritage) went shopping for the orphanage. They ended up buying a new washing machine and 100 pairs of children's shoes to donate (yay)! We had served as transport for infant blankets from Love Without Boundaries, and brought along some school supplies from the U.S. as well. It feels good to be bringing them some much needed items. We visit the orphanage tomorrow, and will hopefully also meet Zitao's foster parents (most likely just her foster mother - her foster father likely will be at work and unable to meet with us). I expect it will be a good, but emotionally difficult day tomorrow; I hope that Zitao is okay. We will be bringing her sisters along to put her more at ease.

Speaking of emotionally difficult, we also had a chance to see and photograph Zitao's finding place today. The Hefei bus station is within walking distance of our hotel. This is the building where she was abandoned as a newborn, with a bag of formula and a bottle.

When we went inside, Kathy saw my expression (I was fighting back tears), and was quick to reassure me that Zitao remembered none of this. I nodded quickly and said, "I know, I know," and quickly got back to snapping pictures, hiding behind my camera lens. It was good to see in many ways - it was cleaner than I had expected, and it was quiet when we visited. There were many pillars inside, which I'm sure made it easier to leave a baby unnoticed during a busy time. Although Zitao may not remember (consciously, at least) being left, I'm sure her birth mother does remember very well, and I ache for her loss. Still, I'm glad to have the pictures to show Zitao someday, when the questions are asked and she is trying to piece together what we know about her history. Hefei is where Zitao was left, and I hope she remembers that it is also where she was found. And I believe that everyone who has found her has loved her well. I feel honored that we have been chosen to love her forever.



After leaving the Hefei bus station, we walked to a street market nearby. This is where families come to meet their everyday needs for food and supplies. Mamas buy fresh meat (butchered that morning - chickens butchered while you wait, yum), and vegetables to cook for the day's meals. You can buy herb medicine, the right kind of live eel to cook for pregnant women, rope, shoes, steamed buns, you name it. There was even a station to have your blood pressure checked by doctors in the alley. You have to keep on your toes, as always - motorbikes regularly streak up and down the alley at breakneck speeds through the crowds.



Genevieve was treated like a movie star, as usual (Ta shi hen piao liang! = She is so pretty!) Believe it or not, she's actually getting a little tired of the attention (usually she's quite happy to have the spotlight squarely on her - even better, an outlet for LOUD sound). Zitao isn't used to the stares, either, and I'm getting a little tired of people assuming that we don't understand them. (Several people have asked Kathy whether I'm somebody's mother, and I always try to answer before Kathy can with "Shi. Wo shi ta de mama." (Yes. I am her mother.) Inevitably this is cause for surprise from the person asking, and they turn to their neighbors to talk about the "mei guo ren" (American) who can speak a little Mandarin. I can't really be angry, though - they all are very sweetly interested in us, wish us well, have offered to give us things to remember them by (one woman in the street market wanted to give us a meal!), and have only wanted a picture or to stroke Genevieve's hair for a moment. I did find it fairly funny that a group of teenagers with pink and blue hair and ripped jeans and spiked jackets found US to be the weirdos worthy of a stare, though!

Well, I'm off to bed. It was a good day for Zitao (no breakdowns today, which can't be said for all of my children - Gennie is always happy to oblige in that department), and we are thrilled to be here. We'd be even more thrilled if we were better rested!