Fwd: Another day in Guangzhou

On Sunday we slept in late - until about 8:30am. Thankfully, sleep hasn't been an issue for either child. We enjoyed our breakfast buffet again and then met our guide and another family with our group in the lobby about 9:45. We drove the van over to the Chin Family Temple for a visit. It was a beautiful temple in and of itself and inside were several areas where Chinese crafts were displayed. There was an area for vases/ceramics, an area of bone carvings, an area of statues and gardens, a room with beautiful embroidery (see the picture of the fish - also Max's favorite animal and one of a few Mandarin words we understand), an area with craftsmen painting Mah Jong tiles, and an area where a man painted using only his hands (no brushes). We enjoyed wandering about, but it was getting very hot and all of the kids were getting grumpy. There was another bathroom incident that ended with a very old Chinese lady yelling at Ellie and I (in Chinese, so I have no idea about what), but needless to say we were ready to go after about an hour and a half. We came back to the hotel and had lunch here as well and then Jason put Max down for a nap while Ellie and I went swimming. Once Max was asleep grandma took over with him and Jason joined Ellie and I at the pool.

Ellie has made giant strides in her swimming this summer. At the beginning of the summer it was a huge achievement for her to put her face in the water. Now, she can jump in and go under, and she is even starting to swim some. Probably 5-10 feet, but definite swimming and keeping herself afloat. She even swims underwater holding her breath. And, we're seeing the beginnings of a back float. It's a pretty significant change.

After swimming, somebody was cranky. We knew she was tired, but it was only about 5pm and if she fell asleep then the night would be ugly. We rallied the troops and went out for a walk. We decided to try walking over to Shamian Island. This is a man made island in the Pearl River that is full of British colonial style buildings. It is very pretty and fairly Americanized. One of the other families said it reminded them of New Orleans and I think that is a pretty good analogy. New Orleans is stinkier though. It took us 15-20 minutes, but was no a bad walk. Once we were there we ate at a Western style restaurant which was pretty good. I always said when I came to China I would only eat Chinese food. I was wrong. I've been craving familiarity so this hit the spot. After dinner we watched the boats and the lights on the water for a bit and then came back to the hotel for a good nights sleep.