I have to admit that this trip has probably been the best trip to China yet. Once again my adopted family has pulled all the stops to take care of us while we’re here, but everything else had worked out great so far.
During our trip last year, it took both kids more than a week to warm up to their Chinese-speaking relatives and to adjust to the time difference, at which point it was soon time to go back home. This time, they warmed up to the relatives within a day, and their sleep-schedules were fully adjusted within four days.
Last year, Oliver was at the age where he couldn’t yet walk yet wanted us to hold his hands to be walked everywhere. Since he warmed up slowly to the relatives, this meant that we were often the ones walking him and couldn’t be too far away. This time, he’s walking and even starting to talk a lot. He’s playing with Maggie and his eight-month old cousin Dong Dong. He’s laughing a lot. In short, he’s a lot of fun this year.
Last year, because the kids didn’t adjust well to the relatives, Hong and I never got to go out on the town by ourselves. This time, we’ve already gone out on our own four times with a week to go before we leave. Considering we only managed to get out alone twice in the previous six months, it’s a real blessing.
Last year, the kids didn’t adjust well to the Chinese food. We ended up buying some breakfast cereal for Maggie in the imported food section of Wal-Mart just to get to her to eat something. Oliver also had a hard time adjusting to the baby food that was available to us; jarred baby food isn’t widely available, and the one brand we found (Heinz, no less) had strange flavors, like ground bone, salmon, and lotus root paste to which he didn’t adjust well. We even brought along a jar of peanut butter this time in case the kids needed it. We didn’t need it at all. Maggie will eat most things as long as they aren’t spicy. It’s sometimes tough to get Oliver to eat, but we have the same problem at home, and at the very least he loves red bean buns — he proudly exclaims “Mean Mun!” as he chows down on them. In short, the kids are healthy and happy.
The weather has been very nice during our visit, with high temperatures in the 60s and 70s, so we’re able to go out often, either with the kids or without. It seems that we always get some attention no matter where we go.
If a Westerner visits Beijing, they’re not likely to get much notice; it’s an international city and there are always plenty of foreign tourists. In Taiyuan, the largely industrial city where we’re staying, there not much in the way of the tourist trade so I stick out a little bit more. I think I’ve only seen five or six white people within the five visits I’ve made here. I get the occasional stare from passersby, inflated prices from street vendors, and shouts of “Waiguoren!” (”Foreigner!”) from little children, but that’s about it.
When my kids come along, though, look out. Crowds gather around to watch. Peasants stop in their tracks with their mouths agape. Women stop and turn their heads as my kids pass by. Young people take pictures of our kids with their camera-phones. It’s like being a celebrity, complete with paparazzi. It’s a bit unnerving, looking around and suddenly realizing that suddenly a crowd of ten people are standing around watching your kids. Some will get way out of line, trying to pick them up or grab their hand, but most are content just to look at them. I attribute it to my kids having both mixed blood but also so dang cute that people can’t help but watch.