It's 4 am and We're Awake

Part jet-lag / part just too excited to sleep.  We leave to pick up Joseph at 7 am.

We landed in Beijing just before 4 pm yesterday.  That sounds like plenty of time, but by the time we cleared customs, met up with our guide, Mina, and rode through rush hour to the hotel, it was after 6.

I stayed in to unpack while Mike went out to buy water and look for a charger for the video camera.  I always unpack into drawers if we are going to be in a hotel room for several days.  And we'll be here until September 11, before flying to Guangzhou. 

If you never plan to adopt from China, just skip the next two paragraphs.  I have to include a few potentially boring details for my friends who are getting ready to travel.

Guess what?  It's a nice hotel, but no drawers.  Just a tiny closet with 5 hangers.  So I did a major suitcase re-organization.  Someone suggested that I not pack each person's clothes in a single suitcase because if we lost a suitcase in transit, that unlucky person would not have ANYTHING to wear.  So both checked bags and both carry-ons contained a variety of all of our stuff.  After last night, we each have a suitcase with all our clothes arranged nicely inside.  And zipped inside one carry-on are all the things we brought "just in case' -- all kinds of over the counter meds, bandaids, small gifts for folks we meet and toys for Joseph to introduce a little at a time as he gets bored in the room.  Finally, my trusty pop-up hamper is tucked away in the corner so that we aren't drowning under an explosion of dirty clothes two days from now. 

Mike returned from venturing into the night with a new charger.  He got water, but instead of going to the place right down the street that our guide suggested, he bought it right across the street from the hotel -- for $5 a bottle.  He was groggy and jet-lagged at that point, so we just laughed and were glad to have drinking water.  Moments later, he stumbled from the bathroom to take his medicine before bed -- and mistakenly opened the $5 bottle of water being offered for purchase by the hotel in our room. 

So we are a little poorer, but well-hydrated.

And ready for our big day!