Richard, Anna, and I get up early to pack, have breakfast, take the subway and taxi to Jiaoguomenwai to find the diplomatic compound within which the offices of Half the Sky Foundation are located. No longer a diplomatic compound, we learn, but rather offices for local businesses. The staff are very welcoming, taking us on a tour of the space where we see numerous boxes of items ready to be delivered to two orphanage sites such as computers donated by Hewlett Packard, sand and play structure, etc. One of the offices is a special needs office. Anna gives a packet of a small sample of her cards to them and they give her a "Somebody Loves Me" doll and a t-shirt. The doll was designed as a fundraiser for the children who were victims in the 2008 earthquake in Sichuan. We are grateful that they were so welcoming and that we now have a picture in mind when we think of the heart and mind of the work of Half the Sky Foundation in Beijing. Back to the subway we go followed by a quick taxi ride back to the hotel to complete our packing, meet up with our group, check out of the hotel, meet Sunny in the lobby, climb onto the bus. Mr. Han drives us to the airport. Thank yous and goodbyes are said.
At the airport, Gail, Anna, and I wander around a bit and run into our friends, Mary and Jack Hall, who were in the next cabin on the Yangtze River Cruise, at the Pizza Hut in the Beijing Airport terminal. Anna runs up to Mary and gives her a big hug. They've been in Beijing in the recent days, and said that they've been thinking about us, wanting to hear more about Anna's adoption story, since they found themselves witnessing adoptive families receiving their adoptive babies here in Beijing. While we wait for our pizza which will take 17 minutes to be ready, we are told, we sit down with Mary and Jack and relate our adoption tale briefly. An arrival and departure board nearby tells us that our flight is boarding so we dash off, abruptly ending our fun visit with Mary and Jack with whom we hope to keep in touch. (They're from Portland, Oregon, and know The Old Scotch Church. She teaches several children of the pastor there.)
Here we are, aboard the plane to take us back home, having said "Goodbye" to China for now. This was Anna's first journey back to her homeland since we adopted her 11 plus years ago.
On the plane, I complete the book that Gail lent me several weeks ago on this trip, entitled Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See, published in 2005. It is fiction based on author's research about the Yao people and traditions in China, including the secret language of "nu shu" amongst women in days gone past. I really enjoyed the book.
We arrive in Newark safely, go through customs, and make our way to the train station to climb aboard a train headed to BWI train station where Ross (D) and John Morton meet us to pick our group up. Ross brings us home to our house while John transports the Vertiz family and Gail home. We're home safely and soundly. It's then that I notice that I'm tired! Was a wonderful and fulfilling trip.
I can't complete our travel journal without noting that Andy, too, had a vacation (- an expensive one at that!) since he was boarded at Greater Annapolis Vet kennel where he's been boarded before. The staff there know him well, always greeting him so warmly when we take Andy for boarding or just a visit, so we were reassured that he would get ample attention since our trip was an unusually long one for us and him. Andy would also have respite from the heat. We were relieved that our dear and now old dog Andy was in such good hands and are happy to have him home safely again.
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