Last Day in Nanning

Well, today was our last full day in Nanning.  Maya slept well last night.  She woke at 6:30 A.M.  Napped again from 8:30 until 9:30.  At 10 A.M. we left for another excursion.  We took a van ride out to a nearby village called Yling (I think)  The villagers live a very simple, but tough, life.  They plow the fields with a cow, yes a cow.  We strolled though the village, taking lots of pictures and having Hannah, our guide, describe the life of the villagers.  We were warned not to touch the loose dogs running around.  They were a bit mangy.  There was a small market that sold meat, fish and vegetables for the locals.  We ate some sticky rice wrapped in a dough like casing that was deep fried.  It was pretty good.  David Pan, the director of all the China Guides from Children's Home, was so enthralled with watching the live fish in the buckets.  He is from Beijing, but lives in Minnesota now.  You'd think this wouldn't be that unique for him.  He laughs so hard when he sees the fish flopping around.  It's quite funny.  Maya was great in the hip carrier again, all morning.

When we got back to the room, we decided to take a walk back to the People's Park.  Maya fell asleep before we got out of the hotel, so we only walked to the nearby bakery for some snacks.  By the time we got off the elevator on our floor, she had woken up.  Only about 30 minutes.  Not nearly long enough.  She would not go back to sleep, no matter what we tried.  She had fun this afternoon, playing on the bed, and crawling a little.  We thought this would wear her out.  No luck until 8 p.m.  For about 2 hours, she screamed, I mean screamed whenever Sheila tried to set her in the crib.  At one point, Sheila needed some fresh air, so I took over.  Worst ever.  She cried so hard while Sheila was away, she threw up a little formula.  She was definitely over tired and still has her cold.  Thankfully, she doesn't seem to be running a fever, just coughing a little more than days prior.  

We're up late (it's 11:15 p.m.) trying to pack.  Hard to do with a baby sleeping 3 feet away.  Tomorrow we fly to Guangzhou for the last phase of our trip.  We got Maya's Chinese passport this evening.  Hopefully, the flight won't be too rough.  It's only 55 minutes.  It will be a good practice run for next Thursday.

In the photos, you can see us in front of our hotel with Hannah our local guide.  She is so cute and wonderful.  We will miss her.  Next, you can see some of the people from the small village washing their clothes in the pond.  Third is a picture of 2 local villagers with a little boy.  Notice how bundled up he is?  It was about 70+ degrees today.  The Chinese believe that children can not regulate their body temperature until they are 4 years old.  Fourth is a cute picture of Sheila holding Maya in the carrier.  I am so proud of how well Sheila is taking care of Maya.  Maya absolutely loves her.  The last picture is of some women selling their produce in the village market.  They were all very kind to us foreigners, looking around their village.

Well off to bed, we have to meet in the lobby at 9:50 to head to the airport.  Wish us luck.  I should be able to post from Guangzhou without a problem. (I think)

Wan an! (Good Night!)