Day 4 & 5

We got a little behind on posting here. We've been soooo busy! So here's to catching everyone up. Thursday, we went to the International Grand Bazaar here in Urumqi. It really is bazaar, some of the things they sell-haha. It's this huge place to shop, most of it is outside and involves a lot of walking. They had everything from knives, scarves, Uiygher hats, jewelry, local food, clothes, antiques, alot of junk, etc. This is how the locals make a living doing this. There were so many duplicate "stalls" of the same items. Urumqi has TONS of fruits and nuts, there were carts and carts of this stuff everywhere. Actually we didn't get to see a whole lot of this place b/c Drew had a crying fit so we had to go back to the bus and sit. We sat there for like 45 minutes, so we missed out on a lot of bargain shopping.
Later that afternoon we walked over to one of the department stores here around the corner to the grocery store in the basement. There is a dept store on just about every corner here, and they have a huge grocery store in them. These stores are about 4-5 levels high and sell really high priced makeup, clothing and everything in between. They are about equivalent to a large dept store at home, with more levels and lots more stuff to buy, higher prices too. Anyways, Drew got to pick out some snacks at the grocery store. He got some potato chips that were a little different but not bad and he ate them all. He got some candy (which tasted awful) too.
This place had alot of weird stuff, like raw squid, whole cooked ducks, tons of fresh seafood/fish, all kinds of meats. If I knew how to cook good Chinese food, this place had all kinds of seasonings,rice,sauces,noodles--too bad huh?
Another thing, Drew asked our local Chinese guide named Wendy, which he calls "auntie" in Chinese), if we had a car. She told him yes and he asked if it was black. (We were on a bus, and he was looking at the cars going by). We told him that Baba and Mama, Nai Nai all have a car. He was happy to know this. I later asked Wendy if Drew's foster family had a car or if Drew had ever ridden in one before? She said they did not, as most people don't unless they are rich enough to buy one. We found out today that Wendy is only 24, and I asked her if she had a car or drives. She looked at me and said,"I'm only 24." "I don't have a car." Therefore, we concluded that most people here can't afford one. Drew told her later that he wants to go on a plane. I said that he'd get his wish soon enough! BTW, Drew drives Wendy and Elsie (our adoption agency Chinese guide) nuts everyday with all the questions he asks them. He always yells out for them and constantly wants to talk to them. He has to be the center of attention. He is very very verbal.
Oh yes, one of the families and I took a taxi to find their little boy's and Drew's finding place.
To make a long story short, it took well over 1 1/2 hr to do this, mine took the longest. I was looking for a shop next to a hospital. Well we finally got introduced to a Chinese woman who helped us at the clinic there. She called her daugher, who spoke English and translated for me! That was sooo nice of her to go out of her way for me. Anyway, come to find out, the original flower shop in which he was found, was no longer there-but another one was it's neighboring shop or took it's place due to construction of the roads. So, I took pics and video of this. BTW,never get sick or go to the hospital while in China. You wouldn't believe the ancient, primitive buildings,offices, equipment, everything they use! Just ask me about this later,.. I could go on and on.
So today, Friday, we went on an extra day trip to see Heavenly Lake up in the mountains. It was really beautiful up there. I was glad it didn't take any longer than it did to get up there, as I was starting to get a little woozy. It took us > 2 hrs to get there. Drew loved walking around and climbing on the rocks. In the parking lot of the place, we saw this money walking around. It musthave been somone's pet we thought, although it didn't look very friendly. It kinda looked like a baboon. My camera wasn't working properly, so all the pictures that I took up there are not on my SD card for some reason. I'm so bummed. There was a lot of snow on the tops of the mountains of course too. We ate lunch there at this Muslim restaurant. It was very good. Drew ate 2 skewers of lamb and some shredded potatoes in this sauce stuff. It was kinda like Chinese food in a way. That was the most he's ever eaten all week at one sitting. Most of the time, all he eats for breakfast and dinner at the hotel is watermelon. He loves it! Well the other night, we ate at this Uigyher restaurant next to the hotel and all he ate out of the food was the onions. He'd pick them up with his chopsticks (which he can use proficiently) and put them in a bowl of water to rinse them off and eat them. It was pretty gross. He has terrible table manners, he makes such a mess and gets it all over him. He is really good about letting me wipe his hands and mouth off though. We'll have to work on the table manners when we get home... haha.
Well this is our last night here in Urumqi, Drew's hometown. It's kinda sad to think he may never return to his homeland. Well I hope he does, or wants to maybe later in life. Earlier, this evening we went to park across the street to let him play. They had all kinds of play equip set up today. There were tons of people over there... you would not believe. Anyway, as we were walking on the sidewalk, a lady kept saying Xin Suo (his Chinese name), so we stopped. She could speak a little English but not enough to have a conversation. She told us that she was Drew's teacher!!!! (at the orphanage) What are the chances of running into someone that he knew from the orphanage, while out on the street with us? Oh my.. I was so excited. So after she and her son walked on, I realized I must take a picture of her, so I ran after her for one. So, now I have a picture of Drew's teacher!!! Too bad the other 3 families weren't with us, they could've asked if she was their childrens' teacher too (which most likely was, or at least knew them for sure)!
Drew had a very good day today and evening. He was pretty darn good, never ran off, and no crying, bathtime was fun too-which makes our day a lot easier! haha Well we are headed off in the morning to fly to Guangzhou (pronounced Gwan-joe), the last city to visit!