I wasn't going to post about the rest of our Friday. It seems that after hearing the news of little Aubrie, it's hard to think that site seeing and shopping could hold any significance. But I know my little kiddies at home are anxious for our posts, and esp. for pictures, so here's our Friday, July 4th.
We went to the drum tower. Huge drums were beat every day to let the people know what time it was. They were also used in times of emergency i.e. fire or invasion. The 2nd picture shown above is the view from the Bell Tower. I love how the skyline reflects both the old architecture, as well as modern day architecture. The third picture is the drum tower at night.
This is a picture of Helen and her shop. She was raised Muslim but converted to Christianity about 5 years ago. She does beautiful calligraphy. In China calligraphy isn't just about writing characters. It is an art form in and of itself. People will study for years under a master to learn. Helen learned calligraphy from her father. We had her write a couple of our favorite scriptures in Chinese calligraphy. They are so beautiful. We had a delightful time sitting in her shop talking with her. She asked about our family, we told her about our now, 7 children and showed her a picture. She became quite emotional. She expressed her gratitude that when we already have so many children, that we would be willing to come to China and adopt a child with a disability. She asked if she could make us a gift. She then wrote all of our family names in beautiful Chinese calligraphy on a silk scroll and gave it to us. We found this same sentiment from quite a few of the people we talked to here in Xian. They all expressed their gratitude and admiration of us. It was really sweet.
We left Xian tonight at 9:30. UGGH it was late. We were supposed to leave on a 7:30 flight, but Siyuan's passport wasn't ready in time. Siyuan did awesome. I was afraid he'd freak out when we took off, but he took it all in just fine. He slept for the two hour flight and didn't even wake up during our very noisy landing. He really is a pretty easy going kid. Alex let him wear his sunglasses, and he was pretty pleased with himself. We call him "Shwai-Ge" which in Chinese means good-looking guy.
We went to the drum tower. Huge drums were beat every day to let the people know what time it was. They were also used in times of emergency i.e. fire or invasion. The 2nd picture shown above is the view from the Bell Tower. I love how the skyline reflects both the old architecture, as well as modern day architecture. The third picture is the drum tower at night.
This is a picture of Helen and her shop. She was raised Muslim but converted to Christianity about 5 years ago. She does beautiful calligraphy. In China calligraphy isn't just about writing characters. It is an art form in and of itself. People will study for years under a master to learn. Helen learned calligraphy from her father. We had her write a couple of our favorite scriptures in Chinese calligraphy. They are so beautiful. We had a delightful time sitting in her shop talking with her. She asked about our family, we told her about our now, 7 children and showed her a picture. She became quite emotional. She expressed her gratitude that when we already have so many children, that we would be willing to come to China and adopt a child with a disability. She asked if she could make us a gift. She then wrote all of our family names in beautiful Chinese calligraphy on a silk scroll and gave it to us. We found this same sentiment from quite a few of the people we talked to here in Xian. They all expressed their gratitude and admiration of us. It was really sweet.
We left Xian tonight at 9:30. UGGH it was late. We were supposed to leave on a 7:30 flight, but Siyuan's passport wasn't ready in time. Siyuan did awesome. I was afraid he'd freak out when we took off, but he took it all in just fine. He slept for the two hour flight and didn't even wake up during our very noisy landing. He really is a pretty easy going kid. Alex let him wear his sunglasses, and he was pretty pleased with himself. We call him "Shwai-Ge" which in Chinese means good-looking guy.
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