Guangzhou Safari Park

Charlie on the safari tram

Trying to climb in the monkey exhibit

Just a quick post tonite. It is 7:30 pm on Sunday and Charlie has not napped at all today. We got home from the Safari Park at 2:30 and decided to forgo the nap for an early night sleep. Needless to say, Naughty Charlie is dominant.

Lisa got up and went to the local Chinese Catholic Mass this morning. It was at a small historic church...built in the mid-1850's. There were about 75 Chinese and 2 westerners. I really enjoyed worshipping with the locals. Two differences...no collection of money and no handshake for the sign of peace (just hands together and bow to your neighbors). I was so glad to be in church again and glad to experience it in Chinese!

Then we were off to the Safari park...we took a 30 min tram ride thru a wild animal park (seemed like mostly deer) and then walked for 2 hours thru the zoo with the other CHI family. We enjoyed getting to know them and their girls a little better. The zoo was quite nice (although it was overrun with school children on a field trip). We saw many beautiful animals...white tigers, pandas, elephants, etc. Unlike in the US, you can "feed the animals." You just pay 10-30 yuan (less than 50 cents) for bananas, peanuts, branches. They had many baby animals in incubators and separate areas...adorable tigers, monkeys, etc. AMELIA...you need to see these pictures...your mommy actually got to hold a real, baby white tiger!!

Look Amelia! Mommy holding a baby tiger!

Sweet baby monkey

The children were as interested in us as they were in the animals!

Baby tigers in an incubator

Serious Charlie and his new friend !

We hung out at the hotel and then had dinner at a Cantonese restaurant. The waitresses were all over Charlie. Everywhere we go people point, talk etc at him. I keep saying how we have a really special boy. Pete says they do it to everyone (I'll keep thinking my way). However, how many kids do the waitresses hand feed, wipe their mouths, and give them sips of their drinks? That's what they did tonite.

In for an early, quiet evening. Tomorrow we have to hang out in the room from 10-2 while the guide goes for our consulate appointment. We may have our swearing in ceremony tomorrow since the offices are trying to close early for the National Holiday. Which means we technically could have gone home on Tuesday, but no one knew they'd be doing it this way. That's ok...one more day for shopping!