Dinner On The Pearl River

We have begun the arduous process of packing all of our belongings for the long journey home. We were already sad to leave here, but trying to pack three people and all of the treasures that we have acquired makes it that much tougher.

Tonight we took a dinner cruise on the Pearl River that runs through the center of Guangzhou. You can tell just from traveling around the city that there is a lot to see, but until you go right through the middle of it you have no idea what a sight it is to behold! The architecture itself is stunning, but when you add the light show that is built into most of the buildings and bridges, it is almost overwhelming. It's like Las Vegas on steroids. Because the Olympics are just a few months away, many of the buildings have adopted an Olympic theme, including the China Construction Bank building which is basically a giant billboard. It rotates from variations on the Beijing 2008 logo to all of the mascots--it is the building in the last photo. Many of them also have lasers and spotlights and other displays. While the food was less than stellar, anyone traveling to Guangzhou will not fully get to experience the city without doing this cruise. It's cheap too, only about $20 U.S. including dinner.

Audrey is slowly liking me more and more. She now lets me pick her up (though she usually thinks I am going to hand her to Lori), and this morning the two of us went without Lori to see the fish in the pond in the middle of the hotel. She also learned how to blow a kiss today. Though it's hard to tell, that's what she is doing in the picture of her. She still wants to be in close proximity to Mommy, but she keeps making progress. Hopefully by the time we get home none of you will get the cold-shoulder that I did.

Tomorrow is our last day here (and Lori's birthday). Though I can't explain to you how sad we are to leave here, we can't wait to come home and see all of you and start the normal routine of our lives together. Our consulate appointment is at 3pm tomorrow, and according to our guide Veronica all of the paperwork has been approved, so when we go through immigrations in Los Angeles on Wednesday afternoon Audrey will be a full-fledged American citizen.