Greg and Sam gave him a bath (which he loves) and then we went for breakfast. We experienced our first "communication challenge" of the day when Ben pointed to what he wanted on the buffet but I didn't immediately hand it to him. I had to take him to our table while Greg plated his food and that was not good. Ben and I headed back to the room while Sam and Greg ate. Ben finally calmed down after about 10 minutes and we headed back to breakfast.
We then decided to take a walk (loving the stroller!) down the main Wangfujing street, through a Hutong and over to Tiananmen Square. Benjamin did great in the stroller and really seemed to enjoy the walk. We were approached by 2 young girls who spoke very good English. We were walking along and talking about Benjamin, the United States, etc. -- then they told us they were artists and wanted us to come and see their paintings. Hmmmm.....we did not. Apparently this is a very common "scheme" on US tourists.
Greg's stepmom's niece, Angelina, then visited around 10 a.m. The first family member to meet Ben. She is studying in Beijing this semester and is such an interesting and sweet girl. She will be graduating from college soon and heading to graduate school in the U.S. She grew up in Thailand. She has also lived in the US and completed her high school in Switzerland. Her parents are now living in Cambodia and she'll be spending the summer there. She traveled nearly 2 hours to visit us at the hotel! (Beijing is a BIG city!). We really enjoyed our time with her. Once again, Benjamin wanted nothing to do with her Mandarin. He played by himself or with Sam during our visit and seemed very happy and comfortable but very uneasy when she spoke Mandarin to him.
After our visit with Angelina, we walked to a high-end, multi-story mall near our hotel for lunch in a food court. Again, another "communication challenge". Benjamin wanted to ride the escalator and did not understand why we couldn't (he was in the stroller). I think everyone in the mall knew Ben wanted to ride the escalator...this kid has a set of lungs!! So, change of plans....we grabbed lunch and headed back to our room. Greg said it was the best KFC sandwich he's ever eaten! Sam and I had Subway and Greg/Ben had KFC.
Shortly after lunch, housekeeping came knocking. We headed down the street again to Hagen Daaz....likely Benjamin's first ice cream. He doesn't like cold drinks so we were apprehensive. We ordered him chocolate and he seemed to like it a little....until the next "communication challenge". He wanted a pen that Greg had. We gave it to him briefly (to perhaps avoid a meltdown) but it nearly poked him in the eye. Again, we had to leave with him, but he was getting sleepy anyway.
He took a 2 hour nap at the hotel while Greg and Sam went swimming. Tomorrow is a big day of touring and we're very excited but also very apprehensive. We don't meet our guide, Shirley, until 12:30 p.m. (right before nap time) and it will be a very long day. The plans include the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, tea and an acrobatic show in the evening. Fortunately, we'll have Shirley with us to assist with any communication issues and we're only a taxi ride away from the hotel. We are excited to finally see some sights and spend time with some fellow adopting Americans!!!
After Ben's nap, we went to the Wangfujing night market....one of the most popular tourist attractions in Beijing! It was very interesting, to say the least! Picture the "Fall Festival" minus the rides and all Chinese "delicacies". Amazing what the Chinese enjoy eating! Lots of other tourists...and even corn on the cob! Greg and Ben split some noodles, shrimp on a stick and dumplings. Sam opted for peanut butter back at the room and I skipped dinner. Too much ice cream at lunch! (mine and Ben's!).
I'll be honest, it's very hard right now....for all of us. We're all missing home, Ellie/Jack and the inability to console or communicate effectively with Ben is proving most difficult. We're suffering from jet lag (still!) and Benjamin is grieving and confused and living with aliens who can't communicate with him. He cries most of the time (like a constant whine). It will get better...this we know.
But, in the meantime, it's exhausting and nerve-wracking. He's such a doll and a charmer and a little stinker too! He's sooooo smart and sweet and we absolutely adore him and feel horribly we can't make things better. We're all working so hard and that's all we can do. Angelina seemed very impressed with how much he could communicate with us already, but obviously it's still not enough. We're making headway every day and for that, we're very thankful.
A change of scenery will be good for all of us...and some semblance of a routine. We are off to bed now - around 8:00 p.m. Beijing time. Hoping for a good night's sleep for us all and a better day tomorrow.
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