Today was a very special day for our little girl. Today is the day we went to visit the orphanage where she spent the first year of her life. In addition, with the help of our special guide, Cherry and our driver, we were able to find the place where Charis was found abandoned bundled up in a very easy to find box 8 years ago.

It was quite a day as we left our Hefei for the 1.5 hour trip to Chaohu. We took backroads to get a sense of what the countryside is like. And while driving through fields of rice and other crops, watching people plowing their fields with oxen and riding to town in the back of small trailer’s behind small three wheel tractors, I was reminded of what my grandparents’ farm in Japan was like back in the 70’s when we visited them.

The orphanage was just as we remembered it. They were moving in a few weeks to a new “storybook-like” facility, but the old place had many of the same pictures and whatnot that where there when we first visited back in 2004. After meeting with the assistant director and seeing Charis’ old documents and pictures, we were re-introduced to Charis’ favorite nanny and the doctor that treated her so long ago. She was a bit shy… she was shy when she met us for the first time too…

After playing with some of the kids in the orphanage… there were a couple of babies with cleft palates and several others with other special needs… we traveled deep into the countryside to see where Charis was originally found. In short order we arrived. It was much like it looked in google maps. It was basically a fork in the road in a very remote and small village in the middle of much farm land. An old woman and a man with a baby came out, curious as to why these foreigners were standing out in the middle of nowhere snapping pictures. I couldn’t help but wonder if perhaps one of these were Charis’ relatives or perhaps knew something of her story… Maybe next time when we visit we will make more inquiry but our girl isn’t ready this trip. Still, what a blessing to be able to do these things… It was emotional for Charis and for each of us in different ways.

After our visit and a delightful lunch with our guide, Charis’ difficult deed done, the kids were fixated on the idea of swimming in the hotel swimming pool. After that, we went out for a walk and found a park… While there, we saw some bounce houses and people doing Chinese Yoyo. Also, as is common all over China, we found community members working out in a small workout area in the park. Lisa was invited to play ping pong with the locals (Roy looked too much like a local to get asked) and Timothy as well. It was really fun and we really felt a part of the local community.

I think one thing we really see in China is the huge importance they put in living daily in community. In just about every community we visited, there are parks with weight equipment, ping pong tables etc. and invariably, there were people using it, people from all ages and states and walks of life. Some did community Tai-chi. Other were learning how to dance. It was almost as if the park was a free community center and full service gym all wrapped up in one. It was everywhere. It also seems that the culture puts less emphasis on filling their homes and more on spending time doing stuff together. (When they aren’t busy competing in their work etc.) It really was refreshing.