Beijing

Yesterday was awesome! We spent the morning visiting the Great Wall, which was just as amazing the second time! We visited a different section of the Wall and were able to experience it in a totally new way! We started with a chairlift up and then were able to explore the Wall. We climbed for about an hour and were treated to beautiful views. Our guide, Angela, told us that this section of the Wall is known for it's lush green landscape. One of the highlights for us was taking a toboggan ride back down! Each person drives their own sled down a metal track. We could control the speed too, but unfortunately we had a slow rider in front of us, so we took a leisurely trip down. 

After the Great Wall we stopped for lunch and were treated to many tasty dished including Peking duck. There was enough food ordered to feed a party of 10! One of Ella's favorites was the mountain of french fried potatoes. Oh, and we're having fun eating with chopsticks! I'm sure we look ridiculous, with all the food that's not making it to our mouths on the first try!

Our final stop for the day was the Summer Palace. When we arrived, there was a steady downpour of rain and it was quite chilly outside. This is so different from the last time we were in Beijing and experienced sweltering heat. Luckily, Angela had umbrellas for each of us and we were able to explore despite the rain. The Summer Palace was beautiful and we enjoyed learning all the history that our guide shared. 

Today we will take a bullet train to Nanjing where we will meet Mairéad tomorrow! We are very excited and a bit nervous too.  We are so thankful to be at this place in our adoption and see how God is answering prayers and growing our family again.