Ancient City of Pingyao

Okay, before I start this post about Pingyao I have to tell you something... Ben said his first word! He can now wave and say "bye". It is just about the most precious thing I ever did see! He can also shake on command (oh gosh- that makes him sound like a dog!), give high 5's, and clap when we say "yeah." What a smart little guy :)

Now for the day...

We got to sleep in a little bit today and, although the day started really well with some cuddling in the bed (with BEN- you people with your dirty minds!), he was really cranky for the rest of the day. He is a VERY picky eater and was even more so at breakfast when he refused to eat anything but a dumpling and croissant (dude likes his carbs). Even stuff that he devoured yesterday was taken forcibly from his mouth and thrown on the table (dude not afraid of showing an opinion!). He was fussy during the 2 hour drive to Pingyao too. This was just the opposite of yesterday. We were wondering if he was not feeling well or he was tired or thirsty but we could not figure out the problem. We realized what was going on as we watched him STARE at other children in Pingyao- he is grieving for his lost life and his friends. Poor little guy. I never want him to forget about his time in China and the friends that he had there but I also hope that he moves through this phase quickly and as painlessly as possible. It is hard to be a mommy and know that your child is in pain and there is nothing that you can do about it. We just tried to give him extra love and kisses today. We also met Scott and Pam for dinner so Ben got a little dose of Evin to make him feel better.

So, you read above that the drive to Pingyao was 2 hours. Why when it is only about 50 miles away? Well, it is because the road from Taiyuan to Pingyao is absolutely the worst road I have ever seen/rode on in my entire life. The potholes were unbelievable. We literally bounced up and down for an hour. Jay took a video of me holding Ben and almost bouncing out of my seat but China seems to be angry at YouTube tonight so we can't get it to upload (the Great Firewall of China!). If it works tomorrow I will upload it then- it is well worth the view.

As for the Ancient City, it is well worth the visit and was one of the coolest things that I have ever seen. Our guide Linda is not a great adoption guide. She knows NOTHING about children, seems unwilling to help us find food or necessities, forgets to tell us about important things, and kind of muddles through the adoption procedures. But, that woman is worth her weight in gold as a tour guide! She knows EVERYTHING! We have a sneaking suspicion that she is actually a tour guide who was pressed into service when our scheduled guide had a conflict. But, as we look back on the past few days, we have treasured her knowledge of local history so much more than we could have enjoyed her parenting advice! She really is a wonderful tour guide.

Anyway, back to Pingyao... it is an amazing walled city that is home to China's first bank. Many tourists come and tour the bank- Linda gave us the WHOLE story of it's creation and its inner-working. It is huge, filling up a square mile, and the wonderful part of it is that even though it is a UNESCO protected World Heritage Site, it a living, working city where people still live and do business. The architecture is so amazing that after a while you are so overwhelmed with beautiful stuff that you become almost immune to all but the most spectacular! We toured around the many former banks (at one time there were 22 banks there- it is Ancient China's Wall Street!) that have been turned into souvenir shops. When I say "souvenir" I don't mean silly t-shirts and shot glasses. I mean porcelain figurines and vases, painted scrolls, paper-cuts (paper with intricately cut designs in it), furniture, and little metal sculptures of good luck charms. I could SERIOUSLY have stayed there all week! I bought a few things but I totally regret not buying more. I wish we could go back and I recommend making a stop there if you are in the area. It really should not be missed!

We got back from Pingyao at about 6:00 and we met Scott, Pam, and Evin for dinner. We have really enjoyed getting to know them and we will miss them when we leave tomorrow. I am VERY sad to leave Shanxi Province and I am NOT looking forward to Guangzhou. You can take your English-speaking touristy resort and leave me with 5000 years of history any day! I will always have a place for Shanxi Province in my heart and I will always long to come back here and experience its wonders again.