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Hello Everyone,
We just wanted everyone to know we are now in Wuhan. We arrived today, Saturday June 16, 12 noon local time. Our guide Lifeng met us at the dock and arranged transfer to the hotel. This afternoon we are just relaxing in the hotel by enjoying a real shower for the first time in 5 days. Our first illness hit yesterday and it hit me. Bad sinus infection aggravated by the worst pollution in the world. We had heard it was bad but had no idea how bad until we saw it, smelled it, and tasted it.
The trip down the Yangtze was amazing. We started in Chongqing. I take back everything I said about the "little" town of Beijing. Beijing only has a population of 12 million. Chongqing is now over 33 million!
The 3 Gorges were spectacular. Some of the most amazing scenery on the planet. We had dinner in the third step of the five step ship locks as the boat locked through.
We toured the ghost village at Fengdu, rode the pea pod boats up and down Shennong stream, and toured the 3 Gorges dam project.
We are now at the White Rose Hotel in Wuhan.
We are experiencing computer trouble. Hopefully I will have everything resolved in the next few hours and will be able to post some pictures.
We are now less than 48 hours to meeting Paul William. That is scheduled to happen Monday June 18 at 9 am local time. That would be 8 pm Sunday June 17 in Alabama.
We are sightseeing tomorrow around Wuhan for a couple of hours and the rest of the day is a "down" day to prepare for Monday. Hopefully I will get the computer problem fixed and post some photos. I have only taken about 1500 so far. No kidding. 1500! Everywhere you look there is something amazing to photograph.
More later . . . .
Greg
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Monday, June 11, 2007
Day three begins
Tuesday, June 12 2007, 6:00 am local time Beijing
We have another big day today. (I guess they all will be big days.) This morning we check out of our hotel in Beijing. We have been staying at the Traders Hotel in downtown Beijing.
A while back I saw on TV that one third of the construction cranes in the world are in the country of Dubai. We've found the other two thirds. They are all right here in Beijing. Everything about this city is immense. That's the best adjective I can come up with. Someone needs to invent a new one to describe the scale of things here in Beijing. In fact, maybe in the future we should just use the word Bejing as the adjective as in; "Today astronomers discovered a large new galaxy. They described it as "Beijing". ;)
Everything about this city is "Beijing", the population, the number of bicycles, the physical size. Construction. Construction is going on everywhere. Beijing is the largest construction site on earth right now. China consumes 50% of the concrete supply on earth and a large percentage of the steel supply. Much of the growth is preparation for the 2008 Olympics.
There is a new hotel going up across the street from our hotel. The work goes on 24/7. It looks like they are up to about the 50th floor with no sign of slowing down. Space is so limited that they have blocked one lane of the two lane street in front of our hotel so that the trucks bringing in the structural steel can stop to unload. And unload they do. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
A few blocks away they are building a new headquarters for the Chinese television company. There are two towers rising at angles toward one another. It's the most amazing thing. They look as thought they will topple over at any second. Eventually they will be connected at the top. At night there are showers of red hot metal falling from the torches of the workers and the white hot flash from welders. Through the dense smog layer you have the surreal glow from the flood lights high in the upper reaches of the building and it gives the sensation of some post apocalyptic beast rising from the ruins of Armageddon.
Today we visit the Summer Palace and then depart Beijing on a 4:30 flight to Chongqing. We will be on the Yangtze river until noon Saturday when we arrive in Wuhan. I don't think we will have internet access until we reach Wuhan so this is likely to be our last post until then.
So far everything has gone as well we could have dreamed of. We are having the time of our lives and each day brings us closer to our new son.
Thanks for visiting our blog and sharing our "Beijing" journey.
"Big Greg"
We have another big day today. (I guess they all will be big days.) This morning we check out of our hotel in Beijing. We have been staying at the Traders Hotel in downtown Beijing.
A while back I saw on TV that one third of the construction cranes in the world are in the country of Dubai. We've found the other two thirds. They are all right here in Beijing. Everything about this city is immense. That's the best adjective I can come up with. Someone needs to invent a new one to describe the scale of things here in Beijing. In fact, maybe in the future we should just use the word Bejing as the adjective as in; "Today astronomers discovered a large new galaxy. They described it as "Beijing". ;)
Everything about this city is "Beijing", the population, the number of bicycles, the physical size. Construction. Construction is going on everywhere. Beijing is the largest construction site on earth right now. China consumes 50% of the concrete supply on earth and a large percentage of the steel supply. Much of the growth is preparation for the 2008 Olympics.
There is a new hotel going up across the street from our hotel. The work goes on 24/7. It looks like they are up to about the 50th floor with no sign of slowing down. Space is so limited that they have blocked one lane of the two lane street in front of our hotel so that the trucks bringing in the structural steel can stop to unload. And unload they do. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
A few blocks away they are building a new headquarters for the Chinese television company. There are two towers rising at angles toward one another. It's the most amazing thing. They look as thought they will topple over at any second. Eventually they will be connected at the top. At night there are showers of red hot metal falling from the torches of the workers and the white hot flash from welders. Through the dense smog layer you have the surreal glow from the flood lights high in the upper reaches of the building and it gives the sensation of some post apocalyptic beast rising from the ruins of Armageddon.
Today we visit the Summer Palace and then depart Beijing on a 4:30 flight to Chongqing. We will be on the Yangtze river until noon Saturday when we arrive in Wuhan. I don't think we will have internet access until we reach Wuhan so this is likely to be our last post until then.
So far everything has gone as well we could have dreamed of. We are having the time of our lives and each day brings us closer to our new son.
Thanks for visiting our blog and sharing our "Beijing" journey.
"Big Greg"
The wall and the acrobats
We started the day with a visit to the Great Wall of China. Here is a picture of Mary Louise climbing the wall. Mary Louise is so afraid of heights she doesn't even like to stand up and now she has flown all the way to China and climbed the Great Wall!
We finished the day with a performance of the Chinese Acrobats.
Mrs. Ogle goes to kindergarten
As most of you know Mary Louise is a kindergarten teacher. Today we were able to visit a kindergarten here in Beijing.
Food for Thought
Our second day in China was amazing. First stop today was at the jade market where we learned the basics of jade, how to tell if it is real, what type the jade is, and special characteristics of different types of jade. Then we spent a nice bundle on some neat little jade family balls and pendants. We (and by we I mean Greg Jr.) walked to the top of the Great Wall of China, a long steep climb but well worth the effort. We then had a nice lunch at a Chinese Souvenir Shop, before heading out towards our next and best outing of the day. Rick-Shaws!!!!!!!!!!!Lifeng took us to downtown Beijing where we got to ride in the rick-shaws. We also visited a real Beijing household, kindergarten, and Free Market. We really got a good closeup to Chinese culture but it also let us see how impovershed some parts of the city are. After our Rick-Shaw ride, with our 50 Cent listening tour guide, we went to a Chinese theatre and saw the Chinese Acrobats. They are absolutely amazing!! For supper we had a nice big American Style (pepperoni and cheese) pizza from Pizza Hut. Day 2 was pretty good altogether but I can not wait to get out of Beijing because i am tired of the dreary grey smog clouded skies. Tomorrow we go to the SUmmer Palace and the Yangtze River Cruise. I can't wait!! Greg Jr.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
What we did the first day
We are staying at Traders Hotel at China World Trade Center. It is fabulous. There is construction everywhere-they have many buildings to finish before the Olympics-but they just have constant construction here. Around our hotel there is beautiful landscaping, so well groomed and such a variety of plants. Even with the construction you can walk and hear the birds singing and see lots of little birds. We ate breakfast at the hotel breakfast buffet but you could get all types of local food and Western food. We left at 8 to go to Tian A Menn Square. Parking is at a premium here and as soon as we parked,we were surrounded by women selling souvenirs. Our guide said something to Greg and they took off leaving me with all the poor women trying to hawk their wares -thank goodness I did not even have any money with me -when Greg came back to get me he told me Lifeng(our guide) said to ignore them because there are so many(thanks for letting me know that!) but it was a difficult moment. We walked on the square and saw the museum and the giant picture of the Chairman-his body is still in the museum! and toured the Forbidden City. The Forbidden City is enormous and of course they are trying to spruce it up for the Olympics, but it is incredible to see and realize how they built it almost 700 years ago. Inside the city we were approached by the first of several beggars-he was missing RBE just like our sweet boy and it was an emotional moment for us. Almost all the beggars we saw were limb difference men.
We visited the silk market and they took us through the whole process from the silk worms to the finished product. We saw some very beautiful material. I think our guide was Greg's age and he spoke pretty good English but talked very fast. We had a good time there. After that we ate lunch at a Beijing noodle house. That was when I felt we were Really in China now. We were the only White people there. It was a place our guide liked to eat and we walked there. There were life-sized carvings of people posed and sitting or standing around. There was some type of altar or homage to some god or person there, it was different.
In the afternoon we visited the Temple of Heaven. It was neat-very old and colorful, rich with history. We saw ancient junipers and cypress, types of cedars and pines, all very old. They seem to go to a great deal of trouble to try to save old limbs on the trees. I had seen this in pictures before.
Then we went to our room and crashed. I didn't even think I was tired until I walked in the door! It was 5:30 AM when I started this post and now it is time to get ready to walk on the Great Wall of China!
We visited the silk market and they took us through the whole process from the silk worms to the finished product. We saw some very beautiful material. I think our guide was Greg's age and he spoke pretty good English but talked very fast. We had a good time there. After that we ate lunch at a Beijing noodle house. That was when I felt we were Really in China now. We were the only White people there. It was a place our guide liked to eat and we walked there. There were life-sized carvings of people posed and sitting or standing around. There was some type of altar or homage to some god or person there, it was different.
In the afternoon we visited the Temple of Heaven. It was neat-very old and colorful, rich with history. We saw ancient junipers and cypress, types of cedars and pines, all very old. They seem to go to a great deal of trouble to try to save old limbs on the trees. I had seen this in pictures before.
Then we went to our room and crashed. I didn't even think I was tired until I walked in the door! It was 5:30 AM when I started this post and now it is time to get ready to walk on the Great Wall of China!
Our first picture from China
Here we are in front of the Tian A'Men Gate to the Forbidden City in Beijing China. Photo taken at 9:00 am June 10, 2007 local time. We were standing at one end of Tina A'Men Square when the photo was taken. It's impossible to understand the perspective in the picture but the gate in the background must be between 1/4 and 1/2 mile away.I Really Did Fly Here
Flight delays, bad weather and my bags were searched-all before I even left Huntsville. It was a shaky start and then I saw our plane-you know when we were WALKING across the runway to climb in. I had my moments at the beginning but a mere 21 hours later, I was a pro( well, at least by then I figured out how to take my medicine.) In Tokyo, I actually looked out the window very briefly! Because of our flight delays, we ended up not having a wait in Tokyo and just went from one plane to the next. Then we landed in Beijing and I was expecting just masses of people there but there were less people than you would see at Kenner on our game weekends. But I really am here finally!
Mary Louise
Mary Louise
Beijing, day one
Hello everyone
Our first day in Beijing was fantastic. Hot with a lot of walking, but fantastic!
(Mary Louise is still a bit tired. She just looked over my shoulder and asked, in all seriousness if I was typing in Chinese!)
Today we toured Tian A'men Square, the Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven. Words cannot begin to describe these places. If you ever have the opportunity you must visit this amazing country. Thinking that we walked the same stone walks and paths that Chinese Emporers walked thousands of years ago and imagining being there in those days is just awe inspiring.
I will post pictures when able. I am still having a few glitches with the computer.
Greg
Our first day in Beijing was fantastic. Hot with a lot of walking, but fantastic!
(Mary Louise is still a bit tired. She just looked over my shoulder and asked, in all seriousness if I was typing in Chinese!)
Today we toured Tian A'men Square, the Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven. Words cannot begin to describe these places. If you ever have the opportunity you must visit this amazing country. Thinking that we walked the same stone walks and paths that Chinese Emporers walked thousands of years ago and imagining being there in those days is just awe inspiring.
I will post pictures when able. I am still having a few glitches with the computer.
Greg
Saturday, June 09, 2007
Informational note
The times that are shown for what time a post was made is Huntsville time since I am posting remotely through my work computer.
What day is it? What time is it?
Hello everyone. We just wanted to make a short post to let everyone back home know that we are in China. For the first time we are now in the same country as Paul William.
Travel was uneventful. Flights were slightly delayed in Huntsville and Detroit due to the weather in the midwest yesterday. We had virtually no time between flights to catch our breath. It was basically go from one plane to the next and take off again.
We didn't get out of Huntsville until 11 am Friday. We arrived in Beijing tonight (Saturday June 9) at 9:35 pm only 10 minutes later than scheduled. No problems getting through the airport and meeting up with LiFeng (our facilitator/guide from Cradle of Hope). 30 minute drive through Beijing to our hotel, the Traders Hotel in the downtown business center of Beijing.
Greg Jr. and I had to order room service after 24 hours of airline food. Sorry to say our first meal in China was a burger with fries and club sandwich with fries. We will start the culinary adventures tomorrow. Tonight was just a matter of something in our stomachs to collapse in bed with. Mary Louise opted for a more direct approach: a shower and bed in short order. We are all near exhaustion but exhilarated to be here.
We are up and at it at 6 am. After a quick breakfast we meet LiFeng for a full day of sightseeing.
We will post again later tomorrow. We will try to post a picture or two.
Question for the computer literate that might read this. Any idea why I can't access this blog directly from here in China? I am having to remotely use my office computer back in Huntsville to access and post.
That's all for now. Sleep is not calling to me, it's screaming at me.
More later . . .
Greg
Travel was uneventful. Flights were slightly delayed in Huntsville and Detroit due to the weather in the midwest yesterday. We had virtually no time between flights to catch our breath. It was basically go from one plane to the next and take off again.
We didn't get out of Huntsville until 11 am Friday. We arrived in Beijing tonight (Saturday June 9) at 9:35 pm only 10 minutes later than scheduled. No problems getting through the airport and meeting up with LiFeng (our facilitator/guide from Cradle of Hope). 30 minute drive through Beijing to our hotel, the Traders Hotel in the downtown business center of Beijing.
Greg Jr. and I had to order room service after 24 hours of airline food. Sorry to say our first meal in China was a burger with fries and club sandwich with fries. We will start the culinary adventures tomorrow. Tonight was just a matter of something in our stomachs to collapse in bed with. Mary Louise opted for a more direct approach: a shower and bed in short order. We are all near exhaustion but exhilarated to be here.
We are up and at it at 6 am. After a quick breakfast we meet LiFeng for a full day of sightseeing.
We will post again later tomorrow. We will try to post a picture or two.
Question for the computer literate that might read this. Any idea why I can't access this blog directly from here in China? I am having to remotely use my office computer back in Huntsville to access and post.
That's all for now. Sleep is not calling to me, it's screaming at me.
More later . . .
Greg
Friday, June 08, 2007
14 Months Later . . . .
We thought we started this journey 14 months ago. This morning we're not so sure. The real journey begins at 8:30 this morning when we take those first steps out of our door here in Decatur.
It was a late night of packing and checking lists last night. We didn't get a lot of sleep, but hey we don't really have to do anything for the next 24+ hours but sit on an airplane, right?
You will hear from us next from China. It may be 36 to 48 hours from now before we can post again.
The Ogle family
It was a late night of packing and checking lists last night. We didn't get a lot of sleep, but hey we don't really have to do anything for the next 24+ hours but sit on an airplane, right?
You will hear from us next from China. It may be 36 to 48 hours from now before we can post again.
The Ogle family
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Travel Itinerary
Friday June 8, 10:08 AM Depart Huntsville on Northwest Flight 3722 to Detroit
Route: Huntsville - Detroit - Tokyo - Beijing
Saturday June 9, 9:20 PM Arrive Beijing
Sunday June 10 - Tour Tian An Men Square and the Forbidden City in the morning, tour the Temple of Heaven in the afternoon.
Monday June 11 - Tour the Great Wall of China in the morning and tour old Beijing by Rickshaw in the afternoon. Chinese Acrobats show in the evening.
Tuesday June 12 - Tour the Summer Palace in the morning. Flight departs for Chongqing at 4:25 pm arriving in Chongqing at 6:50 pm.
Wednesday June 13 thru Saturday June 16 - Yangtze River tour including 3 Gorges Dam
Saturday June 16 - Arrive Wuhan 12 noon
Sunday June 17 - Tour Wuhan
Monday June 18 - Meet James Paul William Ogle for the first time. (He will be with us from this point on.)
Tuesday June 19 thru Thursday June 21 - Paperwork to complete the adoption and sightseeing in Wuhan.
Friday June 22 - Finalize adoption in the morning then fly to Guangzhou arriving at 6:55 pm
Saturday June 23 - Paul William's U.S. passport photo will be made
Sunday June 24 - Tour Guangzhou
Monday June 25 - Passport application and US Citizenship paperwork turned in to the US Consulate Guangzhou
Tuesday June 26 - Final trip to US Consulate for the oath and to pick up Paul William's US Passport
Wednesday June 27 - Depart Guangzhou at 8:20 am
Route: Guangzhou - Tokyo - Detroit - Huntsville
Wednesday June 27 - Arrive in Huntsville at 4:32 pm (local time) on Northwest flight #2946
The End! Is it really, or is this the beginning?
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Website problem
Note: Our website is down right now. We are trying to correct the problem.
All news of our trip will be posted on this blog.
All news of our trip will be posted on this blog.
Travel plans are confirmed
We recieved a call from the agency this morning confirming our appointment at the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou for June 25 at 9:00 am. We will be flying home on June 27, arriving in Huntsville at 4:32 pm on Northwest flight 2946.
We leave for China on June 8 at 10:00 am.
Travel plans are complete.
We leave for China on June 8 at 10:00 am.
Travel plans are complete.
Monday, May 21, 2007
Plans are coming together
Our agency told us today that they recieved our Travel Invitation. We should have a firm date for our appointment at the US Consulate in Guangzhou within 48 hours.
We purchased plane tickets to travel to China on June 8 and return on June 27.
We should meet Paul William for the first time on June 17, Father's Day!
We purchased plane tickets to travel to China on June 8 and return on June 27.
We should meet Paul William for the first time on June 17, Father's Day!
Friday, May 18, 2007
Tentative Travel Plans
We had a telephone meeting with our adoption agency this morning and found out tentative travel dates.
We hope to depart Huntsville on June 8 and arrive in Beijing on June 9. We arrive home with Paul William on or about June 27.
We will post more detailed information as soon as we have it.
We hope to depart Huntsville on June 8 and arrive in Beijing on June 9. We arrive home with Paul William on or about June 27.
We will post more detailed information as soon as we have it.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
The light at the end of the tunnel!
At 1:45 this afternoon we received a call from our case worker at Cradle of Hope Adoption Center. Our Letter Of Acceptance (LOA) arrived from China. After we sign and return it to China our travel invitation to go to China should arrive 2 to 4 weeks from now, and we should leave for China approximately 2 weeks later. That means we should be in China sometime between the last week of May and the first week of June. We should be with Paul William sometime around Memorial Day. Hang on little buddy, we're coming to get you!
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Thank you
Those two words seem so totally inadequate after last night.
Last night many of our friends and family joined us for an evening of celebrating our upcoming trip to China to bring Paul William home. It was truly an amazing night. It means more than we can ever explain to know that so many of you support us in this journey.
Paul William already has many new friends and family members. We can't wait to bring him home so that you will all be able to meet him and share in the joy of the beginning of his new life.
We especially would like to thank our dear friends who hosted last night's celebration. The Borths, the Gleasons, the Loyds, the Helspers and the Werlings. You are dear and wonderful friends that will always hold a special place in our hearts. Every time we look at Paul William we will remember what you have done to make it possible for Paul William to come home to all of us.
We are forever humbled and grateful to you all.
Again, Thank You, and may God bless you,
Greg and Mary Louise
Last night many of our friends and family joined us for an evening of celebrating our upcoming trip to China to bring Paul William home. It was truly an amazing night. It means more than we can ever explain to know that so many of you support us in this journey.
Paul William already has many new friends and family members. We can't wait to bring him home so that you will all be able to meet him and share in the joy of the beginning of his new life.
We especially would like to thank our dear friends who hosted last night's celebration. The Borths, the Gleasons, the Loyds, the Helspers and the Werlings. You are dear and wonderful friends that will always hold a special place in our hearts. Every time we look at Paul William we will remember what you have done to make it possible for Paul William to come home to all of us.
We are forever humbled and grateful to you all.
Again, Thank You, and may God bless you,
Greg and Mary Louise
Saturday, April 07, 2007
One Year Ago . . .
It is hard to believe this journey began one year ago this week. At times it seemed as though time was standing still and we would never get to China. Now looking back it's hard to believe a year in Paul Williams young life has passed without us being with him. We started the process thinking we were adopting a 2 year old, and now he will be closer to a 3 year old.
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