Yoyo Day and Pop Planes

Our first full day in Shenyang was certainly an up and down, yo yo day.  An emotional roller coaster .

After I wrote and posted my last blog, I called and told the people at Michelin that we would like to switch hotels to the Crowne Plaza.  They said that they would call Tim's cell phone when they had any news for us.  In the meantime, Ryan appeared to be feeling better so we had decided that he didn't need to visit the doctor.  Then he ate half an oreo and threw up so we quickly changed our minds and called for an appointment.  This was after 8am and we got an appointment for 10am.  I quickly took a shower, we grabbed the car seats and headed down to the restaurant hotel for a chaotic but tasty breakfast.  Tim and I were finally able to eat a little more than we had been (which was almost nothing), Nick gobbled down pancakes, bacon and yogurt and Ryan had some Rice Krispies.  After that we rushed down to the lobby to meet our tour guide, Marina, and interpreter, Chloe.  These two would turn out to be our saviors on this day.

We got the car seats into the van (although not with the LATCH and anchor systems we have at home) and took off for our tour.  By this time Ryan again seemed to be feeling fine, running around and laughing, and because we didn't want to mess up the tour schedule, I called and cancelled the doctor appointment.  As our tour got underway, Chloe presented us with a bag containing maps, a DVD about Shenyang, a tour book and a gift package containing about ten sets of very pretty chopsticks.  Nick proceeded to use one pair ALL DAY as drumsticks, his drums being the water bottles our guides had also brought along.  This was fantastic (little sarcasm here)!

Our first stop was a restaurant that wasn't supposed to be on the tour but Ryan had to pee.  Chloe came in with us to translate and I think we made the day of the ladies cleaning the bathroom as they couldn't stop smiling at Ryan.  Next we stopped at a park and the kids ran around like little crazy people who had been cooped up in a hotel room and airplanes too long.  Ryan peed again here and I thought it was odd but he had been drinking lots of water during the night so I wasn't worried.  Following this we made a quick stop at our new bank where Tim learned how to change the PIN number on his card and test to make sure everything was working.  We made a trip into Global Doctor, our new doctor's office inside a hospital.  Had I known we were going to stop there I wouldn't have cancelled the appointment but nevertheless, it was nice to see it..

Then it was off to Carrefour, a lovely French supermarket that smelled like freshly baked bread and had lots of imported and familiar foods.  We had a great time in this place and it was here that Chloe and Marina helped me buy a cell phone - and by helped I mean, I picked the cheapest phone, gave them money and they did all the work.  I was going to buy an iPhone but, and this is difficult for me to believe, they cost about 7000 yuan (pronounced UN) or $1100 and were more expensive than most of the LCD tv's they had at the store.  So, cheapest phone it was!

This store, as well as the Walmart we went to the day before, has several levels and instead of normal escalators they have ones that you can take your cart on; more like a moving sidewalk on an angle.  I wasn't able to get a picture of this yet but I will later.  The kids love these things!  While we were at this store Ryan peed again, two times, and I started to get a little concerned.  From here I believe the next stop was lunch, although it's all a little fuzzy to me now.  We went to a famous dumpling restaurant and although the food was delicious we had a hard time enjoying it.  Ryan was still running to the bathroom and Tim and I still hard a hard time eating very much.  Also, smoking was allowed in this place and after so many years of living in Nova Scotia where you aren't allowed to smoke in any public place this is difficult to tolerate.  Needless to say, we won't be eating out a lot.

I must also add that it was at this restaurant I had my first experience with a Chinese squat toilet.  I did pretty well, not peeing on my shoes or anything, but still prefer the Western toilet.  Ryan, on the other hand, had been using these toilets all day and was rather pleased to be peeing standing up instead of sitting on a seat.

Towards the end of the meal Marina suggested we call Global Doctors and see if we could get Ryan another appointment.  I agreed as I was getting more worried so we called for an appointment and they drove us back to the doctors office to see if we could get him in any earlier.  We couldn't and we had an hour to kill so we went to Metro, another grocery store but more similar to Costco.  Again we were thankful for our guides as they got the memberships and helped us find bathrooms (for Ryan, of course).  We purchased some more food for the hotel room and headed back to the doctor.  Along the way they showed us where the IKEA store is as apparently it is quite popular with the expats.

When we got to the doctors office Nick stayed in the van with our translator, Chloe, while we took Ryan in to see the doctor.  Nick had no problem with this as he was quite taken with Chloe, a pretty, young and very friendly Chinese woman. She was excellent with the kids and us, so very helpful and kind.  Meanwhile, in the doctors office, Ryan fell asleep waiting to get in so see the doctor and the receptionist wanted a policy number for us.  I hadn't had time to print off the cards so Marina got on her phone to Michelin to try and find it out for us.  She was also very helpful in speaking to the Chinese staff on our behalf.  After a little bit we got to see the doctor.  He was a very relaxed, very kind man from West Virginia who has only been in Shenyang for three months.  Before that he lived in Beijing and Africa and who knows where else.  I asked him about living abroad with children and he said there are good things and bad but it has been a great experience.  He checked Ryan out (without waking him!) and it turned out that he had an ear infection and likely a virus as well.  He prescribed antibiotics and they actually give them to you right there.  Tim paid (600 UN,about $100Cad) and we left to head back to the hotel.  With our new health plan we pay for services then get reimbursed later.

Now at some point during the day we had received a call from Michelle at Michelin telling us that we would be moving from Traders Hotel to the Crowne Plaza.  This was a great relief except for the thought of moving all of our stuff from one hotel to another, especially with a sick kid.  After I spoke to her she asked to speak to Marina and had apparently requested that she and Chloe assist us with the move.  While we were waiting for the doctor I told her how our room was such a mess with suitcases and how much work it would be to move.  I was pretty much just babbling because I was so tired, stressed and fighting tears.  She said not to worry, that they would help us.  So we headed back to the hotel in the van, Ryan asleep in my arms, yes, while the van was moving.  As awful as it sounds it is nice to not have to put a sick, exhausted kid into a car seat.  They have no laws here regarding child seats and most people don't use them.  Nick uses his booster seat with a seatbelt and while he was feeling well enough, Ryan used his too.

When we arrived at the hotel Chloe and Marina spoke to the hotel staff for us and told them we would be leaving.  We went up to our room to start packing and they, along with our driver, soon joined us.  I was trying to pack and give Ryan, who had woken up, his first dose of antibiotics.  They are in powder form and have to be mixed with juice or water for him to drink it.  He wasn't in any sort of mood for that so we wasted one pack and had to open another.  This one we mixed with tylenol and Tim held his arms while I forced it into his mouth.  While all this is going on our helpers and Nick were firing everything into bags so we could get out of there as quickly as possible.  It was so hot!  When everything was ready they loaded up carts and took it downstairs.  Someone, I'm not sure who but I'm guessing Michelle from Michelin, arranged for a van from the Crowne Plaza to come pick us up.  So, while Chloe supervised the loading of our luggage into our van, we sat in the Crowne Plaza van watching and holding Ryan who was asleep again by this time.  Two men from the Crowne Plaza drove us to the new hotel and we were met at the door by a lady who also worked there.  She and one of the men from the van (who we found out later is the manager of the hotel) escorted us directly to our new rooms on the eighth floor.  We walked into two clean smelling, cool and very large rooms.  The lady took our passports to check us in and just after she left, Chloe, Marina, and several bellboys brought all of our luggage and goodies to us.  Never in my life have I felt like such royalty.  It was all a little overwhelming and while they were sorting out our luggage and whatnot, I just sat down on our bed, held Ryan a little closer and cried tears of relief.  I couldn't believe how these people that we had only known a few hours would go so out of their way to help us, especially when we needed it the most.  I wondered why we had ended up at the Traders Hotel, a fine place for business people but not the right place for a family with two small kids, one of them sick.  After that experience I think I know.  We would never have appreciated these people or this hotel, which we will call home for the next month, as much had we just come here in the first place.

Before they left I gave Chloe and Marina a hug and thanked them for everything they had done for us.  Chloe left her phone number and email address and I would love to take her to lunch as a thank you. 

Last night everyone slept a little more than the night before and I'm sure tonight will be even better again.  This morning we had a beautiful buffet breakfast at the hotel, courtesy of Michelin, and for lunch today Nicholas and I ordered room service while Ryan slept.   Before the food arrived Nick was sitting in the window sill watching all the activity on the street below and he said "I'm glad we came here so we can see stuff we wouldn't see in Canada".  To this I replied, "It's so much fun to go on an adventure" and he said "That's what I want to be when I grow up.  An adventurer".  I love it!

While we were eating our lunch he came out with, "I can believe this is real life.  I always wanted to go to China".  Then he said that he didn't know that people here wouldn't talk like us.  I explained that people all over the world speak different languages.  To this he said, "We should teach them our speakuage".  "Speakuage?" I asked, trying not to laugh.  He replied, "I was saying it in Chinese".

And one more for the road because I can't believe the things my four-year-old is saying.  This morning when he woke up he told Tim, "I wanted to have a good sleep so I wouldn't be cranky because I'm really starting to like it here"..

Finally, pop planes.  From Toronto to Seoul we flew with Korean Airlines.  I believe it was when we were in Seoul Nick asked me if we were going to fly the rest of the way to China on the Pop Plane.  "Pop plane?" I asked him.  "Yeah, the one with the pop picture on it."  I clued in at that point he was talking about the Pepsi symbol and getting it confused with the Korean Air one.  They do look a lot alike.

Have a great day everyone!

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Pop Plane



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