Shamian Island
Today was a scheduled trip to Shamian Island. This island is part of Guangzhou and has been, for a long time, synonymous with American adoption in China. That was because the US Embassy was located on Shamian Island, and every US adoption must go through the embassy before the child can receive a visa to the US. There is also a hotel on the island--The White Swan--where most Americans used to stay for the duration of their GZ time. The WS is famous for their red couches. Many adopted children get their photo taken on one of the red couches. Of course, we had to do that today, too. There are numerous shops geared toward Westerners on the island as well. Recently, the US Embassy moved off the island, and the White Swan also announced that it is closing in September for a year and a half to renovate. Unfortunately, most of the little shops will probably close down because of lack of business. We stayed at the White Swan when we adopted Gracie (when Auntie Martha was able to meet us there!...