Sunday in Tianjin

We woke up around 3 AM. Art and I are still trying to adapt to the time change. By the time we get our body's time clock adjusted to China time, we will be flying back home.
Around 6 AM, Christian opened up the draperies in our room and discovered it had snowed a couple inches over night. Snow only falls in small amounts 2 or 3 times a year here in Tianjin. We walked downstairs for our "usual" breakfast in our hotel and set out with our interpreter for a visit of the downtown area. The picture to the left shows how we have to hold Benjamin back on the elevator, otherwise we will stop at every floor due to his curious button pushing. The stores and sidewalks were crowded with people enjoying their day off with a bit of a holiday spirit in the air. The nice thing about the precipitation here in China is it tends to bring down the pollutants making it easier to breath.
In our wanderings we came upon an old Catholic Church sanctioned by the Chinese government in the heart of downtown Tianjin. We decided to venture in finding a large gathering of Chinese people singing and praising God in a sanctuary ornately painted in pale blue and gold. The priest spoke the mass in Chinese. Our guide said she had never been in a church before. This was such a delightful way to spend Sunday morning.
Thereafter, the boys were treated to ice cream at the Dairy Queen and rides on some coin operated toys. They were in their glory. We all enjoyed getting out with no time constraints. Later in the day we arranged to meet with a family who lived in Grand Rapids for several years and now live and work in Tianjin. We spent a relaxing evening together in their home then shared dinner at a local "hot pot" restaurant in their neighborhood. We enjoyed such wonderful fellowship with like minded people who would have otherwise been complete strangers. We ended the evening shivering on a busy street corner trying to catch a cab with two tired little boys in tow. It appears as if the taxi drivers didn't appreciate taking riders that far across town. It would have helped if we could have understood their explanation in Chinese. Just took us three tries.
Tomorrow ( Monday,) we will venture out to visit Prince of Peace Foster Center where Benjamin called home for the past four years. Please pray for him to have healthy closer to his past and continued peaceful/ secure transition to his life in a family.


Blessings dear ones,

Wendy for Art, Christian and Benjamin