The Magic Kingdom - Hong Kong Style (Our Journey - part 7/Final)



While we were waiting for admittance to Disneyland, some castmembers approached us and asked if we'd like to be the first guests of the day. What this means is that when they were ready to open, we went through the gates first, had our pictures taken with the castmembers, got a certificate and some stickers and, right before the gates opened, yelled 3...2...1... Disneyland Hong Kong is OPEN!!! and jumped up and down. It was fun and Jason was thrilled with the attention.




After we were through the gates and the pics were done, we sped over to Space Mountain. During the time we were in Disneyland, Jason managed to go on Space Mountain 7 times between me and Mike. Because it wasn't high season, there was very little waiting and we usually walked right on rides. Mike was surprised that I went on this ride but I was able to handle it because there are no big drops. When I was sitting next to Jason the first time on, my hands were already sweaty and I was wondering what I'd gotten myself into. I had a good time on it even though I am definitely not a roller coaster person. On our last ride, I actually got the nerve to let go of the seat and raise my arms when the flash went off. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see the picture because some teens that were sitting in front of us made obscene gestures a the camera so the picture was "lost in space."




Our first glimpse of the castle.


















Meeting the characters.


Jess didn't like the characters so I tried to position myself between her and them so she wouldn't be crying.



Stitch




















Buzz Lightyear

Timon

Mickey & Minnie




















Marie from Aristocats





















Winnie the Pooh (I was sad not to see Eeyore)


























Mu Shu from Mulan


























Goofy





















Chip and Dale After we had our pic taken as a group and started walking away, they grabbed Jason back for another shot.


















Donald and Daisy Daisy playing with Jason's hair while Donald signs his book. Lots
of people/characters were interested in his long hair. Some
people thought he was a girl. He loved the attention so he didn't seem to really mind.

This trashcan moves and talks! In WDW, it's called Push; I don't know if it is here. What made me mad was that some child (around 6-7 years old or so) kept running and kicking it. A castmember came out of a store and told him to stop. The dad just laughed - no wonder the kid's acting like a brat!

















These aer the Jamminators. They played some good beats on their upturned pails. One of the guys came out in front of the pails to clap and get the audience going and that same child came up and tried to hit him. Again, the dad seemed amused!



















We ate at the Corner Cafe for lunch twice which offered Mickey waffles on the children's menu at every meal (on the adult menu only at breakfast). This was Jessica's plate. Jason's had ice cream instead of fruit. I had a pasta salad that was very, very good.



We watched the fireworks both nights. Some people lined the streets an hour before they started but there was no way I was going to try to keep Jess that contained for an hour so we were back aways but still had a good view. Songs from different movies played while clips were projected onto the castle.




Character Breakfast







On our last morning in Hong Kong, we went to the character breakfast at the Enchanted Garden. Jess has finally let me start getting my own food without having to take her with me as long as no one tried to touch her. She was not happy about all the large ducks, dogs and mice that kept coming up and touching her. When I came back from the buffet, I found her voluntarily in Mike's lap which was a first. He said she found him more tolerable than the characters. It was a breakthrough although she's still a mama's girl. Jason was excited because when Daisy came over and had her picture taken, she touched her eye, head and pointed at Jason which he took to mean "I (eye) know you." He thinks she was the same one who was playing with his hair the day before. I'm very thankful that the characters paid Jason so much attention; it made it easier for him when the baby got a lot.





Mike got a massage from Pluto.







Homeward Bound

After breakfast, we packed up the room and headed to the airport. We had to wait until 12:30 for the ticket counter to open. Once we got our luggage checked, we found a children's area with Kids Next Door cartoons playing.




I had my last Coke Light at the airport. It's a little different tasting than Diet Coke but I got used to it. Jason ate chicken fingers at Burger King and Mike and I ate at Wildfire Grill which was very good.


And we're off.

It was a very long flight. Thankfully Jess slept most of the way but with Jess and Jason both trying to lay on me, I didn't get much if any sleep. When we landed in Chicago, we thought it was an hour earlier than it was because the screen in the front of the cabin said it was 5:30. With daylight savings time taking effect that weekend, it was actually 6:30. It took nearly an hour for our luggage to come down the carousel. We had to get our luggage, go through customs, recheck the luggage and then go through immigration where we handed over the sealed envelope. After that, we had to go through security again. I happened to see the time on a monitor when I was checking for our gate and saw that we had only minutes to get to our plane! We ran through the terminal and just made it; we were the next to last people on the plane. The flight attendants were very nice and at the end, the pilot came back and gave Jason some cards about the plane we were on. During the flight, the girl in front of me put her seat back. Since I had Jess on my lap, this gave us very little rom. I couldn't even have my drink on my tray because there was no room. Normally, I wouldn't let a child push at a seat in front of her but since Jess couldn't even put her legs out without hitting the seatback, I didn't worry about it. The girl kept giving these heavy sighs. All she had to do was move her seat a little and Jess would have had the couple inches she needed. She'd caught me off guard when she put her seat back or I would have blocked it a little with my leg - selfish I know but it's ridiculous when I can't even use my tray to put a drink on.

We landed around midnight and got our luggage. We'd arranged with Amy to stay at the airport Hyatt since we were getting in so late. We called the hotel to have their van pick us up and went out to wait. It went right by us! We were in the right spot so I don't know why he didn't stop. Mike went back in and called again and it came back. We had a great room with an awesome view. The next morning we had a fantastic breakfast buffet (the warm cinnamon buns were just like Cinnabon - mmmm). We'd been given late check out so we checked out the pool before heading to Mike's parents to get our car. We visited with them for a short time and then went home. The car ride home was very difficult. Jess has never been in a carseat before and was not at all pleased at being strapped in. She screamed nonstop the entire way. Jason was beside himself sitting next to her.

Final Thoughts

It was an absolutely awesome trip and I am so glad we did the trip as a family; Jason will have these memories for a lifetime. My favorite part of the adoption portion was Jinan. The people were so friendly and welcoming. While the White Swan was not what I expected, I am glad we went there since I would have been disappointed if we hadn't given all the hype it gets. I know some people say not to try to do everything that is set up as for sightseeing. I think it depends on the child. Jess was did great - she slept in the bus and stroller when she was tired, blew kisses at people, and showed she loved anything that had music by giving a smile that lit up her face. I think it gave her the opportunity to see that we were going to be there with her no matter where we went.

Coke Light takes some getting used to. The hard beds take a little getting used to; I don't know how they make a mattress quite that hard. I tried new foods; Jason tried new foods which is amazing. The hawking of goods in Guangzhou got a little tiresome but I got some good buys. I found I'm not a haggler but that walking away does work also. I brought way too much stuff with me. It depends on where you're going but with our itinerary, I could have brought a lot less. I took about 1500 pictures between my regular camera and my digital - always take more than you think you'll need. These pictures will help Jess learn about where she comes from. The clothing police are real - they are indoors and outdoors. I just covered her up and dealt with it. Squatty potties are, in my opinion, nasty but you do what you have to do and just carry both toilet paper and hand sanitizer with you at all times. When we go back when Jess is older for a homeland tour, we will go business class. If I found the flight difficult now, I can just imagine how I'll feel about it in 10 or so years. God truly had a plan...Jess is perfect for our family. She handled all the travel to tourist sites and Disney like a trouper, she loves music, she loves to laugh, she is definitely my little girl.