Last Day in Nanchang

Today is our last day in Nanchang. We will leave our friends at the Gloria Plaza Hotel today at 3:00 p.m. and will fly to Guangzhou. I believe there will be many families on our flight, and I expect it will be a loud flight with alot of rowdy babies!

Yesterday our wonderful guide, Linda, had a special day planned for Max. She took us all to the Nanchang Zoo. It wasn't very croweded, so we got to spend alot of time looking at all the animals. Max and I rode on a couple of rides, and because the zoo wasn't very busy, the ride attendants kept the rides going and going and going. At one point on the Merry Go 'Round, Max looked at me and said, "I'm getting dizzy." Whew! No kidding!

Lucy enjoyed her first zoo experience. We all received alot of curious stares from the zoo patrons. They were undoubtedly trying to figure out the family dynamics! Max made another friend. He and another little boy were chosen to participate in the baby elephant show. He had to be carried across a moat by a zoo employee (the employee seemed pretty shocked by Max's weight!)and then he had to stand perfectly still while the baby elephant tried to put a hat on Max's head. The elephant tried, unsuccessfully, to put the hat on Max's head, but you know, Max has always had a large noggin, so it really wasn't the elephant's fault that it wouldn't stay on!




After the elephant show. Max and his new friend went to feed the koi. That was a lot of fun, and we decided that boys will be boys, not matter where they are from!



We went back to our hotel after the zoo and planned to get ready for another dinner, at what we affectionately refer to as the Stomach and Guts Restaurant. Linda came up with the gentleman from the tailor shop with our clothing. Max loved his new suit of clothes and was very disappointed when he found he could not wear it to the restaurant. We gave in a bit and allowed him to wear his beautiful Chinese dragon hat. Here is a sneak preview of what we will be wearing in this year's Christmas card!



Dinner was exciting as usual. Linda had brought some extra fish food from the zoo and took Max up to the fish tanks at the restaurant. Nope, those fish in the tanks aren't for looking at, they are for eating! Max and Linda came back to the table with an eight inch catfish! The manager of the restaurant had presented Max with a gift of a live fish. We all had a good long laugh, but then we had to decide what to do with this fish. We couldn't return the fish to the manager, because that would not have been polite. Linda suggested buying a seat on the plane for it! We thought about taking him to the Yangtze River, but decided that would be too dangerous. Linda decided we should take it back to the hotel and put it in one of the koi ponds, and that is just what we did! Sleepy Head the catfish has had his life extended and is now enjoying a peaceful and pleasant life in the lobby of the Gloria Plaza Hotel.