Carlie had her 3rd treatment yesterday by IV. this is much less invasive than the spinals so she is already up and about today. I requested another doctor because our doctor did not speak a word of English. Our new doctor is named Dr.Tony he is very good and though. He has taken lots of time with us explaining everything. It is so much nicer to get medical words from the doctor than through the translator. Carlie’s next treatment will be on Wednesday and it will be a spinal. She is very nervous since the last one was somewhat difficult. Please say an extra prayer for her that day!
We are adjusting well to the way of life here. We were laughing the other day saying that when we get home we are not going to remember to speak proper English. SO expect us all to come home speaking Chinglish. We have even started talking that way to each other. (the other English speaking people on the floor) We say things to each other like, you like? and how mush? and very broken sentences. I am not kidding when I say that! It is hilarious, we get quite a kick out of it.
Another really strange thing is that they cut the hot water off on the weekends. We are not sure why but we all know the weekend is nearing when the translators come around with this look on their face. They know how we will react yet it is their job to break the news. Every Friday the hot water goes off at 5 pm and does not come back on until 5 pm on Sunday. They are so conservative. They waste nothing even electricity. I have already explained how they don’t waste food.
The maintenance man came around to day and asked me to fill out a survey. In the states they would leave it with you and tell you to drop it off later. Nope not here. The man said please fill out. Then he not only stayed for me to finish it but he looked over my shoulder while I was filling it out. I checked very dissatisfied with the sanitation and he asked me to put why. So I said because they clean with dirty mops. When I told everyone what I did they said they were not going to eat with me! They were joking and saying they were going to mess with my food. I am just shocked they asked because here in china they don’t ask anything. They tell you what to do and you are expected to do it. No say so what so ever. But they know we are foreigners and they are VERY concerned of how the US views them. I have to say over all I am very pleased with our care. They are so concerned with how Carlie is and how she feels. Some things they just are not accustomed to. Foe example pain medicine. Several of you have asked if they can give Carlie pain medicine when she is in pain. The answer is no. They do not use pain medicine. They view pain as a good thing. So I am glad we brought our own medicines.
They use local anesthesia for the spinal and then volume after. IT was so funny because Carlie looks so drugged after her spinals. Her eyes look all glazed over and she asks why do I feel this way? It is what they call, coming down. 
We laugh but it does help her calm down!
We are hopefully going to the park today as we have a couple days off. Until then
May 23rd, 2009
Lots has been going on so it has taken me several days to sit down and write about Carlie’s first spinal. It turns out she will have 3 treatments through her spine and 4 through IV.
We were very nervous as the day approached for Carlie’s first spinal. We kept it to ourselves and tried to remain as calm as possible. We talked to the doctor in depth about the procedure. They did not want to do general anastesha because they thought it would be too risky. So they decided to to it under local anesthesia. They said they would give her volume on top of it to calm her down. The practice of medicine is very different here. We were told the Chinese think pain is good and we have a totally opposite idea back home. They know that and try to accommodate us the best they can.
Anyway…the time came. They came in and hooked her up to some fluids through the IV first. Then they rolled her out of the room and up to the next floor. We were standing outside the door where we could everything. The procedure only took about 10 minutes start to finish. When she came out she looked scared to death. I know she was probably nervous being in there with no one speaking her language. But she did well. We rolled her back in the room and she began to calm down. It took her about 5 minutes to calm down. Now the hard part began, she had to lay still for 6 hours. We sat beside her bed talking to her, rubbing her, and trying to make the time pass as fast as possible. After about 2 hours she was starting to wiggle around so the doctors said she could roll to her side as long as she kept her head flat. So she did and she fell asleep. About 3 1/2 hours later she woke up groaning and moaning. I told Matthew I think she is getting the headache side effect. Sure enough she work up and was starting to really cry. I went to get the nurse who went to get the doctor. By the time the doctor got her she was really crying. Matthew and I were so confused and the doctor on call that late at night did not speak that great of English and it was all so confusing. The doctor came in and raised her head to examine something in her neck and when she did that Carlie screamed out in extreme pain. She was saying things like, I don;t feel right, I can;t breath, please stick my head in water, i am burning. This was when I lost it! Matthew said no, spinal and she put her head back down. We asked for medicine but they really do not do pain medicine over here, they brought in Ibuprofen in a pill form, but we asked to give her ours which was in a liquid form so she would not have to sit up. I think she knocked back out from the pain. It took about 20 minutes, and she fell fast asleep. She woke up around 11:30pm and asked to sit up and eat. After the horrible experience several hours ago I was hesitant to let her sit up. So I rolled her hospital bed up slowly and kept asking her how it felt. She said fine so we kept going. Then for the rest of the way I slowly raised her up. She sat up and was fine, as if nothing ever happened. It was so weird! I fixed her some food and gave her a bottle of water and she watched cartoons on the laptop.
I really wanted her to sleep with me because I was just so nervous. I put her in our bed between me and Matthew but she got up a couple hours later and wanted in her bed. I can’t really blame her, our bed it hard as a rock!
When she woke the next morning, I wanted her to take it slow but she up on her own ready for breakfast and ready to find her friends. I would say she was a little bit slower that day than others. She went from excruciating pain to up and walking around. I guess anyone that has had the spinal headaches know what she was feeling.
As you can see it took longer for me to get over it and write about it than it did for Carlie to recover. We asked Carlie if she could do it 2 more times and she said how about 1 more, I can do it one more time. She is so brave. I know this time she will think twice about even moving at all. Her next spinal is on Wednesday so please pray hard. Matthew and I both have peace about this but some days are harder than others and we only want the best for Carlie.
Some have asked when will you see results. For every patient it is different. Lots of patients will start seeing something within the first 2 treatments. It is hard to say exactly until we go back to the hospital to repeat all those eye tests we did before treatment. We will go back here in China after her last treatment. She has said a couple of things to Matthew and I about things that she has noticed that we thought she would not have before which was really exciting but again it is hard to say until we repeat the tests. We were not asking her about anything she just up and said hey i have not ever noticed that before. I said that’s good baby. I don’t want her to think she is seeing things. The stem cells can keep growing in her body for up to 6 months and you can see the result of it up to 2 years after treatment.
All is going well here but we are all so very homesick. We can not wait to get back to our family and friends! Love ya’ll
May 22nd, 2009
We had Sunday off, no treatment or anything so several families wanted to go downtown. We rented a 15 passanger van which was quite nice for the vehichles that we have seen so far. We also had arranged to take an interpreter along. We picked him up at the Crown Plaza hotel, his name was Marcus and he was AMERICAN!!!! I was so excieted to see him and he was so amazing. He is here in China as an English teacher and writer for a magazine. He took us downtown to the Jimo Market. It was Sunday so everyone was out and about. The crowds were like nothing I have ever seen. Marcus for warned us that they will see our foriegn faces and mark everything up several hundred RMB. RMB is the currency used in Qingdao. 1 US dollar is equivalent to 7 RMB. Sure enough they wanted like 500 RMB for a purse and Marcus stepped in and showed us how to deal with them. he said they were saying things like we know you have money just give it to us, all westerners have money. He told them no, live here and my family is farmers Some would get really mad at him. Matthew and I decided to try to deal ourselves. So we walked into this little space, picked something up and said how much. they pull out thier calculator and put in a price. So we shook our heads and said No. Then we put in a price. This continued for several times until one finally gives. One time I had enough because I knew they were trying to rip me off so I said your crazy and walked out. the lady grabbed my arm and literally pulled me back into the shop. I am so not used to that but it is just thier way of getting your attention. As we would walk down every isle they would all point at us and get the other people to apporach us. They all speak at least a couple words in English, like very nice or you like, and of course yes, no and hello. I absolutly loved the shopping but the group was ready to go so we did not get to stay very long.
The next stop was the boardwalk. It was so pretty. We ate at a resturant beisde the ocean that had western style food. It was pretty good. I found out why the beef taste so different. The cows are grass fed and back home they are grain fed, which makes sense that they taste so different. We ate outside and could feel the breeze coming off the ocean. There was a pier that extended over the ocean and it was so crowded that you could barely see any ground. There were poeple looking in the ocean water for anything and everything to eat. As you walk down the board walk you will see anything from beggars to people selling stuff from toys to corn on the cob. Corn is a staple here, YOu can not order anything that doesn’t come with corn. Good thing we love corn, but too bad they don’t use butter or salt.
The last stop was this antique market.They were people selling old artifcts and antiques from long ago. Now this place I would never attempt without a guide. These poeple were crazy. One actually started yelling at Marcus for offering too low of a price. We think he was trying to make a scene and boy did he. It was definalty cool to see the culture and history of the city. We found out it was orginally owned by the Germans and the chinese poeple had to fight to regain controll of the area. They even have a large red statue that represents thier control. Internationally poeple see Chang, i think was his name, as a mean man but the chinese see him as thier liberator as he was the one who was instumental in the Chinese getting thier land back. Marcus was really good about explaining the hisotry of the city. We even saw an old Southern Baptist Church from when the germans owned the land. It was so neat to see a church in a communist area of course no one was attending. It was such a pretty building, I took lots of pictures.
I would like to venture out one more time to see the temples and back to the Jimo Market.
Thanks everyone for reading the BLOGS and e-mailing me. It is so wonderful to knolw how much love, prayers and support are back at home. Believeme we can feel it everyday. I know the Lord is with us no matter where we are. Please excuse the typos I am doing good to have time to wirte.
We love y’all
May 18th, 2009
Well we decided to take a walk on the wild side and venture out of our comfort zones and go to an authentic Chinese restaurant. It proved to be a not so good idea that left Carlie starving. We were told that there is really good restaurant not to far called the Hot Pot. It sounded somewhat western friendly so why not. A short cab ride later, holding on for dear life, we arrived and waited for the other families here in the hospital. I wish I had the words to describe what we saw and smelt. We walked in and were immediately the center of attention. We took on the the hospital interpreters with us so he could help us out. the waiters came up to us and led us to the aquarium; where there were all sorts of live lobster, fish, and other sea creatures. Some were already dead but sitting out in plates in front of the aquariums. We were told to pick out our dinner from there. there were things like muscles, clams, and the biggest shrimp i have ever seen. After close examination Matthew and I decided on the lobster and shrimp. The jerked that poor lobster our of the tank and his tail was just flapping, I was feeling really awful! He was flapping around so hard the waiter dropped it on the floor. Oh well no problem he just picked it right back up. I told Matthew will they get another one since it fell on the floor? he said oh no that is the one you get. 
We were pretty excited that we at least found something familiar to eat. Little did we know what was to come. We sat down and ordered drinks which is pretty funny in itself…Everyone was trying to use hand gestures to order diet coke which there is no hand gesture for. I found it quite amusing. Anyway, there were these pots of boiling water in front of us and I was so curious as to what they were for. Well just as soon as I was thinking that, the waiters began to bring out all this food that we ordered. In China, everyone shared food so if you order shrimp, they don’[t bring you a plate with what you order, they bring a big plate of food and everyone just sticks there chopsticks in and starts eating. Germs????No problem One bowl was set in front of me with craw fish. THEY WERE ALIVE!!!!! They were trying to crawl out of the bowl. The octopus was wiggling around on the table. We were brought live food. The pot was to cook it. Even this one big tough guy said take that back I can’t kill it. Luckily our shrimp were dead. SO…even though I did not want to I went ahead and put a couple in my bowl. They began to cook. I had Matthew remove the head, eyeballs, and legs. Oh yes I said it the head, they waste nothing. And I took a bite. WOW I was so surprised . It was the best shrimp I have ever had! They gave us this amazing dipping sauce and it was wonderful. The lobster, however, lost his life for nothing. We were expecting the tail no they butchered that thing. They cut it long ways and then in halves. they bring out the head and everything. I don;t think we even really tasted much meat because the way they cooked it. But the shrimp was so tasty. So I began to think ok I can do more. I put vegetables in the pot cooked them and ate those as well. I wish I know what was in the dipping sauce because it was really good. nothing like I have ever tasted in the states. We made Carlie try the shrimp but she ended up in tears! She was balling until she fell asleep in her chair. I think the whole presentation of the meal was too much for her. Imagine what it would have been if she had full sight and could see what they were eating at the surrounding tables. EEEK!!!! I think Matthew ended up eating mushrooms and clams as well. What is so interesting is they always have their meat out in the open. Even at the grocery stores, nothing is packages. yet we have never seen a fly on or any bugs for that matter. It LOOKS like the freshest meat you have ever seen. As it tasted that way as well! There are not many bugs here period. Again, I don’t know if it the time of year or what. When we got back to the hospital I went across the street and got Carlie cheese sticks and french fries and this western fast food place called Lottaria. really healthy I know! We were saying it is no wonder that the Chinese people are so little. That dinner took us 2 1/2 hours to eat. We had to work so hard for our food. Kill it, cook it, and crack it open and then eat it. And surprisingly we actually felt full!
I think i would do that again
May 18th, 2009
Not quite sure why but they pop fireworks every Saturday morning not in the night but in the morning. I have not figured out what they are celebrating or if they are even celebrating at all. It is just another one of those things I find quite interesting. So instead of waking to the normal vehicles honking at each other we had a new sound of popping fireworks . LOVELY, I know!!!!
One other thing I forgot to mention in my previous BLOG is about the showers. By the way they came around this morning to tell us that they are cutting the hot water off until Monday. That is 2 whole days. WHAT IS THAT ABOUT???? oh well I do like camping Anyway , back on track…the showers. You can be taking a shower…relaxing enjoying the warm eater and BAM out of nowhere the water is scalding hot! Serioiusly it will burn you! or it can go the other way to ice cold. I have not figured that our either. But rest assure I am wait for it because it will happen during the course of the shower. I have to find humor in these situations, it is what gets me through these long days
May 16th, 2009
Well we made it through the first treatment. I can feel the prayers from everyone back home. It went well but not as smoothly as we hoped. It began with the IV. The nurses came around about 2 hours before the stem cells to start her IV. We were calm and told Carlie it would be a pinch and then that was it. Well were we ever wrong. There were two nurses that came to do it. We could tell there was a problem as they stuck the needle in and they began to talk to each other in Chinese. Of course we could not understand a word they were saying but what I could understand is seeing them digging in her hand trying to get the needle into the vein. I looked at Matthew and we both started saying stop and they did not understand us. I ran to the interpreters room and no one was there. So another lady that is here with her granddaughter ran to get one. I asked for Yolanda the head nurse to come down. By this time Carlie is crying and very upset. Somehow they went the other hand and tried for that vein again nothing. By this point Matthew is upset. Since we don’t speak Chinese he had to use the universal language and he raised his voice. Now everything stopped and we could feel the tension in the air. Through the interpreters we told them not to use her hands, they never work even in the states. He said use the vein in the arm. they said no, no it will not work we use the inside of the elbow. Matthew said NO!!! Use the arm and if I am wrong then fine. Sure enough it slid right in with our any problem. I told the interpreter that we have done this so much at home that we know what works and doesn’t! So Carlie hugged her Sissy Whiskers tight and started to calm down and quit shaking. It was not only painful but a little scary because they were talking so fast in Chinese. Whew that was over.
Then a few hours later up to the stem cell room. They inject this medicine into her IV that goes ahead of the stem cells. It enlarges the veins and prevents any reaction that you might have to the stem cells. Well the second they injected it into her IV she began to scratch something awful. She was saying Mom it itched so bad and was scratching so hard. The nurse immediately stopped and said I get doctor. The doctor came in a was very nice, and spoke English He explained that she had a little allergic reaction to the medicine and they would slow everything down to watch her close.
Sure enough what was supposed to talk 45 minutes took us 3 hours to deliver the stem cells. But I was so glad because they were being extra careful. It was the medicine she was allergic to, not the stem cells.
I think the whole thing wore her out because she came down stairs and sat on the couch and passed out for the whole night. they watched her very closely for fever or any unusual behavior. Carlie responded fine. She slept all night and woke up just fine. they said to expect her to be hungry and sure enough. WOW!! Anyone that knows Carlie knows that she is not a big eater. Well she woke up the next morning and ate a PB&J sandwich, applesauce, eggs with cheese, and about 3 bottles of water. We were shocked!!!!
Even through all the confusion I have to say nothing but good things about the staff in this hospital. they were so upset about hurting Carlie. And I think what made Matthew so mad is that the one nurse was so new and Matthew said practice on adults not little girls. But anyway, in the US they would just say something like well she had little veins it is her fault. Not here…Every nurse that was involved was in here with tears in their eyes saying…so sorry, we not want to hurt carlie, she is so beautiful, i not like her cry, please stand me, i sorry. It was so sweet of them. We really are treated so well in this hospital. They care about us so much and want us to be happy!
We got our schedule and talked to the doctor. He is recommending 3 spinals and 4 IV’s. Carlie is really nervous about her first spinal but we know it is all in Gods hands. We have trusted him this far and there is absolutely no reason to stop now! It is by his grace that he has allowed everything to happen and we will continue to trust in His will. Carlie will have her first spinal on Monday, which will be Sunday back home. I will keep you updated!
May 16th, 2009
We were sent downtown yesterday for a VER test. We had to go downtown to another hospital that had all the right equipment. This hospital we are in is only 2 years old and does not have everything yet. this hospital we went to was only for eyes. Amanda, our translator went with us, thank goodness! We got in the car with our driver, hung on for dear life and took off. Because as I have already described the driving now we were inside that vehicle. Let me explain if he wants over, there is no blinker system, he just begins to push the car beside him over until he lets him in. If someone is in his way, he will cross yellow lines to get there. I asked Amanda if there were many wrecks here, and she responded oh yes, everyday!
Finally we arrived at the hospital after a 40 minutes car ride. the drive was beautiful. There were many mountains and rocks that were so different. I enjoyed the scenery. the pollution is so bad that some days it is so smoggy you can’t even see the mountains in the background. I found out that they use leaded fuel which probably contributes to the smog as well. Anyway once inside, it was a whole different world than the US. Everything is so dirty! I did not even want to sit down. Amanda began to run around talking to everyone trying to get everything order. We ended up having 7 tests which is really difficult for Carlie. She gets visually tired so easy. There was only one test they could not finish because her nystagmus was so bad. They were very proud of her they kept saying good girl, and smiling at here. Every doctor and nurse was so sweet. We did about 4 tests in the morning and the last 2 in the afternoon. I finally felt something ws official. They were doing many of the test I have seen before back home which felt nice. They said we will have to return to do them again after stem cells.
There was one test I had ot seen before. They dilated her eyes and put these contacts in. the Contacts had these wires hangin out of them so she was sitting with her head tilted back with wires coming out of her eyeballs. That made me a little nervous but she was not complaining so I was OK. I will have to ask the doctors today exactly what that test was for. I had only one encounter with a doctor while we were there. Even with the huge culture difference, I forget there are no rights here. As we went in for that one test, the doctor said with her very broken English. you and you outside, to Matthew and me. I said NO! I looked at Amanda the translator and I said I will not leaver her, we will not do the test if they want both of us to leave. I am in a foreign country and I will not take my eyes of of her for one minute and if that is a problem take me back to the hospital. She said something to the doctor and then the doctor nodded to me and said OK. There is no concept of a minor here either. But that was not in the agreement. I said yes to everything as long as I was present and able to stop anything that I did not feel comfortable with. Again, I don’t think they ment any harm, it just isn’t something they are used to doing mabey. They were very good at the end and I was so thankful for Amanda.
Between the morning and afternoon testing we had about an hour and it was lunch time. I told Matthew, no I don’t want to eat…Please! Because I am done with the food. But Amanda looked at us and said McDonalds??? Carlie grinned ear to ear. I told her it might not be the same, but she said she wanted it. So walked to the McDonalds. Surprisingly, there were a lot of people there. You don’t see a lot of families but there were a few kids. We were trying to look at the menu and finally a guy handed us menu with some English on it. Matthew got the double cheeseburger because the quarter pounder had cucumbers and who knows what else on it. Carlie and I shared the nuggets and fries. Can I just day YUM!!!! It actually tasted like McDonalds. We were so happy! Oh yeah and when you ask for ketchup they have not idea what that is . You have to say tomato sauce and then again you only get one. We had to keep asking for more. Matthew asked Amanda for salt and she went up to the counter and came back with a napkin with salt in the middle. They do not do salt here. I had been watching all day at the hospital but it became apparent at the McDonalds that in China there is not concept of a line, or waiting for that matter. You can imagine lots of people at McDonalds lining up waiting to order food…not here…no. everyone swarms the counter, you snooze you loose it the motto.
On our walk back Amanda took us by some shops that wen underground. It was so neat but you have to keep Carlie close. People want to reach out and touch her and it scared me a little bit. Matthew keeps a tight grip on her while we are out and she usually walks between us in a crowd. Anyway the shops are barely as big as a closet. Room enough for maybe 2 people inside. I guess Amanda know one lady so she took us there and I walked inside and she smiled and bowed so sweet. As we left she chased us out and handed Carlie a Chinese fan. It was really nice of her! We will have to go back when we have the time.
Back to the hospital…We were waiting for our afternoon appointments. This hospital was extremely crowded so we went around the corner and found a seat. I was sitting beside Amanda and Carie and Matthew were across from us ont he other side of the hallway. As I was talking to Amanda this little boy comes up and stared at me for along time. I just smiled and waved at him. Then he started talking to Amanda saying they are not from here. She is foreigner, I can see that from her hair. Children are so honest even in other languages. He could not stop strange at us. Finally Matthew spoke up as aid to him to do speak English? he said, YES, just a plain as day. It was so cute. Then he would ramble on in Chinese..Then he said to me,Do you like tiger?;Do you like alligator? He was trying so hard to speak English. he was pretty goo he counted to 20 or so. His mother finally came around the corner and she was so proud of him that he was talking to us. She sat down and tried herself. Very sweet people it made the time go by fast. Then when Carlie and i were in the test Matthew continued to talk to him and took his picture. Then his mother wanted to video him talking to Matthew. That kid was so cute. We asked his name and he said, Jack; he even knew his american name.
After a long day at they hospital. We finally get ot go back to our room. I can not wait to find the result so fthe test and what will happen next. We went to the holiday Inn for dinner to finnish off the day. Carlie was so beat that she fell asleep in the chairs. It was a good day because we were busy.
May 15th, 2009
Well the “professor” came by and saw Carlie. I guess the professor is a really highly respected doctor. He is over the hospital and the university over here in China. It must be a really big deal when he is in the room. They asked if they could video him with Carlie. I heard from someone down the hall that the doctors here have to know the answer if a quesitons is asked or else they are not allowed to return with him the next week. I guess the is the dollly lama of medicine. Anyway, When he came is there were about 7 other doctors and one other person who asked to video. I am having a hard time with the language thing. They came in and looked at Carlie and all began to talk in Chinese. Even though there is a translator, she still will not translate everything. It seems so unofficial but then again I could not understand a word they were saying. He asked to see her vitamins and they crowded around them and began to talk a the same time. I think they were tryig to read the Endlish. They were pointing and talking. Anyway after they are done talking and saying a whole lot of things that you just really don’t understand, they say “any questions?” I was thinking to myself maybey I would if i could understand you, but oh well. Again very frustrating!
The scheule is give out once a week. Carlie does not get any PT or OT. She only gets Stem Cells with Accupunture. The doctor makes his rounds every morning, then we get accupuncture every afternoon. Other than that you wait… ALOT!!! It is quite boring but there are other people in the same boat so you sit around and talk.
We also venture out to the Lotti Mart. I do fear for our lives a little bit whem we cross the road. The passanger does not have the right away…EVER!!! as a matter of fact they don’t even slow down. i expect to see a wreck or 2 while I am here. Especially since sometimes they stare at us while driving. We were sure this one guy was going to have a wreck as he was turned completely around to see us while driving forward.
Another thing about the driving is the honking! They honk all the time….and nobody takes it as a rude thing, I thing they honk to say “I’m coming and you know I am not stopping so if you value your life then you need to move” In America there would be so many fights but here is is all good. We just hold Carlie tight and cross the road as quickly as we can.
Until next tim:)
May 15th, 2009
Well the time change is definitely against us right now. I keep waking at 3 am and can’t go back to sleep, I know this will get better we just have to try to stay up as late as we can. When we arrived the nurses staff immediately came into our room and started talking to us and Carlie through the translators. I have to say it was a bit overwhelming. We were so tired from the 24 hour trip and very much in culture shock, and still a bit nauseous from the drive from the airport :) I did not even know what to say. I just stood in the middle of the room trying not to burst into tears. The translators were eager to start showing us around which was very nice andall but all we really wanted was o go to bed.. It was really difficult to loose a whole day on the way here, especially Mothers Day, but we will get it back on the way home. I just stay confused about what day it is. All I know is that I keep waking at 3 am feeling like it is the middle of the day.
Let’s see….this place is nothing like I expected in terms of the way it looks. This areas seems a little run down but I think it is because they are building so much across the street that it looks like a construction zone. The air is so very polluted that many times it looks smoky outside. I don’t think many of the native people here have seen white people before because they stop and stare and ask to take their picture with you. They really like to try their English out on you as well. It was raining when we arrived so it looked so dull but today it was clear and we were able to see the mountains from our window. The interpreters do their best to help but still the language beerier is so bad we spend much of the day looking at each other saying. “what did they just say to me?” Many of the translators don’t speak fluent English or even close.
We got out today and wen to the Lottimart…that was very interesting. it is like a mall and a grocery store. We picked up lots of stuff for the room. Like towels. they give you only 2 for the whole month, and toiletpaper again only two for the whole month. WHAT IS THAT ABOUT???? We found Welches grape juice and snickers that taste like home. You have to walk through the place really looking hard for familiar brands. Most things still taste really bad. Here in the hospital the interpreters come around 2 times a day with menus fro surrounding restaurants and you can order food. DON”T order the pizza is all I have to say. it was bad. I am a little nervous to eat the meat but Matthew is not so we will let him try before carie and I do
All I Have to say is that the toilets are really interesting Carlie asked to go tot the potty when we were at the Lottimart and everystall except one was a hole in the floor. What was even funnier is the ”regularar potty” as carlie calls it, looked like it had never been used. Everyone else used the floor toilets. Then we went to wash our hands and that was just taking me a minute to figure out when this Chinese lady begins to speak loudly at me. i think she was giving me instructions so I looked at her and smiled but I have to say I was a little scared of her. I realize she was saying that only one sink worked. Oh yes and if you ar wondering there is NO toilet paper in the bathroom stalls. Luckily we have been forewarned about that already.
Calrie has made 2 really sweet friends here already which is really great for her because there is ALOT of down time. Because all of the English speaking people on the 8th floor we just sit around and visit alot. Hopefully when we are off on the weekends we can venture out of the hospital and do something fun.
Carlie has doctor visits everyday with accupunctue, which she HATES!!!! I took a picture of it with the needle sticking out of her head, I’ll try to post some soon. We were laughing a little bit and she got really mad so we stopped. Everyone says it gets easier. Her first stem cell treatment will be on Friday. I can’t wait to see how that goes.
Until next time…
May 13th, 2009
Well I am already behind a couple days and it feels like so much has happened. The trip here was certainly a long trip but we made it. I had heard nightmares about lost bags and communication barriers. We left Houston around 9:00 pm. We asked to have our bags checked all the way throught to Qindao China. They said yes but we were sure our bags would be lost. We landed in LA 3 hours later and had to walk all the way to international flights. At 2 in the morning we were exhausted and Carlie was so thirsty. We were in such a rush we almost missed our flight. Even in the international flight at LA the language barrier began. Finally, we got on the plane and headed out for the 13 hour flight. Carlie and I managed to sleep quite a bit on that flight or so Matthew says. Carlie was quite a trooper. She did so well. She sat between Matthew adn I and we pulled up the arm rest so she was able to stretch out a little bit.At one point during the flight I remember waking up and thinking wow we are alreay landing. I was so wrong, we were gong through some terrible turbulance that was shaking the plane pretty bad. I came to realize that we still had 5 hours left. We landed I Soul, Korea and WOW I felt so releved, 1 and 1/2 hours left. It was good thing we had a 3 hour lay over because we definalty needed the time to get our bearings. Matthew is such a great map reader, thanks goodness. He got a map with English and started to figure out where we needed to go. We had this crazy idea to ask a man in the airport if we were headed in the right direction and his response was so funny. He said “1…0…3…Goodbye” and pointed for us to get on a tram. Needless to say that even withour n=one person speaking English to is we got on the plane and headed fore China. When we arrived, we were greeted by the friendly staff from the hospital. they took our bags and took off for the hospital. I just closed my eyes and held on to Carlie. As it seems that there are not road rules here. Especially for pedestians. I’ll just say it…they drive crazy by us standards. Even as friendly as the staff is, as we were shown our room Matthew and I both had the same look in our eye, like where are we and what have we done. It is so far from home and definitely not the United States. I began to miss home and the boys so much that I sat down and cried. I am happy to be here but at the same time never prouder to be an American. I can not wait to get home!
May 12th, 2009
Next Posts
Previous Posts
