Mudanjiang

by brianwalch · Published June 4, 2016 · Updated November 12, 2017

Our trip started out on a high note, for sure. We travelled from Anchorage to Seattle to Vancouver and then a 11 hour ride over to Beijing. The kids did great, watching movies and taking in all the fun of airports and planes. Our guide had told us she was going to meet us in Beijing, but she didn’t show up right away. We navigated through Beijing security and checked in for our flight to Mudanjiang, feeling pretty accomplished doing everything on our own. Our guide, Sophie, showed up at the gate about 30 minutes before boarding. This was our first time meeting or talking with her, which is ironic, considering how much money and planning we had entrusted to her.

A bit about Sophie: she is the owner of the tour company and a Chinese national. She now lives in Seattle and has for the last 10 years. I’m not sure how old she is, but she has a lot of energy and isn’t afraid to go speak to anyone or ask any questions. She makes a great guide! She had never been to Mudanjiang and wanted to see the town and meet people from the orphanage to make connections for future adoptions.

We got checked in around 8:30 pm and all of us passed out after the long day-plus of travel. Everyone slept well and the timing worked out well as we could get adjusted to local time. In the morning we had a beautiful spread of a Chinese buffet with all sorts of new flavors and experiences. The kids jumped right in, trying noodles and tofu dishes. Of course, they also found custard-filled buns, which are like dessert. We then headed out to the orphanage.

The orphanage here was only opened up to international adoptions in 2004 or 2005. Since that time there has been only 40 adoptions and we are the fourth family to have returned for a heritage visit. In walking and driving around, it seems like the area here is fairly well-off. It is amazing the number of young girls you see walking around, of all ages. The orphanage seems to reflect that, too. The orphanage has about 100 kids with the youngest being just a few months and the oldest being 40… that’s right, 40. The person has gone to university and still lives there, likely because they are special needs. Most of the kids there are special needs kids, with many having autism and cerebral palsy. The orphanage isn’t co-located with a senior care center, like others are, but there is one right across the street.

We got a nice tour of the facility, and were amazed… it was awesome. When we arrived, the lobby was full of balloons and the columns were wrapped in shiny cellophane, all to welcome Carli back. After a bunch of introductions, including meeting her primary nanny, we started walking through the building. There was a music room, and exercise room, several art rooms, and a library. There was a room with two small sand boxes and bunches of figurine toys, which they use to do psychology therapy and help children relax. There was a room with hundreds of boxes lined on the wall, each numbered and about 5 different sections, each with a different color. The director explained how children are assigned a number and they go and get their box. Each color has a different activity; she demonstrated one to us. They are designed to help kids with cerebral palsy and muscular issues. It was great and I thought of my mom, an occupational therapist, and what fun she’d have seeing the kinds of games and activities the Chinese were using.

The entire orphanage was spotless. Amanda and I wondered how much of that was for our benefit, and while I’m sure some was, I also suspect that they run a tight ship. I will say that wherever you looked there were fun things – on the ceiling, on the doors, on the windows. It was such a cheery and bright place. There was several different playgrounds, including an outdoor track. One of the rooms had pillows on the ground and a poster of Confucius on the wall. Sophie explained that there was a desire to remember the traditional values and Chinese practices, so they developed this room where children could come and sit quietly after dinner and read or meditate.

The entire time Carli and her caregiver held hands. She was definitely the guest of honor and she handled herself beautifully. As we wrapped up the tour we went to a room to spend some time visiting and eating some snacks. There was a small table with fruit and treats set up. In the room were about 10 kids watching a movie and I would estimate 3-5 years old. Of course, when we came in the movie took second fiddle. One absolutely adorable girl kept smiling at us, playing peekaboo behind her chair. They were perfectly behaved while we visited. On the window sills were 3 pictures of Carli, 2 of which were huge prints and gorgeous. They mentioned several times how Carli was always happy and smiling at the orphanage, and known for that, and so these pictures were because of that. They were great prints and I can see why they chose those to enlarge. We exchanged gifts, as well. They had a vase and plate gift they gave to us (I guess not realizing we’re travelling for the next 3 weeks) and a small photo book with early pictures of Carli. One of those pictures was with the Mayor of Mudanjiang and they explained that Carli was famous because of the visit by the Mayor and she was the one that was able to meet him. We gave them a scrapbook of Carli’s life in Alaska, which was very well received. She took them through the pictures, telling about her brothers and sister and life in Alaska. We also gave them a box of chocolate. They cut those up and had the kids come over for a bite. They lined up in a perfect line and Carli fed them each a small piece of chocolate, which they all said thank you for. Two of the girls (including Ms. Adorable) hung out for a while afterwards, with Carli’s caretaker (she still works there). It was very fun to watch because they so obviously loved her and it was easy to imagine Carli at their age and the love and attention she received from this woman while growing up.

After the orphanage visit, they took us out for lunch to experience some of the local flavors of Mudanjiang. The restaurant was bustling, partly because it is a weekend and partly because China has a culture of going out to eat a lot. They brought rounds and rounds of food and they bought some Mudanjiang liquor, which was a mix between sake, vodka, and a floral moonshine. It wasn’t great, but not bad, either. They also brought out beer and offered some to the boys, which I said was fine, and so they enjoyed their first beer with their meal. After the meal we parted ways from the orphanage staff and went to tour Mudanjiang a bit more. We went down by the river and walked through a street market, taking in all the sights and sounds of China.

After some downtime at the hotel we went back out for the evening with Sophie. We had dinner at a dumpling restaurant and then went back down to the square by the Mudanjiang River. This was a typical Saturday night, but it seemed like a massive party. Because 99% of Chinese live in apartments, they use these public spaces to come out and be active. There were groups of people, mostly older, all over doing dances – line dancing, Thai chi dancing, ballroom dancing – literally hundreds of them. There were people playing foot sack games, ping pong with badminton birdies, and all sorts of light toys. Sophie bought the kids slingshots with lit-up whirlybirds that you fire up into the air and they rotate down to earth. There were kids (small kids!) in electric cars and drift carts racing around, practicing to be Chinese drivers. It was mayhem, and a public health night mare; but, entirely awesome and wonderful at the same time. Sophie left us to return to Beijing and we returned to the hotel, exhausted, but amazed that our first day had been so full and enriching. Now, we go to Beijing to meet up with our tour group and start the touring part of our trip. Stay tuned.