Hello from Georgetown, Grand Cayman! We are having a wonderful time. Before I start with the travel report, I’d like to make note that today is a very exciting day for our family. Today is the one -year anniversary of ‘Gotcha’ for Josie. It was one year ago today, in a cold conference room in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China that we first held our Josie and completed our family. Amazing, Overwhelming, Miraculous, Frightening and Joyous – all at one time. We are so thankful and humbled by the tremendous love that Josie has brought into our lives.
I should begin by mentioning that we were unaware that Josie is practically a rock star here on board the Star Princess. I get stopped about 50 times a day -by folks telling me how precious and adorable she is. I have also met every aunt, uncle and grandparent of an adopted Chinese child sailing with us. While standing in line to have our photo taken on Formal night, the lady behind us grabbed me and said, “Both by granddaughters are from Hunan!” And, in the dining room that same evening, I was introduced to Allison, a ten year-old adopted from Vietnam.
It is wonderful to see the pride and love that these folks feel for the children. I commend all adoptive parents for the way they make the big world just a bit smaller and SO much warmer through the families they build.
Not too much to say about Jamaica that 1000 people haven’t said a 1000 times before. Pushy vendors, aggressive cab drivers, and ‘entrepreneurs’ around every corner. That said, the folks we came into contact with on the street, while still very aggressive, were in good humor and took a “No, Thank You” and a smile for what it is - and moved on to their next victims.
The weather was cloudy and it rained intermittently for most of the afternoon. Josie was happy though, being entertained by her cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents. Maddie went horseback riding with her Aunt Claudine and had a blast!
In the evenings, I have been heading to the casino with my parents. I doubled my money on the first night, and came perilously close to winning a new BMW for my husband. I did not do so well on my second and third outings. I had fun though!
Maddie and the other cousins have been spending their evenings watching the shows, playing in the arcade or having slumber parties in a chosen cabin. They are all great kids and have been amazingly well behaved. Next up is the report from our adventures today in Grand Cayman – but I have to upload the photos first . The ship is now pulling anchor and we are headed for Cozumel.
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