Saturday, December 3, 2005

Went to bed on Friday at 2:00am, woke up at 4:00am to get the car and kids ready.  Pulled the kids out of bed (still in jammies) and stuffed them in the car.  We grabbed a box of Krispy Kremes and headed to our friends house to drop the kids off by about 6am.

 

Departed from Seattle to New York at 8:00am on Delta/Song Airlines on a very roomy 757.  Unfortunatlely, the individual TV monitors in front of our seats kept crashing and rebooting so we couldn’t watch any shows.  The entertainment system was running Red Hat Linux, which gave us just a momentary fright about the airplane’s other systems

 

After 5 hours, we descended over New York City to get a brief glimpse of the towering skyline of Manhatten.

 

We had a brief hour and half layover at JFK airport where we checked into our flight to Moscow.  We couldn’t help noticing several other couples in the waiting area speaking English and with strollers.  We introduced ourselves to a group standing around and found out they were also adopting children from Russia.  One couple was traveling for their 4^th adoption!   We realized we’re not so nuts after all!

 

Sunday, December 4^, 2005

The flight from New York to Moscow was 9 hours. Not too bad --- but neither of us really slept at all on the flight, meaning we had gone almost 2 days with only 3 hours of sleep total!   Nothing funny or eventful happened on the flight to Moscow.  Just kind of sat there, read a bit and watched Harry Potter on my laptop computer. 

 

 

Once we landed in Moscow, it took us quite a while to get through the Passport control (the agents seemed to spend quality time with each passenger as they go through the check point).   Once after the checkpoint, things were going smoothly until one of the agents saw the violin that Susan was carrying. The violin, by the way, was donated by a man in Omaha who sends violins to Russian orphanages as part of his ministry.  Because the cost of shipping the violins is more than the violins themselves are worth, he sends these violins with couples who are traveling to Russia for adoption.

 

What we didn’t realize (or maybe forgot) is that Russians don’t like people taking violins in and out of the country, especially if they are Russian-made.  They didn’t know we were simply taking the violin into the country as a “gift to leave there” – and we did a poor job at explaining the situation.  So, instead of zipping through the “green line” we were sent over to the “red line” to declare the item in customs”.

 

Here, a Russian official looked at us, then the violin and said “photo?!”.  (Apparently, you’re supposed to fill out a special form along with a photo of the violin when taking in and out of the country).  We were simply toungue-tied and didn’t know what to say --- so the official shook his head at us, made us take the violin out of the case, and scribbled what appeared to be a very long essay on a customs form (making two separate copies!), He then made us send our luggage through the X-RAY machine and finally sent us on our way.

 

Finally, we met a group of people holding a “CHI” sign (for Children’s Hope International).  There were two other couples adopting through CHI who rode with us in the van on the way to their hotel in Moscow. 

 

 

That afternoon, we spent some time on the wireless network at my favorite Moscow coffee shop:  “Zen Coffee”!

 

 

Monday, December 5, 2005

At 10:30am, our translator Anna met us at the hotel where we were to travel to the orphanage in a town south of Moscow called Podolsk.  In the van was also another couple adopting from the same orphanage.  About an hour and a half later (after slogging through Moscow traffic and finall getting to the outer regions of the city), we arrived in Podolsk, a charming Russian town with lots of old red brick buildings, but also a many modern amenities including a McDonalds.

 

It was just after lunch-time at the orphanage, and we had almost 2 hours to spend with Benjamin right before his nap time.  He had developed a bad rash. The orphanage workers speculated some kind of allergy to either some food or laundry detergent – but no one was completely sure. 

 

We had to leave the orphanage at “nap time” so we headed back to Moscow and stopped at a very sleek mall along the way for a very late lunch.  (There is very little time to get lunch at the proper time – so we had to tied ourselves over with dried fruit, energy bars and bottled water).

 

When we arrived back at the hotel, we collapsed on our bed, barely able to move!  However – we really wanted to get to the wireless coffee shop again so we could update the friends and family and send email and photos to our kids.

 

We met up with our friends Mick and Caroline who we had met on our first trip to Russia in October. They were staying in the same hotel as us, so we all went down to the coffee shop together.    I had my usual double-espresso (decaf this time) and Susan wanted a hot chocolate.  What I got was this very thick, hot chocolate syrup stuff (which was very good, by the way) – but just a little on the strong side.  It was basically the “espresso” strength hot chocolate.  So – in my poor attempt at communicated, I gestured in part English, part Russian to ask the barista for a small cup of steamed milk to go along with it.

 

After the coffee shop, we returned about 9:30 and crashed on our beds.

 

Tuesday, December 06, 2005

Again, at 10:30am we head to the orphanage in Podolsk.  Today was “passport photo day” where we got to take Benjamin to the photo place to get his picture taken for his Visa and passport.    Then, we spent another hour with him back at the orphanage getting to know him, reading stories and trying to see if he would walk.  He fell asleep in Susan’s arms promptly at about 1:30pm (right on schedule for his nap time!).

 

After the orphanage trip, we again made a brief stop at the mall on the way back.  Believe it or not, was still kind of full from breakfast that morning, so I just had a box of orange juice and a liter of sparkling mineral water.

 

Now --- HERE is where the big excitement begin that evening….

 

On the way back through Moscow was perhaps the longest, most congested, agonizing car ride of my entire life!   I had forgotten to make a pit stop at the restroom when leaving the mall, and so the liter of water I had drank earlier begin to collect in my bladder.  I had been so dehydrated the last two days, I was pretty sure my body would have no problem absorbing it all --- But I was wrong, VERY wrong.

 

The ride went on and on, down one street, and then another, stuck behind a long line of cars here, stopping at a red light there, bumping over a curve here and there, then finally onto a freeway with no exit in site. 

 

“You know”, I said turning to my wife. “I really have to go to the bathroom.”   No problem – I can hold it, I’ve learned good bladder control for over the last 30 years.

 

5 minutes later….

 

“You know”, I said turning to my wife again.”  I REALLY, REALLY have to go to the bathroom!”

 

I started feeling beads of sweat form on my forehead as a shifted relentlessly in my seat to try to maintain a good “holding position”.  I had NEVER had to go to the bathroom so bad in my ENTIRE life.  “Oh Lord,” I prayed, “please, please help me not to pee in my pants!”

 

It wasn’t going to well.  I REALLY HAD TO GO!  Finally, we exited off the free and were back on the streets of Moscow.

 

I leaned forward to the driver in front (our translator had already gone home and we were just left with the driver – who only spoke a little of English).

 

“Taulet?”  I said in my best Russian possible.  (This means “toilet”).

 

“5 more minutes” he said.

 

Aarrgghh!  What was I to do?  My mind started racing, as a sudden and remarkable clarity about my choices came to me.  I could either 1) grab the empty McDonald’s cup that Susan was holding, 2) jump out of the moving van 3) let it all go right there.

 

I couldn’t take it anymore.  I finally leaned to the driver and said politely, “I’m so sorry – It’s kind of an emergency!”

 

The driver understand and pulled over right there on the street.  “Spaseebu bolshoye!” I thanked him, immediately jumping out of the van.  I had absolutely no idea where I was – there was not a “taulet” in site.   For now, Moscow was my “taulet”, and if peeing in public was a crime --- I DIDN’T CARE!    I ran across this park area, darting back and forth looking for a place to go in the sub-zero, snowy dark and finally found a large, secluded tree next to a wall.

 

The famous American explorers Lewis and Clark had remarked in their journal upon finally reaching the Pacific coast in Oregon:  “Ocean in view. Oh, the joy!”

 

I think I felt pretty much the same way that cold, dark snowy night next to the tree in downtown Moscow.  There was surely much joy --- and boy, was there EVER an ocean!

 

Back I ran to the van, with a smile on my face as broad as Red Square itself.  The driver was having a nice cigarette break and just sort of looked at me matter-of-factly as I hoped back into the van.

 

Finally --- we arrived back at the hotel where Susan and I just collapsed on our bed and slept right there in our clothes.  We never did make it to the coffee shop that night.

 

Wednesday, December 7, 2005

I’m sitting here in the lobby typing my blog.  Today we again go to the orphanage, followed by a tour of the Kremlin.   Tomorrow (Thursday) is our court date!   This is where we demonstrate our intentions to adopt, and we’re asked a lot of questions.  After that, we’ll got our court documents and a few other things to make the adoption official.