A great day!

Other than the day we met Emily today was probably the best day so far of our trip. The weather was beautiful so we spent the day on Shamian Island. Our agency used to have families stay on the island but the hotel they use is closed for renovations. Our hotel is great but the island was fantastic and it would have been great to stay there.

We took taxis over to the island with two other families and walked along the river enjoying the folks doing tai chi, playing badminton and singing. Walking thru the shops we bought Emily some squeaky shoes at Jenny's (5 dollars a pair so she got 3) and some traditional Chinese dresses at Jordan's. Jordan even did her name and the boys names for us in Chinese characters. He was a wonderful man and I recommend taking time to visit his shop. We also had a great lunch at Lucy's. It was so nice to sit outside and enjoy the fresh air. We will definitely be headed back over later this week.

Tomorrow we are adventuring out to the safari park. We are going to try to take the subway to get there. The boys are looking forward to seeing the pandas and white tigers!