Late Friday night we arrived in Guangzhou, a city of close to 12 million people located about 200 km north of Hong Kong. We're staying at the White Swan, a well-known hotel that has hosted many foreign dignitaries over the years (Queen Elizabeth II, George H. Bush, Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger among them), as well as business executives, tourists and perhaps most importantly, families adopting in China.
Part of the draw of this hotel for American families is its proximity to the U.S. Consulate's office where almost all U.S. immigrations and visas for adoptive children are handled. In 2005, the office handled 7,900 adoptions from China but we're told the numbers are down significantly in recent years, in part because families are adopting from other countries around the world and because domestic adoptions in China are on the rise.
The hotel sits on banks of the Pearl River on the historic Shamian Island, a small area of land divided and gifted to France and England by the Qing Dynasty during the nineteenth century. In sharp contrast to most of the areas of China where we have traveled so far, this tiny island is dotted with large colonial-style buildings and homes from the late 1800's and early 1900's and several impressive gardens and parks. The climate here is similar to Florida so it's also lush with tropical plants and flowers.
The hotel is so popular with families that toy-maker Mattel even sponsors the Swan Room – a unique play area designed by the company for parents and children to relax in and interact with a variety of games and toys provided by Mattel. Even more unusual, upon arriving, the hotel delivered a one-of-a-kind "Going Home" Barbie Doll produced by Mattel Asia Pacific as a gift for adopting parents. Talk about knowing your target audience.
wow...J
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