Where is the Meaow, Meaow?

Today was literally a walk in the park! After the feast breaking our fast (ha!) we went for a little walk around the island. We have done this many times but today our mission was to find the Catholic Church here. We headed out the main alley way and dropped off laundry, then took a right and went through the Esplanade. There we saw three grandmas with their (three) beautiful grandchildren. The children were about Liam's age, maybe a little older, and they were looking for a cat. We caught the language ("meaow, meaow"...I know, we're clever) and joined it. It was so neat to see the kids happy to be with Liam and him happy to tag along, looking for meaow, meaow. This hunt took them through the mazes of neatly trimmed bushes that outline the Esplanade, and they went over and under the bushes, calling for the cat. It was precious! Wade and I were grateful they didn't actually find the cat as he looked rather sickly and not very friendly. After a while, the three little ones and their grandmas went inside the kindergarten building and Liam went up to Andrew's arms.

We continued our walk down a few more blocks and found the sweetest church! It is named Our Lady of Lourdes and was built in 1892 by the French. The gate was closed but not locked. We took some pictures and thought we may try to come back to it another day and maybe it will be open then. I am so glad we saw this!

Because we spent yesterday out and about and away from the hotel, we decided to stay closer to home today~and I am grateful we did as our little guy had a super long nap and all we could do was join him! =) Just what the doctor ordered~a great nap and smiles all around. Sometimes there is nothing better than a nap.

Wade and Andrew decided to check out the ancient art of massage this afternoon. They came back like putty~totally relaxed and very happy. Liam and I were like putty, totally relaxed and very happy because we went swimming! This kid has no fear of the water and was putting his head under to find the leaves that went in the pool. I know my dad will be happy to have his little "skimmer" swim in their pool, won't you Dad? I have a massage appointment for tomorrow. Wade said there were other services, such as blood letting and foot reconstruction...I think I'll stick to the ol' back rub and foot rub, thank you very much. And I know if Andrew takes Liam swimming, he'll be a very happy camper.

We had dinner at one of our favorite places here, "The Cow and Bridge." I know it sounds appetizing =), but it is really good Thai food. The waitstaff is so kind to Liam and it is an easy walk from the hotel. After dinner we walked around a bit and the cutest little Chinese girl, age 13, came up and asked if she could speak to Andrew in English! She was just a doll, not only physically beautiful but her personality just sparkled and she was so happy to be practicing her (very good) English with Roo! Her mother was very kind, too, and I will enclose one of their pictures in our picture post. The people here are so genuine and I am so glad we have had this extra time to get to know some of the locals. The girl's mother is one of the shopkeepers (she sells calligraphy signs so we may be heading to buy one tomorrow!) and we had met her on our first day here. The different shop keepers remember Liam and tell us things about his hometown, the agriculture there, some words from their dialect, their produce,facts about the university there. It is as if they are all giving us a little gift to take with us, something from their heart and something they know we will treasure and pass on.

As we continued our walk, we came to a park on the Esplanade. It is a combination of children's park and adult athletic stations. There are a couple of pebble paths that surround the park (about a half block long) for people to stand/walk on barefoot (and then they head to the massage therapist, I'm guessing). It is pretty to look at and obviously functional. Liam found some new buddies at the park tonight and had a blast on the slide! There is a playground at his orphanage and that must have been a highlight each day for him because he knew exactly what to do and what he wanted to do! There were many children with their parents and grandparents and they were all very friendly to us as well. A genuine smile is the same in any language, isn't it?

Andrew and Wade headed to the arcade for a little "Dad & Dude" time and Liam and I came back to the hotel for a bath and bed. Today's pictures will be of the Church, looking for the cat and time at the park! mct