Day 9 ~ Taking the oath

I couldn't change Wu Yi's clothes last night while she slept ~ combination of guilt and waking her up!  So, this morning, first thing, I told her we needed to put on clean clothes and I just did it.  She wasn't pleased and resisted for a bit, but once she knew I wasn't going to take no for an answer, she relented a bit.  I think she is pretty modest (she covered her eyes with her hands when Don was just wearing a towel after showering) and I tried to keep her covered as best I could ~ poor girl.  It is a relief to have it done though!  After getting her dressed I realized I didn't have her shoes ready, but by the time I grabbed them, she had put her red snowboots on!  Its her signature look though and I don't plan on taking them away.  Now its time to tackle the bath.  I will leave that for tomorrow.  One trauma at a time :)
We went to the US Consulate this morning to finalize Wu Yi's passport and to take the oath on her behalf for her US citizenship.  I though this would mean she was to become a citizen today, but it just meant we were getting the citizenship papers.  We will present these papers when we land in Seattle, and as soon as we cross through customs there, she will officially be an American.  Don and I got dressed up for the occasion, but unfortunately, our camera and cell phone were not allowed in.  Don attempted to take a photo of us standing in line and the security guard yelled at him to delete the photo and came over to make sure that he did.  The only photo that was allowed was later in the lobby of the building ~ nowhere near where the ceremony actually took place.  There were quite a number of American adoptive families there with us and pretty much all of the kids were running around and playing with the waiting room toys.  Wu Yi remains stoic and will not engage in any kind of play.  She sat quietly in the chair and mostly looked at her hands.
We went out for a wonderful Vietnamese lunch with our friends, and then split up for the walk back to the hotel ~ WuYi and I to McD's for fries and ice cream (she loves both), and Don to the "Pepsi store" with Brad.  When we met back in our room, we learned that Don had gotten into more trouble with his camera, for stopping in front of a Communist Party building and trying to take photos.  The 6 guards at the gate (complete with bayonets!) didn't appreciate him pointing a camera at them, and one of them quickly approached him and told him to delete all photos.  There may be more to the story if you talk to Don himself ~ the details become more frightening every time he tells them! :)  We later drove by that same building again, and Don slumped down in his seat as far as he could with his camera flashing away through the window of the moving van.  All this for a picture of a Red Star to show the students in his government class.
We spent the afternoon visiting the Chen Ancestral Hall/Guangzhou Fine Arts Museum and the Pearl Market (a popular downtown mall), and spent the evening on a river boat dinner cruise.  The food on the cruise was the first meal I have not enjoyed, but there were alot of American adoptive families on board and the ride was fun.  Guangzhou is a wealthy major seaport for southern China and its modern skyscrapers and bridges are adorned with neon lights that create quite a show at night.  Wu Yi was bored by most of the days activities, but I think she enjoyed being on the boat. 
It was late by the time we returned to the hotel, and all Wu Yi wanted to do was watch the new "Pleasant Goat" DVD we bought for her.  This cartoon seems to be China's most popular for the younger kids and she waited all day to watch it.  She didn't even show any interest in making a phone call today.  I am happy to report that Wu Yi has not cried for 3 full days.  Unfortunately, with no phone calls to the orphanage, we didn't get to hear her say a single word today.  Despite seeming less angry, she is still very quiet and very stubborn about showing interest in any kind of play.  She understands the simple Chinese phrases I say to her and nods yes or no to my questions.  I feel bad that I haven't been able to understand anything she says to me and she gave up trying after the second day.  We have free days to sightsee on our own after tomorrow and we are going to find more kid friendly places.  She likes feeding animals and there is a nice zoo here ~ looking forward to that!  There is also a Washington family that just arrived in our hotel with their new 6 year old daughter and we are meeting them tomorrow night for dinner.  I hope the two girls are interested in each other!  Maybe we can get Wu Yi a little more out of her shell!