Another Day in Disneyland

I said yesterday that we were going to try to slow life down a little bit today because we really didn't have any required events except to stop by the US embassy to pick up the girls' passports, visas, and immigration document packages. Of course, it didn't exactly work out that way. We did at least have a relaxing morning, and ended up having to hustle to make it to breakfast before they stopped serving. We then headed to the city center area to run some errands. The city center is apparently a fairly common concept in Europe - I saw the same thing in Italy. In Sofia, there is a section of Vitosha Boulevard that runs from the presidential offices to the cultural center that they have blocked off to automobile traffic and designated as a walking zone. It is lined with small shops, restaurants, and cafes, and then the overflow spills out into the side streets and parallel streets for two or three blocks either side of the main street. The walking area goes on for quite a few blocks, maybe a mile or so, so it is a bit like walking through a huge outdoor mall. The main problem is that given the Bulgarian penchant for vagueness in their directions, there are certainly no maps of the area showing what is there, and the people who work there every day seem to have no idea what else might be in the area other than "I think there might be one of those a few streets up."

Our first quest was for some different medicine for Madelyn. The nose drops we got yesterday seemed to make very little difference and she was so stopped up that we were concerned the drops were not even getting far enough into her nose to be effective. So, after parking in a little parking lot we found Sunday tucked away behind the Central Department Store, we headed up the hill toward the Vitosha Boulevard shopping district. On the way, you have to cross one of the streets by going down into the subway station and then back up on the other side, and right before we got to the steps to go down, I spotted a pharmacy on the other side of the street. For someone adopting in a country where you don't speak the language, or for anyone traveling to such a place, I highly recommend a good medical reference application if you have a smart phone of some sort. I use Medscape on the iPhone, and it has been a lifesaver. We were looking for children's Zyrtec, but of course the Zyrtec brand name is American and is not relevant over here. But, by searching for it in Medscape, I was able to show the pharmacist the active ingredient name of the medicine I was looking for, and when she came back with a couple of choices, by comparing the dosage concentration of children's Zyrtec with the medicines she pulled out, I was able to make sure we got the right thing. We also picked up some saline spray to help wash out her sinuses. Madelyn hates it! We gave her the Zyrtec this morning, though, and by this evening she seems to be having an easier time with the congestion.

Our next errand was gift shopping. Carolyn wants to get something special and of heirloom quality from Bulgaria for each of the girls to have when they get older. She had a pretty good idea what she was looking for; the issue really was just finding it. We were partially successful. We spent most of our morning and early to mid afternoon walking around the area, exploring up and down the side streets looking for the gifts. Along the way, we stopped at a Lavazza (an italian espresso brand) coffee shop that was similar in concept to Starbucks, but much better. They had table service, a lunch menu (we went back for lunch), and some really nice drinks that you would never see at Starbucks. I had a cappuccino that was served in a porcelain mug and the barista had created a latte art tree with the milk. Not a huge deal, but a little something extra that requires skill and practice. Carolyn had a decadent hot chocolate with a thick custard that was served unmixed in a clear glass so that it was a beautiful brown and tan marble, and when mixed up, it had the taste and thickness of a melted chocolate bar. The girls split a chocolate shake made with gelato. When we came back for lunch, the sandwiches were great. We also had to make an afternoon stop at a gelateria for a snack. Emily Cate desperately wanted some chocolate gelato, but when the time finally came, she got something that was either vanilla or white chocolate with a cherry drizzle. We spent a total of about 5 hours wandering around in the city center, and the girls were troopers.

 

After shopping, we headed directly to the embassy to pick up the passports and visa packets. We ended up with a fairly fortuitous misdirection from Google maps when it came to parking. There is a side street that runs up beside the embassy, and it looked to me yesterday like parking there wouldn't be a problem. There is a hospital of some sort behind the embassy, and there were cars parked on the road up near the hospital entrance. I had intended to park up there, have Carolyn and the girls stay in the car to avoid trooping everybody back through the security check at the embassy, and then if necessary, Carolyn could move the car or just drive around while she waited. Instead, following the route on Google maps, we ended up getting blocked by road construction (obviously not Google's fault and the route would have worked fine if the road hadn't been closed) so we tried what looked to be a detour around the closed road. We ended up at a dead end on this little dirt road that accessed some of the housing in the neighborhood and unable to reach the embassy. The good news was that the dead end was right across the street from the embassy, they just hadn't cut the road all the way through because it would have interfered with a busy intersection. So, I just parked the car at the dead end and walked across the street. It turned out really well because there was apparently something going on in the neighborhood. In addition to the normal embassy guard that was there yesterday, there were quite a few Bulgarian gendarmes, who seemed to be a bit more of a special forces detail than the regular police, out in front of the embassy. Carolyn said she saw some guys patrolling with dogs, and the street to the hospital was being actively patrolled, as compared to being pretty much ignored yesterday. I suspect they would not ahve let us park there. The entry into the embassy, however, was no different than yesterday, and I was able to get in and out easily and quickly, and yes, I visited the ice cold water fountain one more time while I was there.

We got back to the hotel about 4:30 and spent some time unwinding before dinner. The girls played a few iPad games, then started watching their Bulgarian kids' songs videos. I did a quick search for nursery rhyme videos on YouTube (in English), and they started dancing to the music. We got some cute videos. When the dancing had run its course and we had moved out onto the balcony, Emily Cate decided it was time to play hair stylist. Her mommy was a willing subject. Later, we somehow got into a tickling game, and they both loved it.

 

There are two restaurants right up the street that we have alternated between for dinner each night, and for lunch yesterday. At the one where we had lunch yesterday, Bistro 53 (53 is the address of the building), the waitress gave Emily Cate and Madelyn each a little chocolate gelato sundae in a paper cup as we were leaving, and tonight at the Marseilles, the manager gave us VIP cards that are good for a 10% discount because we have been eating there so much. Both are great places to eat and we have enjoyed them very much. After dinner, it was back to the hotel for baths and bed. Both girls were worn out, but Madelyn seemed to be feeling much better, and Emily Cate went to sleep with a happy heart.

I can't imagine what this week must be like for the girls, especially Emily Cate. It is a big deal at her orphanage when someone gets adopted and has a mommy and daddy, and she has seen it happen to several of her friends. When her turn came, she was whisked away on a trip unlike anything she had ever experienced, and by the end of the first day she had a new sister as well. Then, after another really long car ride, she has found herself in the middle of a big, busy city. Her only experience thus far has been in a very small town, and restricted for the most part to her orphanage and kindergarten. In this big city, she has gone shopping, spent lots of time on playgrounds, walked a ton, gotten ice cream, eaten at a restaurant for every meal, visited a hospital, ridden in elevators, and experienced a host of other new activities that most people take for granted. She has had to work through a lot of emotions, some high, some low, in this overwhelming environment. I have been amazed at how well she has done with it all. Today was a really great day for her, and at bedtime after a huge day, she was very happy and very affectionate. As she was falling asleep, she was making a lot of eye contact with Carolyn and smiling huge smiles while Carolyn was singing them to sleep, and she kept kissing on my hand or my cheek every few minutes. It was so heartwarming, and she has come such a long way since Sunday night. Coming out of the wonderful foster home environment (and being much younger and having a more laissez faire personality), Madelyn was much better prepared for this transition, so it really hasn't bothered her too much, other than dealing with exhaustion from all of the activities and with the misery of a sinus cold. Our last scheduled event in Sofia is an appointment tomorrow morning to go by the Family National Association office and pick up all of the translated records and histories that have been maintained on the girls during their time in the custody of the Bulgarian social services. We will also say our final goodbyes to Maggie and the rest of the wonderful staff at FNA that have made this process as easy as possible.