Back from the trip

It was good to be in the US, and three weeks was just about right. Three weeks allowed me to see almost everyone and to give the boy a big dose of the culture. There were a few sad moments, as well as a bunch of tense long minutes, but all in all it was a positive visit.

A few wonderful memories:

The boy was able to see all but one of his six grandparents. We had not seen zanla's mother since 2002, so having her fly in for a weekend was truly amazing. She lives in the Virgin Islands, so this trip meant so much to her. She was able, for the first time ever, to have all four of her grandchildren in one place. Wonderful to see, and sadly not likely to happen again anytime soon.

Flying in to see my sister-in-law sing. She is a member of two groups, and she just happened to be performing with both of them in the same weekend. We arranged our flights so that we had a weekend layover in San Francisco, and we were able to attend both concerts. I felt oh so decadent when I told people that we ad flown in just for the concerts, but it was true! I have quite a collection of her music, and play it often for the boy, so he was familiar with a few of the songs he heard. Hanging out with the sibs was a fantastic side benefit. Next time we are in SF I plan to see some of the city, but this time it was all about the family time.

Watching the boy play with his cousins. He does not have many, but the few he has and knows he loves. The last time he saw them was in 2005, but he was able to spend New Year's Eve playing hard with them. He was a very happy boy that night, and was so tired the next day that he fell asleep at the table during lunch.

Commercials. We did not have commercials in Germany, and the only tv channel we watch here is the Disney Channel, which only advertises Disney products. The boy watched endless hours of the Cartoon Network and walked away being able to quote the commercials. At one point he told me that it was very important that we call the number and order Life Alert for ourselves. He was crushed when I explained that it would not work in Korea. He is also desperate for a Chia Pet, some Blendy Pens, and a set of Zoobooks.

The Liberty Bell. We were able to spend a few short hours in Philadelphia, so we ran to visit the bell. The new museum is beautiful, and was filled with people reading and talking about what they saw. The boy and I discussed the bell as an important national symbol, and he asked if it was as important as the Eiffel Tower. He told me that a tower was cooler than a bell, and showed me that we have to work a bit harder on giving him information about US History. Particularly amusing (for me) was trying to explain what a black person was. He was confused by the discussion of the bell as a symbol for freed slaves, which led to a discussion of slavery, which led to the question "What is a black person?" I still have not figured out the best way to answer those questions.

That's it for now. I hope to upload photos later today.