Email problems

Hi everyone,

For some reason I am unable to get to my Yahoo email page. The Internet is not working very well and I can only go to a few sites. Fortunately Gmail does seem to work (along with my blog page) so I would like to ask that everyone please email me at mksslagle@gmail.com from now on. This will also avoid any problems with my email being downloaded when Kate and Mac check it at home. The photo is from my room and as you should be able to see, it is raining. What you can't see in the photo is a big rat running around in the bottom of that empty pool. I want to go out after breakfast and get a photo of it. It's cool!

It is 4am in Bishkek and I am of course fully awake. I have gotten some much needed rest and am feeling a lot better. All of us went out to dinner at the Chinese place last night and had a nice meal. The staff remembered us and were very nice. It was great to sit down and just have a nice meal. We also met with Ludmilla (sp?) for almost three hours to fill out paperwork and to ask and answer a ton of questions. All of our paperwork appears to be in order and things are progressing well. Everyone has asked about Kate and told me that they miss her and to say hello. She seems to have made a very good impression on Ludmilla and Surgey and they asked me to pass their greetings on to her. So "Hello Kate!"

Checking in to the hotel yesterday we had a funny moment. It seems they thought Carolyn and I were a couple and had put us in the same room. It took a bit of explaining to get them to understand that we each had our own room. I ended up with Carolyn's luggage in my room and had to go and find her to return it. It all worked out in the end and we finally got our rooms and were able to rest. I think Carolyn is on her third or fourth room as there were problems with the ones they would place her in, but she finally got a nice room on the third floor. My rooms curtains feel from the ceiling with a large crash just after my nap yesterday. The curtain railing separated from the ceiling and it took them some time to repair it. Overall though, we are happy to be at the Golden Dragon and they are treating us very well.

We will go to the orphanage tomorrow morning and spend several hours getting their records and discussing the children's schedules and such. We are also partaking in a small traditional party at the orphanage that occurs when children are adopted. We are to pickup small cakes and bring them to the orphanage for a celebration. Not sure how it will all work, but it sounds like fun and will allow everyone to say goodbye to the children. It is a big event when a child leaves the baby house. They will be getting all new clothes, going to a new home and starting a brand new life. It is a very happy, sad exciting time for everyone.

The two older children (Rita and Sergey) are really going to be interesting to watch. We are all looking forward to seeing their reactions as they explore their new world. Even here in Bishkek life will be much different that before. The hotel itself will be quite a change for them. I figure that much of my future writing will center around the adventures of these two. It should be very interesting.

Don't forget that you can leave comments on this webpage just underneath my entry. It is an easy way to respond with a word or two. I really need to hear from all my family and friends as it is a bit lonely over here without my beloved wife and daughter. Take pity and send me a note please;-)

All for now,
Scott