Introduction

For those who don't know us, we are the Crayne-Dedrick family: Susan Crayne, Bob Dedrick (who's writing this), and daughters Sara (16) and Lia (9). We live in Hartsdale, NY, in Westchester County about 45 minutes north of the city. Susan is an independent computer consultant, and I'm a software engineer in the telecommunications industry. Sara is a high school junior and Lia is in 5th grade.

In 1994 and 2000, we had the good fortune to adopt our wonderful daughters in China. Now, we are going back (the third time for Sara, but only the first for Lia) to visit the country of their birth. This will be the journal of our trip.

We're going on a tour sponsored by Families with Children from China, an international organization of families formed through Chinese adoption, and the China Overseas Exchange Association. In addition to the usual we'll be visiting the cities where Sara and Lia were born.

We're leaving for Beijing in an hour.

This time, instead of flying across Canada and the northern Pacific with a stop in Anchorage, we're flying direct from Newark Liberty International to Beijing - 13 hours over Canada, close to the North Pole, then across Siberia and Mongolia (I think).

We're through all the lines and waiting at the gate. On to China!