We finally made it home! We left the hotel at 5:30 AM on Thursday morning and arrived at our house at 9:30 PM on Thursday evening. With the time change, that is 29 straight hours of travelling. We left Guangzhou and flew into Tokyo and then from Tokyo to Detroit and our final flight was from Detroit to Indianapolis. Once on the ground, we had to drive back from Indianapolis. It seemed like we were never going to get home.
Fiona travelled quite well. She didn't manage to go to sleep until the last 3 hours of our flight into Detroit. She bounced around and played and visited with people for a good 15 hours before she took a nap. That made for a long trip. We all fell asleep on the Detroit to Indianapolis flight.
Detroit has never looked to beautiful! (that is a statement that isn't posted very often). Fiona is now an official US citizen with a temporary green card. Her official citizenship document will be mailed to us and she will then have a permanent green card. It took us nearly 2 hours to get through Customs at Detroit. The process in the US is much slower and tedious than other countries. With Fiona's IR3 Visa, we had to go through 3 different lines before they got all of the necessary stamps and approvals. We had it pretty easy compared to the foreigners entering the country. They were fingerprinted, photographed, grilled with questions, and searched in a database before they were admitted in. If they couldn't answer the questions properly, they were sent off to little rooms to "privately" speak with customs officials. Just another way our world has changed after 9/11.
Our first stop after leaving the Indianapolis airport was McDonald's. You don't realize how much you miss little things such as soft drinks with ice until you don't have them for awhile. Unfortunately, the bartering techniques Helen taught us don't work most places here. McDonald's doesn't budge on their prices.
We are so glad to be home! We all slept a few hours last night. Fiona is enjoying her new home and the cats really appreciate us bringing another kid home. I imagine that we will all feel like we need to go back to bed come mid-afternoon today. We'll post some pictures of Fiona in her new home a little later. We just wanted to let everyone know we have made it back safely.
Where in the world are the Bolligers?
Fiona Anne FuYe Bolliger
Fiona's Referral Picture
7 comments:
We are so glad to have you home safely. You must all be so tired and having some serious "out of body experiences"! Thank goodness it is the weekend. It has to feel so wonderful to have Fiona home finally, after three years. Give us a call when you feel somewhat normal, we can't wait to talk to you in person. Enjoy the weekend with your family. Love you all. Thanks again for making us a part of this experience.
Kelly
Glad to know you are all home safe and sound. Now you can begin a new life with your newest addition. How wonderful! You are all very blessed. Let us know if you need anything. Can't wait to see you!
The Burtons
I am glad to hear you got home safely. Hope to see you back at school it has been quiet in class with out Patrick and I am ready for some noise.
-Kelsey G
YEAH!!! WELCOME HOME!! We are so excited to see Fiona and her big sisters and brother.
What a trip for you guys!! We are thankful for your safe return and pray you all sleep like rocks for the next few days. Anything you need please let us know. Grocery run, meals, etc.
Love to all
David, Cindy, Daniel and Ariana
Hello, Miss Fiona (Ye Ye). Just wanted to tell you what a pleasure it was to meet you and thank you for the nice kiss. You are just as beautiful as my other grandchildren. I hope you learn to love your new family. It is a big one and we are scattered all over the U.S. I'm sure you have some travel in your future. We are so happy to finally have you home. We have all waited a long time and this has been a very happy day. Welcome, our little one.
Love, Grandma F.
Hi everyone. It was so great to give you hugs and we are so happy to have you home. Little Ye Ye is so precious just like the other three. God bless you for bringing her home to be part of our family. Get some rest...it's been a long ordeal. Call if you need us.
Love, Mom and Dad F.
Welcome home!!! I too understand the need to have a diet coke with ice...and news that I can understand...and just understanding what the price of something is!! :) Glad you are all back - Welcome to the US Fiona!!
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