Where is Lily?

Okay, there's the obvious answer to that question...China...but, more specifically she is in the Guangdong Province, which is in the southeastern corner of China, in a city called Shantou City (pronounced shan-toe). It is on the coast and is supposed to be a "gateway" city.

TravelChinaguide.com says, "Bordering on the South Sea, the city is one of the most important open-to-the-world harbors both in the Guangdong Province and in China. As one of the five special economic zones of China, it uses its convenient geographic location to its advantage and has accepted many foreign investments. It currently has economic relations with 165 countries. Over 50 multinational corporations and 11 of the world's top 500 enterprises have investments in Shantou, giving the city the seventh best rate of commerce among all cities in China."

Below are some scenes of Shantou City. The second picture is of the harbor.

The orphanage itself sits in the middle of the city, along some busy streets. Below are pictures of the orphanage. The first is the entrance and the second is of the windows to the baby room. The third picture is taken from the baby room window and is of the orphanage gate. That one is particularly special to me as that is Lily's "finding place," the place where she was abandoned when she was 2 days old and subsequently found.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, we are so grateful to the Lord for placing Lily in the SWI (Social Welfare Institute=orphanage) that she is in. It is receiving aid and training that so very few in China receive. We got word a few weeks ago that the Shantou City SWI has received another stamp of approval. The info said: "Shantou just went through the IAF International Accreditation Review for orphanages, and they are part of the only 10% who are reviewed who got full accreditation and the highest review." Praise God!

Below is a YouTube video of the traffic in Shantou! And we thought we had it bad around here!

In Him,