The adoption travel experience

by Brenda Yun on

Several of my close friends and family members were adopted, adopted a child, or are in the process of adopting a child from Asia. In fact, my sister is months away from traveling to China to pick up her daughter, and our very own Gadling writer, Jamie Rhein has a daughter adopted from Vietnam. While China, Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, and India are just a few of the popular adoption locales these days, there are several others popping up all over the globe.

The adoption travel trip is like no other you will ever experience in your life. It’s is the first step in documenting your adoptive child’s journey with you. It’s something s/he will not likely remember, so taking photos, and recording the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes of his/her birthplace is a most important step in the process.
Certainly, a lot of preparation has to take place before you even step foot on foreign soil. (Sometimes the adoption application process can take up to two years!). However, so much goes on during and after the trip, that it’s important to consider your adoption travel experience in three distinctive parts:

BEFORE

  • Consider your health: Just as you would prepare for an ordinary trip abroad, you will need to understand the health risks involved in traveling abroad. Odds are you are traveling to a third world country where diseases like malaria and dengue fever can be contracted. Be sure to take the necessary precautions (i.e. take those preventative shots) and stock up on the necessary medications.
  • Get travel insurance: This is an important trip, and you don’t want it to be bogged down by lost baggage or flight cancellations. Nowadays, travel insurance can cost as little as $100 a month, so it’s worth the peace of mind.
  • Pack light: Don’t burden yourself with excess baggage. Necessities like diapers and clothes are attainable and often cheaper upon arrival in your destination.

DURING

  • Document and record every moment: Take photos, keep a journal, and pay attention to even the smallest details of your experience. This is really the symbolic birthplace of your new child, so capturing as many memories as you can is crucial.
  • Allow time for adaptation: You will not be jetting over to this country just to jet back. It’s important to take the time that is necessary to allow your new child to adapt to his/her parents and surroundings. Sightseeing is a great experience for both you and the child, as well as simple human interaction.

AFTER

  • Take your time: Patience is a virtue most necessary for adoptive parents. Your new child will need even more time to get used to his/her new national soil and the different faces that make up his/her new family. Go slow in immersing him/her into the new pace and style of life.
  • Visit the pediatrician: This is a necessary step in identifying just how healthy your new child is. Measures may need to be taken to ensure his/her stability and health upon arrival home, so make sure this initial trip to the doctor is thorough and extensive, yet comfortable and informative.
  • Return to the birth country when the time is right: At some point, your fully adapted child will need to understand where s/he came from. If possible, make the trip with your child when s/he is able to document the experience for him/herself.

Adoption regulations change depending upon diplomatic relationships between countries. Be sure to find out the newest regulations before you embark on this journey, and be prepared that things might change. Sometimes adoptions are halted between the U.S. and another country.

Also, be advised that some countries suggest or require multiple trips before the real adoption takes place. If this is the case, the initial trip is a unique opportunity to explore the country, document, and record before you become a parent. Enjoy this special journey!

The following are some helpful sites with useful adoption travel tips and stories:

The land of badly behaving Buddhists

by Josh Lew on

Cambodia’s dictator for life prime minister, Hun Sen, recently appealed to the country’s Buddhist clergy, telling them to clean up their act. The PM told a convention of top religious leaders that the actions and poor judgment of individual monks has given the whole religion a black eye.

He cited several situations including monks accepting roles as dancers in a music video and an abbot using offerings of money to buy himself a new car. Also, disputes between monks and laypeople are on the rise, according to an independent social analyst.

Hun Sen concluded his address to the holy people by saying “These are individual monks making problems. Citizens should not consider it an issue of the whole religion, but equally, we must not be careless about this issue.”

Buddhist monks have long been revered in Cambodia. Many have become involved in various forms of social work. However, it seems that the recent economic development has affected the religious world as much as the general public.

[via Phnom Penh Post]

Cultural Delicacies: Tarantula

by Brenda Yun on

When opportunity knocks, you have to take it. That’s what happened when I was standing in the shade of a bus stop on my way from Laos to Cambodia two years ago. Stretching my limbs, I looked over my shoulder, and a Khmer lady with a sun hat had a huge plate of what appeared to be big, black, fried spiders for sale to eat.

“What is that?” I asked the lady.

“Tarantula,” she said in nearly perfect English.

I had heard of Cambodian people eating insects like grasshoppers and ants before, but never had I encountered a delicacy like this one. Nor do I understand how the lady came across so many tarantulas (at least 100! do they raise them in cages?) and thought to kill and fry each and every one of them. Regardless, my “Survivor: Gross Foods” mode kicked into high gear, I purchased a fried spider and crunched it down.

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Fried tarantula tastes just like a crispy potato chip. There’s nothing spidery about it. In fact, it’s not just a delicacy in Cambodia. According to Wikipedia, tribes deep in the Amazons of South America eat them too. I have seen a BBC program on the preparation of fried tarantula, and it appears they can be undercooked and you have to removed their teeth sometimes. Aside from this, though, eating fried tarantula is a harmless and unique cultural experience! I hope you have a chance in your lifetime to try it!

Thailand’s Political, Tourist Woes Continue

by Josh Lew on

Southeast Asia’s top tourist destination can’t seem to break out of its slump. Supporters of two major political parties have been clashing in the streets. Former PM Samak Sundaravej was forced from office following scandals and protests. Now, just two weeks into his run as prime minister, Somchai Wangsawat, Samak’s replacement, is under investigation for breaking the government rules about owning shares in companies that do business with the government (it’s an obvious conflict of interest). If charged, he could be tossed out of the government.

While other nations in the region seek to bolster their position as economic players and tourist destinations, Thailand is hurting. The recent riots led to a spate of cancellations. Tourist numbers for the country that once dominated Southeast Asia’s vacation trade are down. And those who are looking for any sign that things are going to get better are only able to find evidence of a worsening situation. Thailand has always bounced back from political woes before. However, with other regional player like Vietnam gaining steam, would-be tourists have other options these days. Why opt for uncertainty when there are other viable destinations out there?

Invasion of the Bag Snatchers in Phnom Penh

by Josh Lew on

If you’ve been to a backpacker ghetto anywhere in the world, you’ve seen them. For fear of having their belongings snatched, they guard their bags carefully. Perhaps wearing their rucksacks in the front and wrapping an arm around it for extra security. That might seem like overdoing it. After all, who is going to rob a backpack with a bunch of smelly clothes and out of date edition of Lonely Planet?

But the ease with which a practiced thief can snatch a bag is surprising. All two thieves on a motorcycle, perhaps with a razor blade, need to do is slice a strap or grab a purse or camera and pull hard. Then it’s bye-bye dirty clothes (or camera or passport or cash).

Bag snatching is on the rise in southeast Asian cities like Phnom Penh. It has always been a problem, but things are especially bad now that inflation has put the economy into a downward spin. Some thieves have completely abandoned the timeless art of bag snatching, and instead simply knock their victims off their motorbikes and make off with the loot before the unfortunate rider(s) can recover. Looks like it might take more than wearing your pack in the front to avoid a nasty situation these days. But that’s all part of the fun of travel, isn’t it?

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