A Mother's Day Gift

My sister, Ann, and I traveled to Romania from New York on March 17. Vivi and Dan met us at the airport. They took us to our apartment in Bucharest. After the long trip it was nice to unpack and rest for the remainder of the day.

Early the next morning, it was off to Craiova with Vivi and Dan. This was where we would finally meet Alina. Traveling through the countryside, it was impossible not to notice that spring was just beginning. The Romania countryside is lovely and the new green of spring made it truly lovely. We arrived at the orphanage about noon and met the director. After a bit of conversation and espresso, it was time to meet Alina. Her traveling outfit was given to Monica, her primary caregiver, and we waited for her debut.

She was a little shy but what a beauty and so pleasant. What a feeling to have my new daughter handed to me and spend a little time getting to know her. We were able to tour the orphanage and see her crib, the playroom and lunchroom where she spent her time. We took videos of the rooms and the solarium where the rest of the children in her section were playing.

Then it was time to get a passport picture and return to Bucharest. Over the next week, my sister, Alina and I went to the Colelntina Hospital Clinic and, with the help of Vivi and Dan, completed all the necessary paperwork for Alina to become my daughter and obtain a Romanian passport. Although the paperwork was tedious, Dan and Vivi's help made everything go very smoothly. In fact, we had the tremendous experience of going to the Peasants' Museum with Vivi. I recommend a visit here for all visitors to Bucharest. It's a collection of old homes from all over Romania transported and reconstructed in a park like setting just outside of the city. The gift shop is a treasure of Romanian handiwork - pottery, linens and woodcrafts - all at very good prices.

What a joy to begin to discover the person my daughter is and her likes and dislikes. She is 21 months old, has big brown eyes and light brown hair with red highlights. She has a happy personality and is so curious about all the new things to which she was and is being exposed. My sister was wonderful. She helped to make me the focus for Alina. This helped to begin to establish a bond between us. Within a few days, she was partial to me, wanting only me to feed and care for her. She was like a flower blossoming in front of our eyes. She learned to clap, play peek-a-boo, "read" books and throw a ball. What joy she took in all her new achievements. The only thing she didn't like was bathing. This seems to be a common experience, according to Vivi.

The next Saturday, my sister, Wilma, arrived to share our second week. Once again, Vivi and Dan took us to and from the airport. The next day, we took a tour of the Romanian countryside. Our driver, Adrian, took us to a wonderful old church and King Carl's castle. This is fabulous. It was just restored and has rooms created in the styles of many European countries. Having seen many castles, my sister tells me this one is the most beautiful and, because of the variety of styles, eliminates the need to see any in Germany, Austria and Italy. We also drove to Transylvania to see Bran Castle. It is so lovely. It sits on the top of a hill and the view from its ramparts is fabulous. We then saw the Black Church in Breslove. After a long day, we arrived back at our apartment.

Wilma was determined to show Alina that baths are fun. We started with a basin of water. She taught Alina how to splash with her hands and feet. It became a great game. We played this game for several days and finally Alina sat in the basin to get a fun bath. Bathing is now one of the things she really enjoys, thanks to the creative approach of Wilma and the patience of both she and Ann. Sharing the first two weeks with Alina with them was wonderful. They were very supportive and helpful. There is a lot to learn about being a Mother. I feel I had help from two of the best.

More paper work. We visited the American and German embassies to get Visas for Alina, once again with Vivi and Dan's help. After our last approval, Viv took all of us out to dinner with her daughter to celebrate. We ate at the Bucharest Hotel and even saw singers and dancers. Over the next few days, we walked to the parks and museums of Bucharest. Spring had arrived and the city was green and beautiful. It reminds me of Paris although in need of repairs. If their economy improves, I bet in ten years it would have regained its historic title of "little Paris." We also walked to the Lipsconi district, an old shopping area with many artesian shops and art galleries. We were eager to obtain Romanian eggs, both wooden and real. These became the presents for Alina's new cousins and "sisters". We stopped at a wonderful place, Cafe' Roma, for a snack and had sour cream capers and espresso. The market right outside our apartment building provided a variety of shops, fruit stands and a great bakery, the Patisseri. The bread and cakes were wonderful. Baby food was available at Nics Grocery bud the variety was limited. Diapers and wipes were available ad the grocery on the first floor of the apartment building. There was a wonderful baby store on Victoria in the block before the Hotel Bucharest. It has beautiful clothes and is inexpensive by American standards. We found jewelry and leather goods to he nice and very reasonable too.

We enjoyed our stay. It gave us dime to begin do know Alina and her do know us. I recommend touring the city and countryside. It was an experience we will never forget. I also have pictures and memories do share with Alina when she is older. The most difficult part was eating out. For the American palate, Romanian food is a little heavy. Most is breaded and fried. For me, who doesn't eat red mead, finding restaurants was dough. We ate a wonderful meal ad the new Hilton and the Hotel Bucharest within walking distance of the apartment and had wonderful pizza at the Cafe' Veche. We also cooked in the apartment quite a bid. This made our stay very inexpensive. We flew through Frankfurt and stayed overnight at the Sheraton by the airport there. It is a five star hotel and we reveled the luxury. The restaurants were great too. We flew to New York and were met by Jim, Alina's dad, and much of his and my families. It was quite a party. A few days later, we returned to Los Angeles.

I am glad to report that Alina is thriving. She has received a clean bill of health. She and Jim are bonding. She continues do make giant strides in mobility and obviously understands me although she doesn't talk yet. She does say Mama and Dada and ball and up. She has changed and improved my life with her presence. I want to thank Hemlada, Francis, Barbara, Vivi and Dan for my lovely daughter. The orphanage may not be luxurious or have all id needs but based upon the gentle and trusting nature of my daughter, I think id is obvious that the staff there cares about the children and provides a good environment.

Credits: Lynne Henry