[cooperbabe]

as far as red envelopes go, my understanding is it is customary to give children (and I think unmarrieds) money in a red envelope at Chinese New Year.

However, red envelopes are often used during other special occasions throughout the year as well and I think they would be very appropriate to use during your adoption (provided it's ok to give money to whoever the gift is for)

[sak9645]

There is always tension in China between those who wish to keep the country free of Western influences and those who feel that China can grow from participating in trade with the West and learning about Western business practices.

In many parts of China, the young people, who tend to be the ones welcoming Western ideas, seem to be coming out on top. The most Westernization, of course, occurs in the Special Economic Zones, which were specifically designated to allow more flexibility in forming business relationships with Western corporations.

My daughter is from one of the SEZs, Xiamen, and even as early as 1997, I saw banks and fast food chains on every corner, joint venture hotels, Western-style department stores, condominiums, babies dressed without regard for traditional beliefs in bundling them up, etc. People may give lip service to the idea of avoiding the corruption of their country by the decadence of the West, but they rejoice when Dell Computer opens a plant there (as it did in Xiamen) -- or when Starbucks opens a coffee shop.

While the presence of Starbucks may have raised hackles in 2000, it is pretty much a fact of life in the bigger and more modern Chinese cities nowadays. The younger Chinese people have taken up coffee drinking big-time. I have heard it said that coffee bars have become fashionable, in part because the young know about the way coffee houses were hotbeds of free speech and liberal politics in the U.S., back in the 1960s and '70s. To the extent possible, they have tried to institute things like poetry readings and alternative music in the coffee bars.

No, you won't find Starbucks in more rural or traditional areas of China. And you may hear, there, complaints about how the young people want the "daring" clothing they see on the Western TV channels and have begun to show signs of rejecting traditional Chinese values.

But my guess is that, even if some official doesn't want a pound of Starbucks Verona for himself, because he doesn't want party officials to think he is decadent, he will be happy to give it (or sell it?) to some young person who finds the coffee bars too pricey.

Sharon

[smbcpc]

I like coffee and would love to bring some as a gift but I can't help but look at China as an avid tea drinking country, and I wouldn't want anyone looking at me with disdain as in "what were you thinking?" . Maybe I am just over-analyzing it.

Our agency recommends bringing good quality chocolates (I will probably bring some See's boxes) or inexpensive jewelry or cosmetics. All in all, I am not sure who should get what and if the orphanage director is supposed to get more than the caretakers or vice versa. It's difficult to plan ahead, especially since I don't know if the orphanage director or the guides are male or female. It could make some difference, right?

[chinagirl2006]

I believe I heard that our agency gathers all of our gifts. We don't actually hand them to anyone. Then the people that should receive gifts goes thru the pile & grabs what they want. I also believe we were told that our agency gives us a list of what kind of gifts to bring. I think I'll email them to see if they can send a list soon so I can start shopping. I would like to start buying stuff now so its not such a huge expense when we're just about to leave. Plus if I need to find MN stuff, that might take a little searching...hopefully the Mall of America has alot! I did save my red tissue paper that I didn't use during Christmas.

[KarenInCa]

The impersonal gift giving is exactly why I don't think it's all that big of a deal if you don't give gifts to anyone except for the guide, SWI director, and certain nannies close to your child; as our guide requested.
I obsessed over the gifts to the officials for days before we traveled, and I'm very glad that ultimately we only gave gifts to those that made an impact on our lives while in China. Sure, you need the notaries and officials in China to 'get the job done', but any official or notary can do the same job as the other. It takes a special person to care enough to be a director and run an SWI, or to be a nanny and take care of your child, or be a guide, and your ears and mouth and help you through every step for two weeks. THESE are the people that need to be thanked, to let them know that you appreciate the direct impact that they have in the lives of children.
I really wouldn't stress over anyone else receiving anything, unless you really want to, or unless you would feel strange not doing it.
I guess we were lucky, in that no one felt pressured by others in the group to pull gifts or money together for the other officials, or worried about what they would receive, because it was not something our guide encouraged us to do. He did appreciate though, and so did the director and the nanny, receiving something that came from the heart, instead of a generic gift. When we go back, those are the only three that I will stress over.