QUICK TIPS FROM ADOPTION SOURCE FAMILIES FROM KHABAROVSK 1. Were there any stores (grocery/pharmacy, etc) nearby? There is a small grocery store within walking distance but our driver took us to a more modern, western style 2-story grocery store in Khabarovsk that has everything. 2. Did you find any good restaurants? Any bad ones? We mostly cooked and ate in our apartment in the Mar Kuel but we did go to a nice Italian restaurant called Scallini’s, which was similar to one that you would see in the US. We also ate at a restaurant called, Rushkie, which had good local Russian food. 3. Is there anything you wished that you had packed or that you wouldn’t bring again? I would bring Benadryl and Dimetapp for babies, our son had a sinus infection and you can’t get medicine there. I would also bring Cipro for the parents or some other medicine because I got sick as well. I would not bring any baby clothes, diapers, wipes, baby food etc. because the supermarket in Khabarovsk has all those things and they are inexpensive. It really saved on space for packing. Khabarovsk is a very modern city and you can really get almost anything there except medicine. 4. Any suggestions or comments on the hotels/host families? (Should you bring anything?) better towels, toilet paper, etc.? There is maid service every day at Mar Kuel and they supplied everything you need, linens, towels, cooking supplies, etc. However, I would bring washcloths because they did not have those. 5. Were there any Internet cafes nearby? There is an extremely cheap Internet café in town that your driver can take you to. You can also rent a laptop at the Mar Kuel but when we were there they hadn’t worked out all the bugs yet and we could only receive email and not send it. 6. Was there anything you did or saw in the region that you would recommend or discourage? We walked along the river every day and went to the Natural Museum, which was very nice. We also took a drive into the mountains and went to a wildlife rehabilitation center, which was a very nice trip. I would have also liked to have gone to the circus in town but our son was a little too young. It is a better trip for an older child. 7. Any other general tips that you would like to share? • It is a very long trip and can be very difficult to be there for that long especially if you already have children. It is a nice region but really consider how long the trip is, it can be difficult. However, I would not trade our son for anything. I also would do the “fast track” option at airports through Allways International. It was well worth it to move to the front of lines and make the process of getting through the airport easier. 8. Any comments about the orphanage or tips about speaking with the Minister of Education or Judge during court that could help future families? The orphanage was extremely clean and the workers were great. It is a very poor orphanage and you can tell the workers do the best with what they have. The orphanage director asked us to buy specific things for the babies, which we did and these were placed in a room. As for gifts everyone is a women except the driver and one cook in the orphanage. The workers asked for gift of aromatherapy- like bath oils, candles, etc. The coordinators and translators are wonderful and they really seem to want your adoption to go through. You feel like everyone is behind you going into this process. The Judge was pretty tough and at times would roll her eyes or make faces. She was not happy that we were changing our son’s name. She asked my husband about the children who were killed in the US and asked many questions about how we would handle our child if he misbehaved. So court was a little scary, but in the end it probably wasn’t as bad as I thought it could be.