Recap: Duggars in Beijing, China

On tonight's episode of 19 Kids and Counting "Duggars Do Asia"...

• Jim Bob organizes his family's suitcases to prepare for the three-and-a-half hour flight from Kyoto, Japan, to Beijing, China.
• While riding the subway to Tiananmen Square, the Duggars rely on "buddy teams on steroids," as Jim Bob calls it. Frank Sun, a member of the film crew, helps the Duggars navigate China.
• The Duggar dad tells his little ones how to act when the family is approached by fans.  "We're going to be kind of like a tourist attraction," he says.
• "Always smile," says Michelle. "Be very gracious."
• The subways in China are much more crowded than the subways in the United States, but they are a whole lot cheaper. Twenty-four tickets cost the Duggars less than $8.
• "You just squish in, and they make space," says Michelle.
• "The person that was going to squash me, I was going to squash them back," says Jackson.
• On day two, the Duggars take a bus to the Great Wall of China. They spend the night in Gubeikou Village, a rural Chinese village. During dinner on the night of their 4th anniversary, Josh and Anna sneak away to take the pregnancy test that Anna purchased in Japan. It comes back negative, and Anna admits that she is a little bummed, but the couple does not regret their decision to trust God with the size of their family.
• When they return to Beijing, the Duggars find out that Courtney Enlow, coordinating producer of 19 Kids and Counting, is in labor. Jana, studying to be a doula, and Jill, studying to be a midwife, are eager to help.
• "Jill literally pushed Courtney through the halls of the hospital," says Scott, Courtney's husband and the crew's director of photography.
• It's a girl! Scott and Courtney get a quick glimpse of Leah Adee Enlow, 5 pounds 10 ounces, but are not reunited with her until three-and-a-half days later.
• After the baby is born, the Duggars venture out into Beijing once again. The entire family cringes when soundman Jim Goodwin eats a scorpion.
• Towards the end of the show, the Duggars bring backpacks, shoes, and love to a Chinese orphanage. "I think love is universal, and happiness is universal," says Anna. "It's really special to be here."
• "Our hearts just really went out to those kids," says Jinger.
• Would the Duggars consider adopting? "We have been praying about that, and so our hearts are open," says Michelle. Stay tuned!
• Before they leave China, the adorable Leah Adee Enlow is released from the hospital and introduced to the family.
• "After three weeks away, we will all be very happy to be home," says Michelle. Two days after returning to Arkansas, Anna's pregnancy test comes back positive! Grand-Duggar #3 is due on June 7th.

Recap: Duggars in Kyoto, Japan

On tonight's episode of 19 Kids and Counting, "Duggars Do Asia"...

• Fuji TV invites the Duggars to be guests on its live morning show. Minutes before the start of the show, Jackson announces that he has to use the bathroom. With the help of a member of the Japanese film crew, who gathers Jackson in his arms and runs him to the washroom, Duggar #15 makes it back to the set just in time.
• The Duggars tour Tokyo with Unbelievable, a Japanese TV show that introduces the family to Japan's oddities.
• When the family watches the sectioning of a tuna fish, Josie covers her ears and refuses to sample it.
• The Duggars attend a carnival set up by Unbelievable, where the highlight is a goldfish catching contest. The Duggars compete against and catch eight more fish than Master Lida, the Japanese champion in goldfish catching. "We did have like 25 people versus one, but we still won," says John-David.
• The Duggars travel from Tokyo to Kyoto on a Japanese bullet train, which reaches speeds of 190 miles per hour.
• Jim Bob, a man who is not afraid to ask for directions, successfully gets his family from the train station to the hotel but uses the wrong language to thank passersby.  "So once again my dad was trying to use his Spanish," says Jessa. "He'd be like 'gracias, gracias."'
• Jim Bob encourages all the men out there not to hesitate to ask for directions.   
• The Duggar women (Grandma, Michelle, Anna, Jana, Jill, Jessa, Jinger, and Joy) dress up like Japanese geishas, complete with kimonos and traditional hairdos and makeup.
• They bring in the little girls (Johannah, Jennifer, Jordyn, Mackynzie, and Josie) to see their costumes. Johannah is confident that she can identify everyone but encourages her little sisters and niece to guess. The four youngest are a little freaked out, but after the tears are dried, the little girls happily try on their own kimonos.
• At first, Jinger wants no part in dressing up, but her sisters talk her into it. All the Duggar women learn how difficult it is to put on the many layers of a kimono. "You can't put one of those things on by yourself," says Jana.
• Meanwhile, the guys, including Michael, don kimonos of their own and learn Samurai fighting. They enjoy acting out dramatic fake deaths and performing a Hollywood fight scene. At the end of the skit, one of the Samurais jokingly asks Jim Bob for permission to court his daughters. Jim Bob's reaction is to draw the Samurais sword, catching him off-guard.
• After an eventful day, the Duggars take a nap in a Japanese capsule hotel. Although the hotel separates men and women by floor, they make an exception for the Duggars. The children are so intrigued by the capsules that they don't end up taking naps.   
• When asked if they enjoy taking naps, both Jordyn and Josie response with a "no."
• Jim Bob gets a snooze in, but Michelle and the kids play games. "We heard you, though," says Michelle to Jim Bob, laughing. "We knew you were taking a nap."
• Anna sneaks off to purchase a pregnancy test but waits until her anniversary to take it. See the results on next week's show!
• Later in the day, the Duggars, who are pickle fanatics, visit a pickle restaurant. Kyoto is known for its pickles. "Our family has a thing for pickles," says Josh. "And when I say a thing, I mean a thing." Everyone but Jim Bob, the only non-pickle-lover, enjoys tasting the restaurant's 25 pickle dishes. (Six "pickles" in three lines of text, not bad!)

Recap: Duggars in Tokyo

On tonight's episode of 19 Kids and Counting "Duggars Do Asia," the Duggars visit Tokyo, Japan!

• Jessa, the master organizer, and Jinger, her sidekick, have been packing for the family for six years. With 250 changes of clothes, 50 shoes, 170 diapers, and snacks for a month, it takes a box truck to transport the Duggars' luggage to Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport. For 25 people, they check 29 suitcases and carry on 10.
• The Duggars travel 7,000 miles in less than 48 hours, flying first to Chicago and then catching a flight to Tokyo. 
• One of the first differences the Duggars notice between Japan and America are the many buttons on Japanese toilets.
• After spending the night at a hotel with a breathtaking view, the family removes its shoes for a traditional Japanese breakfast. "Jordyn, she was a very adventurous eater," says Jessa. Michelle especially enjoys the seaweed.
• Near the end of the meal, the servers bring out a green tea cake for Michelle's birthday, which turns out to be delicious.
• Day1: After exchanging 300 U.S. Dollars for 22,000 Japanese Yen, the Duggars spend the equivalent of 33 USD at a Japanese dollar store (called a 100 yen shop) in the Shibuya district.
• Day 2: The girls go on a hunt for kimonos for the little girls. "My older daughters...are pretty street smart," says Jim Bob, who feels comfortable letting his daughters venture into Tokyo alone.
• Meanwhile, Jim Bob and Michelle take care of Michael and the rest of their kids, while Josh and Anna head out on their own. But the young couple's date does not last long. While Josh and Anna are in a caricature shop having their picture drawn, the rest of the family magically shows up.
• Afterwards, everyone piles onto several Rickshaws for a ride. Then, they split up into teams for a competition in purchasing fish for sushi.
• Jim Bob picks mostly girls for his team because he know they are good at shopping, but he ends up losing. As "punishment," he has to eat Josie's sushi creation!
• The Duggars, none of whom have tasted sushi, head to the Tokyo Sushi Academy to learn how to prepare it.
• "I don't know whether she was making it or playing with it," says Jana, Josie's buddy in the kitchen.
• Jim Bob prides himself in keeping his word and eats Josie's sushi. He offers to share, but no one takes him up on it. He doesn't predict that sushi will become a staple food in the Duggar household.