Another week

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I thought that I had published this 2 weeks ago .....sorry!

So what happened in the Wilson household for the rest of the week??
Well, first let me tell you about our visitor. Our friends and neighbors were going on vacation and so we offered to look after their dog Sugar for them while they were away. We miss our dog Charlie so much so we decided it would be nice to have a dog roaming around the apartment for a while!! Kevin was a little unsure but agreed and actually loved having her lying on the end of our bed like Charlie does and snuggling up on the couch. Of course all of you that know Charlie know that he is a 25lb Cocker Spaniel that doesn’t really take up a lot of space.. Sugar on the other hand was like a 100 lb bear. She is a cross between an Old English sheepdog (a dog I grew up with) and a Wheaton Terrier. Basically she was a huge ball of fur!!!! She growled when she talked to you (it was like having a lion in front of you!) but didn’t have a vicious bone in her body. It was sad to say goodbye and made us miss our dog a little more but we would do it again in a heartbeat!!!!
Anyway back to it… After the relaxing foot massage from the day before, I decided I was fit enough to try my hand at a little Yoga. My friend Marie Alix had a Yoga instructor come to her house every week and I had been invited to join them. Of course having never taken yoga before, I was under the impression that it involved a little stretching and a lot of relaxation. How wrong could I be!!! Oh yes there was some relaxing but it was at the end. Before that my body had been turned into a pretzel. There I was twisting and stretching feeling very proud of myself for doing what I thought was a good job and then..Wham!!!!! My instructor came and pushed her knee into my back and pulled my shoulders down and out. I honestly thought I was going to die on several occasions through the session. I had been warned that the instructors here were taught in the “old ways”. I think I might like the “new ways better!!! Although my legs shook like crazy and my stomach muscles screamed out, I felt a sense of achievement. The oxygen definitely went to my head though because in a split second of total insanity I signed up to do it again the next week. Heaven help me!!!

Thursday brought me an experience I would rather not have. It was a very rainy day and the umbrellas were out in force. Cheryl and I decided to brave the weather and head out for some shopping. Big mistake!! I knew as we walked up the steps into the store, as I felt a little pull on my coat that I had been the victim of a pick pocket. Normally I wouldn’t have anything in my pockets but on this fateful day I had been on the phone as we arrived at Cheryl’s apartment and quickly threw it in my pocket as I put up my umbrella. Big mistake cause now the phone was gone!!! I looked around as soon as I felt the pull but could see no one. Cheryl called it instantly and someone did answer it but said nothing. Anyway, as I do with any problem in China, I called Kevin… He has plenty of people that can help at work so he is the obvious choice when something needs doing. His response was…”couldn’t you have picked a better day?” Of course Kevin, I planned to have my phone taken on this day !!!!!
Well I may have mentioned previously but nothing is simple in China. You can’t just call the phone company and have you phone number suspended. Here you have to take your passport and phone contract to the store that you bought it from. No other branch can deal with it (CRAZY!!!). Of course I was in the north of the city, nowhere near home. My driver was long gone and I needed a translator with me at the phone store to explain what had happened (see nothing is easy!!!).
Friday came and I went with Vivienne to get the phone sorted out. I had to pay $45 for another phone (which is actually nicer than the last one!!) and to have the sim card transferred but it finally was sorted out. The phones here are “pay as you go” and my little thief had a field day spending the $20+ dollars that was left on my phone. He/she made 31 calls, some to another province. Vivienne was really angry and called the police but guess what??? You can only report the theft to the police station closest to where the theft happened which of course is at the opposite side of the city to where we are. I told her not to bother..it was too much hassle!
So I have been in China for 2 months and already have been pick pocketed. What will be next??

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Photos

Sugar
Megan and Sophie with Sugar