Day ... Something

Free Day in China!

 

Today was our free day where we did not have any tours planned and no tour guide to show us the city.  Baby Girl slept till 7:30. 2 hours longer than she normally does!!  PTL!!  We had a late breakfast, Skyped the boys, then started our final load of laundry before packing to fly south to Guangzhou in the morning.  This was the first morning that W cried when we Skyped, begging me to come home right now.  He asked to kiss me a few times and this mama heart could hardly stand it!  It was the first time that I have cried in China, which was pretty good considering I cried for days before we got here!

 

 

 Skyping with the boys!

{the look on W's face is just pitiful!!}

 

 

 

 

 

For lunch, we went to KFC with the couple from our agency plus another couple we met from Michigan.  There was a store connected to KFC where the girls picked out some shoes and we got to met a Chinese lady who is a Christian!  She was with a male friend who said he is studying the Bible in a weekly cell group and want to be a Christian but is scared.  He said he doesn't have the faith yet, but wants to.  We told him we would pray for him and he said that China needs more Christian missionaries to come here.  We can't forget to pray for the underground church here and for the King of Kings to transform these people!  He is here guys.  We can see it in little places and we are doing what we can to leave a piece of Him everywhere we go. 

 

After lunch, Robbie treated me to a massage in the hotel spa!  I went with the other mom in our group and we had a memorable experience for sure! First, the masseuse point to the shower in the room and asked me to wash off.  A little strange, but not so weird.  Then, she came in and washed my feet in an almost hot water basin filled with rose petals and lavender.  It was super nice and relaxing, but I a little weird for me at the same time.  I'm not one to get a massage on a regular basis and usually don't like for others to serve me, especially by washing my feet.  So, starting off, I had a hard time relaxing!

 

Sharon and I about to get a massage, all smiles now!

 

It looks harmless enough from the outside!

 

After she finished the foot washing, we went over to the table where she asked me to take off my robe right in front of her.  Getting harder to relax, but felt better once I was laying down all covered up! Well, it didn't take long for the masseuse to make her way up to my back and my behind!  Most of the time, a masseuse will tuck the towel or sheet into your undies and leave the buttocks alone.  Not in China!  This lady rolled the undies all the way down and massaged by whole rear end! Surely not relaxed now, but I was trying hard not to show it with my stiff body!!  Then, I feel this lady get on the table and straddle me!!  Oh, my eyes popped open big time at the feel of this and I knew I was in for time!!  Well, it only got more uncomfortable from there when she asked me to turn over.  Let's just say that here in China, a front massage includes every part of the torso from the stomach up!  Sweating stiff now while I try to think if I pull the towel up or run out the door!!  I was so thankful when that massage was over and couldn't wait to get dressed and get out of there!  I don't know if the owner knew how weird that was for an American, but she came and offered us free manicures when it was over.  We took her offer and extended our Free Time another hour with a more pleasant relaxation!

 

Sharon getting her manicure

 

Tonight, we walked the street of Lanzhou at the "night market".  This is when locals fill the streets with any and everything they can find to sell.  Most memorable was the food market where you could buy fresh produce and the freshest meat I've ever seen apart from hunting!  These people were chopping lamb heads right there in the street and people where buying it! The smell was awful and the girls lost their appetite.  We are working on self control of our facial expressions, but sometimes you just have to turn your nose up before you can smile.  We are a work in progress!   

 

walking the night market

 

puppies for sale at the night market

 

Tomorrow we fly south to Guangzhou so we had to spend the rest of the evening repacking our bags.  Tedious but necessary to get us one day closer to flying home!

 

The Main Event!