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Working out with a snow shovel.
My new year got off to a good start with a snow-shoveling workout this morning. Not only did I have to dig out the car, the garage and the porch but I cleared twenty-five metres of road so that we could get the car up the slope. My whole body was like jelly afterwards, including my fingers. I did, however develop some excellent techniques, that saved twisting my back and put all dormant muscles into use. By the time I was finished it seemed we had a strange traffic island of snow left in the parking area. Before heading in for a mince pie and tipple we added some special features.

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The snowgirls feeling satisfied after a morning's work.
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The snow might be a tad inconvenient at times but it's not hard to find beauty in such wintery scenes.
 
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Freda took along her new pet!
Lesley and her Mum are snowed in up at Craiglea. Meanwhile Ali, his parents, Freda and Edie went for a traditional New Year's Day stroll along the boulevard at Aberdeen beach. The weather was bracing, with a strong wind off the sea and occasional flurries of snow. The girls really enjoyed the fresh air and were fascinated by the crashing waves - we haven't seen much of the sea in recent years, certainly not a energised wintery one like this. We all enjoyed checking out Ali's Dad's new gadget - an in-car satellite navigation system. Very "Tomorrow's World" (or maybe I've been living in Yesterday for the past few years?). "You have arrived at your destination..."

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Ali's parents with Freda and Edie
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Rules and Regulations
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The weather has been very cold the last couple of weeks and the main river (Dee) froze over for the first time in many years (it's thawing again now). At the harbour the scene was like something out of the Baltic with slow moving icebergs filling the basin. Upstream there was even more ice backing up at bridge pillars. It's all so very different from what we see in Simao!

 
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Lesley in Xi'an
I don't have any fabulous photos from my recent trip to Xi'an. The main reason is that the 3-day workshop itinerary was jam-packed. On the one morning we hoped to cycle around on top of the old city wall, it was pouring with rain.

Besides the interesting and active session plans organised by the PO and volunteers, the highlights were: Getting together with all the Basic Education volunteers currently working in China, including the new arrivals; having time to get to know other volunteers better (at previous conferences, with larger groups including our local partners, there hasn't always been the same chance to talk); the kindness of other volunteers regarding my Jingdong book and my Friendship Award; hearing from Hongyan that we'll be staying in a 5-star hotel; trying out new food dishes, typical of the North but rarely on our table in Yunnan - most of them containing enormous quantities of garlic; wandering around the Muslim food and craft sector of the old city and chatting over beer in a bustling restaurant; a corn seller and other locals on the street sorting out what bus we should take back to our hotel after our night out; the bus driver taking a wrong turn [perhaps following another route] and the other passengers sorting him out; our journey back home - we were delayed from Xi'an and nearly missed our connection to Simao. They held the plane up and we were escorted to it in a little van with a flashing light. All very exciting.

The lowlights were: Not having enough time to catch up with people, knowing that it will be a long time until we meet again; the smoggy, noisy, horrible walk with Tina on our first afternoon - we both returned to our room smelling of pollution and fighting off a headache; always having garlic breath; gradually losing my voice - although I'm sure everyone else was pleased.

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Edie having the finishing touches to her new hairstyle.
Despite the hot, humid air as we collapsed into bed last night, we all slept very soundly. After a fabulous holiday, it's great to be home! Edie, nevertheless, decided to opt for a cooler hairstyle. We paid a visit to our favourite hairdresser, 'Biker King' (Wang, his surname, means 'king' and he loves motorbikes). 

Our first day back is being spent resorting after our house and hamster-sitting tenants (four of our recent graduates) moving out. Dougal has lost a bit of weight but seems well. His teeth have grown back in after the Jingdong incident (see blog archive if this is news to you). The lodgers left the place spotless but despite having the windows open for the last month, it's still musty. Every wet season I am reminded of how damp our clothes and bedding get at this time of year. Pictures start falling off the walls and leather goes mouldy. Time to air our quilts before the rain comes.