Day: 239
Distance covered: 28,733 km (17,854 miles)
Subjects found: 63
Our journey through China was scheduled to last six weeks, with two trafficked girls and 24 photographic subjects to locate, and over 8,000 kilometres to cover by bus and train.
Our first two weeks here have gone exceptionally well – now, however, there are complications. Marinho was given only a 15-day visa, and is now being granted only a 15-day extension. Four of those days will be spent here, in a small town in southern China, waiting for the paperwork to be processed.
Two more weeks will not be enough for all that needs to be done, but we can take things only one step at a time.
I’ve now spoken several times on the phone with M. Her situation is not a good one, and our presence here in China has helped stir her hopes of returning home. Unfortunately, her extremely possessive “husband” seems to have sensed her changed mood, and we’ll have to take great care with any further contact.
P and M now face a major life decision, to choose between their homes and families in Vietnam, and their children in China. They need time. Meanwhile, we have a brand new monsoon bursting over us, and the days of deluge have begun.
We’re now treading water as we wait for Marinho’s visa, and the outcome of M and P’s decisions. It’s an opportunity for us to prepare the photographic prints and postcards to be mailed out following our crowdfunding campaign.
We decided to have our own postcards printed, and they’ll be sent out this week!
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