Language barrier

Complications.  It was a bad day.  Language barriers can cause that.  After a long day of lounging in the air conditioning, avoiding the 98 degree heat, we made the move to get pedicures.  First bad move.  The greeting lady escorted us to a private room.  It looked more like a love zone than a place to get your toe nails painted.  We soaked our feet in boiling water.  A man scuffed the old skin off my feet with a disgusted look.  We paid our twenty kuai for the pedicure.  Then we were left for an hour to sit.  We tried to communicate to them using motions and simple words, but it was useless.  She spoke fast and our Chinese language was not enough to comprehend it.   Frustrated, we left.  

A similar situation occurred next door while at Bridge.  A cute cafe with sandwiches, pasta, and Italian desserts.   We waited again.  We had to wave down our waitress.  Our food was out.  Our ticket never came.  Two hours later we left, paying more than we intended and feeling wiped from misunderstandings. I need to study more Chinese.