Well I am writing this from Bangkok. I am sitting here bored to tears waiting for my flight to Chang Mai (a 2 hour layover in Seoul and a 5 hour layover in Bangkok, ugh). Brilliant time for a little blogging.
This last week has been interesting and busy and stressful and wonderful and sad. I moved out of my apartment a week ago and the new teacher came. All week I have been saying good-bye to students that I have grown incredibly fond of in the last 18 months. The younger kids don't understand the idea of someone leaving. They have short memories and will forget me quickly (my favorite student came to the train station with her family to see me off and had so little understanding of me leaving that she spent the whole time showing me her new cat sticker book, she looked a little confused when I burst into tears). The older students and the mothers understood though. Lots of tears and hugging (which is incredibly unusual in Japan-- people don't hug, but I got lots and lots of hugs this week). It was very sad, but also a little satisfying to know that I actually made a difference in people's lives. In the fall I was getting discouraged with teaching, but this week made me feel very happy about the time I have spent in Fukui. Friends too. Lots of people came to my good-bye/birthday party and it was so much fun. At one point I just sat in the bar looking around at all the people who have made my stay here so fun and memorable. All the people who have impacted me. They were all talking and laughing and drinking and singing mediocre karaoke. I just sat there for awhile trying to soak it all in, to burn that one final night into my memory. I know that I am moving on to bigger and better things, and I am very excited about the next few months. But that excitement doesn't mean I'm not sad. Saying good-bye and letting go is always difficult and I don't think I will ever get the hang of it.
So I am in Bangkok. I'm a little bit in shock still and can't believe I'm here finally. I keep trying to speak to people in Japanese, as it's the only foreign language I know (unless you count my recent attempts at Afrikaans, which are pathetically...pathetic). So, my plans in Thailand: I'm going to Chang Mai in 2 hours. That seems to be as far as I made it in the planning stage (and actually I didn't buy that ticket until I got to Osaka and was about to get on the plane coming here). I'm going to stay in Chang Mai for 6 or 7 days. I want to study Thai cooking and Thai massage (2-3 day courses in each- nifty). Then hopefully on to Ankor Wat in Cambodia for 3-4 days, Koh Chang (back in Thailand) for 6 days to lie on the beach and then a few days in Bangkok at the end to do all my last minute shopping.
I think I am too tired to have any emotions at the moment, they have all drained away and been replaced by an overwhelming urge to close my eyes just for a moment. I will hopefully be able to update this blog occassionally... but now I'm off to kip on the hard plastic chairs of international airports.
This last week has been interesting and busy and stressful and wonderful and sad. I moved out of my apartment a week ago and the new teacher came. All week I have been saying good-bye to students that I have grown incredibly fond of in the last 18 months. The younger kids don't understand the idea of someone leaving. They have short memories and will forget me quickly (my favorite student came to the train station with her family to see me off and had so little understanding of me leaving that she spent the whole time showing me her new cat sticker book, she looked a little confused when I burst into tears). The older students and the mothers understood though. Lots of tears and hugging (which is incredibly unusual in Japan-- people don't hug, but I got lots and lots of hugs this week). It was very sad, but also a little satisfying to know that I actually made a difference in people's lives. In the fall I was getting discouraged with teaching, but this week made me feel very happy about the time I have spent in Fukui. Friends too. Lots of people came to my good-bye/birthday party and it was so much fun. At one point I just sat in the bar looking around at all the people who have made my stay here so fun and memorable. All the people who have impacted me. They were all talking and laughing and drinking and singing mediocre karaoke. I just sat there for awhile trying to soak it all in, to burn that one final night into my memory. I know that I am moving on to bigger and better things, and I am very excited about the next few months. But that excitement doesn't mean I'm not sad. Saying good-bye and letting go is always difficult and I don't think I will ever get the hang of it.
So I am in Bangkok. I'm a little bit in shock still and can't believe I'm here finally. I keep trying to speak to people in Japanese, as it's the only foreign language I know (unless you count my recent attempts at Afrikaans, which are pathetically...pathetic). So, my plans in Thailand: I'm going to Chang Mai in 2 hours. That seems to be as far as I made it in the planning stage (and actually I didn't buy that ticket until I got to Osaka and was about to get on the plane coming here). I'm going to stay in Chang Mai for 6 or 7 days. I want to study Thai cooking and Thai massage (2-3 day courses in each- nifty). Then hopefully on to Ankor Wat in Cambodia for 3-4 days, Koh Chang (back in Thailand) for 6 days to lie on the beach and then a few days in Bangkok at the end to do all my last minute shopping.
I think I am too tired to have any emotions at the moment, they have all drained away and been replaced by an overwhelming urge to close my eyes just for a moment. I will hopefully be able to update this blog occassionally... but now I'm off to kip on the hard plastic chairs of international airports.
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