Final count down

Time is passing by very fast and now it’s almost 2 weeks before my departure. Time is flying!! Only 2 more weeks at work and I’m the airplane  ... 1 more week and I'm without my apartment and after this weekend my apartment will be empty ... and my whole world will turn UpSideDown.

In the meanwhile most people around me realize that I’m really going away. I received so many sweet and compassionate responses on my blog and newsletter. Most of what I heard is that people are inspired and touched by my post. Well, I can tell you, all your comments inspire me more to go and have really touched me as well. What sympathy. Great! And not to forget, all the donations that I’ve received (and still can be donated) :-) In a next post I’ll hope to tell more about the projects of the orphanage and school. Whether the donations are coming from you that I know personally or from you that I don’t know; never mind because I know for sure: the children of Thailand are very pleased with it!

Latest developments
My visa for Australia and Thailand are regulated. For Thailand I received a volunteer visa that means that I only need to leave the county once. Thanks to the world wide web a network of new people has been born and I already know that I will meet lovely people in Australia, two Dutch grandfather's are going to visit me in Thailand by bike (met them at the embassy) and I've been in contact with other volunteers from the orphanage and I have an address to go to Cambodia. Great invention that internet! I try every day to learn a new word of Thai, but OMG it’s so hard to remember :S Hopefully it will go better when I’m Thailand and having every day to practice and I really hope to speak Thai at the end of my stay. All patches, medicines, ORS bags and mosquito net were purchased (well, you need to be prepared if you go to the tropics and don’t want to end in a decayed hospital). And next week I get my last series of vaccinations. So yes, there is plenty of money invested in prevention but it’s better to prevent than to cure.

I’ve booked my TEFL course and am currently looking for a room in Melbourne. So far not a great success but some things you just have to trust that it all will work out after all… (but sometimes it’s quite difficult). For the rest everything goes quite smoothly, at work I have my stuff already boxed and at home (I was in a doubt to share here or not) everything has turned upside down in my living room and I have to jump about stuff to get to the other side. The whole floor is strewn with purchases, clothes, bags, my backpack and a lot of boxes (maybe I create courage to show you a picture) ;-) Fortunately, I have a super mom and Saturday we will work as a team and pack everything, what would I do without her?

Many farewell drinks and appointments are scheduled. Let’s finish with the words; just pack and leave… and have a toast on a happy ending!

Cheers!

starting to pack...

after packing