Last one for 2012

Hey everyone!!

I'm going to keep this short, because I've got things to do, but this is me signing out for the year!!

As soon as I finish this, I'll be powering down my laptop so I can load my stuff in the car before Closing Ceremony, so I can make a quick getaway.  At the apartment, I'll have a few minutes to get changed before our taxi arrives to take us and our luggage up to the train station (usually we walk, but Jeff's still feeling light-headed and sick after being out with the flu for ages, and I don't fancy carrying BOTH our packs, so I think taxi is best!).  There we will just on a train for an hour and bit, then we grab some dinner from our favourite bakery enroute to the bus stop where we will catch our four hour bus to the airport.  At the airport we will either wait around for the best part of an hour to catch the free shuttle to our hotel, or we will decide that at 10pm it's not a good idea to wait an hour just to save a few yen and will take a taxi to our hotel.  Right now I'm pretending we'll do the former, but I think we can all see how this will work out...

Anyway, we can catch some shuteye, then at 7:30am we have to be back at the airport, and this time we hope to avail ourselves of the free shuttle.  AND THEN WE FLY TO THAILAND!!!  Via somewhere, but we'll forget that.  I don't like stopovers, so I'm not thinking about it.  WE FLY TO THAILAND!!!

We'll spend one week at the orphanage, then ten days in Bangkok, exploring the city and doing day trips out.  It's going to be amazing!  I can't believe I'm going to eat Thai for 17 days!!  Thai and Indian are, like, totally my fav!!  I actually have no idea what else to expect, but I know there will be food and it will be spicy and I will love it!

Back in the here and now, I still have a big pile of student journals on my desk.  We told the students they had to have finished 20 journal entries by the end of winter vacation.  It sounded good at the time.  Result 1 was that the last two weeks of school, when Charly intended to do Wide Island View work and prepare for Thailand, she ended up taking journals home to mark in bed (strict no-no taking work home here, but I can't work until midnight at school.  Even my Japanese workmates aren't that bad!) and being unable to see her desk for a fortnight.  (Sorry, I will stop talking about myself in the third person now.  Bad habit!)  Result 2 is forecasted.  Currently the 20 student classes have an average of 2 or 3 students who have completed their 20.  Which means there are 17 or 18 in each class that HAVEN'T finished.  Which means 17 or 18 journals from each class will be on my desk when I return.  I have 16 classes.  I just did the maths for you and that's 280 journals.  Welcome back to school, Charly!!!  Oh dear!!  I really should have thought this through better!!

Now it really is time for me to pack up my laptop and bag and put everything away.  Maybe I can get through one or two of those journals before I leave :S

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and New Year!
xo