Well, hello! So I've been hanging out at the home the last couple of days, took some kids to the clinic cos they were sick which I found interesting. The clinic itself was easy, the manager of the home came with me so he knew what was going on and everything. We had two kids with us, one just needed a blood test so that was all good, last time he needed five people to hold him down but this time he was fine, he just squeezed my hand real tight when the needle went in. Then I waited with him while the girl went with the home manager to get her check up. So I was sitting there, the only white person in a local clinic with local people playing clapping games with a nepali kid with downs syndrome. I got a fair few weird looks, and I suppose I understand why. I came into town yesterday so I could do my mountain flight this morning. We met a lot of new volunteers - an interesting bunch. There is a group of 9 kiwis from Wellington who know each other through church. My first thought was 'great, people who I can relate to a bit and not be embarrassed to admit I go to church!' but its these kinda people that make me embarrassed of that fact even more. Seriously. Some of them are really lovely, a lot like me I think, young, belong to a church but still working that stuff out, willing to admit it but not willing to shove it down anyones throat, that kinda thing. But some of them are just awful. It makes me sad when they are so willing to shout out the wonderfulness of God to us whether we want to hear it or not, and also totally willing to skull their red wine and smoke. And they talk about the spirit of god being like flowers bursting from their heart, and jesus juice and all this stuff, but it makes me so sad because it seems so fake, and it gives anyone who is 'real' no crediblity whatsoever. And VSN work with a 'christian' home that is so hideously corrupt, so christianity has such a bad name anyway...Its hard. Really hard.
In other news, I saw Everest today. Man. Blew my mind. So we were told we needed to be at the airport at 6am, then last night I got woken at 11pm and told that the flight had changed and we didn't need to be there till 7.30am. We got there a bit early, got into the departure lounge no problem. Then just waited. At about 10.30am we were told our flight had been cancelled and we could go to the office to re-book for another day. At the office, the same man that told us it had been cancelled came up to us and asked us if we would like tickets for a flight in half an hour. Weird. So we got on that flight about 11am. Good old Nepal! The flight was incredible. I was pretty nervous, never been on a plane that small...But the views just were stunning. Took my breath away. The photos I took would never do it justice, but I'll show you all when I get home anyway. I got to go into the cockpit too which was awesome. Wow. It was so worth it.
Tomorrow I head to Lumbini, another early start. It takes 9 hours by bus, I've probably told you that. I'm in Nepal though so it'll probably take longer. I'm low on money, I owe people money, my stomach ain't right, this country is insane and I'm loving it. Absolutely. But don't worry, I also can't wait to come back and tell you all the stories first hand!
Love you all, Happy New Year!
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Christmas
Well, Merry Christmas, friendly blog readers! I hope you enjoyed it, whatever you got up to.
I got into town on chirstmas eve, and that night we went out to dinner. We had a Secret Santa, which was exciting, I got a photo album, then we went to a pub and played pool and other exciting things till the small hours of the morning. I got woken up in the morning with a phone call from my family, which was the coolest phone call ever, and I chatted to everyone and unwrapped the presents that they had put in my suitcase...it was really cool. Had bacon and eggs for breakfast, then went out and bought fruit, blankets, chocolate, lollies, books etc for our adventure to the jail. We went to central jail with the view of giving christmas gifts to the non-nepali prisioners (in a nepali jail your family are meant to look after you, so foreginers generally have it harder). When we got there we had to go through a big check - had to give up phones, cameras, most other electronic equipment, and they checked through our bags and did the feel-you-up check which is weird but fair enough. Then we went into the 'public relation' room where there was a list on the wall of all the foreginers in the jail. We weren't allowed to visit them all, we had to randomly picked one we liked the sound of and visit them. On the list there was their name, home country and what they were in for. We went in twos so Katie and I picked a Thai woman whose crime was 'drugs' (they only ever wrote one word for the crime...). She was 36, had been there for two years, had 13 to go and was in for smuggling herion (I don't think thats spelt correctly but thats the REALLY BAD drug). She had done it once before and not got caught. It was cool to give her gifts but hard to feel sorry for her...The amount of lives she could ruin by smuggling drugs is enormous, and surely she knew what she was doing, as it was her second time. We talked to another woman though, and she made me cry when I came out. She was 25, but looked younger, from the Phillipines, married. From what I could understand, her brother-in-law got her to help him out in his 'business' that turned out to be doing illegal fraud stuff. When they got found out, he ran and left her to deal with it. She has been in for 5 months, and her trial is this wednesday. If she gets out, I'm hoping to be her pen-pal (email pen-pal at least). Crazy. Yeah, so she upset me a bit.
After the jail we came back and I used the internet - Mark was online! What an awesome christmas present! Then we went out to dinner and had a pretty early night. Good times.
I'm heading back out to the villiage today, hopefully will get Cinderella underway. Coming back into town on the 29th for my Everest Flight on the 30th, and my trip to Lumbini on the 31st. I get back to town on the 2nd, go back to the villiage on the 3rd, and leave placement on the 10th. Its crazy, its going to go so fast now. I'll be home before you know it, scary stuff. But home will be another (smaller) adventure, or I'll turn it into one if its not. Love you all, keep in touch, keep commenting, have fun!
I got into town on chirstmas eve, and that night we went out to dinner. We had a Secret Santa, which was exciting, I got a photo album, then we went to a pub and played pool and other exciting things till the small hours of the morning. I got woken up in the morning with a phone call from my family, which was the coolest phone call ever, and I chatted to everyone and unwrapped the presents that they had put in my suitcase...it was really cool. Had bacon and eggs for breakfast, then went out and bought fruit, blankets, chocolate, lollies, books etc for our adventure to the jail. We went to central jail with the view of giving christmas gifts to the non-nepali prisioners (in a nepali jail your family are meant to look after you, so foreginers generally have it harder). When we got there we had to go through a big check - had to give up phones, cameras, most other electronic equipment, and they checked through our bags and did the feel-you-up check which is weird but fair enough. Then we went into the 'public relation' room where there was a list on the wall of all the foreginers in the jail. We weren't allowed to visit them all, we had to randomly picked one we liked the sound of and visit them. On the list there was their name, home country and what they were in for. We went in twos so Katie and I picked a Thai woman whose crime was 'drugs' (they only ever wrote one word for the crime...). She was 36, had been there for two years, had 13 to go and was in for smuggling herion (I don't think thats spelt correctly but thats the REALLY BAD drug). She had done it once before and not got caught. It was cool to give her gifts but hard to feel sorry for her...The amount of lives she could ruin by smuggling drugs is enormous, and surely she knew what she was doing, as it was her second time. We talked to another woman though, and she made me cry when I came out. She was 25, but looked younger, from the Phillipines, married. From what I could understand, her brother-in-law got her to help him out in his 'business' that turned out to be doing illegal fraud stuff. When they got found out, he ran and left her to deal with it. She has been in for 5 months, and her trial is this wednesday. If she gets out, I'm hoping to be her pen-pal (email pen-pal at least). Crazy. Yeah, so she upset me a bit.
After the jail we came back and I used the internet - Mark was online! What an awesome christmas present! Then we went out to dinner and had a pretty early night. Good times.
I'm heading back out to the villiage today, hopefully will get Cinderella underway. Coming back into town on the 29th for my Everest Flight on the 30th, and my trip to Lumbini on the 31st. I get back to town on the 2nd, go back to the villiage on the 3rd, and leave placement on the 10th. Its crazy, its going to go so fast now. I'll be home before you know it, scary stuff. But home will be another (smaller) adventure, or I'll turn it into one if its not. Love you all, keep in touch, keep commenting, have fun!
Sunday, December 21, 2008
If You Thought Getting Lost Was Dramatic...
Well, after my day in Thamel I headed home without incident, there was a little girl with a balloon on the second micro and we played little kid games and I tried to chat to her folks without much success.
When I got off the bus, I had a short walk to get home. Some old man starts chatting to me, talking about his son-in-law and how he makes good daal bhat and how I should join them sometime. And I was like, actually, I have my own daal bhat but thankyou anyway. Then he started talking about his son and how his son would love to study abroad and how if only he had a western wife...And I had to say that there was NO WAY I was interested in his son, actually. So that man went home then I got a bleeding nose. As I was getting blood all over myself and my bag and my hand while trying to get tissues out of it, two guys came round the corner and asked what was wrong, did I fall over? And I was trying to explain that I get bleeding noses lots and its normal, I just needed my tissues...So they help me find my tissues and carry on their way. (It occured to me later the amount of things they could have taken from my bag as I was in such a flustered state. Its cool when genuinely nice people turn up at the right times.) So I go back to the home, clean myself up, and go into the playroom, where one kid has this great idea that I should tell a story. So I did Rumplestiltskin for the obvious reason that I played the title character, and they loved it! It was so cool. The next one we did, Snow White, I got them helping out with sound effects and then we did some of Cinderella, and I got them acting it out (you can see where this is going right?) then I asked if they would like me to write a play so they could act it out to some kids from another home and they said yes. So now I'm writing and directing, so to speak. Kneller better be proud. Heh.
So that was my day.
By the way, today marks the half way point of my time in Nepal.
Congratulations, Sophie!
Love.
When I got off the bus, I had a short walk to get home. Some old man starts chatting to me, talking about his son-in-law and how he makes good daal bhat and how I should join them sometime. And I was like, actually, I have my own daal bhat but thankyou anyway. Then he started talking about his son and how his son would love to study abroad and how if only he had a western wife...And I had to say that there was NO WAY I was interested in his son, actually. So that man went home then I got a bleeding nose. As I was getting blood all over myself and my bag and my hand while trying to get tissues out of it, two guys came round the corner and asked what was wrong, did I fall over? And I was trying to explain that I get bleeding noses lots and its normal, I just needed my tissues...So they help me find my tissues and carry on their way. (It occured to me later the amount of things they could have taken from my bag as I was in such a flustered state. Its cool when genuinely nice people turn up at the right times.) So I go back to the home, clean myself up, and go into the playroom, where one kid has this great idea that I should tell a story. So I did Rumplestiltskin for the obvious reason that I played the title character, and they loved it! It was so cool. The next one we did, Snow White, I got them helping out with sound effects and then we did some of Cinderella, and I got them acting it out (you can see where this is going right?) then I asked if they would like me to write a play so they could act it out to some kids from another home and they said yes. So now I'm writing and directing, so to speak. Kneller better be proud. Heh.
So that was my day.
By the way, today marks the half way point of my time in Nepal.
Congratulations, Sophie!
Love.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Its Not Christmas
Well hello.
I realise that I did say the next time I would blog would be christmas eve...but I came into town today to make up a timetable for one of the kids and laminate it at the office. And what a mission that was!
I don't think I've fully explained the micro buses yet. To get to my placement from town I go to Ratna Park (can't spell, thats how it sounds) and catch my first micro bus. These are those white 15-seater toyota vans...but they cram as many people as humanly possible into them, rather than the expected 15 people. So usually you are not only the only white person in the bus, someone is leaning on you, or shoved up next to you etc...and everyone stares at you very openly.
So today was my first time on the micro by myself, I have to get two to get into town and I did the swap over perfectly, which I was very proud of. But I think I got off either too late or two early, because I got hopelessly lost getting into town. I asked a shop keeper at every corner I came to which way to go next and I ended up in Kathmandu Dubar Square before I got to Thamel (that means I went the very long way round). THEN when I got to the offices, I made up the timetable on the computer and turns out I can't print it till Sunday. So the whole trip was for...nothing really. Lets just say experience.
Its amazing what you end up doing in this kind of country that you'd never dream of doing in NZ. The whole traffic concept here, for example, is completely different, and incredibly unsafe by NZ standards...but you can't exactly avoid it. So you just have to do it, cross roads even though a motor bike is coming, get in a van with 30 other people and keep your fingers crossed.
I'm coming into town on Sunday to do a half-day hike with some other volunteers, so you'll probably hear from me then...keep in contact folks, I miss you! Thanks for all your support via emails and facebook and bebo.
Love.
I realise that I did say the next time I would blog would be christmas eve...but I came into town today to make up a timetable for one of the kids and laminate it at the office. And what a mission that was!
I don't think I've fully explained the micro buses yet. To get to my placement from town I go to Ratna Park (can't spell, thats how it sounds) and catch my first micro bus. These are those white 15-seater toyota vans...but they cram as many people as humanly possible into them, rather than the expected 15 people. So usually you are not only the only white person in the bus, someone is leaning on you, or shoved up next to you etc...and everyone stares at you very openly.
So today was my first time on the micro by myself, I have to get two to get into town and I did the swap over perfectly, which I was very proud of. But I think I got off either too late or two early, because I got hopelessly lost getting into town. I asked a shop keeper at every corner I came to which way to go next and I ended up in Kathmandu Dubar Square before I got to Thamel (that means I went the very long way round). THEN when I got to the offices, I made up the timetable on the computer and turns out I can't print it till Sunday. So the whole trip was for...nothing really. Lets just say experience.
Its amazing what you end up doing in this kind of country that you'd never dream of doing in NZ. The whole traffic concept here, for example, is completely different, and incredibly unsafe by NZ standards...but you can't exactly avoid it. So you just have to do it, cross roads even though a motor bike is coming, get in a van with 30 other people and keep your fingers crossed.
I'm coming into town on Sunday to do a half-day hike with some other volunteers, so you'll probably hear from me then...keep in contact folks, I miss you! Thanks for all your support via emails and facebook and bebo.
Love.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Feeling Good
Well, everything is going swimmingly.
Its 30 days till I come home. Yes, I count down, its a bit wierd cos then everyone thinks I'm not enjoying myself. I am, I promise! I just also miss home like crazy.
So its a week till Christmas Eve, which is the next time I'm coming into Thamel. How crazy is that? Christmas! Wow. This week is going to be tough. I'm by myself in the home, as the girl I'm working with (Ngaire) is taking some time off to travel. So that means the times I'm with the kids will be crazier, and the times they are at school will be even more lonely. I'm buying lots of books today...and I'm planning on doing a few walks around the area, do a bit of exploring. I may have mentioned earlier that two volunteers are placed a 20 minute walk away, so they will be seeing a fair bit of me this week too.
So I suppose I should tell you a bit about a day in the life of the childrens home...I wake up at 6.45am, struggle out of bed (it is unbelieveably cold in the mornings) and do physio with one of the girls at 7am. This is a problem sometimes, but we have lots of persuasion tactics up our sleves...After half an hour of physio we take her for a walk around the nearby football field. Then at 8am, or there abouts, we eat Daal Bhat...its REALLY good but I'm not that good at eating with my hands yet...at least thats entertainment for the kids. They go to school from 9am till 3.30pm (the school bus takes them) and when they come back they do their homework in the playroom, and I (try to) help. Most of their homework is done in English, but some of the stuff I was doing with a 9 year old is what I learnt in High School. After homework I sign their homework diaries and we have play time till Daal Bhat. That involves games of Dead Fish, table tennis on a makeshift table, reading books, practising English (or getting them to teach me Nepali) and so on. That is my favourite part of the day. We eat Daal Bhat around 7pm and they take themselves off to bed around 8.30pm.
Lots of other little random things happen, but that is the general gist.
By the way, I read an incredible book called Mr Pip, by Lloyd Jones. Highly recomended.
Questions and comments are most welcome!
Look after yourselves.
Its 30 days till I come home. Yes, I count down, its a bit wierd cos then everyone thinks I'm not enjoying myself. I am, I promise! I just also miss home like crazy.
So its a week till Christmas Eve, which is the next time I'm coming into Thamel. How crazy is that? Christmas! Wow. This week is going to be tough. I'm by myself in the home, as the girl I'm working with (Ngaire) is taking some time off to travel. So that means the times I'm with the kids will be crazier, and the times they are at school will be even more lonely. I'm buying lots of books today...and I'm planning on doing a few walks around the area, do a bit of exploring. I may have mentioned earlier that two volunteers are placed a 20 minute walk away, so they will be seeing a fair bit of me this week too.
So I suppose I should tell you a bit about a day in the life of the childrens home...I wake up at 6.45am, struggle out of bed (it is unbelieveably cold in the mornings) and do physio with one of the girls at 7am. This is a problem sometimes, but we have lots of persuasion tactics up our sleves...After half an hour of physio we take her for a walk around the nearby football field. Then at 8am, or there abouts, we eat Daal Bhat...its REALLY good but I'm not that good at eating with my hands yet...at least thats entertainment for the kids. They go to school from 9am till 3.30pm (the school bus takes them) and when they come back they do their homework in the playroom, and I (try to) help. Most of their homework is done in English, but some of the stuff I was doing with a 9 year old is what I learnt in High School. After homework I sign their homework diaries and we have play time till Daal Bhat. That involves games of Dead Fish, table tennis on a makeshift table, reading books, practising English (or getting them to teach me Nepali) and so on. That is my favourite part of the day. We eat Daal Bhat around 7pm and they take themselves off to bed around 8.30pm.
Lots of other little random things happen, but that is the general gist.
By the way, I read an incredible book called Mr Pip, by Lloyd Jones. Highly recomended.
Questions and comments are most welcome!
Look after yourselves.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Happenings
I've been working in my placement for about a week now. I think I know all the kids names, and the physio routine for the kid that needs it. I'm loving helping them with homework, hanging out with them, playing games, singing etc, but its really tough when they go to school. The home is way out of the city, I have to take two local buses and walk for half an hour to get to Thamel (where I stay in town). So I have too much think space when they go to school. And then I miss home. A lot. I'm reading books, I'm tidying the home, going for walks, but being alone is awful. I'm really not coping well with it.
I'm getting my nose pierced today (hopefully). So thats exciting. Also, I'm planning to leave my placement at the home a week early so I can go to Chitiwan National Park (elephants, tigers and the such) and Pokara (I can't spell that but its basically the gateway to the mountains, beautiful views and all the rest). I need to find someone to go with though, because apparently travelling alone they like to bump up the prices. So I'll have a chat to some other volunteers. Depending on the cost of things I'm also planning on going to the birthplace of Budda for New Years, which will be better than hanging out in Thamel with all the drunk westerners. Wow, Sophie will have to budget her money (!).
Wish me luck.
I'm getting my nose pierced today (hopefully). So thats exciting. Also, I'm planning to leave my placement at the home a week early so I can go to Chitiwan National Park (elephants, tigers and the such) and Pokara (I can't spell that but its basically the gateway to the mountains, beautiful views and all the rest). I need to find someone to go with though, because apparently travelling alone they like to bump up the prices. So I'll have a chat to some other volunteers. Depending on the cost of things I'm also planning on going to the birthplace of Budda for New Years, which will be better than hanging out in Thamel with all the drunk westerners. Wow, Sophie will have to budget her money (!).
Wish me luck.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Home
So, I got placed. I'm in a home thats quite far out of Kathmandu, in Bistachhap, which is beautiful. I would post photos but I've heard horror stories of internet cafes giving viruses to poor unsuspecting cameras. So you'll have to wait till I'm back.
The trouble with this home is I feel like I'm not really needed. I feel like I'm just there to make sure it continues to run the way its always done, but I want to bring something of my own to it.
The home is run by VSN (the organisation I'm volunteering for), so they have everything pretty well perfect. I've been talking to volunteers placed in other homes and they are talking about all the problems and how they are going about fixing them and I'm feeling kinda useless. So I'm going to have to invent some projects, otherwise I'll get even more homesick, thinking 'if I'm here but not doing anything, why aren't I at home?'
So, any ideas?
I'm thinking music lessons, putting my tambourine to good use.
If you've got questions, comments, ideas, please, tell me.
Love you all.
The trouble with this home is I feel like I'm not really needed. I feel like I'm just there to make sure it continues to run the way its always done, but I want to bring something of my own to it.
The home is run by VSN (the organisation I'm volunteering for), so they have everything pretty well perfect. I've been talking to volunteers placed in other homes and they are talking about all the problems and how they are going about fixing them and I'm feeling kinda useless. So I'm going to have to invent some projects, otherwise I'll get even more homesick, thinking 'if I'm here but not doing anything, why aren't I at home?'
So, any ideas?
I'm thinking music lessons, putting my tambourine to good use.
If you've got questions, comments, ideas, please, tell me.
Love you all.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Bistachhap - the training village
As soon as we left the city in our rickety old bus I felt instantly relaxed. We headed out to a village called Bistachhap, about an hour and a half drive out of Kathmandu. It was beautiful. There were rice fields and hills and no smog...I stayed with a pretty traditional family in a clay house. They made our food over a clay fire in the main room, and it tasted delicious. Gotta admit, using the charpi (toilet) was a bit awkward with the whole squatting thing, but apparently ours was the nicest. Apart from the massive spider sitting by the lock, it was nice - clean, and not overflowing. Of course, they don't flush, so there is a bucket of water and an empty tin and you flush it down that way. Good fun. We also went to a wedding celebration, where they fed us heaps and we danced with the kids. I couldn't believe how beautiful the bride was! We also climbed a hill up to 1550m with amazing views, though we couldn't quite see the mountains. I'm getting used to Nepali time - everything is slower, you can be late to things, and they go to bed early and get up early. I can't quite explain how much I loved it up there. One of the coolest experiences was showing my aamaa (host mother) pictures of home - scenery from NZ and pictures of my family. Sharing that was incredible. I'm back in Thamel now, its getting dark and its just past 5pm, missing everyone, hoping you are all ok. I'm talking about placement tomorrow, so where I'm going to work. There are two childrens homes in Bistachhap, so fingers crossed! We also visited some of the homes today, to see the kids smiling in some pretty crappy conditions really makes you rethink some of your ways of life.
Peace, out.
Much love.
Stay safe.
KEEP IN TOUCH!
Peace, out.
Much love.
Stay safe.
KEEP IN TOUCH!
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
training and stuff
I'm getting a bit braver. I've got a bit more of an appitite, I'm not quite as scared of the culture as I was. Training has been cool. Language lessons are hilarious because of a guy called Fred, and I ate Daal Baat (the food of Nepal) with my hands. Good fun. Its a mountain of rice, curried vegetables, and a kind of lentil soup. You pour the soup over the rice and mix it all together (right hand, people, right hand!) and kinda use a scooping motion to pick it up, and your thumb to push it into your mouth. Yum.
This is a short one because I'm running out of internet time.
But after the training village (3 days) i'll get another post up.
Going to a traditional wedding tomorrow.
WOW.
Look after yourselves.
This is a short one because I'm running out of internet time.
But after the training village (3 days) i'll get another post up.
Going to a traditional wedding tomorrow.
WOW.
Look after yourselves.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Nepal
They don't brake they honk. Kill a cow = life imprisonment. Kill a human = ten years. Understand the language? Not at all. Fanta for 90 cents NZ. New Zealand is not Australia. Can't see the mountains for the smog. Weddings on the side of the road. Traffic lights just flash red. Women wear traditional dress, men wear as much western clothes as they can. Fly into the airport and there are empty shells of planes sitting by the runway. There is a pizza place across from where I'm sitting advertising a 'Crazy Special' Pizza. They do all they can to get money. Incredible clothes and jewellery sold everywhere. Animals everywhere.
This place is crazy. Those are some first impressions. I'm meeting the other volunteers tonight for the first time which I'm really excited about. Training starts tomorrow. I'm trying to get over the jet lag. And the fear. And the lonely feeling. Thats the bit thats getting me most at the moment. Hopefully that'll change when I talk to the folks that feel exactly the same as me tonight. Until then I just got to trust myself that I can explore and not get lost. Extra. Thinking of you all. Stay safe.
This place is crazy. Those are some first impressions. I'm meeting the other volunteers tonight for the first time which I'm really excited about. Training starts tomorrow. I'm trying to get over the jet lag. And the fear. And the lonely feeling. Thats the bit thats getting me most at the moment. Hopefully that'll change when I talk to the folks that feel exactly the same as me tonight. Until then I just got to trust myself that I can explore and not get lost. Extra. Thinking of you all. Stay safe.
Friday, November 28, 2008
Singapore
The flight was alright, food was alright, I could only watch films from half way through because my 'interactive mode' didn't work, I felt lonely and I screwed up major-like by leaving my wallet in Christchurch. Good move Sophie. So now I am in Singapore, feeling very brave, just had a sleep in a tiny room that smelt clean, it was lovely, its half past 6 here and I fell asleep at 7 last night. So I must have been tired. I'm excited about getting to Nepal now which is a promising sign.
Singapore Airport is huge. Even huger when you're by yourself. When I was on the classics trip it did'nt seem so big. There are giant fish. There is 24 hour starbucks. There is fancy technology shops everywhere. I can see planes and however many times I go places I still can't believe that they get up. I'm hoping for a window seat on the plane so I can see the mountains.
Sorry, this is a bit all over the place, probably cos I am.
But I'm safe, I'm feeling ok.
Hope anyone reading this is ok too, having a good saturday.
I miss you all so freaking much.
Especially Mark.
(Top work, Mark, you got a special mention!)
And my family.
Wish me luck!!
Singapore Airport is huge. Even huger when you're by yourself. When I was on the classics trip it did'nt seem so big. There are giant fish. There is 24 hour starbucks. There is fancy technology shops everywhere. I can see planes and however many times I go places I still can't believe that they get up. I'm hoping for a window seat on the plane so I can see the mountains.
Sorry, this is a bit all over the place, probably cos I am.
But I'm safe, I'm feeling ok.
Hope anyone reading this is ok too, having a good saturday.
I miss you all so freaking much.
Especially Mark.
(Top work, Mark, you got a special mention!)
And my family.
Wish me luck!!
Monday, November 10, 2008
Freaking Out...
So, I lied, here is the next post, I am not in Singapore, rather, sitting at home with 17 days and 6 exams to go.
The point of this one is to tell you how much I do not want to do this, so when you read the ones where I am having an incredible time you can say 'wow, she has come so far!' Cos I think its unfair to hide away the crap feelings. So there.
I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go.
But thats ok, once I'm there it will be awesome. And I bet all the nepalese kids want me there.
The point of this one is to tell you how much I do not want to do this, so when you read the ones where I am having an incredible time you can say 'wow, she has come so far!' Cos I think its unfair to hide away the crap feelings. So there.
I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go I don't want to go.
But thats ok, once I'm there it will be awesome. And I bet all the nepalese kids want me there.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Say What?
A few months ago I decided to go on an adventure (hence the title 'An Adventure' above). I'm going to Nepal through GVN, a volunteering network based in Wellington. I will be working in an orphanage in the Kathmandu Valley, leaving on the 28th of November (37 days to go, folks!) I will not be climbing Mount Everest. So its all been paid for, I just got my visa and all the rest, my next post will be when I'm in Singapore Airport.
Ahhhhh!!!!!
Oh, and I'm not panicking.
At all.
Ahhhhh!!!!!
Oh, and I'm not panicking.
At all.
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