Hey guys!
So since I last posted (which has again been a long time ago), I had an awesome April break with my friend Jen and her boyfriend Ken. We went to Borneo which is an island in Malaysia. It was awesome! First we went to Mulu National Park. We stayed in an awesome chalet type room right in the park. We went on a canopy walk and visited four amazing caves. I didn’t realize I liked caves but they are so cool! Minus the cockroaches!!! I saw a huge green scorpion, spiders, centipedes, and millions of bats! Then we headed off to Turtle Island where we saw sea turtles give birth to dozens of eggs. To end the night we watched baby sea turtles get released into the water! Soo amazing! After that we took a two hour boat ride to go and live in the jungle for three days. Literally live in the jungle! One afternoon I was woken up from my nap by a group of monkeys encroaching on our camp (not gonna lie I was a little nervous!). I saw so many cool things like a water monitor (looks like a small crocodile), monkeys, crocodiles, birds, etc. It was definitely a once in a life time experience!
The following weekend I went to Bangkok with my friend Sarah. It kind of reminded me of Toronto, a big city, lots of traffic, etc. But in many ways really different. We went to Khao San Road. It’s pretty much a huge street party. Every bar is competing to have the loudest music possible (I can’t imagine living there!). Then we went to the red light district ( I had to check it out). It was…interesting. A lot of lady boys and working girls haha! We went to the most amazing market ever! I cannot remember what it was called but you could literally buy anything and everything there. It put Walmart to shame! I picked up some cute outfits for my love Coco (don’t judge me). Bangkok has tons of malls so we did a lot of shopping and then headed back to the grind.
School has been crazy since then with my grade 5 trip, success assemblies, water day, etc. The grade 5 trip was three nights, four days so the kids could go camping and to a resort. The kids did a lot of cool things like geocaching, archery, painting on the beach, etc. It was great but man was I exhausted! A lot of my staff are leaving so we have had many good-bye parties. Right now it is the night before I go home and I feel the need to reflect on my year…
This has been one of the hardest, most rewarding experiences I have had in my life. Leaving your home to live without everyone and thing you know is not for the faint of heart. In the beginning I stumbled to find my footing. What was my life now? Who was I on my own without my family and friends? How would I spend my time? It took me a while to answer these questions. But with the support of my beautiful family and friends, I figured it out! I have found a lot of positive energy in my school and co-workers. My students have truly been a blessing in my life. They are so funny, smart, and kind! I will miss them all so much (they promised they would visit me next year). I have also established some really solid, life giving relationships that I am forever grateful for. I have committed to volunteering my time at school and at a local shelter next year and I am really excited about that. Vietnam has treated me really well. All of the travel, people, massages and manicures haha! Seriously though, I am so lucky to have had the opportunity to come here and I am looking forward to coming back. But let’s be honest, I am more looking forward to coming home!!!!!!!!!! In 24 hours I will be on a plane! Whooo Hooo! I can’t wait to see all of you:) Thanks for all of your love and support, not sure where I would be without it!
Sara's Vietnamese Adventure 