On our way home!

So the countdown is beginning. We will be leaving for america in two and a half weeks! i can't believe it's already happening. Otto and I have been so busy trying to prepare for the trip back. I've been doing lots of shopping for gifts for everyone and Otto had a suit made at a local tailor (for about $70....gotta love Thai prices!). I keep trying to tell Otto what it's going to be like and prepare him for culture shock and jet lag, but i guess those are things you just have to experience on your own. I keep giving him little bits of information such as "We can drink the tap water in America" to which he gets pretty astounded. I know they are just little things, but they can be huge coming from a different place. He says he's excited but doesn't even know what he's excited for! He keeps having dreams about our trip. I just know it's going to be a great one and I can't wait to be there to help Amy with her wedding preparations. I will actually get to go to her next fitting so i'm very excited about that.

What's been going on here? Well in my classes, my students have been working really hard. Their final exams are in two weeks. My speaking and listening class just gave a performance of folk tales from around the world. It was amazing! The students took stories that were written in narrative and changed them into scripts which they then acted out. The final performance was last Thursday, and while I can't say it went perfectly, I can say that I was really proud of them. I will be sure to post pictures on my photobucket soon. In my writing class, we finished our unit on poetry. I've been really surprised by how gifted some of the students are at poetry writing. I think they really valued the opportunity to express themselves freely and i can't wait to read their final portfolios. We are finishing up a unit on short stories so i'm eager to read their final drafts.

I've been going to chiang mai every other weekend. Unfortunately Otto had to give his car back to his friend (who is the actual owner) so now we are left to the mercy of the public bus system. We each still have motorbikes but they are definitely less convenient. Been doing lots of yoga in chiang mai and really enjoying the sense of community from all the yoga studios. We even had a kirtan with people from all the yoga studios together chanting. It was a beautiful night!

This past week I've been quite sick. Thursday night i had a fever and chills, body aches and a friend of mine ended up taking me to the hospital (it doesn't mean it was that serious...just that my insurance is through a hospital and people here don't have private doctors as in the states). it turned out that i have an infection in my lymph nodes and sinuses. the past couple days have been terrible....i've been pretty uncomfortable but i'm starting to come around. Luckily i still have sunday to finish my recovery before it's back to school. all my friends have really helped me out. people have brought me movies to watch, books to read and soup. so i'm very grateful to have them in my life. Otto couldn't come to Lampang this weekend as his office went on a field trip to Phrae and Nan to study the local architecture. two weeks apart seems like a long time to me! anyways, we'll have lots of time together when we go home. can't wait to see everyone and please send me an email if there's anything particular you want me to bring back from Thailand. much love!