Leaving England - Part 5

Its Saturday morning, 8am. I should not be awake. The doorbell went, I was like a dog, jumping around, finding jeans, it was the postman and he always plays knock and run with my post. I got him this time though. My eyes were still all over the place, I'm still a lot hungover and I couldn't figure out where to sign.

What was this special delivery? My passport, from the Royal Thai Consulate, with stamp in it, and in tiny writing, so small my hungover eyes couldn't see it, those most important words "non-immigrant", "B" and "multiple". For £100, they could have given me a sticker!

Everything is now sorted. 30th July, I take a train to London from my father's house in Hereford. Booked a room in the Jury's Inn a couple of miles from Heathrow, 31st I fly, arriving 1st August. Sort myself out somewhere to stay (I have a few places in mind), hopefully spend 4 or 5 days at the Khao Yai National Park to relax, as recommended by Jimbo on here then 11th August I start my TEFL at Chichester College, Bangkok. And that's all I'm going to organise, after that, I'm going to wander.

I've been very, very ill in the last week (man flu). Started with a sore throat, then a headache that stayed for 3 days, aches all over my body and a temperature that nearly had me calling for the doctor (I never go to the doctor). I think it was flu, it passed the test my 'A' level Biology teacher told me - if there was a £50 note in the garden, yours if you went and got it, would you go out and pick it up? I couldn't have left the house, not for any amount of money, I just couldn't get out of bed.

Health insurance, health insurance, health insurance. Shit. Everything's not done. On learning of my illness (after it had subsided, I can't be doing with the sympathetic voices of mother and sister), my mother offered to pay half my health insurance. That should be enough to bribe my father into paying the other half - there's a lot to be said in favour of divored parents. Tony Dabbs off here sent me the stuff about 6 weeks ago, I just can't get my head around all the numbers. I might just pick something at random based on price.

Its all still a little too unreal for me at the moment. The thought of waking up in Bangkok knowing that its not just for a 'short time' is probably not going to hit me until I get there.

Regards packing, I want to take 20 books with me at the moment. I can't choose between them, but realistically I can only take 4/5. I should have read them all already.

Back to bed now. BBQ later, another load of goodbyes (8 years in Nottingham, I've got to know quite a few people). 5 more days at work, then pack my stuff up and tootle off down to Hereford.

Adios for now.