Getting lost is part of the experience.

So I was on my way to Gecko books this afternoon and I thought I saw the sign so I pushed the button for the ceelaw to stop. I got out and realized that I had absolutely no idea where I was. I just started walking and discovered that there is not only one Gecko books, but two! Apparently it is a chain.

So I bought Great Expectations and made my way home. I passed the original Gecko Books on the way next to Tha Pae Gate. Ha.

My humble abode.

I'm here!

Hi friends, I have arrived. Traveling was ok, the airline lost my luggage in Bangkok and I burst into tears when I was talking to the luggage agent out of exhaustion and frustration. The customs agent felt so sorry for me that he let me through without even checking my passport. I have today and tomorrow to relax and then I have my first meeting on Friday.

I feel extremely homesick right now, but hopefully it will get better. Pray for me and my adjustment because I don't feel like I'm adjusting very well right now.

Goodbye!

Well, I'm off! My plane leaves LAX tomorrow night at about 11:15. It is going to be hard to say goodbye to my parents and my friends at the airport, but I've been thinking about all the wonderful things that I'm returning to... naam manow, pad Thai, street markets, orchids and curry. I'm going to miss some things about America: driving a car, good Mexican food, and my Golden Retriever, to name a few. But my heart is at peace knowing that I get to go back to a country I consider my second home.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't afraid. I am afraid. But I know that this is the place where God wants me to be with absolute certainty, and I get to do what I love to do - teach English Literature.

So say a prayer (or three, or four!) for me tomorrow night and the next week especially as I adjust to the language, the food, and the culture again. I'm excited to speak Thai... I hope I still remember. I will update you all again once I arrive and let you know my new phone number once I buy a cell phone. Please write me emails or leave commments... I want to stay an active part of your lives!

Sawatikhaa prateet America!

Gecko schemecko.

One of the things I love most about the city of Chiang Mai is a used bookstore called Gecko Books. At least once a week, I would go to sell back the books from the previous week and buy new ones... kind of like a library except not really. And Gecko is the biggest used bookstore in SE Asia, or so it claims. The English language section is ginormous and the most expensive books are about 300 baht (about six USD). Heaven on earth! Well, almost.

New Email Address

I formally retired Westmont webmail and got a new email address, meganmhansen@gmail.com. And the official countdown is T - 10 days! Insane. It still doesn't even really seem real. I don't think it will seem real until I step off the plane (and maybe not even then!) Packing is a little more difficult this time, since last time I went for a semester I took approximately 10 articles of clothing. I'm taking a little more this time...

I'm new at this...

So here it is: the first posting! I decided to set up this blog instead of sending mass emails while I'm in Thailand, mostly because I feel so technologically savvy. I leave exactly two weeks from this Sunday, the 27th of May. I'm getting excited, but the realization that I have to leave is starting to sink in. I moved out of my apartment in Santa Barbara a few days ago and it was really hard to leave a place so familiar and safe. More to come later, as I continue to process.