I realize that it has been two weeks (!) since I've last updated the blog. Things have been crazy the past week with moving to a new apartment, getting sick (again), and the end of term coming up which means a lot of grading and final tests and projects and all those things.
School the past two weeks has been good. The end of the term scheduling snuck up on me a little bit. I forgot that I had to give a Unit 5 exam before the Final exam and I was also told that I needed to give a general knowledge post test. 3 tests in 2 weeks is no mean feat, especially because after grading the Unit 4 tests I felt like I made the P4 and P5 tests too difficult and I didn't want to make that mistake again.
But enough about school. So as I mentioned in the first paragraph I have moved into a new apartment. And maybe you remember that long post (which I may or may not be really proud of) about finding an apartment and how I finally found *The One.* Well, surprise! I didn't move into that apartment. Long story short, after finding the apartment I thought I was going to move into I was waiting on a call from the landlady letting me know when I could move in. Then, when our coffee shop friend called G and told her he had another place for us to look at we went and since I still hadn't heard from the other woman (this is probably 4 or 5 days later) and this new place was nice, not too much farther, and willing to let me move in the next day I took it!
Just to give you a quick break down of the pros and cons of this place -
Pros:
air conditioning
Internet
hot water
furniture (including mattress)
also included broom, towel, and sheets!
able to move in right away
1 minute away from Tuesday night market
Street also has a lot of restaurants
About 5 minutes from one of the bus stations
Other expats/foreigners staying here
Cons:
about 30-45 minute walk from school
most expensive of the apartments at 4500 B per month but since that is still totally affordable its only a con on paper
Anyway, I've been living here for about a week and a half I think and I really like it. The Internet is kind of slow but that hasn't been too much of a problem and the distance from school hasn't been a problem either. I've been taking a tuk-tuk to school but I usually walk home. So, that's update number one.
Update number two is that this past weekend I was in Bangkok and I am happy to say that two wonderful things came out of that trip. First is that I am good to stay here another three months! And by that I mean I successfully switched my visa. I have to give props to BFITS (my company) because last week some people from the company came to visit us here in Chaiyaphum at which time they let me know that the 15 days before my visa expired was coming up and if I couldn't get a visa switch I would need to pay an extra 1200 baht to extend my then-current visa for 30 days. So in order to save me that 1200 baht they really worked on their end and had me come into the office on Monday so that they could get me all squared away. And they did! It was totally painless for me (other than the 6 hour bus ride both ways - but even that was painless, just long) and I really appreciated the fact that I didn't really have to do anything except get them the documents I could and show up! So yeah, props.
The other happy thing that came out of that trip is that I finally have my diploma in hand. Yes, 4 months after I graduated I got my diploma. For that I'd also like to give props to my parents who shipped it to the BFITS office and to the Bryn Mawr Registrar who is pretty awesome.
I feel a little bit like the last part of this blog has sounded like I'm accepting an award. Sorry about that - just wanting to give credit where it is due!
Anyway, I'm hoping to get back on track with this blog. So, until tomorrow.
P.S. Shout out to Madeline who is leaving for Ghana today! Yay for adventures in foreign lands!
School the past two weeks has been good. The end of the term scheduling snuck up on me a little bit. I forgot that I had to give a Unit 5 exam before the Final exam and I was also told that I needed to give a general knowledge post test. 3 tests in 2 weeks is no mean feat, especially because after grading the Unit 4 tests I felt like I made the P4 and P5 tests too difficult and I didn't want to make that mistake again.
But enough about school. So as I mentioned in the first paragraph I have moved into a new apartment. And maybe you remember that long post (which I may or may not be really proud of) about finding an apartment and how I finally found *The One.* Well, surprise! I didn't move into that apartment. Long story short, after finding the apartment I thought I was going to move into I was waiting on a call from the landlady letting me know when I could move in. Then, when our coffee shop friend called G and told her he had another place for us to look at we went and since I still hadn't heard from the other woman (this is probably 4 or 5 days later) and this new place was nice, not too much farther, and willing to let me move in the next day I took it!
 |
| Bathroom - Before you worry that I am taking Bucket Showers, I am not - the hose is just in the bucket in the picture. |
 |
| Bed and Fridge and Patio area |
 |
| Armoire and Dressing Mirror and TV (which I haven't turned on once) |
Just to give you a quick break down of the pros and cons of this place -
Pros:
air conditioning
Internet
hot water
furniture (including mattress)
also included broom, towel, and sheets!
able to move in right away
1 minute away from Tuesday night market
Street also has a lot of restaurants
About 5 minutes from one of the bus stations
Other expats/foreigners staying here
Cons:
about 30-45 minute walk from school
most expensive of the apartments at 4500 B per month but since that is still totally affordable its only a con on paper
Anyway, I've been living here for about a week and a half I think and I really like it. The Internet is kind of slow but that hasn't been too much of a problem and the distance from school hasn't been a problem either. I've been taking a tuk-tuk to school but I usually walk home. So, that's update number one.
Update number two is that this past weekend I was in Bangkok and I am happy to say that two wonderful things came out of that trip. First is that I am good to stay here another three months! And by that I mean I successfully switched my visa. I have to give props to BFITS (my company) because last week some people from the company came to visit us here in Chaiyaphum at which time they let me know that the 15 days before my visa expired was coming up and if I couldn't get a visa switch I would need to pay an extra 1200 baht to extend my then-current visa for 30 days. So in order to save me that 1200 baht they really worked on their end and had me come into the office on Monday so that they could get me all squared away. And they did! It was totally painless for me (other than the 6 hour bus ride both ways - but even that was painless, just long) and I really appreciated the fact that I didn't really have to do anything except get them the documents I could and show up! So yeah, props.
The other happy thing that came out of that trip is that I finally have my diploma in hand. Yes, 4 months after I graduated I got my diploma. For that I'd also like to give props to my parents who shipped it to the BFITS office and to the Bryn Mawr Registrar who is pretty awesome.
I feel a little bit like the last part of this blog has sounded like I'm accepting an award. Sorry about that - just wanting to give credit where it is due!
Anyway, I'm hoping to get back on track with this blog. So, until tomorrow.
P.S. Shout out to Madeline who is leaving for Ghana today! Yay for adventures in foreign lands!
It's great to hear from you, and to hear you are doing so well! Congrats on finding a place - I knew you would, because hufflepuffs are particularly good finders! And have fun with your vacation adventures in the coming weeks. Looking forward to hearing all about it!
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