time flies …
the weeks are flying by as i prepare to leave korea. my final month has been full of highs and lows. it’s been a rollercoaster of stress, emotion and worry.
last week i started ‘packing’ in ernest. i’ve got two piles going: one pile for keep stuff, one pile for travel stuff. anything that doesn’t fit into either of those two piles goes into the trash or a charity bin. so far i’ve dumped three large bags of clothes in the charity bin across the street. there will be more to follow.
at the end of the week i bought my plane ticket and booked my hotel in delhi. my school told me that i would get my airfare. based on that, i bought my ticket. then, on thursday, they told me that i’m not entitled to a plane ticket. that threw me into complete disarray. i did a lot of yelling and was quite angry. friday the situation remained unresolved, so on the weekend i drafted a four page complaint, as well as two pages of additional documentation, and prepared myself for the fight on monday. i resolved to contact the labour department and walk out of class should the school refuse to deal with this problem.
on monday we discussed the problem, after i threatened to walk out of classes, and the school paid me some money. it was less than i wanted, but they took a gamble that i wouldn’t want to spend my time fighting them … they were right. with three weeks remaining, i want to focus on packing, finalising plans and having farewell parties with friends. i don’t want to spend my free time at the labour department arguing about money.
with that over, i have been left to my original plan. i’m spending my free time reading about india and planning my trip east to bangladesh. after that, i’ll go to bhutan. although bhutan will be expensive, it should be a great place to visit. i’ve already got two tour agency quotes and i’m considering what i want to do while i’m there.
tonight i had a dinner party with some colleagues from kepco. we met with the bangladesh trainees and had some food together in itaewon. there’s no bangladesh restaurant in seoul, so we went to a pakistani restaurant instead. the food was fabulous and i had a great time.
thursday i have another farewell party. this time, no doubt, there will be alcohol involved.
all up, i’m a bit panicky because i have so much to do still. as well as a trip to the dentist, i have to get two or three more injections, finalise my banking, collect my pension, buy a backpack, finish packing, sell a few things, and tie up loose ends.
… i’m sure it will all get done, but i’m pretty wound up about getting it done on time.
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