I'm so sorry to anyone actually interested in what I have to write. First of all because you must be deranged and secondly because it has been taking me so damn long to update anything. Last time I typed a whole big essay to put in and then the server went down before I had time to do anything with it.
Well, anyway, Josie and I will move into our new house on Friday. For the first time in my whole life I actually found somewhere at the first attempt and without any hassle. It is reasonably expensive but it is only 2 years old and it is in a very nice area of the city. The area we are in is surrounded by hills and mountains and it is almost like being in the countryside. It is, however, only 20 minutes walk from work and the city is only a 40 minute bus ride away.
The apartment itself is in a 'gated complex' so there are quite a lot of facilities including good security, laundry, swimming pool and gym. NICE!!!!
So, we also have a spare bedroom and expect to start taking bookings soon, if anyone is interested in a Asian vacation.
Everything on the work front is still pretty much the same. My contract is up in mid-august and i'm not really sure whether I will be here or not but I am almost certain that I will stay in Taiwan a while longer yet.
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I've just arrived back in Taiwan and the shock of being back at work after
such a long, nice vacation is really getting me down. It was really nice to catch up with everyone while I was at home, I only wish that it could have been longer. The first few weeks back at school have been really hectic. I have been taking work home with me most nights and i haven't been getting very much sleep. We have a P.T.A. meeting this Saturday and hopefully things will start to calm down after that.
On a positive note, Josie and I are pretty certain that we will be coming back at Christmas so hopefully everyone will get to meet her then. And, bye the way, for those of you who are interested, the cat was pretty much fine when I got her back from the pet shop although she has been a bit strange since.
Updates to the web page are going to be a bit slow at the moment as the site manager program is pissing me around a little but hopefully I'll have some new photos on there at some point soon.
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Yip, I am currently working in a high school in Taipei. It is my third teaching job now and I am enjoying it much more than the previous two. I wouldn't say that I am getting good at it but I do feel confident and comfortable in the classroom now (something which I couldn't have imagined a year ago).
Taipei is still the same as ever. Josephine and I both find it a little boring but really it is probably one of the best cities in the world in which to live. Everything that we could possibly need is here, except for some Western foods which i miss a lot. The night life is pretty good although it is mainly made up of just out of college American guys who are simply here for the money and the women - and really couldn't give a shit about Chinese/Taiwanese culture, which is a pity.
All in all it is a much more enjoyable experience than it was for the first few months. I am much more comfortable financially now, not having to scrape together every penny like i did for the first 4-5 months. The weather is not so bad now. It was almost 40 degrees every day for a few months and it was terrible. Its now a very nice 20 degrees most days but (for you folks back in Scotland) winter is upon us and it will drop to a freezing 15 degrees for the next few months (brrrr!!!).
School life is good. I basically teach junior high (12 years old) for most of the week. There are 45 of them in the class but their English level is very high so it is not as daunting as it could be. I have my own office and i am treated very well by all of the other staff here. Everything that i ask for (materials, books, stationary, even a new OS for my computer) is provided for me, no questions asked. It is so much different to the places which i have worked before, where you were treated like shit.
If you want to have a look at our department website just click on the link below.
I am very much looking forward to my trip back to Scotland. I will arrive on the 18th of January and will stay for almost 3 weeks. I plan to go out quite a bit so clear your diaries and start saving the pennies.
