The Wonderous Bridges of Vietnam with Hannah Russell (Part One of Three)

4 Weeks Prior “You can’t be serious,” I said, as Ikra rolled her eyes up at the ceiling. “Yeah, with the visa stuff it’s going to be almost impossible,” Hannah replied. This proved my theory. The theory is that people think teaching in Thailand is made entirely of smoothies and living on the beach but…

The Terraced Fields of Sapa with Hannah Russell and Amy Davies (Part Two of Three)

Hanoi We arrived mildly travel worn and dehydrated but excited to start the next part of the adventure. In stale clothes, we loaded into a cab and headed to our hotel in the Old Quarter. It was this cab ride that was our only travel folly of the trip, I’m sure as Hannah reads this…

What comes next?

There are definite signs that a need for adventure has sunk deep into the soul. The feeling that the comfort zone that you are living in is inescapable. The routine of life isn’t brought into balance with a feeling that what you are doing is important or necessary. However, the signs an adventure should end…

Lions, Tigers and… Elephants! Oh My!

I scrubbed mud into the large cracks of her blue grey skin and watched as her eyes slowly drifted shut. She seemed to love the feeling especially after the 40 years she spent carrying logs out of the jungle; stripping the natural resources from a place she and her herd might have called home. I…

The Island Paradise of Koh Phi Phi

My back was stiff from almost 15 hours of sitting in the plastic chairs of university desks. My mind was functioning only as fast as caffeine could drench my neurons. The small group of literary nerds with our eyes following along as Dr. Stallard read the final passages of a marathon reading of John Milton’s…

Ko Sichang: A Pre-vacation

There is no way in hell I am walking down that,” I exclaimed upon realization that the gangway was made of little more than metal skeleton for hand rails and wooden 2x4s nailed to what looked like a rotten wood plank. It was stabilized by a simple tire on the roof of the boat. There…

A Letter to Those Considering a TEFL Course

I was asked to write a post to those who are considering signing up for the Samui TEFL course and the realities of my journey afterwards. I know that I have written about Samui TEFL in the past but I thought this was a more in depth look at the day to day activities as…

Wet, Wild and Saying Goodbye to Samui

As we walked through the streets of Bangkok, Ali turned to me and said “Everything here is fluid.” She was referring to the way that the building down the block was constructed around an old tree instead of cutting it down and how traffic seems to find both sides of the street fair game if…

Home with a Capital H

It wasn’t until the big dipper was upside down that I realized I was pouring all of myself into this place. As people, we have such an immense capacity to grow not just to change and to find ourselves comfortable in a completely different world. I can remember after a weekend trip to Glasgow while…

Thailand First Impressions

I have been here a week and a half under the purple blooms and mango trees. If someone told me, it was longer I would believe them. This island feels like a beautiful dream created out of the humidity of the day. The ever-present palms and the way the shadows dance along them just inches…