Monday 24 March 2008

Leaving Feeling




Well this Easter it has been my birthday (23rd March) and I'm 22 now. I think now is a good time to pack it in a move on. The family said their goodbyes yesterday. Its hard to know how to react, sometimes I think I'll never see them again. Anything could happen between then and now, and when is then? I dunno when I plan to come back, or if I will. I could come back after a year, maybe less or I could be in a place I don't even know existed!

Even thinking to next month is hard. I don't know anything about living in Japan. We have all heard the stories, read the books, seen the footage but to be breathing the air and walking on the ground it's something else. To look round and see nothing familiar is a scary prospect.

Sure things could be scarier and it's pretty cushy compared to what other people go through but if you have ever been lost or stranded for 5mins and panicked then that will be pretty much how I expect to feel for the next 6 months.

I managed to take some pictures before we left for what will be the last time this year.



My sister Yvonne and her husband Mark.



My sisters kids (Lydia, Joshua and Shane) by my mum and myself.



A great family one!



And another for the extended family.



Here we have my Auntie Carol and Uncle David with their son Michael and daughter Helen with her boyfriend Chris. The two on the far left are my Uncle John, who helped me loads with my car, and Auntie Norrie. That's from my Mums side.



From my Dads side we have my Gran, Uncle David, Auntie Karen with their Daughter Vicky. They have a son, Robin, too but he had to be away with work. As you can see we were well fed and topped up with wine. Karen always makes great meals!

As for how far I am to getting to Japan, well I have my visa now! I just need to sort out my room. I hope I can sell more stuff and make some money but it's hard pushing it.

I'll keep you posted about how my packing goes and I have my leaving do still to go on the 28th so it's not over yet.

Thursday 20 March 2008

Back from Egypt

I've just come back from Hurghada, Egypt and I've picked up a rather nice tan. It was a birthday present from my parents before I leave for Japan.
I would recommend it to anyone though, it's a very hot part of Egypt on the edge of the Sahara off the coast of the Red Sea. I got to snorkel in the salty waters and drive quad bikes along the desert. The hotel had five pools, one with a wave machine and six restaurants. I had a double bed and a single bed all to myself and the best thing yet is it was all inclusive so the beer flowed.

I managed to get a nice Canon G7 camera cheap so I got a lot of the holiday captured.



Fortunately we could drink through the shows they were so bad. I did manage to get away from the city and the hotel and snorkel with my mum off this island. Although it was very salty, lots of fish were in the waters and the island was beautiful.



As you can see here the water is absolutely clear. It was lovely and warm too although the day we went was pretty breezy.
At night in the hotel I usually went down to the disco/club where I met a couple of great young English girls, Kirstie and Caroline who I spent a lot of time with. I also met a trio of English ladies who looked after me when Kirstie and Caroline weren't about. Most people didn't speak English, many of the tourists were Russian so it was nice to have someone to converse with. On the last night my parents decided they would join in and I have the video evidence to prove it.





Ah you're on holiday once!!!
This is another reason why I decided to smoke a Hookah or hubble bubble pipe with my dad. It was an experience in itself!



I have photos which I have linked onto my website if you check it out I have a few albums on there now. Here are the holiday ones for now though
Egypt Hurghada 2008


Regarding my progress to Japan I got my certificate of eligibility just before I left for Egypt and once I came back I went to London on the Monday 18th March and visited the Embassy. Right now I'm waiting until Tuesday 25th March to receive my passport and my visa.

I took some pictures London whilst I was there. I thought I could show people in Japan just what it's like back home.

London


I'm going to see if I can go back and take some more. I will also be taking some of Liverpool and Birkenhead since it's where I call home :) I'll be sure to post them next time.

I hope you have enjoyed this multimedia show!

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