A Short Trip Home
In 2011 I decided that I was going to return to the UK for a while. I had re-started my Open University degree and as I had been away for nearly three years I would have had to start paying overseas fees, which were more than double, so I guessed that it would be cheaper for me to finish it in the UK.
Another reason was that owed money on a credit card and had been sending money home but that was barely paying the interest each month (I worked out that I had paid of about £40 in one year), so I guessed that I would be able to pay this off easier if I went home. I also had a house that I rented out and I did not want the hassle of owning a house so I decided to go home to sell it. And I would be able to save money in order to return to Thailand debt and house free with money in the bank.
So I reluctantly left Thailand in December 2011 and arrived home for the next twelve months. I had a plan of paying off debts in six months and saving for six months but thinking back that was not really realistic as I wouldn’t have been able to get much enjoyment out of my stay. So nearly two years later I am still here and getting ready to fly the nest once more.
I cannot believe where the time has gone. I have been home for two years! Time flies so fast it is positively scary! But I have ten days to go and I cannot wait to get back to the place that I love to begin a new chapter in my life and spread my wings once more.
My time at home has been great. I have been able to spend time with family and friends and do the things that I set out to do- my degree is complete, my house is sold, my credit card is (almost) paid off and I am saving as much as I can before leaving on 27th January 2014.
I have been living with my parents since being home and can’t thank them enough for putting me up (or putting up with me I think they would jokingly say). The time I have spent with them has been precious and I have loved every minute of living with them (I hope they will say the same!) We have had a lot of laughs and I have been told off for not tidying up, not ironing the clothes properly, not being as quiet as I could be in the mornings when I leave for work, not hanging the washing out in the correct (Mum) way- You know normal things that parents get onto their children about.
Because I have been saving I have also turned into some sort of recluse, preferring to stay in rather than going out all the time. I haven’t seen my friends as much as I would have liked but they (I hope) understand. People have said I have changed (I used to be a bit of a party animal and out all the time and believe me the party animal is lurking just under the surface) but I haven’t changed, I am still the same person, it’s just that I have different priorities now and some things have got to be sacrificed for the greater good. The greater good being travelling and settling abroad again.
Don’t get me wrong I love the UK- my family and friends are there- and I would never give up my British passport to settle in a new country (Thailand does not have dual nationality like some countries, so if you become a citizen there you would have to give up your British passport) but it is just so expensive here and everyone seems to be rushing around going from one place to another all the time. Having lived in Thailand for three years made me realise that I want a slower pace of life and a less expensive one. I am not interested in all the possessions that I used to have, I don’t want to own a house, I don’t want an expensive car- I want to be able to wake up every day with the sun on my back and immerse myself in a culture that is so very different to my own. People ask me what it is I love about Thailand and I tell them it is everything about it- the people, the culture, the weather, the beautiful (and not so beautiful) sights you see every day.
So thanks for having me back everyone I really do love you and will miss you all for different reasons but my new chapter awaits and I cannot wait to start it.
