A few days ago I made a decision that I wasn't real sure about: I bought a plane ticket back to the N. American continent. Not to visit, but to stay. Some of your may be wondering why.

I've written a lot about Vietnam, certainly more than I ever expected. In fact, in the beginning when o two people suggested it, I turned down the idea of having a website where I wrote about my daily adventures. I never imagined that Vietnam could be another Mexico City. Well, it isn't, but there sure was a lot to write about! And the fact that I really do like this country (Hanoi excepted), might make you wonder why ever I would leave here. And it does me, which is why, as I made my plane reservations, a plan began formulating itself in my head. Did I really want to leave forever? When would I come back? How could I live here with my current problems solved? How could I do what I really want - teach adults who really need it - and make enough money to save?

So as of now, I'm not leaving permanently, but rather, for a year. Because that plan which grew on its own, is telling me that after a year, I'll be better prepared to live here, and under my own terms. But to answer your question of why I am leaving, the reasons are numerous. No reliable transport, no furnished apartment in Bien Hoa, possibly no apartments in Bien Hoa, employment at a school which isn't a school, but a monkey club with zero management (and this is considered to be one of the best schools here)... yup, I think that's enough to send anyone away. Temporarily anyway.

I know I'll grow weary of MC within a year, so it'll be nice to return to a place I feel very comfortable in, like and want to return to. And when I return (because I know you're asking "but how will it be different?"), I hope to do so with a much better understanding of the language, a motorcycle license (which I'll then be able to transfer over to a Vietnamese motorcycle license) and contacts. Which will resolve the major issues I've had.

I think that it's not a coincidence that I've decided to do this at the same time that I've run out of things to write about. Well, there's a few more things, but without pictures, it would make the story boring.

So, I'll close out my writings for now, and leave you with things that I'll miss about Vietnam...

motorbikes galore

the Vietnamese hat

overburdened electrical lines

the train passing through my neighborhood

the variety of veggies, tropical fruits and food in the shops

the kids biking home on the Vietnamese bikes

how people use their homes as businesses

the friendly hellos of children on the street

the lack of xenophobia.