Busy, busy June!

It's been an insane, non-stop June for me as I finished up the assessment period of school term, took pre-wedding photos(!!), went to Hong Kong, started a new school term including taking on a new large class, and finally I'm off to Osaka briefly in a couple of days!

Pre-Wedding Photo Shoot
An absolute must-do if you're getting married in Vietnam are pre-wedding photos.. and what a lavish affair they are! Although it's a year off from when we're likely to get married, as it's so cheap here and the city has so many fun, colourful locations, Toshi and I decided to go for it :) We had a team of 6 (driver, make up, hair, photographer, assistant and translator) come with us around the city to help out our 13-hour day, along with 5 costume changes for me! We were extremely lucky to get the only blue sky that week which made for great photos though I was sunburnt pretty much after the first 20 minutes! We were drenched in sweat all day but I think you'll agree it was absolutely worth it (and the $250 spent!)

Hong Kong
My school had a week's summer holiday so I took the opportunity to spend 4 days and 4 nights in Hong Kong! Unfortunately it was during rainy season and my second day was a total wash-out, but I definitely enjoyed the short queues at Disneyland as a single-rider!! I pretty much rode everything there!

 Dim Sum with Ed from my school days and his friends

 Hong Kong is so cool at night!

 Rain, rain, go away!

 The closest I'll ever come to meeting Jackie Chan

 Felt queasy after this ride.. must be getting old (left)
Met Buzz Lightyear (right)

 My future dream job!

 Cable car up Lantau Island mountain to see the giant Buddha

A Weekend in Hanoi
With Toshi in Osaka already I decided to hang out with the girls!

 We went swimming! It was such a beautiful blue sky until..

 ...the skies opened up for the entire weekend.

Foot scrub time!

Next up.. off to Osaka tomorrow night :D ...Followed by 5 more weeks in Vietnam!

Glamping in Hanoi

Things are pretty busy here with the end of the assessment term at Maple Bear, and I will be taking on a new class of 17 kids in two weeks!

Backstage at our Summe Concert

Last weekend, following the successful Summer Concert we made the spontaneous decision to go camping last Saturday! The skies opened as we arrived which cooled things down.

The campsite totally exceeded our expectations! It could only be described as glamorous camping, or 'glamping'.. our rented tent was pitched for us on our own raised platform, it had a connected dining room area and an en suite toilet and shower cubicle. Our bedding was a futon with a blanket.. it was the most comfortable night's sleep ever! Even more comfortable since we were able to take a shower too!

 Enjoying being in nature!

 BBQ Sausage sandwiches for dinner

 布団！ Such a comfortable futon!

 I caught a fish on my first cast.. much to Toshi's annoyance! 

ファーストキャストで！！

Cooking breakfast

Happy St David's Day!

 

March is here, along with St David's Day, and my kids loved the Welsh Dragon flag design!   :D
今日はウェールズの日です！子共たちはウェールズの赤い竜すごく気に入った！

Last weekend Toshi and I enjoyed some amazingly yummy cheese fondue with a couple of his younger coworkers. The restaurant was a great find overlooking the large West Lake.
先週トシくんの同僚が二人と一緒にめちゃうまいチーズフォンデューを食べました！

 I was reminded of fondue nights with my parents a very long time ago

On Wednesday Night my school's umbrella company hosted a HUGE all-expenses-paid in a hotel conveniently near my house with over 500 attendees to celebrate the Lunar New Year! Although the food was rather disappointing, the entertainment sure wasn't!
水曜日の夜会社の新年会に参加しました。食べ物はまあまあだったのにすごくおもしろかった！

Various contests with money prizes were held and I participated in our school's 'flashmob' and with my friends in a dance contest.. we won 600,000 VND (16 pounds) each! I'm pleased with that!
グループダンスが二つはいりましたでお金もらいました！！

 Beer-drinking contest from a baby's bottle (my coworker- the tall one-won 2,000,000 VND!)

 My coworkers participating in the Snake fashion show- their group won!

 Our table :)

 Collecting second prize for our dance!

 Maple Bear staff groups shot!

Tết Tết Tết Tết Đến Rồi! (Tet is coming!)

Tết, as the Chinese New Year is known in Vietnam, is fast approaching! This year will be the Year of the Golden Snake and it falls on Saturday night. It is basically a combination of the Japanese New Year (see my blog post here), the Western-style Christmas and everyone's birthday rolled into one.. so it's a pretty big deal!!!

日本風なお正月＋洋風なクリスマス＋みなさんの誕生日みたいな大きなエベントがやってきます。。ベトナムのお正月です！

Interestingly in Vietnam, everyone ages by one year at the Lunar New Year and not on their date of birth (though personal birthdays are still often celebrated Western-style, because, why not!?)

昨日天気がよくて出かけました！！
This weekend brought AMAZING summery weather (mid twenties and elusive blue skies!), and determined not to waste it, Toshi and I headed to Hoan Kiem to seek out Tết preparations following the recommendation of a student's parent.

Maple Bear End-of-the-Year Party
35 of the 70-or-so staff at our school gathered and pooled resources to fix up a hot pot in one of our classrooms! It was great to bring the staff together and my assistant cooked up such a yummy broth!!!
メープルベアで開いた鍋の忘年会 ！海老うまかった！

Veg, shrimp, chicken, tofu, beef and oysters! Don't forget the yummy MSG!

  Chicken foot- abundant with wrinkle-preventing collagen and elastane!

From this Friday Toshi and I will head to Osaka over the Lunar New Year holiday period until the 16th, including a brief trip to the Island of Saipan over Valentine's. This will be my first time to America.. though as it's not the mainland, not sure whether to count it or not! I'm sure you can guess I'm very excited!!
金曜日から吉田家によろしくおねがいします！

October in Short

Sorry for the lack of updates! I've been so busy!
アップデートしなくてごめん！

Here's what I've been up to this past month:
１０月の要約 ：

 Rode a rather dodgy swan boat in Lenin Park, Hanoi

怪しいスワンボートを乗ったり

 

Excursion out the city to Hoa Lư- Ninh Bình, known as 'inland Ha Long'.

きれいな自然な所に行ったり

 

 Ate lots of deliciously more-ish Pho (probably all the MSG in it).

めちゃおいしいフォを食べたり

 Braved the typhoon to seek out a recently-opened Ramen shop near my workplace- yum!!

台風の中で最近できたラーメンショップに行ったり

 

 Hallowe'en!!! We took the kids out trick-or-treating to parents' houses in Vincom Tower, I carved a pumpkin and we held a costume contest.

ハロウィーンも祝いしました。