Friday 26 February 2010

9 days to go!!

Well things are a little mad around here! Boxes everywhere that we keep tripping on and stubbing our toes on (esp Nick!). We are counting the days now and getting organised. Our shopping trip yesterday yielded t shirts and shorts for the girls, a travel bag for Nick and all sorts of other goodies. I ordered loads of Burt's Bees stuff today, sun cream, insect repellent, hand sanitizer etc. My local health food shop loves me at the moment as I have spent a fortune in there on vitamins and supplements to keep us healthy while we are there and to build us up before we go. Much better than inoculations that aren't really necessary. I am nagging everyone multiple times a day at the moment "have you taken your vits?!".

I can't decide what I am most looking forward to. Obviously it is the trill of the trip and the challenge of something new but also having something meaningful in our lives again instead of being consumed by the materialism that is prevalent here in the UK. It is impossible not to be caught up in this rat race. I am looking forward to having time on my hands again. Time to just take a picnic to a beach for the afternoon, time to explore, time to walk, time to try new things. I am looking forward to living a more outdoor life again. I hate being cooped up inside.

I am looking forward to meeting new people, learning a new language and working hard in the ministry and congregation where there is such a great need.

Saturday 6 February 2010

We're off again!!

Well the Fowlers are off again on some travels. Slightly different this time and probably the biggest move ever.
Ok start at the beginning...When we last visited Thailand we saw what a need there was for witnessing there, particularly in the English speaking field. Fast forward a couple of years and our life in the States is finished and we are back in Chester, UK and not very happy campers. Total rat race and miserable weather, not what we signed up for! So.. we started looking into the possibility of making another trip to Thailand. We wrote to the Bethel in Bangkok and got a lightning fast response telling us they would be delighted if we would join the new English speaking group in Phuket as they needed help. So that was it, the start of the biggest life change so far.
Initially we thought of going for 3 or 4 months to set things up but when we thought of the cost of doing that there seemed no point.
We have worked harder than ever in these last few months to get some money together but funnily enough everything has gone so smoothly. A wise person once said that you 'don't need to see the whole staircase just a couple of steps at a time'. In other words, don't worry about everything, just plan a bit at a time. This is what we have tried to do and as I said everything is going to plan. We sold the window cleaning business without any hassle whatsoever, which was a major part of the plan.
We now have our year long visas as of this morning! and we booked our tickets last night! We are so excited but also a little fearful. Moving to the USA and France is one thing but moving to Thailand is a whole different ball game. We are a great team though and are all working together to make it happen.
We fly from Manchester on the 7th March. It will be so fun to be back in Bangkok for a week. A much needed weeks vacation!!
I am happy to be starting up this blog again as I finally have some interesting stuff to post!!