Phan Thiet Nov'11

The following day was not an active one, unsurprisingly. And in all fairness I couldn't really have gone anywhere even if I had wanted to. Mr. Sang had a gang of workmen in concreting the front yard. I left the house in the early afternoon to go to work and returned home immediately after I finished. I assumed my position on the couch and didn't stir until I went to bed. Thursday afternoon after work I had a nurse come round to the house to change my dressing. It was the guy who had bandaged it on Monday, as Ms. My and I were leaving he had given her his tel # so she could call him. I think this is a very common thing here and I was grateful for it, it meant that I wouldn't have to drag myself to and fro to the hospital. Not a big fan of hospitals. After the nurse had left, my new Vietnamese friend Phuong came round, we had arranged to meet for coffee but were meeting at the house as I don't know the names of any coffee houses and so couldn't suggest another place to meet!She came by bicycle so we headed out on these instead of me walking, she took me to a street restaurant that specialises in spring rolls. I'd walked past the place before and always wanted to eat there, it's always busy. The food was great but I couldn't stop Phuong from paying. I'll get her back next time. After that it was home and more couch rest. I was so glad to see Friday, in part because I have a three hour break between classes so I can come home and nap, which is precisely what I did. After school I met Anna and we went to a market that had set up on Nguyen Tat Thanh, behind the local supermarket. There's a few markets here a year but up until now neither of us had ever made it to one. We ate there, the food was very greasy, just like fair food back in the U.K., I bought a couple of necklaces and we even bumped into a couple of the hostesses from MTV. They are lovely. After that it was a quiet night in at home, Anna was still feeling the effects of Tuesday night and Wednesday day. I had a relatively quiet Saturday, I had dinner with Anna and Jan in Mui Ne at Ocean's Republic. It's run by a German friend of Jan's and we kind of went along to support his new business venture. Sunday morning I had coffee with Anna before she left for Saigon. Later I went to Ms.My's house, she was holding a party in the memory of her dead grandfather. The food was awesome and the company very relaxing. Her son is still terrified of me, he'll only speak to say goodbye! I headed to Bo Ke for dinner and bumped into Tony, he asked me to join him and his wife as I was going to eat alone. Then Andrew pitched up, I had a good time. Both of them are good company and very easy going. The new teacher, Kate, arrived at APC the next day. "Dr. Jason" was also in the office, not quite sure what he was doing but he left me in peace other than a quick chat about Kate and her contract. He didn't want me going into any details about my contract as I don't think her terms are as advantageous as mine. Unfortunately according to what he said, if I stayed another year my contract terms would worsen and APC would pay me less money. Just as well I'm looking to get out after this school year. Kate seems fine, if a little young, she's just turned 23 and looks a bit of a hippy. I'll see if that's borne out over time. All three of us had dinner together that night, followed by another early night for me. Which worked out really well, I slept the whole night through, the first time I've done so since I cut my foot. The last Tuesday in November Anna and I had dinner with Daniel in Mui Ne again. This Tuesday night ended very differently to the previous one. Firstly Daniel brought along his Vietnamese girlfriend, which is not something I have a problem with per se but it does change the group dynamic, especially as her English isn't very good. I don't know how she is when it is just her and Daniel, but with the three of us she was as interesting as a mannequin and had about as much as that to say for herself. We caught a cab home immediately after we finished eating, although I did have another beer when I got home. I spent Wednesday morning beside the pool at Novotel, it's frustrating not to be able to swim. I hope my foot gets better soon. I finished the month off with some computer time and a shopping trip to Co-Op Mart. Miss Exciting,me!Then December was here.