Preparation

It's Thursday. Usually, on Thursdays, Eli and I look forward to a visit from Alex, our friend who lives on the next street. The three of us are learning Japanese with Harumi-sensei, and use one evening a week to try and have some Japanese social time. We are not yet able to speak exclusively in Japanese, but we use as much as we are able to practice and improve. Sometimes we eat Japanese food together, or play Scrabble and try and use some Japanese words using English letters, or romaji. Often we just chat about things Japanese, anime, manga, problems we are having with parts of the grammar or vocabulary. It is always a very pleasant evening together. Tonight is different. We had to cancel at the last minute, which I was not happy about because I hate letting people down. However, circumstances conspired against us. Alex leaves for Japan this weekend, so I was hoping to see him before he left, but it was not to be.

I will be away soon on my holiday, my first foreign holiday EVER. I am a bit nervous because I will be travelling alone, and flying over the Atlantic to the Caribbean to visit friends in Puerto Rico. It is known as the Island of Enchantment, and I expect to find it very different, not just because of the language (they speak a version of Spanish based mostly on Castillian but with local variation) but because of the climate and the scenery. I am looking forward to exchanging cold grey Carlisle for sunshine, palm trees, soft sandy beaches and rain forest, mountains and turn of the century spanish architecture.

For tonight though, Thursday, I have so much still to do. I am not yet packed, but have sorted much of what I will need to take with me. Tomorrow I must pack because Eli and I will head off to London by train, the first stage of the journey.

I will post here as often as I can while I am away and let you know how things are going.
Buenas Noches!