Our New Years Celebration

Happy 2009!!!!!!











So I know its February 22 and I'm posting our New Year's...but I have a plan, I do! Hopefully in the next week I will also post our trip to the countryside and our Thailand trip. I have just received my fabulous new teaching schedule, which although begins with an 8 hour day on Monday, concludes with Thursday and Friday off- yipee!

Some new friends from Egypt we invited:)







Above: More students on our way Above: Shane SINGING with

our friend Ian
Suekoilya and I singing.

So for New Years:







Shane, Suekoila, Steve and I (the foreign teachers here minus Tony and Jenny) hosted a fairly costly but fun Kareoke night for our students and friends. You can see some of the crew coming on the bus. I wish I was better at formatting!! Anyway so besides being a fabulous time with our students, singing and dancing the room was in fact HEATED and the first time we felt warm in a long time (and the last time we felt warm for a while too, lol). At one point, we even crashed a dance party next door. Good fun! At midnight we all rushed out into the downtown square to countdown, but the elevator was slow and we all missed it, so we did our own countdown later. But we did release a beautiful red lantern into the sky (they do it to make a wish) and after several minutes of trying to light the flame and keep it lit, our lantern floated gently along with thousands of others, making the night sky filled wth brightly colored "wishes". It was far more beautiful than fireworks. After some more singing, we wrapped up the night with a treat to McDonalds (a real treat for us). Afterall, exams were still underway for both us and our students. But, one of my favorite New Year's to be sure!