No, is too much. To sum up:
I spent a year in San Francisco. For most of it, I lived in a hovel in an otherwise posh part of town, and I couldn’t say which aspect was worse—the shabby inside or the snobby outside. But I enjoyed living with my roommate, which is why I stayed put. That and inertia.
On the upside, my teaching gig was the best I’ve ever had, and I’ve had some good ones. Four hours a night, Monday through Thursday. A great boss who made sure I knew what I was doing and then left me to it (pretty much the definition of a great boss). Cool fellow teachers. And students to die for.
They were adults from around the world who already spoke great English and who were eager to master it further. Also eager to have fun, up for anything. They inspired me to put a lot into the classes, which is to say actually prepare instead of coming up with something on the bus or during the break (although with four hours to fill each night, there was plenty of that too).
We became friends, and we would get together outside of class. I have fond memories of drinks, dinners, and day trips, and the send-off they gave me before I left was the proudest moment of my professional life. Thanks, guys.
Work was so enjoyable that it was sometimes hard to believe I was getting paid, but in fact the pay was generous. Teaching sixteen hours a week and living frugally—indeed, ascetically—I saved up enough for visas, shots, gear, a one-way ticket to Tokyo, and three months of travel through Japan, South Korea, China, and Vietnam—where I’m spending the second year of my trip.
I had originally planned on a stint in Japan before the stint in Vietnam, but the more I looked into it, the more it seemed like teaching in Japan would be a grind. I wanted to live there but not to work there, and I settled for simply visiting.
Other than that, I pretty much followed the course I imagined in my first entry. Along the way, I typed and scribbled, and I’m hoping to finish those entries—and also write a few about my present environs—before hitting the road again toward the end of this year.
