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The number of days until I leave. And it would also be close to the number of things I need to do before I leave. But it's all ok, I am getting through them all one day at a time. Today, for instance, I made photocopies of my passport- pretty important since it is Indonesian law to carry identification with you at all times, and you'd have to be mad to take your actual passport around with you! I also registered with Smart Traveller (smarttraveller.gov.au) which I thought would be the 'smart' thing to do since I will be overseas by myself for some time.

I think the biggest and most pressing item to get sorted though is still my accommodation. I feel like I'm quite close to arranging something, and I'm not going to say anything here yet because I don't want to jinx it! Yep, I'm just that superstitious- or I am a believer in Murphy's Law at least. Once that is sorted though, I think there will be a big weight off my shoulders. I've already organised most of the other important parts- flights, travel insurance, budget etc... Next thing to look into will be vaccinations. Eeeeeek.

The other thing I wanted to include in todays post is the soon to be released in Australia, Eat Pray Love. I read the book last year, partly while on a holiday in Bali, and really enjoyed it. I'm looking forward to the movie, but I've heard the book has had many adverse effects on Ubud. I'm an avid reader and occasional poster on the Bali Travel Forum, and word there is that Ubud now resembles a beach-less Kuta, with horrendous traffic and dozens of Liz Gilbert wannabes searching enlightenment from one of the characters/people in the book- Ketut Liyer. I've only spent a day in Ubud previously, and I really hope that on my next trip it is still a bit more cultural and untouched as opposed to Kuta and the likes... I hope. But hey, I'm still looking forward to a nice night out with the ladies to see the movie. :)

Happenings...

So, I have been going about my normal life and trying to organise my trip at the same time. It's good though, because I have this amazing trip as motivation to do everything else. I've also been talking to/boring my friends to death with my trip details and going-ons. I've had so many positive responses from my friends, and I have to say thank you because at this point, it's still quite new and I'm a little unsure of myself. Anyway, I've already had a few people approach me for details about my placement so that they can look into doing it themselves. I thought this was just fantastic, word of mouth is just so amazing sometimes! So I thought I'd do this post to get some of those websites and details out there. Perhaps you'll find something you like. Whoever you are...

Global Nomadic is the company that scouts all the volunteering positions (and some paid/internship style positions too!) and then works as your 'customer service' type operation for anything and everything to do with your placement. There are so many countries available, and they are constantly adding small NGO's to the list, so you should definitely check them out. All the fees are commission free and go directly to the NGO... plus it's a fraction of the cost of some of the volunteering positions I've seen elsewhere.

Starfish Language Centre is the service I'll actually be teaching in. It's small, and run in a classroom in Ubud which is in the hills of Bali. There are 55 children enrolled, who learn English there for free. There are also a large number of adult enrolments which are paid for and offset the cost of teaching the local children for free. The centre also offers language courses in Bahasa Indonesia, Japanese and French, and is open for expatriates and locals alike.

Obviously I can't say I know everything about these two companies/services, because I am yet to complete my placement, but at this point in time I am so happy with all the support all the co-ordinators have given me. Anyway, that's enough.