Shenanigans and Some very hard goodbyes

Friday rolls around, I have one more saturday left and then I am finished work. I thought I might aswell go out how I came in. So I had a very big night Friday. It was around 4am and I needed to be awake at 6.30 to make it to work on time. I used my better judgement to decide it was probably time I took myself off to bed. I called a grab and jumped on. I tried to speak to my driver in English. He gave me nothing. Tried again in Vietnamese, still nothing. A quiet ride home then is it. Great.

Stopping at a light another grab motorbike pulls up beside us and starts talking to my driver. Now at this stage, I am fully aware that they are talking about me. So I look at driver number two and say one of the bad vietnamese words that I know. Now this can go one of two ways. They can find it funny, or extremely offensive.

Luckily he found it funny. He decides that he will just follow me on my grab bike home chatting away to me in Vietnamese. As I have no idea what he is saying I chuck out a couple of yes's and no's (in vietnamese of course) a couple of laughs and this seems to work! As he is driving along side us he is texting away. I have to get his attention and gesture for him to give me his phone, which to my surprise he actually does. I put in my number and pass his phone back to him.

While this is all happening my driver misses my turn, I tap his shoulder for attention and try my best to communicate to him that he missed my stop. He responds in a PERFECT british accent.

"Oh I'm so sorry miss, have I driven past your turn"

WHAT. THE. ACTUAL.

"Sorry miss, I will pull over, turn around and take you right to your destination"

"You speak english??? Perfectly" I say back rather shocked.

"Of course I do"

"I just assumed you didnt" I said back, you know, due to the fact that you ignored me, I thought to myself.

"Well we were both wrong then weren't we".

At this point I jump off the bike and head inside with little understanding about what has just happened.

When I get into bed I recieve a phone call from the other grab driver. He spews vietnamese at me and I just have to apologise and hang up.

I send him a message explaining that I indeed dont speak Vietnamese. He tells me his name and asks if I am sleepy yet. I tell him I'm going to bed but I'll see him tomorrow for a drink , to which he eagerly replies yes!

Before I know it my alarm is buzzing and I needed to be at work. I get a bike there, which to be honest is a challenge staying on due to still being very drunk.

I arrive at work and as it is my last day it is just going to be a movie day! Now an important thing to know is I haven't told my kids that today is my last day. At the end of the first class (and the first movie) I tell my kids they are having a new teacher, to which my TA translates that I am going back home to New Zealand! They rush up and hug me but all leave on a rather positive note.

Time for my next class and my next movie. At the end of the class I tell them the same thing. One little boy, Peternike (yes that is the name he chose) starts uncontrollably crying. He wont let me hug him cause hes so mad at me. Then Sam starts crying. Then Han. Bob tells me he will come to New Zealand to see me. Now I'm crying. I dont want to see my babies cry. A few other kids see me cry, so they cry. It's honestly a shit show at this point.

Thankfully I get out of there pretty quick. Sitting down to enjoy my lunch my TA, Ms Thao come up to me to tell me that she has just come back from Tins house (a student from my first class). He had painted me a beautiful picture as a goodbye present. She also told me that when his mother picked him up after class he ran to the bathroom, locked himself in a stall and cried for 30 minutes. My heart actually broke 😭 at this time I was very hungover and just struggling to stay alive.

Thankfully I had one more class and that was it. The kids in my last class were sad aswell but thankfully no tears!

Leaving the office was more of a relief than a sadness. All the people I liked I would be seeing in my final week if antics anyway and to be honest, I love my kids but the company was no good.

I was informed that a few other students cried when they got home, and they have still been talking about me in class alot, which is lovely! But they will move on soon! I dont want them to be sad for too long!

Getting home that night we had a few beers but nothing major as there was a full week of activities ahead. Angus came down to say goodbye (again) which was super nice. We had more conversation than beers and managed to get home at a reasonable hour.

Only to be rudely awakened at 3am but the grab driver cashing in my offer of a drink.

Maybe next time, Loi. 😉