Curry for breakfast!

Ooops! Looks like I'm as good at blogging as I am at keeping a diary. So, a massive gap and we're already in Malaysia. In the end, we rented out the house, got all our stuff shipped and got moving.

The Flight

Not recommended for the faint-hearted. A 4-hour stop in Dubai seemed like a good idea at the time, but it just prolonged the agony. And be warned - nowhere in Dubai airport can you beg, steal or borrow baby-food so poor Fynn was reduced to a Farley's rusk soaked in water, which he wasn't impressed with at all! It's not an experience we're in a hurry to repeat nor remember at length so here endeth I.



Housing

This is the beginning of our 2nd week in Malaysia and the house-hunting has been underway in earnest. We've found 2 places we love - Gita Bayu and Bangsar. Photos of the former below.

Shaded area of GB pool for kids

Clubhouse restaurant

GB gym

Jacuzzi in pool

Koi

Floating pavilion

GB pool

Clubhouse restaurant

Not too difficult to see the appeal! The thing about Gita Bayu is that it's only 15 minutes from work - not to be considered lightly when you see drivers on the roads here - but at least 30 from KL city where all the vibrancy of Malaysia, shopping and nightlife is. Also there is no shop on-site, and the nearest is a 10-minute drive to a big mall (The Mines). The pool closes at 7.30 and the restaurant at 5.30 so what do people do after hours? Just not sure we could survive with so little surrounding us as we've never claimed to be country-dwellers. And forget public transport - we'd probably both need cars living here.

Apparently there's a really good community feel to the place with Malaysians and Europeans making up about equal numbers, though the expats are mostly Australian rather than British. There is one other family from my school living there, but with both parents and 2 kids at the school, no chance of a carpooling :( And would a constant, unchanging community become claustrophobic after a while, or simply great friends? Not to mention the mozzies in this jungle areas...Despite all this you can see how gorgeous it is to be there, and the condos blend into the amazing landscape and are luxurious too.

On the other hand, Bangsar is a really lively expat area with a good mix of locals. The condo is huuuuge and fab and, extremely unusually, has a garden. When I say "fab" though, I mean potentially, as it has just being renovated. That gives us a chance to put our own mark on it, as it'll be all blank walls and bland furnishings. The facilities are ace and it's only a few minutes walk to shops, restaurants, bars etc. BUT, it's at least 30 minutes to work, with the additional factor of having to leave extra-early to avoid traffic. Not to mention that the condo isn't even ready yet - might not be for another 2 weeks so not exactly sure what we'd do in the meantime.

Having done a bit of exploring around KL yesterday, including Central Market, it is a great place to be and there is lots to discover. It's so appealing to live somewhere close to have access to it all and there are big pluses for the kids here too (as there are in Gita Bayu). Oh, decisions, decisions!

12 weeks and counting

We're getting there slowly but surely. We've been donating, Freecycling, giving, dumping and recycling like mad and, although we still seem to have tons of 'stuff', it is much less than before. At the moment, the house is on the market and we've had a couple of viewings, but in this economic climate, we aren't too hopeful and are preparing for having to rent out the house and all the hassle that entails - not least maintenance...

Anyway, I've been collecting clothes for the kids for the next couple of years, as apparently they aren't great quality in Malaysia, and those that are are relatively expensive.

We've had quotes from various removal companies but I think we'll probably go with Seven Seas (which were recommended through the forum on TES). The only issue is that they have standard-sized boxes and can't accommodate unusually-shaped or heavy items, like the dining table we were going to take. We'd let it go except we found it under a pile of junk at a market and restored it to its former glory. Now we've had so many good friends and family eating around it, we are loathe to let it go, but I suppose it is just a 'thing' and we shouldn't be so attached.

My maternity leave ends soon, so I'll be back at work in about 4 weeks and we really need to be sorted by then, as we don't want lots and lots of stress in the final days - certainly not with 2 kids and a long flight ahead of us! Speaking of which, we decided to go with Emirates and do a 2-leg stint rather than direct. This was mostly down to the fact that airlines offer 20kg per person, but Emirates offer 30kg. Also, they have the new Airbus for the first leg, and I've heard great things about how spacious it is. We had to book Fynn on as a child, rather than an infant, and then go through the palava of contacting customer services to ensure we got a skycot, but hopefully, it'll all have been worth it when we arrive on this side of sane in KL.

Getting pretty excited now!

Contract

So, the contract is on its way via courier after negotiations about the shipping which were successfully resolved. The package looks decent, and to be honest, it's the experience we're after anyway, so as long as we are comfortable, we're happy! The kids will get tuition (they give free places for up to 2 kids), although we'll have to find childcare for Fynn at first, as he's only a wee baby. Chris won't be working until we've got that one sorted, so we're quite lucky that one salary is enough for now.
And now that it's pretty much sorted, I've handed in my notice so Katy (HoD) can get on with recruitment. Also, I've started looking for a new capoeira club and I've found a couple, which need a bit more research - not least as I haven't yet found one for the style I'm doing now.
Some of the teachers have been in touch and answered loads of my questions about vaccinations, working and life in general.
Still gotta get the house on the market, but we're getting there!

Shipping 2

So, I got an email from the head today, who said he'd sort the shipping situation. They will certainly pay for any teaching materials to be shipped and up my allowance as I'm not coming from another international post, and therefore have no extra funding from another school.

Chris spoke to his mum about us leaving, and she was quite resigned - even (vaguely) suggesting that she might come out and visit at some point.

We told Kojo, who's only 3, that we were moving to Malaysia and he asked if Nanny, Loola and Chrissy (aunties) were coming too. Hopefully, he's young enough to adjust quickly but we do feel a bit nervous about taking him away from everyone he knows and loves.

Our neighbour has found out that her cousin may be moving to Malaysia at the same time as us, though going to work for Alice Smith, so we might make contact before heading out. All depends on if interview was successful or not, which they'll find out soon...

Shipping

Myself and the kids just had a weekend up in the Lakes with Mum, Fionnuala and Chrissie. Stayed in Pine Lake resort and it was really nice. As for the job - just negotiating the shipping allowance at the mo as it's well short of what we'd need. We'll pay if we have to because there are a few items we really don't want to part with and we need to take lots of clothes for the kids, as they are apparently expensive and not that great to buy in Malaysia. After the weekend away, I'm really looking forward to some nice holidays in the sun!

Success!

I got the job! Really looking forward to it as only gonna be me and the Head of Department, and we're introducing GCSEs this year and IB in the following years, so exciting time to join. I am sure it's gonna be super-stressful as we try and figure things out, but I like a bit of a challenge.

From talking to the principal (he) and HoD (she), they live slightly northeast of you and commute every day. He said 25-30 mins, she said 35, so I guess we'll see when we get there. They both said that many teachers live in Putrajaya and love it, but she said it's in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do, and I think I'd probably be of that mind, though I'll see when we arrive. I have recently taken up Capoeira and there are places in KL that do it, so I think I'd rather be closer to the city. Also, Chris does martial arts and I'm sure he'd want to be nearby, as well as having job opps on the doorstep.

I think we have the choice of sending Kojo to Nexus or Garden, so again we'll have to figure that one out. Would be nice to have him near me all day, but then again if he ever finishes early or whatever, might be easier for him to be near Chris so he can pick him up. Also means I don't have to worry about keeping him in school in case I have to stay back for meetings etc.

Time to start the Malay lessons I guess. Looks like a fairly straightforward language and I'd like to get a headstart before we arrive.

Oh, I'm so excited!

The 2nd interview

Had a call from the head of department - Kerry. She seems really nice - Scottish and friendly. Just as well as Fynn (8-weeks-old) was feeding while we were talking - thankfully he fell asleep pretty quickly though. Asked about ICT, EAL and Drama - nothing out of the ordinary. She'll speak with the principal tomorrow, call on my references and get back to me in next couple of days. Oh, the waiting game - not my forte!

Info on KL

I've been trawling the net to get info about KL and the school, which is managed by Garden International School - one of the top players in the city.The TES forums is a good place to start and ESLCafe gives a bit more info. There's also the expat forums, alloexpat and expatKL.

The interview

This blog is to stand in the stead of my memory, which is pretty awful. Kojo is 3 and Fynn is 8 weeks and we've decided to move abroad for many reasons, but mostly to give the kids (and ourselves) a better lifestyle in terms of work/life balance, weather, travel opportunities etc. Our current first choice is Malaysia (KL).  I had an interview for Nexus earlier today and it seemed to go well. I just need to speak with the Head of Department in the next couple of days and then I'll know if I'm successful or not. Pretty standard questions about my reasons for leaving my current job, my thoughts on AfL and EAL etc. Nothing too unexpected. Watch this space!