entry 9: nothing goes as planned part 3

Sure enough, there's a part 3.

As mentioned many times, Christopher, Nicky, Kaelin, and I were all planning on living together here in Phuket. That also has not gone as planned.

We all have been living together for the month of September in Patong, a halfway point between Kamala (where Chris and I work) and Phuket Town (where Nicky and Kaelin were taking the TEFL course). All four of us are in agreement that Patong is definitely not where we want to live long term. We have also all decided that having a long commute is not ideal.

So when Nicky and Kaelin finished their TEFL course on the 19th, they began the job hunt. As an English teacher, there are always jobs available. The turnover rate is absolutely ridiculous here. However, that also means that many schools who are hiring aren't awesome places to work. The rankings for places to work including pay rates are international schools, private Thai schools, Thai government schools, and finally learning centers (which is essentially part time tutoring). That being said, their goal was to work for an international or private school.

Unbeknownst to us in the planning stage, there are no international/private schools around Kamala aside from Shining Stars. They are all located near Phuket Town or further south in the Chalong area. So essentially we were shit out of luck for them to be able to find a good job near us. To meet in the middle we would have to move to Kathu making each of our commutes a half hour or more. It doesn't sound like much, but in Phuket that's a long time.

Ultimately, as a group, we came to the conclusion that it makes the most sense to live separately. Christopher and I can live in Kamala, and Kaelin and Nicky can live near Phuket Town. Definitely not our original plan, but it's the best choice for everyone. Obviously, we will still see each other a ton, we just won't be in the same space.

We found our long term living situation. It's a studio in a beautiful complex in Kamala on the hill side surrounded by trees. We can even see the ocean from our room! The next post will be a more detailed account of our new home (including pictures!).