Departure Day

This afternoon I´m leaving Sweden and flying back to Cambodia. As all D-Days - Departure Days - this is not a very happy day. But for a change, it´s actually not a very sad one either, as I know that I´ll be back quite soon; in less than two months it´s time for the summer holidays which I´ll spend with my loved ones in Sweden. It´s been a very nice stay in Stockholm (except from the bad cold I caught) and lovely to meet the Swedish spring. And important for me, even more important than I realised before I arrived, to come home and "touch base", to reflect, to breathe, to re-connect to my loved ones; family and friends. And for us, our family, to make that decision that we´ve been thinking about for some months now. Where to live? Should we relocate to Cambodia? We, as me, husband and pets. There are so many factors to consider in a decision like this; job opportunities for both of us, the financial situation, the social situation, how the pets would react to the transportation and change of environment, the balance between far and away, work and relaxation, nearness and distance.... Both countries and living situations has their pros and cons. But we´ve finally come to the conclusion that this is not the time for us to relocate. But - if the circumstances will change in anyway, we´ll reconsider again, so we haven´t outruled the possibility of moving at a later stage. But for the moment, we´ll keep both our base in Sweden and the one in Phnom Penh and continue to travel between to see each other every two-three months.

Today, I´ve done exactly half the time of my contract in Cambodia; the first year out of two, and I now have one more year to go. It´s been a wonderful year in some ways, and also a very tough one in others. Now I´m curious about what my second year will bring. Looking forward to one or two visits to friends in Thailand, two vacations together with Janne to some nice places in South East Asia, and visits from friends who already have planned visits for later this year.

Ok, I´m leaving for the airport in less than two hours, so I guess that it´s time for some last-minute packing now. Next posting will be from Phnom Penh...