Well this isn`t really a blog as such, more just a little reflection time as i sit here in Bangkok waiting to catch the airport bus in three hours time. I can`t believe this day has finally arrived, after me putting it off for the best part of the last 8 months! I guess there is only so many times you can phone an airline begging them to make changes free of charge and nearly breaking down in tears at the mean quantas lady who would not extend my flight past 12months! But i got there in the end, though there were a few bumps along the way. I`d like to think that all the decisions i have made over the past 16months concerning where i would like to be, who i would like to be with and what i would like to do, have been the right ones. I know they gave me a lot of happiness, mixed in with a few angry/sad tears!

As i sit here waiting for my flight home i can`t actually believe that i feel some trepidation and nervousness at the thought of coming home! Who would have thought it!? I`m pretty sure those were the feelings overwhelming me as mum and dad waved me off at Heathrow on 4th Feb 2007 so i guess you could say i`ve come a long way, sort of like a full circle. As i wrote the blurb to my blog over a year ago, these were my words: `a true home girl at heart, i love going out to buy new handbags and shoes and would consider it a major crisis if for some reason my ghd`s did not turn on in the morning!` Well, i guess this girl has discovered that `home` can be many different places. And although i still can`t refuse a new handbag, i can`t actually remember the last time i plugged my straightners in or put eye shadow on or ironed my clothes! There are certainly more important things in life than having the straightest hair.

I believe that in this past year i have met some of the nicest and most interesting people in the whole world. I have been to some of the prettiest beaches and countries i could ever have imagined. I have tasted food that is going to make my Sunday roast seem incredibly bland, done things that have scared but exhilerated me at the same time, laughed and smiled a whole lot more, made lifelong friends, learnt some valuable lessons and had some life changing experiences.

And now that i am on my way home i would like to say a huge thank you to all my family and friends that have supported me through this journey of a lifetime. Without your love, support and encouragment i probably wouldn`t be taking this flight right now, i would have been home a long time ago. Thank you for always believing in me and supporting my decisions even though it meant me staying away from you for longer. Thank you for not forgetting about me! For keeping me updated with your own lives and being interested in mine! And now i`m going to stop being selfish and actually come home, i look forward to hugging each and every one of you over the coming weeks!