Chapter 20

It took me two months to reach England by ship. The school I would be teaching in was located in a small town called Rye which was located in East Sussex of England.

I took a train from London to this small picturesque town which was two miles away from the sea. It's main function was as a port. It was buzzing with activities. It has a population of about 9000 people.

The school arranged someone to pick me up at the station. She was a tall and thin, middle aged lady called Mrs. Ladle. She was also a teacher in the school. She was very friendly and chatty. Mrs. Ladle cannot stop asking questions about Thailand as she had never been there before and only read about it in the books or papers.

After loading my luggage into her car, she took me to the cottage which the school had arranged for me. Rye was a beautiful town with it's cobbled street and it was steeped in history as well. The houses and cottages here were arranged neatly in rows; some with beautiful flowers planted at their front doors.

The journey from the train station to the cottage took us around 10 minutes by car. The air was fresh and I can smell the sea.

This was just what I needed. A fresh new start.

The car stopped in front of a beautiful, small, cozy cottage. It has a small garden in the front and a backyard which overlooked the sea. There were two main rooms in the cottage. One was the main master room and the other was a guest room. There were two baths and a small kitchen. The interior were already furnished. In the living room there was a bookshelf filled with books. It was so beautiful and simple. I fell in love with it instantly.

"This cottage belongs to Mr and Mrs Smith but since Mr Smith passed away, Mrs Smith went to live with her daughter a few miles from here. I hope you like this place," said Mrs. Ladle.

"Yes, very much. It is very lovely. Thank you," I said.

Mrs. Ladle smiled after listening to my reply.

"Let's get you settled in. Here's the keys," said Mrs. Ladle.

Mrs. Ladle left after helping me to move all the luggage into the cottage. Before she left she told me the location of the nearest grocers which I could go to get all the necessities.

The cottage was very near to the school. It's just fifteen minutes away by walking.

The school was situated at the edge of the town. I had to walk past the town's clinic to get to the school as well as the church and many rows of shops and houses. There was an orphanage nearby the school too.

I spent a lot of time walking around Rye trying to explore and get to know this place better.

I love to walk by the seaside especially. The sound of the waves helped to calm and clear my mind.

The weather here was fine as it was spring time. It was not too cold.

I would be starting my teaching position in the new school next week. I can't wait to meet my new students.