This blog has not been updated in a while because I've been busy with other projects, primarily our search for employment. To kill two birds with one stone we spent our winter break in Thailand and attended the recruitment fair in Bangkok. But we were not so lucky, and had to fly to San Francisco in February for another job fair. This time my husband was able to sign a contract with the international school in Lagos, and weeks later I too received the good news that I will be teaching full-time. So goodbye Islamabad and hello Lagos.

Reading a few guide books and websites we could only shake our heads when Lagos appears to be "more dangerous" than Islamabad, but for different reasons. My primary concern is malaria and other diseases that our toddler might be susceptible to. While Nigeria does not extremists like Taleban, people are warned against corruption, scams, theft and armed robbery. The Philippine government has stopped issuing permits for overseas contract workers over concerns about kidnapping in the Niger delta.

On the bright side we'd both be employed full-time. While I enjoyed being a stay-at-home mom and watching my son grow, we haven't saved a penny this year. At least we're still lucky that we have not dipped into our savings even though the value of our investments also went down due to the global financial crisis. I can take comfort in the fact that our housing is on campus, and I can check on my precious son during break.

So now I'm savoring our last remaining days in Pakistan. We're going to miss it, we were reluctant to leave but there was no job for me because the school has downsized considerably. I'm supposed to be on diet but may pig out on ice cream and steaks -- items that are horrendously expensive in Lagos but oh so cheap here.

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