Banquets, Biopsys and Boracay, oh my!

Greetings one and all on this fabulously warm, sunny day here in Taiwan, I am so happy to say winter is over! (Sorry I had to rub it in :o)
So this past weekend was tons of fun; Saturday night I went out with the girls from the dorm for dinner and dessert, then to see 'The Holiday' which I totally loved! It was the perfect chick flick, highly recommended for those of you who didn't see it two months ago when it came out at home! Then Sunday night was the Gloria Banquet; my staff work party!! Everyone got all fancied up and went to this Chinese restaurant where ELEVEN courses of "food" were served straight for 2 hours! I use the term food loosely because most of it was quite sketchy; I am actually one of the few people who TRIED everything (everyone is so unadventurous!!) and some of the dishes were okay, like the lobster and stuff, but most of it was quite yucky, unidentifiable and everyone left heading straight for pizza immediately after it was over! Some awards were given out to the teachers and staff - no I did not win anything! :o( After the banquet a large group of us went to this fabulous bar called Le Parc, which was filled with shmancy red sofas and candle-lit, and we all just hung out drinking and chatting until 2am! I had a really great time meeting staff members I don't ever get to work with.
Teaching is still excellent, my privates are fantastic, the gym and Chinese class fill my days until this Sunday when Lee and I leave for our one week vacation to the beautiful island of Boracay in The Philippines!! I CAN'T WAIT!!!
On another note, today I booked an operating room at the hospital for the day after I arrive back from Boracay to have a biopsy done on my leg; no biggie! Just the same blood clot I have had for the past 4 months that refuses to go away, so I am having it diagnosed just to be 100% sure that I have nothing to worry about, and I promise to let you all know the good news as soon as I do!
Wishing you all a very happy Valentine's Day and a healthy Chinese New Year!! The pictures above are from the Banquet: some food, Lee and I with one of our bosses, me holding the most scrumptious little baby in the world, and my friend Brandon completely passed out at the bar; an example of what happens when a work party includes free booz!!