Polar Magnetism

I am taking a class in Navigation since I am a sailor.
(I don't just sail the Star Sea ; )

We were talking today about the magnetic poles.

The instructor said that about 10,000 years ago
the North and South pole were opposite and that
the were due to swap again in the next 200 years or so!

He said that this would happen gradually and that there
would be places on the Earth that would be "hot spots"
before the change, meaning that those areas magnetic fields
would start changing earlier.

This would be evident by a compass not working properly there.

I believe that there are already MANY such places here on Earth.

I wonder if this is also the kind of change we can expect for 2012.

Does anyone else know more about this phenomena?

Love and light to you,

Star