Sunday: woke up at three to pack (I'm a procrastinator, so what?). Left quarter-past six for the aiport; snowing in Omaha, go figure. Had a small panic attack, got on the plane for Chicago; headed for Tokyo after a few delays...
Monday: Fiddled with Internet unsuccessfully at Narita; headed for Bangkok, had a very nice conversation on the plane with an American chemistry teacher who lives in Bangkok and brought a suitcase of American groceries with him; landed, wandered through customs and baggage claim, met Mr. Audi (who was very kind and helpful!!), made it to the hotel and FINALLY laid down to rest for an hour and a half.
Tuesday: Woke up, headed back to the airport, took Nok to Trang's tiny tiny airport, got my luggage (thankfully) and met Prof. Bock and Tamanwan; we went to breakfast and much to my surprise headed straight to school. We practiced some ELL lessons, taught a few classes (well done, Ariel and Jennifer!) and then left to go shopping at the New Year's fair and Lotus (Wal-Mart of Thailand). Went to dinner at a pretty sweet restaurant called Balcony, then headed home. By 8:30 I was ready. For. Bed.
Today we are at our different schools. AJ and I were supposed to be at Had Samran but they are testing this week. (Apparently tests here are more frequent than in America. No thanks!) So we are at the same one as yesterday. I have a hard time remembering the name of it. I've already taught some ninth graders how to order a Coke in a restaurant, though I wonder if it stuck. My next class is at 1:00pm...which is odd because I was told I wouldn't be teaching until I got caught up. What can one do?
Jennifer has quite a work load today, and AJ has three classes to teach, I believe. While I'm taking a breather, I may as well go over some of the crazier culture differences we've encountered. For one thing, soap is a rarity in any bathroom, as is toilet tissue. Some toilets don't flush normally, so you have to pour water from a big bucket into the bowl and the levels automatically adjust (if you're lucky). Trash cans are also hard to come by, but I don't see very much litter. I wonder if the Thai people have mastered the art of not creating waste anywhere they go.
The food has been edible, and often quite tasty. So far I haven't encountered anything too spicy. Pork is very popular, as is shrimp. It's not unusual for a server at a restaurant to bring you more food than anyone could possibly consume. (Again, where do these people keep it all??) Everything is VERY inexpensive, which is good because most of the clothes I brought are not professional enough. At Lotus last night I bought a nice polo shirt for about four bucks; at the fair I picked up a cute pair of sunglasses for about three dollars. AJ picked up a fancy digital watch for four and a half. I also bought some soap and more tissues, as well as a notebook to replace the one I forgot at home. -_-;; Luckily all our meals are paid for, so unless I find a Burger King somewhere I don't have to worry about that.
In spite of how different Thailand has proven to be, it's a very beautiful place and the Thai people are so nice. It's no surprise they call it "The Land of a Thousand Smiles." :)
Edit: Here are a few photos I've taken since I've been here. I will post some from the others as soon as I get an uploading device. (My fancy new camera has its own USB cable. Mwahaha.)
(Top, left)This was my room at the Swan hotel. The mattresses here are very firm but also very nice compared to an airplane seat.(Bottom, right) A view outside the plane to Trang. I wish I'd gotten a photo of the Nok Air plane; it was painted like a parrot. Their in-flight snack is an Auntie Anne's Pretzel Dog. Yum!
(Top, left) A shot of the school we are at today.(Bottom, right) The courtyard at the school. Very aesthetic.
Student assembly this morning.
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