There’s a rule much espoused by improv performers: on-stage you always say “Yes, and…”  If someone makes a choice in a scene, just go with it (and then throw in an idea yourself to keep things moving).

I’m certainly not the first to try to apply this theory to life offstage, and I’m sure I won’t be the last.  When you’re a natural introvert off in a foreign land you do need to constantly remind yourself that beyond your bedroom door are delicious foods and new adventures.

I’ve been doing pretty well adjusting to my new surroundings so far, and thinking “yes, and…” has helped a lot.

“Do you want to try this?”

Yes!

“Do you want to go see that?”

Why, of course!

A lot has happened in the past week, some of it interesting, some of it not.  I’m sure that the longer I’m here the more boring things will get, but for now everything is shiny and new to me.  It’s easy to spend hours detailing every single thing I’ve seen, heard, smelled, or tasted since the end of orientation, but for the sake of your time and mine I’m going to stick with (what I consider) the more entertaining of my anecdotes.

Life in Phanom

Phanom Sarakham is a relatively small town.  We have a Tesco Lotus (a rough Walmart equivalent that proves that super stores are soul-sucking places the world round), a coffee shop, one bar, and enough food stalls to service the entire state of Maine.

I’ve tried so many delicious things, and there are so many more I haven’t had the chance to stumble upon yet.  Some highlights include stir-fried kale and pork belly, gra-pow gai (chicken with Thai basil and chilies), spicy fish cakes, duck in broth with noodles (and also steamed congealed duck blood, which I didn’t particularly care for), new fruits like lychee, durian, and guava, and so much more.

I keep intending to take more pictures, but I’ve usually begun stuffing my face before I think of it.  I did take a picture of the whole barbecued fish we ordered the other night.  To those who are skeptical that I, Anna-the-Fussy, would try such a thing, I can confirm that I had some of the fish and I have witnesses to back this up.

I share a small two-bedroom townhouse with another American girl who’s lived here for a while now.  The bedrooms have AC, which is a life saver, and all in all it’s a comfortable place.  It’s situated in a cute neighborhood of matching townhouses called Chokchai Villas.  My bedroom was initially covered in cat and dog stickers that made me feel like I had stolen the space from a 6-year-old, but I’ve taken those down and once I can find a lamp I’ll consider myself well-pleased.  I did take a picture of the outside today.

We ride bikes around the town, as it’s the easiest way to get around.  Watching me on a bike evokes images of newborn giraffes.  Riding back from the bike store I misjudged a corner and ran into a parked car (no damage to me, the car, or the bike luckily).  I won’t be riding a bike much longer, as my school coordinator, Sampit, has informed me that since Thai bikes are designed for Thai teenagers and I am roughly the size of three Thai teenagers (my words, she was much more diplomatic) I will be riding a scooter instead.  Never have words filled me with more fear.  So soon, in a matter of days, I will head to the school parking lot for scooter lessons.

God help us all.

Thursday morning we (myself and the other English teachers) were informed that we were needed that evening and the school’s vice principal would arrive to pick us up at 5pm.   We ended up at an event that was part practical exam, part finale celebration for a class the district had organized to teach English to those who operated stalls in the market.  Our job was to go around the mini market they had set up asking questions like “How much is this?” and “How are you today?” so they could practice their new skills and in return we were allowed to purchase anything we liked from them.

I ended up buying a miniature orchid made out of clay, a drink, and some toast with what I thought was chocolate spread on top but turned out to be pudding (wasn’t a fan of pudding toast, I must say).  At the end we all posed for a group portrait and each of us was asked to make a speech on the spot.  It was a lot of fun!  I did forget bug spray, as I did not realize it would be an outdoor event which was regrettable.

Temple

The first morning after we arrived in town, two of us woke up bright and early to go to Temple with Sampit (the school coordinator). Tuesday was apparently an important Buddhist holiday and I was eager to take advantage of this cultural opportunity.  When we arrived we each added a spoonful of rice to a row of bowls that had been lined up for each of the monks.  Then we brought more food into the main part of the temple and set it on a raised dais.  We then each lit incense and a candle, and offered flowers to a statue of Buddha, followed by a donation of baht.

That done, we sat on the floor in front of the dais.  I’m just going to say it straight (maybe the bluntness of Thailand is wearing off on me): fat people can not sit on the floor.  It just doesn’t work.  For the next hour and a half I switched awkwardly and painfully from cross-legged to tucking my legs behind me as there was prayer, chanting, and then a sermon as the monks ate the food that had been offered.  If you had asked me halfway through what I thought of the experience I would have told you that it sucked (in between the whimpers of pain) but, once I was allowed to stand and massage the feeling back into my feet, I was very grateful to be there.

The temple is tucked right up to the river, and after the service we fed sticky rice to some of the largest fish I’ve ever seen.  One of our new students then took us for a brief tour across a rope bridge that led to a meditation area on the other side of the river.

First Day of School

Our first official day of work was on Friday, and we arrived a few minutes early.  Feeling as prepared as I could be, I awaited further instruction in the (blissfully air conditioned) English office.  I waited patiently until 2pm, when I finally realized that there was really nothing that they needed me to do and I was free to leave.

Ah, well.  Between the waiting and the more waiting I did get the opportunity to meet some of the students and they are adorable little teens and tweens  I’m looking forward to begin working with my students though I’m not naive enough to think they’ll all be so darling.

Classes begin in earnest tomorrow (as do scooter lessons), so I’ll be typing up my very first lesson plan this evening.

Chachoengsao

Saturday afternoon I took a brief trip to the city of Chachoengsao.  It’s a cool city, roughly the size of Portland I’d say, and we were given a mini-tour by a fellow participant who had been placed there.  It was a very small adventure, as we weren’t sure when the last van to Phanom Sarakham left and we got a late start, but it was nice to test out the van system and have a change of scenery.

Found a really beautiful park with a lake in Chachoengsao.

Found a really beautiful park with a lake in Chachoengsao.

Found a really beautiful park with a lake in Chachoengsao.

We (of course) got lost trying to refind the bus station in Chachoengsao.  When we stopped to ask a kindly middle-aged couple for directions they offered to give us a ride!  It turns out they had just returned from a 16 day tour of the Western United States and were both strong English speakers and super nice people.  Only in Thailand!

Roachpocalypse Part II

I’ve talked a little about the positives of my living situation, but now I must mention the major negative (besides the stray dogs who like to chase people on bikes): The goddamn roaches.

I hate cockroaches.  They are one of the few things on this earth that I truly fear.  For background, the first month of my first year of college I encountered a dead roach on the stairs on my way to the dorm basement to do laundry and never went near those stairs again.

So, as you can imagine, to find out that there was a pervasive roach problem in my new home was unsettling.  Never fear, however, as my new roommate is made of sterner stuff and embarked today on a roach massacre of epic proportions.  After a three pronged approach of various poisons we retreated to a safe distance to wait for the cloud of noxious gases to do its work.

Total dead: 67 and counting.  It was horrifying.  Nevertheless, we sleep tonight safe in the knowledge that we’ve (I say we, but I was almost no help at all.; though, to my credit I didn’t collapse into a quivering heap of fear at any point) made a significant dent in the roach problem, and have a strategy that will keep numbers down in the future.  Eco-unfriendly it may be, but a switch to paper and plastic dishes may be in order as the main source of the problem seems to be the kitchen sink.

So there it is, my week in a nutshell.  This week I look forward to meeting my new classes, learning to ride a scooter, getting a medical exam, and some possible travel over the weekend.  Adieu!