It’s been a while since I’ve written here, for which I apologize.

I have done a lot in the past week or so, but the homesickness and culture shock has been particularly taxing lately and I haven’t had the energy to write.  Wallowing in self-pity won’t fix the issue, so instead I plan to visit Pattaya this weekend and sleep, swim, and eat (in that order).  Usually being near the ocean can cure a bad mood for me in a way nothing else can, so I hope to come back more content.

Here’s a recap of the events since I last wrote:

School:  My classes are actually my favorite part of my life here in Thailand.  Even when the students aren’t listening to me they’re still happy and fun to be around.  Walking around school every other student I see calls out “Hello, teacha!” with a big smile.  I’ve also got a good variety of students to work with.  From my adorable little M1 seventh graders to the older M4 tenth graders and M5 eleventh graders; with a variety of levels at each age.  It’s challenging in the best way.

Building 5 which is where my office is, plus the courtyard where the students eat lunch.

A shot of one of the classrooms I took while waiting for my students to get back from morning assembly.

View from one of my classes. This is out behind the school. In the distance you can just make out the main road.

Highlights of the past couple of weeks include:

• Teaching them that cowboys say “howdy” and sailors say “ahoy”.  It was a big hit!
• Subbing for one of the senior classes and having them invent their own idioms.  For having forgotten your homework they came up with “I’m riding in the dragon’s stomach,” for not being hungry they decided on “I just ate a whole pod of whales,” and for having to do something they don’t want to do they picked “getting in the cage.”
• One of my M5 students asked to give an impromptu performance in class, and since it was a song in English I happily obliged.  In return, they demanded that I sing for them, so I did!  By request, I went with Adele’s “Someone Like You.”  I got a video of the student, but did not get one of my own singing (your loss).

Bangkok:  Last weekend I took a van into Bangkok for the weekend.  I left directly from school on Friday afternoon and arrived at Victory Monument in late afternoon.  After dropping my stuff at the hotel, I went to a mall to browse and enjoy some AC, then got falafel and curly fries for dinner.

I then met up with some other teachers at the infamous backpacker’s haunt Kao San Rd. for drinks.  Little old ladies and children come up to the tables selling trinkets, fried scorpions, and roses while you drink, which is an uncomfortable but interesting experience.

Saturday morning I was up early(ish) for a walk through beautiful Lumpini Park.

Very green and pretty.

Lumpini Park is an oasis in the middle of the city.

I then retreated back into the AC to explore the epic malls of Siam Square, one of which had an aquarium on its first floor.  For lunch I had a cheeseburger with bacon and onion rings, a root beer float, shoestring fries and garlic aioli and it was one of the best meals of my life.  As much as I love (most) Thai food, I am really missing good American food.

After the aquarium, I headed to the Jim Thompson House which was very close to my hotel.  From Wikipedia:

The Jim Thompson House is a museum in Bangkok. It is a complex of various old Thai structures that the American businessman Jim Thompson collected in from all parts of Thailand in the 1950s and 60s. It is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Thailand.

As Thompson was building his silk company, he also became a major collector of Southeast Asian art, which at the time was not well known internationally. He built a large collection of Buddhist and secular art not only from Thailand but from Burma, Cambodia and Laos, frequently travelling to those countries on buying trips.

In 1958 he began what was to be the pinnacle of his architectural achievement, a new home to showcase his art collection. Formed from parts of six antique Thai houses, his home (completed in 1959) sits on a klong (canal) across from Bangkrua, where his weavers were then located. Most of the 19th-century houses were dismantled and moved from Ayutthaya, but the largest – a weaver’s house (now the living room) – came from Bangkuar.

Today the house itself is a guided tour, that is provided daily to the public, with a small entrance fee for the guide. The grounds have been maintained in the same manner as were originally designed by Mr. Thompson. Many features of the house are a combination of traditional Thai architecture combined with western influences. The grounds also have a number of service quarters that now serve as museum showcases displaying many of the treasures from Mr. Thompson’s collection.

This was my favorite part of the weekend.  The house and gardens were beautiful, and I’d recommend it to anyone visiting Bangkok.

After a quick nap back at the hotel I went out again to meet one of my fellow teachers from Phanom Adun for dinner (awful pizza) and a movie (X-Men, which was not awful at all).  To my delight they had peanut M&Ms, my favorite movie snack, so it felt just like home!

I left Sunday Morning so I could have a relaxing afternoon to prepare for the upcoming week.  All in all a successful adventure, but I ended it just as grumpy and homesick as I started.

Tutoring: On Tuesday, one of the Thai teachers asked if I was available to tutor.  Thinking it would be fun to get to know a Thai family and earn a little extra spending money I agreed.  Never have I regretted a decision more.  My new student is an adorable little monster.  If anyone has any tips on working with 7 year olds who are not interested in learning and who I have no way to bribe or punish, please let me know.  I don’t particularly want to dwell on this new, unpleasant part of my schedule, so instead I’ll mention that the family happens to be raising a baby macaw!

Dinner:  Last night all 4 of us American teachers were invited out to dinner by a local woman, who’s clearly adopted us, and her husband and friends.  It was such a fun night trying to communicate with their limited English and our limited Thai and eating delicious food.  Afterwards they loaded us up with dozens of amazing pineapples from their own farm.  I don’t know how we’ll eat so many pineapples, but a pineapple overdose is a small price to pay for a lovely evening.

I promise that next time I’ll post before I have such an overwhelming amount of information to share.  Until then!