I am currently in my office even though it's Sunday afternoon. At KKU when there is a holiday like two weeks ago classes have to be rescheduled. I did my best to reschedule as few as possible but the classes I missed twice needed a make-up, so today was the day. In my last class, Speaking 101, my students who are studying in the faculty of Medicine turned in a homework assignment. The assignment was to list names of food that correspond to different countries. Silly, I know, I did not think of it. I knew the students would use the Internet for help because how else are they going to know the English names for Korean foods and French foods, etc. I told them that was fine as long as they did not copy. I got a couple "jumbo combos, "Hardrock nachos," "Fantasy 12. Oz Burgers" and other obvious misunderstandings coming from copying from English menus. The kicker was when I got to the Chinese food section and found "butter many privates" and "France many privates" on many students' papers. Haaaaahaaaaa. I have no idea how this happened but I laughed till I cried and it made Sunday class totally worth it.
Yesterday, Meredith, Neuki, Ing, Pi Lenk and I went to see Harry Potter (in English) in Udon Thani, which is about an hour or two away depending on who drives. Ing drives like my mom and Pi Lenk drives like my dad and if you have ever been in a car with either you will know what I am talking about. Although it might sound crazy to drive that far for a movie, my coworkers said the crazier part was seeing a movie with the swine flu running rampant in these parts. Took my chances, I suppose.
I ate breakfast with Neuki who told me after I had ingested 75% of my fried rice and fried egg that we would be eating again when we arrived to Udon. We went to a great Vietnamese food place then to the mall for Harry. The theater was really nice and the tickets cost us 140 baht, which is 4.5 USD. There are seats for 120, but we decided to splurge for the extra arm room. They offer candy and popcorn like the USA, but you can get many flavors of popcorn and the prices are only slightly inflated compared to the food and drinks outside the theater. The movie was good and it was a nice escape for three hours. After the movie, we took hilarious photos in one of those booths (probably a breeding ground for H1N1) and then headed home.
Other than that, it was a fairly normal week. I have been busy catching up on grades which are due in a week and preparing my students for their midterms. I will have more visitors during midterm week when Jessie and Alicia will pop into Thailand before heading to China. We will go on some fun beach excursion and you will hear about it afterwards. How lucky am I?
My Thai is progressing very slowly but it's ok. I have 30 new vocab words to memorize for my next session with Gee, my tutor, and each one liberates me a little more.
"Wanee sanook maak" which means today was a very fun day and you can say it when you are saying goodbye.
Rak maak,
Ting Tong
P.S. I said Ellen last time because some Thai people pronounce Erin like Ellen so I introduce myself like that to some people now. BUT everyone has a nickname in Thailand and I want to be "Ting Tong" which means crazy, but not necessarily in a bad way. Maybe like Ding Dong. Ching Chong means pee pee, so I have to be careful.
P.P.S. Some of you will be happy to know that Neuki has begun to call me Bear. It makes me feel at home. Most often, she precedes "Bear" by "Gummy." Although its a little endearing, I think it could also be in reference to the kilos I have been packing on. I REALLY like the food!
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Living on a VIP bus
Where to begin when there's so much to say. I write this from my seat on the VIP bus to Bangkok where I have spent most of my time in the last week.
Last Friday, Meredith and I left Khon Kaen in the afternoon and arrived at the crazily crowded pre-Thai-Buddhist-Lenten-holiday Bangkok bus station at night. We followed the only westerner in sight in order to borrow the police officer that she had commandeered who apparently spoke enough English to guide her to her destination. After five minutes of pointing on maps and saying Koh Chang (pronounced "Chung") in as many tones as I could, we were led to the ticket booth. We waited around a little, were led through a small hole in a chain link fence, over a small trash dump, through a stray dog village and finally aboard the overnight bus to Trat where we'd catch the first ferry in the morning. I slept a little but it was hard because nightmares of sliding off the road in a monsoon were only partly dreams. After a fairly short but very moist songtau ride from where the bus dropped us, Meredith and I arrived at the ferry station where we were greeted by the first familiar faces I had seen since Chelsea's departure.
To backtrack a little, Christina and I have been living parallel lives for the past couple years. I met her in the study abroad office on our way out the door to South Africa and ran into her in glorious Cape Townian places like the streets of Mowbray, outside Babbo in Obs and most gloriously on the top of Lion's Head where we watched the sun set over the ocean and the full moon rise over the city last April. Back at ND our lives continued in this fashion with sporadic run-ins in not quite so glorious places. To make a long story short, Christina and her friend from home Danielle who I had met more than once (if the line for Fever and Pigtostal count) are teaching outside Bangkok alongside Clare who is a friend from St. Mary's College that I have known since freshman year. Clare, Danielle and Christina adopted us into their little posse of travelers teaching at Assumption University. Initiation began with beer for breakfast courtesy of Clare. Surprise me. (You can't hate it when you miss me so badly, can you roomies?) I cannot possibly explain how nice it was to be in a group of people who speak English as their first language and share a similar sense of humor. I laughed until I cried many times on the trip and there were some peed pants, though I can't say whose. I'm quite a bit more homesick, or peoplesick really, after the trip but equally as excited for all the travels that lay ahead. Yay!
I should not even try to describe how beautiful Koh Chang is. Google it. It's the gorgeous beaches and green jungles jutting out of the crystal blue waters that pop into a person's head when they hear "Thailand". Cheesy sounding, i know, that's why I should not have tried. Places like KC are pretty much the reason I wanted to come to SE Asia. I forgot my camera as I am known to do when I am going to see amazing things like thirty elephants cross the road to go swimming, ten lions lounging in the sun, or the entire city of Beijing, China and the Olympic Games. We had some serious amateur photographers in our crew so I'll get some pics ASAP and I miiiiiiiight be in some of them.
One day we hiked to a waterfall. This one put Tad Ton to shame. I again risked my life savings, or my parents', scaling algae covered rocks protruding out over jagged ledges and rushing water which I am sure is a danger outside my health insurance coverage. FYI Dad freshwater is dangerous because of crazy diseases I could catch... But I think only if it's stagnant. And there are 200 suspected cases of swine flu in Khon Kaen and all the dangerous places are marked with signs written in Thai...so I am in grave danger anyways. I think I might follow suit and get a mask.
Sorry. Back on track. We stayed two places. The first was a collection of straw huts on a pristine beach called Khlong Prao. I have seen some sickeningly beautiful beaches this year between Mexico and Costa Rica and this one is right up there. Absolutely awesome. Spectacular. Thesaurus needed. The place had delicious food but not much around it and we went to the more built-up White Sand to go out at night. I spent my 4th of July on a carpet on a beach watching a fire show. It was certainly more celebratory than eating Indian food and watching movies in Uganda which is what I was doing last year, but not quite sparklers and ice cream sandwiches at Lake Barcroft. I did rock my American flag tee shirt though.
I did not think things could get much better but I was wrong again. Twice as much per night, now an exorbitant nine dollars, bought us air-conditioned rooms with clean sheets, shampoo and toilet paper provided. AND a complimentary American breakfast. Toast!! We had a ridiculous view from our bungalow and spent our days on the beach or by the pool and our nights at the cool hostels and bars that dot the coastline and decorate the town of Lonely Beach. It has a very laid back traveler kind of vibe. Needless to say, I could have stayed for a while longer or maybe forever if I did not have all of you blog-readers to come home to or the guilt of having to make something of myself after paying ND tuition.
So I got back to Khon Kaen Wednesday night at 11 and I am half way back to Bangkok and it's Friday at 8. Tomorrow Alison and I are seeing Mae Naak which is a Thai musical about ghosts. Should be interesting. My goal is to not regret the semi-hefty ticket purchase which occurred a while ago...before I knew I would have just returned from an adventure and before I got used to the Thai baht. I am hoping to get to see some of my new found friends who spend their weekends in Bangkok. I can see this Friday night VIP bus thing becoming a pattern which is okay by me. Picture first class on an airplane. Uh huh there are even flight attendants and massage chairs. I'm eating a donut and there are certainly no chickens plucking at my little toes or dead fish on strings hanging over my head.
I know this was a long one but I am sure it took you waaaaaay less time to read it than it took me to write it...ON MY PHONE. Especially because the man next to me and I are having Thai lessons. I now know the word for divorced if yahhhhknowhatImeeeeeean. He just motioned asking for my phone number but does not speak a word of English, haahaaa.
It is now Saturday night and I am finally publishing this from my really cool hostel in Bangkok. The city is really really cool and the play was very entertaining. It was three and a half hours long, which was a little crazy, but I think it would have been out of this world if I spoke Thai. We did a boat tour today and I brought my camera so photos to follow. I did get to see my new posse of American friends which was very nice. I am glad they don't live in Khon Kaen because it's too easy to be with them. I would get complacent about my Thai...which is progressing. I had my first conversation in Thai while on Koh Chang and it was one of the most gratifying things I have accomplished in a long time.
Mucho rak,
Ellen ... which is what I may as well be named.
Post Script: my apologies for all of the passive voice and run-on sentences. I know only a handful of you care but I cannot be bothered with your opinions right now, even as an English teacher. I'd change it but I would be risking early onset arthritis in my thumbs.
Last Friday, Meredith and I left Khon Kaen in the afternoon and arrived at the crazily crowded pre-Thai-Buddhist-Lenten-holiday Bangkok bus station at night. We followed the only westerner in sight in order to borrow the police officer that she had commandeered who apparently spoke enough English to guide her to her destination. After five minutes of pointing on maps and saying Koh Chang (pronounced "Chung") in as many tones as I could, we were led to the ticket booth. We waited around a little, were led through a small hole in a chain link fence, over a small trash dump, through a stray dog village and finally aboard the overnight bus to Trat where we'd catch the first ferry in the morning. I slept a little but it was hard because nightmares of sliding off the road in a monsoon were only partly dreams. After a fairly short but very moist songtau ride from where the bus dropped us, Meredith and I arrived at the ferry station where we were greeted by the first familiar faces I had seen since Chelsea's departure.
To backtrack a little, Christina and I have been living parallel lives for the past couple years. I met her in the study abroad office on our way out the door to South Africa and ran into her in glorious Cape Townian places like the streets of Mowbray, outside Babbo in Obs and most gloriously on the top of Lion's Head where we watched the sun set over the ocean and the full moon rise over the city last April. Back at ND our lives continued in this fashion with sporadic run-ins in not quite so glorious places. To make a long story short, Christina and her friend from home Danielle who I had met more than once (if the line for Fever and Pigtostal count) are teaching outside Bangkok alongside Clare who is a friend from St. Mary's College that I have known since freshman year. Clare, Danielle and Christina adopted us into their little posse of travelers teaching at Assumption University. Initiation began with beer for breakfast courtesy of Clare. Surprise me. (You can't hate it when you miss me so badly, can you roomies?) I cannot possibly explain how nice it was to be in a group of people who speak English as their first language and share a similar sense of humor. I laughed until I cried many times on the trip and there were some peed pants, though I can't say whose. I'm quite a bit more homesick, or peoplesick really, after the trip but equally as excited for all the travels that lay ahead. Yay!
I should not even try to describe how beautiful Koh Chang is. Google it. It's the gorgeous beaches and green jungles jutting out of the crystal blue waters that pop into a person's head when they hear "Thailand". Cheesy sounding, i know, that's why I should not have tried. Places like KC are pretty much the reason I wanted to come to SE Asia. I forgot my camera as I am known to do when I am going to see amazing things like thirty elephants cross the road to go swimming, ten lions lounging in the sun, or the entire city of Beijing, China and the Olympic Games. We had some serious amateur photographers in our crew so I'll get some pics ASAP and I miiiiiiiight be in some of them.
One day we hiked to a waterfall. This one put Tad Ton to shame. I again risked my life savings, or my parents', scaling algae covered rocks protruding out over jagged ledges and rushing water which I am sure is a danger outside my health insurance coverage. FYI Dad freshwater is dangerous because of crazy diseases I could catch... But I think only if it's stagnant. And there are 200 suspected cases of swine flu in Khon Kaen and all the dangerous places are marked with signs written in Thai...so I am in grave danger anyways. I think I might follow suit and get a mask.
Sorry. Back on track. We stayed two places. The first was a collection of straw huts on a pristine beach called Khlong Prao. I have seen some sickeningly beautiful beaches this year between Mexico and Costa Rica and this one is right up there. Absolutely awesome. Spectacular. Thesaurus needed. The place had delicious food but not much around it and we went to the more built-up White Sand to go out at night. I spent my 4th of July on a carpet on a beach watching a fire show. It was certainly more celebratory than eating Indian food and watching movies in Uganda which is what I was doing last year, but not quite sparklers and ice cream sandwiches at Lake Barcroft. I did rock my American flag tee shirt though.
I did not think things could get much better but I was wrong again. Twice as much per night, now an exorbitant nine dollars, bought us air-conditioned rooms with clean sheets, shampoo and toilet paper provided. AND a complimentary American breakfast. Toast!! We had a ridiculous view from our bungalow and spent our days on the beach or by the pool and our nights at the cool hostels and bars that dot the coastline and decorate the town of Lonely Beach. It has a very laid back traveler kind of vibe. Needless to say, I could have stayed for a while longer or maybe forever if I did not have all of you blog-readers to come home to or the guilt of having to make something of myself after paying ND tuition.
So I got back to Khon Kaen Wednesday night at 11 and I am half way back to Bangkok and it's Friday at 8. Tomorrow Alison and I are seeing Mae Naak which is a Thai musical about ghosts. Should be interesting. My goal is to not regret the semi-hefty ticket purchase which occurred a while ago...before I knew I would have just returned from an adventure and before I got used to the Thai baht. I am hoping to get to see some of my new found friends who spend their weekends in Bangkok. I can see this Friday night VIP bus thing becoming a pattern which is okay by me. Picture first class on an airplane. Uh huh there are even flight attendants and massage chairs. I'm eating a donut and there are certainly no chickens plucking at my little toes or dead fish on strings hanging over my head.
I know this was a long one but I am sure it took you waaaaaay less time to read it than it took me to write it...ON MY PHONE. Especially because the man next to me and I are having Thai lessons. I now know the word for divorced if yahhhhknowhatImeeeeeean. He just motioned asking for my phone number but does not speak a word of English, haahaaa.
It is now Saturday night and I am finally publishing this from my really cool hostel in Bangkok. The city is really really cool and the play was very entertaining. It was three and a half hours long, which was a little crazy, but I think it would have been out of this world if I spoke Thai. We did a boat tour today and I brought my camera so photos to follow. I did get to see my new posse of American friends which was very nice. I am glad they don't live in Khon Kaen because it's too easy to be with them. I would get complacent about my Thai...which is progressing. I had my first conversation in Thai while on Koh Chang and it was one of the most gratifying things I have accomplished in a long time.
Mucho rak,
Ellen ... which is what I may as well be named.
Post Script: my apologies for all of the passive voice and run-on sentences. I know only a handful of you care but I cannot be bothered with your opinions right now, even as an English teacher. I'd change it but I would be risking early onset arthritis in my thumbs.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Sundaes and Sundays
Hello Hello,
I am sitting in the lobby of my apartment building because it gets a better internet connection than my room. There is a loud echo because of the flooring. Cait and Sha said I sounded like I was talking from Heaven when we were skyping the other night. I wanted details about how Shannon was voted by her 750 classmates both "most likely to succeed" and "most likely to be a hip-hop mogul." I hope there is not a picture of a sweaty king, a stack of mysterious cardboard boxes, or multiple lizards on the walls of my apartment in Heaven, but the rest would be okay, I suppose.
Last weekend, Meredith, Alison and I went on a little girl-bonding adventure to Chaiyaphum, which is about two hours by bus from Khon Kaen. Alison and I had seen a show at U-bar on Friday night, so we yanked ourselves out of bed bright and early Saturday and forced ourselves onto a bus. The bus ride was amazing; the windows were down and I got a window seat early on in the trip. The scenery was undeniably Asian: rice paddies and their workers in circular, pointed hats. It was very green and pretty rural, despite a couple towns that pretty much all looked the same. Chaiyaphum, too, looked very similar to Khon Kaen, but smaller. We splurged on a really nice hotel, which cost us about 7 dollars each for the night. Saturday, we went looking for this traditional village where you can see people making silk the way they have for many, many, years. How many? I have no idea because we never made it to our destination. We bought some silk and we walked through some village, but we never actually found THE silk village until we passed it on the way home on the last departing song-tao...oh well. Saturday night, the hotel bar turned into the Chaiyaphum hotspot and we saw a live band and danced until the wee hours with all of the rest of Chaiyaphum's teens and twenty-somethings and one really friendly but slightly creepy old man who I have pictures with. Sunday, we went to a national park and saw Tad Ton Waterfall. Unlike Costa Rica, where half of the thrill was the hour long hike/climb to the scenic falls, Thai people don't like the outdoors, the heat, or exercise (okay, maybe aerobics). Thus, you can almost drive right up to the falls and get in. Even though the travel nurse told me not to swim in fresh water in Thailand, the current was moving swiftly, although not dangerously swiftly, and I assessed the situation as only mildly dangerous; I hopped right in and swam under the waterfall. The park's brochure makes the tiny thing look like Niagara falls, but it would have been easily jumpable if there were not so many jagged rocks below.
I had been planning on going to Laos this weekend because Meredith had to renew her visa, which requires leaving Thailand and I said I would accompany her. Since I will be traveling the next two weekends, I decided to lay low instead. Meredith ended up coming home yesterday and we went on another Saturday mall excursion with the crew (Neuki, Ing, Toffee who is Neuki's boyfriend, Leng who is Neuki's brother's friend and a potential boyfriend for Ing). It seems to be becoming a pattern to eat huge sundaes at the mall on Saturdays with that crew. After the ice cream, we had a little Guitar Hero session in the arcade, which was fun for me since I kept winning...which only makes sense since there is no possible way that Neuki or Toffee could have accumulated as many hours in the arcade playing Guitar Hero as I have in the dorm or my house over the past years...or it would have been a pretty pricey feat at 10 baht a game. After the mall, it was torrentially raining, so we rented some movies and went to Meredith's for my first home-cooked Thai meal. We made suki, which is the same thing as a hot pot, like I talked about in my previous blog. It was even more delish at home, but we were all dripping with sweat since the house does not have air conditioning downstairs and we were inhaling soup like there was no tomorrow. Today, I ate some vegetarian food, graded some papers, sat and read at the most marvelous coffee shop, went to the campus night market and went on a "run" if you can call jogging for fifteen minutes before my body gave out a run. Good Sunday.
I began lessons with my Thai tutor on Friday. I have homework, too. I have to memorize some possible answers to the question "khun ja pai nai?" which literally means "where are you going?" and "pai nai maa?" which is "where have you been?" These are common greetings in Thailand, like "How are you?" for us. Right now, I could say "pai talaat maa kha" and "chun ja pai rian kha" which would be "I came from the market" and "I am going to study," which I really should since I had to look at my sheet to figure out how to say that. Everything in Thailand ends with kha (for women) or khrap (for men), which makes the sentence more polite, but is used most times. There is a lot of respect around these parts. For instance, we call Leng "Pi Leng" which is a sign of respect for someone even slightly older than you. I told Neuki that I would call her "Pi Neuki" if she wanted me to since she is 23, but she said no. She also lets me touch her head which is not allowed in Thailand either. She's a real nonconformist, haha.
My love to all of you.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
June 18th, 2552
Hello my loyal followers,
You can see some photos below. There are captions if you put your mouse over each photo. Enjoy! And no, that is not a typo. It really is the year 2552 here. The Thai calendar is different...its B.E. or Buddhist Era. The year is based on the death of Gautama Buddha...So, I am 543 years and 11 hours ahead of the East Coast.
“Ohhhkay so….” When asked if I am loving it here, I have to be honest, I forget to realize that I am loving it. My routine has become just that, a routine. By no means am I claiming that I have seen all there is to see in Khon Kaen, but I feel like I have settled in here in much the same way as I settled in to South Bend: I have what I need, there’s stuff to do, but I am not rushing around seeing the sights or anything. Whereas in Cape Town, I had a “bucket list” of things to do before I left (and could have made one for 10 years of things), I don’t think such a list will be needed for Khon Kaen. My list of things to do here involves more personal-growth goals, haha. At the end of a busy day I have to stop myself just to say, "You're teaching in Thailand, that's so weird... and awesome."
Last weekend seemed like any ordinary weekend in South Bend (minus a few people who I miss terribly): two trips to the mall, lots of eating, and out to the bar on Saturday. There is not an English movie theater in Khon Kaen, at least not until December, or I'm sure a flick would have been included in the weekend’s activities. Khon Kaen does not offer an endless strip of chain restaurants like the thriving metropolis of Mishawaka, but there are probably more places to eat within walking distance of my apartment than in all of Indiana…and downtown Khon Kaen has many many more. On Friday, Neuki, her boyfriend Toffee, Frank, Jeff, Meredith and I went to this “hot pot” restaurant. I love hot pots now. Basically, you order what you want to eat and it comes raw. We had some shrimp, some meat, some noodles, some tofu and tons of vegetables. Then, you place some food in a your own personal ladle with holes and submerge it into a pot of boiling water that is being heated in the middle of your table. When it’s cooked, you put it in your bowl, add some broth, season it up the way you like it and eat it. It’s sort of like making your own little “cup of noodles.” De-lish.
The bar we went to, U-bar, is apparently the nicest bar in the city and neither the crowd nor the décor caused me to think otherwise. It’s funny; there were two live bands during the night, but no dance floor. If people danced at all, they did so between tables. Mostly, people sat on small stools at small tables drinking whiskey and coke. Don’t worry about lines at the bar, you simply buy a bottle of Johnny Walker to share with your pals and the waiters continuously refresh your drink with more ice, whiskey, or coke while you listen to fantastic Thai pop music. I tried to have one of my new favs play on my blog but to no avail. Hopefully, you will be able to experience the magic soon. Neuki translates songs for me and the teenage heartthrobs in Thailand are singing about all the same stuff they sing about in the USA: mostly exciting new love and broken hearts.
Neuki has also been teaching me Thai idioms, which I think are very interesting. Here is what I have learned so far.
- An old cow chewing new grass = robbing the cradle…Happens often here with old Western men and young Thai women.
- Mud covering the pig’s tail = procrastinating, digging yourself into a hole with homework, etc.
- You can’t cover a dead elephant with a lotus leaf. Neuki’s example: If you do something bad and then you try to make it better or make excuses, your mom might say “you can’t cover a dead elephant with a lotus leaf.”
- A frog under half a coconut = living in a bubble; sheltered
- Riding an elephant to catch a grasshopper = doing unnecessary things, being illogical.
This week, I spent most of class time learning my students’ names. I have 161 students right now. Despite using their nicknames, I manage to mispronounce almost all of them. Even when their names are American words like Dear, Bank, Mix or Big, I apparently say them wrong. A lot of students have sound effects for names: Pla, Aui, Au, Ou, Oy, Aum, Aof. I also have two Nongs, one Nang, a Noo, a Nood and a few Nooms, not to mention a student with almost every letter of the alphabet from A to Z as a name: A, P, K, Y, O, M, you name it. I have three Tums, a couple Toms and a few Tops. Even though Thai people have more distinctive and unique features than the people I saw in China, they all have dark eyes, dark hair, and my students are all in uniforms, which really complicates the name-learning thing. Today, I took their pictures so I have little flashcards for them now and should have their identities mastered by the week’s end.
I also found out first hand how Thais think cheating is helping others. I had two groups of students in different classes perform the exact same dialogue that they were supposed to have written themselves. The group mentality thing…
I do not “talk Thai” yet. Since I am tone deaf, I am at a great disadvantage. I start my Thai tutor soon and am looking forward to it almost as much as my next good bagel though when that will come, I do not know.
No class today because it's Wai Kru, which is a holiday designated for students to honor their teachers. I am bowed to (or “wai”ed, pronounced “why” not “way”) many times throughout my normal workday, but this day holds in store intense bowing and probably some flowers. I am trying not to get used to all the respect I am shown here…
If I do not die crossing the 10-lane road on my newly-acquired bicycle, I will write again soon. If I do, this blog will be extremely morbid.
Chun rak kuhn…That’s I love you.
Erin
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Aerobics: The Universal Language
Sa wat dee kaa,
Yep, yesterday I went to aerobics. Picture at least 50 Thai women under a pavillion next to a 7-11. And me. And Meredith, another Princeton Fellow, who is equally as uncoordinated as I am. I am not sure if I can blame the fact that I could not follow on the intensity of the teacher or his counting in Thai because the truth is it was fairly similar to an aerobics class in the States (except that it costs 5 baht or 1/6 of a dollar!) There was even techno you would hear in the States, mainly multiple re-mixes of the YMCA, Cher, and Dragostea din tei ("Maya heee Maya whoo Maya haaa maya haaa haaa"...Should ring bells to you if you are under the age of...30??...or a raver...or an intense work-out-er...and ESPECIALLY if you spent a large majority of weekend nights in high school loitering in 7-11 parking lots listening to Romanian techno like I did). The funny thing is that aerobics class takes place outside at 6 pm, which is around the time that the rain should start during the rainy season (now). Yesterday, the rain held off until class was over, which only meant that the humidity was palpable in the 85-degree air for the hour-long jazzercize meets ballet meets kickboxing meets yoga session. Oh, and it's inappropriate to show your shoulders or most of your legs in Northern Thailand so many people were in pants and long sleeves. Even in my semi-scandalous attire, I was literally soaked head to toe in sweat after 10 minutes...and Thai people don't sweat so it made my freckled, uncoordinated, already really out-of-place self stand out even more. Regardless, it was the most fun I have had since I have been in Thailand and I am going again today. It is a must-do in Khon Kaen and I am looking forward to having my able-bodied visitors join me.
Neuki (reference previous blog: first and only Thai friend, nicest person I have ever met) came with me to aerobics, which is not something she normally does. Her mom, on the other hand, goes every day. After class, I met Neuki's mom, "Shenai," and discovered hers were the feet that mine were attempting to copy during class. Shenai teaches Physical Chemistry at KKU and their house is on campus. She offered Meredith and me a ride home and since it was thundering we accepted. Instead of taking us directly home, we went to dinner at T-Bone Steak House, which is an all-you-can-eat buffet that costs 109 Baht (a little more than 3 dollars), a semi-expensive meal here. There were all kinds of American-y things to choose from: steak, pork, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, french fries, green beans, spaghetti, fruit, veggies and tons of Thai delicacies as well. After the meal, we had some fruit that Neuki had been carrying around all day with the intention of giving to me, since she knew I had never tried either a mangosteen or a rambutan. Rambutan is golfball-sized and spiky on the outside, sooo cool-looking. On the inside, it looks a bit like a delicately-peeled grape, but whiter and with a pit. Tastes sort of like a lychee. A mangosteen, "the queen of fruits," is one of the most delicious things I have ever had the pleasure of tasting. On the outside, its purple with a green stem. On the inside, its white and divided into small sections. It tastes a bit like passion fruit...hard to describe but de-lish. I know it does not do much good to describe the taste of these interesting fruits with other interesting fruits, but it's the best I can do. Here, you can buy a kilo of mangosteen for a dollar. I am not sure what it would cost you Statesiders, but it's worth it to try! Wikipedia says about mangosteens: "Botanically an aril, the fragrant edible flesh can be described as sweet and tangy, citrusy with peach flavor and texture."
This week flew by. Teaching is still going well. My students' ability-levels vary a lot both in the classes and between classes of the same level. Now that I am beginning to understand which classes are more advanced and which students understand English best and can help translate, things are getting a little easier. Apparently English is seen as just something to get through by most Thai students who will probably stay in Thailand to work and will not need much English in their real lives. The students who will need English, like business students, (who apparently all want to be flight attendants, haha) some of the medical students, and other various faculties, are not in my classes...Great, I get to teach English to kids who, for the most part, think of it as a formality and do not give a rat's behind about it. That being said, some of my students are working hard and showing a desire to learn the language. My beginning speaking students literally DO NOT SPEAK A WORD OF ENGLISH! It's hilarious. We started with hello and goodbye. It's a pretty easy way for me to monitor their progress and my abilities as a teacher when they started with zero words in their lexicon.
I have pictures to post but the Internet has been a little whacko at home and I keep forgetting to bring my camera to work. Hopefully, they will be up soon.
I am thinking lots about all of you, especially the Murphys who are all gathering together now for Colin and Emily's wedding. If I figure out how to bi-locate in the next 48 hours, I'll be there! Otherwise, enjoy. I know that "When Irish Eyes are Smiling" is going to be the best ever since you all have been practicing since January.
Chok dee la gorn,
Erin
Yep, yesterday I went to aerobics. Picture at least 50 Thai women under a pavillion next to a 7-11. And me. And Meredith, another Princeton Fellow, who is equally as uncoordinated as I am. I am not sure if I can blame the fact that I could not follow on the intensity of the teacher or his counting in Thai because the truth is it was fairly similar to an aerobics class in the States (except that it costs 5 baht or 1/6 of a dollar!) There was even techno you would hear in the States, mainly multiple re-mixes of the YMCA, Cher, and Dragostea din tei ("Maya heee Maya whoo Maya haaa maya haaa haaa"...Should ring bells to you if you are under the age of...30??...or a raver...or an intense work-out-er...and ESPECIALLY if you spent a large majority of weekend nights in high school loitering in 7-11 parking lots listening to Romanian techno like I did). The funny thing is that aerobics class takes place outside at 6 pm, which is around the time that the rain should start during the rainy season (now). Yesterday, the rain held off until class was over, which only meant that the humidity was palpable in the 85-degree air for the hour-long jazzercize meets ballet meets kickboxing meets yoga session. Oh, and it's inappropriate to show your shoulders or most of your legs in Northern Thailand so many people were in pants and long sleeves. Even in my semi-scandalous attire, I was literally soaked head to toe in sweat after 10 minutes...and Thai people don't sweat so it made my freckled, uncoordinated, already really out-of-place self stand out even more. Regardless, it was the most fun I have had since I have been in Thailand and I am going again today. It is a must-do in Khon Kaen and I am looking forward to having my able-bodied visitors join me.
Neuki (reference previous blog: first and only Thai friend, nicest person I have ever met) came with me to aerobics, which is not something she normally does. Her mom, on the other hand, goes every day. After class, I met Neuki's mom, "Shenai," and discovered hers were the feet that mine were attempting to copy during class. Shenai teaches Physical Chemistry at KKU and their house is on campus. She offered Meredith and me a ride home and since it was thundering we accepted. Instead of taking us directly home, we went to dinner at T-Bone Steak House, which is an all-you-can-eat buffet that costs 109 Baht (a little more than 3 dollars), a semi-expensive meal here. There were all kinds of American-y things to choose from: steak, pork, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, french fries, green beans, spaghetti, fruit, veggies and tons of Thai delicacies as well. After the meal, we had some fruit that Neuki had been carrying around all day with the intention of giving to me, since she knew I had never tried either a mangosteen or a rambutan. Rambutan is golfball-sized and spiky on the outside, sooo cool-looking. On the inside, it looks a bit like a delicately-peeled grape, but whiter and with a pit. Tastes sort of like a lychee. A mangosteen, "the queen of fruits," is one of the most delicious things I have ever had the pleasure of tasting. On the outside, its purple with a green stem. On the inside, its white and divided into small sections. It tastes a bit like passion fruit...hard to describe but de-lish. I know it does not do much good to describe the taste of these interesting fruits with other interesting fruits, but it's the best I can do. Here, you can buy a kilo of mangosteen for a dollar. I am not sure what it would cost you Statesiders, but it's worth it to try! Wikipedia says about mangosteens: "Botanically an aril, the fragrant edible flesh can be described as sweet and tangy, citrusy with peach flavor and texture."
This week flew by. Teaching is still going well. My students' ability-levels vary a lot both in the classes and between classes of the same level. Now that I am beginning to understand which classes are more advanced and which students understand English best and can help translate, things are getting a little easier. Apparently English is seen as just something to get through by most Thai students who will probably stay in Thailand to work and will not need much English in their real lives. The students who will need English, like business students, (who apparently all want to be flight attendants, haha) some of the medical students, and other various faculties, are not in my classes...Great, I get to teach English to kids who, for the most part, think of it as a formality and do not give a rat's behind about it. That being said, some of my students are working hard and showing a desire to learn the language. My beginning speaking students literally DO NOT SPEAK A WORD OF ENGLISH! It's hilarious. We started with hello and goodbye. It's a pretty easy way for me to monitor their progress and my abilities as a teacher when they started with zero words in their lexicon.
I have pictures to post but the Internet has been a little whacko at home and I keep forgetting to bring my camera to work. Hopefully, they will be up soon.
I am thinking lots about all of you, especially the Murphys who are all gathering together now for Colin and Emily's wedding. If I figure out how to bi-locate in the next 48 hours, I'll be there! Otherwise, enjoy. I know that "When Irish Eyes are Smiling" is going to be the best ever since you all have been practicing since January.
Chok dee la gorn,
Erin
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