Nu, a consultant from MediaKids arrived today to take our passports to the Labor Department to finalize our work permits (which, no, we still have not received). Then, at a last minute's notice, just after lunch, he was informed that a new rule was in place - and we had to have our blood drawn (such as for HIV, Syphilis, Hepatitis, etc.). So Jacqueline, Howard and I went with Nu to the private hospital just down the road from the school. Whoa! Was this a Thai experience or what! First off, we all felt as if we were on an airplane or on a cruise or something. the uniforms were so inappropriate, for lack of a better word. The nurses looked like they were flight attendants, with short skirts that had slits up the thigh, white heels with bows, light blue blazers and nicely tied up hair in buns with decorative hair pieces. The receptionists looked like bar girls, in gold (yes, gold!) dresses with gold, crinchy belts in big bows around their waists, gold/ tan heels with bows, and fully done faces and hair. No scrubs in this hospital!
Secondly, after Nu spoke with the hospital, it was decided that they would sign off on the bloodwork, but not actually do it! In other words, the hospital (or someone) pockets the money (paid for by MediaKids) and we get our fake signed and cleared bloodwork papers done for our work permits. We each individually saw the doctor for about 1 minute, in which she asked us if we had any known diseases or allergies. That was it! So, the hospital gets to save money on the labwork and utensils (or whatever else the bloodtests would entail), get the money, and we get our papers signed and cleared .... T-I-T
We arrived back at school about 1.5 hours later, each having missed a class. Well, at this point, all my classes within each level are all over the place. Some are 2 weeks behind, others are so far ahead, that I can't keep up with what to do with them next! Ah, well, so we were forewarned at orientation. Just another day in Thailand!
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
BKK Weekend
Around Bangkok
I spent the weekend in Bangkok - did quite a bit of partying, but also went to Jim Thompson's House and Lumphini Park. Taken from the "Lonely Planet" - "Born in Delaware in 1906, Thompson was a New York architect who briefly served in the Office of Strategic Services in Thailand during WWII. Following the ward he found New York too tame and returned to Bangkok. His neighbor's handmade silk caught his eye and piqued his business sense; he sent samples to fashion houses in Milan, London and Paris, gradually building a steady worldwide clientele. A tireless promoter of traditional Thai arts and culture, Thompson also collected parts of various derelict Thai homes in central Thailand and had them reassembled in theri current location in 1959..... Thompson's story doesn't end with his informal reign as Bangkok's best-adated foreigner. While out for an afternoon walk in the Cameron Highlands of western Malaysia in 1967, Thompson mysteriously disappeared. That same year his sister was murdered in the USA, fuelling various conspiracy theories. Was it communist spies? Business rivals? Or a man-eating tiger? ... Jim Thompson: The Unsolved Mystery by William Warren is an excellent book on Thompson, his career, residence and subsequent intriguing disappearance."
Sorry to take it all from another source, but I felt that it summed it up in a way I could not have without borrowing a few phrases here and there. It was a pretty place with amazing architecture and incredibly ancient art (dating back to the 7th century!). He built the house in a very traditional Thai style, including holding all the traditional rituals in building the house, such as going to astrologer to find the best time to move in. He built the house along one of Bangkok's many canals, and at the time, it was a floating market, along which he had his silk factory. I had never heard of him before, but it is a pretty interesting story, and people in Southeast Asia seem to think of him as a 'sombebody'.
Jim Thompson's House: 7th c. buddha (from Cambodia, I think)
I also went to the beautiful and relaxing Lumphini Park, which is named after the Buddha's birthplace in Nepal. It reminded me of Central Park, and made me miss home. It's full of greenery, pavilions, lakes, playgrounds, exercise groups, benches, and water monitors! It was an incredibly relaxing afternoon, and nice to escape the polluted, crowded streets of busy Bangkok.
Director's Party
On Friday night, we were invited to attend a party at our school for the Director. She won some award from the King, something about her dedication to the education of Thai children. Howard and I arrived at around 6:15, and things didn't really start picking up until 7:30 ish or so. Thai style. Most of the teachers attended and we were all seated at round tables in this huge atrium. Food was served slowly, and teachers individually sang karaoke as guests continually and slowly arrived. And what do you know... there was a dog walking around! I was headed to Bangkok for the weekend, could not stand the horrible singing and Thai speeches, so I left at 7:30. It didn't seem like I missed much. Some pictures below...
The Director, in pink
Dogs at the Party... T-I-T
Pich, Madam's Granddaughter
The King in the background
The Director, in pink
Dogs at the Party... T-I-T
Pich, Madam's Granddaughter
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Death of a student
Ms. Bpun, head of the Foreign Language Department, informed me today that one of my students had died last night. His nickname is "Hot" and he was in my M4/5 class, the class that I had the next period, right after she told me! He was fifteen years old. He died in a motorbike accident on his way home from school yesterday. He was run over by a car. Ms. Bpun told me that a few kids from Sri Racha School die each year due to motorbike accidents! Apparently, it is the number one killer in Thailand. I do not remember his face, but I did see from the attendance sheet that he was present every week.
M4/5 was the one M4 class that I have had many problems with, until today. The problems, however, were largely due to their room, in which students had to sit on the floor around large rectangular, low tables, which forced many students to sit with their backs to me. So, today, I moved them to another building where there was a free room that had actual desks. The class was 150% better today than any other past week. But, because of the death of one of their classmates, I had a real easy-going class. I did not take attendance, nor did I enforce participation. Many of the boys sat quietly staring out the window. After we finished going over the pronunciation and translation of the second vocabulary list (Jobs & Occupations), we played pictionary for the rest of the class. Actually, there really wasn't that much time left anyway, because the class started about 20 minutes late due to the room location change.
M4/5 was the one M4 class that I have had many problems with, until today. The problems, however, were largely due to their room, in which students had to sit on the floor around large rectangular, low tables, which forced many students to sit with their backs to me. So, today, I moved them to another building where there was a free room that had actual desks. The class was 150% better today than any other past week. But, because of the death of one of their classmates, I had a real easy-going class. I did not take attendance, nor did I enforce participation. Many of the boys sat quietly staring out the window. After we finished going over the pronunciation and translation of the second vocabulary list (Jobs & Occupations), we played pictionary for the rest of the class. Actually, there really wasn't that much time left anyway, because the class started about 20 minutes late due to the room location change.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Food Cravings
OK -- So, the other day I was (and still am) seriously craving Mexican food, specifically Guacamole and cheese. This morning I was seriously craving eggs over easy with bacon and sausage links, mom's hazelnut pancakes, dad's cinammon challah french toast with lots of syrup and butter, and hashbrown homefries. So... after a nice, easy, relaxing day in the park - had lunch on Koh Loy park again and then sat at the waterfront working on the Thai alphabet, had some ice cream and strolled into town - I went grocery shopping! First time since I've been here. But ughh, the cheese is sooo expensive, and I don't have a kitchen! So, my items to purchase were very limited. But I made it back with some cereal, milk, oreos, crunchy peanut butter, strawberry jam and bread! And I just made myself and ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Yum!
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Pattaya Orphanage
I spent all Saturday volunteering my time at the Pattaya Orphanage. I first read about the orphanage in my Lonely Planet guide book, and then had seen signs for it from the bus window on my way up from Rayong (from Ko Samet). I then googled the place (http://www.thepattayaorphanage.org/) and e-mailed the contact. Siriphen, the Assistant Director for International Relations, got back to me right away. I couldn't believe they even had such a title... but then again... looking at their website, they seemed very organized.
Howard dropped me off on the motorbike at 8:30 am, and we couldn't believe what surrounded us! It looked like a resort of sorts! Completely green, lots of large, low buildings and offices, playgrounds, a soccer field... I then met and sat with Siriphen for about 1/2 hour. She is perfectly fluent in English, even though she has only spent a little time abroad, but she has a lot of contact with foreigners everyday. After speaking with Siriphen, I found out much more about the orphanage. They are religiously affiliated with the Catholic Church, her herself being Catholic! There is something like a .2% Catholic population in Thailand... very small. However, there are Catholic schools in Sri Racha (at least 2 that I know of), and then this place! So, they are privately funded, as well as they receive many donations from local and foreign organizations. Through such foreign organizations, individual children are sponsored, and programs as well. On the orphanage grounds, they have a School for the Deaf, which houses and schools deaf children from poor families. It is a boarding school, so these children go home on weekends and/or holidays. There are about 170 orphans in total, most of which have been there since birth. The orphans range from newborns to 25 years old! Their motto is that if a child leaves the orphanage and is unemployed or has not found their place in society, then they have failed. So, they allow their children to stay there for as long as they need to!
Many of the children go to private schools, Darasamutr in Sri Racha being one of them! Darasamutr is right across the street from Sri Racha School. It is a Catholic school, so the children are sponsored. Many even go onto get their Bachelor's degrees in some of the better universities of Thailand, and some even get their Master's! The focus of the orphanage is on education, as it is the children's only tool to make a path for themselves. For the non-academic older children, the orphanage finds jobs for them, and keeps up with their progress and well-being. Plus, they have over 100 staff, 60-70 of which are nannies and teachers. I am very impressed. This is the opposite of Baphumelele Children's Home in Khayelitsha, South Africa!! Oh, and they have an adoption program as well -- with about 25 children being adopted annually! They have a permanent social worker on staff, and two nurses which rotate.
However, having said such, it is still an orphanage. As Siriphen put it, "Many foreigners come here and think oh, what a great life these children have! They have better opportunities than children from poor families. They get to go to private school and have opportunities to continue their education further! They always have a roof, a bed and food! But, the truth is that the best situation for any child is to be with a family. And this one core part of life is the one thing the orphanage cannot give them. We do our best to create a family environment, but in the end, this is an institution... and that is undeniable."
After a tour of the grounds, I spent the first few hours with the babies, as that is where they needed the most help. One of them was blind, and was there temporarily until it could go to a boarding Blind School (which doesn't accept children until they are 3 years old). Another had a heart condition, which is being monitored daily. Other than that, the children were perfectly healthy... and for the moment, happy. The nanny staff were caring and fun and really loved the children. There were some Thais there as well, who were visiting the children they sponsor.
After helping put the babies to sleep for their afternoon nap, I went and played with this one group of girls (aged 7-10). There was a new teacher, Soo, with them, who had only been working there for about a month and a half, and she spoke pretty good English. She took me to teach crochet with the girls, and then to Lunch. At this time, day volunteers/ visitors are not allowed on the grounds... but because I had latched onto Soo.. they sort of let this rule go with me. After Lunch, one of their monthly volunteers (Isabel from California who was volunteering for 2 months), taught the children Latin dance. About 40 children showed up. In the late afternoon, I went back to the babies' room and helped with the afternoon feeding. Isabel and I then ate dinner in the canteen with the children. A Thai family was there celebrating their birthday. I was very confused by this. But Isabel explained to me that this is an almost daily occurrence. Many Thais come here to donate their time and sponsor a meal for all the children on their birthday. It is kind of a "karma" thing, something good Budhhists must do. In fact, as she said this, I remembered from orientation that Eric had said on their birthdays, Thais will take you out, as opposed to friends taking you out on your birthday. In other words, you give on your birthday.
Siriphen then drove Isabel and I up the hilltop in Pattaya for the sunset. There were some amazing views of Pattaya from way up here, as well as firecrackers! Siriphen is actually from Sri Racha herself, and in fact lives on Wat Wang Hin Road too! Small world. She normally stays at her friend's condo in Pattaya, but was headed back to Wat Wang Hin that evening as there was a Catholic festival at Darasamutr on Sunday.... so she drove me back home! Very nice.
Again, despite the opportunities that these children may have, thanks to donations and sponsors, they are all fighting for their lives, and for purposes to their lives. This was very evident. While I spent time with some of the older girls (7-10 years old), I noticed many behavioral issues that made it all the more clearer that this was an orphanage, and these were nonetheless orphans. Impatience, outbursts of uncontrollable crying, anger, frustration, violence, and utter loneliness. This one girl, Bua, sticks out in my memory. She is half Thai and half Black. She had been there since birth. In Thailand (as well as in the rest of Asia), darker skinned people do not fare well socially, and are ostracized, made fun of, outcast, and seen as dirty and untrustworthy. I notice this with my students. They often joke at eachother, pointing out a darker student calling him/ her "black", and saying "He/ she is from Laos, from Cambodia", which is a way to put someone down, beneath them. Even the Thai adults often partake and will call students "black", when to us westerners... they are not "black", but rather just have darker (maybe, more tanned) skin then some other Thais. Anyhow, Bua went through uncontrollable crying fits all throughout the day, and spent a good amount of the afternoon in the social worker's office, after being dragged out of room after room on her knees. Bua is stunning! I mean, she is absolutely a beautiful child, and even model-like. She would undoubtedly be one of the most beautiful little girls in the West (or at least in America), but here in Thailand, she is seen as ugly, dirty and of lower caste. I spoke with Siriphen about her, and Siriphen informed me that she does have many problems and is often ostrocized by the other children. She has so many problems in school (being a 1/2 black orphan in Thailand!) that they are trying to find a sponsor to place her in an international school, where her dark skin will stand out less. This is a lot of money, but it is the only way they can see that whe will grow up with a semi-normal childhood and with self-confidence in who she is. They tell her everyday that she must succeed to the top of her education and continue all the way to her Master's Degree. She also told me that there are a couple of potential adoptive families for her, as well. The Pattaya Orphanage actually has a long line of waiting adoptive families, but the process is long and lengthy and complex (as with most countries), and they want to make sure that Bua goes to a country where her dark skin will not contribute to social downfalls, as here in Thailand.
The Pattaya Orphanage posted a few photos of me on their website. Go to http://www.thepattayaorphanage.org/2009/index_en.php, then scroll to the very bottom, and click "Update News, Click for more info...". Then, on the new screen, at the top, search for June 20, 2009, and hit "search". My photo album should be at the top.
Howard dropped me off on the motorbike at 8:30 am, and we couldn't believe what surrounded us! It looked like a resort of sorts! Completely green, lots of large, low buildings and offices, playgrounds, a soccer field... I then met and sat with Siriphen for about 1/2 hour. She is perfectly fluent in English, even though she has only spent a little time abroad, but she has a lot of contact with foreigners everyday. After speaking with Siriphen, I found out much more about the orphanage. They are religiously affiliated with the Catholic Church, her herself being Catholic! There is something like a .2% Catholic population in Thailand... very small. However, there are Catholic schools in Sri Racha (at least 2 that I know of), and then this place! So, they are privately funded, as well as they receive many donations from local and foreign organizations. Through such foreign organizations, individual children are sponsored, and programs as well. On the orphanage grounds, they have a School for the Deaf, which houses and schools deaf children from poor families. It is a boarding school, so these children go home on weekends and/or holidays. There are about 170 orphans in total, most of which have been there since birth. The orphans range from newborns to 25 years old! Their motto is that if a child leaves the orphanage and is unemployed or has not found their place in society, then they have failed. So, they allow their children to stay there for as long as they need to!
Many of the children go to private schools, Darasamutr in Sri Racha being one of them! Darasamutr is right across the street from Sri Racha School. It is a Catholic school, so the children are sponsored. Many even go onto get their Bachelor's degrees in some of the better universities of Thailand, and some even get their Master's! The focus of the orphanage is on education, as it is the children's only tool to make a path for themselves. For the non-academic older children, the orphanage finds jobs for them, and keeps up with their progress and well-being. Plus, they have over 100 staff, 60-70 of which are nannies and teachers. I am very impressed. This is the opposite of Baphumelele Children's Home in Khayelitsha, South Africa!! Oh, and they have an adoption program as well -- with about 25 children being adopted annually! They have a permanent social worker on staff, and two nurses which rotate.
However, having said such, it is still an orphanage. As Siriphen put it, "Many foreigners come here and think oh, what a great life these children have! They have better opportunities than children from poor families. They get to go to private school and have opportunities to continue their education further! They always have a roof, a bed and food! But, the truth is that the best situation for any child is to be with a family. And this one core part of life is the one thing the orphanage cannot give them. We do our best to create a family environment, but in the end, this is an institution... and that is undeniable."
After a tour of the grounds, I spent the first few hours with the babies, as that is where they needed the most help. One of them was blind, and was there temporarily until it could go to a boarding Blind School (which doesn't accept children until they are 3 years old). Another had a heart condition, which is being monitored daily. Other than that, the children were perfectly healthy... and for the moment, happy. The nanny staff were caring and fun and really loved the children. There were some Thais there as well, who were visiting the children they sponsor.
After helping put the babies to sleep for their afternoon nap, I went and played with this one group of girls (aged 7-10). There was a new teacher, Soo, with them, who had only been working there for about a month and a half, and she spoke pretty good English. She took me to teach crochet with the girls, and then to Lunch. At this time, day volunteers/ visitors are not allowed on the grounds... but because I had latched onto Soo.. they sort of let this rule go with me. After Lunch, one of their monthly volunteers (Isabel from California who was volunteering for 2 months), taught the children Latin dance. About 40 children showed up. In the late afternoon, I went back to the babies' room and helped with the afternoon feeding. Isabel and I then ate dinner in the canteen with the children. A Thai family was there celebrating their birthday. I was very confused by this. But Isabel explained to me that this is an almost daily occurrence. Many Thais come here to donate their time and sponsor a meal for all the children on their birthday. It is kind of a "karma" thing, something good Budhhists must do. In fact, as she said this, I remembered from orientation that Eric had said on their birthdays, Thais will take you out, as opposed to friends taking you out on your birthday. In other words, you give on your birthday.
Siriphen then drove Isabel and I up the hilltop in Pattaya for the sunset. There were some amazing views of Pattaya from way up here, as well as firecrackers! Siriphen is actually from Sri Racha herself, and in fact lives on Wat Wang Hin Road too! Small world. She normally stays at her friend's condo in Pattaya, but was headed back to Wat Wang Hin that evening as there was a Catholic festival at Darasamutr on Sunday.... so she drove me back home! Very nice.
Again, despite the opportunities that these children may have, thanks to donations and sponsors, they are all fighting for their lives, and for purposes to their lives. This was very evident. While I spent time with some of the older girls (7-10 years old), I noticed many behavioral issues that made it all the more clearer that this was an orphanage, and these were nonetheless orphans. Impatience, outbursts of uncontrollable crying, anger, frustration, violence, and utter loneliness. This one girl, Bua, sticks out in my memory. She is half Thai and half Black. She had been there since birth. In Thailand (as well as in the rest of Asia), darker skinned people do not fare well socially, and are ostracized, made fun of, outcast, and seen as dirty and untrustworthy. I notice this with my students. They often joke at eachother, pointing out a darker student calling him/ her "black", and saying "He/ she is from Laos, from Cambodia", which is a way to put someone down, beneath them. Even the Thai adults often partake and will call students "black", when to us westerners... they are not "black", but rather just have darker (maybe, more tanned) skin then some other Thais. Anyhow, Bua went through uncontrollable crying fits all throughout the day, and spent a good amount of the afternoon in the social worker's office, after being dragged out of room after room on her knees. Bua is stunning! I mean, she is absolutely a beautiful child, and even model-like. She would undoubtedly be one of the most beautiful little girls in the West (or at least in America), but here in Thailand, she is seen as ugly, dirty and of lower caste. I spoke with Siriphen about her, and Siriphen informed me that she does have many problems and is often ostrocized by the other children. She has so many problems in school (being a 1/2 black orphan in Thailand!) that they are trying to find a sponsor to place her in an international school, where her dark skin will stand out less. This is a lot of money, but it is the only way they can see that whe will grow up with a semi-normal childhood and with self-confidence in who she is. They tell her everyday that she must succeed to the top of her education and continue all the way to her Master's Degree. She also told me that there are a couple of potential adoptive families for her, as well. The Pattaya Orphanage actually has a long line of waiting adoptive families, but the process is long and lengthy and complex (as with most countries), and they want to make sure that Bua goes to a country where her dark skin will not contribute to social downfalls, as here in Thailand.
The Pattaya Orphanage posted a few photos of me on their website. Go to http://www.thepattayaorphanage.org/2009/index_en.php, then scroll to the very bottom, and click "Update News, Click for more info...". Then, on the new screen, at the top, search for June 20, 2009, and hit "search". My photo album should be at the top.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Chinese Cemetery
Only a few motorbike minutes away from our apartment, Jacqueline and I came upon this Chinese Cemetery. There is a large Chinese/ Thai population in Thailand.Thursday, June 11, 2009
Waikru
Waikru is a festival that occurs all throughout Thailand, once every year. It is an incredibly thoughtful day in which students celebrate, thank and worship their current and past teachers. Even teachers give thanks and celebrate their past teachers from many years ago. It was an amazing experience to both witness and be a part of. The whole day was very moving, and was full of smiles and tears. Tears, that is, of joy and memories, of giving thanks and celebration, and of the past and Thailand's future.
The morning opened with the usual assembly, but took place on the actual field. Jacqueline, Howard and I performed, as usual on Thursdays, but this time we did a skit on different ways to respond to "How are you?" We are tired of hearing the monotonous, homogenous response of "I an fine, thank you, and you?" So, Jacqueline was the Emcee, and Howard and I acted as students, with backpacks, entering a classroom. We gave different example responses, such as "Awesome!", "Fantastic!", "I'm hot!", "I'm tired!", "I'm bored!"... etc. We informed them that for the rest of the day, we did not want to hear the traditional response of "Fine", and it seemed to work, as most students used different responses throughout the day.
Waikru took up the first 3 periods of the day, and occurred in different buildings, depending on the grade level. I went to my Mattayom 1's Waikru. Amazing! All the students lined up in their sections, and by student number. Despite some chair confusion in the beginning, I was quite impressed by how well and how quickly the students got organized. An older, female student (probably an M-6) led the beginning introduction, for which I have no idea what was said. Then about 10-15 teachers, including myself, sat up front on chairs. Students came up to us one-by-one on their knees and bowed to us, giving thanks and giving us these amazing floral arrangments. Each student has spent the last couple of days working on these arrangements, for which some won prizes for the best design. For these, you must just look at the photos.
After a few rows had gone, we switched out with another group of teachers, for which the procession continued with the other M-1 sections. Because I am the special foreign teacher, they put me on twice! So, I ended up with a huge pile of flower necklaces and arrangements, draped in the smell of jasmine. Many of the teachers touched the students' heads and whispered encouraging words, which often brought tears to the eyes of the students. The ceremony closed with a long-winded speech from one of the four vice-directors. I asked one of the Thai teachers what he was saying... and she said something to the effect of "... as Thailand's future, they must study hard and listen..."
Even though the formal part of Waikru had ended, the festival actually continued throughout the entire day. I have four classes on Thursdays, two back-to-back right in the beginning (which of course were cancelled due to Waikru), and then two back-to-back the last two periods of the day. And, my second to last class, where I am supposed to be teaching M1/10 was cancelled because all of Mattayom 1 goes to the temple after the initial ceremony. By the way, this means that my M1/10 class is now two weeks behind, because their class was cancelled last week due to Cleaning Day! Again, we were heavily forewarned about this during orientation, so I just have to go with the flow.
In any event, I had the whole afternoon off to witness this amazingly moving day. Throughout the school grounds, in classrooms, in building hallways and in our office, students came both individually and in large groups to kneel down at the feet of their current and past teachers. Students were embraced by the teachers one-by-one, and shuffled away in tears (and smiles). Even teachers were giving thanks and worshipping their old teachers. One of the older Thai English teachers in our office was headed, after school, to go see one of her teachers from decades ago! Many former students, who had graduated and/or gone off to technical college, came back today to celebrate their former teachers at Sri Racha school. Younger teachers (specifically, Bee) in our own office were embracing and kneeling at the feet of the older teachers, whom had taught them in the past. After the embrace and kinds words, Bee sat at her desk in tears, but with a smile.
Other than my above attempt at describing Waikru and the photo album, it is impossible to capture the true emotions and feelings that this day conjured up in every Thai citizen. And having been a part of this truly incredible day, I am sad and sorry that America does not have anything like it (other than our obscure "Teacher's Day").
The head of the Department of Business, whose nickname is Ood, and a teacher from Home Ec. took Jacqueline, Howard and I to Bangpra for Lunch. Bangpra is a fishing 'suburb' of Sri Racha, about 10 kilometers from the school. Ood and the other teacher (whose nickname I forget) always sit with us at Lunch in the cafeteria, and really enjoy speaking with us... as her English is so-so, but gets better each day. They took us to this amazing, fresh seafood restaurant on the beach in Bangpra! Afterwards, they drove us up one of the mountains a bit to view the lake/ damn/ reservoir (we're not sure which). We had all seen signs for this supposed lake throughout Sri Racha... billboards that advertise property on the lakefront, in which a white/ western family is portrayed having a picnic by the lake. So, it was interesting to finally see what all these billboards were about, and it was much larger than I had imagined. There were kayaks and canoes for rent, as well as a lot of fishing.
When we arrived back at the school, Ood took us on a mini-tour of her classroom, which is one of many in a part of the school that I had never even known was there! She showed us photos of her and a man from Germany, informing us that they "lay together"!! Hahaaa...
Last period (2:50 - 3:40 pm) finally rolled around. It was my M4/3 class - full of attentive, fun, well-behaved, eager and smart students. Although, of course, due to Waikru, almost half of them were missing. But we did Family Tree presentations today, so it worked out that half the class was gone, as they can just present next week. Plus, due to Cleaning Day last Thursday afternoon, this class is already one week behind all my other M-4s.
Please see the photos both below and in the album -- it is my sad attempt to capture this amazing day full of emotion, and really a celebration of education in life, of growing up; a day of acknowledging life and all that one has learned, and paying respect to all teachers, in any manner, on one's life path.
Some of my M1 boys... so cute!
So perfectly organized! This is M1's Waikru Ceremony
Some more of my M1 students!
Mrs. Ood keeping them in line
The morning opened with the usual assembly, but took place on the actual field. Jacqueline, Howard and I performed, as usual on Thursdays, but this time we did a skit on different ways to respond to "How are you?" We are tired of hearing the monotonous, homogenous response of "I an fine, thank you, and you?" So, Jacqueline was the Emcee, and Howard and I acted as students, with backpacks, entering a classroom. We gave different example responses, such as "Awesome!", "Fantastic!", "I'm hot!", "I'm tired!", "I'm bored!"... etc. We informed them that for the rest of the day, we did not want to hear the traditional response of "Fine", and it seemed to work, as most students used different responses throughout the day.
Waikru took up the first 3 periods of the day, and occurred in different buildings, depending on the grade level. I went to my Mattayom 1's Waikru. Amazing! All the students lined up in their sections, and by student number. Despite some chair confusion in the beginning, I was quite impressed by how well and how quickly the students got organized. An older, female student (probably an M-6) led the beginning introduction, for which I have no idea what was said. Then about 10-15 teachers, including myself, sat up front on chairs. Students came up to us one-by-one on their knees and bowed to us, giving thanks and giving us these amazing floral arrangments. Each student has spent the last couple of days working on these arrangements, for which some won prizes for the best design. For these, you must just look at the photos.
After a few rows had gone, we switched out with another group of teachers, for which the procession continued with the other M-1 sections. Because I am the special foreign teacher, they put me on twice! So, I ended up with a huge pile of flower necklaces and arrangements, draped in the smell of jasmine. Many of the teachers touched the students' heads and whispered encouraging words, which often brought tears to the eyes of the students. The ceremony closed with a long-winded speech from one of the four vice-directors. I asked one of the Thai teachers what he was saying... and she said something to the effect of "... as Thailand's future, they must study hard and listen..."
Even though the formal part of Waikru had ended, the festival actually continued throughout the entire day. I have four classes on Thursdays, two back-to-back right in the beginning (which of course were cancelled due to Waikru), and then two back-to-back the last two periods of the day. And, my second to last class, where I am supposed to be teaching M1/10 was cancelled because all of Mattayom 1 goes to the temple after the initial ceremony. By the way, this means that my M1/10 class is now two weeks behind, because their class was cancelled last week due to Cleaning Day! Again, we were heavily forewarned about this during orientation, so I just have to go with the flow.
In any event, I had the whole afternoon off to witness this amazingly moving day. Throughout the school grounds, in classrooms, in building hallways and in our office, students came both individually and in large groups to kneel down at the feet of their current and past teachers. Students were embraced by the teachers one-by-one, and shuffled away in tears (and smiles). Even teachers were giving thanks and worshipping their old teachers. One of the older Thai English teachers in our office was headed, after school, to go see one of her teachers from decades ago! Many former students, who had graduated and/or gone off to technical college, came back today to celebrate their former teachers at Sri Racha school. Younger teachers (specifically, Bee) in our own office were embracing and kneeling at the feet of the older teachers, whom had taught them in the past. After the embrace and kinds words, Bee sat at her desk in tears, but with a smile.
Other than my above attempt at describing Waikru and the photo album, it is impossible to capture the true emotions and feelings that this day conjured up in every Thai citizen. And having been a part of this truly incredible day, I am sad and sorry that America does not have anything like it (other than our obscure "Teacher's Day").
The head of the Department of Business, whose nickname is Ood, and a teacher from Home Ec. took Jacqueline, Howard and I to Bangpra for Lunch. Bangpra is a fishing 'suburb' of Sri Racha, about 10 kilometers from the school. Ood and the other teacher (whose nickname I forget) always sit with us at Lunch in the cafeteria, and really enjoy speaking with us... as her English is so-so, but gets better each day. They took us to this amazing, fresh seafood restaurant on the beach in Bangpra! Afterwards, they drove us up one of the mountains a bit to view the lake/ damn/ reservoir (we're not sure which). We had all seen signs for this supposed lake throughout Sri Racha... billboards that advertise property on the lakefront, in which a white/ western family is portrayed having a picnic by the lake. So, it was interesting to finally see what all these billboards were about, and it was much larger than I had imagined. There were kayaks and canoes for rent, as well as a lot of fishing.
When we arrived back at the school, Ood took us on a mini-tour of her classroom, which is one of many in a part of the school that I had never even known was there! She showed us photos of her and a man from Germany, informing us that they "lay together"!! Hahaaa...
Last period (2:50 - 3:40 pm) finally rolled around. It was my M4/3 class - full of attentive, fun, well-behaved, eager and smart students. Although, of course, due to Waikru, almost half of them were missing. But we did Family Tree presentations today, so it worked out that half the class was gone, as they can just present next week. Plus, due to Cleaning Day last Thursday afternoon, this class is already one week behind all my other M-4s.
Please see the photos both below and in the album -- it is my sad attempt to capture this amazing day full of emotion, and really a celebration of education in life, of growing up; a day of acknowledging life and all that one has learned, and paying respect to all teachers, in any manner, on one's life path.
Getting Ready for Morning Assembly: Cleaning the Field of Excess Grass?
Kick (M1/1), one of my favorite students!
Some of my M1 boys... so cute!
So perfectly organized! This is M1's Waikru Ceremony
Some more of my M1 students!
Mrs. Ood keeping them in line
Me with the M1 winner!
Some winning designs...
H, J and I with some of the Foreign Language Dept. Teachers
L to R: Piow, PiBen, Madam (Thai English Teachers)
Some winning designs...
H, J and I with some of the Foreign Language Dept. Teachers
L to R: Piow, PiBen, Madam (Thai English Teachers)
Where we ate Lunch in Banpra with Ms. Ood
Notice the dramatic tide out again...
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Dogs at a Funeral
The mother of one of the Thai English teachers, co-teacher PiBen, passed away last weekend. She was 91 and died of natural causes. We were invited to the funeral, which in Buddhist/ Thai tradition lasts five days. Ms. Bpun, the head of the Foreign Language Department, picked us up at our apartment at 7:30 pm, as the funeral was to begin at 8:00 pm and last about one hour. When we arrived at the temple, there were actually two ceremonies occurring next to each other. Tables were set up on the outside of the temple, where the body lay in a closed coffin, covered in flower decorations. There were quite a lot of people there, maybe one-hundred or so. And this was the third night of the funeral. The same chanting occurs each night of the funeral, as it is the guests that change. Tonight was for PiBen and one of her sisters. So the crowd included many teachers from SriRacha school, as well as teachers from a school in Pattaya, where her sister works. We were sat at a front and center table, where once the chanting began, we held our wai for nearly half an hour. Orange soda (Fanta) was served, followed by a soup and fruit.
In the middle of the monks' chanting, which were prayers for PiBen's mother to safely enter the next world, dogs howled and growled all around us. Only a few faces in the crowd turned around to see about all the commotion. Honestly, I thought it was disturbing and could not focus on the task at hand - my wai. All of the sudden, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed two dogs attacking each other at the throat! Ms. Bpun whispered to Jacqueline that they were fighting over food -- "too many dogs, not enough food". A bit sad and a bit scary... and while there were some crowd giggles and tsk tsks, most were able to ignore the dogfight occurring only a few feet away! But, this is the bit of culture that I took away from the experience.
Oh, and as Ms. Bpun backed up out of her parking spot, she hit a tree... Yikes! And although her van was dented, her response was "Mai bin nai ka" -- "no worries"! And that was tonight in Thailand - The Land of Smiles.
In the middle of the monks' chanting, which were prayers for PiBen's mother to safely enter the next world, dogs howled and growled all around us. Only a few faces in the crowd turned around to see about all the commotion. Honestly, I thought it was disturbing and could not focus on the task at hand - my wai. All of the sudden, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed two dogs attacking each other at the throat! Ms. Bpun whispered to Jacqueline that they were fighting over food -- "too many dogs, not enough food". A bit sad and a bit scary... and while there were some crowd giggles and tsk tsks, most were able to ignore the dogfight occurring only a few feet away! But, this is the bit of culture that I took away from the experience.
Oh, and as Ms. Bpun backed up out of her parking spot, she hit a tree... Yikes! And although her van was dented, her response was "Mai bin nai ka" -- "no worries"! And that was tonight in Thailand - The Land of Smiles.
Monday, June 8, 2009
English Camp in Takhli, Nakhon Sawan
As stipulated in our contract, we must do 1 English camp/ semester. Mediakids gave us a taste of English camp during orientation, and from there, I decided that I wanted to do more than just 1. The benefits? Well, all transportation, accommodation and Lunch are provided. Even though I don't have time to see sights in a given area, the drive alone offers a great opportunity to see more of Thailand. Plus, for each extra camp you do, you get paid! So, I told Pai, one of the MediaKids consultants, that I wanted to do more English camps... so on Thursday night, I got a call asking if I wanted to do one in Nakhon Sawan, in north/ central Thailand. Despite the last-minute notice, I said "yes". Tok and Nu, two of our region's consultants, were heading down to Sri Racha on Friday afternoon, so after school, I went back to the apartment and packed a weekend bag, and then they drove me to the MediaKids office in Bangkok. We stopped there for about a 1/2 hour, and then got into Pai's car, as he would be Emceeing the camp. Also in the car were Nu and Bomb, two other MediaKids consultants.
We got caught in some heavy Bangkok traffic on our way out, but made it up to Lopburi (monkey town), where we picked up Liz (another MediaKids foreign English teacher from Connecticut) at her apartment. We then drove onto Takhli, Nakhon Sawan and arrived at "Takhli Resort" at around 10:30 pm. They provided Liz and I with separate rooms, while the 3 of them shared one!
8:00 am on Saturday morning, we headed off to the local 7-Eleven to rev up and then to Takhliprachasan School, where we met up with the 3 local MediaKids foreign English teachers: Bridget from Connecticut, Jan from San Diego and Richard from New Zealand and Australia. Jan and Richard are a couple that met while teaching in Korea.
English Camp was a lot of fun, as expected, because the kids (~200) that were there were the best students! Either they chose to be there, or their parents made them. But, it seemed as if every kid wanted to be there, and actually, many of the older ones, who had previously done MediaKids English Camps (this school has worked with MediaKids for a few years now) were actually looking forward to this weekend. They had memorized the dances and songs, and even the activities, for which they had prepared songs and dances, like for the teams.
The students were split up into 5 teams, each of which were led by one of us foreign teachers. The first big activity was to create team names, team flags and teams songs and dances! Many of the older, more experienced students had already thought of these, so it was up to me to execute their ideas. We were Team Clever (which is one of their favorite words), and we chanted to "We Will, We Will Rock You". Flags were posted up along with scoring meters.
We sang a lot of silly songs and danced a lot of silly dances throughout the weekend, such as "Chicken White Butt", "Papaya Boc Boc" and "Banana"... which I have videos for, but they are not uploading! Help anyone?!
Saturday night, the English department took us all out for one of the most fabulous dinners ever! It was possibly the best dinner I've had yet in Thailand! Liz and I then went to Jan and Rich's house, along with Bridget. It was interesting to see how differently they were living, as compared to our apartment in Sri Racha. They had a full house with more room than they could even fill. They also had a kitchen -- oohh, I am so envious. Pai then actually picked us up and drove as back to the resort after midnight -- very nice.
We started camp the next morning at around 8:30 am, did some more games and activities, including the Powder Game. You either love or hate it, depending on where and who you are! Everyone gets into a big circle and music is played while about 20 or so baby powder bottles are passed around. Think "Hot Potato". When the music stops, students that end up with the baby powder bottle have to put some in their left hand and then follow Pai's (the Emcee) directions, which starts off with "Put the powder on the face of the person to your left!" In the second round, the person must put it on their own face! This escalates to powder the foreign teachers! Powder your Thai teachers! Powder the Chinese teacher! Powder everyone! It is loads of fun, and the powder wipes off pretty easily, leaving your skin all smooth. After scores were tallied, with Team Clever coming in 2nd place, camp ended at Noon. We said our goodbyes, and Pai, Nu, Bomb, Liz and I all got back into the car and headed back to Lopburi.
Pai drove us around Lopburi for a bit so I could see all the monkeys. This town is famous for its monkeys that take over the entire town! I plan on spending at least one weekend there, maybe soon, so I will get some photos then. After we dropped Liz off, we drove on. We stopped to have lunch (freshly grilled king prawns, king prawn fried rice, and tom yum soup) at an open market in Ayuttaya (the ancient city) - another place which I hope to visit soon. They took me to the bus station in Bangkok, paid for the ticket, and I arrived back in Sri Racha around 7:00 pm.
I was then picked up at my apartment by one of my school's Thai English teachers, Ms. Mon, who drove me to Ms. Bpun's house for dinner. Ms. Bpun is the head of the English Department and had invited us all (Jacqueline, Howard and I) to a home-cooked dinner at her house on Sunday evening. Wow! This was not any ordinary house or ordinary home-cooked meal. First off, she lives in some sort of mansion/ estate. Her husband is some big-wig at some Thai Bank, and they clearly lived very well. Dinner was all set out on the table with more dishes to choose from than I could even count. They had a karaoke machine and speakers set up, which was very popular. There were about 10-15 teachers from Sri Racha school, not all in the English Department, and then Ms. Bpun's husband and his employees sat over on the side at another table. She has invited us back weekend after weekend, as it seemed like Ms Bpun and her husband have dinner parties every weekend.
So... a weekend full of amazing food, endless fun, white powder, singing and dancing, travelling and I spent under 200 baht (~$5)... yup! English Camp was definitely worth it!!
Fluk: He was super serious about English camp, in a very funny way
"Chicken White Butt" Dance Competition
The "Caterpillar" Game
We got caught in some heavy Bangkok traffic on our way out, but made it up to Lopburi (monkey town), where we picked up Liz (another MediaKids foreign English teacher from Connecticut) at her apartment. We then drove onto Takhli, Nakhon Sawan and arrived at "Takhli Resort" at around 10:30 pm. They provided Liz and I with separate rooms, while the 3 of them shared one!
8:00 am on Saturday morning, we headed off to the local 7-Eleven to rev up and then to Takhliprachasan School, where we met up with the 3 local MediaKids foreign English teachers: Bridget from Connecticut, Jan from San Diego and Richard from New Zealand and Australia. Jan and Richard are a couple that met while teaching in Korea.
English Camp was a lot of fun, as expected, because the kids (~200) that were there were the best students! Either they chose to be there, or their parents made them. But, it seemed as if every kid wanted to be there, and actually, many of the older ones, who had previously done MediaKids English Camps (this school has worked with MediaKids for a few years now) were actually looking forward to this weekend. They had memorized the dances and songs, and even the activities, for which they had prepared songs and dances, like for the teams.
The students were split up into 5 teams, each of which were led by one of us foreign teachers. The first big activity was to create team names, team flags and teams songs and dances! Many of the older, more experienced students had already thought of these, so it was up to me to execute their ideas. We were Team Clever (which is one of their favorite words), and we chanted to "We Will, We Will Rock You". Flags were posted up along with scoring meters.
We sang a lot of silly songs and danced a lot of silly dances throughout the weekend, such as "Chicken White Butt", "Papaya Boc Boc" and "Banana"... which I have videos for, but they are not uploading! Help anyone?!
Saturday night, the English department took us all out for one of the most fabulous dinners ever! It was possibly the best dinner I've had yet in Thailand! Liz and I then went to Jan and Rich's house, along with Bridget. It was interesting to see how differently they were living, as compared to our apartment in Sri Racha. They had a full house with more room than they could even fill. They also had a kitchen -- oohh, I am so envious. Pai then actually picked us up and drove as back to the resort after midnight -- very nice.
We started camp the next morning at around 8:30 am, did some more games and activities, including the Powder Game. You either love or hate it, depending on where and who you are! Everyone gets into a big circle and music is played while about 20 or so baby powder bottles are passed around. Think "Hot Potato". When the music stops, students that end up with the baby powder bottle have to put some in their left hand and then follow Pai's (the Emcee) directions, which starts off with "Put the powder on the face of the person to your left!" In the second round, the person must put it on their own face! This escalates to powder the foreign teachers! Powder your Thai teachers! Powder the Chinese teacher! Powder everyone! It is loads of fun, and the powder wipes off pretty easily, leaving your skin all smooth. After scores were tallied, with Team Clever coming in 2nd place, camp ended at Noon. We said our goodbyes, and Pai, Nu, Bomb, Liz and I all got back into the car and headed back to Lopburi.
Pai drove us around Lopburi for a bit so I could see all the monkeys. This town is famous for its monkeys that take over the entire town! I plan on spending at least one weekend there, maybe soon, so I will get some photos then. After we dropped Liz off, we drove on. We stopped to have lunch (freshly grilled king prawns, king prawn fried rice, and tom yum soup) at an open market in Ayuttaya (the ancient city) - another place which I hope to visit soon. They took me to the bus station in Bangkok, paid for the ticket, and I arrived back in Sri Racha around 7:00 pm.
I was then picked up at my apartment by one of my school's Thai English teachers, Ms. Mon, who drove me to Ms. Bpun's house for dinner. Ms. Bpun is the head of the English Department and had invited us all (Jacqueline, Howard and I) to a home-cooked dinner at her house on Sunday evening. Wow! This was not any ordinary house or ordinary home-cooked meal. First off, she lives in some sort of mansion/ estate. Her husband is some big-wig at some Thai Bank, and they clearly lived very well. Dinner was all set out on the table with more dishes to choose from than I could even count. They had a karaoke machine and speakers set up, which was very popular. There were about 10-15 teachers from Sri Racha school, not all in the English Department, and then Ms. Bpun's husband and his employees sat over on the side at another table. She has invited us back weekend after weekend, as it seemed like Ms Bpun and her husband have dinner parties every weekend.
So... a weekend full of amazing food, endless fun, white powder, singing and dancing, travelling and I spent under 200 baht (~$5)... yup! English Camp was definitely worth it!!
Bridget leading her team in song and dance
Fluk: He was super serious about English camp, in a very funny way
"Chicken White Butt" Dance Competition
The "Caterpillar" Game
Can you find me?
My Team: Team Clever
The "Monster" Game
The Powder Game
Fluk, all powdered
Bridget and I, powdered
Nu and Bomb
My Team: Team Clever
The "Monster" Game
The Powder Game
Fluk, all powdered
Bridget and I, powdered
Nu and Bomb
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