Thailand: Considerable Jai

Schedule for the last three weeks of my stay in Thailand:

2009-11-29T18:50:00.000-08:00

Closed next Monday for Father's Day (Dec. 7).
Closed next Thursday for Constitution Day (December 10).*
No Mattayom class from December 7-10 because of the out-of-town sports competitions.
December 11-13 English/Math camp.
No Pattom classes from December 16-24 because they're participating in the university sports events.

So really, this is my last whole week of classes. I have no classes next week. None. I only teach Mattayom, and two Pattom classes on Friday. But we leave for the camp on Friday, so I won't have them. The week after that I only have Mattayom, no Pattom on Friday. Last day at school should be the 18th, going back to America on the 22nd.

Not dead at all!

2009-11-29T17:27:00.000-08:00

But I've been incredibly busy. Last Saturday, the students held several performances for their friends and family. They spent two weeks learning their respective dances; last week, most class periods were spent practicing dancing. I was content to watch them dance through our class time, honestly.

In two week's time, myself and several of my co-workers are going to the mountains for three days with 175 students for a joint English/Math camping trip. I previewed the campsite last weekend, and the teachers get fancy cabins with beds and a hot shower. The students have to sleep outside or in rickety old cabins. We'll get together this week or next week in order to toss around ideas for games we might want to play with the students and activities.

Three more weeks! Thailand's grown on me immensely; I'll miss my life here.

Winter inThailand?!

2009-11-02T16:31:00.000-08:00

Today was the fourth day I woke up feeling pleasant and NOT dying from the heat. While riding my bike to school, I witnessed a strange sight: Thais in their winter coats.

It's a whopping 72 degrees outside, and a lot of people are walking around in poofy, padded coats and jackets. I ashed my co-workers Paul, and he said that last night, at the Full Moon Festival which I could not attend, most of the crowd had coats on.

Please, my office gets colder than it is outside right now. I can;t wait to see what people wear in December!

New Semester, New Schedule

2009-10-22T22:03:00.000-07:00

The semester began two days ago (today is a holiday), and I received my new schedule on the 20th.

Understand, I was going crazy wondering what my schedule would look like. Would it be the same? Same classes? Same days? I kind of hated teaching M6, and the thought of that mess M5 (too many students) drove me bonkers, so I was hoping for the lower M classes, plus M4, who are awesome.

Here's what my new schedule looks like. The first thing I noticed was that they gave me 5 more hours (from 12 to 17).

Monday: 8:30 - 9:30 (M4/2)
10:30 - 11:30 (M4/4)
2:30 - 3:30 (M5/1)

Tuesday: 8:30 - 9:30 (M2/1)
9:30 - 10:30 (M2/2)
10:30 - 11:30 (M4/3)
2:30 - 3:30 (M5/2)

Wednesday: 10:30 - 11:30 (M4/1)
1:30 - 2:30 (M5/1)
2:30 - 3:30 (M5/2)

Thursday: 8:30 - 9:30 (M4/3)
10:30 - 11:30 (M4/1)
11:30 - 12:30 (M4/2)
1:30 - 2:30 (M2/3)

Friday: 9:30 - 10:30 (M4/4)
12:30 - 1:30 (P5/1)
1:30 - 2:30 (P5/2)

Some changes. At the end there, they've tacked on P5, which is last year elementary, so 5th grade. They took away M6 (yay!) and gave me the three sections of M2 (8th grade).

But the best change....THEY SPLIT M5!!! THANK YOU GOD. Kevin told me they wouldn't split the class until the end of the school year, not the semester. But they did, they did!

Motorbikes

2009-10-11T04:59:00.000-07:00

Motorbikes. Slightly smaller than motorcycles, certainly less badass, but convenient and quick. Unfortunately, I've only been able to rent a motorbike twice, for a week each time.

When I arrived in MahaSarakham, the demonstration school bought me a bicycle. I'd asked for a motorbike, but they can be expensive, so I am currently the owner of a smallish blue bike. I get a lot of exercise with my bike, so I'm not terribly disappointed.

However, the ratio of motorbikes compared to bikes is overwhelming. Some families don't even own a car, they might have three motorbikes. It's also a popular mode of transportation for students of all ages. Some of the elementary school kids ride motorbikes to school.

In case you missed that statement: Some of the elementary school students ride motorbikes. By themselves.

It's normal to see a family of five, mother carrying a tiny baby, on a single motorbike. No helmets, so safety precautions, Most people don't even have licenses.

I doubt you would see four people on a motorbike together. Form what I've heard, they're rather strict about who can and cannot ride a motorbike, But here, in the country, there are no strict guidelines.

Kevin, another teacher at the demonstration, commented traffic safety in Thailand. He said that he lived in England for 50 years and never knew ayone who died in a car accident. He's lived here for three and known at least 5 people to either die or become seriously injured from an accident.

I've driven around town on a motorbike, and the same can be said about traffic laws: they don't seem to apply. It's normal to go through a red light if there's a gap between cars, few people use turn signals, there are no consistent speed limit postings. I'm half terrified riding around on my bicycle, let alone a motorbike.

Big-C is the equivalent to Wal-Mart. The Big-C in MahaSarakham is located on the outskirts of town. Driving back at the junction, I';ve nearly hit a U-turning car every time I've gone to Big-C. It's horrible.

In short, I curse Thai drivers every time I leave my neighborhood.

Proctoring!

2009-09-22T18:32:00.000-07:00

Although the students are testing for the next three days, the native English speakers were asked to come into work, no explanation given. We found out today that we're going to help the Thai teachers oversee final exams. For three hour stretches, 9AM-12Pm, break for lunch, then 1PM to 4PM.

Honestly, the past week has been the hardest week so far. With exam preparation, evaluations, name-gathering, paperwork, and now proctoring, I've never been so busy at this school!

New Blog!

2009-09-21T00:15:00.000-07:00

I hope by posting about my experience in Thailand, interested parties will consider making Thailand their temporary - or in some cases, perhaps not-so-temporary - home.

I'll jump right in. Elephants, Thailand's national symbol, a strong, powerful creature, and occasional Thai pet.

Late in the evening, when the weather isn't so suffocating, those Thai people with pet elephants will rope the elephants by the neck and take them for walks. They sell food for the elephants to onlookers who then feed the elephants. I've been lucky enough to feed two baby elephants in the three months I've lived here, but last Saturday was slightly unusual. I was riding my bicycle home from town, turned the corner into the university gates, and nearly careened into a large adult elephant.

He had a seat plopped onto his back, but his mass was amazing! He was as big as my living room! I didn't even think to take a picture, but I tried my best to look unfazed. Baby elephants I'm used to, but adults are a bit new for me.

I want to transfer the posts I've been making personally onto this blog. It might take a bit of time, so I'll update as usual and tag the other entries by day on which they occurred.