Happy Loy Krathong! It was really neat to be a part of this beautiful, colorful celebration, despite the fact that I came out with a battle wound. "Loy" means to float and "krathongs" are the little lotus-shaped floats that are made out of banana leaves. They are decorated with flowers (orchids, jasmine, etc.), a candle, three small incense sticks, and sometimes coins. They are not only beautiful, but also a lot of fun to make! Loy Krathong is celebrated on the full moon in November, as the rainy season is officially coming to an end. The ceremony has Hindu origins and [View Full Entry]

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Today during one of my plan periods I happened to walk by the little pool and swim lessons for some of the littlest children were in progress! They were so adorable in their little swim outfits and matching swim caps. When I stopped to watch, all the little ones were sitting around the edge of the pool and the P.E. teacher was going around one by one, dumping water over their heads (to get them accustomed to the sensation, I guess). As soon as he finished they would frantically paw at their eyes and faces, trying to get the water out. [View Full Entry]

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It’s a little embarrassing and soooooo nice the way they are spoiling me! The main secretary in the office just came into the teacher’s lounge where we work on lesson planning, have access to internet, and stare at each other and twiddle our thumbs most days from 3:30 (time that classes end) til 4:00 (when we are allowed to leave), and gave me two vegetarian takeaway meals from the director—one for lunch and one for dinner! I am so touched by these gestures (and also a little embarrassed by the special treatment). The school provides free lunch for the teachers (at [View Full Entry]

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On Saturday we slept in til about 1 since we had gone to bed around 5. Then we mapped out a game plan, which included eating at Cabbages and Condoms, going to the Chatuchak Market, and ending with facials at Shewa Spa (250 baht) on Rambuttri Road (near Khaosan). I had a delicious green veg and tofu curry at the restaurant, and we shared a sticky rice and coconut milk dessert with durian. None of us had tasted durian yet and now that we’ve checked it off our to-do list I think we can all be satisfied that we don’t need [View Full Entry]

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I arrived back from Bangkok tonight and was shocked to find no ants! No ants in the bedroom, no ants on the sink, no ants anywhere!! Here are some pictures of the new and improved room. It is more welcoming now and I am trying to keep it neater, too, though I don’t anticipate any more break and entries. It’s definitely a little hard to readjust to the hard (though gigantic) bed and shower situation after the pampering we got this weekend at the Holiday Inn, but it’ll do. [View Full Entry]

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School is going well so far, and although there are and will be challenges, I think I have landed in a pretty sweet deal. I am at a small private bilingual school that goes from nursery age up to primary grade 6. I am teaching science grades 1-6 and I have one section of kindergarten math (with just 3 little students!). It is a very interesting setup, more like an American university model in that I see each class 2 times a week, except for 1 student in grade 4 and one in grade 6, brothers, whose parents pay for them [View Full Entry]

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It was actually quite nice to go to Bangkok this weekend- the glitz, the glamour, the shady shady back-alley aspects. Most of all it was fun to meet up with a lof of TEFL-ers. On Friday night, we got quite a group together at the Chang beer garden in Siam: me, Sarah, Tami, Courtney, Theresa, Tim, Nick, Matt D., Anna, Thea, Erica, Gabby, and Rachel! We sat through the craziest hard rock concert- the two singers wore bizarre masks (one was like a lucha libre/Nacho Libre mask and I think the other was actually a full-on red Power Range suit), drinking [View Full Entry]

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Well, I have a bit of a mystery on my hands, one that I have not solved and rather think I may not get the chance to. On Thursday after school I came home and read for a little while and then settled in for a little cat nap (Thursdays are my hard day when I teach every period). I had stuff all over the room and bed (as per usual) and didn’t notice that anything seemed out of place or disturbed in any way. But when I awakened from my nap, still groggy and lethargic, my foot bumped into something [View Full Entry]

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The Holiday Inn is very close to the Erawan Shrine, which sticks out as being quite incongruous in the midst of fancy hotels and shopping malls. The four of us walked in on Friday night and were instantly ensconced in a thick cloud of incense, the small area full of devotees. Apparently you may make a wish and if your wish comes true, you are required to pay for the dancers to perform in thanks for the granting of the wish. According to my guide book (Let’s Go Thailand), the shrine was built by the Erawan Hotel to help its karma [View Full Entry]

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Tuesday, November 4, 2008 School is going well so far, and although there are and will be challenges, I think I have landed in a pretty sweet deal. I am teaching science grades 1-6 and I have one section of kindergarten math (with just 3 little students!). It is a very interesting setup, more like an American university model in that I see each class 2 times a week, except for 1 student in grade 4 and one in grade 6, brothers, whose parents pay for them to have individual instruction in EVERY subject every day (!), so I teach/tutor them [View Full Entry]

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