It’s already been about a month since Saai and I visited her family in Trang, a city (& province) in southern Thailand. One month? What’s up with the slow updates??!! Ok, ok..I’ve been procrastinating. These things do take time, and I’ve been pretty busy with other things. What other things? I started my new teaching job at St. John’s (teaching 7th-12th graders), traveled to northern Thailand on a foiled visa run, and there are those wedding plans! So let’s start with Trang… Saai and I flew from Bangkok to Hat Yai on April 12. Although there are direct flights to Trang [View Full Entry]

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Halong Bay is a very popular side trip for those visiting Hanoi, Vietnam. It's a 3 1/2 hour drive between the capital city and this bay, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Halong Bay contains almost 2,000 limestone karst islands. There are a few islands with lodging for tourists, but primarily the islands are uninhabited, largely due to their topography. There aren't many flat areas to develop, and very few natural sand beaches. The view is striking, however. For those who have been to Thailand's Phang Nga or Krabi provinces, it is very similar. Many tourists opt to see the bay aboard [View Full Entry]

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Rain or shine, we were on our way to ride through rice paddies and villages outside Hanoi! Unfortunately for us, it was rain. No matter. Getting a little muddy is a good thing, right? Umm, the key word is little. I'm back in Bangkok now, but there is a lot to cover from the rest of my trip to Vietnam... My last update was on Friday, March 28 from Hanoi, Vietnam. So that brings me to Saturday... Saturday consisted of more wandering through the streets of Hanoi. The Old Quarter isn't big, but it's a confusing maze of streets, and there [View Full Entry]

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It's day #2 in Hanoi, and I'm trying to adapt to all this honking. I got an early exposure from the driver taking me from the airport to my hotel, who was kind enough to demonstrate quite readily his fondness for the horn. He isn't alone. I assume this isn't just true in Hanoi, but other areas of Vietnam too? Wow. Why are they all honking? The streets are a bit crazy, granted. The lack of traffic lights and stop signs at most intersections in the Old Quarter of Hanoi surely don't help things, nor do the amount of motorbikes. But [View Full Entry]

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Ok, ok. Where have I been? Well, the title of this blog entry surely will give you some clue as to one place I've been. After wrapping up teaching English at Neeracha School in Bangkok for this past semester (February 29), I returned to an island I first visited in 2005. Ko Samui is a large island in the Gulf of Thailand (3rd largest island in Thailand). As to be expected, development has continued since my first (and only prior) visit three years ago. This includes the charming outdoor airport, which is in the midst of expansion. I wouldn't say that [View Full Entry]

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It may be approaching the end of January, but I'm still trying to capture Christmas on this blog. Here goes... As I mentioned in my last entry, I was heading to Denver, Colorado to visit family for the holidays. A series of flights (3) from Bangkok to Denver found me at my destination on the night of December 22, 2007. The flights were basically uneventful, and thankfully, not full. I had plenty of room to stretch out. Upon arrival in Denver, however, I quickly found myself with yet another cold. Those have been coming often recently, what with all the public [View Full Entry]

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It's Thursday, December 20, and I'm two days away from heading to America to see family & friends for Christmas. I'm looking forward to this short visit. I leave Bangkok on December 22 and arrive in Denver, Colorado later that same day. I'll be in transit for almost 24 hours, but with the time change, I don't lose a day. The time gets eaten up though on my return to Bangkok (leave Denver on Dec 31 and arrive in Bangkok on January 2). It's been over 1 month since my last update. What have I been doing? I've been busy working, [View Full Entry]

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It didn't play out as planned, but I am finally teaching English in Bangkok. Last week was fairly uneventful after all the drama of the previous week. I renewed my search for a teaching job, and scheduled two interviews for Monday, November 12. My plan was to go through those interviews before pursuing any other options. However, I ended up responding on Saturday (November 10) to another posting by an agency on ajarn.com. The posting was for a full-time English Teacher (about 1 hour away). The start time of 7:30 wasn’t too appealing though (7:30-4:00). Up at 5:30 a.m.? Umm, do [View Full Entry]

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I’m sure there will be a happy ending to this story, but the initial drama involved with finding my first English teaching job has been more than I expected. It’s been a whirlwind recently. Over the course of 6 consecutive business days, I interviewed 5 times. Those interviews varied greatly. The shortest was 30 minutes; the longest was 3 hours and included a 45 minute teaching demonstration. I received offers from 3 of the schools, and was the runner-up on a 4th. I never heard from the 5th school which I had ruled out anyway after discovering it was over 1 [View Full Entry]

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It's Sunday, October 21st, and I've returned to Thailand. I wanted to give a little update on my last few days in the Philippines, and the latest news since my return to Bangkok. Ok, the Philippines. Thankfully, the good weather held in Boracay until my departure on Tuesday, October 16. I really enjoyed my time on the island. I connected with a group of Germans (4 university students) when I returned to Dave’s Straw Hat Inn for my last 3 days on Boracay. They were on vacation from their internship in Malaysia, and also staying at Dave’s Straw Hat. Rolf, Jens, [View Full Entry]

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