The confusion of language...and the trouble it could get you in!

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Tuesday 8th January

Today I helped Mrs. Noi & Arnons mum do some cleaning & laundry. I made a bit of a cultural blooper though when I put a pair of yoga slippers in the washing machine (not ordinary slippers mind...) The feet are considered lowly/offensive in Thai culture (for example you shouldn’t point your feet at someone) but I didn’t realize that I couldn’t put my slippers in the washing machine. Cue lots of apologizing and delving into the washing machine to retrieve them!

Wednesday 8th January

Today I resumed my Thai lessons. I’ve not been for over a month and I think it shows: Tong is a word that I use a lot, it means need, must or have to…..when it’s said one way (like ‘dtong’) whereas I’ve been saying ‘tong’ which means pregnant… No wonder I’ve been getting some funny looks! The mahouts were asking me if I was staying longer at the camp on Monday: my reply, apparently “cannot, pregnant, look after house” it’s almost as bad as when I was going into the nice hotels & restaurants and asking where the toilet was by saying “I want a shit!”
Ahem...
Amongst the things I saw whilst walking to/from my lesson were:
1) a man on a motorbike towing 3 Jet Ski’s, with a man sat on the middle one…
2) a man walking down the street pushing a trolley full of very big knives for sale….
3) 2 girls riding a motorbike. The first one driving…the 2nd one plaiting the drivers’ hair whilst they drove down the road!

I also saw on the TV a news story about a man who had collapsed and died in a bar - the Ping Pong Go-Go Bar - classy! The TV report showed the man lying deaded (Thai pronunciation) on the floor of the bar with a policeman sat beside him pointing at him…’that’s him, he’s the one that’s deaded!’


Sunday 13th January

Spent much of Thursday & Friday cleaning & doing the newsetter to go out to previous volunteers, not very interesting blog-wise! Then went to stay at camp again on Saturday, we're having some work done at the studios (new kitchen floor, repairs etc) so there's drilling and allsorts going on, so I basically escaped. Had a lovely evening and Sunday morning at camp, basically doing nothing! Spent time at Tia's again watching TV with Bim - catching up on the dodgy Thai soap operas - and ate dinner with them. I'd taken a fish, some chillies and a lime as Arnon's mum (who'd come to supervise the work & do some cleaning) had shown me how to make it. The first batch (which I didn't eve make to be honest, Tia did) was delicious, the second batch, which they added to the first, blew my mouth & throat away it was so hot!!! They're tucking in going 'not hot, not hot..." whilst I'm crying for 'water...water....'
Got back to the studios about 12.30 & welcomed 3 new volunteers. Their lives are in my hands next week as not only will I be looking after them at camp...... der der der.....I'm also doing the cooking! Ha ha ha ha ha ha haaaaa....... Poor things!

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Photos

Winter's back!!
He's been staying with Arnon's mum. Lookhow he's grown. Not sure who the other one is?

Continuing the animal theme....
slow week elephnat wise! I call this kitten grumpy as all it does is sit on the wall and growl & hiss at me. I tell it to go away if it doesn't like me, it comes back & growls & hisses...