Blogs from Ko Samui, South-West Thailand, Thailand, Asia - page 107

Hey,just had the best week of the course yet although it didn't start like that.At the beginning of the week the nerves were getting the better of me as i was about to teach for the first time.We were going to teach 25 staff from Bangkok Airways how to speak and use english in the work place.As i stood their infront of the class i noticed the temperature go up in the room and my heart sank slowly into my gut.I had the same thought every teacher has from time to time "What the hell am i doing here" and it took a few minute's to compose myself.Thinking about it i can't remember a great deal about it,it went so fast.And to be honest it went too fast,i finished it in 35min instead of an hour.Picking ... read more

Ah at last my first experience of the Thai gulf islands. Coming in on the Ferry the natural landscape was spectacular, just like the pictures in the guide books i'd been reading whilst in NewZealand. The problem with the guide books though is that they leave out most of the nasty stuff. The Lonely Planet is full of coconut trees, white sandy beaches, emerald waters etc. To be honest, I was abit disgusted when i got there. The incessant seven eleven stores (& all the other favorites, McDonalds, Burger Kingetc) ingrained on every street in Asia, ever more present in what i now know to be overly commercialised Ko Samui. Prostitutes and Lady boys line the main street in Chaweng Beach. Even more sickening to the eye is the filthy old men riding around on their ... read more

Hey,well for my first entry i can't really tell you much. After a very tiring 11hr flight to Bangkok and another couple of hour's hanging about i arrived.As soon as i stepped outta the plane it was like walking into an oven.It's been like that most of the time,yesterday it rained alot but it's nice when it does.I stayed in a hotel on the main road in Chewang so it wasn't quite.Last wednesday was Songkran so everyone was in a party mood throwing water everywhere.I joined in and spent a good few hour's by the road side straying water over every man,women and child and every car,motorbike and scooter that had been passing by.In all it was a good day and hope to be around for next years celebrations.I am now in a very idilic ... read more

Enough beach, lets cook! Yesterday, we took our first Thai cooking class. Lisa and I decided to enroll as Jaime has a hard enough time not burning toast. We did very well, we were not the ones who got hot chillis in our eyes or cut our fingers! Feel sorry for those ladies... however, Lisa managed to turn the heat up a notch and the oil from the wok hit her arm, and subsequently she jerked the wok and hot green curry landed on my bare foot! haha . WE are the cooks. The menu: : Fresh Green Curry from scratch. Green Curry chicken with roasted eggplant and potatoes Spicy fish Soup (sounds not that good, but it was tasty) Jumbo Prawns and asparagus in an Oyster sauce. The class was pretty cool. Thai ladies did ... read more

For the last two weeks, I had the pleasure of my darling friend Tree (also known as Nina 2 & 3) staying with me. This was the last leg of a 3-month world trip, so of course, it commenced with a two-hour massage at my local massage parlour. We also went shopping at Chatuchak market, which is pretty impressive for someone's first day. I took yet more time off work for Tree's stay, and so we went down south - first to Koh Samui, and then to Khao Sok National Park. On the coach down to Samui, Tree and I met three glorious Greek-Australian guys from Melbourne, who, surprise, are family friends with my mate George back home. Melbourne - it's just a tiny country town, really. Safely arrived in Samui - a feat in itself, ... read more