Oh yeah, two weeks in a row! Well, three days late, but I'm still impressed with myself. At first I didn't really know what to write about this week. We were tuckered out from our Phi Phi trip, and, thus, had another slow week at school. Nothing of too much note happened there, although I am getting very sick of the hokey pokey, while the kids just seem to be loving it more and more. Oh, I also tried my first story time with the kindergarteners. I read them the English book, Five Ugly Monsters. You know the one where the five ugly monsters are jumping on the bed and one falls off and bumps his head? Yeah, so I get to the part where that one ugly monster bumps his head and then scream at ... read more

From October 11th-31st we had our fall vacation from school. This wasn't that exciting seeing as how we had only been working for 6 weeks, most of which were not even a full 5 days due to illness/bike problems/student testing/some other bizarre Thai event. Not to mention we had only received one paycheck to date, so we weren't exactly swimming in vacation savings. Nevertheless, we still managed to get some exploring/relaxation time. In addition to the Vegetarian Festival ceremonies, we went to the Phuket Aquarium, Nai Harn Beach, Ao Yon waterfall, Phuket Butterfly Garden and Insect World, and the very secluded Banana Beach. We are beginning to discover the less touristy, more local hangouts around the island and the list keeps growing. We have had a great time getting lost, and thus finding cool spots that ... read more

Has it been two weeks already? I'm not very good at this "weekly blog" thing, but please forgive me this time, I was without a functioning laptop for 8 of those days... The past three weeks for me and John have been good, bad, and ugly: -We got sick and missed 4 days of school. The one thing kids share well is their germs. -My birthday! The big (?) 23. John got me flowers, my 2nd and 6th graders sang to me, my couchsurfers all got me presents, dinner and cake. It was perfect. -Both of the motorbikes gave out on us (one had the check engine light come on, the other had trouble starting and very low power once running). The bikes spent two days in the shop being repaired. -My mouse became possessed. It ... read more

This blog is long overdue, but you might imagine the past two weeks have been a little busy for us! We are loving our new house, and trying to make it a home by filling it with things that make it more comfortable to be (curtains, pillows, candles, etc). With the help of Pinterest, I should be making some pretty cool decorations for our walls, too! We are waiting for one last delivery, and then I PROMISE there will be pictures. Because we have such a large house, we have offered the free space to those in need. We hosted our first couchsurfers, Kathrin and Joy (Germans), last week. It was a great experience, for both them and us, and the requests just keep rolling in. Within the next two months we will be hosting people ... read more

A little bit late on this one, sorry if you've been waiting in suspense! The past 10 days or so have been all about immersion. Immersing ourselves in the culture, as well as in teaching experiences. We have cut back on the eating out and, instead, started practicing our culinary skills. Thanks to these nifty little pre-packaged pastes, I can make just about any Thai soup, curry, or noodle dish I crave. This week I conquered tom yum and yellow curry. I also pulled off a decent fried rice with the leftovers. Next week green and massaman curries. The rainy season began Friday, and there hasn't been much sun since. But even in the overcast periods we can still enjoy the beach. In fact, I found some pretty cool critters in the tide pools the other ... read more