Kanchanaburi

Had a couple of days off and visited Kanchanburi which is about 2 hours to the west of Bangkok. This town is famous for being the home of the Bridge of the River Kwai. The bridge is great and all but it was not the highlight of the trip.

Elephant trekking through the forest was amazing. I had a very feisty little teenager all to myself and he got very playful when we went down and bathed in the water together - I never left his back and he managed to get me soaked. I even got a big sloppy kiss from his trunk at the end of the day. It was raining as we started out so I took my small bag and stuck it under my shirt - so if I look a bit deformed in the pics - thats why. (In other words - does this elephant make me look fat?) It is amazing how high you sit and then going up and down steep hills in the forest - well, that was the thrill of a lifetime.

Speaking of thrills of a lifetime - the tiger temple. The tigers are raised in captivity and are very tame and playful - many people think they are drugged. I don't have much experience in this area but the seemed alert to me. They are chained in the pictures - but that is only during the picture taking - later in the day as you walk through the canyon with the bigger cats they are free and walk with you. Being so close to these magnificent animals was such a thrill.

I also had the opportunity to swim in the Erawan falls for about three hours and took a bamboo raft and swam along side it as it floating down the river. Also the train ride to the Bridge offer great views of the river. I stayed right around the bend from the bridge in a room that was on a floating raft. Anytime a boat went by by bed and indeed the whole room would sway from side to side - all in all - great little getaway.

Songkran

Songkran is the Thai New Year and a great party all over the city. The entire city turns into one big water fight. The best action is at Silom where I hung out for about three days. one of the best times I ever had. Not only do you get sprayed with water but you also get clay smeared all over your face for good luck in the coming year. Looks like I will have lots of good luck.

Red Shirts

These photos were taken at the red shirt rally just about a month ago. This was before things took a violent turn. I was in Bangkok and I decided to walk through the encampment to get to where I needed to go instead of walking all the way around. I found the protesters to be kind, friendly and generous. (They even offered me food.) Basically they positioned themselves in several key places around the city next to large government agencies. They have been there for over two months now. They do not leave. They are there day and night. The leaders of the group (officially called National United Front of Democracy against Dictatorship) provide the protesters with food. There is much discussion about what should be done. Many Thai believe that they should be removed. Others believe it is their right to protest. Many come from outside Bangkok yet I do have red shirts living across the street and in my neighborhood. The biggest demand seems the removal of the prime minister. My opinion is this - It's their country.

Love this Class

What can I say - but I love this class. Monday and Wednesday nights from six thirty to eight thirty. They are such a geat help in my discovering Bangkok. Lots of great tips of where to go - what to do and of course - where to eat!!!

Birthday Party

My private student's cousin had a Birthday party, and it was a typical Thai affair. Food. Kareoke. Whiskey. And more food. We had a great time and it lasted into the wee hours. Teacher was very tired at morning class.

The Living Greeting Card

End of Two Week Intensive

The two week intensive for government employees came to an end and the students invited me to their big party at the hotel where they were staying. The surprised me with a wonderful gift. A Hugo Boss dress shirt with a matching tie. Such taste! Aren't I lucky? They were a great class and I think they got a lot out of it. And they seemed to have fun while they were learning which is most important to me.

It was a great party that went late into the evening with wonderful food and lots of dancing and of course - Karaoke! Teacher did his best with Hotel California and Dancing Queen. All video tapes have been destroyed for public safety.

Laundry Thai style

I have yet to see a dryer in Thailand. No need. You wash your clothes, hang them up and they are dry in about an hour. This sounds great but that means no late night last minute washes the night before - which was my usual pattern in the States. And the washing machines here aren't the greatest. The don't really have much gusto. The just swirl the clothes around and then spin them dry. So they don't really get hard dirt out and this city is so dirty that pants get really dirty. Maybe that why I see so many professional Thais wearing black pants. I do the khaki thing because it works for casual too and that means less clothes but I think it is time to go black. When in Thai...

How big is Bangkok?

So big there is a golf course in the middle of the city!

Her Name is Mook

This is one of my private students. We meet for two hours twice a week. My assignment-No textbook. No lesson plan. Only conversation. Now that is tough because she is very shy. Her English however is excellent. She loves Harry Potter and her teacher loves fantasy books, so we are writing a story together which may turn into book by the end.

This shy and terribly bright young girl came up with the most fabulous ideas. Like the woman who lives in a tree and can only answer yes or no questions who turns out to be the hero's mother but he doesn't know this till the end because he has to ask are you my mother?

The father of the hero went to the magical land of Wen years ago and two witches fell in love with him and he married one and had a child by her and the other comes to the real world later and steals the child and and the entire family has to go to the magical world to rescue him. She's sixteen and sharp and creative and a joy to teach.

Teacher at Work

Teacher arriving for work (looking a little messy but it is about 95 degrees outside.) Ready to start the day.
This is the class for the two week intensive that I am doing. These are all government employees including lawyers, police, accountants and engineers. We meet everyday(except Sunday) for six hours for two weeks. They are all from out of town so they are excited to be in Bangkok shopping, eating, sight-seeing and learning some English along the way. They are a great class and we are having a lot of fun.


This is Air. She is one of my private students through ECC. I go to her house every Sunday morning and we work from 9:30 to 11:30 and then she cooks for me!!!!!

This is flat noodles with pork, mushrooms, baby corn on the cob, onions, spinach and chili. So delicious! My favorite that she makes for me. I have had it three times now. Paciu.

(One restaurant that I go to - I never order off the menu - they just bring me something new ever time.)

Everyone is trying to make Teacher fat!!!!

Bring it on!!!

Apology

Apologies. Apologies. I have been neglecting my blog duties. Computer trouble. Internet trouble. I wont bore you with the details, but we should be all set now and back in business. And I got a new camera! So as soon I can figure out how to use the damn thing - pics will be overflowing.

Basically I have settled into kind of routine. I have a steady work schedule. I have my favorite places to eat and I have started going into Bangkok and exploring the nightlife. But I do work alot. I am doing another English camp for the next two weeks. A class of 20 adult professionals from 9 in the morning to 5 at night, Monday thru Friday and then of course my evening classes and Saturday and Sunday I have full days so its looks like I will not have a day off for about three weeks. But there is a holiday coming up and I will have 5 days off. So I am caught up in work now. I still enjoy it. There is just not that much to blog about it. I mean do you really want me to go on about verb tenses. LOL More fun stuff to come - I promise!!

Ao Phai

Ok this is cheating - its from the Internet - but this is the beach where I stayed. Its called Ao Phai! And yes it looks just like this.

Return to Ko Samet

I will be picking up a private lesson next week on Thursdays so my having Thursday and Friday off will be ending. So one last trip to the isle of Ko Samet. (The perfect overnight beach journey.)
This time the weather was flawless!
I left early and had my feet in the sand at noon. I sat in the sun, read, napped, ate fresh fish and then tragedy struck!
I was invited to join in a game of beach volleyball and the game was 22 -23 with my team ahead. I served, they returned, one of my teammates set up the ball and I dived - right into the ocean and went for a brief dip. Only later did I realize my camera was in my pocket and my trusty friend that saw Africa and now Thailand is no longer a part of my adventures. He was a good camera and I will miss him. So no pics of this trip and I will get a new one as soon as I can. Till then - anecdotes, observations and amazing descriptive passages will have to do.
But we won the game!!!!

English Camp

For three days I was asked by my company to participate in an English Camp at a government high school outside Bangkok. 400 students! Ten hour classes of 40 students each. There where 5 teachers including myself and we each had different stations and the students rotated on the hour from one to the next.

It was not as bad as it sounds. I just focused on the class in front of me and then waited until the next group came my way.

The assignment? Create a puppet show using finger puppets and tell a story in English. At the end each group would do their show and we would judge them on Vocabulary use, Grammar, Story, Pronunciation and the creativity of their puppets.

I first I thought it was kinda lame and these cool Thai high school students would not be into it. But was I ever surprised. They turned out to be very creative.

One was a rock band and they introduced the band and played a song from an IPOD. It was really funny. 400 students pretending they were at a rock concert and cheering like mad fans and in reality they are watching a bunch of finger puppets shake and act like they were playing guitars.

Two very good Cinderella stories.

And one story where a group of friends went swimming in the ocean and saw a shark. "Tin swam fast. Duang swam fast. Pon swam fast. Tommy swam slow. The shark ate Tommy. We were sad. We went home."(Not a lot of points for grammar - but very funny.)

The winner? A boxing match between one of the students and Mike Tyson. The turned the box on its side and used strings to create the ring and even had one puppet as the girl who carries the round card. They asked us what her name was and none of us could think of it. I finally suggested - showgirl. The puppets were very well drawn and the kids were really into it.

I had a blast but they were long days and I am looking forward to returning to my regular schedule.

Ko Samet

I took my first overnight excursion outside the city and where did I go? The beach, of course! The island of Ko Samet - 200 km southeast of the city of Bangkok. Three and a half hour bus ride from Bangkok directly to the pier at BanPhe in Rayong and then an hour ferry ride to the island.

I knew I was in for an adventure when I sat on the top of the ferry for a better view and two guys - one from Cambodia and the other from Laos invited me to join them in the bottle of Brandy they brought.

There are many beaches to choose from. I chose Ao Phai because this women I met from Minnesota told me that's where returning travelers often go.

The beaches were lovely and the guest house was cheap and clean.

Unfortunately the weather was not that great. Cloudy the first day and it rained all day the second. But it was still warm enough the first day to go swimming and get a massage on the beach. And of course, I walked for hours around the beaches - exploring the island and ended the evening shooting pool on the beach with guys from Australia, Wales and San Francisco.

But I got a taste for the place and I will definitely be back. Perfect for an overnight trip away from the city. And the perfect thing about going to the beach in Thailand - it isn't seasonal. It's there all year.