I just got back from a weekend in Chiang Rai, which is pretty close to the northern border of Thailand. It took me 25 hours on a bus. Yep, I’m crazy. Not even a minute after stepping off the bus, I decided I love the city. It’s small (smaller than my city) and beautiful, with paper lanterns strung across the main street. They have a large night market where you can buy just about anything with an elephant on it: purses, blankets, shirts, jewelry, etc. There are tons of bars and restaurants for foreigners. The weather was perfect. I had the best gnocchi at an Italian restaurant I found on a side alley. I couldn’t stop smiling all weekend. It was amazing.
I met up with Alec there, and we spent the first night eating BBQ chicken skewers with sticky rice, drinking beers, and playing darts. It was the calmest I’d been in weeks and it was what I needed, not only to actually see Alec, but to get away from my site. We met up with other volunteers the following night for more drinking and darts. But, I finally had a real elephant ride
while I was there. I went on one about 4 months ago, but it was 5 minutes long and I was in a long line of elephants. This time we were up in the hill country, got to go through a hill tribe village, and then rode through a river. Now that’s an elephant ride. The elephant was pretty gassy, but who am I to judge?
I met up with Alec there, and we spent the first night eating BBQ chicken skewers with sticky rice, drinking beers, and playing darts. It was the calmest I’d been in weeks and it was what I needed, not only to actually see Alec, but to get away from my site. We met up with other volunteers the following night for more drinking and darts. But, I finally had a real elephant ride
while I was there. I went on one about 4 months ago, but it was 5 minutes long and I was in a long line of elephants. This time we were up in the hill country, got to go through a hill tribe village, and then rode through a river. Now that’s an elephant ride. The elephant was pretty gassy, but who am I to judge?I didn’t want to come home, and actually I’m not all that excited to be here now that I am. I have overloaded myself with commitments to school, community groups, and individuals that it feels like I’m as busy as I was in Los Angeles. This was not a part of the plan. I have 1 more week before leaving again to meet my friend Josh in Bangkok, visit my Thai family in Singburi, and have two weeks of meetings with PC in Chainat. I’ll be living out of a backpack again, which sounds like it could be fun, but isn’t.
I have started doing a language exchange with a professor at the local university. I am one of the lucky volunteers who actually has a university nearby, so I’m really trying to take advantage of it. One of the English professors there is a former volunteer and he’s been super helpful in finding people to speak Thai with me. Most people only want to speak English, which has made me forget a lot of the Thai I have learned. My Thai mom is going to be so disappointed when I visit. My language exchange partner is a 27 year-old woman who teaches molecular technology. Don’t ask me what that is. We practice teaching each other in our respective areas of expertise. Last week she taught me about metal alloys in English and I taught her about collaborative learning in Thai. We talk about movies and what we did on our weekends. She asked me to explain “Kung Fu Panda” in Thai. It wasn’t easy (“The panda loves kung fu, but he stays at home and cooks noodles. He is crazy!”).
Last night I was on the phone with my friend Alex and we were discussing the whole “language” idea. There are still so many words that we don’t know which led Alex to the conclusion that he had no laughter – basically because he didn’t know the Thai word for laughter. I decided that I had no inspiration, or motivation. To take it even further I have no peace or freedom. So sad for 4th of July weekend. There are so many words I should learn still! On that same bandwagon…
I have no (things I have not yet learned to say in Thai):
-education
-relationships
-breath or body (but I do have hair, arms, legs, a face, 2 eyes and hands)
-free will
-creativity
-compassion
-ideas
-exercise
-science or history
-toilet
But looking on the bright side, I do have (things I can actually say in Thai):
-a family and friends
-an assortment of animals
-a handsome boyfriend
-teaching methods
-lots of fruit and food (including ice cream, chocolate, and rice)
-hunger
-sleep (and a hammock)
-the seaside
-beer and wine
-English, Thai, dance, and math
-shower
Random Info:
-I came back from Chiang Rai to find one of my dogs beat up. So sad. I spent last Monday at the vet and he now has 4 stitches. He was also asleep for 27 hours (the vet told me it would be 1). I’m pretty sure he got into a fight with another dog in the area.
-After a high school in the area had been pestering me for weeks to come teach, I showed up to one man at the school saying, “Oh, I forgot you were coming.” Nice.
-My mom sent me a huge box with clothes, school supplies (stickers!!!), and candy. Thai people say that licorice tastes like candles, which makes me think… when were they eating candles?
-I should never have taught my students the question, “Can I have…?” I now get asked for everything: ping-pong, guitar, sandwiches, and my dog.
-Alec hates my blogs. Well, at least he says they’re boring. You’d think after deciding that they were boring, that perhaps he’d stop reading them. Nope. It’s most likely because he’s heard every story already and I’m starting to sound like a broken record. But that’s what volunteers do here. We have to talk to each other to keep our sanity. He says he likes to read them so then he can make fun of me. He makes me so happy.
-All I ever want to drink is honey lemon green tea. Right now I’m up to 4 bottles a day.
I have started doing a language exchange with a professor at the local university. I am one of the lucky volunteers who actually has a university nearby, so I’m really trying to take advantage of it. One of the English professors there is a former volunteer and he’s been super helpful in finding people to speak Thai with me. Most people only want to speak English, which has made me forget a lot of the Thai I have learned. My Thai mom is going to be so disappointed when I visit. My language exchange partner is a 27 year-old woman who teaches molecular technology. Don’t ask me what that is. We practice teaching each other in our respective areas of expertise. Last week she taught me about metal alloys in English and I taught her about collaborative learning in Thai. We talk about movies and what we did on our weekends. She asked me to explain “Kung Fu Panda” in Thai. It wasn’t easy (“The panda loves kung fu, but he stays at home and cooks noodles. He is crazy!”).
Last night I was on the phone with my friend Alex and we were discussing the whole “language” idea. There are still so many words that we don’t know which led Alex to the conclusion that he had no laughter – basically because he didn’t know the Thai word for laughter. I decided that I had no inspiration, or motivation. To take it even further I have no peace or freedom. So sad for 4th of July weekend. There are so many words I should learn still! On that same bandwagon…
I have no (things I have not yet learned to say in Thai):
-education
-relationships
-breath or body (but I do have hair, arms, legs, a face, 2 eyes and hands)
-free will
-creativity
-compassion
-ideas
-exercise
-science or history
-toilet
But looking on the bright side, I do have (things I can actually say in Thai):
-a family and friends
-an assortment of animals
-a handsome boyfriend
-teaching methods
-lots of fruit and food (including ice cream, chocolate, and rice)
-hunger
-sleep (and a hammock)
-the seaside
-beer and wine
-English, Thai, dance, and math
-shower
Random Info:
-I came back from Chiang Rai to find one of my dogs beat up. So sad. I spent last Monday at the vet and he now has 4 stitches. He was also asleep for 27 hours (the vet told me it would be 1). I’m pretty sure he got into a fight with another dog in the area.
-After a high school in the area had been pestering me for weeks to come teach, I showed up to one man at the school saying, “Oh, I forgot you were coming.” Nice.
-My mom sent me a huge box with clothes, school supplies (stickers!!!), and candy. Thai people say that licorice tastes like candles, which makes me think… when were they eating candles?
-I should never have taught my students the question, “Can I have…?” I now get asked for everything: ping-pong, guitar, sandwiches, and my dog.
-Alec hates my blogs. Well, at least he says they’re boring. You’d think after deciding that they were boring, that perhaps he’d stop reading them. Nope. It’s most likely because he’s heard every story already and I’m starting to sound like a broken record. But that’s what volunteers do here. We have to talk to each other to keep our sanity. He says he likes to read them so then he can make fun of me. He makes me so happy.
-All I ever want to drink is honey lemon green tea. Right now I’m up to 4 bottles a day.
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