These are a Few of My Favorite Things

Moments here are passing so quickly, I find myself wanting to find someway to hold on to them longer, slow the blur of daily life down. Here is a list of some of my favorite things, the stuff I want to remember:

• The sound of students yelling "good morning teacher” on my walk to school.
• The burn of chili’s that only seems to get worse when you drink water.
• The way it feels when a student braids my hair.
• The student who fills in answers they don’t know on the test with “I love teacher Kate”.
• The joy of cooling powder.
• The way the "school bus" (really its just a old white pickup with a cage around the back) sounds coming down the road, I can pick it out from a mile away.
• The way my roommate Don says “WOW”! And the facial expression that goes along with it.
• Dancing with my students and having them beg me to “Sing a song”.
• The way the mountains of Laos look from across the Mekong on a clear day.
• All my dog friends who I have tamed with kindness and now follow me to and from school.
• Watching water buffalo go for a swim in the pond behind my house.
• Cheap, delicious, amazing fruit!
• Shy smiles from the villagers when I wander in town for the weekly market.
• The celebrity status of being a “farang” (foreigner) in Northeast Thailand.
• The geckos in my room that eat all the bugs that want to eat me.
• The strange, strange calls of the giant Tuki geckos looking for love.
• Isan folk music…its really catchy.
• Thai dancing, I wish my fingers could bend so gracefully.
• Homemade Tom Yum Kung (spicy shrimp soup) with coconut milk .
• Vibrant color everywhere.
• The ghost houses outside of people houses...gotta give those spirits a place to live.
• Rice fields lined with eucalyptus trees.
• Families of four on one small motor bike.
• Dried bananas coated in honey.
• Sticky rice
• The simplicity of life here.

This is the Life

I realize that I have almost been here for six months and still have not shown many pictures of where I live and what my daily life is like here in Wangkasae. Today I thought I would share.

My "baan" (house)

My dining room table, this is where I eat my meals

My bathroom. I bathe by using the pink bowl to pour water on myself. There is no hot water but as it is pretty hot here I don't really miss it too much. The gray bucket and bowl are to "flush" the toilet, and I have to say that my thighs are super strong and looking great after using a "squatter" for a few months.

My roommate in our "kitchen". We cook on an electrical Wok and use the rice cooker for rice (duh) but also to reheat food.

Our "sink", this is where I wash the dishes.

Our backyard trash pile. It gets burned twice a month.

This is where I get my bananas, its right in my backyard!

My "hong non" (bedroom), small but my cozy sanctuary!

My beautiful school and the views around it.

Some gifts made for me by students. They carved these flowers out of pumpkin.

Some drawings I have recieved that decorate my office area at school

Some shots of my students

Identical twins name Nueng and Song (One and Two)

Making me a picture

Thats all for now, I hope you enjoyed seeing a little more of what my life is like here and all the places and people that make it home.

Feelin' hot Hot HOT

When I first arrived here in Thailand it was hot, but not this hot. When I arrived in Nakhon Phanom the hot season was in its death throes and could only spit a few hot days at me. I sweated, I complained, I drank a lot of water, but it wasn't really a big deal; it didn't last very long.

Since November I have been living in the heaven that is the “cool season”, mild days that are not too hot, not too cold, just perfect. Now however I have to carry a handkerchief with me everywhere I go to wipe the sweat that drips constantly off my face. I finally understand the Thai philosophy of bathing and now take about three baths a day as they are the only relief from the heat. I apply cooling powder (talcum powder with menthol in it) to help keep me cool and absorb my sweat. Its so hot that even my shins sweat, I never even knew that was possible! Before when I would hang my laundry up to dry it would take about day to dry, now it is bone dry in a half hour. I am always thirsty, no matter how many liters of water I drink a day it is never enough.

This past Monday we had no school so I spent the day with a friends at their house. We took a minute walk to the store and back and my shirt was soaked through when we reached the shade of their house again. We spent the rest of the day lying on the tile floor in the kitchen because it was the only cool place we could find. My room becomes an oven and I cannot stand to be in it before 6pm. My little fan can barely combat the heat, it often just feels like hairdryer blowing hot air around my room. All I do is sweat and it makes me grumpy, lazy and a little short on patience!

This week I was talking to students about the heat, telling them how hot I thought it was. They looked at me and said “Oh no teacher. It is not hot yet.” Oh. My. God.

Go to Bangkok, Go to Buddha

I've been busy. The past two weeks have been filled with travel, amazing experiences, overwhelming frustrations and cultural connections and crossroads.

The evening of February 4^th I boarded a mini-bus bound for Bangkok with a few students and fellow teachers. The purpose of our trip was to attend a science fair and support the students who had gone down ahead of us with their science projects. We arrived at the out skirts of Bangkok around 4:45am on the 5th and stopped at a rest stop to get dressed for the day's activities (students in school uniforms and teachers in pink Wangasae shirts.) We ate a quick breakfast and then headed to the science fair, housed in a colossal convention center in the industrial district of Bangkok. We wondered the science fair for hours, waiting for it to finish so we could pack up our school's projects and head to the Amphawa floating markets. My roommates, Yout and Pom, kept telling me to "Put more make-up on so you look beautiful". Apparently I looked too tired and this was somehow unacceptable. My excuse of waking up at 4:45 and not having any coffee were not accepted and I kept being led to the "hong nam" (bathroom) to reapply concealer to my dark circles, though eventually I just started pouting and refused to do what they asked saying "in America I only put makeup on once a day!".

Finally we packed up and headed to Amphawa, home to a beautiful floating night market and numerous fireflies. We stayed in a "home stay" and had a total of four rooms for 33 people…needless to say the sleeping arrangements were a little cramped. We wandered the night market and ate dinner on the steps to the canals, food served to us from small canoe-like boats floating in the gentle water. As dark fell we boarded several wooden, motorized boats to take a ride through the canals and search for fireflies. We followed the shoreline closely and were rewarded with the sight of trees filled with fireflies, they flickered to some unheard rhythm and many of my students pointed and yelled, "Teacher, Christmas tree!!" I had never seen so many fireflies congregated in one spot before, it was beautiful. Unfortunately I was unable to take get any pictures of the sight as my flash disrupted the bugs and without it all you could see was darkness.

The Floating market

I had been under the impression that we would be staying in the Bangkok area for two days but unsurprisingly plans changed (a common occurrence here in Thailand where the idea of a hard schedule or consistent plan seems not to exist) and no one bothered to fill me in. The next morning, we boarded the mini-bus again at 9am and returned home around 1am! Though we did stop along the drive home to view beautiful temples, including one surrounded by fields of sunflowers, it was an incredibly long ride and my large, American behind was rather sore from all that sitting.

My students and sunflowers

On Tuesday the 9^th of February I embarked on yet another adventure with my some of my students, a Buddhist retreat. The retreat was to help students learn to be "Good teenagers and Students" and about 150 students participated. The group was made up of the "worst" students (failing grades, poor attendance and those caught drinking and smoking) and the "best" students (members of VSTAR, a student leader group with high grades and stellar records). The badly behaved students made up the majority of the group and I was, needless to say, a little apprehensive and unsure what to expect. We drove for about an hour to a Buddhist temple located on the top of a mountain, it was a small mountain but the views were beautiful nonetheless.

The View from the Temple

Upon arrival we all changed into all white outfits, a mandatory requirement when you "go to Buddha". We remained at the temple for four days and it was one of the most amazing, exhausting, frustrating and beautiful experiences of my life. Each day consisted of sitting on the floor in a room for periods of 4-5 hours at time. Since there was a figure or Buddha in the front of the room and most lectures were given by monks, we had to keep our feet hidden. This means sitting with your knees bent, feet curled behind you in the "polite position". It may sound like no big deal but I have to tell you I have never had such sore knees in my life! Everything was done in Thai and nothing was explained to me at all, teachers would turn to me and ask "Do you understand?" and I would reply, "No". To which they would just nod and go back to listening. The students, and majority of teachers, woke at 4am everyday for prayers and ate only two meals a day. Each day was strictly structured and the students did not have a single moment of free time until they were released for sleep at 11pm. I found the juxtaposition between Thai and American teens to be shocking, not once did a student complain, talk back, or try to break any of the rules during the four days. I tried to tell them that in America students would never be able to do what they are doing, but they seemed surprised at this and not to understand why.

Some students taking a break to take in the view

The first night we walked in a silent line with candles and incense around the pagodas on the grounds around the temple. It was beautiful and powerful to see everything lit by candle light and hear nothing but the wind and the calls of birds and insects. We ended with prayers and meditation led by the monks and though I didn't speak the language I feel that I still understood.

On our third day at the temple we went for a hike around the mountain. We hiked for 7 kilometers in flip flops over rugged terrain and steep inclines but it was worth it. We stopped for lunch in a cave cut right into the side of the mountain that overlooked the lush surrounding jungle. We continued on after eating and were rewarded by many beautiful vistas. The Monks eventually led us off the path to the foot of a large rock formation where the students were allowed to gather nuts and crack them open with giant rocks for a snack. One of the monks had a great sense of humor and told me this was the "Flintstones" part of the trip, and asked if I had thought I would see cavemen in Thailand. After eating their fill of nuts we climbed the rock formation and were led by the monks in both a walking and sitting meditation.

Off on a Hike!

Lunch with a View

Rock Top Meditation with the Monks

I enjoyed my time with the Monks immensely. Previously I found the monks I had encountered in Thailand to be very intimidating and unapproachable, a shocking contradiction to my experiences in India. Yet at this temple they were intrigued by me and referred to me as "Kru Farang" (foreign teacher) and sought me out for conversation. I was invited to return to the Temple at any time to be taught the way of Buddha and to teach English to the novice Monks, it was very flattering offer and perhaps one day I will find my way back there. For now I will continue to teach and learn from the students I have come to love at Wangasae and look forward to sharing my next adventure with you all.

Cowgirls and Dancers

It all started with a parade. This past Friday the 29^th of January was High School teacher sports day in Nakhon Phanom. This means that all the high schools in the province, around 50, cancelled classes for the day and the teachers all converged in town for a little friendly competition and, of course, a parade. As I am white, and somewhat of a novelty, I was selected by my Director to lead my school in the parade, I was told I would be wearing a costume and holding a giant baton. Thursday night, at 10:30pm, after searching for a costume large enough to fit my foreigner body, we found fishnet gloves and a hat, I was told that I would need to wake up at 3am for a 4am hair and makeup appointment. Needless to say I was a little shocked and irritated but mostly just amazed that hair salons would open at that ungodly hour. I arrived at the salon bleary eyed and yawning not sure what to expect. First they took a straight razor blade to my eye brows to thin them out, a horrifying ordeal that I was too tired to protest but actually turned out pretty well. Next my hair was braided into giant, corn row type braids and then layers and layers of makeup were applied to my face to make me look as white as possible. (White is beautiful here people, don’t forget!) After I was finished being made “say” (beautiful) I changed into my costume of jeans, a cowboy hat, long sleeve black tee-shirt, fishnet gloves and a pleather studded vest and was ready to represent Wangasae in the parade, flanked by my cowgirl sidekicks. We marched through the town and people waved and shouted and took photographs, the local TV station even filmed the whole event.

Posing after hair and makeup were completed

The final product, we are ready to march!

On Sunday the 31^st of January I was told I would be dancing with my students in a festival that evening. They sat me down and within five minutes had my hair piled on top of my head in a hair tower with gold chains, flowers, and golden spikes protruding from it. Next I was wrapped in a traditional dance costume and then had white powder applied to my back, shoulders, arms and chest because, yet again, I simply wasn’t white enough. After having my makeup completed and fake eyelashes glued on I was piled in a bus with my students and we were whisked off to the festival to perform. I was feeling quite a bit anxious about dancing on stage, with hardly any practice, but my students took the time to show me a few moves before we arrived, encouraging me through the learning process as I usually do for them. When we arrived we ate a quick dinner backstage and then we started dancing.

In Thai dance the dancers use move their hands and fingers in intricate ways in time to the music. From the time girls are born their parents start bending their fingers back so that they are flexible and graceful. My hands just cannot move the way theirs can. In every dance there is one dancer who pretends to play a stand of four clay pots in time to the music. This was what I had to do, not so hard, and I managed it quite well! Four people came up to the stage during our performance to give me leis of marigold, though I think it was more for my whiteness than my dancing skill. It was an amazing experience to be part of with my students. It brought us closer together and really solidified a bond between us. This whole week students have come to me in their free periods to just sit on the floor around my desk, either to chat or just relax, or teach me new Thai words.

Some of my students all dressed to dance

Kate the Thai Dancer

Me and some of my students

This past weekend was a weekend of firsts and once in a lifetime experiences that I will never forget. Tonight I am off to Bangkok with a group of fellow teachers and students; I am sure it will be an unforgettable experience as well and leave me with another story to share.

Free Bird

Last week I attended a party. A party here in the Isan region basically means that one sits around on straw mats on the ground and drinks whiskey sodas or a beer with ice, cooks meat on a fire and listens to blaringly loud music. This party was a goodbye party for a teacher leaving Wangasae to teach at a new school. The party was being held next door to my house and when I arrived I was handed a big bowl of “moo” (Thai for pig) that had just been pulled off the fire. They then gave me a glass of beer, with no ice per my pleadings, but seemed to think it was strange I did not want my beer on ice and kept offering it to me. I proceeded to eat my “moo” and pantomime/ talk with my friends. Loud Thai music was playing and occasionally someone would jump up and dance or enthusiastically start clapping and going “uh uh uh” to the beat. It was a fun time, everyone was relaxed, things were good and bellies were full…or so I thought.

I then heard a horrible shrieking, screaming noise by the fire. There is a baby, named Telephone, who lives with her parents at my school and I thought perhaps it was her, restless at being held for so long. Yet when I turned around it was a chicken, being held upside down by the flames having its feet tied together. The bird was shrieking and clucking, objecting fully to what was happening to it. My fellow teacher, who was holding the poor creature, looked at me and said,

“Kate! Fried chicken!” He looked incredibly pleased with himself. He then placed the chicken upside down in a plastic bucket at the edge of the gathering and put the lid on. The chicken continued to shriek and scream in the bucket. I told people that this was somewhat hard for me as in America we never really see the meat before it is meat.

Fifteen minutes passed and the chicken grew silent. I assumed he had suffocated and said a little chicken pray to myself for the poor bird and tried to think of an excuse to walk away so I wouldn’t have to watch them pluck it, drain it of blood and chop it up to put on the fire. I thought that putting the thing in a bucket to kill it was pretty inhumane and contemplated briefly becoming a vegetarian as I nibbled on my remaining “moo”, which was delicious!

Next thing I know the bucket EXPLODES! The chicken somehow kicked the lid off and threw itself out of the container. Everyone had had their fair share of alcoholic beverages so at first no one could do anything but look on in surprise and make shocked exclamations. The chicken madly kicked around on the ground and somehow got its legs untied and took off, running faster than I have ever seen a chicken run, into the night. People started yelling and trying to catch the bird, flailing wildly at it as it ran past them towards the woods. I started screaming “wing ghai, wing!” (Which translates to“run chicken run!”) I seemed to be the only chicken cheerleader of the group, as everyone else was running after it or getting flashlights to try and find it in the woods. They looked for that chicken for the rest of the night, but never found him. Needless to say we did not dine on fried chicken. That was one free bird and one unforgettable party.

New Year, New Adventures

It was a great adventure. Ten days off with good friends to explore a new part of Thailand. It started off with a bang. Patricia and I headed into town together to catch our Bus to Pattaya. Usually it’s fairly easy to catch a ride into town. One can either flag down one of the large buses that travel between provinces or wait for a baht bus; often time’s people stop just because you are white, or they are the friend or a friend of someone who knows you so therefore by extension they know you, and give you a ride. However, Tricia and I walked along the side of the road for 45min to no avail. Eventually two old men grew bored watching us wait and decided to offer us a ride on their motorbikes. Worried we would miss our bus if we didn’t take the ride we said yes and each jumped on the back of a bike and took off. We wore our packs on our backs and let the wind whip our hair as the men whipped in and out of traffic, beeping at everyone we passed so that they could show off how fortunate they were to have young white girls on the back of their motorcycles. Twenty minutes later we arrived at our bus stop safe, though a little upset the men decided to charge a ridiculous amount upon arrival at the bus…but it was well worth it for the story…

Pattaya was a whole crazy, different story. It wants so badly to be like Las Vegas, yet it only is similar in its neon signs. During the day the city is full of shoppers or those just back from the beach. At night it transforms into a giant brothel. Go-go dancers show their best moves in windows on the street, prostitutes stalk the hordes of tourists for their next customer and men try to convince you to go see “best ping pong show”. One bar advertised “lady drink specials”, being innocent and naïve I assumed they were having a ladies night sort of thing, or having a special on a fruity cocktail with umbrellas. However, when I enquired it turned out the “special” was a discounted rate for “working girls” who wanted to come in and take a break with a cold one. Needless to say we spent our days on the nearby islands that were just a ferry ride away, and as far away from the sex tourism as possible. One day we also went to nearby Jamtien Beach, a more family friendly area, with little shops and the best bakery I have seen in Thailand thus far. It was heaven to float in the water and lie in the sand. The ocean is gorgeous here and I cannot wait to explore the more secluded beaches and islands in the south.

On the Streets of Pattaya

ahh..the beach..

Bangkok was a giant after living so long in our sleepy Nahkon Phanom. It was almost shocking to see so many giant buildings and so many people, plus the city stayed awake! In NKP the city is dead by about 9pm, but Bangkok was never quiet. Plus there were many, many foreigners there so no one pointed, stared or shouted at us as we walked by. Our first day there all us girls searched for fun dresses to wear for New Years, we wanted to embrace the freedom of a city that didn’t shudder at the sight of shoulder, after which we went dancing on Khao San Rd. Khao San Rd. is an area that caters to the back-packing crowd and penny pinchers. The street is lined with small merchants, restaurants, cafes and bars. We found ourselves lost in a sea of other white travelers out on the dance floor and almost forgot we were in Thailand for a few minutes.

On New Year’s Eve we splurged on an Italian restaurant and it was delicious! We then went to a big Club to dance the night away and ring in 2010 (or 2553 if you are Thai!) and were among only a handful of other foreigners and had a really good time. However, there was no real dance floor! Shin height tables littered the floor and people danced in place around them. The bar (in typical Thai fashion) only sold with full bottles of whiskey or vodka, or bottles of beer, that was it! The bar also had about ten people standing behind it, but only one person working; I guess the others were there for moral support. It was a fabulous evening and it was thrilling to get dressed up and be out on the town. Getting home was a little crazy though, no cab was willing to turn on their meter (a common scam to get more money) so we ended up all having to cram into one cab. Eight people in one cab was ridiculous but luckily we all though it was hilarious, especially the cab driver who bumped american pop music, giggled the whole ride, and posed for pictures with us.

New Year's

Our crazy cab ride

The next day I settled into the New Year by going to a movie! It was my first time at a Thai movie theatre and it was spectacular. The seats were amazing; I almost feel asleep they were so comfortable. For a few extra baht you can also sit on giant, plush sofas in the back row…hilarious! Before the movie started there was a slide show of the King, pictures of him at all ages, and everyone in the theatre stood to sing the national anthem. The movie was in English so for two hours I soaked in the sounds of my native tongue and left the theatre rejuvenated and ready…to eat a giant burrito! Yes that’s right...we found Mexican food...and it was amazing.

Saturday the 2^nd we took a boat ride down the river to see the sights, such as the Grand Palace. It was beautiful! We also took some time to stock up on little souvenirs to bring back for our fellow teachers, as it is Thai custom to bring small gifts to friends when returning from a journey. I only wish I had more time to explore Bangkok, but I will be back. We headed back to NKP that evening and arrived on the morning of the 3^rd.

Since returning home I have been settling back into my teaching routine and have be scolded many times by my roommates and fellow teachers for letting my skin get black and “ugly” while at the beach. Ah, good to be home!