Clinic visits in Thailand

Any building with a green or red cross will be able
to provide basic medical and pharmaceutical care
Photo from Nana Thai Herb

Some of our coworkers have an ongoing joke that Thailand hates us, because Emiliya and I rarely go a week without one of us being injured or sick. The environment here is definitely giving us a run for our money, and at the very least the constant change of 90 degree weather to an air-conditioned room is always giving us colds. This week I've been presented with a new challenge following an inevitable motorbike crash that I had last week. There's chatter in the expat community which says you're not a true expat in Asia until you get hurt from a motorbike, because with more bikes than cars on the road it's just bound to happen at some point. Emiliya has her motorcycle license so in the past she's always been trusted as our chauffeur whenever we rent a bike on the islands or in Chiang Mai, but last week I attempted to prove myself capable, which resulted in my lasting about 2 minutes before crashing into the sidewalk. Overall I walked away relatively unharmed, and thankfully there was a Thai guy who stopped nearby and drove me back to Emiliya so I wouldn't do any more damage. Lesson learned: I'm going to stay away from motorbikes for now. Unfortunately my immune system isn't up to par with Thailand, and the wound on my foot quickly got infected giving me a rather painful and swollen foot, thus resulting in another adventure with healthcare in Thailand.
As I've previously mentioned, there are countless clinics throughout Thailand which seem to be helpful with ailments anywhere from the flu to infections, and it's the first place we head whenever we're having health issues. Unfortunately we've become somewhat of regulars at our local clinic, as we've visited in the past for bad cases of food poisoning, tooth infections, stomach problems and now my foot. I've been pleasantly surprised by healthcare in Thailand, and this most recent visit was no exception. The nurses speak minimal English, but the doctor himself probably has a better vocabulary than myself. He quickly informed me that the wound on my foot was infected, and assured me that I would receive a good cleaning and some meds to help me get back on my feet (pun intended). He sent me to another room to get care from a nurse, but he popped in every few minutes between other patients to help translate and make sure that I understood what was going on. He was also extremely patient with me while I looked up my medical history online with Cleveland Clinic (thank goodness for MyChart) and urged me to get a tetanus shot because my most recent was almost ten years ago. I was also informed that I could come back each day to get a proper cleaning and redressing of my foot, which is awesome and something I will definitely take them up on.
Overall I got an exam, wound dressing, topical ointment, a tetanus shot and 7 days of antibiotics for about $25, which in the end will be reimbursed by my Thai health insurance. I believe that if I go back in the future for redressing that won't be covered by insurance, but it shouldn't cost more than $3-4 each time. Of course following true Thai disarray, when checking out the nurse told me to take the antibiotics twice a day. Later while at a nearby coffee shop I noticed that although the package has a number two on it, there's also a number four mixed in among the Thai letters. Fortunately we've made friends with the barista at this coffee shop and I went up to her for some clarification. In almost perfect English she informed me I have to take two pills, four times a day. Leave it to the cafe worker to outshine the nurse! With just about 6 weeks left in Asia I'm hoping this will be the last of any health issues, but it's also good to know that minus a few translation issues, the clinics have yet to fail us!

Visa run to Laos

Vientiane, Laos

Because Thailand likes to keep things complicated we've had a lot of run around when it comes to visa procedures and staying in Thailand legally. Most recently, Emiliya and I had to take a trip to the neighboring country of Laos in order to reapply for our tourist visa, allowing us another 90 days in the country. We've constantly been asking why we keep leaving the country and visiting local immigration for visa extensions when we could just get a work visa, but these decisions are up to our company so we're just going with the flow at this point. And besides, each visit to immigration gets us a day off work and we often welcome the break.                

The Mekong River, separating Thailand and Laos

Our trip to Laos took us to Vientiane, the capital and largest city of Laos. It's right on the border of Thailand and Laos, sitting just over the edge of Mekong River. Thailand is deceivingly large, so although we were just hopping the border it was still about an eight hour drive from Bangkok. We went through a visa service so overall it was a really simple trip. We handed over our money at the beginning of our journey and our driver handled all of the complicated stuff for us, which left us plenty of time to explore the city of Vientiane. I've heard from numerous people that there isn't much to Laos, especially in Vientiane, but I was determined to prove otherwise.
Our journey got off to a rocky and tired start due to the weird schedule of our van. We left Bangkok about 9pm and drove through the night, only to arrive at the Laos border at 4am. There we sat in the van for close to two hours, and then at 6 AM we had to get out of the van and line up in the street, waiting for the border to open. As soon as we saw the doors to immigration open people actually started running towards the building. It honestly felt like I was in some strange refuge movie where I was fleeing the country. Needless to say, it was intense. Anyways, the morning was filled with long lines and paperwork, both to apply for our Laos visa in order to enter, and to apply for a new Thai visa in order to get back to Thailand. By the time we finished it was the afternoon and we were running on very little sleep from the night before. Emiliya and I had a decent list of things we wanted to see in Laos, but we were tired and defeated and decided to take a nap, cutting off a lot of opportunity to see the city. 

Once we woke from our nap half the day was gone, so we decided to skip to our most eagerly awaited item on our list: french bread. During the early half the the 20th century Laos was under the control of the French colonial empire, and as a result there are still some French charms lingering throughout the city of Vientiane. We hit a cafe and had some delicious coffee and fresh bread, which we are sorely lacking in Thailand. Well rested and well fed we headed towards the city center to check out the Patuxai Arc, another French influence in the city. It was built in dedication to those who fought for independence from France, and obviously pulls a lot of influence from the Arc de Triomphe, although the detailing is more Asian than French. We paid 15฿ (about 30 cents) to climb to the top of the arc which offered stunning views of Vientiane. The atmosphere of the city center was great, because it's surrounded by busy traffic but the land itself is very calm. We enjoyed a nice Beerlao (Beer brewed in Laos) which we found to be cheaper than beer in Thailand ($1.50 compared to $2). At this point it was almost dinner time (free through the visa company), and I am not one to pass up free food so we headed back towards our hotel. If we had had a full day in the city we would have ventured to at least two other places in Vientiane, first being Pha That Luang. It's a gold covered Buddha stupa which is thought to have been built in the 3rd century. It's a UNESCO world heritage site and a national symbol for Laos. Our other stop would've been Buddha Park, which is a large plot of land home to over 200 Hindu and Buddhist statues. Beyond that, not much else up on our search for activities in Vientiane, perhaps it is a sleepy town afterall!

The next morning we treated ourselves to more coffee and bread and then headed to immigration to pick up our passports, and then it was time to head back to Thailand. 

Even though the visa company handled a lot of the paperwork and logistical stuff for us, we still spent 5-6 hours in lines at immigration within 24 hours. Legally staying in Thailand is so much more complicated than predicted and as a result I've now been to two different Thai embassies, the US embassy and various Thai immigration offices, and I have to go back to immigration next week! I still don't know how to do taxes, but I'm a pro at visa paperwork, so that has to count for something, right? 

________________________________________________________________________________________

Logistical Info 

-The visa company charges 5550฿ and includes round trip transportation from Bangkok to Vientiane, a hotel in Vientiane, meals, assistance with paperwork, and transportation within Vientiane to all necessary locations (hotel, immigration, the border etc)

- Laos has their own currency, but in Vientiane they accepted Thai baht as payment, however they usually give you change in the Laos currency 

Recently in Thailand

Some of my first graders

2016 (or 2559 in Thai time) is flying by much quicker than anticipated. Thailand being the vague, easygoing country that they are, has been unable to give us an end date to teaching, so we've just been showing up each day with no idea what's going on. Some days we're told we're teaching until the end of March, other days they say we will only teach through the first week of March. Overall it doesn't matter a ton, but it's been making it a little complicated to plan lessons and make sure we have all the proper grades in by the end of the semester. This week I showed up to my kindergarten class only to be told that I'm done teaching kindergarten; what!? I didn't even get to enjoy my last week with them. Fortunately I still get to see the little ones running around in the mornings and after class. School officially closes March 30, but it seems that the students might be leaving earlier than that. As always, it's still a mystery!

I mainly stuck with Teacher Tip and her class throughout the day  

Last week I got to go on a fun and exhausting field trip with grades 1-3. We started off the morning at a NASA space center in Pattaya where the kids had a tour guide who took them through the space museum. We got to watch a 3D movie which the kids absolutely loved and even though the whole day was in Thai I still think I learned a little :) After the space museum we drove another 20 minutes north to an aquarium. This was far less exciting than the space museum, but the last room was awesome, presenting us with a giant glass window looking into a huge pool of fish. I swear, at least half of the kids ran up to me yelling "Teacher! F, fish, ba! F, fish, ba!" (ba is the Thai name for fish). It was awesome seeing them apply their English during a fun day out. Personally I think a seven hour field trip is a little long for kids under the age of 9, and most of the students fell asleep on the way home. But overall I'm so glad I got the opportunity to go with them. It let me bond with the kids in a stress free atmosphere and we had a ton of fun running around learning words in Thai and English.

View from the hotel room at Sheraton Resort

The weekends have been busy as always. A few weeks ago a fellow English teacher, Yavette, had friends visiting from the States. Her one friend had a lot of credit card points to cash in, so she splurged at Sheraton Pattaya Resort, so obviously we mooched off of that for a day, enjoying their numerous pools and private beach. The entire resort was a dream with amazing rooms and stunning views of the ocean. Before coming to Thailand I was strictly a pool girl, much preferring a comfy beach chair over laying in the sand. However, endless weekends at the beach in Thailand quickly changed me, and as nice as the pool was I was almost bummed that we didn't make it to the beach that weekend.

Summer will be in full swing starting in April and I'm planning some backpacking adventures throughout Asia which will include Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia. In preparation for these adventures I've needed to take two recent trips to Bangkok. The first was to get a Vietnam visa and the second was a quick trip to the US Embassy to get a new passport, because mine is almost full! In order to get a new passport I had to unwillingly turn over my old one, leaving me feeling extremely vulnerable for this past week. My new one is hopefully in the mail as I type, filled with 52 empty pages for me to fill up. When I got my Vietnam visa Emiliya came with me to Bangkok, as we're going to Vietnam together. We enjoyed a low key trip to Bangkok, simply seeking out good coffee and cheap food.

Sunset from Sky Bar 

When I went back up a few days later it happened to coordinate perfectly with Sam's trip to Bangkok. She is also a fellow English teacher who I met through our company, and we hadn't seen each other since New Year's Eve on Koh Samet, so it was great to catch up. We splurged on our evening there and lived a brief life of luxury while having drinks at Sky Bar. This location is known for it's appearance in Hangover 2 and it offers unrivaled views of the Chao Phraya River from 64 stories up. We each bought a drink for the high cost of $15 and drank as slowly as possible in order to catch the sunset. There are many places in Bangkok that offer similar views, but a lot of them have cover fees usually starting around $14, so we were happy to find a place that wouldn't completely ruin our budget. I personally think on a crowded evening it would be easy to sneak up to the roof for a quick view without buying a drink. We definitely lingered after finishing our drinks and no one
was pressuring us to buy another or leave, which was greatly appreciated.

Evening from the Sky Bar

I've now been to Bangkok six times (and returning this weekend!) and I'm still continuously baffled by this huge city. Bangkok is more than double the size of New York City and offers endless amounts of restaurants, temples and shops to visit. Each time I've come to Bangkok I've stayed in a different location in the hopes of one day fully comprehending the entire city, but I'm still a long way from that. Either way, my opinion on Bangkok has drastically changed since my first visit here. I've now learned how to take the public transportation (BTS) and I embrace the challenge of haggling with taxi drivers and I'm always looking forward to my next adventure to Thailand's capital.

My favorite view on the island, the boardwalk to Tien Beach

This past weekend I took another trip to Koh Larn, the beloved island of Pattaya. In November and December I spent most weekends relaxing on the beaches of this island, but haven't had any time to go back since 2016 started. Unfortunately it was a rather breezy day, which brought all sorts of stinging critters close to the beach, so I didn't spend too much in the water. Nonetheless, it's always nice to relax on the sand while drinking a smoothie with some friends. The island is a great weekend getaway for us when we're not trying to spend a lot of money. If we don't go crazy on food or alcohol the whole day could cost as little as $3-4. But of course I can't help myself from splurging on some ice cream or a fresh smoothie.



I recently realized that I'm not taking advantage of all of the amazing things Thailand has to offer, specifically cheap massages and fresh fruit. I've vowed to change that and have started branching out with my fruit options each evening. I usually stick to watermelon because it's the cheapest (and still delicious!) costing me about 40 cents for one serving, but I started mixing it up these past few weeks. I've learned that Thailand has at least four different types of mangoes, possibly more, and they all taste very different. There's the sweet yellow mango which is served as dessert with sticky rice, and then there are three others that are much more bitter. Recently a smaller mango appeared at the market so I gave it a shot with very disappointing results. It was like eating a lemon coated in sour flavor; it was just way too bitter! Our fruit lady didn't seem too surprised when we didn't want to order it again the next day. I've also been eating a lot of jackfruit and dragonfruit, neither of which I had previously tasted before Thailand. I'm quickly expanding my list of fruits tasted, next up is more massages!

Bananas, jackfruit and dragonfrui

An extremely bitter mango

Em's hospital bed in the overflowing waiting room

This past week Emiliya and I had to accomplish something we were definitely hoping to avoid while living in Thailand: a trip to the hospital. Emiliya had been sick all weekend with sharp pains in her side which we were hoping would heal itself on it's own, but eventually it became too serious to ignore. On Monday Em had plans to go to the clinic while I went to school, I showed up in the morning and informed some of the teachers that Em wasn't coming that day because she was sick, and they immediately sent me home to take care of her. I was really grateful that they did that because I was definitely worried about her getting around town by herself while she wasn't feeling well. The teachers were all really great about it, telling me to take the whole day off and make sure she gets better. We headed to a nearby clinic, not really sure what we were getting ourselves into. We had previously been told that the clinics are a great resource whenever we're sick or need some general first aid, but we weren't sure if they could handle something as obscure as Em's problems. We showed up to a clinic full of sniffling but generally healthy people and we realized that we were probably out of luck. The doctor spoke with Em for a few minutes and concluded that she was suffering from some sort of small intestine problem, and he urged us to head to the nearest ER. Fortunately he wrote us a note in Thai to give to the hospital, because we struggled at first with finding someone who spoke English. We've concluded that most nurses and general staff only speak Thai, but it appears that all doctors speak English. It turned into a long and confusing day which included nurses taking pictures with us (everyone is always so excited to see white people), waiting five hours before speaking to a doctor, and even then we really didn't get much more information. He told her she would be getting an IV of antibiotics and would also receive a prescription to take home. Grateful that we were actually getting some medical attention we just rolled with the punches and followed the staff around as they found Em a bed. It appears that we were in some sort of area for outpatient and simple procedures, because there were only a few exam rooms but no patient rooms. While Em was hooked up to the IV she was simply up against the wall in the waiting room.

I was pretty annoyed with waiting five hours, but I later told some of the teachers about it and they said that sounded normal, so apparently that's just how they do things in Thailand. Besides that the medical attention was decent and I think everyone did the best they could despite the language barrier. One really bizarre thing was when it came to actually getting the IV, apparently in Thailand you pay for your medical expenses beforehand. Once they told us she would be getting an IV they sent us to a cashier window where we had to pay for the meds and supplies, which they then physically handed to us and we had to transport back to the nurses. I'm curious what would happen if someone didn't have enough money, would they still be helped, or just sent back to the streets? Thailand's reputation of being cheap spreads to the hospitals, Em paid about $22 for antibiotics, saline, a needle, alcohol wipes and all other materials needed for the day. She can then submit her receipt to our insurance company and will probably get reimbursed for all of it. Once she handed over the cash they presented her with a bag full of all the necessary medicine and supplies. It was a strange procedure but also interesting to observe. 

Minus that one little hiccup, life has been going on as normal. The students start testing this week, but if I've understood correctly they still have to come to school for another week after testing has finished. It sounds like Em and I might be going on a field trip with the older kids next week to an area near Bangkok, and then at some point there will be a small graduation ceremony for the oldest kids who will be leaving school this month. It's crazy how quickly this term flew by, it feels like just yesterday was Christmas. I think I previously mentioned how my sense of time is off because of the weather, and I really do consider that a huge factor in why it feels this semester passed so quickly. Because there are no seasons I've found it really hard to process the concept of passing time, it just always feels like August. When I try to think back about something that happened all I can think is "well it was warm then, and it's warm now, so it hasn't been too long since New Years". To me that's a valid reason, who knows if there's actually any validity towards that. Either way, I have four months of teaching under my belt and I've learned so much since I began teaching in November.
Although it definitely got easier and more enjoyable as the term went on I've decided that I will not be staying for another term. As long as I'm abroad and working in a public school there isn't much potential for me to become more adapted. Unless I start studying intensive Thai, I will always be the quiet girl in the corner and I hate being that person. I constantly depend on Thai people for everything, both inside and outside of school. Papue is always talking to our landlady for us and the teachers at school are my translator whenever I need to tell the director something. I can't help kids when they're crying or trying to explain something to me. I can't even properly explain stuff myself, instead I live a life of miming and drawing out what I want. There are countless activities, lessons and games that I've tried with my students that have ended in failure because they simply couldn't understand what the heck I was attempting to do. I've helped them with their vocabulary and their pronunciation and I'm so grateful that I've had the opportunity to influence these kids, but I feel that there has to be something bigger for me in the world. I feel like no one at school truly knows me, I'm constantly slowing my speech and picking shorter words which will make me more understandable. I'm ready to go back to a job and life where I'm not constantly editing my speech. I think for now I've ruled out teaching English in public schools, but I am still very open to the idea of teaching in an international school where English is a primary language. I would love the opportunity to work around kids from all over the world and be joined by staff who are fluent in English. The future is a mystery! For now I will be teaching through March, followed by a month or two of traveling Asia, after that I will be returning to Ohio until the next opportunity arises.

Weird things part 2

I'm approaching the end of my fourth full month living in Thailand and life seems pretty normal for me. I wake up and the day is already soaring into the 80s (high 20s in celsius), I coat myself in bug spray and get ready for my day which consists of very little English and a lot of rice. Recently I've felt that I don't have much to blog about, and then I realize that even my morning routine is something completely different than life in America. And so, the list continues: weird things I've gotten used to, part 2.

- As mentioned above, weather in Thailand is always hot. My travels up north to Chiang Mai have given me a glimpse of cooler weather, but daily life in Pattaya has consistently presented me with hot and humid weather since day one. It's common chatter among expats that people move here for the weather, I however am on the opposite end of that spectrum; I moved here despite the weather. I am a lover of all things Autumn: scarves, hats, jackets and tights. After deciding to come to Thailand the one concern that continuously crept into my head was if I would be able to handle such warm temperatures on a daily basis. I still don't know if I have an answer to that concern. Obviously I'm living through it, but the heat is still something that gets to me. I drink at least a gallon of water each day at school and am always the first to notice if the fans aren't on. Although my school doesn't have AC they are pretty well equipped to handle the heat. Each classroom has ceiling fans and rotating fans on the walls, and all classrooms have an entire wall of windows which are kept open throughout the day, so although it's hot, it's still breezy. I think I'm still sweating as much as I was in the beginning, but at least now I'm more accepting of it. It's no longer startling to be hit by a wall of heat when stepping outside and it's common practice to shower 2x a day. At this point I think that my body isn't used to the heat, but my mind is. I guess I'll take what I can get.

- I would bet good money on the fact that I've gotten more mosquito bites in these last four months than I have in the rest of my life combined. I've established a decent schedule of bug spray application 2-3x a day but I still get bitten. The kids at school remind me of little kids with chicken pox; they show very little self-restraint when it comes to itching, and they've got the scars to prove it. And now, so do I. For some reason the mosquitos love my feet and ankles and I find myself scratching at them without any forethought. Needless to say, bug spray has become part of my daily routine and I never leave home without a small bottle in my purse.

- One thing that I think I've previously mentioned is that Thais mainly function on cash, not cards. In the states I use my credit card for any purchase I can and I rarely carry more than $50 on me. Because things in Thailand are cheap I don't usually have much cash on me unless I'm traveling, but that's something I had to get used to quickly. Whenever leaving town I have to make sure I have enough cash on me to cover buses, hotels and food during my time away. However, the currency here is pretty crazy and I get a small thrill from withdrawing money on pay day, pretending that 1000 baht is a lot of money (it's about 28 USD). I find it interesting that their highest bill is only 1000 baht; buying a motorcycle would only be about $2,000 USD, but that turns into 71,000 baht! That's a whole lot of cash.

- Anyone who has spent a lot of time with me has definitely seen my cry and sweat over spicy food, because for some reason I just can't say no the torturous yet delicious taste. If there's one thing I can say I'm proud of from my time in Thailand, it's my new ability to eat spicy food. No joke. Each day at school the teachers used to poke fun at Emiliya and I as we got warmer and redder while trying to eat lunch, and many times we were straight up denied food because it would be too spicy for us. Well, those days are over my friends! After painfully eating my way through endless Thai dishes I am finally adjusting to spicy foods, and even willingly add chili sauce when I'm served bland foods. It's a weird accomplishment, but I'm excited about it nonetheless.

Our pad thai lady! 

- While on the subject of food, I'm realizing that most Thai people I've talked with really only enjoy Thai food. In the US basically anyone you meet will tell you they love italian, mexican, chinese and various other foods. I can't think of a single person I know that strictly eats burgers and fries (my idea of American food). However, Thailand seems to be the opposite of that. It appears that Thais really only cook and eat Thai food and don't care to expand their food options. Even those who have traveled or lived outside of Asia have said that they haven't loved any of the food that they've tasted while abroad. Whenever we're traveling with our friend Pupae we make sure to find a restaurant that offers both western and Thai food so she can get her rice and we can have some fresh veggies and carbs that aren't rice.

A normal dinner: pad thai and fruit

- One thing that I quickly got used to is not having a kitchen. All of our food comes from the local market, already warm and ready to eat. At times it can be convenient, but sometimes I wake up hungry and tired, just wanting to have a quick bowl of cereal or some toast, but instead I have to get dressed and head to the market. At this point I'm definitely used to it, but I'm pretty excited to come home to a fridge and kitchen.

- I'm a really big fan of planning and organizing; before a trip I have everything researched, tickets purchased and hotel rooms booked. Asia knocked that lifestyle right out of me, reluctantly at first, but now I kind of enjoy it. Never have I found it so easy to book things last minute, or not even book things at all! As long as it's not a holiday or special occasion it's completely possible to show up at your hotel/hostel of choice without any notice and get a room. This past weekend I went to Bangkok with practically no plans. I showed up at the bus station and was able to buy a ticket for a bus leaving in 15 minutes. Once in Bangkok I walked towards a hostel in mind and was able to get a room there without any problem.
Once summer starts (mid to late March) I'll be taking about 8 weeks to travel Thailand and surrounding countries. Although I have a general idea of where I want to go I'm not too concerned with booking things or figuring out a set plan. In Asia it's a lot easier to go with the flow and plan your travels on a day to day basis.

- I figured that the Thais might have some problems pronouncing "Michelle" and I was curious how my name would sound in their language. It turns out I didn't need to think about that because everywhere I go I'm known as "teacher." There are a handful of students that have learned my name throughout the last few months, but beyond a small group everyone else simply calls me teacher, including the Thai teachers. That also includes random people in town and the people working at the markets. Wherever I go I am followed by shouts of "Teacher! Hello!"

- As a neat freak I struggled at first with living in Thailand, because no matter where you are in this country there is dirt everywhere. Our apartment bathroom has a small window that doesn't close and as a result our bathroom counter is coated in a thin layer of dirt and dust on a daily basis. Each Monday morning at school I take a wet rag to my desk, because it always collects a layer of dirt while I'm away for the weekend. I have gotten used to scrubbing surfaces far more often than I ever have in the past. On top of that, Thais don't really seem to be a huge fan of soap. The kids at school wash their hands at a large sink that's outside, but there is no soap to be found. In our teacher's lounge we have a small container near the sink but it's been there since day one, so I'm pretty sure I'm one of the few that use it. There is also no heating system in Thailand. No heat in houses and no hot water coming through the pipes, so everyone is washing their hands with cold water and no soap. I just keep reminding myself that hopefully Thailand is making my immune system nice and strong! 

A motorbike with a 'car seat' attached to the front!
(Also note the monk in the background)
Photo props to Yavette 

- As I mentioned in the previous post, Thais love their motorcycles and can squeeze an absurd amount of people on one bike. I have adjusted to seeing children driving these bikes alone and seeing newborn babies strapped into their "car seat." Life in Asia is faster if you have a bike. They weave in and out of traffic and are always ahead of the cars.

A herd of motorbikes at the front
of stopped traffic 

Construction workers at our apartment wearing
crocs and protective hats from the sun 

- There are many construction workers out on the streets in my town and they usually wear similar reflective vest like workers in America, however one thing that is startlingly different is their shoe choice. Almost every construction worker I've seen wears sandals or a knock off version of crocs. It doesn't matter if they're driving machines, digging, jackhammering or mixing cement; they're almost all in sandals. I can't figure out if this is just a comfort thing or if they can't afford the proper footwear. Outdoor workers are often wearing protective clothing to prevent themselves from getting tanner. Tan skin basically implies that you spend your day outside, which would make people presume you're working class. As a result, Thais don't like tan skin and find it to be ugly. Most workers wear hats that have fabric that comes around the back of their necks as well. They also often wear long sleeved shirts and pants. The parking lot of our apartment building is currently being cemented and we have a collection of workers outside each day (including weekends).

- Asian cultures usually stick to a heirarchy, which is something I've gotten used to but something I'm not very fond of. In our school there's an order of superiority: the director is the highest role, followed by his office staff, Thai teachers, student teachers, English teachers and ending with students at the bottom. Each person knows their role and essentially bows down to those above them and acts superior to those below them. The traditional Thai greeting of a "wai" is usually initiated by the lower social status person, so it's always my job to wai the director and his staff first, they would never initiate it. Students are expected to wai all of the teachers but because they are so low below us we aren't supposed to wai them in return. 

Our director comes first for anything, which was weird to observe at first. When we first arrived he never introduced himself to us and for the first few weeks we just saw this man being treated like royalty, and we had no idea who he was. I think because he's so high above us, we were expected to introduce ourselves to him out of respect, but with 60+ staff we basically stuck to the ones who made an effort to speak to us, and the director wasn't one of those. 

He gets the highest treatment and always gets served by others during lunch. We recently had a student teacher who finished her stint at the school, so we had a big lunch for her on the last day. I thought the head of the table would be reserved for her, but that's where the director sat instead. When it came to meal time he was served first, followed by the student teacher. The weirdest part for me is that the student teacher did all of the dishes. Because she's so low on the totem pole (below the director and other teachers) she's usually doing a weird amount of favors and chores for the other teachers, and her last day lunch was no exception to that. She cleaned up the bulk of the meal on her own, while others sat around munching on the leftovers. 

At this point I'm used to this treatment. I realize that my social status is very low at school but it's disheartening to think that no matter how hard I try I will barely be given any more respect. I'm learning that in general, Thais stick to their social classes. Men are almost always more powerful and people always obey and respect their father, no matter the circumstances. I'm more of a fan of respecting people for who they are and how they treat others, but it's been interesting to observe this lifestyle as well.  

- Thai kids love high fives. Any time I'm walking through the halls of school I have kids running up to me asking for one. On a daily basis I probably get over 100 high fives. 

- There are many days where I'll be sitting at my desk in the teacher lounge and a random person will come in with a briefcase full of items they're selling. I've seen everything from eye glasses to massagers. Who knew I would be able to shop from my desk?!          

                                                                                                                     

- Because I'm teaching younger kids (kindergarten through third grade) I've gotten extremely used to pretending to understand Thai. Many of the kids can't grasp the concept that I don't speak the same language of them, so they've taken to rambling in Thai at me, explaining who knows what. I originally tried using Thai phrases such as "I don't understand" or "I don't speak Thai" but that just left them even more confused. So now I just nod and smile and hope I'm not approving something I shouldn't be. (There was one time I allowed my entire class to leave early without meaning to) 

Our hallways at school. Part tile and part cement

- The kids at school are usually without shoes, and I can't quite figure out why. Instead they spend the majority of their day in just socks, which includes going to the bathroom and walking across the gravel parking lot. It seems that the more conscious kids put their shoes on when walking outside the tile halls of the school (to prevent holes), but there are still plenty that only wear socks all day, even when walking through puddles. The kids always have their shoes off in the classroom, so I figure it has something to do with cleanliness, but the teachers usually wear shoes, so it seems to defeat the purpose. I've noticed that the majority of my kindergarten teachers switch to slippers in their room, so I've taken to being barefoot in those classes because their floors are usually very clean and I don't want to go in with shoes. 

A songtaew in Pattaya 

- I've gotten used to public transportation and all of it's flaws. Although Thailand has a decent system set up of buses and songtaews, you are at the mercy of their schedule and wishes. Around town Emiliya and I hop on a Songtaew to go wherever we need, such as downtown Pattaya or the mall. We just walk to the main road (a minute away from our apartment) and wait for a songtaew to drive past, sometimes one will already be waiting, other times you have to stand there for 20 minutes until one shows up. When leaving the mall there's usually a herd of songtaews parked out front, but in order to get their money's worth they won't leave until they're full, often resulting in a 10-30 minute wait in the mall parking lot. It drove me crazy in the beginning but Thailand has taught me how to wait and be patient. I've been on numerous buses that will randomly pull off the highway so the driver can take a cigarette break or use the restroom, and it's always the foreigners who complain about these unnecessary stops. The Thais take it in stride and have the patience to wait it out. 

A fancier songtaew in Chiang Mai, it has real walls and everything! 

I've also noticed that many Thais are often content just sitting with nothing but their thoughts. If I'm alone on long bus rides, songtaew trips into the city or waiting in line I almost always have my kindle or phone out, doing something to keep myself entertained during the journey or wait. But Thais almost always just sit. They are known as a culture that doesn't read, so I don't expect them to pull out a book (I often get weird looks when reading in public spaces) and many of them don't have smart phones, so they are content with their thoughts. Growing up in the States during a digital age I have gotten so used to smart phones. Wherever you go people are checking facebook or listening to music and it's refreshing to see that that culture hasn't hit Thailand. 

One of my most energetic classes! They've taught me a lot of Thai
 and are really great at handling the language barrier between us 

Each day in Thailand is something new. I learn some new Thai vocab, try a new food or discover another city or attraction of this huge country. Thailand is much more than just Bangkok and beaches and I'm grateful for the time I have here because it's allowing me to see a side of this country I wouldn't have discovered otherwise. Being at school each day has given me a huge insight into Thai culture and even though I spend my days speaking broken English sentences I've still learned so much from my students. 

Weird things I've gotten used to and other random tidbits

After living in Thailand for over three months now I've found that there is very little that startles or shocks me on a daily basis, which is amazing, because in the beginning I had never-ending lists forming in my head of all of the weird things I experienced throughout the day.
Below is a sneak peek into the odd yet average things I experience throughout my daily life in Thailand.

A class roster phonetically translated into the latin alphabet

- All Thai children are born with startling long names which are nearly impossible for me to pronounce, let alone remember. Fortunately, at birth most Thai kids are given nicknames by their parents which they use interchangeably with their formal Thai name. Some easy nicknames include: Pink, New, Beer, and Asia. Others include: boom, om, pang, mod, and nom.
Their names have caused me constant frustration when it comes to grading papers. They'll write their nickname in Thai, which I then have to match to their formal Thai name and then translate it phonetically into English to match the grading rubric I've been given. I've taken to grabbing random students during recess asking them to "phud" (speak) as I point to a Thai name on a sheet I'm grading, just so I can hear them speak it, making it easy for me to match it to the English version on my rubric.

- The Thai alphabet has 44 consonant letters and then 15 symbols to represent vowels which are added on/around the consonants to turn them into a vowel. On top of a different alphabet, there are also symbols that indicate each of the five tones present in the Thai language. For example if you say "dow" in a slow flat tone it means star, but then if you say "dow" in a slow and falling tone it means turtle. I learned this the hard way when the kids wanted me to draw stars on their papers and I thought they were asking for turtles. They were not pleased with my carefully crafted smiling turtles. Woops. It also turns out I've been saying "bad luck" whenever I'm trying to tell someone their drawing is beautiful. I can't help but say it in an excited tone, "oh that's beautiful!" with my voice going up at the end, but of course that completely changes the meaning of the word. Instead you have to say it in a completely flat tone, making it far less exciting. I feel that tonal languages take away some of the animation and character prevalent in toneless languages.
As a native English speaker I'm very used to the fact that you can say a word in any tone and it'll still mean the same thing. Although I studied tonal languages in my linguistic classes it was no lesson in how to actually understand the tones. For now I am basically a tone-deaf person in a tonal world; leading me to wish bad luck on people and give them turtles when they want stars, I guess there are worse things in the world?
Of course the most obvious question following this discussion is why the heck am I speaking so much terrible Thai when I'm here to be speaking English? That could result in a rant a mile long, so instead I'll sum it up with this: no matter how many times you try to teach directions and instructions to four year old children, they will not retain or respond to that information. For best results, learn some Thai.

- One thing I was mentally prepared for was the possibility of squat toilets, and I was pleasantly surprised when I didn't stumble upon as many as anticipated. They are definitely around at gas stations/rest stops and seem to be the common public restroom of choice on the islands. However, my school, apartment, nice restaurants, and hotels all have western toilets. Plumbing in Thailand doesn't seem to have caught up to the 21st century, so the squat toilets don't have a flushing system, and neither do many of the western toilets either. Instead you'll find a container of clean water next to the toilet which you have to throw into the toilet to mime the act of flushing.
One thing that I should be used to but am not is throwing away toilet paper (don't tell the Thais!) The plumbing and septic systems throughout Thailand can't handle having any foreign objects being flushed, so instead each bathroom comes equipped with a garbage can for your used toilet paper. This usually emits a smell into the air that is best left to your imagination. I do my best to throw out TP when I remember, but apparently the motion of throwing it into the toilet is engrained in my body and isn't easily swayed.
Squat toilets are often looked down upon (literally hahah) and are avoided at all costs by some travelers I know, but honestly I've seen cleaner squat toilets than I've seen public restrooms in the states and other countries. It took one or two experiences, but now I don't blink twice at the face of a squat toilet.

Kids getting their hair cut during school

- The hair on students, both male and female, is kept to very strict rules while school is in session; and in order to maintain those strict standards the school brings in a team of hair cutters almost biweekly. They show up in a big bus, donned in their purple ponchos and armed with surgical masks (so they don't get sick?) The girls must not have hair longer than their earlobes and boys follow standards that would give the military a run for it's money. Students are excused from class when the hair cutting team is at school and they can go wait their turn to get their hair trimmed.

- I also recently learned that there are traveling dentists who visit the schools on the government's dime. Today there were about 10 dentists who came and checked each of the kid's mouths during class. I'm unsure how they would proceed if they found something wrong with the kids, but it was nice to see that there is a somewhat decent healthcare system put in place here, especially because many of these kid's wouldn't have the money to get health checks otherwise.


















- At my school all of the kindergarten kids wear little vests in various shades of pink (one of the school's colors). I'm not sure why the kids wear them, but it does help pick them out in a crowd, especially when there's just one little guy gone rogue. Most of the kids have snacks, toys or money in the front pocket of their vest which they break out in the middle of class.

- I'm finding that the kids are trusted and given much more freedom than American kids would ever have. Half the time I see something and can't help but think "if this were happening in the states the parents would sue the school." The most obvious examples are with the kindergarteners, because it often feels that they have free reign to do whatever pleases them. There's so many times I'll be teaching in a different classroom and a little kindergartener will come wandering into my class. I'll quickly shuffle them back in the direction of their classroom and the teacher doesn't even bat an eye. There are also many times when I'll walk past a classroom and the kids are in there completely alone, just doing whatever they want. There's no such thing as a bathroom pass and there's definitely no buddy system. The kids leave when they want and wander at their own free will. Although they'll go wherever they please in the surrounding area, they never leave the school gates. As cool as it is that the kindergarteners are going to the bathroom on their own and trusted to hold onto their own money to buy after school snacks, it seems rather negligent to me. I can't tell if this is the Thai way or lack of awareness by the teachers, but either way I often question what would happen if there was an accident with one of the kids.

- Living less than a block away from a temple I've gotten used to monks extremely quickly. I still honestly don't understand their lives but I know enough to stay clear of them because they can't touch women, and many don't talk to women either. Before coming to Thailand I pictured them living in exotic temples and never interacting with the outside world, but it turns out they shop at the markets, ride taxis and catch the bus to Bangkok. Monks, they're just like us! (except not).

- Thai coffee is some of the best coffee I've ever tasted, but unfortunately I can only seem to find it in large/popular cities. Around my apartment I have to settle for coffee stands that use instant NesCafé. My love for Switzerland is ardent and endless, but I really think they could've come up with something better than

                               these packets of powder. I am constantly day dreaming 

of my coffee maker back home. 

- I take my shoes on and off more times in a day than I do in a week in the states (that might be an exaggeration, but you get my point.) Going into a classroom? Take your shoes off. Going into a clinic? Take your shoes off. Going into a temple? You better take your shoes off!! Basically any established company or building requires bare feet, including but not limited to a post office, clothing store, hostel, and doctor's office. I have learned to love easy slip on shoes and quickly ditched anything with straps and laces.

Food: A Love Story

A good meal served at school
Noodles with peanut sauce and about five other things

Thailand has an endless reputation of positive feedback when it comes to delicious and cheap meals, so my foodie self was abnormally excited to hit the streets and start trying all of the new meals that would be available to me. I pictured myself eating my body weight in curry and glass noodles (with a side of pad thai), so I was terribly shocked when my food dreams didn't come true. Although I'm a vegetarian that is really my only limitation to what I won't eat, and even then I've never considered myself to be a picky eater; until I came to Thailand. If there's one thing I can't stand the taste of, it's fish, and what do Thais love to cook with? Fish sauce! Oh joy. All of my favorite meals are continuously ruined by the taste of fish. Pad thai, omelettes, tofu, harmless veggie stir fry, you name it. And on top of that it turns out that all of the Thai restaurants in the US serving curry are frauds, because that's not a common Thai dish. It's been a constant struggle trying to find meals that I'll actually enjoy, but I think I finally have a system now: If it tastes okay, don't ask questions. 

jackfruit: my new favorite fruit

Don't get me wrong though! For every disappoint I've endured with food I've found something amazing as well. Each day at lunch we're served a free meal and the teachers have been really great in finding me good combos of food that don't involve fish or meat. Our school has been much more successful in serving delicious meals compared to what I find at the local market each evening for dinner. 

The best part is definitely the fruit. Each day at school we're served a generous variety of fresh fruit and that's also where the majority of my money goes each evening. The fruit lady at the local market has taught me the bulk of my fruit vocabulary and she's also painstakingly endured the process of me learning Thai numbers, not getting frustrated when she tells me I owe 50 baht and I obliviously hand over 20 with a smile. We see each other almost every day and in my head we're friends, but in reality all of our "conversations" revolve around fruit. 

I think i'll be fine if I never eat another grain of rice in my life, but I've also stopped sweating and crying when eating spicy foods, so you win some and lose some. 

Typical dinner from the market: some crazy rice dish
that includes eggs, chilis, mystery meat (which
I pick out) and some sort of pickled cabbage situation.
Purchased on the side is some sort of wrapped egg
and a  tofu kebab which I no longer  can eat because
I can't deny the taste of fish. 

Thai breakfast 

The one place where Thailand really can't win is the breakfast category. We recently stayed at a hotel with a free breakfast buffet and in a classic Joey Tribbiani moment I approached the morning with the concept of "this is where I'll win back my money" (not hard to do when the hotel is $5/night) Anyways, we stumble downstairs to an array of Thai breakfast food that immediately stopped us in our tracks. Fried noodles, rice, meatball soup and fried chicken. Definitely not what I was craving at 7am. Although I'm not usually one to bypass free food, we happily left that place and found a café down the street offering fresh coffee, toast and eggs. 

Outside of school each morning there are food carts set up offering similar foods to grab on the way to school. Kids will walk through the gates each morning slurping on some ramen soup or picking at a chicken kebab. I usually settle on a prepackaged muffin each morning from 7-Eleven. Did I mention that I think I'm terribly malnourished? 95% of my diet is carbs, followed by a few fruits, but I barely get any veggies, dairy products or protein. 

One thing that I have yet to capture a picture of is the absurd amount of people Thais will have on a motorbike, usually including a baby in the arms of a passenger and a toddler standing on the footrest looking out over the handle bars. That's definitely another thing I've gotten used to, and I promise I'll snap a picture at the next opportunity I have!

Despite the initial culture shock I experienced when I first arrived, things have settled down into the most normal they can be while living a life in Thailand. I'm grateful for my time here because many of these crazy and obscure observations never would have been found if I only stuck to the touristy parts of the country. I'm sure there are plenty more crazy things I experience on a daily basis, but life just seems so normal now! More to come when I think of it.

The reality of Thailand

This past weekend marked the third month that I've been away from home, so I figured it was time to do a little reflecting on my time in Thailand. I'm not usually one to self analyze too much, but it's impossible not to notice the changes I've seen in myself since landing in Thailand, and for the most part I think I'm happy with the changes.
The most obvious difference that I see in myself is that I've mellowed out a ton. When it comes to organizing, planning or scheduling, my Type A personality shines bright. I proudly functioned out of two calendars in the states and made endless lists throughout the day to keep me on track. While I'll admit to still making lists (how could anyone go without lists!?) I've definitely calmed down on the scheduling and planning aspects of life. A part of that is because my time is devoted to school, and my school schedule is always up in the air. I learned within the first few weeks that just because it's the weekend doesn't mean you get the time off, and more often than not you won't actually know you don't get the weekend free until a day or two beforehand. We stopped planning things in advance a while ago, because our plans kept falling through due to school. This is also a result of "Thai time' as the locals call it: doing everything with very little planning and never doing anything on time.
It still baffles me how little planning Thai people seem to do, they're simply content with whatever info they know and they just take each day as it comes. Definitely not my style but I'm slowly starting to accept it. A superb example is the subject of summer. I'm super keen to start backpacking Asia, and if this were any other trip I would already have flights, hotels and tours booked throughout the continent. But alas, I am on Thai time and I can't for the life of me get a clear answer as to when summer starts! It bugs me, but I'm accepting it. As eager as I am to start my summer adventures I am aware of the fact that I might not know when summer starts until two weeks before break, and that's just something I have to be okay with.
This is the first time in my adult life when I don't check my calendar every morning and when I'm not scheduling coffee dates or dinners with friends (lets be real though, I have very few friends in Thailand). I take each day as it comes and although I have a general idea of what I want to do during a certain weekend it's nothing solid and never written down.

On top of a more mellow outlook on life I can't help but feel grateful yet guilty by the life I live. Thai standard of normal is nothing compared to my standard of normal. Previously a third world country, Thailand can now be considered a developing country but there are constant reminders of the poverty that remains throughout the land. I've never lived in such a mixed population of economic status before, and it's interesting to see how these worlds coexist. I can now say that this is where the pieces are finally coming together. To a westerner it would appear that many of Thais live in poverty, which I guess to our standards they do, but to them this is normal; it isn't sad, shunned or frowned upon, it's just how they live. Many of the students eat all three of their meals at school, because their parents can't afford to feed them. We have a few students who seem to live at the local orphanage, and even more who are special needs and aren't getting the attention they need. At first it was startling to learn all of this information, and even now it can be a little hard to stomach at times, but that's just Thailand. They have poverty, they have injustice, they have situations that they can't do anything about, and they accept it. And that's where the lightbulb went off: I've always pitied residents of third world countries, and that was honestly my first mindset of my new city in Thailand, and although this area is extremely underdeveloped, they're happy. This is their normal. The 'coffee shop' I visit on a regular basis is in no way a shop or a legit business, it's just a women working out of her garage, but each day her coffee cart is flocking with people and she always greets us with a smile.
I used to think that happiness and success was a four bedroom house, new clothes, a college degree and funds to travel the world, but Thailand is teaching me that the meaning of success and happiness fluctuates and varies around the world. A large portion of the Thai population are living in underdeveloped areas, but they're not a charity case. The standard of life is different in Thailand, and it used to be something that intimidated me and made me uncomfortable. I often miss the comforts of home and my version of normal: living in a place with more than one room, having a big kitchen, a shower with warm water, and driving my beloved jeep. But to many Thais that lifestyle is gluttonous. Many of the teachers have questioned if I live in a "mansion" like in American movies, and after realizing their version of "mansion" is your typical suburban home, I reply with a nod only to be handed ten more questions. How many people live in the house? Why do we each have our own room? Who needs three bathrooms in a house? And honestly, I can't give them an answer. Just because their version of comfort and normal are so different from mine I reacted towards it with a negative outlook and it's just now hitting me that although they're living in underdeveloped areas their quality of life and happiness doesn't vary much from my own.
This doesn't mean that everyone in Thailand is living the perfect life, just like any other country there are countless people who are struggling in poverty and could use help rebuilding their life. However, I'm realizing that there's an endless spectrum between a wealthy life and one in poverty, and just because some people fall lower on the spectrum it doesn't lower their quality of life.
That was a lot of rambling to simply say that Thailand fascinates me and is constantly teaching me new lessons. I'm learning that financial stability is important, but money and a big job are not everything. I've accepted that I often view other cultures from a pompous or pretentious eye and in order to truly appreciate a country for what it is, I have to adapt to a more unassuming role and become less critical in how I see the world. It's easy to judge a place when you have expectations but I quickly learned that accepting a culture for who they are will prove much better results as opposed to making opinions based on what you don't know.

Christmas in Thailand

Santa and students dancing to "Aloha Christmas"

They sold festive headbands and santa hats in the school shop

Thailand is heavily populated by Buddhists and the country is home to over 40,000 temples. About 1% of the population is Christian, and there are supposedly a few Christian churches around, but I have yet to see any, so imagine my surprise when Thailand put on more of a Christmas celebration than what I've seen in America. All month long the christmas spirit has been spreading throughout Thailand and the kids started learning the words to Jingle Bells and doodling snowmen and Santa Claus on their papers. We were told that we wouldn't have to teach on Christmas day, instead there would be 'activities' in the morning. In the past two months anytime they say there are school activities it usually just means that the students sing a lot of Thai songs and do some prayers, so I was pretty excited and surprised when we showed up to a Christmas celebration on Friday. All of the teachers wore red and many students were dressed up in anticipation for their performance on stage. All morning we had groups of students dancing and singing to various Christmas songs and some of the classes even did a present exchange. Of course Emily and I were put on the spot and got put in charge of announcing each performance before they came on stage, which made no sense because then a teacher would translate it into Thai so everyone understood what we were saying, but it was still fun to be included.
Later in the day I headed into Pattaya to pick up a package from the post office (thanks mom!) and was pretty bummed to see that the Christmas celebrations didn't spread outside of school. Pattaya is a huge expat city and I was really expecting to see some sort of celebration going on, but it appeared to be an ordinary day in the city. Many friends from home were shocked to hear that we had to work on Christmas day, but honestly I preferred that so much more as opposed to having the whole day off, especially after seeing that Pattaya wasn't celebrating. Even if we spent our day with those who probably don't even fully understand the history to Christmas it was still great to be surrounded by those in the Christmas spirit. Obviously some weird things happened too, because it's Thailand and nothing is ever completely normal. The end of the Christmas celebrations concluded with a fashion show made up primarily of guys wearing outfits that I can only imagine were hand crafted at school. On top of that, all of the kindergarteners seemed more dressed for Halloween as opposed to Christmas. Majority of the girls were wearing princess dresses and many of the boys were wearing superhero costumes. I'm not sure of the logic behind that, but it was adorable either way!
Holidays away from home are never easy, this is now my second Christmas abroad and I'm hoping it will be my last, but I'm also extremely grateful for the opportunity to experience a different culture, especially at such a fun time of year

Ending the Christmas celebrations with a fashion show