Tonight, my Thai friend invited Jess and I to dinner at her house. She prepared an amazing Thai dinner for us, massaman curry (because she knows I love that curry dish), a tofu and pine nut dish, spicy pork, and a pork stew. Pat is a teacher at the university and invited seven of her students to join us so Jess and I could meet some Thai students our age. One of the girls spoke excellent English because she lived in New York for three months earlier this year through a work study program at Khon Kaen University. Even with the little Thai that I know and the little English the other girls knew, we were able to relate on a few key topics.
Harry Potter. Jess asked if they liked it, and they were so excited and told us they saw the movie already. Personally, I’m not too into Harry Potter, so I asked them if they liked “Twilight” (I LOVE Twilight) and the girl next to me looked me in the eyes and said “You like werewolf or vampire?” “OOOH, werewolf!!” They are vampire fans, of course. Because of the pale skin and everything.
The girls asked what state Jess and I were from. When I tell them I’m from California, the girl next to me breaks out in “California Girls”. Katy Perry is constantly giving me an instant reputation and standard to live up to.
The Biebster.. Justin Bieber. They love him! “Eeenie Meenie Miney Mo, what does that mean?” I had a fun time explaining the Justin Bieber’s lyrics of “Eenie Meenie“ and how it’s a children’s game in America, but the meaning of it in the song.
Boys. Apparently they think Korean men are more attractive than Thai men, because they supposedly get a lot of plastic surgery to be better looking. They also think Captain America is VERY handsome.
We continued dinner with some more pop culture, Taylor Swift, and other celebrity gossip. Note: If you’re not sure what to talk about with a young Thai adult, bring up either a. Justin Bieber. Or b. Any other celebrity/pop hit song, I guarantee they know more about them than you do!
After getting resettled back in Khon Kaen and into my school routine after having two months of traveling, I was faced with a new unexpected decision. Jess and I often enjoy fantasizing and discussing our ideas about the places we want to go and the things we want to do when we’re done with Thailand and we both realized that this time was nearing. I use to think I only had two options, go home to California or go somewhere else. But then I realized that I had another choice, to stay in Khon Kaen. It was an option I never even considered considering but here I was at the beginning of the semester, actually thinking about it.
From the very first day of school, my Thai teacher T. Nim, would at some point during the school day say to me “Teacher Chelsea, stay one year!” At first I’d laugh it off and say, “I don’t think so T. Nim.. I miss my friends and family.” She was very persistent with presenting the idea (but never in a pressing way, just making it clear that she thought I should stay).
The next week.. “Teacher Chelsea, stay one year! I get you A LOT of special class, make A LOT of money then can go to America.” I’d respond with “Maybe T. Nim, not sure. Need to think.”
The following week.. “Teacher Chelsea, stay! Good for you and good for kids!” "Maaaaybe T. Nim, maybe." She could sense I was caving in.
Finally after a few weeks of bringing it up, I told T. Nim after lunch.. “Teacher Nim, I want to stay one year.” T. Nim squealed with delite, she was ecstatic and rushed to tell the other teachers. She basically single handed talked me into staying another five months.
So you may have already heard but its true.. I decided to commit to another five months to finish the school year. Instead of coming home in October/November, I’ll be coming home in March/April. This decision was a very tough one for me, I made numerous pros and cons lists weighing many different options, I talked to numerous friends and family members and of course had lengthy conversations about it with Jess, who had already booked her flight home in October. I was beginning to get very overwhelmed and anxious when thinking about what to do after Thailand, then with the thought of if staying longer was right for me. My body began responding to this stress by breaking out in not one but TWO fever blisters (that’s often how my body responds to stress and also when my immune system is weak), as well as different colds/infections that I needed to make different trips to the pharmacy for. After I sat down with the Head of the English Program and committed to teach the second semester, it was like a weight was lifted. Its funny, I remember when I first arrived, two girls that were teaching at my school said they had been teaching here for two or three years. My instant reaction: my jaw dropped and I thought to myself “WHAAAT?! Why?! Khon Kaen for three years? That’s just crazy”. Now here I was, making the commitment to stay longer.. but I’m leaving in March, I promise.
At first I thought I made this decision just to put off “real world” and to prolong the decision of “whats next?”. But I had many other factors play into this decision.
One: I’ve grown very attached to my kids! I can’t imagine leaving them half way through a school year to a brand new teacher, I feel like I would be abandoning them. I care about all my kids so much, I have a GREAT group this year and I think they are the cutest/smartest/funniest Kindergarteners in all of Thailand.
Two: My Thai teacher.. T Nim is AMAZING! We teach more as a team than two separate teachers. I know I wouldn’t be staying longer if I wasn’t with T Nim. She’s an amazing teacher, she is very patient, warmhearted, generous, and very creative with her teaching methods. She helps me be a better teacher by constantly giving me new ideas of how to teach. She very fun to work with and is even helping me out with my Thai! I couldn’t be happier in the classroom! Plus, she brings me surprised about once a week, sometimes with fruit (she gave me half a watermellon on Friday), snacks (she knows I like ham sandwiches), and bracelets from a Thai town she visited on the weekend. Yep, she's amazing.
Three: Special Class.. T Nim sure stayed true to her word and has hooked me up with LOTS of special class (special class is just another word for tutoring). I’m making practically double what I made last semester and will get a raise for staying over a year next semester. I’ve made myself a budget and I’m hoping to be able to stick to it and come home with a little money, as well as have some extra money to do some traveling in October, Christmas, and March. If I were to come home in October like originally planned, I would come home with a big empty wallet.
Four: Travel! I’ve been to most places that I want to go in Asia, but I would like to do Malaysia and maybe another country. When’s the next time I’ll be in Asia after this teaching experience? Probably not for a while, so may as well go to as many places as possible!
Five: Various things.. Khon Kaen International Marathon in January! I’d like to get PADI (scuba diving) certified here, do more Thai islands, learn more Thai, and I’m looking to create some sort of community service project.. still brain storming ideas on that one but hopefully I’ll find something!
Six: This is a special life experience and why not stay an extra four months! I’m happy here, I like school and I love traveling. Plus, I’d rather come home when its warmer (rather than cold winter!). Life is easy here, everything I need to can buy at 7/11 (bus tickets, pay for flights, stamps, credit for my phone), I’ve gotten into the swing of school, and I really have no worries or stresses here, other than how to make my hair work in this humidity. Since I’ve done second semester already, I know that its SUPER easy. We have many long weekends and of the five and a half months, I have 6 weeks off (2 and a half in October and 3ish at Christmas). I’m feeling really good about the decision to stay, I feel that its right for me.
Don’t get me wrong, I miss home SO much! I miss Mexican food, having a kitchen, cheese, working internet, baking, walking the dog, driving a car to work, watching the news in English, shopping for cute clothes and having it actually fit, Taco Tuesdays, American sports, couch time, Trader Joes, exercising outside, listening to music on the radio, normal weather, normal human interactions (normal American interactions I should say.. culture is different here so people interact differently), the Pacific Ocean, blending in, and of course my friends and family!! I’ve officially been in Thailand for nine months and I know one thing is for sure, my friends and family will always be there for me to welcome me home with open arms (and hopefully a burrito in one hand and a margarita in the other). I wouldn’t have made it this far without all of your support and encouragement and I think I have the most amazing friends in the world! So thank YOU for being a positive influence in my life even when I’m across the world, I love getting emails/messages/facebook notifications/ picture comments/ blog comments/skype calls from friends and family, it reminds me that you’re thinking of me and that I have amazing friends/family and support system. And although I’ve made the decision to stay longer, I am extremely looking forward to my epic return in March/April… California better be ready for me by then!
PS. I know where I'll be for the next eight months.. visitors are welcomed and encouraged! :)
PHEW! I’m finally caught up on my blog after two months of being back in Khon Kaen!
KHON KAEN UPDATE!
My Class: The school year in Thailand begins in May and ends in March (meaning their summer break is a few months earlier than ours, March – May.. that’s when its hot season here), so we just started a new semester! I’m physically in the same classroom as I was last semester, but I have a different Thai teacher and new kids. My Thai teacher has been working at Patanadek for a number of years and is so warm and friendly.. I LOVE working with her! My kids are great, not nearly as rowdy as my class last semester and I love coming to school everyday. I have 26 kids in my class, 15 boys and 11 girls.
"Smile, T. Chelsea's Special Class!"
Tutoring: Along with teaching every weekday, I decided to pick up some extra tutoring jobs to make a little extra money. On Mondays, Jess and I take a brother and sister from grade 3 and 5 to Central Plaza for an hour and a half to practice speaking English. Its really a sweet deal, Jess takes one kid while I take the other and we often go to grab dinner (which the kids treat us to), and go to the book store. No worksheets and no need to prep, just conversation! Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday I tutor at the school. The school sent letters home at the beginning of the semester asking if parents were interested in having their child learn English for an extra hour after school with me and three other teachers. They had more students sign up this semester than ever before so the classes are move overcrowded than usual. I have nine or ten kids each session and I try to make the classes fun by starting out with a movement or song (Hokey Pokey, Head Shoulders Knees and Toes, ect), milk break provided by the school, then a game, and finish with an easy coloring worksheet. Some days are rougher than others, the students generally sign up for two days a week so I get a different combination of kids every class. Of course the days with my trouble makers are more of a challenge and an extra hour of school is difficult for some students to handle. On Sundays, I do more tutoring both with students I had last semester, so they are in grade 1 now. On Sunday mornings, JJs mom picks me up on her motorbike and drives me to their shop. The family has a bedding shop near the night market and across the street from a high school, so JJ and I go study at the school. We work on workbooks and worksheets but I always try to bring at least one game. On Sunday afternoons, Tan’s mom drops him off at my place and we decided what we want to do for the next hour and a half, walk to central or play games, whatever we want to do. Tutoring is sure keeping me busy but I love having extra one-on-one time with the kids, its a lot lot of fun!
Wai Kru Day: Wai Kru (“wai” is the Thai respect bow and “kru” means teacher) ceremony is a Thai ritual in which students pay respects to their teachers in order to express gratitude and is held at the beginning of the semester. My Thai teacher helped my students make footed trays out of flowers which were presented to us teachers at the ceremony. The ceremony began with a Buddhist prayer and followed by the students’ recitation of the Wai Rru chant, which expresses respect and gratitude to the teachers and asks for the teachers’ blessing in their studies. After, a representative of each class presented the teachers with an offering of flowers, candles, and joss sticks arranged on the pedestalled trays. It was a special day and I felt very honored and respected as a teacher!
This semester is FLYING by but I’m loving every minute of it!
