alright, here are some new pictures for you to gawk at. because they are so awesome. i've been slow with the pictures lately, i know, i appologize. i don't have an excuse. so now, for your entertainment....
the grand palace and temple of the emerald buddha.
buddamonthon.
pattaya.
sirindhorn environmental park (we went there yesterday to check it out, we're taking a bunch of students next weekend for "camp".)
i'm taking some cooking lessons in bangkok this weekend. i better be good at it, because we get to eat our creations! nothing much new other than that. tomorrow is field trip day, but no one has told me what the field trip is. maybe i'll just have my own!
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
only 6 weeks to go...
watching this video made me really impatient to get back to the US...
http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1772684/
only 31 days left until i'm done with work. i should start answering questions like this miss south carolina.
http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1772684/
only 31 days left until i'm done with work. i should start answering questions like this miss south carolina.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
culture shock
some things i can't get used to, even after 2 months here:
1. saying "toilet" instead of "bathroom".
2. the man purse.
3. the frequency of same-sex displays of affection, some of which seem inappropriately affectionate.
4. the lack of heterosexual displays of affection (i stared at a couple holding hands this weekend).
5. how the money-taker on the bus remembers who paid already.
6. the lack of driving rules.
7. the lack of accidents despite the lack of driving rules.
8. packs of mangy dogs roaming the streets (anyone ever heard of neutering?)
9. feeling conspicuous, even though only a few people usually stare at me.
10. how many high school girls still wear ribbons on their ponytails.
some things i didn't expect to get used to:
1. wearing skirts.
2. being of above-average height.
3. seeing the king everywhere i look.
4. being functionally illiterate. its really not that bad. if they didn't use the arabic numbers most of the time, then i'd be in trouble.
1. saying "toilet" instead of "bathroom".
2. the man purse.
3. the frequency of same-sex displays of affection, some of which seem inappropriately affectionate.
4. the lack of heterosexual displays of affection (i stared at a couple holding hands this weekend).
5. how the money-taker on the bus remembers who paid already.
6. the lack of driving rules.
7. the lack of accidents despite the lack of driving rules.
8. packs of mangy dogs roaming the streets (anyone ever heard of neutering?)
9. feeling conspicuous, even though only a few people usually stare at me.
10. how many high school girls still wear ribbons on their ponytails.
some things i didn't expect to get used to:
1. wearing skirts.
2. being of above-average height.
3. seeing the king everywhere i look.
4. being functionally illiterate. its really not that bad. if they didn't use the arabic numbers most of the time, then i'd be in trouble.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
pattaya
i spent our 3-day weekend in pattaya, which is a beach town about 2 hours drive (if no traffic) southeast of bangkok. its a big tourist place for thais and foreigners because its the closest beach to bangkok, and its renowned for its "nightlife". the theme of older western male with younger thai woman (or sometimes man) was common. i learned that more people need to consult mirrors when choosing swimwear. i swear some of those men were wearing women's bikini bottoms! inappropriate!
we went to a cabaret show on saturday night. i was pretty disappointed. there were a few transvestite performers, but i think most were real ladies. and almost all of them were lip-syncing, badly. but it was interesting to see thais dressed up in traditional costumes from other cultures (the belly dancers and geishas, especially). there was no ban on picture-taking or filming during the show, but i wish there had been. all the flashes constantly going off annoyed me, as did the man who stood in front of everyone and filmed the whole show, ignoring the ushers telling him to sit the hell down.
after that we went to the "walking street". it was essentially bourbon st. or key west. a street with no car traffic, lined with bars and go-go clubs and street performers. we stopped at one bar for a drink and there was some amateur muay thai going on. one white guy fought a thai guy about 8 or 10 inches shorter than him. it was a tie in the end. but the white guy was way slow. i don't really think its a sport for westerners, but i'm still going to try to keep up with my lessons.
the next day i went snorkeling around on of the offshore islands in the gulf of thailand. i think ko lan, but i don't actually remember what josef told me. josef was my slovakian group leader person. i was the only person snorkeling, so i got to do whatever i wanted while they all went diving. the first stop was about a 30 min boat ride from the pier. the water was choppy. i felt nauseous when we stopped but i figured i'd feel better once i got swimming in the water, after all i've never been seasick from snorkeling before. well i did feel a little better for awhile, then i must have hit a rough patch of sea and started feeling really sick. i was wearing a life jacket (i like to just float around when i snorkel, so what? and i was all by myself, seemed safer.) and i wasn't exactly sure what would happen if i tried throwing up while bobbing around in the life jacket. i'm used to bending over to barf. so i swam back to the boat and barfed in the bathroom. i don't recommend pineapple before a boat trip, just fyi. shortly after that the divers all came back and we headed for the second spot. and it was lunch time. the smell of food made me want to barf again. i just laid on a bench while everyone else ate. then we stopped and i felt a bit better so i tried a few plain spaghetti strands. it was iffy. then i snorkeled at this second place for about 2 hours. i felt pretty fine most of the time, it was a more sheltered site. then back on the boat to go home. i was feeling good so i had a cup of tea to warm up and get some blood sugar. well, that was apparently a bad idea. this time i just barfed over the side of the boat. i don't know what the deal was, i have never been that seasick before. and i felt fine once i got off the boat.
anyway, there were lots of different kinds of corals, in all shapes and sizes! brain corals, ones that looked like fans or shelves. and lots of different colors, red, purple, green, etc. and of course lots of fishes! in lots of colors and sizes! i can't tell you what most of them were because i don't know. i did see one puffer fish. and a million sea urchins and sea cucumbers, and some crabs. no octopus or shark. :(
the other highlight of the trip was a random guy i met on the street. oh, this sounds like a good story, doesn't it. you are thinking, "liz, don't talk to random men on the street!" well, i usually don't. they try to talk to me and i give them my "go away" look and they go away. it works. but this guy pulls up next to me on a motorcycle and asks me for a restaurant recommendation, so i say i have no idea and give him my look. and he's strangely persistent, keeps asking me things, especially since its clear we are both american (not a lot of americans here). finally he says, "do you really not recognize me?" and i'm like, "um, no, should i?" and he starts making fun of me, "don't you ever watch tv? maybe some music channels? mtv, vh1?" and i say, "well, not that much" and i'm thinking why would this 60-year-old man be on vh1?? so finally he tells me he's from the eagles, as in the old band. now reunited. i was thinking, "that's a little old for me" but i didn't say it! be nice to rich people, it can't hurt! and i know he could just be faking it, but he seems pretty genuine so i agree to go have a beer with him at the bar across the street (we rode on his motorcycle for about 50 m, a little honda kind not like the big harley he has at home). so we have a beer and chat for awhile. he hits on my, i turn him down, we chat some more. he was quite interesting to talk to. then he left me for some russian ladies. i wished him luck and went on my merry way. oh, i forgot to say his name. joe walsh. you know him? i didn't. i couldn't even tell you any of the eagles until i googled it (i know the name don henley, but i didn't know he was in that band). i looked at joe's recent pictures and i'm sure it was him, he wasn't pulling my leg. just too bad i didn't have my camera for proof!! i guess joe is used to people recognizing him, but he struck out with me. haha! it was all pretty amusing for me! and a nice story to tell, i met a famous person on the street, etc.
we went to a cabaret show on saturday night. i was pretty disappointed. there were a few transvestite performers, but i think most were real ladies. and almost all of them were lip-syncing, badly. but it was interesting to see thais dressed up in traditional costumes from other cultures (the belly dancers and geishas, especially). there was no ban on picture-taking or filming during the show, but i wish there had been. all the flashes constantly going off annoyed me, as did the man who stood in front of everyone and filmed the whole show, ignoring the ushers telling him to sit the hell down.
after that we went to the "walking street". it was essentially bourbon st. or key west. a street with no car traffic, lined with bars and go-go clubs and street performers. we stopped at one bar for a drink and there was some amateur muay thai going on. one white guy fought a thai guy about 8 or 10 inches shorter than him. it was a tie in the end. but the white guy was way slow. i don't really think its a sport for westerners, but i'm still going to try to keep up with my lessons.
the next day i went snorkeling around on of the offshore islands in the gulf of thailand. i think ko lan, but i don't actually remember what josef told me. josef was my slovakian group leader person. i was the only person snorkeling, so i got to do whatever i wanted while they all went diving. the first stop was about a 30 min boat ride from the pier. the water was choppy. i felt nauseous when we stopped but i figured i'd feel better once i got swimming in the water, after all i've never been seasick from snorkeling before. well i did feel a little better for awhile, then i must have hit a rough patch of sea and started feeling really sick. i was wearing a life jacket (i like to just float around when i snorkel, so what? and i was all by myself, seemed safer.) and i wasn't exactly sure what would happen if i tried throwing up while bobbing around in the life jacket. i'm used to bending over to barf. so i swam back to the boat and barfed in the bathroom. i don't recommend pineapple before a boat trip, just fyi. shortly after that the divers all came back and we headed for the second spot. and it was lunch time. the smell of food made me want to barf again. i just laid on a bench while everyone else ate. then we stopped and i felt a bit better so i tried a few plain spaghetti strands. it was iffy. then i snorkeled at this second place for about 2 hours. i felt pretty fine most of the time, it was a more sheltered site. then back on the boat to go home. i was feeling good so i had a cup of tea to warm up and get some blood sugar. well, that was apparently a bad idea. this time i just barfed over the side of the boat. i don't know what the deal was, i have never been that seasick before. and i felt fine once i got off the boat.
anyway, there were lots of different kinds of corals, in all shapes and sizes! brain corals, ones that looked like fans or shelves. and lots of different colors, red, purple, green, etc. and of course lots of fishes! in lots of colors and sizes! i can't tell you what most of them were because i don't know. i did see one puffer fish. and a million sea urchins and sea cucumbers, and some crabs. no octopus or shark. :(
the other highlight of the trip was a random guy i met on the street. oh, this sounds like a good story, doesn't it. you are thinking, "liz, don't talk to random men on the street!" well, i usually don't. they try to talk to me and i give them my "go away" look and they go away. it works. but this guy pulls up next to me on a motorcycle and asks me for a restaurant recommendation, so i say i have no idea and give him my look. and he's strangely persistent, keeps asking me things, especially since its clear we are both american (not a lot of americans here). finally he says, "do you really not recognize me?" and i'm like, "um, no, should i?" and he starts making fun of me, "don't you ever watch tv? maybe some music channels? mtv, vh1?" and i say, "well, not that much" and i'm thinking why would this 60-year-old man be on vh1?? so finally he tells me he's from the eagles, as in the old band. now reunited. i was thinking, "that's a little old for me" but i didn't say it! be nice to rich people, it can't hurt! and i know he could just be faking it, but he seems pretty genuine so i agree to go have a beer with him at the bar across the street (we rode on his motorcycle for about 50 m, a little honda kind not like the big harley he has at home). so we have a beer and chat for awhile. he hits on my, i turn him down, we chat some more. he was quite interesting to talk to. then he left me for some russian ladies. i wished him luck and went on my merry way. oh, i forgot to say his name. joe walsh. you know him? i didn't. i couldn't even tell you any of the eagles until i googled it (i know the name don henley, but i didn't know he was in that band). i looked at joe's recent pictures and i'm sure it was him, he wasn't pulling my leg. just too bad i didn't have my camera for proof!! i guess joe is used to people recognizing him, but he struck out with me. haha! it was all pretty amusing for me! and a nice story to tell, i met a famous person on the street, etc.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
oh, nasty
i accidentally ate durian, the gross fruit i thought might make me puke. well, it didn't make me barf but i didn't enjoy it! it tasted and smelled like a natural gas leak (from the sulfur they put in it) and something else gross and vaguely like garbage. i was not paying attention when the lady asked me what dessert i wanted and i ended up with sticky rice covered with coconut milk and durian. sticky rice and coconut would have been delightful, but the durian ruined it. now i will pay closer attention when i'm getting dessert.
on a brighter note, 2 new foods i quite enjoy:
1. something in the rice krispy treat family, but way better. no marshmallow, something like caramel instead. also has peanuts, sunflower seeds and sesame seeds. its more gooey, not solid like rice krispy treats. delightful! the lady at the market who sells this stuff, she knows me now.
2. imagine something like an elephant ear, a round of fried dough but not super cripsy. then you take that hot fried dough, drizzle it with condensed milk, roll it up like a burrito, and sprinkle on sugar. then eat. oh, its delicious! i think this could be a big hit in the states.
on a brighter note, 2 new foods i quite enjoy:
1. something in the rice krispy treat family, but way better. no marshmallow, something like caramel instead. also has peanuts, sunflower seeds and sesame seeds. its more gooey, not solid like rice krispy treats. delightful! the lady at the market who sells this stuff, she knows me now.
2. imagine something like an elephant ear, a round of fried dough but not super cripsy. then you take that hot fried dough, drizzle it with condensed milk, roll it up like a burrito, and sprinkle on sugar. then eat. oh, its delicious! i think this could be a big hit in the states.
Monday, August 13, 2007
the holiday weekend
it was a busy holiday weekend, let me tell you. ok, so i am exaggerating a bit, but i still did some interesting things.
on saturday, i had a pizza lunch with two other teachers, took a nap, and then we went into bangkok. matthew was looking for presents for people (he leaves at approximately the same time i do, but he's been here for 5 years) so we went to some "handicrafts mall" that had the same stuff you see at a market, but in an air conditioned, uncrowded environment. and some of the things i've seen at markets look better than some of the stuff there, so i think i'll take my chances with the market in the future. then we went to see the simpson's movie, which had funny parts but wasn't fantastic. there was a part where rod/todd flanders ask if buddha will be in heaven with jesus, and flanders yells NO! that made me cringe a little because i don't know if the humor translates in the thai subtitles. there was also a sign with a billboard written in korean. after it was over, mr. kim told us that it said, "i will teach you a texan accent" and wanted to know what texan accent was and why it was funny. the funny part was that only someone who knows korean could tell what it said, and why would a korean know a texan accent? i don't think mr. kim really go it. he also thought arnold schwartzenegar might be offended by them making fun of him. hahaha! then we had dinner at a sushi place and i was not impressed. that was the end of saturday.
i had told yan, a chinese teacher, that i would go with her on sunday morning to some ceremony for the queen's birthday. we were supposed to leave at 7:30. i didn't get out of bed until almost 9. then i saw she had left me a note that they were leaving at 8:30 instead. oh well. i'm glad i missed it, in the end, because yan told me it was a mostly a person or a monk talking (in thai) about the queen and you stand up and sit down and kneel and stand up and curtsy, etc.
but later that day i went to the grand palace and the temple of the emerald buddha. i think these are must-see tourist places. i would have enjoyed it more in different company, that is all i will say. the buildings were impressive, extremely elaborate carvings and enamel-work and paintings. i have seen pictures of the emerald buddha and, i have to say, i was not that impressed. i had imagined it to be much larger, so i was a little let down when we finally got there! it is maybe 3 feet tall, on top of a 30 foot tall pillar deal. so its hard to see it because you can't get even get very close to the pillar, and you aren't allowed to take pictures either, and there are a million sweaty people also trying to see it. and it was past my lunch time, so maybe i was a little grumpy.
today i walked over to a huge buddha park near our school, called buddhamonthon or puttamonthon or puta mon thon or however you feel like spelling it. there is a really tall buddha statue there and the park is gigantic and peaceful. well, maybe buddha statues don't like me, beacuse after i walked all the way over there and finally found this buddha statue (its hard to see past trees, and i'm illiterate) it was almostly completely covered up. they must be resurfacing or cleaning or something, but i could see a sliver of face through the netting. another disappointment. i did see a bunch of turtles, a new bird, some small lizards, and 2 monitor lizards, so it wasn't a total waste of a walk. then i went back to school, had lunch, talked to tim for a bit, took a nap and then got a 2 hour thai massage. that was awesome. it was like a yoga workout, but the lady did it all for me. she stretched muscles i didn't know could be stretched. she used this spearmint/menthol lotion on my arms and legs, so i felt like a peppermint stick when i left. it was sort of like icy hot, it was cool and first and then got hot. the only bad part was that i have a bruise on my foot and it was super painful when she massaged it. oh well, it was worth it. especially since i have thai boxing lessons tomorrow!! well, maybe i should have had the massage after boxing, but at least i'm all limber now.
pictures later, i'm feeling lazy.
on saturday, i had a pizza lunch with two other teachers, took a nap, and then we went into bangkok. matthew was looking for presents for people (he leaves at approximately the same time i do, but he's been here for 5 years) so we went to some "handicrafts mall" that had the same stuff you see at a market, but in an air conditioned, uncrowded environment. and some of the things i've seen at markets look better than some of the stuff there, so i think i'll take my chances with the market in the future. then we went to see the simpson's movie, which had funny parts but wasn't fantastic. there was a part where rod/todd flanders ask if buddha will be in heaven with jesus, and flanders yells NO! that made me cringe a little because i don't know if the humor translates in the thai subtitles. there was also a sign with a billboard written in korean. after it was over, mr. kim told us that it said, "i will teach you a texan accent" and wanted to know what texan accent was and why it was funny. the funny part was that only someone who knows korean could tell what it said, and why would a korean know a texan accent? i don't think mr. kim really go it. he also thought arnold schwartzenegar might be offended by them making fun of him. hahaha! then we had dinner at a sushi place and i was not impressed. that was the end of saturday.
i had told yan, a chinese teacher, that i would go with her on sunday morning to some ceremony for the queen's birthday. we were supposed to leave at 7:30. i didn't get out of bed until almost 9. then i saw she had left me a note that they were leaving at 8:30 instead. oh well. i'm glad i missed it, in the end, because yan told me it was a mostly a person or a monk talking (in thai) about the queen and you stand up and sit down and kneel and stand up and curtsy, etc.
but later that day i went to the grand palace and the temple of the emerald buddha. i think these are must-see tourist places. i would have enjoyed it more in different company, that is all i will say. the buildings were impressive, extremely elaborate carvings and enamel-work and paintings. i have seen pictures of the emerald buddha and, i have to say, i was not that impressed. i had imagined it to be much larger, so i was a little let down when we finally got there! it is maybe 3 feet tall, on top of a 30 foot tall pillar deal. so its hard to see it because you can't get even get very close to the pillar, and you aren't allowed to take pictures either, and there are a million sweaty people also trying to see it. and it was past my lunch time, so maybe i was a little grumpy.
today i walked over to a huge buddha park near our school, called buddhamonthon or puttamonthon or puta mon thon or however you feel like spelling it. there is a really tall buddha statue there and the park is gigantic and peaceful. well, maybe buddha statues don't like me, beacuse after i walked all the way over there and finally found this buddha statue (its hard to see past trees, and i'm illiterate) it was almostly completely covered up. they must be resurfacing or cleaning or something, but i could see a sliver of face through the netting. another disappointment. i did see a bunch of turtles, a new bird, some small lizards, and 2 monitor lizards, so it wasn't a total waste of a walk. then i went back to school, had lunch, talked to tim for a bit, took a nap and then got a 2 hour thai massage. that was awesome. it was like a yoga workout, but the lady did it all for me. she stretched muscles i didn't know could be stretched. she used this spearmint/menthol lotion on my arms and legs, so i felt like a peppermint stick when i left. it was sort of like icy hot, it was cool and first and then got hot. the only bad part was that i have a bruise on my foot and it was super painful when she massaged it. oh well, it was worth it. especially since i have thai boxing lessons tomorrow!! well, maybe i should have had the massage after boxing, but at least i'm all limber now.
pictures later, i'm feeling lazy.
Friday, August 10, 2007
surprises
surprises in the past 24 hours:
1. the gym teacher is excited that i'm switching from badminton to thai boxing lessons! first boxing lesson is on tuesday.
2. we get 2 3-day weekends in a row! this weekend for the queen's birthday, next weekend for the national vote on the new constitution because people are supposed to go to their hometown to vote on sunday, so they need monday to travel back to the big cities where they work. i, however, plan to take a holiday. i just need to make some plans! hopefully will go away for a few days with yan, a teachers visiting from china. or the other americans.
right now its about time for the class i help out with. today we are going to collect insects. i hope the rain holds off for a couple of hours so we can find some good stuff!
1. the gym teacher is excited that i'm switching from badminton to thai boxing lessons! first boxing lesson is on tuesday.
2. we get 2 3-day weekends in a row! this weekend for the queen's birthday, next weekend for the national vote on the new constitution because people are supposed to go to their hometown to vote on sunday, so they need monday to travel back to the big cities where they work. i, however, plan to take a holiday. i just need to make some plans! hopefully will go away for a few days with yan, a teachers visiting from china. or the other americans.
right now its about time for the class i help out with. today we are going to collect insects. i hope the rain holds off for a couple of hours so we can find some good stuff!
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
news flash
in case you missed the big news out of thailand today, i suggest you read this. never mind that there's still some political stuff going on here and a vote on the new constitution coming up, or that there's a drought in some areas (all the monsoon rains went to india and bangladesh instead?), or that thailand feels burdened by all the hmong political refugees from laos so they have to go back to laos.
Sunday, August 05, 2007
at a loss for a title
been awhile since a post. its been full-time drama here, that's why. about started an international incident. long story short, i had some money stolen. the school is so embarrassed by it, how could this happen at our school?? (answer: it happens everywhere, you are not that special.) but they feel so responsible that they are gonna give me money to make up for what i lost. or, what i estimated i lost since i wasn't actually keeping track of my spending. so that was a good end to a long, dramatic few days.
this weekend i went into bangkok and just wandered around, mostly. yesterday i went to the chinatown area, although it was disoriented so i didn't really even penetrate into the neighborhood. but i did find out where the train station in bangkok is, and got a schedule so i know when i can take the train from or to school (train station 4 blocks away). its cheap, takes about the same as the bus, but isn't air conditioned. it just depends on where i'm going as to what is the better option.
today i went to a weekend market. it was gigantic. i got there early and it wasn't too crowded, but it was pretty packed by noon. it was tiring, walking around and looking at things for hours. plus, it gets hotter and hotter, so that wears me out as well. i have to make sure i eat and drink something regularly or i get totally pooped and irritable. there was some so-so stuff and some pretty amazing stuff, i have to say. lots of clothes, jewelry and art. although it was probably all cheaper than it would be in the US, some of it was expensive.
anyway, that is all for now... this cracked me up:
http://www.comedycentral.com/motherload/index.jhtml?ml_video=90339
this weekend i went into bangkok and just wandered around, mostly. yesterday i went to the chinatown area, although it was disoriented so i didn't really even penetrate into the neighborhood. but i did find out where the train station in bangkok is, and got a schedule so i know when i can take the train from or to school (train station 4 blocks away). its cheap, takes about the same as the bus, but isn't air conditioned. it just depends on where i'm going as to what is the better option.
today i went to a weekend market. it was gigantic. i got there early and it wasn't too crowded, but it was pretty packed by noon. it was tiring, walking around and looking at things for hours. plus, it gets hotter and hotter, so that wears me out as well. i have to make sure i eat and drink something regularly or i get totally pooped and irritable. there was some so-so stuff and some pretty amazing stuff, i have to say. lots of clothes, jewelry and art. although it was probably all cheaper than it would be in the US, some of it was expensive.
anyway, that is all for now... this cracked me up:
http://www.comedycentral.com/motherload/index.jhtml?ml_video=90339
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