i was reminded this evening, that it has been quite a while since i have blogged. it seems to me that tonight, my last night in my first temporary bangkok residence, is the perfect moment to write. the last month has flown by, as i learned to enjoy an extended vacation. it has been a strange kind of vacation though. much of it spent relaxing at the pool, reading and just spending time with friends a.k.a. roommates. it was nice to live with such a large group of energized and adventurous kids. that is how i thought of them. they are all around the age of 21 and this is their first time out on their own. that doesn't mean they have never traveled before, but they have never lived on their own before. and that is why i think of them as kids. but they were generally a good group of kids to share an apartment with.
though i was ready to get out of the crowd, i am now struck by the silence. tonight i am the only one in our spacious three bedroom apartment, and it feels empty and somewhat haunted. i will be glad to move to a smaller space tomorrow. i will be moving into temporary housing arranged by the school. i am not entirely sure what to expect. it is across the street from the school, though, so i will be centrally located to start work and find a more permanent residence. i will also be more centrally located to explore the city. i will be just a short walk from the skytrain that connects to much of the city. the skytrain is wonderful. both the skytrain and metro are very new, so they are extremely well run but not very extensive (there is one metro line and two skytrain lines). i like using the skytrain- i even like the name. it sounds so much more fanciful than the "el" of chicago, even though it is simply an elevated train.
well, all this talk of moving reminds me of how much packing i have left to do. but before i forget, i have confirmed the change of my plane tickets and i will be arriving in RDU on October 3. i consider this fair warning, so hopefully i will be able to make the most of my visit.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
Bangkok and Beginnings
greetings from the vibrant city of bangkok, our new home! sorry for the delayed response. some big things have happened, and i wasn’t really sure how to talk about it here.
my life in thailand has taken a wonderful, and dramatic turn. i was offered an incredible opportunity to teach as a regular elementary school teacher. i was not expecting anything like this- hence the plan for a six month stay. but upon coming across this chance, i couldn’t in my right mind say no. the end result is this: i will start a one year contract on march 17. during this year i will be a 4th grade math teacher at an all boy private catholic school here in bangkok. which means i am settled in bangkok until march 2012. but that also means i will leave here with a year of real teaching experience under my belt. having visited the school, and observed several lessons, i am really excited to be a part of the english program team. it seems like a good group of teachers working to give the best to a great group of thai students. there seems to be a great deal of support for the teachers, and that sounds good to me. i am even a little excited about teaching only math.
but back to the present. we arrived in bangkok about two weeks ago. we went the cheaper route of taking a bus up. it was a VIP bus, so the ride wasn't bad at all- just long. the bus was outfitted with every comfort possible: air conditioner, reclining seats, bathroom. we arrived in bangkok around 5 am, and got a couple tuk tuks to our hotel, which was called the thai cozy house hotel. it was a wonderful little place to begin our exploration of bangkok. it was just around the corner from khao san road, the center for backpackers. khao san is a great area. there are stalls and carts selling anything and everything, including delicious pad thai (fried noodles) for less than a dollar a plate!
after a week at thai cozy and the khao san neighborhood, we found a place to rent an apartment for a month. it is a little out of the way, but it is a very nice situation. there are seven of us in a 3 bedroom apartment, but it doesn't feel too cramped- there is a lot of floor space. on the other hand, that is a lot of people to be sharing a living space, and i will be glad to get out on my own. everyone has been pretty great, though. despite the number of people, there hasn't been any big drama or fights.
**
well, since starting this post almost a month ago (i know, i know, i need to work on just posting things instead of waiting to finish writing everything i think it should include) i have visited my new school and met some great people. i spent a morning observing several lessons in different grade levels. and after that experience, i am really excited to be a part of their teaching team. everyone has been so helpful and welcoming.
i'm going to go ahead and post this now. i'll write more about the school and such later.
happy valentine's day!!
my life in thailand has taken a wonderful, and dramatic turn. i was offered an incredible opportunity to teach as a regular elementary school teacher. i was not expecting anything like this- hence the plan for a six month stay. but upon coming across this chance, i couldn’t in my right mind say no. the end result is this: i will start a one year contract on march 17. during this year i will be a 4th grade math teacher at an all boy private catholic school here in bangkok. which means i am settled in bangkok until march 2012. but that also means i will leave here with a year of real teaching experience under my belt. having visited the school, and observed several lessons, i am really excited to be a part of the english program team. it seems like a good group of teachers working to give the best to a great group of thai students. there seems to be a great deal of support for the teachers, and that sounds good to me. i am even a little excited about teaching only math.
but back to the present. we arrived in bangkok about two weeks ago. we went the cheaper route of taking a bus up. it was a VIP bus, so the ride wasn't bad at all- just long. the bus was outfitted with every comfort possible: air conditioner, reclining seats, bathroom. we arrived in bangkok around 5 am, and got a couple tuk tuks to our hotel, which was called the thai cozy house hotel. it was a wonderful little place to begin our exploration of bangkok. it was just around the corner from khao san road, the center for backpackers. khao san is a great area. there are stalls and carts selling anything and everything, including delicious pad thai (fried noodles) for less than a dollar a plate!
after a week at thai cozy and the khao san neighborhood, we found a place to rent an apartment for a month. it is a little out of the way, but it is a very nice situation. there are seven of us in a 3 bedroom apartment, but it doesn't feel too cramped- there is a lot of floor space. on the other hand, that is a lot of people to be sharing a living space, and i will be glad to get out on my own. everyone has been pretty great, though. despite the number of people, there hasn't been any big drama or fights.
**
well, since starting this post almost a month ago (i know, i know, i need to work on just posting things instead of waiting to finish writing everything i think it should include) i have visited my new school and met some great people. i spent a morning observing several lessons in different grade levels. and after that experience, i am really excited to be a part of their teaching team. everyone has been so helpful and welcoming.
i'm going to go ahead and post this now. i'll write more about the school and such later.
happy valentine's day!!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)