Chiang Mai

5/13

Hopped on a plane today to Chiang Mai in the north with my buddy Ike. Only cost 1,500 Baht, although we did have to wait at the airport for over 4 hours. The flight was only 45 minutes, and we picked up by Ike's friend, Pi Arm. Ike's mother owns an apartment building, and I will be staying in one of the units free of charge for the 3 or 4 days that we are here. Pretty generous if you ask me, especially considering the fact that these apartments go for roughly 1,000 Baht ($33) a night. That's a decent chunk of change here. This is one of the things I have noticed the most, having been here only a weeok or so: the generosity of the Thai people. They ask so little and give so much. They always help me when I'm lost. One night a group of us arrived at a "night bazaar" to meet some friends for dinner. We had no clue where the restaurant was. It was a pretty big area. As soon as we arrived, a "tuk tuk"(Thai mini-taxi), solicited us for a fare. This is a common annoyance in Thailand, especially for farangs. After turning him down, I asked him for directions to the restaurant, and he steered me in the right direction(no pun intended, hehe). Although he was unable to communicate the precise location of the restaurant, he did help us despite our refusal of his business. Such is the way of the Thai people.

Anyhow, we arrived at the apartment complex around 8. Ike's mother is a very sweet lady, so is his friend Pi Arm. Neither one of them, however, speak much English(Ike's mother has not uttered one word of English that I am aware of). Ike is fluent in Thai and English. He grew up in Bangkok and left for Canada to live with his father when he was fifteen years old. He has lived in British Columbia for the past 12 years. He is a sharp guy, having already acquired a PhD in Behavioral Science at the age of 27. I am lucky to be living in such near proximity to him(we will be teaching at the same school, if I haven't mentioned that already). He, like all the other Thai's I've encountered, has a very generous spirit.

We ate fish, rice, squid, shrimp prongs, fresh veggies, soup, and jack fruit for dinner. Even the fish we ate was pulled out of a pond located on the property. Big daddies too, although I'm not sure what kind. They conversed for hours in Thai(Ike, his mom, and Ike's friend Pi Arm) witrha few snid bits of translation when they had questions about me. Mostly, I sat at the table with with an attentive smile on my face while they caught up and told stories. It was very cool.

5/14

Ike phoned me in the morning. Today, Ike had some business to take care of, the nature of which I am thoroughly unaware. Ike and Pi Arm picked me up around 10:30 and we headed to a mega mall in the center of Chiang Mai. I'm sure there's another one, but this mall seemed to have everything anyone could ever need. We ate lunch and then Ike and Pi Arm left to take care of their errands. The plan was, in my mind, for me to hang out and do some shopping for a few hours. Also, quick sidebar, they helped me bargain the price of a massage,which I was excited about.I had never had one, but now I don't see what the big deal is. If anything, the massage was uncomfortable, unless you like someone's knees grinding on your vertebrae. I'm way too ticklish for a massage. I have to admit that there was some uncontrollable giggling involved, and I think it threw the masseuse off her game. I was quite happy when it ended, but not too happy. Anyways, they left, I got my massage, and shopped for a couple of hours. Still no word from my buddy Ike. I explored every inch of the mall, which has five expansive floors. I wandered around scoping out the stores and all the people, most of whose faces displayed curious expressions. I loved it. Finally, Ike, his friend, and his mother met me for dinner in the mall(7 hours later) at a quaint little Japanese eatery. Descliscious. Afterwards, we shopped around a bit(my idea..) and then they dropped me off at the apartment. It was 9:30, so I decided I would read a bit. It had just rained, so there were a bunch of flies swarming around any lit area. We are talking hundreds per lamp post. the really dumb kind too, the kind that fly obnoxiously with no fluidity whatsoever. They would fly into volcanic lava if it was bright enough. Anyways, these little bastard insects kept getting into my room by squeezing in under the door where there was just enough of a gap to slip on in. There is one thing I have to admit I respect about these things: their resilience. I stuffed the crack of the door with all kinds of blockage, and they kept finding an opening. I ended up reading under the light of the television.

5/15

Ike called me in the morning to tell me that his mother and I would be meeting him at a hotel for lunch. His mother drove me, and we did not speak except to say "sawasdee krap" and "sabai di mai krap", hello and how are you. We met Ike and several friends of his who I had not met: Pi Nook and Pi Matt(Pi goes before anyone's name who is older than you). They were very nice. Pi Nook is 27 and Pi Matt is in her thirties. Thai people look, on average, 3-4 years younger than they are. Neither one of them speak any English(maybe a couple words. they speak as much English as I speak Thai). After lunch, Ike had some more business to take care of in the city, so I went wit Pi Nook and Pi Matt to Pi Nook's village in the country. Her parents were preparing vegetables and spices for dinner. That's the thing with Thai meals. It takes a long time to prepare all of the ingredients(most of the vegetables are picked fresh out of a garden the day of the meal), but once all the items have been gathered they are simply thrown into a pot and cooked rather quickly. Pi Nook's father( I assume it was her father. No ingles) was cooking coconut treats that were very tasty. I'm not sure what they're called, but I liked them very much.

That night we went "clubbing". It was quite an experience. I was the only foreigner among hundreds of Thai twnetysomethings. The first time I had to use the bathroom(the first of many. i was pounding red bull), 4 bathroom attendants swarmed me. the first guy put a warm cloth around my neck as I was "doing my business" at the urinal. i told him to stop, but he didn't. I was very uncomfortable. When I was done, he flushed the toiler for me. Then another guy cracked my neck and popped my back. What? I guess some Thai's don't believe in the concept of boundaries, or at least a healthy buffer zone. They were looking for a hand out of course, and I'm a sucker so I tipped all 4 of them. That's fine, I guess.

The next day we ate lunch in the mountains and did some sight seeing. Pretty awesome. I was kind of exhausted though. Too much Bull I suppose. We took it easy that night.

I took an early plane to bangkok the next day. Chiang Mai was great, but I was glad to be back. School starts next week.

(Sorry for the lengthy post, but I had a lot of time on my hands.)

First Impressions and Orientation

I arrived in thailand around midnight, Tuesday morning. Traveling was really not a hassle at all, or at least it went as smoothly as possible. Every flight departed and arrived on schedule. Going through immigration was much easier than I anticipated, and customs just waved me right through. My bags were conveyed to me within ten minutes of my arrival. All bags accounted for. All items in tact. I met up with another participant in Tokyo, and we shared a taxi to the Pinnacle Hotel in Bangkok. Having been prepared for an onslaught of "private" taxis at the airport, we politely declined their invitations for a discounted rate to the hotel. Since orientation did not officially start until Wednesday, we put ourselves up an extra night in the hotel for a modest price.

When I first stepped out into the Bangkok evening (early morning), I was met with a fistful of shocking humidity (this coming from someone who has lived in Memphis, TN most of his life). What I noticed next was the heavy concentration ofpollutants in the sticky air, an addition that made the rare Bangkok breeze that much more palpable.

When we arrived at the hotel, we checked in and the bell boy delivered our bags to our rooms. I tipped him 50 Baht($1.75), and he smiled at me every time time he saw me for the rest of the night. Not just a reserved, gratuitous smile. This man was peaking his head up at me from the ground level while I smoked on the balcony above him. He was really straining his neck. I was creeped out, indeed. I knew coming in that the Thai people were a smiley bunch, but actually experiencing this seemingly unwarranted display of joy and appreciation was rather baffling. This was the beginning of my interaction with an entirely different culture than my own.

I had my first experience of the culture my first morning in Bangkok: breakfast at the hotel. They were serving boiled rice, pork, and some western breakfast dishes as well. I tried the boiled rice and some random thai meat dishes, but I ended up going for the more traditional American dishes such as toast, french toast, eggs, and bacon(pweef?). The fruit here is amazing, especially the pineapple. I have had pineapple at least twice a day since I've been here. So fresh, so sweet. The breakfast at the hotel hardly represented a typical Thai meal, and I have to admit that my cowardice got the best of me my first night in Thailand: I ordered a club sandwich and french fries through room service. I was fatigued and intimidated by the stream of food vendors and the general hustle and bustle of the highly active city. Also, the food stnads were located 5 feet from the busiest street I have ever seen. The fumes were not too appetizing. I do have to admit that i was a lame westerner my first day in Thailand.

Orientation was a great experience. There were eighteen of us total(I think? I'm sure someone will correct me). Most of the group was from the U.S., although we did have 3 Canadiens and 1 Aussie. No one had ever met, except for an engaged couple. The couple had originally planned to teach in China but were denied entry unexpectedly at the last minute. All of the particpants were women except three of us. This imbalance was extremely curious to me. Surely women are not more adventurous than men.

Orientation week was very busy. We spent approximately 5 hours a day in the classroom completing a teacher's training workshop( by the way none of us have ever taught before). We learned a bit about Thai history in the classroom and also by going to the Grand Palace and taking a tour of the complex that houses Thai royalty(historically). We learned some basics about Thai food and the Thai language, two things very foreign to me. It was a fun week, and I think I will miss having native English speakers in my life for the next 5 months.

When orientation ended my buddy Ike and I were picked up from the hotel by our school coordinator and driven to our apartment in Bang Bon, Bangkok. It is a minimal setup, but that is okay. I have a/c and a fridge, so I will not complain. We are headed Chiang Mai for 4 days because we don't start teaching until tomorrow(the 18th, this is kind of a delayed post).

It feels like I have been here for about a month. There's so much going on. Until my next post, which should be tomorrow, take care.

Sawasdee Krap, amigos.

Sunday, May 3, 2009

I wake up at 6:30. 4 hours of sleep. Of course. I have 27 hours of traveling ahead of me and still I choose to stay out until 2 playing pool. But that's okay. I'll sleep on the plane, right? Unless some Japanese guy decides that he cares not that the person sitting behind him may want some room to work with too. We all need to be comfortable on this thing. This is a shared experience. Don't you care? 13 hours! Wait a minute. This is not march madness or the playoffs, or Michael Phelps or Lebron. There is no camaraderie. I am the outcast now. That is fine. I have always wanted to be the foreigner. I have just flown over Canada and am now crossing over the Pacific on my way to Tokyo. I have to fill out a form for the Japanese government that says that I don't have the swine flu. They haven't gotten it yet, and I don't want t be the one to pass this mutated terror germ to the pacific rim. I guess I have been able to sleep some, despite my new favorite person in the world, whose gyrations are killing me. An hour and a half here and there. That is something I can actually do pretty well. My scrambling sleep  ability is unmatched. And I am very low maintenance. There's and empty seat between me and the Japanese young man sitting in the aisle seat. He seems nice, although he hasn't said a word. I wish I had some more leg room though. That's okay. I'll use the blanket they gave me to keep my knees from getting carpet burn from rubbing an turning against the tilted seat that lies pretty much in my lap. 

I have not even mentioned the first flight, the 2 hour leg from Memphis to Tokyo. I made a friend on this plane, a young lady from Canada who was very nice. She was on her way home from Orlando. I told her to come to Bangkok, but she wouldn't listen. 

As I type It is 12:15 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, 1:15 P.M. in Tokyo(Monday), and 11:15 A.M. in Bangkok(Monday). I am losing half a day of my life, but it's worth the sacrifice. As long as they don't keep playing episodes of the New Adventures of Old Christine, I think I will make it.

4 more hours to go on this flight, and then 7 more to Bangkok. Plus 2 Layover. 13 Hours until I arrive. I may or may not update this en route posting. If not, then I will get with you once I reach the Land of Smiles.