Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Sawadee ka! (translation: hello--Sawadee krap if you are a man)


Tonight is the last night I will be sleeping in the U.S. as I get ready for the 17 hour flight to Thailand.  I have been anticipating and planning for this adventure for the past 9 or 10 months and can't believe it is about to start!

I am a mix of emotions as I near the beginning of this new chapter of my life.  There is the anticipation of missing my family (especially my brand new nephew), my friends, and my very content life that I have been living recently.  The larger anticipation of an adventure that I will probably talk about for the rest of my life and which will absolutely shape my future in ways I can't even know right now.  The anxiety of physically getting to Thailand (fears of missing the flight, getting ripped off by a taxi driver when we get there, finding the hotel in Bangkok, etc).  The excitement of meeting all of the other 150+ people teaching english in Thailand and of getting to know the Thai faculty, staff, and students.

Here is the general plan for these first steps of my adventure:

1) Flight leaves from SFO late Wednesday night/early Thursday morning.
2) Layover in Taiwan.
3) Get to Thailand in the middle of the day on Friday (the 20th)
4) Orientation in Bangkok until the 25th--learning how to actually teach, touring Bangkok, and learning other useful information.

  • This is where the orientation is taking place: http://www.louistavernhotel-bkk.com/home.html

5) Move to my new home on the night of the 25th.

I am teaching high school students at a public high school in Suphaburi, which is 1-2 hours north west of Bangkok.  I am teaching during their second semester, which is five months long.  However, I have a one way ticket because I plan on doing a lot of traveling while I'm on that side of the world (India, Nepal, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Indonesia are my current list) and am open to doing something else (work or volunteering) if I am happy there.  

As far as I can tell, there is one other girl teaching at the school (who I will meet at orientation) with Eric and I (for those who don't know, Eric is my boyfriend and we applied to the teaching program together so this is a shared adventure). It sounds like a really great place to live in order to get a good feel for Thailand while also being relatively close to more westernized aspects of the country when I am feeling out of place.  I prepared myself for this move by reading the entire blog of a girl who taught at the same school for a year and that has definitely made me feel more prepared and excited for my teaching/living, eating, smiling, and exploring.  I will let you know how prepared I actually am when I have been there for a week or so :)

I was thinking that writing this blog post tonight would help me get some of my goals for this experience written down, so here are some goals which I am sure I will develop and add to on the flight and once I am in Thailand.

1) Become close friends with other english teachers and with locals in Suphanburi.
2) Actually use the Thai that I have been practicing and learn a lot more.
3) Find creative ways to keep the 50 high schoolers in each class engaged and interested in learning english.
4) Learn more about Buddhism (almost everyone in Thailand is Buddhist) and try to understand how it is incorporated into everyday life.
5) Try any weird food I am offered or see (besides bugs).
6) Keep a journal and update this blog.
7) Fall in love with Thailand.

My last day in the U.S. will be spent tying the loose ends together, packing, and spending time with my family.  This time tomorrow night I will be waiting at the airport to get started on this new and exciting chapter of my life!


Sawadee ka! (transition: goodbye, yes it is the same)

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