Day 15: September 11:
After going to bed at 11 PM last night, I woke up this morning at 3 AM. First let me tell you a story. My host dad was talking to me last night at about 6 PM. What I thought he was saying was: “You have to leave at ten, so you have three hours until you need to get ready and four hours until you have to leave.” I ran up to my room and quickly began to pack, then waited, and waited. 10 o’clock rolls around. Now, I wasn’t positive if that was what he said, and I knew someone would come get me when the time came to leave. Then it became 10:30 and I was sure that I had misunderstood what he had said. Then it clicked. He meant “Go to bed at 10, be up at 3 and leave at four.” Oi. Boy was I wrong. I cleaned up the mess I had made of my room and fell asleep still slightly dressed. I awoke with a start to my host mom saying something to me. Had I not just woken up after getting about 3 hours of sleep, I probably would have understood what she was saying. Instead, I hopped out of bed, threw on the rest of my clothes, and raced downstairs. Turns out, it was only 3:20 AM. I went back upstairs to make myself a bit more presentable, but ended up falling back asleep. I was woken up, once again by my host mom saying something, this time I knew what she was saying “Good morning! Time to go!” I was dressed and out the door by 4 with Yai. I hadn’t eaten because, well I was too tired to be hungry, but Yai stopped at 7/11 and had me eat something. I chose coffee and a little cake; very nutritious, I know. This was the first cup of coffee I’d had in fifteen days. It had been too long my friends. We picked up Da and drove somewhere. I had no idea where we were or where we would be going. I assumed we would be going to the airport in Bangkok. Yai left Da and I waiting for the van. There I met one of the other YEs in Thailand. Her name was Emmi and she was from Finland. She didn’t talk much, but then again, it was very early in the morning. The van pulled up and we piled in, Emmi, her host dad, Da, and I. Inside the van, I met another YE. His name was David and he was from Germany. Sitting beside him was his host dad. Two more people piled in and we were off. It was an hour drive to the airport, and a very quiet one. Most everyone was either asleep, or falling asleep. We got to the airport with time to spare so we sat down in a little coffee shop. The adults sat together and we exchange students sat at another table. I began asking them about their home, how long they had been here, what they thought, the usual starter questions, and neither one seemed to be too happy. They seemed surprised at how happy I was to be there and how much I was enjoying it. Oi! All I could think was I was sure glad I wasn’t either of them. Soon Anna arrived chipper as ever to rescue me from the Debbie downer duo. It was so nice to see a familiar face, and of course she was accompanied by her ukulele. She sat down beside me and started talking with us. Apparently she was having as great of a time as I was! Huzzah, I’m not alone! After some time of our host parents tring to get us to eat, and us turning them down, it was time to check in and board our plane. It was quite a small plane compared to the planes I had taken on my way here, but not too small. I was seated next to David and in front of us sat Emmi and Anna. After some time of talking with David, I began to think of him as less of a Debbie; he was quite interesting. After about half an hour of awkward bonding, the plane landed in a tiny, abandoned looking airport. It was the strangest airport I had ever seen. There wasn’t a gate for us to walk off the plane and into, instead a set of metal stairs was wheeled over to the exit of the plane. Surrounding the perimeter of the airport was a very high fence holding back a handful of people staring and taking pictures. After the shock of appearance of the airport, we gathered our luggage and pile into yet another van. We had about another 45 minute drive until we arrived in Trang. It was a very fast, windy and bumpy ride. I’ve come to realize there aren’t really any rules to the road, it’s every man for himself. Just I was reflecting on this, our driver began to slam on his breaks, a little too late. There was a loud noise and a rather large bump. I turned around to see what we had hit, assuming it was a speed bump, to find that we had actually hit a dog. I don’t think I will ever be able to get that picture out of my mind. I wish I hadn’t turned around.
We arrived to the resort and were given our lime green Rotary shirts. There was no way they would be able to lose any of us. We quickly changed into our bathing suits and tacky t-shirts and all climbed into the van. We met up with the rest of the exchange students at the docks. There was a girl from Brazil, who I ended up loving, named Fernanda, a girl from New York, who will also be going to Geneseo next year, named Emily, a girl from Japan named Emi, a girl from Canada named Emily, and a girl from Germany named Kimberly. We walked down the board walk and clamored onto the boat with our host parents and our guides. Trang was absolutely beautiful. We rode on the boat to one Island, and at first we were slightly quiet and kept to ourselves, until we got out our first time. We stripped down to our bathing suits and life jackets, grabbed our snorkels, and jumped into the water. I had forgotten how much I loved snorkeling. It was at this point that I realized there were people on our trip who weren’t exchange students, one was a rather fat and very happy Asian. Many of these people I just mentioned could not swim, so one of our guides went in the water with us and carted them around on a life saving tube that lifeguards use. It was quite entertaining to watch, but what was even better was the view under water. I spent most of my time diving down and swimming along the bottom. We tooled around in the water for quite some time, I’m not sure how long, then we went back on the boat for lunch. I do not remember what we ate, but it was Thai and it was delicious. After we had finished our lunch, we went back up on top of the boat. We continued on our adventure among the islands. We stopped again near one island, but this time they didn’t have us take out our snorkels. Non of us were really sure what we were doing until they brought out some bread. As they threw it in the water, fish began to swarm towards it. We were each handed a slice of bread and into the swarm we went. We were surrounded by fish. There was one downside to this. There were huge jelly fish in the water we had to be careful of. We weren’t too worried though because there were people still on the boat keeping watch. I think my all-time favorite part of this particular stop was when I suddenly heard a rather large splash then loud giggling. I turned and saw the fat Asian man floating around in his life jacket holding an entire loaf of bread. He just made my day. After some time of hanging out with the fish, Anna, Fernanda, and I got out, climbed up to the top of the boat, then jumped off into the water. It was amazing. For a brief moment it felt as though I was flying. I wanted to do it again and again, but then a jelly fish was spotted. We all quickly swam to the boat and one of the guides carted those who couldn’t swim. We climbed back up to the top of the boat and awaited our next stop. While we waited, we talked with B. Boy for a bit. He was one of our guides and was a YE to the U.S. a couple years back. He had also been a host parent to a few YEs to Thailand. He quickly became our favorite guide. Alas, we were at our last stop: the cave. We put on our bright orange life jackets and one-by-one got into the water. We formed a long train, each person holding onto the person in front of them, with one guide in the front, one in the back, and a few swimming alongside us. We first went in, and it was still light, but the light was a florescent blue color. As we went further and further into the cave, it became darker. It was soon pitch black. That was when they had us begin to chant. I’m not really sure what we were chanting, but I chanted along anyway. Every so often B. Boy would take pictures so they could see where we were going and we wouldn’t crash into anything. Eventually, after what seemed to be a long time, we began to see light again. We were in the middle of the island. We climbed out of the water and onto the beach. There were many other people there, but they were all Asian. They were so excited when they saw us and started taking pictures of us…a little strange, but I’m getting used to it. It turns out, the place we were at actually used to be a place where pirates hid their treasure. It was a pretty good hiding place if you ask me. It was also absolutely beautiful there. I could have spent the rest of the day there, had I not begun to turn a deep shade of pink. Soon it was time for us to put on our life jackets and leave. One-by-one we lined up and re-created our little train. We headed back through the cave, but this time it didn’t seem as long. We did, however, have a little trouble with the tide at first. We piled back onto the boat, re-applied sunscreen, and climbed up to the top. We began our journey back to the resort and back to civilization. We all were assigned to our rooms, I was with Emmi from Finland, and were sent off to take showers and dress for dinner. The dinner was delicious, as always, but I had no idea what it was, as always. The rest of the night was a little boring and was made worse by exhaustion and sunburn. We were herded into a large room, dressed up and in our blazers, and we all sat in the front row. Thankfully I sat next to David so we could talk during the parts when they were speaking in Thai to the adults. It was almost ten o’clock when we were finally released for bed.
Day 16: September 12:
We woke up nice and early at 6:30. That is very early after having very little sleep the day before. Coffee coffee coffee. Coffee is my best friend. Emmi was really sick this morning so after breakfast, she went to bed and we all went to the rest of orientation.We spent the majority of our day sitting in that room. Except for when we left for check out, and I had a cup of coffee, then when we left again for lunch, more coffee for me. It was very long, and very boring. There were some interesting parts though. Towards the end, we each had to get up and read our homework aloud to everyone. After someone read, their host parent would come up and talk about them. It was nice to hear what they thought of us, because after they would talk, Emma would translate it for us. This was when I learned that I basically have two sets of host parents. Da talked about how lucky I was to have two host moms and two host dads. She also said how proud she and my school were of me. I adapted to the Thai culture so quickly and I was so polite, that they were very impressed with me. She also said she thought it must be because my mom is a manager of a hotel, so I know how to react with people and I know my manners. I have to agree with her. I think all of my time I spent at my mom’s work throughout the years has really payed off. My main goal is to please others around me and to be as polite as possible, that is something I have learned from basically growing up in the hotel business.
When we finally finished with our orientation, we had a light snack, and yet more coffee for me. Oi, never wanted coffee so much in my life. Friends, I don’t recommend drinking a lot of coffee before getting on a plane. Emmi, David, Anna and I piled into the van to head to the airport. We arrived very early and had time for another snack, because we were “Hiu ma!’ very hungry. Now this was a very small airport, yet again. It had only three gates. There was one place to buy food, and we were in luck. It just so happened Anna, David, and I were in the mood for cookies and there they were Nantucket soft baked cookies. The three of us shared two packages of delicious cookies. Anna played her ukulele and we sang some of our favorite songs just before we had to bored the plane. Anna and I sat next to each other and David and Emmi sat in the row across the aisle from us. For some reason Anna and I were incredibly hyper. We were chatty and giggly the entire way home. We brought David in on our many conversations, and I think he’s beginning to enjoy it more here. I think he was just feeling lonely because he didn’t have many people to talk to. I think we fixed that. He and Anna live near each other so now they can spend time together as well. Half an hour later the plan landed and I’m surprised I can still breath after all my laughter. After we gather our luggage, we part from Anna and load up in the van again. At this point it was almost 10 o’clock and we had an hour long drive. I arrived home very late, very tired, and very hungry. As I’m wolfing down my eggs and toast, my host tells me “No sachool tomorrow” Glory glory hallelujah!
Day 17: September 13:
Today was a very relaxed day. I woke up around 10 AM for breakfast. I mostly hung around the house and was pretty lazy. I felt as though I hadn’t slept in days. Fon and I hung out a bit at home and talked, but not too much happened. Around four Fon came to visit me and told me there was going to be a party for my host sister, Klung, 25th birthday. My host dad was very excited for this. Two of her friends arrived to start cooking food for the party. I found this very fun because I was invited to help. Basically Fon, Kung, and I peeled the garlic with another girl while her boyfriend cooked everything else. I also enjoyed it because he would explain to me everything he was doing as he did it, in English, not because he felt he needed to, but because he wanted to. Around six, just after Kung’s boyfriend Off arrived, Fon and I left to pick up some of her other friends who would be at the party. We went to a little coffee shop to pick up Koo, which she lived above. One of their other friends met us while we were there. I liked both girls upon meeting them. Koo was funny and lively and the other girl, I think her name was Jept, was very kind and also very funny. We arrived back home and so did another one of Kung’s friends. We all went outside to start up the grill and finish up the preparations. We were having trouble with the grill so Ai came to help. He got it figured out and we all sat down and began to eat. Then the party started. It was a very fun and very long night. Many of Kung’s friends came and went and they were all very interested in talking to me. Unfortunately I can’t remember the names of most of them. I’m pretty sure many of them weren’t even introduced to me, they just came up and started talking to me. We talked and ate all night; their two favorite things to do. I don’t think I have ever eaten so much in my life. Everything they put in front of me, I ate, which probably wasn’t the best of ideas. They somehow seem to be able to eat better than I can. Maybe it was how much I had been eating, or perhaps my stomach wasn’t used to the food, I’m not sure why, but something started to make me feel very sick. I left the party early and went to bed.
Day 18: September 14:
This morning I woke up, threw up, and went back to bed. No school for me today. I wandered downstairs around 10 AM for some water and found Off asleep on the couch. I grabbed water from the fridge as quietly as possible and crept back upstairs and went back to sleep. Around one o’clock my host mom came in and asked if I wanted to eat. I was feeling a little better so I said OK and followed her downstairs. Thankfully I had gotten dressed first because soon after my breakfast/lunch the Rotary president of my club showed up to look at my passport. After he left I went back to watching Futurama. That was about the gist of my day. It was a slow, lazy, sick day.
Day 19: September 15:
Back to school today. I almost forgot what it was like to have to go. I enjoy school because it gives me something to do, but there are somethings about it I don’t like, for example, having to get early to go. Also, everyone notices me. There is one girl in particular. I had never been able to say that I didn’t like someone or that someone annoyed me….until her. She somehow ended up in my cooking class, I think she just followed one of her friends in. She was so loud and so obnoxious, I really just wanted to hit her repeatedly with the spoon that was in my hand, or myself so I wouldn’t have to hear her anymore. Almost everyone yells “Hello! Chompoo! Hello!” to me, and sometimes even in my face, but that I can handle, she I can’t. She was shouting all the time, and I was right there. She was doing it strictly for attention. I can’t even begin to describe how annoyed of her I was. Of course, I did not make this known, hence the venting, I simply put on my best Rotary smile and continued with what I was doing. I think it became clear to my teacher that I was annoyed of that girl (possibly because I would cringe every time she came up to shout something to me) and sent her out of the room. Ah, at last, some peace. Aside from that girl, my day was great. My day started out with Thai class, which was pretty boring, but I had my Thai book to study and Aor to talk to, which was nice. She escorted me to my cooking class. I absolutely love this class. They all know I can’t eat spicy so they are always sure when we make something, I test it before it becomes spicy. I also love this class because they feed me lunch! After we make our food, we all sit on a table and have a picnic. Then, to make it even better, one of the girls I cook with brought me to buy ice cream from this very nice man. He was very excited when I figured out how to put the sides on my ice cream. We all sat down on the ground and hung out eating our ice cream, joking around with each other. These girls know little to no English, so it’s even more fun for me trying to keep up and figure out what’s going on. Next I went to my carving class. Today it wasn’t where it normally was, and it wasn’t exactly a carving class. It was in the room where I had my flower arrangement class last week, right outside of the teachers’ office and it was actually a sewing class. Ajan Fon sat me down at a table with other teachers, who all absolutely love me, and handed my a vegetable to start carving. My favorite part of the class was at the very end. Ajan Fon was showing me how to peel a tomato to make a rose. I was peeling my tomato, horribly of course, when in walked the Japanese teacher. I was holding my tomato, now peeled, and I was cutting it to look at a flower, when he started touching my bracelets. Now, he speaks no English, so our conversation today consisted of noises. It went a little like this: He: “Ahhh…” (as he touched my bracelets) Me: “Hee” Him: “Ohhahaha” (as I attempted to wrap the peel into the shape of a rose) Me: “Hahaha, ohhh” (as I set it down and it started to unravel) Him: “Aww!!” (as I managed to get it to work out, and surprise it looked like a flower!) Me: “Heyeah!” And then the class was over. Next was Thai dancing. Aye…this class is always rough for me. Don’t get me wrong, it’s very fun, I just don’t have those skills. Towards the end of class, after everyone else had taken their exam and left, my teacher decided I should stay and have some extra lessons. I stayed with her and three of the student teachers as they tried their very best to help me. Just as I was about to leave, Ajan asked me if I wanted to be in a show! Naturally I said yes! Of course I will need practice…lots of practice. I went back to the language office and talked with the Chinese girls who are helping to teach me Thai and Chinese. I love these girls. Unfortunately they’re going back home to China very soon. I’m going to miss them, but I’m excited to meet the new student teachers.
Day 20: September 16:
I have been looking forward to today all week. Today, first and second period, I had math. Oh how I missed it! It was not what I expected though. It was taught completely in Thai and they were learning about percentiles, something I had never heard of. I learned as I always do here, by watching. I was confused because certain numbers they used, I had no idea how they got them because they didn’t find them mathematically. I enjoyed it, but it just wasn’t the same. This man was no Mr. Toulson. He was old with facial hair, he didn’t make any references to old movies or TV shows, he was not ostentatiously nerdy, he did not mention Star Wars even once, he was average height, he didn’t have a tie that perfectly matched the rest of his outfit, and he had no lame jokes. Dear Mr. Toulson, I miss you. After math class, the girls insisted we take pictures. I began to feel like a sort of attraction; everyone wanted their picture with me. They really are quite cute girls. They escorted me to Ajan Anchalee’s office, where Aor soon met me. She brought me with her to her free period and I stayed with her and her friends until after lunch. I was just beginning to slip into a lack of Oreo caused depression, when I started telling them how much I missed them. They quickly informed me that they did in fact have Oreoes here! Better yet, they sold them in the school! As I was inhaling my lunch of fried rice, chicken, and pork sauce (a-roy ma!) one of Aor’s friends showed up and handed me a pack of Oreos! I can’t even describe how happy I was at that moment, I didn’t even notice the audience of girls as I ate them, the only way one can eat an Oreo. I twisted the two sides apart, licked the frosting off of each side, then slowly ate the two chocolaty outsides. According to my Psychology class my Junior year of high school, that meant I should stay away from fluffy animals and small children. Anyways. Back to what really matters. After lunch, I met with Piuw, the girl I had met at the quizbee, and I went with her to Physics. I think the Physics room is my favorite room so far. It’s almost on the top floor and you have to take a narrow staircase separate from all the rest, walk through the gym, then take yet another narrow stairway. The room doesn’t have air-condition, so we have to open the huge windows that look out into the street. It’s very refreshing and breezy up there, the room also seems more open and less crowded. I sat at a table with Piuw closest to the window. She and her friends asked me all about the places I had visited and what I had seen in Thailand so far and were disappointed that I hadn’t been very many places. They invited me to go to Bangkok with them next week because school will be closed for holiday and testing. I am very excited to do something outside of school with my school friends.
Day 21: September 17:
Today my flower arrangement class in the morning was non-existent so I talked with Tina. We were so into our conversation that I completely lost track of time and missed my cooking class as well. It wasn’t until Aor called me asking me if I was out of class so we could meet for lunch that I noticed the time…oops. Because it was the last day of the semester, there were basically no classes. I went to one class, English. All we did was compare animal noises in Thailand and animal noises in the U.S. Basically I just made animal noises on the microphone for my class. After that one class we went to the canteen and waited for school to end. While we ate my friends took me to buy Oreos. After school, Fon picked me up and took me home. I curled up on the couch and fell asleep. I didn’t realize just how tired I was. Right after I woke up, my host dad came into the room and told me we were going to eat. I quickly got up and realized I was in my pajamas. Oi! I ran upstairs, threw on clothes, and made myself somewhat presentable. During dinner, Kung told me she was going to karaoke and asked if I wanted to join. Uh, yes! I had never been to karaoke before and I was very excited. It was about eight o’clock when we arrived, I realized right then that it was going to be another late night. Waiting for us were Koo, Jept. As soon as Un arrived, we moved into our karaoke room. Of course the first song they chose was Taylor Swift’s “You Belong With Me” and because it was an English song, it meant I was up first. Oh boy. Ladies and gentlemen, I want you all to know I held that mic in my hand and sang loud, proud, and horribly off key, and I loved every minute of it. The majority of the songs were Thai, but every time an English one came on, I was right there with that mic, doing my best, which was also my worst. I even tried to sing along with the Thai songs. And when Hilary Duff’s “So Yesterday” came on, I did her proud. I got up, I sang, I danced, I poured my heart and soul into that mic, again, horribly off key. We stayed and sang until almost 2 Am. I don’t think I will ever be able to sing again, but that may be for the best.
Day 22: September 18:
Today was a wonderfully exciting day. Today we went to see the elephants. Fon, Kung and I left around 1 and went to Koo’s house to pick her and Jept. On our way there, it began to rain, then it began to pour. We were afraid that they might cancel the show. We went there anyway and picked up a schedule. The next show wasn’t until 3:20 so we left to go eat and hoped the rain would stop in time. Fortunately it did. The rain stopped just as we finished eating and were about to leave. We went back to the Samphran Elephant Ground and Zoo to watch the elephant show and the crocodile wrestling. It was so much fun. Because it had been raining so much, there were virtually no people there at all. The elephant show started out as a history of the wars between Thailand and Myanmar. They had men and elephants act out certain battles complete with explosions and sword fights. Next they just had them doing silly little tricks, such as dancing and playing soccer. Now, I say silly little tricks, but I was thoroughly impressed. These elephants were dancing, standing on their front legs, kicking soccer balls, it was impressive. Once everything was said and done, we were able to feed the elephants. Everyone else with me was too afraid to, so I did it alone. I also pet one of the elephants. They are beautiful and huge animals. I want to ride one so bad! Next we watched the crocodile wrestling. There were two men and five crocodiles. It wasn’t intense wrestling, more like playing, but it was exciting all the same. At one point one of the guys slid across the wet floor and jumped over a crocodile. He also stuck his entire arm in a crocodile’s mouth. Just as he was doing this, the other guy slipped and fell. He pulled his arm out just in time before the crocodile clamped his mouth shut. The guy who fell later put his head in a crocodile’s mouth, as he was doing this, the other guy fell, this time really bad. It looked like it hurt pretty bad. He got right back up and continued with the show though, it probably happens a lot. We left the zoo and returned home for a little bit. Kung talked to her parents and we were off out the door again. We went over to Kuk’s house to play with her little nephews. They were the cutest little kids I had ever seen. The older one started acting up though, a clear indicator that it was time for him to go to bed. The boys went to bed and we left. Fon had to go home to take care of her sick dad so we parted with her. Kuk, Jep, Kung and I went to a coffee shop and bakery to wait for Un. While we were there we had some “appetizers”; cake. He finally arrived and off we went to Big C. We ate at a restaurant called Bar-B-Que. Tonight I was determined to master chopsticks. I did, for the most part. Until we got to the noodles. Those got the better of me. Another time, noodles, I will conquer you.
Day 23: September 19:
Today was a very laid back day. Fon came over to keep me company. When she arrived, I was working on a bracelet and was very excited. She wanted to make one too. She knew how to make the Chinese staircase, but she didn’t know how to make the candy stripe or any other pattern. I started teaching her how to make the candy stripe, but she wanted to make something a bit more complex. She drew me a picture of what she wanted, and it was a zig-zag pattern. This such pattern is actually quite difficult for a beginner, especially one who hasn’t finished learning candy stripe yet. I gave her the benefit of the doubt though. I did the first few rows for her, explaining what I was doing as I did it. Soon she wanted to try. I handed it over to her and away she went. She learned very quickly. We sat there for hours just working on our bracelets. I finished mine and started another. Soon it was time for her to go to work. She hadn’t finished her bracelet, but decided she would come back tomorrow to finish.
Day 24: September 20:
School is technically over for me until November, but I went to school anyway today. I was convinced to come in because they wanted me in the class picture for their yearbook. The pictures started around 9 AM and seemed to never end. Over a hundred students lined up together. Some, including me, stood in the back on tables, others stood on benches, the second row sat on benches, then the first row knelt on the ground. I was a filang lost in a sea of Thais. I wonder if I’ll stand out in the picture. After this chaotic picture taking, we went to the canteen to eat. The place where Aor and I usually bought lunch, kiao pat gai, was closed so we bought noodles instead. It was a-roy mak ma! Absolutely delicious. It was thick noodles, two types of chicken, fish oil, sugar, and some other sauce that may have been soy sauce. Some more of our friends joined us bearing goodies. They gave me Oreoes, as usual, and we ate many other snacks. It was a “fat day”. We chatted for a bit, they taught me Thai and I helped them with English, then we went to get ice cream. Oh how I love ice cream. Soon I was whisked away by many chatty and excited girls. More photos! I have never had so many photos taken of me in one day in my life! After the photos of everyone in Madame 6, there were photos for each class. They were having group photos for the year book, and every group had about five photos. Five more photos I could have handled, but the groups went one at a time and all the groups wanted me in their photos. THEN, after all of that, was individual photos. Everyone had two photos: one serious and one choice. It came to be my turn. Now, I hate pictures being taken of me, especially when I’m alone and supposed to look cute or whatever. He ended up taking about six pictures. Oi. It was very hot, slightly torturous, but very fun. After everything was done, we were very hungry. Looking good for pictures is very hard work. My friends asked me if I had ever had sump-taam, a famous Thai dish, and I told them no. We still had time before I would have to leave so off we went to one of their houses to have sump-taam. It was delicious. We also had muu waan (sweet pork) and kiao now (sticky rice). It was very good and made me very full. We hurried back to school and it wasn’t long before Yai picked me up.
It was Monday night so once I got home I only had a few hours before I would have to leave for my Rotary Meeting. This meeting was quite an eventful one. I went to my usual table of women and ate the usual small meal of rice, egg, and I think chicken. I waied the women there said “sa-wat-dee kah” and a few other things to them. They asked me simple questions slowly, and I could answer them for the most part. It usually takes me a long time to eat a little because there is always someone coming in and I must stop what ever I’m doing and wai them and say “sa-wat-dee kha”. It wasn’t long before a man sat next to me and began to talk to me, in English. It always confuses me for a moment when someone starts talking to me in English. He told me about his experience in America and where he had been. He has a cousin who live in South Carolina who he visits once a year. He was a very nice man. As I was talking to him, this very beautiful woman came. I remembered her from the last time I went to a meeting because she had given me lipgloss and insisted I wear it. This time she came with her daughter and more food. She brought kiao now and grilled pork. Of course I ate some because they insisted I eat. “Gin gin!” They always tell me. My host dad came over with another man and they were told me this man wanted to take me north. Apparently my Rotary club was taking a trip up north to Chiang Rai and Nan and they wanted me to go with them. “I want to take you to the north!” the man said to me, then that woman said “And next month I take you south!” They were very excited about taking me places. They want to show off their country to me, and I’m more than happy to join them. Soon Big arrived and explained to me again that they wanted to take me with them. Then it was time for the meeting to begin. This time a man was talking about some tiles. I had no idea what he was talking about and for a time I though he was talking about remodeling something. Thankfully Big was sitting next to me and explained that each member has to speak at a meeting and tell something about their occupation. As always, very few people were paying attention. I pointed this out to Big as he played Facebook on his Black Berry and he laughed, but then he began to pay attention to the speak, just to prove me wrong. Something happened and everyone laughed. Apparently one man said something about soaking something in water before laying a foundation or something like that. I don’t understand tiles so I couldn’t tell you the joke. The point is, he got a little prize for saying something correctly, I guess. After that, everyone was paying attention. Two more people were awarded prizes, and then Big was awarded one as well. I guess it pays off to pay attention sometimes. After his speech was another speech. This one there were no prizes, so everyone else went back to their papers or side conversations. The meeting finally ended and I waited for my host dad with Big. This was when I was informed that at the next meeting I would have to give a speech, in Thai. Oh my. I think I know enough Thai to give the speech, I’m just not a huge man of speaking in front of others.
On our way home, I thought I would practice my Thai a little bit with my host dad, he never judges. I said to him “A-tit nee, mai bpai rorian.” Which means: “This week I don’t go to school.” He was very excited and said “Aha! No sachool!” I was emcouraged by his enthusiasm and continued: “Sam-sip bpai rorian triam Thai” (On the thirtieth I go to school for Thai dancing). He laughed and started dancing “Dancing!” He said. His enthusiasm always lifts my spirirts. I had to go to school in the 27th as well, to practice, but I wasn’t sure how to tell him this, but I tried my best. I said: “Ye-sip-jept bpai rorian triam Thai…uh..practice?” He seemed to understand this completely. He continued to laugh and say “Youuu go to sachool sam-sip, dancing! Ye-sip-jept, you sachool dance!” Alas! We’ve had a break through! “Kun poot Thai geng! Courtney poot Thai geng geng!” (You speak Thai well! Courtney speaks Thai well well!) Chan poot Thai nitnoi dai!
Day 25: September 21:
No school today! Yet another very relaxed day. Fon returned to finish making her bracelet. It was a very uneventful day, but it was nice. I finished a second bracelet and Fon finished her bracelet; it was very well done, I’m impressed with her. Kuk came over for a little bit, being with he is always exciting. We went outside and “gossiped” for a bit, and I could actually understand some of what they were saying. Each day I can understand and say a little bit more. Being with Fon is a big help because she teaches me a lot. She is eager to learn but she is eager to teach as well. She is also very patient, which is good because I often mispronounce things.
Day 26: September 22:
Today no school again until next week! I stayed home for a while with Fon and we started new bracelets. I figured out a new way to make them, but it’s very confusing and makes me tired. After some time, our hunger got the better of us and we went to eat pizza. We were much too full to eat ice cream so we returned home instead. Fon’s mom called and asked if she would go over to help her ten-year-old sister study for her exam. Fon asked if I wanted to join her, so of course I tagged along. Her mom was incredibly nice. She spoke no English, but we managed to communicate a little bit. Again my English skills came in use. Fon’s sister had to study for an English test as well, and that’s where I came in use. We stayed there and studied until around 7 or 8, then returned to my home. Fon’s mom had asked if I could stay the night, Fon thinks she’s lonely because all but one of her kids are grown up. Fon told her I couldn’t because it was against Rotary rules, but I will come back and visit her. I came home and watched some T.V. with Kung and Koy. After their soap operas were finished, Kung managed to find a movie in English with Thai subtitles. It was a very strange movie, but I stayed up with them until almost 11 PM and watched it anyway.
Day 27: September 23:
I woke up around ten and packed my bag for three days. I somehow managed to fit everything I would need in my one backpack. I worked on my bracelet until Fon came over around 6 PM. At around 7 PM, my host dad came home and I grabbed my things and climbed into the car with him and Fon. We went to the whale hotel to eat and await my departure. My host dad ordered for me kiao pat Americano, which is American fried rice. I’m not too sure why they call it American because I had never before had it in my life. It was fried rice with carrots, peas, and raisins in it topped with a fried egg. On the side was a drumstick of fried chicken and a hot dog that had been cut in half. It was still very good. The rest of the group slowly arrived, as well as the president of the Rotary club. He sat next to me in spoke to me, in Thai, about the YE last year. He told me how he spoke Thai very well and waied very beautifully. He also told me if I could speak Thai well, when I returned home, his Rotary club would be famous, or something like that. He spoke kind of quickly, but I could understand most of what he was saying and he got his point across. I must learn Thai and learn it well.
Eventually the man who had invited me on the trip arrived with his wife and daughter. It turned out that that beautiful woman from the meetings I had mentioned before was his wife. Their daughter’s name was Nuii and her and I were going to be roommates. Eight o’clock came around and it was time to board the bus. I said goodbye to Fon and my host dad and followed Nuii onto the bus. I was very tired and fell asleep fairly soon.
Day 28: September 24:
We arrived at our hotel at 6 AM. Nuii and I got our room keys and went to our rooms. I jumped in the shower first and laid down while Nuii showered. The phone rang not too long after Nuii got out of the shower and it was her mother telling us to come down to breakfast. To my great appreciation, they had coffee. Nuii and I ate quickly, then headed back to our room. We were almost out of the lobby when we were beckoned back. They were going to the market and wanted us to come along. This was when I realized I had been temporarily adopted by Nuii’s family. Everywhere they went, they brought me along with them. We hopped into the back of a truck, one of their forms of taxis, and off we went. They took very good care of me while I was with them. Every time we had to cross a street or go into a busy area, Nuii, her mother, or sometimes even both, would grab my hand and hold on until they felt it was safe to let go again. We spent hours tooling around in the little shops scattered throughout the area. Finally, when hunger and exhaustion got the better of us, we returned to the hotel around 10 AM. Nuii and I went to our room and napped as we waited for it to be time for lunch.
12:30 rolled around and we awoke to the phone ringing. Time for lunch. I sat with Nuii, her parents, and another couple who seemed to be good friends of theirs. This time, instead of having one person, the person next to me, always putting food on my plate, it was everyone doing it. It seems to be the latest trend. Once we finished our lunch, we piled onto the bus. I wasn’t too sure where we were going, but I just went along with it. After about half an hour of driving, we got out of the bus and boarded a trolley. We took a guided tour around the city of Nan. Apparently our tour guide was very funny. He spoke too quickly for me to understand most of what he was saying. We saw many sights, such as the oldest wall in Nan, some temples, more temples, a river, and some more temples. We got out at one of the temples and prayed and took some pictures, then got back on our trolley and went back to our bus. As we passed by people in their shops or at their homes, our guide would ring his bell and say “Wave hello! Hello people!” Everyone, of course, would get very excited and wave back to us and say hello. Once we were back on the bus, instead of going back to the hotel, we went to another temple. This temple was up on a hill and the pathway leading to it was lined by two giant dragon sculptures. The temple was beautiful. We went to the temple and prayed, but we also walked around the temple three times as we said our prayers. Then it was time for the group photo. I hadn’t mentioned this yet, but they love to take group photos. They even have a big sign they hold up every time we take one. We walked back down the pathway, all the way admire the beautiful view of the mountains in the distance, and got back on the bus. After some time, we got out at yet another temple. This one was different though. There were many people outside and there seemed to be music playing. As soon as we got off the bus, everyone at the temple started cheering and waing us. It turned out our Rotary club had donated a lot of money to this temple. They played music and danced as we walked/danced around the temple three times. It was quite the sight. There were so many people there, the majority of them were elder woman, and they were all so thankful. They went around the temple three times with us in the scorching heat, dressed up in their traditional costumes, then they sat with us for about an hour crammed in the small temple, on the floor, as we went through the ceremony. After the very long ceremony, we had dinner and a show. The local kids and some adults did various Thai dances for as while we ate a very delicious meal. When we first sat down, they brought out some plates of appetizers, one of which contained crickets. There was a plate full of cooked crickets. Everyone laughed and joked about it at first, but it was clear that no one wanted to eat them. Nuii’s mom changed that. She reached over, pick one up with her hand, contemplated it for a moment, then stuck it in her mouth. She didn’t look too disgusted as she chewed it, and she even said “a-roy” after. I did what any good rotary student would do. With many eyes watching me, I reached over, picked one up, and quickly shoved it in my mouth before I could have any second thoughts. To my surprise, and the surprise of the others, I actually enjoyed it! “A-roy!” I proclaimed to the many expectant viewers. I picked up another and ate it. I tried to convince Nuii to try them, but she wasn’t as gun-ho to try new things as I was. She did try them eventually, and she did like them. I never should have doubted Ian at Tin Bin Alley for selling them. When I return home I intend on buying many, many packages of them. After the very long dinner, we finally returned to the hotel. I was exhausted. We showered and turned on a Thai soap-opera and quickly fell asleep.
After going to bed at 11 PM last night, I woke up this morning at 3 AM. First let me tell you a story. My host dad was talking to me last night at about 6 PM. What I thought he was saying was: “You have to leave at ten, so you have three hours until you need to get ready and four hours until you have to leave.” I ran up to my room and quickly began to pack, then waited, and waited. 10 o’clock rolls around. Now, I wasn’t positive if that was what he said, and I knew someone would come get me when the time came to leave. Then it became 10:30 and I was sure that I had misunderstood what he had said. Then it clicked. He meant “Go to bed at 10, be up at 3 and leave at four.” Oi. Boy was I wrong. I cleaned up the mess I had made of my room and fell asleep still slightly dressed. I awoke with a start to my host mom saying something to me. Had I not just woken up after getting about 3 hours of sleep, I probably would have understood what she was saying. Instead, I hopped out of bed, threw on the rest of my clothes, and raced downstairs. Turns out, it was only 3:20 AM. I went back upstairs to make myself a bit more presentable, but ended up falling back asleep. I was woken up, once again by my host mom saying something, this time I knew what she was saying “Good morning! Time to go!” I was dressed and out the door by 4 with Yai. I hadn’t eaten because, well I was too tired to be hungry, but Yai stopped at 7/11 and had me eat something. I chose coffee and a little cake; very nutritious, I know. This was the first cup of coffee I’d had in fifteen days. It had been too long my friends. We picked up Da and drove somewhere. I had no idea where we were or where we would be going. I assumed we would be going to the airport in Bangkok. Yai left Da and I waiting for the van. There I met one of the other YEs in Thailand. Her name was Emmi and she was from Finland. She didn’t talk much, but then again, it was very early in the morning. The van pulled up and we piled in, Emmi, her host dad, Da, and I. Inside the van, I met another YE. His name was David and he was from Germany. Sitting beside him was his host dad. Two more people piled in and we were off. It was an hour drive to the airport, and a very quiet one. Most everyone was either asleep, or falling asleep. We got to the airport with time to spare so we sat down in a little coffee shop. The adults sat together and we exchange students sat at another table. I began asking them about their home, how long they had been here, what they thought, the usual starter questions, and neither one seemed to be too happy. They seemed surprised at how happy I was to be there and how much I was enjoying it. Oi! All I could think was I was sure glad I wasn’t either of them. Soon Anna arrived chipper as ever to rescue me from the Debbie downer duo. It was so nice to see a familiar face, and of course she was accompanied by her ukulele. She sat down beside me and started talking with us. Apparently she was having as great of a time as I was! Huzzah, I’m not alone! After some time of our host parents tring to get us to eat, and us turning them down, it was time to check in and board our plane. It was quite a small plane compared to the planes I had taken on my way here, but not too small. I was seated next to David and in front of us sat Emmi and Anna. After some time of talking with David, I began to think of him as less of a Debbie; he was quite interesting. After about half an hour of awkward bonding, the plane landed in a tiny, abandoned looking airport. It was the strangest airport I had ever seen. There wasn’t a gate for us to walk off the plane and into, instead a set of metal stairs was wheeled over to the exit of the plane. Surrounding the perimeter of the airport was a very high fence holding back a handful of people staring and taking pictures. After the shock of appearance of the airport, we gathered our luggage and pile into yet another van. We had about another 45 minute drive until we arrived in Trang. It was a very fast, windy and bumpy ride. I’ve come to realize there aren’t really any rules to the road, it’s every man for himself. Just I was reflecting on this, our driver began to slam on his breaks, a little too late. There was a loud noise and a rather large bump. I turned around to see what we had hit, assuming it was a speed bump, to find that we had actually hit a dog. I don’t think I will ever be able to get that picture out of my mind. I wish I hadn’t turned around.
We arrived to the resort and were given our lime green Rotary shirts. There was no way they would be able to lose any of us. We quickly changed into our bathing suits and tacky t-shirts and all climbed into the van. We met up with the rest of the exchange students at the docks. There was a girl from Brazil, who I ended up loving, named Fernanda, a girl from New York, who will also be going to Geneseo next year, named Emily, a girl from Japan named Emi, a girl from Canada named Emily, and a girl from Germany named Kimberly. We walked down the board walk and clamored onto the boat with our host parents and our guides. Trang was absolutely beautiful. We rode on the boat to one Island, and at first we were slightly quiet and kept to ourselves, until we got out our first time. We stripped down to our bathing suits and life jackets, grabbed our snorkels, and jumped into the water. I had forgotten how much I loved snorkeling. It was at this point that I realized there were people on our trip who weren’t exchange students, one was a rather fat and very happy Asian. Many of these people I just mentioned could not swim, so one of our guides went in the water with us and carted them around on a life saving tube that lifeguards use. It was quite entertaining to watch, but what was even better was the view under water. I spent most of my time diving down and swimming along the bottom. We tooled around in the water for quite some time, I’m not sure how long, then we went back on the boat for lunch. I do not remember what we ate, but it was Thai and it was delicious. After we had finished our lunch, we went back up on top of the boat. We continued on our adventure among the islands. We stopped again near one island, but this time they didn’t have us take out our snorkels. Non of us were really sure what we were doing until they brought out some bread. As they threw it in the water, fish began to swarm towards it. We were each handed a slice of bread and into the swarm we went. We were surrounded by fish. There was one downside to this. There were huge jelly fish in the water we had to be careful of. We weren’t too worried though because there were people still on the boat keeping watch. I think my all-time favorite part of this particular stop was when I suddenly heard a rather large splash then loud giggling. I turned and saw the fat Asian man floating around in his life jacket holding an entire loaf of bread. He just made my day. After some time of hanging out with the fish, Anna, Fernanda, and I got out, climbed up to the top of the boat, then jumped off into the water. It was amazing. For a brief moment it felt as though I was flying. I wanted to do it again and again, but then a jelly fish was spotted. We all quickly swam to the boat and one of the guides carted those who couldn’t swim. We climbed back up to the top of the boat and awaited our next stop. While we waited, we talked with B. Boy for a bit. He was one of our guides and was a YE to the U.S. a couple years back. He had also been a host parent to a few YEs to Thailand. He quickly became our favorite guide. Alas, we were at our last stop: the cave. We put on our bright orange life jackets and one-by-one got into the water. We formed a long train, each person holding onto the person in front of them, with one guide in the front, one in the back, and a few swimming alongside us. We first went in, and it was still light, but the light was a florescent blue color. As we went further and further into the cave, it became darker. It was soon pitch black. That was when they had us begin to chant. I’m not really sure what we were chanting, but I chanted along anyway. Every so often B. Boy would take pictures so they could see where we were going and we wouldn’t crash into anything. Eventually, after what seemed to be a long time, we began to see light again. We were in the middle of the island. We climbed out of the water and onto the beach. There were many other people there, but they were all Asian. They were so excited when they saw us and started taking pictures of us…a little strange, but I’m getting used to it. It turns out, the place we were at actually used to be a place where pirates hid their treasure. It was a pretty good hiding place if you ask me. It was also absolutely beautiful there. I could have spent the rest of the day there, had I not begun to turn a deep shade of pink. Soon it was time for us to put on our life jackets and leave. One-by-one we lined up and re-created our little train. We headed back through the cave, but this time it didn’t seem as long. We did, however, have a little trouble with the tide at first. We piled back onto the boat, re-applied sunscreen, and climbed up to the top. We began our journey back to the resort and back to civilization. We all were assigned to our rooms, I was with Emmi from Finland, and were sent off to take showers and dress for dinner. The dinner was delicious, as always, but I had no idea what it was, as always. The rest of the night was a little boring and was made worse by exhaustion and sunburn. We were herded into a large room, dressed up and in our blazers, and we all sat in the front row. Thankfully I sat next to David so we could talk during the parts when they were speaking in Thai to the adults. It was almost ten o’clock when we were finally released for bed.
Day 16: September 12:
We woke up nice and early at 6:30. That is very early after having very little sleep the day before. Coffee coffee coffee. Coffee is my best friend. Emmi was really sick this morning so after breakfast, she went to bed and we all went to the rest of orientation.We spent the majority of our day sitting in that room. Except for when we left for check out, and I had a cup of coffee, then when we left again for lunch, more coffee for me. It was very long, and very boring. There were some interesting parts though. Towards the end, we each had to get up and read our homework aloud to everyone. After someone read, their host parent would come up and talk about them. It was nice to hear what they thought of us, because after they would talk, Emma would translate it for us. This was when I learned that I basically have two sets of host parents. Da talked about how lucky I was to have two host moms and two host dads. She also said how proud she and my school were of me. I adapted to the Thai culture so quickly and I was so polite, that they were very impressed with me. She also said she thought it must be because my mom is a manager of a hotel, so I know how to react with people and I know my manners. I have to agree with her. I think all of my time I spent at my mom’s work throughout the years has really payed off. My main goal is to please others around me and to be as polite as possible, that is something I have learned from basically growing up in the hotel business.
When we finally finished with our orientation, we had a light snack, and yet more coffee for me. Oi, never wanted coffee so much in my life. Friends, I don’t recommend drinking a lot of coffee before getting on a plane. Emmi, David, Anna and I piled into the van to head to the airport. We arrived very early and had time for another snack, because we were “Hiu ma!’ very hungry. Now this was a very small airport, yet again. It had only three gates. There was one place to buy food, and we were in luck. It just so happened Anna, David, and I were in the mood for cookies and there they were Nantucket soft baked cookies. The three of us shared two packages of delicious cookies. Anna played her ukulele and we sang some of our favorite songs just before we had to bored the plane. Anna and I sat next to each other and David and Emmi sat in the row across the aisle from us. For some reason Anna and I were incredibly hyper. We were chatty and giggly the entire way home. We brought David in on our many conversations, and I think he’s beginning to enjoy it more here. I think he was just feeling lonely because he didn’t have many people to talk to. I think we fixed that. He and Anna live near each other so now they can spend time together as well. Half an hour later the plan landed and I’m surprised I can still breath after all my laughter. After we gather our luggage, we part from Anna and load up in the van again. At this point it was almost 10 o’clock and we had an hour long drive. I arrived home very late, very tired, and very hungry. As I’m wolfing down my eggs and toast, my host tells me “No sachool tomorrow” Glory glory hallelujah!
Day 17: September 13:
Today was a very relaxed day. I woke up around 10 AM for breakfast. I mostly hung around the house and was pretty lazy. I felt as though I hadn’t slept in days. Fon and I hung out a bit at home and talked, but not too much happened. Around four Fon came to visit me and told me there was going to be a party for my host sister, Klung, 25th birthday. My host dad was very excited for this. Two of her friends arrived to start cooking food for the party. I found this very fun because I was invited to help. Basically Fon, Kung, and I peeled the garlic with another girl while her boyfriend cooked everything else. I also enjoyed it because he would explain to me everything he was doing as he did it, in English, not because he felt he needed to, but because he wanted to. Around six, just after Kung’s boyfriend Off arrived, Fon and I left to pick up some of her other friends who would be at the party. We went to a little coffee shop to pick up Koo, which she lived above. One of their other friends met us while we were there. I liked both girls upon meeting them. Koo was funny and lively and the other girl, I think her name was Jept, was very kind and also very funny. We arrived back home and so did another one of Kung’s friends. We all went outside to start up the grill and finish up the preparations. We were having trouble with the grill so Ai came to help. He got it figured out and we all sat down and began to eat. Then the party started. It was a very fun and very long night. Many of Kung’s friends came and went and they were all very interested in talking to me. Unfortunately I can’t remember the names of most of them. I’m pretty sure many of them weren’t even introduced to me, they just came up and started talking to me. We talked and ate all night; their two favorite things to do. I don’t think I have ever eaten so much in my life. Everything they put in front of me, I ate, which probably wasn’t the best of ideas. They somehow seem to be able to eat better than I can. Maybe it was how much I had been eating, or perhaps my stomach wasn’t used to the food, I’m not sure why, but something started to make me feel very sick. I left the party early and went to bed.
Day 18: September 14:
This morning I woke up, threw up, and went back to bed. No school for me today. I wandered downstairs around 10 AM for some water and found Off asleep on the couch. I grabbed water from the fridge as quietly as possible and crept back upstairs and went back to sleep. Around one o’clock my host mom came in and asked if I wanted to eat. I was feeling a little better so I said OK and followed her downstairs. Thankfully I had gotten dressed first because soon after my breakfast/lunch the Rotary president of my club showed up to look at my passport. After he left I went back to watching Futurama. That was about the gist of my day. It was a slow, lazy, sick day.
Day 19: September 15:
Back to school today. I almost forgot what it was like to have to go. I enjoy school because it gives me something to do, but there are somethings about it I don’t like, for example, having to get early to go. Also, everyone notices me. There is one girl in particular. I had never been able to say that I didn’t like someone or that someone annoyed me….until her. She somehow ended up in my cooking class, I think she just followed one of her friends in. She was so loud and so obnoxious, I really just wanted to hit her repeatedly with the spoon that was in my hand, or myself so I wouldn’t have to hear her anymore. Almost everyone yells “Hello! Chompoo! Hello!” to me, and sometimes even in my face, but that I can handle, she I can’t. She was shouting all the time, and I was right there. She was doing it strictly for attention. I can’t even begin to describe how annoyed of her I was. Of course, I did not make this known, hence the venting, I simply put on my best Rotary smile and continued with what I was doing. I think it became clear to my teacher that I was annoyed of that girl (possibly because I would cringe every time she came up to shout something to me) and sent her out of the room. Ah, at last, some peace. Aside from that girl, my day was great. My day started out with Thai class, which was pretty boring, but I had my Thai book to study and Aor to talk to, which was nice. She escorted me to my cooking class. I absolutely love this class. They all know I can’t eat spicy so they are always sure when we make something, I test it before it becomes spicy. I also love this class because they feed me lunch! After we make our food, we all sit on a table and have a picnic. Then, to make it even better, one of the girls I cook with brought me to buy ice cream from this very nice man. He was very excited when I figured out how to put the sides on my ice cream. We all sat down on the ground and hung out eating our ice cream, joking around with each other. These girls know little to no English, so it’s even more fun for me trying to keep up and figure out what’s going on. Next I went to my carving class. Today it wasn’t where it normally was, and it wasn’t exactly a carving class. It was in the room where I had my flower arrangement class last week, right outside of the teachers’ office and it was actually a sewing class. Ajan Fon sat me down at a table with other teachers, who all absolutely love me, and handed my a vegetable to start carving. My favorite part of the class was at the very end. Ajan Fon was showing me how to peel a tomato to make a rose. I was peeling my tomato, horribly of course, when in walked the Japanese teacher. I was holding my tomato, now peeled, and I was cutting it to look at a flower, when he started touching my bracelets. Now, he speaks no English, so our conversation today consisted of noises. It went a little like this: He: “Ahhh…” (as he touched my bracelets) Me: “Hee” Him: “Ohhahaha” (as I attempted to wrap the peel into the shape of a rose) Me: “Hahaha, ohhh” (as I set it down and it started to unravel) Him: “Aww!!” (as I managed to get it to work out, and surprise it looked like a flower!) Me: “Heyeah!” And then the class was over. Next was Thai dancing. Aye…this class is always rough for me. Don’t get me wrong, it’s very fun, I just don’t have those skills. Towards the end of class, after everyone else had taken their exam and left, my teacher decided I should stay and have some extra lessons. I stayed with her and three of the student teachers as they tried their very best to help me. Just as I was about to leave, Ajan asked me if I wanted to be in a show! Naturally I said yes! Of course I will need practice…lots of practice. I went back to the language office and talked with the Chinese girls who are helping to teach me Thai and Chinese. I love these girls. Unfortunately they’re going back home to China very soon. I’m going to miss them, but I’m excited to meet the new student teachers.
Day 20: September 16:
I have been looking forward to today all week. Today, first and second period, I had math. Oh how I missed it! It was not what I expected though. It was taught completely in Thai and they were learning about percentiles, something I had never heard of. I learned as I always do here, by watching. I was confused because certain numbers they used, I had no idea how they got them because they didn’t find them mathematically. I enjoyed it, but it just wasn’t the same. This man was no Mr. Toulson. He was old with facial hair, he didn’t make any references to old movies or TV shows, he was not ostentatiously nerdy, he did not mention Star Wars even once, he was average height, he didn’t have a tie that perfectly matched the rest of his outfit, and he had no lame jokes. Dear Mr. Toulson, I miss you. After math class, the girls insisted we take pictures. I began to feel like a sort of attraction; everyone wanted their picture with me. They really are quite cute girls. They escorted me to Ajan Anchalee’s office, where Aor soon met me. She brought me with her to her free period and I stayed with her and her friends until after lunch. I was just beginning to slip into a lack of Oreo caused depression, when I started telling them how much I missed them. They quickly informed me that they did in fact have Oreoes here! Better yet, they sold them in the school! As I was inhaling my lunch of fried rice, chicken, and pork sauce (a-roy ma!) one of Aor’s friends showed up and handed me a pack of Oreos! I can’t even describe how happy I was at that moment, I didn’t even notice the audience of girls as I ate them, the only way one can eat an Oreo. I twisted the two sides apart, licked the frosting off of each side, then slowly ate the two chocolaty outsides. According to my Psychology class my Junior year of high school, that meant I should stay away from fluffy animals and small children. Anyways. Back to what really matters. After lunch, I met with Piuw, the girl I had met at the quizbee, and I went with her to Physics. I think the Physics room is my favorite room so far. It’s almost on the top floor and you have to take a narrow staircase separate from all the rest, walk through the gym, then take yet another narrow stairway. The room doesn’t have air-condition, so we have to open the huge windows that look out into the street. It’s very refreshing and breezy up there, the room also seems more open and less crowded. I sat at a table with Piuw closest to the window. She and her friends asked me all about the places I had visited and what I had seen in Thailand so far and were disappointed that I hadn’t been very many places. They invited me to go to Bangkok with them next week because school will be closed for holiday and testing. I am very excited to do something outside of school with my school friends.
Day 21: September 17:
Today my flower arrangement class in the morning was non-existent so I talked with Tina. We were so into our conversation that I completely lost track of time and missed my cooking class as well. It wasn’t until Aor called me asking me if I was out of class so we could meet for lunch that I noticed the time…oops. Because it was the last day of the semester, there were basically no classes. I went to one class, English. All we did was compare animal noises in Thailand and animal noises in the U.S. Basically I just made animal noises on the microphone for my class. After that one class we went to the canteen and waited for school to end. While we ate my friends took me to buy Oreos. After school, Fon picked me up and took me home. I curled up on the couch and fell asleep. I didn’t realize just how tired I was. Right after I woke up, my host dad came into the room and told me we were going to eat. I quickly got up and realized I was in my pajamas. Oi! I ran upstairs, threw on clothes, and made myself somewhat presentable. During dinner, Kung told me she was going to karaoke and asked if I wanted to join. Uh, yes! I had never been to karaoke before and I was very excited. It was about eight o’clock when we arrived, I realized right then that it was going to be another late night. Waiting for us were Koo, Jept. As soon as Un arrived, we moved into our karaoke room. Of course the first song they chose was Taylor Swift’s “You Belong With Me” and because it was an English song, it meant I was up first. Oh boy. Ladies and gentlemen, I want you all to know I held that mic in my hand and sang loud, proud, and horribly off key, and I loved every minute of it. The majority of the songs were Thai, but every time an English one came on, I was right there with that mic, doing my best, which was also my worst. I even tried to sing along with the Thai songs. And when Hilary Duff’s “So Yesterday” came on, I did her proud. I got up, I sang, I danced, I poured my heart and soul into that mic, again, horribly off key. We stayed and sang until almost 2 Am. I don’t think I will ever be able to sing again, but that may be for the best.
Day 22: September 18:
Today was a wonderfully exciting day. Today we went to see the elephants. Fon, Kung and I left around 1 and went to Koo’s house to pick her and Jept. On our way there, it began to rain, then it began to pour. We were afraid that they might cancel the show. We went there anyway and picked up a schedule. The next show wasn’t until 3:20 so we left to go eat and hoped the rain would stop in time. Fortunately it did. The rain stopped just as we finished eating and were about to leave. We went back to the Samphran Elephant Ground and Zoo to watch the elephant show and the crocodile wrestling. It was so much fun. Because it had been raining so much, there were virtually no people there at all. The elephant show started out as a history of the wars between Thailand and Myanmar. They had men and elephants act out certain battles complete with explosions and sword fights. Next they just had them doing silly little tricks, such as dancing and playing soccer. Now, I say silly little tricks, but I was thoroughly impressed. These elephants were dancing, standing on their front legs, kicking soccer balls, it was impressive. Once everything was said and done, we were able to feed the elephants. Everyone else with me was too afraid to, so I did it alone. I also pet one of the elephants. They are beautiful and huge animals. I want to ride one so bad! Next we watched the crocodile wrestling. There were two men and five crocodiles. It wasn’t intense wrestling, more like playing, but it was exciting all the same. At one point one of the guys slid across the wet floor and jumped over a crocodile. He also stuck his entire arm in a crocodile’s mouth. Just as he was doing this, the other guy slipped and fell. He pulled his arm out just in time before the crocodile clamped his mouth shut. The guy who fell later put his head in a crocodile’s mouth, as he was doing this, the other guy fell, this time really bad. It looked like it hurt pretty bad. He got right back up and continued with the show though, it probably happens a lot. We left the zoo and returned home for a little bit. Kung talked to her parents and we were off out the door again. We went over to Kuk’s house to play with her little nephews. They were the cutest little kids I had ever seen. The older one started acting up though, a clear indicator that it was time for him to go to bed. The boys went to bed and we left. Fon had to go home to take care of her sick dad so we parted with her. Kuk, Jep, Kung and I went to a coffee shop and bakery to wait for Un. While we were there we had some “appetizers”; cake. He finally arrived and off we went to Big C. We ate at a restaurant called Bar-B-Que. Tonight I was determined to master chopsticks. I did, for the most part. Until we got to the noodles. Those got the better of me. Another time, noodles, I will conquer you.
Day 23: September 19:
Today was a very laid back day. Fon came over to keep me company. When she arrived, I was working on a bracelet and was very excited. She wanted to make one too. She knew how to make the Chinese staircase, but she didn’t know how to make the candy stripe or any other pattern. I started teaching her how to make the candy stripe, but she wanted to make something a bit more complex. She drew me a picture of what she wanted, and it was a zig-zag pattern. This such pattern is actually quite difficult for a beginner, especially one who hasn’t finished learning candy stripe yet. I gave her the benefit of the doubt though. I did the first few rows for her, explaining what I was doing as I did it. Soon she wanted to try. I handed it over to her and away she went. She learned very quickly. We sat there for hours just working on our bracelets. I finished mine and started another. Soon it was time for her to go to work. She hadn’t finished her bracelet, but decided she would come back tomorrow to finish.
Day 24: September 20:
School is technically over for me until November, but I went to school anyway today. I was convinced to come in because they wanted me in the class picture for their yearbook. The pictures started around 9 AM and seemed to never end. Over a hundred students lined up together. Some, including me, stood in the back on tables, others stood on benches, the second row sat on benches, then the first row knelt on the ground. I was a filang lost in a sea of Thais. I wonder if I’ll stand out in the picture. After this chaotic picture taking, we went to the canteen to eat. The place where Aor and I usually bought lunch, kiao pat gai, was closed so we bought noodles instead. It was a-roy mak ma! Absolutely delicious. It was thick noodles, two types of chicken, fish oil, sugar, and some other sauce that may have been soy sauce. Some more of our friends joined us bearing goodies. They gave me Oreoes, as usual, and we ate many other snacks. It was a “fat day”. We chatted for a bit, they taught me Thai and I helped them with English, then we went to get ice cream. Oh how I love ice cream. Soon I was whisked away by many chatty and excited girls. More photos! I have never had so many photos taken of me in one day in my life! After the photos of everyone in Madame 6, there were photos for each class. They were having group photos for the year book, and every group had about five photos. Five more photos I could have handled, but the groups went one at a time and all the groups wanted me in their photos. THEN, after all of that, was individual photos. Everyone had two photos: one serious and one choice. It came to be my turn. Now, I hate pictures being taken of me, especially when I’m alone and supposed to look cute or whatever. He ended up taking about six pictures. Oi. It was very hot, slightly torturous, but very fun. After everything was done, we were very hungry. Looking good for pictures is very hard work. My friends asked me if I had ever had sump-taam, a famous Thai dish, and I told them no. We still had time before I would have to leave so off we went to one of their houses to have sump-taam. It was delicious. We also had muu waan (sweet pork) and kiao now (sticky rice). It was very good and made me very full. We hurried back to school and it wasn’t long before Yai picked me up.
It was Monday night so once I got home I only had a few hours before I would have to leave for my Rotary Meeting. This meeting was quite an eventful one. I went to my usual table of women and ate the usual small meal of rice, egg, and I think chicken. I waied the women there said “sa-wat-dee kah” and a few other things to them. They asked me simple questions slowly, and I could answer them for the most part. It usually takes me a long time to eat a little because there is always someone coming in and I must stop what ever I’m doing and wai them and say “sa-wat-dee kha”. It wasn’t long before a man sat next to me and began to talk to me, in English. It always confuses me for a moment when someone starts talking to me in English. He told me about his experience in America and where he had been. He has a cousin who live in South Carolina who he visits once a year. He was a very nice man. As I was talking to him, this very beautiful woman came. I remembered her from the last time I went to a meeting because she had given me lipgloss and insisted I wear it. This time she came with her daughter and more food. She brought kiao now and grilled pork. Of course I ate some because they insisted I eat. “Gin gin!” They always tell me. My host dad came over with another man and they were told me this man wanted to take me north. Apparently my Rotary club was taking a trip up north to Chiang Rai and Nan and they wanted me to go with them. “I want to take you to the north!” the man said to me, then that woman said “And next month I take you south!” They were very excited about taking me places. They want to show off their country to me, and I’m more than happy to join them. Soon Big arrived and explained to me again that they wanted to take me with them. Then it was time for the meeting to begin. This time a man was talking about some tiles. I had no idea what he was talking about and for a time I though he was talking about remodeling something. Thankfully Big was sitting next to me and explained that each member has to speak at a meeting and tell something about their occupation. As always, very few people were paying attention. I pointed this out to Big as he played Facebook on his Black Berry and he laughed, but then he began to pay attention to the speak, just to prove me wrong. Something happened and everyone laughed. Apparently one man said something about soaking something in water before laying a foundation or something like that. I don’t understand tiles so I couldn’t tell you the joke. The point is, he got a little prize for saying something correctly, I guess. After that, everyone was paying attention. Two more people were awarded prizes, and then Big was awarded one as well. I guess it pays off to pay attention sometimes. After his speech was another speech. This one there were no prizes, so everyone else went back to their papers or side conversations. The meeting finally ended and I waited for my host dad with Big. This was when I was informed that at the next meeting I would have to give a speech, in Thai. Oh my. I think I know enough Thai to give the speech, I’m just not a huge man of speaking in front of others.
On our way home, I thought I would practice my Thai a little bit with my host dad, he never judges. I said to him “A-tit nee, mai bpai rorian.” Which means: “This week I don’t go to school.” He was very excited and said “Aha! No sachool!” I was emcouraged by his enthusiasm and continued: “Sam-sip bpai rorian triam Thai” (On the thirtieth I go to school for Thai dancing). He laughed and started dancing “Dancing!” He said. His enthusiasm always lifts my spirirts. I had to go to school in the 27th as well, to practice, but I wasn’t sure how to tell him this, but I tried my best. I said: “Ye-sip-jept bpai rorian triam Thai…uh..practice?” He seemed to understand this completely. He continued to laugh and say “Youuu go to sachool sam-sip, dancing! Ye-sip-jept, you sachool dance!” Alas! We’ve had a break through! “Kun poot Thai geng! Courtney poot Thai geng geng!” (You speak Thai well! Courtney speaks Thai well well!) Chan poot Thai nitnoi dai!
Day 25: September 21:
No school today! Yet another very relaxed day. Fon returned to finish making her bracelet. It was a very uneventful day, but it was nice. I finished a second bracelet and Fon finished her bracelet; it was very well done, I’m impressed with her. Kuk came over for a little bit, being with he is always exciting. We went outside and “gossiped” for a bit, and I could actually understand some of what they were saying. Each day I can understand and say a little bit more. Being with Fon is a big help because she teaches me a lot. She is eager to learn but she is eager to teach as well. She is also very patient, which is good because I often mispronounce things.
Day 26: September 22:
Today no school again until next week! I stayed home for a while with Fon and we started new bracelets. I figured out a new way to make them, but it’s very confusing and makes me tired. After some time, our hunger got the better of us and we went to eat pizza. We were much too full to eat ice cream so we returned home instead. Fon’s mom called and asked if she would go over to help her ten-year-old sister study for her exam. Fon asked if I wanted to join her, so of course I tagged along. Her mom was incredibly nice. She spoke no English, but we managed to communicate a little bit. Again my English skills came in use. Fon’s sister had to study for an English test as well, and that’s where I came in use. We stayed there and studied until around 7 or 8, then returned to my home. Fon’s mom had asked if I could stay the night, Fon thinks she’s lonely because all but one of her kids are grown up. Fon told her I couldn’t because it was against Rotary rules, but I will come back and visit her. I came home and watched some T.V. with Kung and Koy. After their soap operas were finished, Kung managed to find a movie in English with Thai subtitles. It was a very strange movie, but I stayed up with them until almost 11 PM and watched it anyway.
Day 27: September 23:
I woke up around ten and packed my bag for three days. I somehow managed to fit everything I would need in my one backpack. I worked on my bracelet until Fon came over around 6 PM. At around 7 PM, my host dad came home and I grabbed my things and climbed into the car with him and Fon. We went to the whale hotel to eat and await my departure. My host dad ordered for me kiao pat Americano, which is American fried rice. I’m not too sure why they call it American because I had never before had it in my life. It was fried rice with carrots, peas, and raisins in it topped with a fried egg. On the side was a drumstick of fried chicken and a hot dog that had been cut in half. It was still very good. The rest of the group slowly arrived, as well as the president of the Rotary club. He sat next to me in spoke to me, in Thai, about the YE last year. He told me how he spoke Thai very well and waied very beautifully. He also told me if I could speak Thai well, when I returned home, his Rotary club would be famous, or something like that. He spoke kind of quickly, but I could understand most of what he was saying and he got his point across. I must learn Thai and learn it well.
Eventually the man who had invited me on the trip arrived with his wife and daughter. It turned out that that beautiful woman from the meetings I had mentioned before was his wife. Their daughter’s name was Nuii and her and I were going to be roommates. Eight o’clock came around and it was time to board the bus. I said goodbye to Fon and my host dad and followed Nuii onto the bus. I was very tired and fell asleep fairly soon.
Day 28: September 24:
We arrived at our hotel at 6 AM. Nuii and I got our room keys and went to our rooms. I jumped in the shower first and laid down while Nuii showered. The phone rang not too long after Nuii got out of the shower and it was her mother telling us to come down to breakfast. To my great appreciation, they had coffee. Nuii and I ate quickly, then headed back to our room. We were almost out of the lobby when we were beckoned back. They were going to the market and wanted us to come along. This was when I realized I had been temporarily adopted by Nuii’s family. Everywhere they went, they brought me along with them. We hopped into the back of a truck, one of their forms of taxis, and off we went. They took very good care of me while I was with them. Every time we had to cross a street or go into a busy area, Nuii, her mother, or sometimes even both, would grab my hand and hold on until they felt it was safe to let go again. We spent hours tooling around in the little shops scattered throughout the area. Finally, when hunger and exhaustion got the better of us, we returned to the hotel around 10 AM. Nuii and I went to our room and napped as we waited for it to be time for lunch.
12:30 rolled around and we awoke to the phone ringing. Time for lunch. I sat with Nuii, her parents, and another couple who seemed to be good friends of theirs. This time, instead of having one person, the person next to me, always putting food on my plate, it was everyone doing it. It seems to be the latest trend. Once we finished our lunch, we piled onto the bus. I wasn’t too sure where we were going, but I just went along with it. After about half an hour of driving, we got out of the bus and boarded a trolley. We took a guided tour around the city of Nan. Apparently our tour guide was very funny. He spoke too quickly for me to understand most of what he was saying. We saw many sights, such as the oldest wall in Nan, some temples, more temples, a river, and some more temples. We got out at one of the temples and prayed and took some pictures, then got back on our trolley and went back to our bus. As we passed by people in their shops or at their homes, our guide would ring his bell and say “Wave hello! Hello people!” Everyone, of course, would get very excited and wave back to us and say hello. Once we were back on the bus, instead of going back to the hotel, we went to another temple. This temple was up on a hill and the pathway leading to it was lined by two giant dragon sculptures. The temple was beautiful. We went to the temple and prayed, but we also walked around the temple three times as we said our prayers. Then it was time for the group photo. I hadn’t mentioned this yet, but they love to take group photos. They even have a big sign they hold up every time we take one. We walked back down the pathway, all the way admire the beautiful view of the mountains in the distance, and got back on the bus. After some time, we got out at yet another temple. This one was different though. There were many people outside and there seemed to be music playing. As soon as we got off the bus, everyone at the temple started cheering and waing us. It turned out our Rotary club had donated a lot of money to this temple. They played music and danced as we walked/danced around the temple three times. It was quite the sight. There were so many people there, the majority of them were elder woman, and they were all so thankful. They went around the temple three times with us in the scorching heat, dressed up in their traditional costumes, then they sat with us for about an hour crammed in the small temple, on the floor, as we went through the ceremony. After the very long ceremony, we had dinner and a show. The local kids and some adults did various Thai dances for as while we ate a very delicious meal. When we first sat down, they brought out some plates of appetizers, one of which contained crickets. There was a plate full of cooked crickets. Everyone laughed and joked about it at first, but it was clear that no one wanted to eat them. Nuii’s mom changed that. She reached over, pick one up with her hand, contemplated it for a moment, then stuck it in her mouth. She didn’t look too disgusted as she chewed it, and she even said “a-roy” after. I did what any good rotary student would do. With many eyes watching me, I reached over, picked one up, and quickly shoved it in my mouth before I could have any second thoughts. To my surprise, and the surprise of the others, I actually enjoyed it! “A-roy!” I proclaimed to the many expectant viewers. I picked up another and ate it. I tried to convince Nuii to try them, but she wasn’t as gun-ho to try new things as I was. She did try them eventually, and she did like them. I never should have doubted Ian at Tin Bin Alley for selling them. When I return home I intend on buying many, many packages of them. After the very long dinner, we finally returned to the hotel. I was exhausted. We showered and turned on a Thai soap-opera and quickly fell asleep.
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