Orientation (Part 1)

 10/17/15 Saturday 7:00AM

The last few days have been an absolute whirlwind! Getting adjusted to the Thai time zone has been a little more difficult than I thought it would be. That first day in Bangkok I ate breakfast after finishing my blog post and then went out to explore the area around the hostel. The hostel was just two blocks away from Victory monument, a very bustling part of the city. There were lots of markets and street food to check out in the immediate vicinity. After browsing for a little while we decided to go get our Japanese Encephalitis vaccines. These vaccines were so expensive at home, so Molly and I decided to book an appointment at a clinic that was just a short walk from our hostel. I was quite impressed with the medical facilities. We were greeted by a nurse who took our information, then we saw a doctor who made sure we were getting the right vaccine, paid our $20 fee and got the vaccine. It was a quick process and the clinic was clean. It felt just like being in a hospital in the states but the prices were much cheaper.

The alley adjacent to the clinic was flush with small food stands and lots of people eating lunch. I decided that I wanted to try some of the food. The only problem was that none of the vendors spoke English, nor was there any English on the menus. This was common all throughout the area. Since everything is written in Thai characters we are basically illiterate here. It makes every day acts that we take for granted (navigating the city, ordering food) much more difficult, but it’s challenging in a good way. So I spent about a half hour pacing up and down that alley trying to figure out what the food was and how exactly I was going to order any. Eventually Molly ended up getting someone’s attention and just pointing at a ground beef dish that looked good. The meal was delicious but I added way too much of the chili peppers on the table. It was the hottest meal I have had in a long time, and by the end of it I was drenched in sweat. After that we walked around a bit more and then took a nap; we just couldn’t stay awake anymore despite our best efforts. When we woke up we were still tired, but mustered up enough energy to find a restaurant just down the street from our hostel and get dinner. My two meals on the day cost about $3 total. Food here is incredibly cheap, and it is actually more expensive to buy groceries and cook yourself than it is to just eat out.

The next day we woke up way too early in the morning, something like 4:30 or 5:00 am. We spent the morning just lounging and got breakfast in our hostel. I went back to the market with Molly and she bought a sundress for 100 bhat, just over $3. Then we got packed up and headed to the airport to make our way to Chiang Mai. The flight was quick and even though it was only an hour long, they still fed us a full meal. Man I love Asian airlines! When we got to Chiang Mai we met up with someone from our program and made our way to the hotel. Upon arriving at the hotel we registered for our orientation, and spent the rest of the afternoon unpacking and lounging. It was apparent that Chiang Mai was much more serene than the bustling, sometimes crazy, Bangkok. It has much more natural beauty and a more comfortable tempo than the nation's Capital.

The view from our hotel room

Finally, we came to day 1 of our orientation. The day started with a group trip to the Bhubing Palace and the Doi Suthep temple. The vans we took were grouped so that we would meet people who will be teaching near us. We met two other girls who will be teaching in the same town as us and a couple people who will be teaching in the same or adjacent regions. Everyone here seems so fun and comes from lots of different backgrounds. The palace and temple were absolutely beautiful. They were situated up higher on a mountain, and the air was incredibly fresh up there. 

 Left:The entrance to Bhubing Palace Right: Bhubing Palace flower gardens

At the temple I participated in two Buddhist ceremonies. One involved pacing around the golden pagoda three times while meditating. The other was conducted by a monk who splashed water on me and tied a ceremonial white braid around my wrist. 

Right: The stairs leading to the temple   Left: The view from the temple overlook

The golden pagoda at Doi Suthep

After the palace and temple, the classwork for the week started. We went over some teaching basics and some dos and don’ts about Thai culture. I’m hoping that the students I teach have a good understanding of English, otherwise it is going to be really challenging to teach some of the more complex mathematical concepts. Hopefully I will learn more tips throughout the week to help with the language barrier in the classroom.

Last night we got dinner with a bunch of people we had met throughout the day at a few stands set up for the national vegetarian festival. We had fried bananas, vegetable dumplings, and noodles with cabbage and a sweet sauce. Later on we went to see some traditional Muay Thai fights. The skill and grace of the fighters was awesome to watch. They also had some “special fights”. One of these fights featured seven fighters blindfolded in the ring just walking around and finding someone to punch. It was maybe the strangest and funniest thing I have seen so far.

The ringside view

Well it is about time for me to start day two of orientation. I am looking forward to meeting more people and learning more and more about what to expect here in Thailand!