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Tuesday, 18 November 2008 |
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So I've finally gotten around to updating the site... I guess I just needed a month (or two) to regroup. I was going to blog after my trip back home, but I was homesick for a week or so after getting here and then school started back in full force. Anyway, this isn't really a decent update... or even any kind of update. I just figured out how to take HDR photos and decided to post a few here. You can click on them to open a new window and then click again to see a bigger image. 
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 20 November 2008 )
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A little bit of this. A little bit of that. |
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Wednesday, 24 September 2008 |
A little bit of this. A little bit of that.
I'm in the process of cleaning my apartment, writing reports for school, washing clothes, and cooking chili. So naturally this is the best time to blog, right? Truth be told, this is somewhat symbolic of how busy my life has been lately. That's not to say I haven't had time to update my site, it has just been way way down on the priority list. Anyway, I'm doing it now...
So we just had 3 days of a Thai culture course at work. It's one of 3 new mandatory requirements to teach in Thailand.
#1: Bachelors Degree from your home country.
#2: 20 hour Thai culture course.
#3: A teaching degree from your home country or completing a $3000 USD teaching course at a Thai university.
I realize the Ministry of Education thinks it would be a good idea to make it harder for pedophiles, backpackers, and overall scum to become teachers here, but Thailand desperately needs native English speaking teachers and these new laws are going to scare a lot of good teachers away. The bad thing about getting a teaching degree within Thailand is that most other countries will not recognize it. Not that I can really blame them; this is a place where NO ONE CAN FAIL. I could rattle on for quite some time about Thailand's governmental flaws, but the rules are what they are, and often times finding the reasoning behind them is like a dog chasing it's tail. Surprisingly enough, the course was very informative and, aside from practicing Thai dancing, it was enjoyable. Needless to say, this is probably my last year teaching here. It's been a great experience, but the pro's of staying another year are quickly being swallowed up by the con's. What's next? Maybe a Masters in education from the U.S. although teaching in Japan or Korea seems promising as well. Whatever I choose, I will be in America next Thanksgiving and Christmas. My parents brought some chili kits with them when they came a few months ago. I finally busted one open and made it the other night. Simply amazing. Sometimes I forgot how badly I miss certain things back home. And apparently chili is one of them; I ate the whole pot (2lbs) over the course of an hour.I'm not sure if any of you have seen Bangkok Dangerous yet, but I really liked it. I honestly spent most of the movie trying to pick out the different filming locations around the city, so I can't really comment too much on the plot or acting. I think Nicholas Cage is one of the dullest "action" actors alive so I didn't expect much on the acting front. As for the movie being set in BKK; I can't begin to describe how fascinating living in a big city truly is. Seeing it as the backdrop in a major Hollywood movie was an awesomely weird experience. Something else that's pretty weird; One of my friends messaged me the other day asking if I was still abroad. I responded "No, I'm still in Bangkok," involuntarily thinking that "abroad" meant "America". It was surprising, even to me, that my perspective changed so quickly. Even though I haven't been here long, and don't plan on being here forever, I do think of BKK as home now (in some form or fashion). Lastly, what's going on over in America? Everytime I pick up a paper some huge corporation has failed, a candidate has done or said something stupid, or a major city has run out of gas. I don't know what it's like on the inside, but from the outside looking in, America seems like a scary place to be right now. I think the President of Iran is about as crazy as they come, but he might have a point about this being the end of the "American Empire." Obviously, I hope he's wrong, but I certainly don't think it's out of the question. While the U.S. is sorting out her problems, I am enjoying the benefits of a falling dollar. This will come in very handy when I convert my currency next week. I'M COMING HOME!!! There was something else I was going to write about as well, but it escapes me at the moment. All I can think about is the chili waiting for me. I am serious about phone numbers... I need them. |
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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 24 September 2008 )
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Sunday, 07 September 2008 |
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Political Unrest for Thailand... plenty of rest for me. If you've kept up with international news (very hard in the States, I know) then you're probably aware that Thailand has had some political unrest as of late. It's actually been going on for quite some time, and just recently intensified. This escalation began with a mob taking over what equates to Thailand's White House, and culminated when two political parties' supporters clashed resulting in one death. The prime minister responded to this single, isolated death by declaring the entire country in a "State of Emergency". This resulted in the closure of school for 3 days which, in turn, gave me a 5 day weekend. Never being one to let an opportunity to relax and do nothing pass me by, I hopped on the first bus out of BKK and went diving at one of the country's best dive resorts.  This picture was taken from a viewpoint on the southernmost island. The island group is connected by a natural sandbar. The stunning beauty, lack of tourists, and excellent value made this my favorite island in Thailand so far. The whole trip was less than $150 US and included meals, travel, accomadation, and 2 dives... a simple reminder as to why I love it here. Anyway, looks like I'll be making the trip back home to visit next month. I'll fly into Nashville on October the 9th and head back to Bangkok on the 23rd. I'll hang out in the boro for a few days before making my way to Atlanta. I don't have anyone's phone number anymore, so send me your # in advance so I can contact you. Lastly, while things have been kinda crazy here in the past few months, please be aware that I'm doing everything possible to stay out of the conflict... Click on the picture below to see my facebook gallery of pictures I took at one of the protests last week.
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 07 September 2008 )
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Saturday, 23 August 2008 |
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Saying Something. I will update this just as soon as something exciting happening coincides with me having the time and energy to write about it. |
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Thursday, 03 July 2008 |
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The uncomfortable transit. After work today, I made the time consuming journey back to my old stomping grounds. It's about an hour and a half trip each way, but I've managed to determine the best route according to the day and time. For example, if I go there during rush hour, I'll take the skytrain to a canal boat and then walk. If it's late at night, a bus is best. As completely out-of-the-way it is, I love going to Ramkamhaeng because it brings back all the nostalgia of my time as a tourist. It's also a more accurate glimpse of the "real" Thailand. It's certainly still Bangkok, but it isn't tourist Bangkok, and that can be quite refreshing at times. As I boarded the canal boat, the battery on my Ipod died. So there I sat with my knees folded up to my jaw like an accordian for an hour. As I looked around, I noticed a lady in the front kept dozing off. The sight of her head beating against the guy next to her amused me for the good part of half an hour... maybe more. I finally arrived and began conversation "class" with some friends. Afterwards, I met a guy that works with a nonprofit agency in Burma: looks like I might be doing some volunteer work next summer! On the ride home I remembered I had a cell phone with games, and reaquainted myself with a long lost pal. It's games, however antiquated they may be, were still fun and had my full attention until I noticed something on my shoulder. Some guy had fallen asleep and, hopefully to someone's amusement, he was using my shoulder as a pillow. I wasn't quite sure how to act, but I took it like a champ and immersed myself in tetris. At one point, he became restless and bobbed the other direction. I took this small window of opportunity to stand up and move toward the exit.... The sudden lack of a human pillow inevitably caught him by surprise as he slammed to the empty seat with a smack. The sound was loud enough to knock me into my "stupid tourist mindset" in which I pretend others assume I'm probably a tourist who simply doesn't know how things work just yet... It does make me feel better. Ohh yeah, Have a happy 4th of July. The older I get, and the more I see and hear about other countries, the more I appreciate America! |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 03 July 2008 )
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