I had the privilige to view and participate in a famous festival in Thailand, c'est a dire the candlelightfestival. This festival started years before when there was no electricity and the monks had to go to the ricefiels and working in the night. The people would help guide the monks then in the nights with a lot of candles all the way. These days they make paradecars with flowers or in the cities they build beautiful stunning paradecars completely carved out of candle-grease. All the schools or teams will parade with the cars through the whole village or city accompanied with traditional thai music and everybody is dressed in taditional thai clothing. Friday before noon whe walked with the whole school in a parade like that with flowercars, traditional music, traditional clothing and thai dancing. The day before I helped a bit with building the paradecar and it was the first time that I made a chain of flowers.
During the parade they were thai dancing. The male teachers were telling me and the other female teachers that normally the teachers should also be in the parade. So I just got behind the thai girls dancing and followed their steps with some other young teachers. I danced the whole way, which everybody tought was strange because they came asking me if I wasn't tired. I noticed that the aren't that sportive persons. They also take just for about everything ,even for a few meters, their car or moppet. They also can not understand that I wanted to walk home even if it's only about 15 minutes tops. It was kinda funny because the whole village came to watch the parade and when they saw me they all started to scream frang frang, which means stranger, and pointing at me and taking pictures. I can't count anymore how many people already asked me to get in the picture with them. Even all the teachers asked me for a picture and want to introduce me to their families and get on pictures. The end of the parade is when they arrive at the temple where they will give all the gifts and food to the buddhist monks and to do their prayings.
Afterwards Pi Mook (another english teacher) took me kindly to the famous candlelightfestival in ubon together with her husband and Pi blaa (another teacher). Their the parade was a lot bigger and all the cars were artworks carved out of candle-crease. It was so amazing, really just art! I'll put pictures on facebook. There were also fireworks, and shops a long the roads. You have always a lot of little shops at motorbikes who sell food and drinks. I tasted my first fried or baked insects in Ubon. I still don't like it, not quite my taste, a bit to crunchy... and just disgusting. You had grasshoppers, worms, bugs, flies,... They eat them as a delicatesse. The next day we got up really early to have a good seat at the tribunes to see the parade. Afterwards we went a bit shopping cause I still needed some more formel clothing for teaching. I enjoyed this weekend very much and had a great time with Pi Mook and Pi blaa who are just two great gals and really kind personalities!
The day after I just went some mountainbiking around the neighbourhood. My bike broke down, but luckily I found a cycle mender after some directions in Thai of Thai people after speaking with hand and teeth, like my mother would say. I'm a bit proud that I could have found the way all back even without a map. My guestfamily is so sweet and concerned about me. Even if I just took a bus to Surin or I wanted to walk home from school he really didn't felt at ease with it. They are sooo kind, apparently they even bought like a new closet for me when I was coming. I try to help them in the household as many as I can but they don't always let me. I try to tutor him and his son well, but I've got the feeling that his son on the one hand wants to learn english, but on the other hand don't want to do too much effort for it. I'm really lucky with my guestfamily. They are really one of the richest families here and have a grand beautiful house, although there is not hot water so I shower everyday with cold water. But at least I have a shower. I saw some houses where they sleep all in just one room and don't have any beds, nor bathroom. They wash themselves in a bucket of water,... I actually tought I would also stay in a house more pourly like that, but yeah so I'm very lucky, not just with the home but also with the family who are all soo kind. I really feel at home here. I truly hope I can give them something good in return. I thought about coocking for them european if I can find some ingredients. I already found belgian chocolate, yes, but it costs about as much as one meal in a little restaurant here, which is about 30TB so 70eurocent. yeah I know so awesome cheap, so I'll be doing some SHOPPINGGGG at Bangkok and Cambodja :D
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Monday, July 18, 2011
19/07 the school surinpitinpathaya
On the 13th of july at 6 'o clock I had to get up to get to school. This was very exhausting because I had only arrived the evening before after two days of travelling so I still had a huge jetlag. PiMook introduced me to all the teachers, but it's very difficult to remember all their names. Each morning the students have like a ceremony with the national anthem and they bow to the king. The king is very popular in Thailand because he does apparently a lot for the poor people. Really in every house and building there are pictures of the king and the queen, and even calenders with on each month a picture of them. After the ceremony I had to get on stage and present myself in front of the whole school which is about 2500 students and many teachers. That day I only went with the teachers to the classes and sat between the students to see and learn how the teachers teach. It's quite awfull. They speak still a lot in Thai and justlet the student repeat what they say. The student can know a word when it's written, but often they don't understand it in a sentence, nor when spoken. That's what I'm here for. I try to let them speak and think for themselves. They are just parrots and can't think for themselves. it's very hard because most of the times the students just look shy and turn away or speak in thai when I ask a question. I still don't know before the lesson what they will teach about so I can't prepare my lessons that quite good. I hope they will give me in time the lessons schedule.
The students are divided into groups of age but also of level. It makes it still difficult to know the level cause sometime hey are too old for little games, but then they have a very low level or just the opposite. It's difficult to give the lesson in a fun way but still to get some reaction. They are sometimes with just too many pupils in one class for making conversations. I have to let them speak to me english because with each other they will only speak thai. Sometimes I feel really foolish.
I have to teach a class with another teacher normally. Some classes went very well when I really may interact with the teacher in class en the theacher can still help me to let the students comprehend. But other teachers just leave me to my own. Two classes went well like this, but others not. It depends a lot of the students. I still have to get to know my students and their level. I also don't know wich words they already learned.
A very positive thing is that the students are very polite. It's amazing how well mannered they are. They bow all the time to teachers. Even if you walk just from one room to another they all bow. To bow with your hands pressed to eachother is the way to say hello in thai. They also always have to take of their shoes to come into the class. The teachers don't have to do that.Almost every day they have another uniform that they wear, even the teachers. I don't have to wear them cause I don't have those uniforms, but I still have to dress formally so I had to buy some formel skirts and blouses.
I can wright on my blog now cause they have midterms so the teachers are mostly revising their contents for the tests tomorrow untill friday. So I can't really do anything.
that's about it. see you later
The students are divided into groups of age but also of level. It makes it still difficult to know the level cause sometime hey are too old for little games, but then they have a very low level or just the opposite. It's difficult to give the lesson in a fun way but still to get some reaction. They are sometimes with just too many pupils in one class for making conversations. I have to let them speak to me english because with each other they will only speak thai. Sometimes I feel really foolish.
I have to teach a class with another teacher normally. Some classes went very well when I really may interact with the teacher in class en the theacher can still help me to let the students comprehend. But other teachers just leave me to my own. Two classes went well like this, but others not. It depends a lot of the students. I still have to get to know my students and their level. I also don't know wich words they already learned.
A very positive thing is that the students are very polite. It's amazing how well mannered they are. They bow all the time to teachers. Even if you walk just from one room to another they all bow. To bow with your hands pressed to eachother is the way to say hello in thai. They also always have to take of their shoes to come into the class. The teachers don't have to do that.Almost every day they have another uniform that they wear, even the teachers. I don't have to wear them cause I don't have those uniforms, but I still have to dress formally so I had to buy some formel skirts and blouses.
I can wright on my blog now cause they have midterms so the teachers are mostly revising their contents for the tests tomorrow untill friday. So I can't really do anything.
that's about it. see you later
Sunday, July 17, 2011
first week 12/07 - 17/07: thai culture
After a long trip of 28 hours, I arrived in bangkok where four teachers of my school waited to pick me up. We still had to drive 8 hours to get to Issan Surin, but on the way we stopped to get some lunch and to buy me some formel clothes for the school. Finally after travelling about 38 hours we arrived at my guesthouse. I live at the house of Pi Ni a teacher, his son Pejet and his wife Pi Pen, who sadly can't speak a word english. The house is quite big and definetely one of the richest houses of this pour region.
I already learned some of the cultural habbits of Thai people. For exemple they love Tv if they can afford it. They have everywhere in different rooms a tv who is almost always on even during dinner and even in the teachers gadering room. Thai think feet are disgusting and impolite, so you can never touch somebody nor point at someone with your feet. I already read about this, but I didn't know that you can't even point your feet at someone. So in the car I had my one leg over the other wchich caused that I had lifted my feet to Pi Ni, which apparently was very impolite. oeps! They also always take their shoes off in almost any building they enter. The head is holy, so you can never touch a head of an older person. You also have to pay a lot of respect at the eldery, even if they are only a few years older than you. The second question they always ask is: How old are you? But it's to know wich polite form they'll have to say to you. They give each other always nicknames. The students know the teachers by their real official name, but I only know them by their nicknames which actually means something. For exemple Palida her nickname is Mook and means pearl. She is older than me so I call here always Pi Mook.
The houses of the thai are very open: litteraly open, there are almost no doors and are just open walls. Luckily I have gazes in front of the windows in my room which keeps the mosquitos away. There are everywhere fans (ventilators) to keep the freshness. The gardens are so beautiful with bananatrees, a lot of chairs, hammocks and so on... The only thing I still can't stand are the toilets. The bathroom is one grand room with toilet, a bucketful and just a showertap. So no toilet paper. I still have to figure out how to go to the toilet and keeping my pants dry when you just have to shower yourself. weird! I also just have to brush my teeth in the shower because there is no lavabo, but than with a bottle of water cause I can't drink the water of the tap.
PS: I already learned to count in thai till 999. still a bit slow, but I can. It's not too hard.
I'll try not to write too long stories, so I'll divide it up in many parts so you can choose yourself which you want to read. have fun! amusez-vous ;)
pictures will follow!
swadi kha ( goodbye in thai)
I already learned some of the cultural habbits of Thai people. For exemple they love Tv if they can afford it. They have everywhere in different rooms a tv who is almost always on even during dinner and even in the teachers gadering room. Thai think feet are disgusting and impolite, so you can never touch somebody nor point at someone with your feet. I already read about this, but I didn't know that you can't even point your feet at someone. So in the car I had my one leg over the other wchich caused that I had lifted my feet to Pi Ni, which apparently was very impolite. oeps! They also always take their shoes off in almost any building they enter. The head is holy, so you can never touch a head of an older person. You also have to pay a lot of respect at the eldery, even if they are only a few years older than you. The second question they always ask is: How old are you? But it's to know wich polite form they'll have to say to you. They give each other always nicknames. The students know the teachers by their real official name, but I only know them by their nicknames which actually means something. For exemple Palida her nickname is Mook and means pearl. She is older than me so I call here always Pi Mook.
The houses of the thai are very open: litteraly open, there are almost no doors and are just open walls. Luckily I have gazes in front of the windows in my room which keeps the mosquitos away. There are everywhere fans (ventilators) to keep the freshness. The gardens are so beautiful with bananatrees, a lot of chairs, hammocks and so on... The only thing I still can't stand are the toilets. The bathroom is one grand room with toilet, a bucketful and just a showertap. So no toilet paper. I still have to figure out how to go to the toilet and keeping my pants dry when you just have to shower yourself. weird! I also just have to brush my teeth in the shower because there is no lavabo, but than with a bottle of water cause I can't drink the water of the tap.
PS: I already learned to count in thai till 999. still a bit slow, but I can. It's not too hard.
I'll try not to write too long stories, so I'll divide it up in many parts so you can choose yourself which you want to read. have fun! amusez-vous ;)
pictures will follow!
swadi kha ( goodbye in thai)
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
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