Jub Jub Suphan! Chan Ja Kit Tueng Suphan Mak Mak!

The time has come. Suphan has been a wonderful home these past 12 months. Thailand has made me a very calm, blessed and happy person, mee kwarm sook mak loey! Here's just a few of the things that I have loved and will really miss about living in Thailand:

Sights: the wai greeting, cute students, dogs riding shotgun on a motorbike, pictures of the King in every store, restaurant and home, food carts pushing their way down the street, bugs for sale at the night market, elephants walking down the street, geckos climbing all over the walls, standing to watch the tribute to the King at the beginning of movies in theaters, peace signs in pictures, shoes lined up in the hallway, students walking single file into school, Oat climbing all over our table at Dton's restaurant, 555 all over my facebook wall, stuffed tuk-tuks, people sitting on chairs on top of bags of rice on a moving truck, old shirtless men sitting on their stoops late at night, babies on a moped...

Sounds: tuk-tuk motors, chanting monks, the students daily greeting "Good Morning Teacher," the Thai language, the band at Chaba Cafe, old-school Thai music, the Suphan accent, Thaienglish, people yelling "farang" at me, the gecko squeak, the national anthem every day at 6am, 8am, and 6pm, the ding every time you enter a 7-11, motorbike drivers going past yelling out "I love you!," the Thai reactions "oh-hooooo","aow","oyyy!", "chon gow, mot gow" at the bars, traditional Thai tv show at PTL, chup chup!, Grandma babbling in Thai at PTL, 25 Hours concerts...

Smells: fresh coffee, Thai street food, bug spray, loaded up on sunscreen, toasties from ImD. (Okay, I'll be honest, there are more smells here that I won't miss than those that I will...)

Touch: Thai massages, cramming my longish (in Asia) legs into a seat on the public bus, riding on the back of a motorbike, hugs from the students every morning when I walk down the hall, dancing to too much so much very much whenever it comes on, tuk-tuk rides around town, hot and sunny weather all year long...

Tastes: chili peppers, fresh fruit, som tom, Thai style iced coffee, bamee noodles, flower water, rice bread, banana shakes, pocky, sticky rice, pad thai, khao soi, beer with ice, fried donuts, grapow moo, Thai style omelettes, locally grown rice, cornettos from 7-11, kai jiew, siracha sauce...

I've now pretty much moved out of my apartment and I'm no longer an official "resident" of Thailand.  I'm off to live the backpacker life and be a vagabond for the next 5 weeks. Michaela has arrived and starting on Saturday we will head to Bangkok, up through Northeastern Thailand, into Laos, then I'll go back to Chiang Mai, and on to Pai and Mae Hong Son, back to Bangkok to pick up my brother, down to Koh Lanta, one final night in Suphan, and then on to Seoul, South Korea for a few days before I head back to St. Louis, Missouri, USA!

It's been amazing, Thailand. I'll always consider Suphan home and I'm so happy I've got such a big family here to come back and visit. Khop Khun Mak Mak Mak Mak Mak Ka!!

SYEP Good-Bye Ceremony
Photo by Clare

PTL: The Mon, The Myth, The Legend

Pad Thai Lady.

I'm sure I've spoken about my revere for Pad Thai Lady (also dubbed PTL) plenty on this blog, and how I want to bring her home with me in my carry-on luggage, but really she deserves every ounce of praise she gets, and her very own blog post!  This lady can cook.  She doesn't need a fancy kitchen with crazy gadgets and granite counter tops.  No way, all PTL needs is a sidewalk, a few tables and chairs in her living room, some fresh veggies, and a large selection of sauces and cooking oils.  PTL (real name: Mon) is a legend in Suphanburi - she speaks no English, but she serves as the personal chef for a majority of the farang in our town who don't have kitchens in our apartment and who thus seek her out almost every evening to whip up some Pad Thai, Pad See Ew, Khao Pat Gai, Phad Phak Ruam, Phad Kee Mow, etc - rice or noodles - up to you!

As of Tuesday, It's officially been 8 months since I left the USA for Southeast Asia, and while there are many things I miss from America, one thing I know I'll have a hard time leaving when it's time to go back is PTL.  I think she has spoiled my opinion of Thai restaurants in America forever.  I'll never be able to eat at a Thai restaurant and pay $10-15 for a meal I used to get for 90 cents! I'm sure I'll also miss the whole set-up: eating everything with a spoon, never knowing if the water you're going to drink will make you sick later on, the fact that there are no doors or windows on the restaurant, the Thai soap opera blaring in the background, the family photos that decorate the walls, and of course the dogs, cats, geckos and mosquitoes that hang out at your feet while you eat. Sure, it's different - but it's all part of the experience, and I LOVE it. Now I just have to convince Mon to come to America (whatever city I eventually end up in) to continue to serve me delicious Thai feasts, mai pen rai, right?  If nothing else, my goal before I leave is to at least convince her to teach me how to make a mean Pad Thai, which means I better get working on my Thai phrase-book!

In other news, the Social Studies teacher at Sa-nguan Ying School, Kru Tuke, has been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to study in America for 6 weeks in a program at Amherst College.  Everyone here is so proud of Kru Tuke and Nell and I are excited (and a little jealous!) to send her off with a list of things to do and see while she's in Boston.  Here's a link to Tuke's blog that she's set up for students and friends who want to follow her experiences in the US: http://discovertheuswithkrutuke.blogspot.com/

Thai Snacks: The Good, The Bad, The Insects

Living in Thailand, my eating habits have undergone a major change in the past five months. I no longer have access to cheese, sandwiches, pizza, bagels and many more foods.  Each day for lunch and dinner I struggle with one essential question: rice or noodles?  I've also had to adjust my snack habits, there's nothing as simple as pretzels or Wheat Thins or chips and salsa.  There is, however, an abundance of fresh pineapple and other tropical fruits that are SO delicious.  There's also a wide variety of other snack options.  Since I'm packing up for a week long tour of Vietnam with about 80 Thai teachers from my school, I figured I'd keep it simple and show off some of the Thai snack choices: the good, the bad, and the insects, here's a few photos from this morning's walk around the market (and of course a stop at 7-11).

The Good: Pocky chocolate dipped biscuit sticks and Hershey's cookies & cream nuggets (which they stopped producing in the states a few years back much to my dismay.  Luckily, Thailand imports them from the Philippines.)














The Bad: Walking through the market can be tough on the stomach, especially when the sun is blazing. There is an excess of raw fish and various pig's body parts for sale.  You want it, you can get it.

The insects: I haven't tried one yet--and I likely won't--but you never know.  When in Asia...

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Turkey Day to those of you in the good ole' US of A.  I had almost forgotten it was Thanksgiving - maybe it has something to do with the 95 degree weather here.  There will be no turkey for me this year, no mashed potatoes, and no pumpkin pie - but you can be sure there will be rice!  Some of my fellow American teachers living in the Soup are getting together for a makeshift Thanksgiving meal, but I will be in Bangkok for the evening on a boat trip down the river with my school's English Program.  Perhaps I'll try to explain to my Thai students why we celebrate this day in America.

Since it's the day we usually toast to what we're thankful for, I thought I would share a few things that I'm grateful for in my new life in Thailand after my first month and a half here:

• Thai people and culture:  They are so friendly and kind and generous - I have learned so much from them already and how they handle every situation with a "Mai Pen Rai" (no worries) attitude and a smile.  I'm also obsessed with the tuk-tuks they use to get around, the "wai" they use to greet each other, and their deep love of karaoke.
• Travel opportunities: There are so many beautiful sights to see in this country, I've already seen so many great sunsets, waterfalls, elephants, mountains, beaches, and rice paddies, and there's so much more to do.  I'm super thankful for easy and cheap transportation and lodging that allow me to explore this country, even on my teacher's salary.  
• Meeting vagabonds: I love meeting people from Israel, South Africa, Italy, France, Switzerland, New Zealand, Scotland, Australia, Germany, Ireland, South Korea, China and England as they travel around the world for 2 weeks or 1 year - it's such a great cultural exchange and I've met some really cool/interesting/inspiring peeps.
• My students: These kids provide endless entertainment, they are sweet, full of energy, and occasionally terrors - but they make me laugh and they challenge me every day to come up with new and exciting ways to teach them about my three favorite activities - reading, writing, and talking! 
• My BFF Nell/Deej/DJ/Jill: It's so nice to have someone to share this crazy journey with - we travel, grab meals and test our ever-increasing tolerance for spicy food, take outdoor Jazzercise, commiserate and celebrate our lesson plan failures and successes, and practice our Thai together - it would be a much bigger adjustment here on my own.

And last but most certainly not least:

• My family and friends: I was worried I would lose touch with some people being so far away and out of contact, and then there's that whole 12-15 hour time difference to the States, but everyone has made so much effort to keep me updated. I am very, very thankful for all of the cards, packages, emails, facebook messages, tweets, g-chats, skype calls, etc that have been sent my way.  I hope you enjoy your turkey and all of its' stuffings, go wild on Black Friday, and watch lots of football! Khob Khun Ka!