Ko Phangan was okay, did not reach spiritual nirvana, nor engage in any alcohol fueled hijinx. And aside from an Israeli theater dance major - I didn't really talk to anyone. It was beautiful and relaxing, pictures will follow someday. The bus/ferry combo was killer though. Tooo much traveling, not enough sleeping, toilets too disgusting to describe.*
I got to Bangkok yesterday at 5am, ate a little breakfast, then checked into a hotel room. Showered and smelling, if not feeling, fresher I went to Chatuchak market again for a little more shopping. I can't seem to stop myself from buying silk scarves. Got back, tried to nap, failed, then went for a late lunch/ early dinner. I was thinking about taking the morning bus, today, to Chiang Mai, so I texted the Brit to see if he was still living there.
It turned out he was in Bangkok for one day - he'd just spent 3 months in the UK (his mum is ill), and was heading down to Ko Phangan (where I'd just been) the next day. He's now working at a meditation retreat as a counselor. So we met up for a beer. It was nice to see him again, and really nice to have someone to talk to for a bit. He is the closest thing I have to a friend in this entire country. Saying good bye was weird. We're not likely to keep in touch, but he was like "see you around" and maybe we will see each other again, maybe not. Life is just too strange sometimes.
TAG: Code Coconuts
*although my tolerance for nasty toilets has gone up since I started carrying around my own roll of toilet paper.
Showing posts with label Code Coconuts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Code Coconuts. Show all posts
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Monday, August 24, 2009
It's like they want me to lose my mind.
And it's working.
Trying to hold onto any semblance of reality is just futile... everything changes... then changes again. You type B folks, I'm sure you'd love it here... easy breezy maybe you have class, maybe you don't -who knows? But I swear to you I am losing my mind, absolutely losing my mind.
So you know how I'm all stressed out because I have tons of overtime on my schedule this month. Today I finish my first kid class (of three for the day) and go downstairs to grab my next set of books. The manager announces to me as I pass "You have class tomorrow... new class in the evening." And that's how it goes. Not "Can you teach another class tomorrow?" Not even... "We're starting a class next week and you need to teach it." No. It's last minute and it's not a question or even a request, it's a statement. So I tell her:
"No. I can't. I'm already teaching 130 hours this month."
"But next month - your two (kid) classes finish."
"Ok - I can start when these two classes finish"
But that's not good enough for her. I go to the teachers room and collect a few things and she comes in after me.
"What do you think about this? If I ask someone to fill in for this week, and you start next month, then you finish in September and they need a get a new teacher again. It's not good for the students, it's better to have only two teachers than three."
"I'm already teaching too much, I can't. I have four classes today and every Monday and Wednesday this month! Four classes is too many."
"But the class is Tuesdays and Thursdays in the evening."
"I can not teach four classes on Monday and Wednesday" (starting at 9am and finishing at 8:30pm) "and another three on Tuesdays and Thursdays" (again starting at 9:30am and finishing at 8:30pm) "It's too much."
"What if I cancel one class for Monday and Wednesday."
Silence from me. I'm beyond brain dead. I don't want to negotiate, I want to have a sensible schedule that I can adjust to and not have to constantly keep juggling everything. I said 'no', I meant 'no' and I don't want to debate it anymore.
"I can cancel this class until next month, cancel three classes, only add two this week."
GAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! "Fine.... fine.... fine."
So then I go upstairs and start crying because I'm so tired of never knowing what they're going to throw at me. I feel lame because I feel completely incapable of standing up for myself. The only time I've ever gotten my way is when I've thrown a complete hissy fit in the middle of the office. When I got here I was so disgusted at the way the teachers would yell and argue every little point with the staff, but now I understand it. We're treated like robots.... like we can just walk into a classroom at a moments notice and teach anything, like it doesn't matter if they cancel or reschedule or give us the wrong information for a class or add a student or take out a student or rearrange our rooms or take away our bathroom. And when you try to be polite and reason with them, you get nowhere. I know I need to be more assertive, but seriously - I'd said that I didn't want the class like three different times. I can be assertive... I just can't deal with manipulative bullies.
Needless to say I was not in a good mindset for my five year old, and she was distracted and disobedient anyway. I pulled out some tests and started grading them while she hid under the table. I gave up.
I did a bit better with my 14 year old - his English is pretty good and we've been working on writing which gives me a fair amount of time to just sit there quietly. I was comforted ever so slightly by the fact that it was my last class for the day (the next one being the one the manager canceled to get me to teach tomorrow's class). When I was finished I was soooo ready to leave. But knowing that I had that 9:30am kid class tomorrow I decided to do some prep work and found an activity that I thought she'd like and made the appropriate copies.
Finished for the day I ended up going to dinner with the Head Teacher we joked about going out clubbing but obviously weren't going to... not with early classes the next morning. We were just getting ready to leave when I noticed my phone ringing. When I grabbed it I noticed it was our manager calling. "Oh god... I don't want to answer it, I don't want another class tomorrow!" but I did answer it.
"So sorry... problem with your schedule. Your two (kid) classes canceled already."
"What?"
"They go back to school tomorrow."
"So I don't have class tomorrow morning."
"No, no class."
"Fine... fine... fine."
GAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!
Obviously I'm happy to get to sleep in tomorrow. But it's like they just don't get it. They don't get that I actually try to prep classes in advance, that whether or not I have class in the morning determines what I do the night before, that I've now wasted time and energy and paper prepping an activity for a class that's not going to happen, that I'd been carefully parsing out student book pages with outside activities so that we'd finish the book when we finished the course, that I've had these kids for five days a week for the past month and a half and I won't even get to say goodbye to them. They don't care.... and it makes me not want to care. I may have class tomorrow, I may not, I may have ten classes tomorrow. It might be Pre-Intermediate like they told me, it might be Starter. Who knows? There might be 10 students, there might be 15, there might be 3, there might be one guy and his wife who's not even a registered student. Why does it matter? Why should I care? All that haggling this morning, crying in my classroom... all for nothing, it's all going to change anyway!!!
Losing my mind I tell you ... losing my mind.
TAG: Code Coconuts
Trying to hold onto any semblance of reality is just futile... everything changes... then changes again. You type B folks, I'm sure you'd love it here... easy breezy maybe you have class, maybe you don't -who knows? But I swear to you I am losing my mind, absolutely losing my mind.
So you know how I'm all stressed out because I have tons of overtime on my schedule this month. Today I finish my first kid class (of three for the day) and go downstairs to grab my next set of books. The manager announces to me as I pass "You have class tomorrow... new class in the evening." And that's how it goes. Not "Can you teach another class tomorrow?" Not even... "We're starting a class next week and you need to teach it." No. It's last minute and it's not a question or even a request, it's a statement. So I tell her:
"No. I can't. I'm already teaching 130 hours this month."
"But next month - your two (kid) classes finish."
"Ok - I can start when these two classes finish"
But that's not good enough for her. I go to the teachers room and collect a few things and she comes in after me.
"What do you think about this? If I ask someone to fill in for this week, and you start next month, then you finish in September and they need a get a new teacher again. It's not good for the students, it's better to have only two teachers than three."
"I'm already teaching too much, I can't. I have four classes today and every Monday and Wednesday this month! Four classes is too many."
"But the class is Tuesdays and Thursdays in the evening."
"I can not teach four classes on Monday and Wednesday" (starting at 9am and finishing at 8:30pm) "and another three on Tuesdays and Thursdays" (again starting at 9:30am and finishing at 8:30pm) "It's too much."
"What if I cancel one class for Monday and Wednesday."
Silence from me. I'm beyond brain dead. I don't want to negotiate, I want to have a sensible schedule that I can adjust to and not have to constantly keep juggling everything. I said 'no', I meant 'no' and I don't want to debate it anymore.
"I can cancel this class until next month, cancel three classes, only add two this week."
GAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! "Fine.... fine.... fine."
So then I go upstairs and start crying because I'm so tired of never knowing what they're going to throw at me. I feel lame because I feel completely incapable of standing up for myself. The only time I've ever gotten my way is when I've thrown a complete hissy fit in the middle of the office. When I got here I was so disgusted at the way the teachers would yell and argue every little point with the staff, but now I understand it. We're treated like robots.... like we can just walk into a classroom at a moments notice and teach anything, like it doesn't matter if they cancel or reschedule or give us the wrong information for a class or add a student or take out a student or rearrange our rooms or take away our bathroom. And when you try to be polite and reason with them, you get nowhere. I know I need to be more assertive, but seriously - I'd said that I didn't want the class like three different times. I can be assertive... I just can't deal with manipulative bullies.
Needless to say I was not in a good mindset for my five year old, and she was distracted and disobedient anyway. I pulled out some tests and started grading them while she hid under the table. I gave up.
I did a bit better with my 14 year old - his English is pretty good and we've been working on writing which gives me a fair amount of time to just sit there quietly. I was comforted ever so slightly by the fact that it was my last class for the day (the next one being the one the manager canceled to get me to teach tomorrow's class). When I was finished I was soooo ready to leave. But knowing that I had that 9:30am kid class tomorrow I decided to do some prep work and found an activity that I thought she'd like and made the appropriate copies.
Finished for the day I ended up going to dinner with the Head Teacher we joked about going out clubbing but obviously weren't going to... not with early classes the next morning. We were just getting ready to leave when I noticed my phone ringing. When I grabbed it I noticed it was our manager calling. "Oh god... I don't want to answer it, I don't want another class tomorrow!" but I did answer it.
"So sorry... problem with your schedule. Your two (kid) classes canceled already."
"What?"
"They go back to school tomorrow."
"So I don't have class tomorrow morning."
"No, no class."
"Fine... fine... fine."
GAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!
Obviously I'm happy to get to sleep in tomorrow. But it's like they just don't get it. They don't get that I actually try to prep classes in advance, that whether or not I have class in the morning determines what I do the night before, that I've now wasted time and energy and paper prepping an activity for a class that's not going to happen, that I'd been carefully parsing out student book pages with outside activities so that we'd finish the book when we finished the course, that I've had these kids for five days a week for the past month and a half and I won't even get to say goodbye to them. They don't care.... and it makes me not want to care. I may have class tomorrow, I may not, I may have ten classes tomorrow. It might be Pre-Intermediate like they told me, it might be Starter. Who knows? There might be 10 students, there might be 15, there might be 3, there might be one guy and his wife who's not even a registered student. Why does it matter? Why should I care? All that haggling this morning, crying in my classroom... all for nothing, it's all going to change anyway!!!
Losing my mind I tell you ... losing my mind.
TAG: Code Coconuts
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
cranky pants
I'm cranky... there's nothing wrong really... I'm just cranky. In fact I had a pretty fantastic weekend. But I'm cranky now.
All I wanted to do today was sit at my favorite coffee shop and write but it just didn't happen. I had uninvited company. You know, sometimes it surprises me how much of an introvert I am. I mean, I get lonely and I like to spend time with friends - but I generally only want to be around people whose company I enjoy. I almost never want to be around people just to be around people. But it seems that my social group now contains people who *do* want to be around people just for the sake of not being alone, and it's taken me off guard a couple of times. Someone asks "What are you doing tomorrow?" and when I answer "I'm doing xyz." they immediately respond as though I've just invited them along. Now that I know they won't wait for an invitation, I know I'll need to say "I'm doing xyz ALONE tomorrow." But wow... I was completely blindsided... twice!
And at work I found out that I've been assigned not one, not two, but THREE new private classes with children. Two of the classes will be five days a week. So I will now be teaching children six days a week. I cannot adequately express how unhappy I am with this situation, although the office staff unfortunately got a taste of it. A word to the wise... if you need to deliver bad news to someone, do not do it as soon as they walk in the door after being out in 90+ degree heat, and while they are still carrying a 20lb backpack. Give the person a chance to get settled and sit in an airconditioned room for a minute or two. Gah! I seriously (although briefly) considered quiting over this, but once I did get to sit down for a minute in the teachers lounge I reconsidered. I'm only teaching here for another three months. Still.... three months with kids... I don't know. We'll have to see how this week goes.
Also my internet connection is acting up again, surprise surprise. =/ I think it's my phone this time, it disconnects whenever it or the USB cord is jostled in the slightest. I swear just removing my hand after pressing the 'on' button is enough to dislodge it sometimes. Don't get me started on what happens when I actually start typing. It would be one thing if it were just a matter of rejiggling the phone to get it to connect again, but once it disconnects I need to wait for my computer to acknowledge the device, then dial in again. I've had to reconnect about five times since starting this post. GAH!
Ok... that's enough of the crankiness. I have to be ready for bright and smiling children first thing tomorrow morning, so I'd better get to bed now.
Grrrrrlkjda adflkfdaf kids.
TAG: Code Coconuts
(it's not actually that bad, but I honestly have been browsing for flights home)
All I wanted to do today was sit at my favorite coffee shop and write but it just didn't happen. I had uninvited company. You know, sometimes it surprises me how much of an introvert I am. I mean, I get lonely and I like to spend time with friends - but I generally only want to be around people whose company I enjoy. I almost never want to be around people just to be around people. But it seems that my social group now contains people who *do* want to be around people just for the sake of not being alone, and it's taken me off guard a couple of times. Someone asks "What are you doing tomorrow?" and when I answer "I'm doing xyz." they immediately respond as though I've just invited them along. Now that I know they won't wait for an invitation, I know I'll need to say "I'm doing xyz ALONE tomorrow." But wow... I was completely blindsided... twice!
And at work I found out that I've been assigned not one, not two, but THREE new private classes with children. Two of the classes will be five days a week. So I will now be teaching children six days a week. I cannot adequately express how unhappy I am with this situation, although the office staff unfortunately got a taste of it. A word to the wise... if you need to deliver bad news to someone, do not do it as soon as they walk in the door after being out in 90+ degree heat, and while they are still carrying a 20lb backpack. Give the person a chance to get settled and sit in an airconditioned room for a minute or two. Gah! I seriously (although briefly) considered quiting over this, but once I did get to sit down for a minute in the teachers lounge I reconsidered. I'm only teaching here for another three months. Still.... three months with kids... I don't know. We'll have to see how this week goes.
Also my internet connection is acting up again, surprise surprise. =/ I think it's my phone this time, it disconnects whenever it or the USB cord is jostled in the slightest. I swear just removing my hand after pressing the 'on' button is enough to dislodge it sometimes. Don't get me started on what happens when I actually start typing. It would be one thing if it were just a matter of rejiggling the phone to get it to connect again, but once it disconnects I need to wait for my computer to acknowledge the device, then dial in again. I've had to reconnect about five times since starting this post. GAH!
Ok... that's enough of the crankiness. I have to be ready for bright and smiling children first thing tomorrow morning, so I'd better get to bed now.
Grrrrrlkjda adflkfdaf kids.
TAG: Code Coconuts
(it's not actually that bad, but I honestly have been browsing for flights home)
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Vegetarians
It's tough to be a vegetarian in Thailand.
First off, they put meat in just about everything. Even if it's not a meat dish, it'll be seasoned with fish sauce, shrimp paste and oyster sauce.
Second of all... they just have totally different concepts of being a vegetarian. There's 'jay' which is a diet that monks occasionally adhere to. It's a purifying diet that omits meat and eggs, but also onions and garlic... and beer (the horror!). There's a 'jay' festival for 9 days every October for the purification of the soul. Many people participate in this and there are big community meals put on by the temples. So while people might understand that a person is 'jay' - they might wonder why they're 'jay' when it's not October, or why they're 'jay' and drinking beer. Then there's 'mon saw erat', which I think has fewer religious connotations. But it's also not quite as strict. Oysters and Oyster sauce are fair game for a 'mon saw erat' diet because (as explained to me by a student) oysters don't have blood.
Finally, if you want to eat a vegetarian diet, at some point you're going to need to find some alternative form of protein, which involves asking for tofu or eggs to be added to your food. This requires learning enough of the language to make yourself understood. Bunny has really given this the old college try, and often gets tofu added to her food, even if she has to say the word about 7 times in 7 different ways.
Vegetarian or not, ordering meals is always a bit like Christmas morning. You never know what you're going to get, and there's a good chance it's not going to be exactly what you'd asked for. Yesterday was, however, an epic fail. We went to a Japanese restaurant at the mall and she asked what on the menu was 'mon saw erat'... one dish was pointed out... then Bunny proceded to ask if tofu could be added to it. She said the word several times but the waitress looked confused and ultimately said 'mai mee' (don't have). Which was just not the case because we'd eaten there before and Bunny had somehow managed to obtain tofu. The waitress asks if she would like egg on the dish, and Bunny agrees while looking at the menu. Finally she finds a dish that has tofu in it and shows it to the waitress saying 'tofu tofu' in Thai. "Oooooh... tofu" the waitress replies... sounding exactly like how Bunny had said it. We can't hear anything properly here. I ordered a few pieces of sushi and tempura to share. Rex tried to indicate that he'd like the same thing I ordered. Bobby, smart lady, ordered something that had a picture next to it.
Bobby actually got what she ordered, and I guess I did too. But Rex didn't get any food as the waitress assumed we'd be sharing what I'd ordered. Bunny though, got two dishes.... one big bowl of tofu soup (yay tofu!), and another big bowl of some kind of rice dish.... with fish dumplings on top. FAIL! There was also a bowl of miso soup that no one remembered ordering. Bunny tried to dig into her tofu soup, but only chopsticks had been provided. When the waitress came back to check on us Bunny indicated the spoon in the miso soup and attempted to ask for another spoon. I wondered why she couldn't just use the spoon in the soup, but apparently she avoids using utencils that have touched meat as well and there was probably some kind of fish product in the miso soup. But you know what happened don't you? Did we get an extra spoon? NO! We got an extra bowl of miso soup.
All the extra food was fine though, as Rex and I were sharing the four pieces of sushi I'd ordered. So we also split the rice dish with the fish dumplings. It was good. Eventually the waitress brought Bunny a spoon so she could actually dig into her food. Nom nom nomming commences.
All is well... right? Oh no. Bunny notices a bit of crunchiness and looks down.... there's a bug in her spoon. Well, half a bug. EPIC FAIL! She's horrified, but starving, so she disposes of the bug and continues eating... until she finds another bug... and another one. We showed the waitress, who just kind of looked at us oddly, but didn't really do anything. At this point we start to wonder if it was an accident... or a seasoning. You know, it bothers me so much that I have to wonder about this... but seriously there's a cart full of garlic-fried grasshoppers at the food court where I get my dinner more often than not. So it kind of blurs the line between when it's okay to find bugs in your food and when it's not. But it also makes me wonder if bugs are considered 'mon saw erat' or not.
We left the restaurant and headed to the safe-have that is Starbucks. I ordered a hot cocoa (they set the AC so cold in there!) and Bunny orders a caramel creme frapachino something other and begins to feel better about her day... until she looks down at the beautiful white and swirly brown beverage in her plastic cup and sees... a hair.
TAG, on Bunny's behalf: Code Coconuts.
First off, they put meat in just about everything. Even if it's not a meat dish, it'll be seasoned with fish sauce, shrimp paste and oyster sauce.
Second of all... they just have totally different concepts of being a vegetarian. There's 'jay' which is a diet that monks occasionally adhere to. It's a purifying diet that omits meat and eggs, but also onions and garlic... and beer (the horror!). There's a 'jay' festival for 9 days every October for the purification of the soul. Many people participate in this and there are big community meals put on by the temples. So while people might understand that a person is 'jay' - they might wonder why they're 'jay' when it's not October, or why they're 'jay' and drinking beer. Then there's 'mon saw erat', which I think has fewer religious connotations. But it's also not quite as strict. Oysters and Oyster sauce are fair game for a 'mon saw erat' diet because (as explained to me by a student) oysters don't have blood.
Finally, if you want to eat a vegetarian diet, at some point you're going to need to find some alternative form of protein, which involves asking for tofu or eggs to be added to your food. This requires learning enough of the language to make yourself understood. Bunny has really given this the old college try, and often gets tofu added to her food, even if she has to say the word about 7 times in 7 different ways.
Vegetarian or not, ordering meals is always a bit like Christmas morning. You never know what you're going to get, and there's a good chance it's not going to be exactly what you'd asked for. Yesterday was, however, an epic fail. We went to a Japanese restaurant at the mall and she asked what on the menu was 'mon saw erat'... one dish was pointed out... then Bunny proceded to ask if tofu could be added to it. She said the word several times but the waitress looked confused and ultimately said 'mai mee' (don't have). Which was just not the case because we'd eaten there before and Bunny had somehow managed to obtain tofu. The waitress asks if she would like egg on the dish, and Bunny agrees while looking at the menu. Finally she finds a dish that has tofu in it and shows it to the waitress saying 'tofu tofu' in Thai. "Oooooh... tofu" the waitress replies... sounding exactly like how Bunny had said it. We can't hear anything properly here. I ordered a few pieces of sushi and tempura to share. Rex tried to indicate that he'd like the same thing I ordered. Bobby, smart lady, ordered something that had a picture next to it.
Bobby actually got what she ordered, and I guess I did too. But Rex didn't get any food as the waitress assumed we'd be sharing what I'd ordered. Bunny though, got two dishes.... one big bowl of tofu soup (yay tofu!), and another big bowl of some kind of rice dish.... with fish dumplings on top. FAIL! There was also a bowl of miso soup that no one remembered ordering. Bunny tried to dig into her tofu soup, but only chopsticks had been provided. When the waitress came back to check on us Bunny indicated the spoon in the miso soup and attempted to ask for another spoon. I wondered why she couldn't just use the spoon in the soup, but apparently she avoids using utencils that have touched meat as well and there was probably some kind of fish product in the miso soup. But you know what happened don't you? Did we get an extra spoon? NO! We got an extra bowl of miso soup.
All the extra food was fine though, as Rex and I were sharing the four pieces of sushi I'd ordered. So we also split the rice dish with the fish dumplings. It was good. Eventually the waitress brought Bunny a spoon so she could actually dig into her food. Nom nom nomming commences.
All is well... right? Oh no. Bunny notices a bit of crunchiness and looks down.... there's a bug in her spoon. Well, half a bug. EPIC FAIL! She's horrified, but starving, so she disposes of the bug and continues eating... until she finds another bug... and another one. We showed the waitress, who just kind of looked at us oddly, but didn't really do anything. At this point we start to wonder if it was an accident... or a seasoning. You know, it bothers me so much that I have to wonder about this... but seriously there's a cart full of garlic-fried grasshoppers at the food court where I get my dinner more often than not. So it kind of blurs the line between when it's okay to find bugs in your food and when it's not. But it also makes me wonder if bugs are considered 'mon saw erat' or not.
We left the restaurant and headed to the safe-have that is Starbucks. I ordered a hot cocoa (they set the AC so cold in there!) and Bunny orders a caramel creme frapachino something other and begins to feel better about her day... until she looks down at the beautiful white and swirly brown beverage in her plastic cup and sees... a hair.
TAG, on Bunny's behalf: Code Coconuts.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Je suis malade.
I'm back in Rayong, in the crappy little apartment I call 'home' and just completely worn out from the trip. I have a headache, a fever, my eyes hurt, my throat is either showing the first signs of catching the cold Bunny & Bobby are getting over or protesting the amount of dust & pollution I've inhaled over the last four days, I picked up an intestinal bug in Cambodia, my legs & knees are *still* sore from Angkor Wat, I have a heel blister from hiking all over Cambodia (and last night Bangkok) wearing flip flops, and I have a foot fungus I'm pretty sure I picked up back on Ko Samet a couple of weeks ago. Needless to say, I'm in pretty pitiful shape, and have opted out of the final two days of the vacation plan. There's no way I could handle traipsing around Bangkok and Ayuthaya in this condition.
So, I'll be hanging out in bed blogging and trying to make sense of this whole Cambodian adventure. Brace yourself for some very very long posts! For now you get one picture to prove that I was really really there.
TAG: Code Coconuts
So, I'll be hanging out in bed blogging and trying to make sense of this whole Cambodian adventure. Brace yourself for some very very long posts! For now you get one picture to prove that I was really really there.
TAG: Code Coconuts
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