Bangkok, Historic Sites, Islands and Teaching

August 22, 2009

I wrote the following narrative during my 4th of July break. Since then it seems time has flown. We finished mid-terms, a very busy time, and now I am into the quarterly reports. I am really enjoying teaching and the kids who are teenagers, of course, but very respectful even in their antics. Enough time has passed and we have got to where we know each other better and have fun as well as do some work.

On the business I have to rent my condo and my friend, Dennis Bianchi, is taking charge for me. Sharon and T.C., dear old friends, were great enough to take care of the personal stuff and take it to shortage for me. Hopefully all will work out and as well hope Gregory comes back for a visit.

I am really enjoying my little pot fish ponds outside my door and often just sit and watch them swim around. Imagine one gets to do such things at a certain time of life. And I cannot believe I now have a ladies sewing circle. Three friends gather at my house to knit or whatever and I am learning how to cross-stitch. I have also started a tiny bit of bead weaving again. But stuff is so hard to find here. When I go to Bangkok, I am sure there is something.

Please do let me hear from you. No matter what I miss friends – it is true that there are no friends like old friends who have been there to share so much.

July 7, 2009


It has been a long time since I gave an update to my friends and family. Life has sure been busy and I can tell you that living in Thailand sure is pretty laid back. Although I teach every day, there is still slowness to the rest of my life and when not teaching, there is not much to do for any of us except to entertain ourselves. I do that by going to the beach or islands as often as I can afford it. That is usually right after pay day which is the end of the month, of course.

Right now, on school holiday until the 9th, I am on the island of Koh Yao Yai, an hour by ferry and one half hour by speed boat from Phuket Town. Only the ferry was running yesterday and I was the only foreigner on a boat filled with mainly Muslim women going back to Koh Yao Yai after shopping in Phuket. The ferry was also full of supplies for the islanders and smelled full of fresh ripened fruit. I went immediately to the beach which is only a short walk from my bungalow.. Here there is a two kilometer, beautiful white sandy beach, quiet wave activity, perfect water, and absolutely deserted except for me. I had a great afternoon. This morning it is raining quite hard so I decided to stay in my room and write and then read. I always travel with reading material. My bungalow owner is going to take me on a tour of the island when it stops raining.

Well it has not stopped raining but we went on a tour anyhow. This island is really beautiful and unspoiled. There are people here, including Yamalia, my hostess, who really care and fight against huge resort developments and even stopped a big marina from being built. They are truly interested in the quality of life here and the integrity of the island. We walked along another beautiful beach in the rain where a misty view of the curve of the island could be viewed and we enjoyed what was almost an enclosed bay and surround. Yamalia knew I loved crabs so as we sat at her friends stand at the beach enjoying iced tea and iced coffee, she sent a young boy after crabs. He catches them by the mangrove trees in his little wire mesh cages. While he was doing that I enjoyed the ladies conversation about their exploits about their team activities to keep Yao from becoming like Phuket or Samui I am sure the rest of my stay will be the same – beach if it does not rain; exploring if it does.. And I am looking forward to my crab dinner with glass noodles Thai style.

What is daily life like? I get up about 6 a.m., put on the coffee and then turn on CNN. In the past I was able to get the Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer at 6, but with daylight savings time, he is on at 5 a.m. and that is too early. So I just watch whatever news is on CNN or BBC. During this morning hour BBC runs their BBC America show, which is often more interesting than the CNN World News. There are a few occasions when I can be home at 9 a.m. to watch AC 360. I am still a fan of Anderson Cooper. For the past couple of weeks since Michael Jackson died I have, of course, been following the news about his life, his work and his dance. I find it hard to believe how truly saddened I have been – watching the reruns of his videos and performances only enhances my and other’s feelings how much more he might have been in the world of entertainment. His life may have been bizarre but his musical and dancing skills were tremendous. But I have digressed.

By the time I finish coffee, news watching, and breakfast, it is 7 a.m. and time to get ready for school. I walk to school every day from my little house and I am lucky enough to not have an overtaxing schedule. Most days I can go back and forth from home to school and sometimes get a few errands done during the break. I usually start classes at 9 a.m. We all finish at 4:30 p.m. no matter when our last class ends.. Check in at 7:45 and out at 4:30. No exceptions. There are a couple of coffee shops/restaurants right near the school, so there are often coffee breaks and socializing with other teachers. That is when we get all the gossip, rumors, etc….general workplace stuff.

I try to get all of my marking, book checking, lesson plans and other teaching essentials done during the day so that I do not have to take work home. Once I leave school, I leave school. I walk home, get some iced tea, and relax for a bit. Of course, I have created a pot garden of tropical plants and enjoy watching and caring for them. It is great to have great green vegetations, a giant fan palm, several bougainvilleas, a gardenia, and a jasmine plat along with a very old banana tree which has yet to create any fruits.. I think it may be the original, because once a tree produces fruit, it has to be cut back to allow the shooters to grow into new trees. . I actually have a couple of trees growing in pots that will turn out to be very large with beautiful white flowers – hopefully, the pots will keep them from becoming giants. If I had the space they are great shade trees. If not gardening or looking after my fish – I have one large garden pot of fish and some in my lotus planter, they keep the mosquitoes at bay -I may walk to the local pool a block and a half away and swim or jog in it for at least a half hour. I used to go every day but some days it is really too hot to even bother especially now during the Thai summer months. Sometimes I go to the local stores for whatever I need: Tesco Lotus, Big C, Central, or the Villa Mart. The latter has recently opened and carries lots of “farang” food. I was amazed to find they even carried corn bread mix. If I don’t go anywhere, I stay home, watch news updates, occasionally an old movie or old reruns of CSI and Midsomer Murders, make dinner, read and go to bed pretty early, usually by 10 p.m.

Weekends comprise excursions to the various beaches or islands, lunch or a gathering with friends, or shopping in the local markets. Occasionally I join my younger colleagues at a bar where we eat and drink, dance, and sometimes on a Friday, I join them for bowling. I have had a few dinner parties for the “ladies.” Many have enjoyed my New Mexico chile and many were introduced to corn bread for the first time. I might also visit the weekend market and a market in Phuket town where whatever one needs is pretty cheap. We do have department stores, but they are too expensive for most of the teachers. Food vendors are everywhere and street food can be really fantastic. I do not eat a lot of it because so much is fried or stir fried in a lot of oil but it sure tastes good. Thai fried chicken is absolutely great, and I do not understand why so many Thais visit KFC. It, to me, is not as good and much more expensive. Mostly I cook at home because I can control what I eat.

I have not gone on any major trips since Christmas when I went to Africa. I have been focusing on islands and visited Koh Lanta and now here. I am checking out islands and beaches for when my niece, Donna, and my “daughter” Anda come in the fall. I spent a few days in Bangkok and that was amazing. It was incredible to see the Royal Palace and although the Royal Family does not live there anymore – they are in palaces off premises but not too far away- all major ceremonies take place there. The site is an incredible fantasy land of temples, stupas, statuary, art work, and incredibly ornate architecture in the Thai formal style. The whole site literally glitters with glass mosaics and gilded gold. I really enjoyed roaming around the area for a few hours. One fabulous temple houses a reclining gilded Buddha which is truly worth seeing and so big that it is difficult to see from one end to the other. It is housed in an older Temple, Wat Poh, in an area of older architecture which uses elaborate ceramic work on its temples and stupas. This was another delightful place. One could go back to the Royal Palace grounds and always see something one missed before. Just outside the grounds is the original Royal Residence which is now used for visiting dignitaries. Not very far away I also visited the original home of King Rama V and it was delightful because it is a completely preserved Teak mansion.

China Town in Bangkok is as glittery at night as the Royal area. Lots of lights, many shops selling gold -almost all 22 carat. They tell me the price is pretty cheap, but I was neither in the market nor the bracket to buy any gold. It was fun to see, busy, colorful and stimulating. Chinatown itself is an absolute maze of little alley-like streets with shops and markets selling everything from fine silks to junky plastic stuff. It is easy to get lost in all the ambling walkways lined with shops. There were lots of food stalls but I did not recognize much of the food and I was there too early for the good restaurants. When Donna and Anda arrive, we will visit there again and work on getting a great Chinese meal.

While in Bangkok, I also took side trips to Ayutthia and to Chalangaok. The battle of the Bridge on the River Kwai took place in the latter. I love ancient and historical sites and Ayutthia , one of the original capitals of Thailand, sits on a lovely river side. It is now a World Heritage Site so the ruins are being preserved, but not restored. As you can imagine there are lots of stone edifices in varying states of wholeness and decay with the highlight being one walled Temple surrounded by gilded monks and protective warrior statues. Inside is an enormous seated Buddha statue at one end and the walls hold incredible paintings of the history of Thailand – one famous one in which the Thais are victorious in battle over the Cambodians. It depicts the leaders on trained battle elephants and captures amazing action among powerful elephants and leaders. You have probably read enough or seen in the news that there is a major dispute over a historic border temple site between the Thais and Cambodians. They are historic rivals who still dispute land conquests from the past.

Historically, the Bridge on the River Kwai is a major tourist site. It crossed a rather small river area but was in an incredibly strategic place. The original bridge has burned and a new one has been put in its place. It is still used as a railroad bridge. Tourists are allowed to walk across it but it is pretty tenuous walking as almost all walk down the center of the track as the sides are pretty open. People have to squeeze past one another going back and forth. And if a train is crossing, they squeeze into a few platform areas. I was worried about getting pushed over because this is yet another country where people are impatient and eager to be first. Traffic courtesy of any kind does not really exist. It is a site which is visited by huge numbers of tourists so it is always crowded. The area immediately surrounding the bridge is quite filled with the usual tourist souvenir shops, restaurants, stand, etc. It is not a place I would want to stay for a few days but many do. The surrounding countryside is truly lovely and boat housing and camping are ideal. The site is also home to a War Museum realistically depicting much of the equipment and the brutal treatment of those forced to build the original bridge by the Japanese. Blowing up that Bridge was a critical turning point for the war in this part of the world.

Back to Phuket.