Chachoengsao, finally!

Sarah and I have officially moved into our apartment in Chachoengsao. Our internet is broken so I can only get on at school and that pretty much eliminates skype talk for awhile - sorry! Our apartment is very modest, but nice. We each have our own bedroom but we share a bathroom with a Chinese teacher named Won Ton. We have cold water only and it's loud outside with barking dogs and yelling food sellers galore. Our city is small, clean and much more friendly than Bangkok so we're both pretty happy with that.

My first of teaching went very well - I got lucky! Most of my students are very respectful and eager to learn but most don't speak English very well. I have several high level classes in the late afternoon that I'll have to challenge but other than that, I'm teaching very simple things - think like teaching a 5 year old about the alphabet and basic sentences.

My second day was a little more interesting. I had many kids who absolutely love me and love to joke around - 3 students asked me to be in school parade with them in traditional Thai dress so we'll see how that works out! I have one class though (only once a week thank Buddha) that are little devils. They chat and use their cell phones and only speak in Thai (very frustrating!) and act like any other teenager - I can't stand it! Some of the girls in front really want to learn so I'm going to focus my energy on them as much as possible. Overall, I enjoy teaching and we're going on our first vacation to the island of Koh Samet tomorrow - I think I'll enjoy traveling much more!

There is a rare festival being held in Chachoengsao tomorrow revering the Buddha in the local temple so we're waking up at 6 am to see the parade and walk the 3 km from the temple to the school with the townspeople; it should be very exciting! After that, we're off on a bus to relaxation, the beach and some beautiful snorkeling! Hopefully, when our internet is all figured out, I'd love to catch up with everyone properly! Shoot me an e-mail, as I can check that at school pretty regularly. Love and miss you all very much!

<3 Katie

Sawatdee ka!

So it's been my first week (almost) in Bangkok and I have been busy. We start the day pretty early around 7 am and go until dinner time learning about effective teaching, discipline, Thai culture and language and of course, food! I can't wait to get to Chachoengsao in a couple days to see where I'll be living for the next 5 months and get into the classroom for the first time.

Bangkok has been interesting. It's huge and pretty dirty but has so many fun and interesting places. We went to see The Grand Palace and The Temple of the Emerald Buddha the other day and it was absolutely breathtaking. We've been to the main market and have seen everything you can possibly imagine being sold (no mom and Bobby, not people). We have eaten fish with the heads still on, bugs and enjoyed some fine Thai beer, which costs about 30 cents for a 40 at any convenient 7/11. Every single day brings a load of new experiences, both good and bad but so far, Sarah and I are loving it!

I found out I will be teaching 16-18 year old kids and while somewhat scary, I can't wait for my first day to find out how much English my kids know and what the next several months of my life will be like. We leave tomorrow for quick retreat in Kanchanaburi (about 1.5 hours away) and then move into our apartments next week. Our big group will also all be splitting up and moving to various places all over Thailand. Well there's a quick update on what I've been doing, it's been a hectic week and I'll be a little more thorough from here on out when I have a free minute to breathe.

I love you and miss you all!

The Grand Palace and The Emerald Buddha