Category: Thailand

Kindergartners Part 2

On By rrainefioreIn Teaching, Thailand, UncategorizedLeave a comment

We taught kindergartners (4 and 5 year olds) today.  We only did two classes, but wow what a difference from middle school.  They are so cute.  They just want your constant attention.  I found it difficult to have enough activities for them to stay engaged.  I also find the Thai punishment system a little difficult to handle too.  They still hit them with a cane.  In one of our classes when it got a bit rowdy their regular Thai teacher came in to hit some of them.  The other thing that is hard to see is how many have such bad teeth, already, at this age.  There is sugar everywhere here.

We taught in pairs again.  In two days we teach again and on our own.  Last week, I didn’t realize we could take pictures so today I took more:

(c) all rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

 

A Gently Sloping Trail

On By rrainefioreIn Thailand, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Today was our day off for the week.  Four of us got up early and went to Phraya Nakhon which is a shrine in a sink hole.  We could get there by hiking or boat and less hiking.  We decided to hike all the way in and do the boat on the way out.  After spending so much time sitting in class, or walking around town or riding in songthaews, it was nice to actually hike in nature.  So glad we got up early.  We did a lot of the hike before the heat of the day and we missed most of the rest of the tourists.  It was really beautiful.  At one point, there was a sign explaining how far the trail was and it said that it was a gently sloping trail.  Everything from that point on was so steep, stairs were cut into the trail.  I’m going to guess that someone was a little confused on the difference between gentle and aggressive.  Near the end of the trail, you walked into a beautiful cave/sink hole.  Then the trail led into another one.  This last one had the shrine.  It was very beautiful.  We hiked back down to the beach and took the boat back.  On the way back to town we stopped at the Hua Hin train station which we had heard was worth checking out.  It was worth a couple of pictures.  Later we had dinner at one of the night markets.  Back to school tomorrow.

(c) all rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

 

Speed Up

On By rrainefioreIn Teaching, Thailand, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Today we discussed our experiences teaching yesterday.  Wow, some of the stories I heard from others topped mine.  There were kids fighting, lighting things on fire, and kids making shanks out of razor blades.  What?

We found out today that they have placement for all of us, but only a few people found out what their placement is.  I still don’t know mine.  Hopefully I will know tomorrow.  We are supposed to have two more weeks of TESOL class, but found out today that some of us will be leaving next week for our placements.  Oh crap.  I’m not ready.

We had homework again tonight.  It took us about 3 hours to create our lesson plan for tomorrow.  I feel like when I get to my school, all I will be doing is teaching, creating lesson plans and sleeping.

I discovered the most wonderful drink tonight.  Taro Milk.

I didn’t take very many pictures today and they have nothing to do with what I’ve written above.  But, here they are anyway.

(c) all rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

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Ice Delivery Truck
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Omelet over Rice (of course)
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Mochi Balls (ice cream inside mochi)

Happy New Year

On By rrainefioreIn Thailand, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Today we had more language and culture lessons.  We also had a sharing session where we were asked to write down why we were here.  Not, the canned polite response, but the real one – were we looking for something, running from something, what have we gone through to get here, what were we hoping to learn or how did we want to grow, etc.  I thought it was a very brave and real way to look at the situation.  I think it’s a huge part of what needs to be dealt with to learn and grow.  We also talked about the various emotions that may come up while adjusting to our new lives and various ways to deal with that.  I’m sure the importance of the exercises was lost on many.

I’m very impressed with this company.  One of the quotes I’ve seen several times through them is “You may not get the experience you want, but you will get the experience you need”.  I feel they have done a good job of stressing the importance of releasing expectations, embracing the new culture and going with the flow.  It’s almost ATP meets teaching English.  I am impressed.

Tonight was New Year’s Eve.  They planned a beach bbq.  I thought this might be kind of hokey and I kind of felt bad that the whole staff had to hang out with us on NYE, but it was awesome.  The beach was beautiful, the food was great.  A truck drove up and started playing music.  They don’t wait until midnight to set off fireworks so they were going off all night.  There were more fireworks at midnight, though.  People were sending off the floating lanterns too.  It was a beautiful way to celebrate the end of the year and the start of my new life in Thailand.

(c) all rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

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Finally, I’m Excited

On By rrainefioreIn ThailandLeave a comment

One of the most frequent questions I received from people before I left Colorado was “Are you excited”?  No.  I rarely, if ever, was excited.  The enormity of what I’m doing was too much.  What am I doing?  Who’s decision was this?  Oh crap, it was mine.  All along, I’ve known I would be fine, but if I can’t imagine myself living in Thailand, I couldn’t find the excitement.  Plus, there was so much to do to get ready that it was hard to see past the to-do list.  Tonight they took us to a Thai market, not one foreigners go to, but one where Thais go.  It was hot and crowded and there was so much food.  I had no idea what 95% of the food was.  We broke up into small groups and each group had someone from Xploreasia with them to help us with what everything was.  And we tried to order food in without using English.  I loved it and I was so excited to try so many things.  I can see myself going out in the evening and wandering around, finding my dinner, and just sitting on the side of the road people watching.  This is the first time this has felt real in a way where I can see myself living here.  It feels good.

(c) all rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

 

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Some Excitement

On By rrainefioreIn Moving Prep, Thailand1 Comment

A little bit of excitement today.  I got my last vaccination injection today – Yay that’s over.  Ok, it’s not quite over.  I still have to do the Typhoid Fever  vaccination, but it’s a pill, not a shot so I’m not counting it in this small milestone.

Even more exciting.  I got my Thai Visa today!!!

(c) all rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

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I put posts on various facebook pages today about trying to sell or rent my house.  I got a lot of interest.  Wouldn’t it be funny if I sold my house through facebook instead of through the MLS?

On By rrainefioreIn Moving Prep, ThailandLeave a comment

Ok this is scary.  I’m putting my passport in an envelope and entrusting it to the USPS.  I’m sending it off to the Royal Thai Consulate in Portland Oregon to request my Non Immigrant B Visa.  Apparently other Thai Consulates in the US don’t like to give out visas and deny most of them for little to no reason.  I think I’m not going to Antarctica.

(c) all rights reserved Kimberly Fiore

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My half-sister, Carly came over to help me pack today.  It was nice to spend time with her.  I posted on facebook that I needed help packing.  She responded yes and my friend CJ responded that she couldn’t, but wished she could.  My other friend Cynthia came over when I first put the house on the market and helped.  I find it interesting that if I put up a negative post, a lot of people comment.  If I put up a picture of a fox in my yard, it gets hundreds of ‘likes’.  If I ask for help, I get 3 responses.  What does this say about me, my friends, facebook?  I blame facebook.

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WTF

On By rrainefioreIn Antarctica Job Search, Awakening, ThailandLeave a comment

Tonight I went down to my room after the workshop was over and listened to my voicemail.  There was a message from someone at PAE asking if I would be interested in the Construction Superintendent job at McMurdo.  This is the job I really wanted in Antarctica.  I am well suited for this job.  The job would start in January.  I had assumed I was going to Thailand and worked through my disappointment over not going to Antarctica.  At first I felt angry and frustrated.  I’ve been waiting for this since March.  Why wait this long?  Why now?  I’ve packed most of my clothes.  I’ve paid $1400 in vaccinations.  I have a plane ticket to Thailand.  My deposit for my TEFL class is paid.  I paid for international health insurance for a year.  I told everyone I am going to Thailand.  What the fuck?!  Now I might have to make decisions.  I told Wendy, Michael and Ed and they are all excited for me.   I don’t feel excited.  I feel chaos and stress.  Michael said “Oh, does life support Rraine?  This is what you want”.  This is what I want, but it didn’t come in the package I wanted.  I spent years knowing I was quitting my job and doing something else, but not knowing what that something would be.  It was so uncomfortable not knowing, not having a plan.  I felt weak, indecisive, terrified, and stupid.  Then when I finally made a plan to go to Thailand, it felt solid.  Now I may abandon my plan and I’m back to feeling all those things again.  Fuck you life, I can’t make this decision.  So, I broke it down – why am I upset?  I will lose all the money I have already spent – ok, it’s just money and there will be more money.  I may appear flakey to the TEFL company and they may not want to postpone my class.  Why do I care what they think?  I’m afraid all the people I told I was going to Thailand will judge me.  Again, why do I care what they think?  I’m not even close most of the “they”.  Those that are close to me get it.  It’s my judge.  It’s my inner mom telling me I have to finish what I start.  I have to do what I said I would do.  It’s fear of not having a plan (code for control over the situation).  Without a plan, I will have nothing and won’t be able to take care of myself and then I’ll die.  I feel unstable without a plan.  I feel extra unstable if I abandon the perfectly good plan I had.  I’m upset because this will add more to my to-do list and it’s already ridiculous.  These and many I didn’t list are the surface reasons I am upset, but they are just there to distract me from the base issue.  The base issue is that if I get this job, the one I wanted, I will have to accept the fact that Life does support me.  This is contrary to everything I have ever believed.  My entire life and much of my personality is based on the belief that there is not enough for me.  This is what I’ve been working on so hard.  I want reality to flip and to really get it that life supports me.  I will have to live from the new truth, to not know and trust and change – forever.  It’s so silly that this is so hard.

(c) all rights reserved Kimberly Fiore