Welcome to Sunday Summary, the meme in which I attempt to summarize the week that came before. This week was a lot calmer than the one before as I mostly stayed in one location and settled into the routine of my new school. I really do like living in a new place and the school is really great as well. We had our first Thai celebration of the second term; although it was a working holiday, it was still extremely enjoyable.
Working
I met my last new class of this term at the start of the week. I only see Nursery #1 on Mondays (the first day of lessons this term occurred last Tuesday) and they are a real handful. These kids are only two or three years old and this week was probably the first encounter with a foreigner for most of them. They were particularly fascinated with the hair on my arms and either tried to rub it or pull it at every opportunity! I did get them all up for the “Hello Song” and that was the sole “win” of the entire 30 minutes. Try as I did, I was never able to engage with them following that intro. The Chinese teacher had similar problems so I think the solution is to just have a huge arsenal of songs that they can get up and dance to.
The other classes all enjoy the “Hello Song” as well but I also had good lessons in each of those. Several times, I exited the classrooms feeling like I had really been firing on all cylinders. There are really only two (discounting Nursery #1) which are slightly problematic. One of those is simply out of control all day long — the Thai teacher cannot seem to reel them in and the Chinese teacher often tells me of some incident or another that make mine pale in comparison. There are three boys in particular who give us the most trouble. They are naughty even during the morning flag ceremony. Theirs were the first names that I committed to memory and I am not likely to ever forget them!
Tuesday was the Loy Krathong celebration which saw the children (and Thai teachers) dressed in beautiful traditional clothing. Most of the students brought bags of materials to make their own krathongs and I taught each of my classes that day the words to the Loy Krathong song in English. I was happy that I forgot to print out coloring sheets I’d made for the holiday as I saw that most of the Thai teachers did this during their lessons.
There was a Scouting activity during Wednesday morning so our before-lunch classes were cancelled; there are also weekly Scouting activities every Thursday. This week, I was told that I could go home after lunch. I walked over to the area where they were practicing the Thai Scouts salute and thought about seeing if I could order a Boy Scouts of America uniform to wear. I quickly gave up this idea when I saw shipping costs for such an item!
I spent much of the downtime on Wednesday and Thursday creating materials for next week’s classes only to be told by my new company that I could have them print my stuff only twice per month. When I returned to Phuket Town on Friday afternoon, I made a stop at Central Festival with the plan to buy my own printer (the one I have at home doesn’t work for printing but is fine for scanning). The main electronics store only had two models that I would have been willing to buy but I decided they were both too big to attempt to carry while riding on the back of a motorbike taxi — there wasn’t enough time to wait for the porthong bus so I decided I would shop for one on Saturday.
I rushed to my old company, taught for an hour, and went to my apartment in Phuket Town. It feels weird having two places to call home at the moment. I ordered some dinner, did my laundry and received a message that my Saturday & Sunday students had cancelled. That gave me time to look for a new printer the following day that met two criteria — that it fell below my budget and that I could easily carry it home. An HP with ink tanks and wireless satisfied both requirements and I spent the remainder of the afternoon printing and laminating flashcards before preparing the printer to transport back to Kata.
This morning has been spent packing my laundry and a few other things I will need for the week to come.
Celebrating
As I mentioned, Tuesday was Loy Krathong. Apart from singing the song with the kids at school and blogging about it at home, I did not really celebrate it. I thought about going to the beach that evening to watch locals and tourists float their krathongs but seeing lighting in the sky and hearing the rumble of thunder caused me to make a quick stop at 7-Eleven and then head home. I got inside just as the downpour arrived.
Kanchana had planned to spend the holiday with her mom in Buriram but all of the buses were booked solid for several days as every other Thai person had the same idea. As a result, she was spent the afternoon at a wat in Chonburi and floated a krathong at the main beach in Pattaya that evening. She sent me a couple of videos and several photos.
Eating
I still have not used FoodPanda in Kata and so most of my meals have consisted of microwaved food from 7-Eleven. My favorite is the barbecue chicken sandwich which I had twice before they ran out. I hope they restock that soon! When we were allowed to go home early on Thursday, I headed out planning to finally reach the beach. Naturally, it soon began to rain (and, idiot that I am, I had left my umbrella in my apartment) so I looked around for some shelter. I noticed two restaurants nearby advertising hamburgers and I checked out the streetside menus.
I opted for the less expensive choice and haven’t stopped raving about New York Burger since. This was, without a doubt, the best hamburger that I have eaten in Thailand and that includes Juicy Lucy in Phuket Town. The jalapeño burger was my choice; I added cheese and French fries with a Coke to drink. The menu did not state that this was a double burger and, OMG, it was delicious as well a affordable. The fries were perfect as well. In fact, it was so much food that I really struggled to finish it all. I think I will make this a weekly treat, although I am not sure that I can wait until Thursday again. Maybe I will return tonight!
Blogging
I blogged a bit more than last week — finishing three articles including another for A Stamp A Day — but I failed to make any progress on the two I mentioned in last week’s “Sunday Summary”. I will make an effort on at least one of those this evening after I return to my apartment in the southwest part of the island.
Latest Posts on A Stamp A Day:
Latest Posts on Mark Joseph Jochim.com:
Reading/Watching/Listening
Well, I didn’t read at all nor did I listen to much music other than the new Bruce Springsteen album of soul covers, Only The Strong Survive. The latter was released on Friday but I forgot all about it until yesterday afternoon and so have only managed one full listen so far (along with the companion album of the original artists’ versions). There was a time when I would find an advanced copy of a Springsteen record and listen to it more than ten times before the official release date. Still love his material, I just don’t have the time for focused listening right now. What I did hear last evening sounded very good and I cannot wait to listen using my headphones.
I did watch all of Season Three and started Season Four of Yellowstone during the week, sometimes watching two or three episodes in a row. I also re-watched the first thirteen and a half minutes of S04E01 three times in a row. Wow!
Loving
My LL lovely lady Kan Kan is back home with her family in Buriram after nearly a month stuck in Pattaya. I think the rainy season is only lingering down here in Phuket as it’s largely dry up there right now. Her current plan is to remain in Buriram for a week or two, assisting with the family farm and making sure her mom is doing okay, before heading south to yours truly. She is excited about seeing the new apartment and exploring the area surrounding it. She may or may not bring Mama with her for a much-needed holiday rest.
Photo of the Week
I hope the week to come is just how you want it to be. Cheers!
Mark Joseph Jochim 