Skatbos in Thailand

Last day in Phuket

We just landed in Bangkok after a 12-hour, overnight bus trip all the way from Phuket.  Let me start by saying it was the best magic show of a bus ride I’ve ever had.  We started the trip by waiting at the bus depot for about an hour in 100 degree weather and were all too happy to get settled into our “V.I.P. Seats” (yes, they actually labeled them that way on the tickets) for the length of our trip.

The ride was begun with about an hour of Thai pop music videos, and while I really did and am still trying to be culturally sensitive, I honestly couldn’t tell the difference between any of the ten songs we heard.  It didn’t help that it was the exact same male artist and backup dancers in every video, just a different outfit.

Waiting for the bus to Bangkok

After a brief snack of over-hydrogenated, sugar-packed mini muffins, we were delighted to see that it was movie time as the lights dimmed.  Wait for it, guys… we watched…. The Terminator.  That’s right, the1984 brain child of James Cameron only we watched it in a way I can guarantee none of you have: overdubbed in Thai with no English subtitles.  It wasn’t awesome.  Joshy D, I couldn’t help but think of you pretty much constantly.  If not for your obsession with the movie back in the day, then perhaps with our obsession with the exact same baggy, ugly clothes that they wore in the movie.  Damn, we were hot.

The magic VIP bus.

Back to the bus… we arrived in Bangkok at the bus terminal at about 6:30 am and had to hang there until about 11 for them to open the internet cafe so we could figure out where we were going.  Now we’ve ended up in a decent / clean / old hotel that should do for the night.

Off to get some sleep, food, and hopefully some cheap teaching clothes

Do we look the part?

During these past 3 weeks we have been extrememly busy.  We had class most days, made lesson plans, drew pictures, learned songs and games to help teach the kids, and taught 5 days at one of two orphanages or the local Juvenile Detention Center.  Each location has its stories but all the kids were great. These pictures are from the POS Children’s Village – Phuket.

Tim teaching English words for Clothing

We were given our job placement on Thursday night and will be heading to Bangkok on Monday, today.  We will be teaching about 30 kilometers SW of Bangkok in Krathumbaen Samutsakorn.  We are in the same school and we will be teaching conversational English to Junior and Senior High kids.  We will have 50 in a classroom with no AC……only fans.  We are happy about our location but we are definitely going to miss the sea and beaches of Phuket.

Meghan giving the kids school supplies our group donated.

The school has an apartment ready for us.  We will meet someone on Wednesday morning to take us to our school and apartment.  We will probably have to make a run to Laos for our work visas, but we will start teaching next Monday, May 18th.  Oh wow, that’s coming up fast

Most of group is placed somewhere in or around Bangkok, so we are hoping to can get together on the weekends and share our adventures of the classroom.

Houses the kids live in.

The pictures here are from one of the orphanages we taught at.  All the locations were very nice.

Here is a link to the other orphanage we taught at.  It is called the Youth Football Home.  This place has all boys, who are amazing athletes.  They play football (soccer) all over the world and have won quite a few trophies.  Check it out.

www.youthfootballhome.com

ATI teachers after giving a lesson.

Have you ever seen those calendars of tropical islands?  The ones that show beaches that are a brilliant turquoise with white sand and palm trees.  I used to get one every year.  I used to think, “Where are these beaches?  How do you get there?”  Well, now I know because we were there.

Last weekend we had a whole 2 days off from our training course.  As a group we decided to take advantage of these time and check out some of the little islands of Thailand.

We started with a bus/van ride to Krabi.  Once we arrived in Krabi some of the group members who possess amazing leadership skills went out in search of a cheap place to stay.  We were able to convince a hotel owner that giving us rooms for $12 would be better for them than having empty hotel rooms.  We went out to a local bar in Krabi to celebrate a birthday.  We ended up taking motorbikes with little side cars attached.  I got to sit on the motorbike, behind the driver, while 4 other passangers sat in the side car that was decorated like a Christmas tree that collided with Mardi Gras.

The Boat

Saturday we all made our way to the beach for photos opps and a much needed trip to McDonalds.  Then we took our own speed boat out for some fun in the sun.  For those of you from the midwest, you know that boating is a summer event that most of us can not wait for.  Needless to say, Tim and I had a ball.  All 26 of us had a huge boat, snorkeling gear, plenty of drinks and snacks, and the open sea.

Swimming and Snorkeling

The driver took us to some amazing little beaches that belong in calendars, or should be your wall paper on your computer screen.  While snorkeling we saw rainbow fish, clown fish, sea urchins and sea cucumbers.  We pulled into a cute little beach with a few beach restaurants and had lunch.  We went to yet another island to take turns jumping off the boat into the sea.  We watched the sun set from our boat and then pulled into our destination for the night, Ko Phi Phi.

Sunset, by Tim

Ko Phi Phi is pretty amazing too but much busier than the other islands we had seen that day.  There were lots of tourists….actually more white people than locals.  That was definitely a turn off for us.  We spent the night exploring.  We went to a Muay Thai boxing arena, checked out a bar/club that was on the beach and ate amazing seafood.

Fish

Sunday we woke up and did more wandering.  Ko Phi Phi was hit by the tsunami and rebuilt many homes up the mountains.  We decided to go search for the Tsunami village and spent an exhausting amount of time hiking in the heat, but the views were worth it.  Last that evening we took our boat back to Phuket.  Our ride was rough to say the least, but we all made it back with agreeing disbelief that we had had one of the best weekends of our lives.

We wanted to let you know how our first day of teaching went.  We are still on training but we had a “teaching practice day” today.  Tim went to a Juvenile Detention Center and taught 13 kids (ages12-16) about “Music”.  I went to an orphanage and taught 18 kids (ages 4-7) about “Things to Wear.”

Both of our lessons went well.  We had to do a 30-40 minute lesson.  We have been taught how to prepare lesson plans and have a strict outline to follow for these sessions.  When we get to our schools we will be able to be more creative but this format will give us something to fall back on, so they want it perfect.  The structure is with very basic English.  A lot of the kids don’t know anything, so we are just trying to expose them to some English words.

My morning with the little ones was fun.  There wasn’t any AC, so it did get warm…and by warm I mean really hot.  The kids were cute and didn’t know much English.  There was a 4 year old girl who came in to the class and volunteered for EVERYTHING.  She was kinda like everyone’s little sister.  If the teacher didn’t pick her to be part of an activity, she would just walk to the front and join the kids who were chosen.  She was so cute.  (Aaron and Rachel, she reminded me of Aaron’s cousin, Julia.) The kids were very polite and would Wai, (put there hands together in prayer position and bow their heads), every time I handed them a piece of paper or a pencil.

The orphanage was really nice.  The buildings seemed almost new and it was kind of like a little campus with classrooms and a playground.  One of our instructors said it was a private orphanage and one of the nicest ones she’s seen.  She also said that some of the kids don’t know they are orphans and therefore we had to be careful not to  choose lessons about family.

Tim said the detention center wasn’t to bad either.  They had AC in 2 of 3 classrooms and guards sitting in with the kids.  The kids were well behaved but got bored by the end of the lessons. The kids had to sit through 5-6 lessons with the same format.  We all felt bad for them.

We have another TP (teaching practice) tomorrow.  Tim and I will both be at the Detention Center, but in different classrooms.  Unfortunately the same kids have to sit through all our lessons again.

One more day and we have a full weekend off.  Most of our class is planning on taking a boat to Kho Phi Phi island for the weekend.  I know, we have it rough.

Ok, that’s the update for now.  We’ll post more pics soon.

It is Saturday night and we just completed our first week of TESOL training.  We have 29 classmates that are also learning to be teachers.  About half of us are from the US and the of us are from the UK, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.  It has been an intense week of basic lesson planning, culture training, grammar review, and crash courses in Thai.  We had 6 full days of training in a row and today we accomplished our first “Peer Teaching” lesson.  Next week we will be traveling to a Detention Center here in Phuket to practice with kids.  Tim and I are the only married coulple here but there are other couples and a pair of sisters as well.

A Tuk Tuk - a local little taxi

We have spent most of our days in the classroom and our evenings getting to know our classmates.  We made a run to the local supermarket, Tesco, to pick up a few necessities.  It was much smaller than our supermarkets but a similar style.

We went out last night to a Raggae Bar right on Kata Beach.  About 24 of our classmates went and we had dinner together and then watched the flame throwing show.  We met a few of the locals there and one happens to be an art teacher from Bangkok.  It was nice to talk to someone about the city and teaching.  We left together and somehow managed to cram 20 people into our van-taxi.  It was pretty interesting.

The more we learn about Thailand, the more we realize how touristy Phuket is.  You often see fat, old, white men with beautiful Thai women.  Everyone knows what’s going on but it seems to be ignored.  There are massage parlors EVERYWHERE.  The nice thing is that a 30 minute massage is about $6 dollars, but you are never really sure what else goes on there.

Oh ladies, the nice thing is that the girls feel safe here.  Men don’t whistle or make cat-calls.  Men on the other hand are approached by Thai women ALL the time.  The local bars always seem to have very friendly Thai women waiting.  It’s kind of a nice change and the guys are finding out what it’s like for women so many other places.

Kata Beach with some classmates.

We have done a lot of walking this week and only got lost once.  I know, nobody is surprised.  While walking we have been stopped twice by Americans in cars, asking if we need a ride anywhere.  We were shocked.  Nobody is Chicago would do that…..ever.

Tonight is our first night off an d we are all ready for a break after a long week of intense learning.  Thanks for all your comments!  It’s great to know people are following us on this adventure.

Fire Throwing...pretty sweet.

I few Thai phrases for you.

Sawatdee kha/krab (women/men) – Hello
Kop kuhn kha/krab  (women/men) – Thank you

Kata Beach, Phuket

Well, since our last post we have moved SW in Phuket to Naiharn Beach. We took a tuk-tuk (little taxi truck) to our next destination. We moved into our hotel room where we will be living for the next 3 weeks while we train. Fortunately we had the whole weekend to just explore and enjoy the unbelievable beach. The entire beach is lined with chairs and umbrellas which you can rent for 100 Baht (less than $3) for the day. If you don’t want to pay, just plop your towel down on the sand. This beach, like Kata beach, isn’t to busy. The ocean is a little rough but lots of fun to play in, as long as you don’t mind leaving with a swimsuit full of sand. Yesterday we met an Australian guy and his Spanish girlfriend. He was in finance and was getting tired of everything. He decided to move to Phuket and rent an apartment until his money is gone. AWESOME!!! Can you believe that people do that? Americans should do that. Be spontaneous.

Naiharn Beach, Phuket

Our resort it beautiful and literally across the street from the beach. We have a pretty typical hotel room with a white/red/orange theme, very modern contemporary. Liz, you would approve. We haven’t met any of our TESOL course classmates but we walk by all the young people we see and wonder if they will be our new friends.

Lunch

There are plenty of little eateries next to the resort , along with the usual hotel restaurants. We have opted out of the hotel food and are trying all the little local restaurants. Last night I ate fried glass noodles with seafood (fresh from the Andaman Sea) and Tim is trying all the different curry dishes he can find. Everything has been delicious and the more daring we are with our choices the better they seem to get. This morning we had fresh mango and pineapple for breakfast from a little stand down the street. My dream come true!

Tim relaxing by the Andaman Sea

We spent the morning wandering the beach and watched a little Thai boy trying to catch anything he could in his little net. He showed us the crawfish and tiny fish he saved in a homemade bucket he made out of an empy water bottle. Tim continues to take beautiful pictures of our surroundings. We layed on the beach all afternoon, until dark clouds rolled in and brought some rain. It’s hard to believe that we are actually here. We are trying to balance doing everything possible and taking time to relax and reflect. Tomorrow morning we start our training.

Meghan relaxing on Naiharn Beach

9:44 am here.  That’s 8:44 pm CST, people!

Wow, so this is jet-lag?

Megs and I made it safely to our hostel in Phuket after a twenty minute car ride, 16 hour flight, 3 hour layover, 6 hour flight, and one hour white-knuckled car ride.  Couldn’t see the speedometer, nor do I understand km/hr, but I’m pretty sure our average speed last night in our “taxi” (some lady’s Toyota) was about 80 mph.  She was a good driver though and everyone was nice and helpful at the airport.  It already feels more comfortable here than other places we’ve been… a little less constant barraging.

Our hostel is great; the guy at the front desk let us sleep without paying the balance last night, since we haven’t converted any of our cash to baht yet.  First thing on the to-do list for today.  Wait, that’s the only thing on the to-do list today.  Too awesome.

Thanks to everyone that’s posted comments so far.  WE LOVE hearing from you guys.  We had no idea how this blog would materialize, but it’s already been a really great way to stay connected to people.

That’s it for now, need some coffee and some Khao Soy.

T&M in Seoul, Korea Airport

We’re in the Seoul airport beginning our three hour layover.  We leave for Phuket at 19:00 hours local time.

Our flight from Chicago was good.  We watched at least 4 movies and attempted to sleep.  We had an empty seat next to us so we had the whole row to ourselves and plenty of room for carry-on luggage.  It is 5pm here in Korea and 3am back home.  We are running on very little sleep, especially Tim.   I am back to about 95% health after a nasty 3 days with the flu.

Korea is cooler than we thought it would be.  It’s about 55 degrees F but beautiful and sunny.  There are a lot of little islands off the coast.  Beautiful view from the sky.

Just a quick post to let everyone know that Megs is down for the count with the flu.  When we got to Chicago, the virus had made rounds with friends and family and we’ve been doing everything possible to not catch it.  It’s pretty nasty and she’s spent the last few ours in the bathroom.  If it works the way it did with others that had it, Megs will be throwing up the better portion of the night and then just have an upset stomach for the next couple of days.

Please, please, please, don’t let me get this just as we’re flying out.  I’ve seriously thought of just having everyone here spit in my mouth so I can get it over with and not deal with the prospect of puking on a 22 hour flight.  Can’t really think of anything I’d want less than that.

I’m off to spritz myself with ammonia…

“Red Shirts” Protest in Bangkok

Click here for BBC News article

Over the last 24 hours, we’ve been keeping a close eye on the developments in Thailand’s capital city, Bangkok, and have decided not to risk arriving there. We’ve adjusted our flight so that we’re leaving Wed  instead of today and we’re flying directly to Phuket. We’re a bit disappointed because we were looking forward to having a few days in Bangkok to get acclimated and see some historic sights. We’ll probably try to get there at some point in our travels over the next few months… so, no real loss.

Expedia.com was REALLY helpful during this ordeal and continuously went the extra mile to call the airline directly and try to come up with a solution for us. They also waived their processing fee, so we only ended up having to pay about $200 to make the change.  I was expecting something in the neighborhood of $1000, so that was a huge relief!

Thanks to everyone who’s called and prayed for safety and the decision-making process. It means a lot to us both, especially because it feels like the hits just keep on coming.

Let me quickly recap the fun that has ensued:

1. Meghan found out four weeks ago that she needed to have three documents approved by virtually everyone in the US Goverment to prove that Meghan Skattum is actually Meghan Mosbo.
2. Last week those documents were returned to us with a “sorry, try again” letter from the US State Dept- the last party in the process.
3. On last Friday, we ran around the entire city, notorizing, stamping, sealing, signing and otherwise officializing documents, which are now on their way to DC, will come back here to the Thai Consulate and then need to be sent to us in Thailand.  Where, you ask?  No clue at this point.
4. Yesterday we found out about the “red shirts” protests occurring in Bangkok and decided to avoid the city altogether.

Wow.  What a ride… and we haven’t even left yet!