What a way to start the day... tai chi in the park at 5am. It was a beautiful morning, especially because the city hadn't yet started to wake when we began the first (and quicker) variation of the traditional Chinese martial art. I wasn't too bad... at least I was almost keeping up with the 65 year-old (I'm guessing) teacher. :-)
After a breakfast of soy milk and mueslix, I was off to school to visit the classroom of one of the Rotarians who I met this past weekend. I taught two of her classes in the morning. In one, we used the Beatle's "Yesterday" and filled in the missing words from the lyrics; in the other I taught pronunciation.
It was fun being able to use my skills that I learned while getting my certificate to Teach English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) a few years back. I was offered a job immediately- $750 per month, which goes pretty darn far in Thailand. I had to decline, of course, because I have to finish school, but they said that the invitation will remain open...
This afternoon, Ma sent me to the mall to take some pictures in traditional Thai dress. It was pretty fun and the pictures turned out nicely (mostly because they did a lot of "touching up" to my mosquito bites!).
Afterwards, we at dinner at Sizzler and I captured the most beautiful sunset I've seen in Thailand (although I guess I only have seen four).
Here are some quirky cultural things that I thought you might find interesting:
CARS
-Cars all must drive on the left side of the road. If you are a motorcycle, a bicycle, a "tuk-tuk" (bike-like carraige) then you can drive on either side, but if you are on the right then you must remain on the shoulder.
-You can make free left turns on a red light. Right turns are on green lights only and you don't have to yield to oncoming traffic- it's whoever makes the turn first.
-In the parking garages, you can park perpendicular to the backs of cars (essentially blocking their way out), but you must leave off your parking break so that they can roll your car forward or backward if they need to get out while you are away.
EATING
-All meals are eaten with a fork and a spoon. The fork is used to guide the food onto the spoon. The spoon is often used like a knife to cut whatever needs to be cut.
SHOPPING
-You can barter in the shops in the mall. Unfortunately I learned this after paying about 290 baht (about $8) for a shirt. Ma told me that I could've asked for a discount and I probably would have gotten away with 270 baht. Next time...
After a breakfast of soy milk and mueslix, I was off to school to visit the classroom of one of the Rotarians who I met this past weekend. I taught two of her classes in the morning. In one, we used the Beatle's "Yesterday" and filled in the missing words from the lyrics; in the other I taught pronunciation.
It was fun being able to use my skills that I learned while getting my certificate to Teach English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) a few years back. I was offered a job immediately- $750 per month, which goes pretty darn far in Thailand. I had to decline, of course, because I have to finish school, but they said that the invitation will remain open...
This afternoon, Ma sent me to the mall to take some pictures in traditional Thai dress. It was pretty fun and the pictures turned out nicely (mostly because they did a lot of "touching up" to my mosquito bites!).
Afterwards, we at dinner at Sizzler and I captured the most beautiful sunset I've seen in Thailand (although I guess I only have seen four).
Here are some quirky cultural things that I thought you might find interesting:
CARS
-Cars all must drive on the left side of the road. If you are a motorcycle, a bicycle, a "tuk-tuk" (bike-like carraige) then you can drive on either side, but if you are on the right then you must remain on the shoulder.
-You can make free left turns on a red light. Right turns are on green lights only and you don't have to yield to oncoming traffic- it's whoever makes the turn first.
-In the parking garages, you can park perpendicular to the backs of cars (essentially blocking their way out), but you must leave off your parking break so that they can roll your car forward or backward if they need to get out while you are away.
EATING
-All meals are eaten with a fork and a spoon. The fork is used to guide the food onto the spoon. The spoon is often used like a knife to cut whatever needs to be cut.
SHOPPING
-You can barter in the shops in the mall. Unfortunately I learned this after paying about 290 baht (about $8) for a shirt. Ma told me that I could've asked for a discount and I probably would have gotten away with 270 baht. Next time...
posted by Rebecca | 8:06 PM
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