Sawadee kha!

So here goes.... my first blog entry from Thailand! It is my third day here, and today was my second day of teacher training. And well, so far so good. My initial impressions are that it is hot, most of the people are smaller than me, and that I am so ridiculously happy to be here.

The day before I left was a ridiculous and traumatic day in a lot of ways, that don't at all seem worth getting into, but suffice it to say, that I am very happy to even be here. The flight was fine. It only took about 32 hours from leaving home to get to my hotel in Bangkok. That seems... reasonable? Funny enough, for the flight from Chicago to Tokyo (the longest flight) I sat next to a guy who is in a masters program at CMU. Small world. But he was a nice guy, and it was good to have someone to laugh with as we entered jet-lag delirium together. When I arrived I made it through customs, found a taxi, got to the hotel, all easy-peasy like I'm good at this or something. And really, that easiness, that things-are-going-my-way feeling hasn't worn off yet. There is a good vibe in the air in Thailand. It feels good to be here.

My program is super-duper exciting. I have met incredible people in the past two days. We come from all different walks of life. I was expecting more people in my situation- the I can't find a real job, and I don't really want to variety - but instead there are those types and people who are twice my age or older, who are retiring or mid-life crisising. We come from the US, from the UK, Australia, Portugal, and lots of other places. I am hearing so many different Englishes, that in itself is exciting. My roomate is great. I want to talk to her all the time, which is challenging, because I want to talk to everyone else all the time, AND I want to talk to all the Thai people.... perhaps six months will not be enough time?? (sorry, parents......) The variety of life histories and experiences that have come together to do this is fascinating. There are people who haven't been in one place for more than a year in years and there are people who have never left their native countries. Incredible!!

And then... Thailand. My gosh. It is beautiful and it is welcoming and sometimes it smells really bad. There are bright pink taxis. There are pictures of the king everywhere. There is food everywhere. It is SPICY. It honestly feels really good to be back.

Bangkok is huge. And chaotic. It has a very different feel than the tiny little rural village I was in before. I think maybe all big cities have something in common, between the crush of people, the tall buildings, the opportunity for almost anything.... and yet, of course, it is special and it is unique and I am looking forward very much to the weekend so I can spend some time being touristy and taking pictures of everything I see (no pictures yet, I'm sorry, I haven't had time). There are so many places to go, just exploring the little alleyways around our hotel is interseting and exciting.

I feel like I'm absolutely blithering right now, this post is perhaps lacking in an overall theme other than "oh my god this! oh my god that!" but that is simply the state of my brain and my life right now, so, dear reader, you'll have to accept it.....

Classes have been really interesting so far. We are learning how to teach, learning bits and pieces of Thai language and Thai culture. It is both theoretical and practical and I feel like I will actually know what I'm doing when the three weeks are over. I am also quite sure the real teaching will be far more difficult and challenging than I can even imagine. So that is a bit of a contradiction. But it will all work out. Buddha says its all okay.

So that, in a nutshell, is everything and nothing about the past couple days. There was a lot of freaking out that happened inside my head the week before I left, and now? Actually there is a lot of peace and a lot of happiness. So I think that is a great sign.

Sawadee kha!

(it means hello and goodbye!!... sortof.)