Christmas in Ban Phe

Christmas has been, well, un-Christmas-ey here. Despite the fact that it's 85 degrees, and a Buddhist country, we managed to make the most of it.
We had to work on Christmas eve, but that evening we donned our Santa hats and went to a dinner put on by one of the American Ex-pats in town. I guess he has this dinner every year, and invites all the foreigners to eat. He made a speech thanking everyone, and then we got to eat REAL CHRISTMAS FOOD! There was turkey, stuffing, gravy, apple pie, and mashed potatoes (complete with lumps!)! It was AMAZING. We stuffed ourselves silly. There was also fruit, steamed veggies, ribs, goulash..you name it! It felt so good to eat real Christmas food!
That night we rolled home fat and happy, and watched "the polar express". I was able to find "It's a Wonderful Life" on the internet and was able to watch it, although it was not the same without my mom :( .
Christmas morning, we slept in, and then all called our families (since it was Christmas eve at home). We relaxed most of the day, and in the evening had out gift exchange. Andre, Rachel, Matt, Scott, and I had planned our gift exchange for a while. We drew names from categories (expensive $10, Inexpensive $3, Funny $3, and Found $0). We each had a different person for each gift, and got a gift from each person. We sat under the Christmas tree at the school (which we got to decorate woo hoooo) together to open them, and it was hysterical.
For Expensive, Matt had me and got me this really cute handmade photo album with pictures of all of us in Thailand. For inexpensive, Rachel got me a really cute red watch. For funny, Andre got me a 101 dalmatians mu-mu (not kidding, and where he found this I will never know). Scott had me for found, and found me a pair of socks. It was pretty hilarious overall.
I had Scott for expensive, and got him a bunch of western food (peanut butter, ritz crackers, basically whatever I could find in Thailand). I had Matt for inexpensive, and got him a 6 pack of Singha (the best beer in Thailand), For funny, I had Andre, and got him some hideous boxers at the night market and some thai mentos. And for Rachel's found gift, I went down to the beach and found a bunch of really cool seashells.
Other gifts included a ball of hair, a baby shoe, childrens' underwear, a picture of a ladyboy, and various nice gifts. They were very creatively wrapped, as I am sure you can imagine!
That night, our boss threw a Christmas party for all the staff, and we went to his house for another great dinner. This time there was BBQ chicken, and potato salad (not quite christmas-ey but good). The highlight was PUMPKIN PIE!! It was a miracle. I think he had heard us talking about it all week. It was SO GOOD, and really made it feel like christmas! There were karaoke Christmas songs, and even one of the Thai staff dressed as Santa!
After the party we went down to the beach and lit the floating lanterns to make a wish.
All in all, it wasn't like home, but it was pretty good. I'm glad we all have each other, because Christmas alone would have blown bigtime!
I am not feeling so hot today. I am at work right now, with a pounding headache, stuffy nose, and sore throat. I just feel icky. Maybe it was all the tryptophan. I might duck out early and try to take a recovery nap!
Hope you all had a great Christmas!

A Western Weekend

This weekend we decided to go to Pattaya, because Scott's parents gave us the gift of a REAL Christmas dinner, and Pattaya is the most westernized place in Thailand. We arrived on Friday, and immediatly went to see a movie at the theater (since they play one movie per day in English). We saw "The Day the Earth Stood Still", which was quite horrible, yet none of us seemed to mind because it was actually in English! That night, we found a hotel near the city strip called "Walking Street". This street is full of bars (brothels) that offer cheap alcohol (and hookers). Needless to say, we all stayed on the street and bought drinks at 7-11. Pattaya is not my favorite place (nor the boys'), however it was fun to go out, and be surrounded by white people again. OH! And there was a Subway, which actually tasted the same as home! I had about 4 sandwiches this weekend (I don't think I have ever been so excited about a sandwich).
Saturday, we did a little Christmas shopping, and explored the beach. Pattaya is a lot like Mexico...with resorts and palm tree lined beaches. That day, I decided to get a haircut! I was nervous, because of the language barrier, but fortunately in Pattaya most people spoke english, and I was able to get a great cut!
Saturday evening, we got ready for our fabulous dinner out, courtesy of the Robinsons! We got dressed up, and the restaurant picked us up in a limo! We arrived at Mahattan's steak house, and had some cocktails (I had the best cosmopolitan I have EVER had in my life). We sat down at the table and ordered our 3 course meals! The boys got steaks...and we all got different appetizers and desserts. I got a salad with blue cheese and tomato, pasta with artichoke and mushroom, and lemon souffle. It was the most beautiful restaurant, and probably the best food I have ever had! We also had red wine (a hot commodoty in Thailand). At the end we were all fat and happy!
That night, we met up with Morgan and Rachel, friends from the TEFL group. We all went out to the bar strip together, where we ran into our boss Mike (who is a seedy creeper who probably loves Pattaya a little too much). We all went to a nightclub (without hookers) and danced! It was so much fun.
Sunday morning, we woke up, had breakfast, and got subway sandwiches for the road (since we probably wont get western food again for a long time). I have to say I was thankful to get back to Ban Phe. Pattaya was a little much for me, and overall just disgusting with the amount of old, creepy, disrespectful, hooker buying men!! However, having western food, and a lukewarm shower, and seeing a movie really re-charged my battery! Not to mention the BEST dinner of my life. I don't think we will ever go back to Pattaya, (unless we really crave subway)!
This week, we have Christmas day off, and will be going to a restaurant in town which has a turkey dinner (whether it is seasoned with Thai spices...we don't know)...we are having a gift exchange, and probably laying on the beach (yeah...be jealous of the 80 degree weather, although I am jealous you all get REAL Christmas!! Consider us even).
Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas!

Oh! A few of you have asked for my address again...here it is:

Tami Laird
c/o TEFL International
38/53-55 Moo 1
Suan Son Rd.
Klaeng, Muang
Rayong 21160 Thailand

I love getting mail and am so thankful for the letters I have received!

In addition, I have added pictures from Pattaya...there are mostly party pics, and pictures of things that appalled me...because that's all there is to do and see there...so I apologize in advance. Let's just say this album is PG13 (sorry mom)?

Here it is:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2016156&l=aec5d&id=83901952

That's it for now. xoxo

job update, and Thai frustrations!

I spoke with my Korean online employers yesterday to run an internet strength test. Basically I couldn't hear them, it was so choppy. It would be impossible to teach more than one student at a time. When they tested the internet strength with the new line we installed Friday (the second new installed line mind you), they said the strength would have to be at least 10 times what it is now to even run the teaching program properly.
To say the least we were disappointed. Our boss says in January he will try to get a new line installed...but I have a feeling we are never going to be able to teach online. I just think Thailand cannot even handle the internet speed required...MAYBE in Bangkok, and that's a BIG maybe...but I refuse to move to Bangkok if they even suggest we do that. OH well, I am not complaining about staying here and getting payed to do nothing, while intermittently tutoring. I still get payed the same amount regardless of what happens. Plus, if they can't even get a new line until January, that means it would be a lot easier for me to spend time with Tom while he is here because they don't notice if I just take off for a couple of days (mostly because I do nothing important anyway). I wouldn't even have to get any teaching covered. Oh well.

A lot of you have asked me what I do in a typical weekday here in Ban Phe. Since I am not teaching online yet (or ever), my days go mostly like this:
I wake up around 8:15 and take an ICY cold shower. I get dressed, head downstairs, and teach Stinna or Pierre from about 9 to 11. I usually skype my family/friends around 11. Around 12 the boys and I go grab lunch across the street at mamma's, then I usually feed my leftovers to her dog (who has a littler of 10 puppies). From about 1-4 I do lesson plans for Stinna, or edit things for TEFL, or take Pierre on adventures, or basically sit at my desk and pretend I am working.
In the evenings I usually head into town. On Mondays and Thursdays there's a night market in the street, so it's fun to walk around. I also read a TON. There is a book exchange that has a pretty good selection of books in English, so I have been trading mine in, and getting new ones quite frequently. I think I have read about every good one, so I am hoping someone trades in some new stuff soon! Occasionally in the evenings, I go to the Thai aerobics class, which is held on the front lawn of the police station. It takes about 1/2 hour to walk each way, and the class is 1 hour...so that eats a good 2 hours of my evening. I hang around a little before and after to talk with some of the old Thai ladies. They are teaching me Thai and are so nice and patient with me (probably because some of them are 60-70 years old haha). When I get home, I either make dinner, or go grab something with the boys. We usually watch a movie together at night, or read, or go to sleep. Yeah...pretty boring stuff! The weekends are much more action packed (I promise!).

There's an expression here (T.I.T) "This is Thailand", and it is meant to cover all manner of grievances! However, there are some things here that irk me beyond belief. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE it here...but sometimes the cultural differences are just a bit too much. So here it is, my list of Thai things that anger me:

1. TRASH: The Thais burn their garbage...every Tuesday...right in the can. It stinks to high heaven, especially when they hose it down after the burning. It probably also stinks because they eat a lot of fish. The smoke blows all over town and you can't escape it. Tuesdays SUCK for this reason.
2. DOGS: There are SO MANY stray dogs. As a dog lover, I am appalled at my own hatred for all the dogs. the street we live on is especially rampant. These dogs all have fleas, scabies, icky gashes, broken legs...you name it! Everywhere you go, a dog is following you, or barking at you, or chasing you, or sitting next to you trying to eat your food while also giving you a flea infestation.
3. TOILET PAPER: Whoa re we kidding? There is none! There is absolutely no T.P. in public restrooms. I have no clue what they do here. I have to carry a roll around in my purse!! While we are on the subject of toilets...I think I have already mentioned the "squatty potty"
4. NO DRYERS: That's right...you can wash your clothes, but you can't dry them! I don't think they have even heard of a dryer. Everyone's clothes are crispy and dirt covered from hanging up outside. Oh and don't do your laundry on a Tuesday...
5. THAI TIME: Now here is a phenomenon I will never understand. People here are on their own timing. If you are meeting someone at 9, they will show up at 9:30, or 10, or 3. It is just expected that they will be late. Nothing every happens in a reasonable timing.
6. SLOW WALKERS: Thai people are the slowest walking people I have ever seen. You can't call it walking, it is more of a slow stroll (this also probably explains "Thai time". They will all walk directly in front of you. If you have to get somewhere, forget it...you are not getting around them in the next 15 minutes. Buses and boats leave about 15-20 minutes after they are scheduled to, and arrive nowhere near the stated time.
7. COLD SHOWERS: There's no hot water here...don't even ask for it. Lukewarm is a privilege.
8. TRANSPORTATION: Everyone hitchhikes...or rides in the back of a pickup truck on top of lettuce, or rides a motorcycle with no less than 4 people on it at a time (no helmets).
9. PEDESTRIAN WALKWAYS: There are no pedestrian only areas! Motorcycles are everywhere. There is nowhere they cannot drive. People ride them up on the sidewalk, on the grass, through the market, in the grocery store. Pedestrians are safe only up a flight of stairs (and even then I am not so sure). Imagine buying food in the night market, in between stalls, when all of a sudden you have to move because someone decided to shop on their motorbike.
10. GECKOS: These little lizards are just a way of life. If you go to sleep without one in your room, it's not normal. I share a room with about 3-4 of them. They chirp kind of like a mix between a monkey and a dolphin (dad it is actually the chirp sound you make to a T!!) They are all over the walls, on the ceiling, on the ground. They are just everywhere, and you have to get used to it. I don't think I have been in a room here without a gecko in it...in fact, I am staring at one right now.
11. TOILETRIES: Forget buying anything here...all toiletries have whitening agent in them. Sunscreen, facewash, lotion, makeup, even deodorant. They all contain bleach to whiten your skin.
12. LADYBOYS: I consider myself an open person, but give me a break. There are more ladyboys than regular boys. More often than not you see a "man" walking down the street in a dress with a beard! Sometimes they are more ambiguous, but holy hell they are everywhere!
13. DRINKS IN BAGS: There are no "to go" cups. No, they plop your coke in a plastic baggie and hand you a straw. Good luck not spilling that one!

all right...those are my grievances. It feels good to get them off my chest. It is humorous to tell you about them, because they are almost second nature to me now. It's going to be quite a culture shock coming home! Anyway, this is getting quite long so I will wrap it up! We are heading to Pattaya for the weekend. Pattaya is the most western part of Thailand, mostly because it is where all the creepy white men come to find Thai brides. Why are we going, you ask? Scott's parents gave us all a nice dinner for Christmas, and we decided to make the hour long journey to get REAL western food! We chose to make a weekend of it because Pattaya also has a movie theater which plays one English movie a day! You heard me...dinner AND a movie!! Should be interesting! Miss you all!

adventures in windsurfing and goodbye Sarah!

Hello all!

I had a very pleasant weekend. ON Friday, I ducked out of work early to go windsurfing with Matt and my student Pierre. We went down tot he beach, where the instructor gave us a very informative speech in Thai. I understood absolutely none of his directions, so I decided to "wing it". Windsurfing is DIFFICULT! Basically the board is impossible to balance on, and the sail weighs about 50 pounds. So you have to pull it up while balancing. Needless to say, I fell in the water more than a few times, and the sail fell on my head more then a few times.
I finally go the hang of it, and was actually able to go pretty fast! The Thai instructor paddled on his surfboard alongside me shouting "yes yes good I like". It turned out to be so much fun, and easy once I got the hang of it!! At one point, Pierre, Matt and I decided to have a race. I started going way too fast, and went out a little too far. I breezed past the boys, and just kept going. Pierre shouted "Tami you are going all the way to Cambodia", and he was almost right. I started to get scared because I was miles down the beach, in deep water, and going too fast. I didn't know how to stop or turn around, so the instructor came up to me, and shouted something that sounded like "turn". I flung the sail around, and toppled into the water. The instructor traded me his surfboard, and took my board back in. I had to paddle all the way back against the current, and by the end my arms were mush. The next morning I woke up and couldn't move my muscles! Windsurfing was hard work, but worth it!
We returned to the school where we taught Pierre informative and useful lessons on "pick up lines". Explaining the term "pick up" was impossible! Pierre first said "pick up? you lift her off the ground?" I said "no, pick up means hitting on women". Pierre said, "you HIT women?". (clearly this went on for a while until we explained that the purpose was flirting, complete with loving hand gestures). Anyway, we taught him such great lines as "good thing I brought my library card, because I'm checking you out". It was hilarious to hear these with his suave french accent! Yes, we can now send Pierre back to France, confident in his English skills.
Friday night, we went to Shaam's for dinner, since Sarah is going back to Canada this week. We took a cab the 20 miles to his restaurant, and proceeded to order all of our favorite foods, and feast. I had not eaten there in a month or so, and the strange thing is that dishes which used to be way too spicy, now seemed mild. I guess I have become used to the lethal Thai peppers! Shaam still has the best Thai food I have ever had, spicy or not! He drove us back to the school, and said his goodbyes to Sarah.
The next morning, we headed over to Koh Samet to lay in the sun. The weather was beautiful, and we had a very relaxing weekend. We came back yesterday, and sent Sarah off. I am very sad that she is leaving, especially because now I really am the only girl (not to mention the boys have begun farting into the megaphone in our office). It was hard to say goodbye, but she is looking forward to going home, and I am happy for her.
In other news, we finally got our internet line to work well enough to teach online. Though we were one day too late, so now we cannot begin until January! Until then I will keep tutoring, and doing lesson plans...oy! The house hunt has been equally disappointing. Looks like I will be living at the TEFL school forever! I am going to try to change rooms to a nicer one with a lukewarm shower. Wish me luck!
I put up pictures of the "white person" competition, and also photos of our office...they are added to the album that I posted in my last entry (the kings birthday), so if you click on it, the new photos begin on page 3 of the album.
That's it for now! I am sad Christmas is coming up :( We are currently looking for a nice restaurant to at least have some semblance of a holiday dinner! I will keep you posted on the search!
Lot's of love!

Thai aerobics and beauty pageants!!

Hey all!
Last night I participated in my first Thai aerobics class! The only way I can describe it is pure ridiculousness. You really have to experience it for yourself! It was a bunch of old Thai women, and I am pretty sure the instructor was a lady boy. The moves were crazy dance moves to sped up Thai music. I am pretty sure it didn't give me a workout, but it was so fun dancing like a crazy person that I will go again! I did sweat a lot, but that is mostly due to the fact that the class is outdoors and I pretty much sweat standing still in this tropical heat! When it was over all the Thai ladies were like "you come back tomorrow"! They have these classes every evening. They are pretty easy to follow, even if you don't know any Thai...but I was proud that I was able to understand some directional phrases! Maybe I will learn how to say things like "pump it up" in Thai!

Aside form my adventure in Thai fitness, the past few days have been pretty great! The festival is still going on, so it's pretty loud and crowded, but I have enjoyed it. I have been teaching a lot more lately...I still have Pierre (I am taking him jet skiing on the local island tomorrow), and I have taken on a new student, Stina, who is 18 and from Finland. She is not as fun as Pierre, mostly because she doesn't do cool activities in the afternoon, strictly lessons, but also because she is not as outgoing and fun! OH well! I start online teaching on Monday, and have already planned my first lesson! The program is really cool, it is like you are in a real classroom. You can see all of your students, you are in the front of the virtual classroom and they are all situated around you.

Today, we set up our office. We each have a large desk and computer. We have also looked around the room and found such helpful items as a megaphone, a disco ball, a light show projector, and (my personal favorite), a giant dinosaur. We have used these items to decorate our office, naturally.

The other night there was a competition on the big stage for white people. Basically it was so thousands of Thai people can make fun of foreigners at once, but the prizes were $200 US dollars, and free hotel stays, and free dinners. Matt and Pierre entered with about 11 other white locals. White foreigners are called "Farangs" here, so it was called the "Farang" contest...and let me tell you it is a big deal! The Thais already think we are circus freaks for being tall and pale and often stare or take pictures of us just walking down the street, so as you can imagine, this was a spectacle. It was much like a pageant with a costume contest, a talent, and interview questions translated into Thai. The stage is massive, and literally thousands of Thai's are watching. The theme of the contest was "I love the sea". Matt placed third with his coconut bra and karaoke rendition of the little mermaid's "under the sea". Pierre clinched second with his floaties, snorkel, and interpretive dance that he made up on the spot. The winner was a Thai woman who cheated and entered. Allegedly she is a famous Thai actress, and the whole contest is rigged for her to win and humiliate white people. We didn't mind because it was hilarious and the boys both won about $200, a free hotel stay, a t-shirt, a dinner at a restaurant, and a Giant trophy.

All in all, everything is great on my end. We still haven't found a house (which really angers me) but I have a roof over my head at the school (complete with freezing shower), and I don't have to pay rent.
I have pictures and video of the white person contest and videos of Pierre and Matt's prize winning talents! I will put them up later!
Hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season!

The king is OLD

Friday was the King's birthday...and since everyone LOVES the king (I mean they are obsessed), of course there was a HUGE celebration in Ban Phe!
On Friday, everyone had to wear "king shirts". I mentioned them before but basically they are hideous yellow polos (the king's color) with the insignia of the king and a picture on the front, and "long love our beloved king" in Thai on the back. The boy ones are lined with white and have a heart with blue and gold on the front, and the girl ones are lined with pink and have two hands holding.
Friday, we donned our king shirts and were told we had to march in the town parade. We head out to the start, and I immediately feel nauseated. I still haven't fully recovered from the food poisoning in Chiang Mai...so sometimes it comes back at inopportune times. Anyway, I started vomiting on the streets of Ban Phe, so I had to take a motorbike back to the school, where I layed in pain, missing the fun.
I felt better later so I went to meet up with my fellow teachers at the ceremony. Everywhere in Thailand they have the same exact ceremony at the same exact time, with the same music, same procedure, and same clothing. It is astonishing how much these people revere tradition! So the ceremony started with each family or business in Ban Phe making an offering to a gigantic shrine of the King. This took a few hours as you can imagine. Afterwards, everyone was handed a candle, and we all had to sing 3 songs in Thai with our candles lit. Then there was a huge sign that lit up with fireworks, and then a fireworks show. All you could see was miles of yellow shirts. The entire day of his birthday was "dry", in fact it was considered rude to purchase or consume alcohol.
The next day, Saturday, started the week-long festival in Ban Phe. The streets are filled with food stalls, and shops. the stage with the shrine of the king has concerts and dance shows. theres several beer gardens. There are even carnival rides! The whole town has been PACKED. You can't even walk down the street without ramming into people, which is strange because Ban Phe is usually so small and quiet. There's even places to buy pets! Matt and I want to get a little fluffy bunny!!
Anyway, Ban Phe is extremely loud, and I will actually be quite pleased when this all clears out on Friday...even though it is fun and there are finally new places to eat besides the 4 or 5 restaurants we frequent!
The best part about all of this, is the locals out in full force! Living here for the last 2 months, I have made friends with several locals, but had yet to see them partying. I am going to give you a run down of my favorite locals of ban Phe:

Mama: Mama owns a restaurant right outside of the school. Basically I go there every day and she says things like "mama make you noodles". She's really cool, and definitely takes care of us!

Laundry lady: We have yet to learn her actual name, but laundry lady does our laundry for us (and does it REAL good). She also lets us play with her fluffy little dog!

The pirate: This guy is ALWAYS drunk, and ALWAYS dressed like a pirate. He lives at the end of the street and every time you pass by he offers you a sip of his drink, whether it be orange juice, water, or moonshine. He also likes to give creative handshakes, and often freely dances in the street.

Bernie: a British ex pat who lives in Ban Phe, and creeps on everything with legs. He can often be seen downing whiskey and stumbling around the streets of Ban Phe. His accent mixed with the mass amounts of alcohol he consumes makes it impossible to understand a word he says.

Oliver: Oliver is a French ex pat who owns the bar closest to our school. But he's not special...his Thai wife is! Whenever we go in there she makes us homemade western food...for FREE! I swear the other day she made us all spaghetti, which tastes like the most amazing food you have ever had when you have had nothing but Asian food for 2 months!! Maybe she thinks were all malnourished or something.

Anyway, those are my favorites, and there are many more locals which I will write about later! Now, off to take a shower in ice water (I hate showering in cold water and am still not used to it). Love you all! Until next time...look at my photos of the king's birthday!!

photos:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015880&l=f3400&id=83901952

Crisis Averted

Rachel decided to take the job in Chonburri...I guess her boyfriend will be done with his TEFL course in Ban Phe in 2 weeks, and he can more easily find jobs in Chonburri than Ban Phe since its a larger city. They figured it would be easier for them to be together in Thailand by her going to Chonburri now, instead of hanging around Ban Phe and then he might get sent somewhere else. I will still be teaching online in Ban Phe!! Although now, I have lost the only other female in our group. Testosterone city here I cooooome!
For the king's birthday on Friday, the whole town of Ban Phe has a parade, and as teachers here we have to march in it. Hopefully there's beer. Anyway, we have to wear yellow "king shirts", which are these hideous bright yellow polo shirts with the kings insignia and Thai writing on them. everyone in Thailand wears them on Mondays (theres a color you are supposed to wear for every day of the week). I have avoided buying one thus far, but now I have to break down and get one to wear on Friday, or I wont be a respectable parade marching citizen. So looks like its off to the Rayong night market to get one tonight!
The conflict in Bangkok looks like it is slowly getting settled. The prime minister has been taken out of office, and banned from politics for 5 years due to fraud. The PAD is leaving the airport as we speak, and business flights resume today. All other flights are said to begin on Friday! Looks like I am no longer trapped in the country! And there was no bloodshed! Double good! Hopefully I can track down all my mail that probably got lost in the mayhem!

I uploaded pictures from my trip to the tiger place in Sriracha, and theres a couple extras tagged on from around Ban Phe.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015769&l=21bc7&id=83901952

they are kind of lame...but still kind of awesome!! Love and miss you all!

December already?

I have officially been in Thailand for 2 months! Can you believe it?

I tutored the french guy today. It was fun! Imagine the most stereotypical image of a French guy (accent included), then add a fanny pack (no joke) and you have Pierre.
We went to Sriracha (about 1 hour northwest of Ban Phe), to the tiger zoo. Rii (a Thai man who works at TEFL), and Lee (another TEFL teacher from the UK) came with us. They had over 400 tigers (including babies!), about a million crocodiles, and various other animals. We walked around and practiced English, and played with tigers and orangutans. Basically I got paid to go to a zoo and hang out with a bunch of people whose accents I couldn't understand! It was awesome. OH and I tried my first bizarre food...barbecued crocodile! Yes I really ate this. It tasted like chicken, except slightly more chewy. It was actually kind of delicious. I have some great pictures from he whole day that I will put up soon!
When I returned to Ban Phe, I found out that a teacher got fired from their job in Chonburri and I may have to go work there for the rest of the time. I REALLY do not want to, as Chonburri is kind of the ghetto of Thailand. I also have finally got settled in a job after all this time, and do not want to be separated from my friends! I told them no, and tomorrow the boys are going to talk to them and say if I have to go, they will all quit. I basically spent a good 1/2 hour crying because I don't want to go. We will see how everything pans out but I refuse to go, and my friends refuse to let me leave! Tomorrow we are also house hunting. We have several prospects (one with a pool and kitchen where we could all live together...ya...pray for me!!). Hopefully we can get that one and I will be able to move in and not go to another job!
Sarah came to stay with me tonight because she is stuck in Thailand and can't go home. I don't know if I mentioned that she quit the program, but she got fed up and quit and is trying to go home now! I am sad, but it's nice to have my roomie back for a bit, even if it is under crappy circumstances!
The situation in Bangkok has worsened as I am sure you are reading in the news. i am especially pissed because I can't get any mail because there are no fricking airports to get it to me! This whole thing is really cramping my style!! Ok Ok I will stop being so selfish because people are genuinely upset. A lot of people are losing tourism money, and the whole country seems somber. Like I mentioned before it is difficult to tell what is going on, as most news stations are blocked.
Despite the uproar...Ban Phe and the island of Koh Samet are having a festival all week in honor of the king's birthday on Friday. The celebrations started tonight, and will continue al week, culminating in a big party on Friday for his birthday/ Thai father's day! I am very excited because it is a lot like Loy Krathong, where there are just huge parties and yummy food in the streets!
Other than that I am fine! i will try to update more so you guys don't worry so much...but really I am fine and far from trouble!!
Love and miss you!

pretty sketchy

Things have been escalating over the past few days in Bangkok. The PAD protesters have taken over the police barricades at the airport, and now have total control over it, completely shutting it down. The Thai government has switched off all Thai TV stations, so nobody will know what is going on...so my main source is internet and word of mouth.
From what I hear, a bomb went off and shots were fired, and the Prime Ministers compound was bombed this morning. There was also a scuffle at the military airport that left 49 injured. I have the feeling that things are going to get worse before they get better. The protesters have complete control of a massive airport and a military airport...not allowing people in or out, and refuse to negotiate with the Thai government. Since the protesters have now become violent, the government who was set on resolving this through non violent methods is probably going to have to get violent too as they are losing millions of dollars everyday. From what the locals say, it almost seems inevitable that the government will attempt some sort of violent method in order to end the protest. There as been an increased police and military presence which is strange...but where I am everything seems to be ok. I am still safe, I just probably can't exit the country for a while...not that I was going to!
We met with our boss yesterday, and the internet line here is not good enough to efficiently train us, or for us to start teaching. But we got it figured out for working on Monday and getting payed so money wont be an issue....and supposedly we are moving into a house within the next week! I guess we cannot start teaching online until the 15th, but I am doing private tutoring tomorrow, and then getting paid to do 2 weeks of lesson plans, so at least I actually start working and getting payed tomorrow. The guy I am tutoring is French, 24, and almost fluent in English. Oh and his name is actually "Pierre"(I know...right?). I met him last night, and he is pretty cool and basically just wants help with verb tenses and someone to converse with in English, so it should be easy. Tomorrow I get to take him on a field trip to Sriracha to go to a tiger preserve...all paid for by TEFL. Tuesday, Matt tutors him and they are taking a Thai cooking class. Wednesday Scott takes him to a waterfall. Thursday Rachel and him are going to get a Thai massage, and Friday Andre is taking him to a party for the Kings birthday (also the Thai father's day). I guess this guy just signed up for a month in Thailand of taking field trips and learning English...pretty cool. We should be tutoring him next week too, so hopefully I get him on a day where the field trip is something cool. Hopefully this Tiger preserve is fun, or its just me and a French guy at a crappy zoo all day having awkward broken English conversations.
OH, last night i got to see Shaam!! We hadn't seen him in month, since we moved out of our apartment, and into the TEFL school! His restaurant is too far away for us to walk, and difficult to get a ride to, so we can never go. He came into town and bought us all beers, and hopefully we can go visit him soon. I miss his food (seriously the best Thai food I have had in Thailand!). It was good to see him!
Alright thats it for now. I would try to keep you updated on the Bangkok situation more, but like I said, the government is censoring TV and newspaper so it is difficult to actually know what is going on, and what is rumor. Maybe YOU can fill me in?
Lots of love!

more laos pics

Here are Andre's pictures from Laos...
He has a waterproof camera so there are actually some shots form the river!!

Enjoy:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015652&l=b79df&id=83901952

Back from Laos, and not dead in Bangkok!

Hello all!!
Sorry it has been a while since I’ve updated…this may get a little long. I know many of you are worried about me over here with the whole situation in Thailand…just know I am safe and far from the mayhem! Apparently there are mass protesters of the government who have shut down the airports so nobody can get in or out. Many people think there is going to be a coup, and many predict bloodshed. I was in Bangkok this morning, and everything seemed normal, though I was far from the airport. I am staying far away from everything…so don’t lose any sleep over me!
When I left for Laos, the country was a bit more relaxed…none of this had started. In fact, most of Thailand was in mourning over the death of the princess. She was having a 6 day funeral. Apparently she died over a year ago, but they are just now cremating her. A lot of people came to Bangkok to pay respects and the whole country shut down and had a curfew during this time. I guess when she died last year, every Thai person had to wear black for a whole month. Anyway, as soon as her ceremony was over…this whole mayhem began!
Aside from all this, Laos was GREAT! It was such a different experience from Thailand. It is so rural and nowhere near as fast paced…in comparison it makes Thailand seem futuristic. As I mentioned before, we flew from Chiang Mai into Luang Prabang, in the north of Laos, because Scott and I had food poisoning. This was a GREAT decision because we avoided a 12 hour bus ride!
Luang Prabang was gorgeous. Laos still has a lot of French influence, so there is French Colonial architecture set amongst the backdrop of Asian jungle. We hiked to this AMAZING waterfall. At the bottom there were pools of turquoise water to swim in, and smaller falls to jump off of into the pools. As you hiked higher the waterfall became spectacularly tall. We climbed all the way to the top, and it was breathtaking, though somewhat steep and intense of a climb!
Luang Probing (and most of Laos) has a 11:30 pm curfew. All of the bars close, and everyone heads to…the bowling alley (not joking)!! We actually did some bowling, which was fun! The next day, we did a walking tour of the city using our guidebooks. This culminated in a sunset climb to the highest temple in Luang Prabang, which gave an incredible view of the city! Laos is known for its French baguettes (of which I ate about a million because theres no bread in Thailand). Dad you would have flipped your lid at this bread...it was so fluffy and delicious and often they use it to make awesome sandwiches on the street!! They were delicious, and so was Lao coffee!
After Luang Prabang, we took an 8 hour bus ride down to Vang Vieng in the center of the country. This bus ride was horrific. It was on dirt roads, covered in rocks, winding around mountains....a very bumpy ride! At one point I awoke to find a woman sitting next to me with a chicken sitting on her lap. Yes…I rode on a bus with a live chicken…only in Asia!!
Vang Vieng was amazing. The Mekong river is surrounded by limestone cliffs, that look unreal. We floated in tubes down the river, which had makeshift bars alongside that pull you in. At these bars, there are ziplines, swings, epic water slides, and trapezes that fling you into the water. They are SCARY but fun! I actually got pretty banged up on one of the water slides…I have huge bruises and gashes on my back and legs, but it was worth it!
We also visited the caves in Vang Vieng where the Chinese used to hide during the war. We climbed pretty far through them with a tiny flashlight, until we all got a little scared.
We hopped another bus (only 6 hours this time ughhhh) to Vientiene, the capitol of Laos. It was a gorgeous city with beautiful temples and an unfinished Arc de Triumph, which we climbed up to see the whole city. Apparently they started building it, and then due to the turbulent history had to give up. Now from far away it looks gorgeous, but up close is basically a well formed slab of concrete.
We left Vientiene and crossed the “friendship bridge” into Thailand, where we got on an all night train. Luckily this time we had sleeper cars and got to lay down. We arrived in Bangkok this morning, and took a bus back to Ban Phe where we immediately started training to start teaching on Monday, but the internet still isn’t up to par here and we could not even train. There have also been a few issues with my work permit here. Allegedly the province we are teaching in needs extra paperwork, of which they neglected to inform us of until now. So I may not be able to start teaching but I have a meeting with the boss tomorrow at which I am going to tell him I need to start working because I am going broke…and also that they need to move me out of the shithole TEFL school (sorry about the language mom, but I came back to find ants all over my bath towel and bed…and no working electricity in my room. Not to mention it’s a cold shower and rather dirty anyway). Basically I am not being nice anymore, and they WILL be paying me, fixing my work permit, and moving me out of here, and I am NOT taking no for an answer (can you tell I am about ready to burn down the TEFL office?). The internet SHOULD be ok for us to teach by Wednesday, and if not I have to go to Bangkok for a couple days to teach from there (worst case scenario), but don’t worry I will stay FAR from the airports, and TEFL will be funding that little adventure!
Traveling with the boys was fun, but after 2 weeks I have about had it with burps, farts, wrestling, and dumb man jokes. In all fairness they got me doing it too…but it feels good to be back!!
I have added pictures from Chiang Mai and Laos:

Chiang Mai:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015632&l=bdc19&id=83901952

Laos:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015633&l=282e0&id=83901952

Thats it for now...and seriously, I am FINE here in Thailand (mom), and am nowhere near the upcoming bloodshed!! LOVE YOU ALL! Thank you to everyone who sent me mail too! It was SO nice to come back to letter in English! It made my day!!

Chiang Mai

Hello all!
I am writing this from Chiang Mai, a city in the North of Thailand! We left from Bangkok on an overnight train (12 hours ughhhh) to get here. I basically took tylenol PM and was konked out for the whole ride, otherwise I never could have slept sitting upright on a train. When we got here, it was about 7 am. The city is absolutely beautiful...very clean and surrounded by green hills. The old city is surrounded by a moat and a 700 year old wall which was built to keep out Burmese invaders. I was VERY excited to learn that the climate here is much more mild...about 70 degrees and less humid!
Our first day we decided to go to the zoo and aquarium. The zoo is gigantic, and very much like the San Diego Zoo...except you can get much closer to the animals, and actually feed them!! I got to feed hippos and giraffes! The aquarium is the largest in Asia, and was incredible too!
We have explored the city a lot and have done some incredible things! We visited an orchid farm, where the flowers are grown hydrophonically, so the roots hang down from the ceiling. The orchids were all different colors (even blue!).
We went to an elephant camp, and rode through the river and the jungle. The guy actually let me climb off the seat and ride on the elephant's head, and he let Matt go into the river and swim with the baby elephants! When we came back to the camp I walked up to a baby elephant and it made a kissing noise. The owner said it wanted to give me a kiss, so I let it. It took its trunk and suctioned my face...SO FUN!
We also went bamboo rafting down the river. These are seriously planks of bamboo strapped together with reeds and you row them with a long bamboo pole, sort of like a gondola. It was very relaxing and offered a spectacular view of the river and jungle. We also went to visit the Karen hill tribe who wear brass rings to elongate their necks. I tried on the neck rings and they were extremely heavy (about 5 pounds). They attach the rings when the women are 5 years old, and remove them every 3 years to add more rings. It was really neat to see how this hill trible lives.
After the hill tribe we hiked to a beautiful waterfall! At the top you could slide down and land in the pool below (about 20 feet). However it was surrounded by rocks...so very scary! Scott and Matt went down the slide, but Andre chickened out. I climbed the rocks up to the top at least, but then I chickened out as well and just swam in the pool below.
We also went white water rafting, which I have to say has been my favorite thing thus far! I thought I would be scared (these rapids were mostly level 3 but some level 4), but it was exhilerating! I have not had so much fun in a long time! We are thinking about doing a full day rafting trip in Laos.
Unfortunately the fun ended for me in Chiang Mai here...Scott, Matt and I ate dinner at a restraunt near our guesthouse, and then were walking towards the boxing stadium to go see a Muay Thai fight, when all of a sudden I was hit with a violent strain of food poisoning. I have never been this sick in my life. The boys got me into a cab and took me home. I threw up 14 times in 12 hours, and had dihharhea (at the same time ewwwww). Scott was so nice to me, tucked me in blankets and force fed me water, and didn't make fun of me when I cried on the bathroom floor saying "I want my mom"...until about an hour later when the food poisoning hit him as well. Both of us were up the whole night vomiting about every 1/2 hour. Luckily we had 2 bathrooms! I had nothing left in my stomach after about 5 hours but was dry heaving. Matt fortunately was not hit by it, and was able to go get us gatorade. Andre ate at another place and missed it all together. I am starting to feel better although I am still not feeling great, and neither is Scott. I have kept down about 3 crackers and it has been about 24 hours since it started.
We decided to fly to Laos now because we are both sick, and avoid the 12 hour bus ride through bumpy dirt roads. I think this is a good decision although a little more expensive. Hopefully by the time we fly out tomorrow I will be feeling ok enough to enjoy Laos.
On a better note, traveling with the boys has been a blast. I thought I would be overwhelmed by too much testosterone...but we actually all want to do similar activities. Aside form the food poisoning this trip has been a blast and I am very excited for Laos.
I will try to update soon...but I am going to go try to down some more water and try to feel normal again!

send me mail and make me feel better about this...

I met with my employer yesterday. The good news: He seems really nice and I should like my job. The bad news: I don't start until December 1st, I will be teaching classes of 6 korean students ages 9-17 online (so I can't really use any of the Thai I have learned), oh and I am homeless until they find me a place to live on or around December 1st (they claim to be looking for apartments for us...right).
I can live at the school until I start working...but it is kind of a crap hole (no hot water, my AC is broken, and I have a room filled with ants). So instead the boys and I decided to go to Chiang Mai (about 12 hours north of here), and then into Laos for the next 2 weeks. We are leaving tomorrow.
Don't get me wrong, I am VERY excited that I have more vacation time, and that I get to see the North of Thailand AND a whole other country...I was just counting on getting a job A MONTH AGO. I am running low on cash so if they push back my start date another time I might have to find a side job.
That is the update for now...I am sure my trip will be fabulous and I know I am going to like my job once it actually STARTS!
Until then, I FINALLY got a hold of the address here! You can send mail here any time since it is the address of the school I will be working at.

Tami Laird
c/o TEFL International
38/53-55 Moo 1 Suan Son Rd.
Klaeng, Muang
Rayong 21160 Thailand

I would LOVE to get any kind of mail...especially because I am feeling a little homesick. Send me letters, send me pictures, heck send me anything...I would love it! Oh and don't forget to include your address too so I can send you postcards.
I will update probably in Chiang Mai or Laos! Until then...miss you all as much as I miss mexican food (which is A LOT)

Loy Krathong

Yesterday was Loy Krathong, which without a doubt is my new favorite holiday. Loy Krathong is celebrated once a year on the full moon in November. The word loy means to float, and a krathong is a banana leaf cup. People make a krathong from the trunk of banana trees, which is a lot like styrofoam. Then they are ornately decorated with banana leaves folded in patterns and topped with flowers. People place a candle and incense sticks in the krathongs. People also place a piece of their hair and some coins as an offering to the goddess of water. Once the krathong is finished and the candles and inscence lit, the krathong is floated on a local river or the sea. As they push away their krathong, they let go of the past and wish for good fortune in the future (somewhat like new years as they consider november the 12th lunar month). There are also paper lanterns that people float in the sky and people set off fireworks, so the sky and water are all lit up throughout the night (it is incredibly beautiful to see but difficult to capture in a photograph).

We went to a local thai restaurant and made our krathongs with thai people who taught us how to fold the banana leaves and attach the flowers. We entered them in a contest for later in the evening. They had a "Thai' contest and a "white person" contest, which we entered alongside several other competitors. We finished our Krathongs and then had a BBQ, and walked around the festival which closed down the main street of Ban Phe. There were food stalls, and rides, and games all along the water. Some of us tried the Thai delicacy of fried crickets, but I was not brave (or drunk) enough to do it. In the center of the street there was a large stage with Thai dancing and music. The sky was filled with paper lanterns that float in the air, and everywhere you looked people were setting off fireworks (some narrowly missing your head).

After dark, the water was quickly filled with the ornately decorated Krathongs. We returned to the restaurant and did some karaoke...and then the contest happened! Courtney got 3rd place for her "unique and very white person design". I clinched second place and was told I had made mine in a very traditional and beautiful "Thai" style. Sarah got first place for overall creativity! We were surprised that we actually won all three prizes because so many people entered!! The prizes were bottles of beer and whiskey (very appropriate for the later festivities).

After the contest, we walked with our Krathongs down to the sea, where we lit the candles on them, and floated them into the water. It was incredibly beautiful to see them all floating. Loy Krathong is such a happy and wonderful ceremony, and you could see that by the astonishing number of people on the beach launching their carefully made krathongs. We met a lot of Thai people who were really happy to share their culture and holiday with us.

We met some Thai friends, who rented a speedboat which took us over to the island of Koh Samet. We got off the speedboat outside a waterfront bar, and danced the night away with all of the locals celebrating. We returned to Ban Phe on the boat about 4:30 am...but it was worth it.
I have to say it was a beautiful holiday with so much meaning and tradition...but I also have to say the Thai's really know how to celebrate after the traditional part is over!

I have put pictures up from both bangkok and last night's Loy Krathong (including my second place winning krathong)!! Enjoy!

Bangkok:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015356&l=371e4&id=83901952

Loy Krathong:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015357&l=d0f8f&id=83901952

Tomorrow I meet with my employer so I should have an update on the job and living situation soon! Until then...
xoxo

Bangkok!

I just spent the last 5 days in Bangkok. Since I don't start teaching until the 15th, I decided to go up there. Luckily my dad (who is officially THE MAN) hooked us up with his holiday inn points, so we got to stay there for free, in the heart of the city. But this is no ordinary holiday inn...it was the holiday MANSION...seriously like the 4 seasons but nicer. Anyway, Sarah and I got there, were blown away by the amazing hotel...and invited Gabby and Rachel to stay with us. Then later, Laurie and Courtney came to stay. Bangkok is basically ordered chaos...difficult to describe, but awesome! I can't go into detail of the whole trip, though I would like to, because it would take too long. So here are a few highlights:

The Erawan Shrine: Basically you make a wish at this shrine and if it comes true you are supposed to hire Thai dancers and musicians to perform outside of it. Needless to say there are tons of dancers and musicians outside.

Wat Pho: The oldest and largest temple in Bangkok which also houses the "reclining buddha". This buddha was ENOURMOUS, gold plated and his feet were covered with mother of pearl detailed pictures. The wat was beautiful and there wasa lot to see!

Chatauchak market: Pretty much the largest market I have ever seen in my life. I saw about 5% of it.

Khao san road: a bunch of white people...great bars

Our hotel: In-fricking-credible

tuk-tuk drivers: sketchy and take you to dark alleys to see "ping pong shows" against your will.

all in all...mostly good, but I am not a big city girl. Although I must say it was easy to navigate, despite the dirty smellyness of 80% of the city!
We met up with the others from our group placed in Bangkok for teaching, and about 12 of us just ran around the whole city. It was so fun to see everyone!

The transportation coming home was less than great. We got on a bus, which should take about 3 hours maximum to get back to Ban Phe. This bus stopped at EVERY city, and sometimes even in the middle of the highway to let on random people. The "bus attendant" kept coming up to me, singing to me, turning off my ipod, and trying to touch my hand. He kept saying "I like you", and singing to me in Thai. I tried to tell him the feeling was not mutual...but he didn't understand. He also would not let me look out the window. I kept opening the curtain and then he would immediately run back and shut them and say "NO CURTAIN". When I asked why I couldn't look out the window, he said something about it being too hot, even though it was cloudy outside. The bus let so many people on that at one point a woman sat next to me, and plopped her child on my lap for a good 45 minutes. It was about 3 people to a seat and others standing in the aisles. Oh and did I mention this bus ride took 6 HOURS, and then dropped us off in Rayong (15 minutes away form ban phe) in the middle of nowhere with no explanation. We hopped on a taxi and made it home...barely. Oh and there were no bathroom stops...nope, not one! OH and to top it off, the driver blasted (and I mean MAX volume) bad Thai pop music all through the bus.
needless to say I am glad to be back. I am staying at the TEFL school for a couple days but might go to Koh Samet for a bit to lay on the beach while I wait for my job to start.
Pictures to follow!
xoxo

PLACEMENT!

Looks like I will be teaching online in Ban Phe starting November 15th. Kind of sucky...but kind of not because I will have Scott, Matt, Andre and Rachel to keep me company! Off to Bangkok for the next 5 days...should be interesting. I will update when I have more info on my placement...and of course good stories about bangkok!

xoxo

pictures!

I put up my pictures from Koh Chang...and a few random ones from Ban Phe....enjoy!

Ban Phe:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015055&l=7e3e6&id=83901952


Koh Chang:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2015053&l=b8de3&id=83901952

somewhat disturbing

WARNING...this may get a little graphic, so if you are squeamish...DO NOT READ

So I experienced my first episode of "Thaiahhreah" last night. We went out to dinner and all of a sudden I got a rumbly feeling inside. I was about a mile form the apartment so I start running, barealy made it to the bathroom and, well, you can guess what happened. I won't go into detail, mostly because I never want to talk about what happened in that bathroom ever again. You just can't come back from that. Anyway, I knew it was inevitable...but it came with a vengance.

New word on placement:
There are 3 spots available in a primary school in Hua Hin ( a resort town 2 hours south of Bangkok on the west end of the gulf....near the beach). I immediately called the boss and said I want it...so I will hear soon if I get it. If not, I will have the online placement in Ban Phe...so either way, I will have a job soon and be near the ocean. Hopefully I get Hua Hin!!! Until then, I am going to either head to Bangkok to visit one of the girls from the program who is placed there...or I may take a solo trip down to the Phi Phi islands, depending on how much vacation time I have left!

Love and Miss you all!

Koh Chang

Hey Everyone!
My first week of vacation was great! A group of us left for Koh Chang on Sunday. Koh Chang literally translates into “Elephant Island“ in Thai and is the second largest island in Thailand. We rented a minibus to take us to Trat, the port town, which took about 4 hours. Then we hopped on a hour long ferry which brought us to the northernmost point of the Island. The island is gigantic, mountainous, and covered in green jungle. The roads are all very curved with sharp turns and all hills. A lot of people rent motorbikes, which is extremely dangerous, so we took a Songthaew (the pickup trucks with benches in the back).
We first went down the northwest coast of the island, and stopped in White Sand Beach, where we rented bungalows. It was pretty late so we just went to bed, after eating delicious street food. My favorite is a guy who made crepes filled with fruit…YUM! Half the group decided to get scuba certified, so they did a 4 day course, while the rest of us decided to explore the island.
The next day, Scott, Sarah, Matt and I decided to do a jungle trek on Elephants. We went to the middle of the island, and found an elephant encampment. Scott and I rode together through the jungle. The elephant went up mountains, and through rivers. It was absolutely incredible. It was a little bit painful on the behind, but a really good way to see the inside of the jungle. I was enjoying it very much until a GIANT jungle spider dropped on me. I of course screamed bloody murder, but made it out alive (of which I cannot say the same for the spider). After the trek we fed the elephants fruit and bamboo, which was so fun! That night we had dinner on the beach, and watched a fire show, with Thai fire dancers.
The next day, we decided to head further down the west coast to Lonely beach…the operative word being “lonely”. This beach was deserted, but we decided to stay there anyway in a hut on Bai Lan bay. It was very quiet and peaceful. They boys hiked to a waterfall, while Sarah and I explored Bai Lan. I got a “foot scrub”, which basically was a pedicure on steroids. Seriously they basically took some kind of tool resembling a potato peeler, and slathered some kind of chemical on my feet which resulted in the removal of about 10 years of calluses. My feet were pretty much jacked up from running the marathon in June, and now they are smooth as a baby’s bottom! They probably don’t do these in America for a reason, but by golly I highly recommend it to anyone!
The next day, we headed down to Bang Bao, the southernmost tip of the island to meet up with a couple people from our group who had finished the scuba course. Bang Bao officially has the most beautiful beach I have seen in Thailand yet. We pretty much swam all day, and laid under a palm tree. That evening we went into the town, which was a pier and then a bunch of restaurants and shops in stilts floating over the water. We had a nice dinner, and then decided to hop a taxi to a bar we had heard of called “the tree house”. We go to the tree house, which was basically a giant tree house in the middle of the jungle. It was a little bit rickety, with boards breaking at every turn. It was very hidden, and I am sure if I tried to find it ever again, I wouldn‘t be able to. All of a sudden you walk down this long path and come upon the giant tree house filled with hundreds of people having a huge party. We had a blast, and somehow made it back to Bang Bao alive.
We woke up the next morning, and 4 of us decided to go back to Ban Phe. As amazing as Koh Chang had been, we were a little worn down from sleeping for 4 nights on what essentially was a wooden plank covered in a sheet under a mosquito net. We were also showering in a pipe made out of bamboo with freezing cold water trickling out. Some of us also mysteriously smelled of pee (most likely from the aforementioned plank bed). Needless to say we decided it was time to leave, as we had seen more than half of the island.
We hopped on a songthaew to take us back to the pier in the north. As I mentioned before the roads are pretty treacherous, and if you know me, I am “sally seasick“. I actually made it to the pier without vomiting, but cannot say the same for Matt and Scott, who both got off the Songhthaew and immediately puked. We jump on the ferry, and everything was fine, until the ferry stopped, and started kicking up sand. The ferry had beached itself, and we took an extra 30 minutes to arrive in Trat. At this point it had started to monsoon. We realized quickly that we had missed the last bus back to Ban Phe so we tried to get a taxi to drive us the 3 hours. We finally found a man who would take us, in the rain, in a Songthaew. We get in and it is pouring rain. We are all soaking wet, our backpacks are soaking wet, we smell less than great, and are driving through flooded streets. We look up meet each other’s eyes, and start dying with laughter at the whole situation. Hour later, we FINALLY arrived back in Ban Phe at our apartments (after much persuasion of the driver to not leave us in the main city center about 20 miles from our place). It was dark, and still raining, but we made it back…cold, wet and smelly. I took my first hot shower in 5 days, and will be taking my laundry into town immediately to wash out the mysterious pee smell.
Overall, it was a great trip, with great company, on a beautiful island…but I think you can tell I am happy to be home!

Still no placement, and the forecast is not looking good. Some of the confirmed placements have fallen through and now about 8 of us still need to be placed. Basically most of the positions left are either online teaching, or in Bangkok…neither of which I really want. I am going to call our boss tomorrow and see what is going on, (and how much more vacation time I have). If I don’t start until the 15th, like I think, then I am going to plan a trip to Angkor Wat, and possibly Vietnam. Hopefully I can see as much of Asia as I can before I succumb to the inevitable teaching!
I miss you all. Take a hot shower and eat some Mexican food for me!! xoxo

lightning storms, pool parties and placement

Thailand has the most amazing lightning storms. The other night, we sat on the beach for 2 hours staring at the most amazing lightning we have ever seen, with no rain. It is puzzling, yet awesome!

Last night was our graduation dinner/party. We all went to our boss Bruce's house which had a huge swimming pool and dance area. We had amazing food, and danced the night away. We also had karaoke. Highlights include Matt singing "I'm not a girl not yet a woman", and Kamal, our grammar teacher singing us a Nepalese love song complete with dancing. It was so much fun!

This morning a few of us left for their placements. Everyone is placed, except for 3 of us...of which I am included. It kind of sucks, but then I also get a 2 week vacation, when they don't. It was sad to say goodbye because about 6 of us left. There is a prospect for me to teach online in rayong. There are plusses and minuses to this. The plusses: I would be living with my 3 best friends here. We would work in a air conditioned office, I would always have access to the internet, I wouldn't be placed alone, and I could wear whatever I want. The minuses: I would not be getting the cultural experience I want teaching students face to face, and the office is located about 20 minutes from here (granted on the coast). We have a meeting on Wednesday to hear our final placements, so I will either be there or somewhere else.

In the meantime, I am going to Koh Chang (the 2nd largest island in Thailand) from Sunday through Thursday with the rest of the group. I am excited!

I will update as soon as I get my placement! LOVE YOU

OH I also put up new

Koh Samet:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2014836&l=f1cab&id=83901952

Teaching Monks:
photos:http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2014871&l=faa17&id=83901952

ENJOY! More to come

I am officially finished with my teaching practice! Hooooray! Teaching the monks has been incredible. I think I really have a passion for teaching. It is amazing to see them understand the concept of your lesson, and be able to actually learn the language you are teaching them. Most of them are really good kids, and listen really well. There are a couple rowdy ones (yes rowdy monks…who knew), but as soon as I give them the “teacher eye” they immediately listen to me. It is somewhat difficult at times, as I cannot touch the monks, or hand them anything. Every item I have to first place on the floor, for them to pick up. Also, they do not respond to “shhhhh” as a way to quiet them down. In Thai culture it is more of a tongue click..like “click click click”. That took some getting used to as well. Although through all of this, I find that I am in a very calm and serene mood, even though it has been a hectic week. Although, you would probably be calm and serene if you were spending 7 hours a day at a Buddhist temple too.

This may be my last week in Ban Phe…I am going to miss this place....living right on the beach, eating at Shaam’s, crazy karaoke sessions on the beach, riding in ghetto taxis and motorbikes. Most of all, I am going to miss the people I have taken this course with. I have seen them all turn into teachers over the past three weeks. Since we spend every waking moment together, I also know way too much about them…probably more than any people should…but I wouldn’t trade this part of the experience for anything. A few people have placements, and some are leaving this Saturday. Still no word on my placement, and about 17 other people's placements...so we may be unplaced up until November 5th. Tomorrow we have our "goodbye graduation dinner", and then some of us leave...sad!

I have tried to put up new pictures...but it will not work :(
It is starting to monsoon...I hear the thunder, so I should probably get out of here before my computer gets drenched!
Miss you all!

islands, sea turtles, and murdering fish

Hi again everyone!

I had another amazing weekend in Thailand. Sometimes I have these surreal moments, where I just look around and have to say, “wow”. Scott calls them D.F.D’s (dear f*ckin’ diary). I mean yesterday, I was sailing in a boat off the coast of Thailand, to a tropical island, sitting on the ledge hanging my feet over the side of the boat. And no one was stopping me telling me I might fall in the water…yeah…dear f*cking diary is right.
Friday, we found out we had all passed the grammar and phonology exam to become teachers. This test was incredibly difficult, and the course instructor said that usually at least 2 people don’t pass, but our while group did. So a group of 7 of us, decide to go back over to Koh Samet for a relaxing weekend. We left early Saturday morning and decided to do a tour of the island. We signed up for a 6 hour tour that sailed around the island, included lunch, and let us snorkel, sail, fish, and see sea turtles. This cost us about $12 each, which is just unreal.
The way the tour began, was a little rocky. You know how I said I would never get on a motorcycle in Thailand again? Well I was wrong. The tour started with 2 of us each hopping on a motorbike behind a Thai driver, and offroading through bumpy dirt roads, then weaving in and out of sidewalks and crowded streets. Luckily, Courtney and I rode together, so I didn’t freak out too much, and the ride quickly brought us to the dock where we hopped on our tour boat.
It was a beautiful day, and sailing around Koh Samet was amazing. There were lounge chairs on the roof of the boat to sit and stare at the beauty. We got to see a lot of the uninhabited parts of the island, as well as snorkel with some tropical fish . The boat docked in some little inlets full of more fish that I have ever seen. There were tons of crabs, sea cucumbers and giant brightly colored clams on the bottom.
The fishing however, was a little more interesting. They stop the boat, and hand us each a water bottle with fishing line attached, and a hook with a weight on it. We fished drop line style, and surprisingly caught a lot of fish. The sad part was, once we caught the fish they popped them on a stick and immediately grilled them. I reluctantly tried the ‘fresh fish‘, but luckily they also had the option of pineapple and vegetable shish kabobs, tropical fruit, and fried rice, so I didn‘t feel like such a murderer.
The end of the trip included a visit to the islands fish farm, where we got to feed sharks, sea turtles, baby sea turtles, and all kinds of huge fish. The fish farm just had narrow, thin, planks of wood that you walk alongside the holding areas on. One false move, and you go careening into a pit of giant sharks…a little unnerving. I spent most of my time there staring at the beautiful sea turtles.
When we returned from the trip, we went back to the beach, and all got massages (who could resist…really). We had dinner the restaurant on the beach, where you sit on cushions in the sand. We watched a Thai “fire show” which had fire jugglers who also danced and did acrobatics. It was amazing! Afterwards, we found a place that sells “adult ice cream”, which is pretty much ice cream mixed with 5% booze (ahhh yes someone finally combined my 2 favorite things). I had ‘funky monkey’ which was made from kahlua and crème de banana…SO GOOD.
Later that night, some of us were sleeping in the bungalow we rented, when it started to monsoon. This is the largest and longest monsoon I have seen yet! It was so scary! Half of our group was still at the bar, and all of a sudden the bungalow door bursts open and Matt comes in to tell us that the whole island had flooded, lost power when lightning struck the main power source, and that lightning was still striking everywhere. The whole island was seriously pitch black, and the only time you could see was when lightning struck every 10 seconds…scary. We awoke the next morning to sunshine and fully restored power, which is unbelievable considering the state of things only hours before.
I am back safe in Ban Phe now. It is strange to think this is my last week here with the group. A few of the group members have been placed, (mostly in Bangkok so far), but I haven’t been placed yet, and should find out soon where I will be teaching! I actually start practice teaching the monks by myself this week. I have to teach four - 1 hour lessons all on my own…eek! I hope the monks go easy on me! Wish me luck.
I miss all of you, and love to hear from you, even if I don’t get time to respond to your comments! I will update again as soon as I have something interesting to write about…which should be no problem here!
p.s. I am eating a banana right now, and I have to say that the bananas here have about 10 times the flavor of bananas at home...they are mind blowing...and I will probably smuggle some back with me.

Monsoons, pictures and an epic story

Monday night I experienced my first monsoon! I think I mentioned before that all restaurants are pretty much poles holding up a roof with no walls. So we are eating at Shaam’s palace, when all of a sudden it just starts pouring. I have never seen more rain in my life. The ground immediately floods to about ankle deep, and it feels like you are under a waterfall. I of course am enthralled but all the Thai people just keep going about their business like it’s nothing. About 30 minutes later, it stops instantly, the ground dries in about 5 minutes and it was as if the whole thing never happened!

I FINALLY was able to put up pictures. Here are the links to the albums.
Koh samet: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2014592&l=2e2b1&id=83901952
and other: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2014511&l=41216&id=83901952

Warning: The Koh Samet Album has some extremely inebriated photos (sorry mom) but in all fairness you would be inebriated too after a week straight of grammar and phonology.

And now…the epic story. I am going to preface this story by saying that Scott is allergic to shellfish (which happens to be an ingredient in 99% of Thai food (I think you know where this is going). So, Tuesday night, the group goes into town all together in a large van. Scott, Matt and I decide to seek out the one Laundromat in Ban Phe, since we suck at hand washing. We convince the driver to drop us off there, thinking it was closer and we could just meet everyone for the ride back. Well, this Laundromat turns out to be about 3 miles from the drop off spot, and also completely in the Ghetto. We were the only white people there. To make it worse, there are no dryers (sort of defeating the purpose). We decide to wash the clothes anyway. We go to get dinner while they are washing, and Scott gets fried rice. All of a sudden he starts coughing. Matt and I are like ”crap we are going to have to carry him 3 miles…oh god”. Scott says “I just have to make myself throw up then take my allergy meds” so I walk him down to the beach. He then says “Tami don’t listen to me puke”, so I turn around, plug my ears and sing the only song I can think of at the moment (which happened to be “if you like pina coladas”). Scott pukes and is fine, so we head back to the restaurant to get Matt, then to the Laundromat to grab all of our wet clothes. We now have about 15 minutes to get to the pick up point to get a ride back. We are clearly in the ghetto, so we can not find any taxi’s and if we walk, it would take at least a ½ hour carrying all of our wet laundry. Suddenly three guys on motorcycles pull up and offer us a ride (or at least said something in Thai that seemed like a ride at the time). Thinking it’s the only way to get back, we each hop on one (remember this country has no helmets, traffic laws, or speed limits). We pile the laundry on, and go. I probably dug holes in this poor Thai man’s back I was holding on so tight. It was the most terrifying 5 minutes of my life. :luckily we were able to tell them where to take us in a broken Thai English mixture and we get to the pick up spot just in time. We hop in the van right as a lightning storm/monsoon starts. Needless to say, we got back alive thanks to some nice Thai motorcycle men. Unfortunately after unloading and sorting all of our laundry I discovered that I am missing 2 pairs of underwear…which are probably being sold in the ghetto of Ban Phe as I type this. Oh and my laundry is still wet and completely sucky. At least it was an adventure and Scott didn‘t die! I will never get on a motorcycle in Thailand again!

Anyway, this week is kind of busy school wise, so I probably wont have much to write about for a bit…but I think we’re heading back to Koh Samet to do some hiking this weekend, so that should be fun! Enjoy the pictures…MISS YOU ALL!!

koh samet

Hey everyone! This weekend, the group went to Koh Samet (sometimes called Koh Samed), which is the island right off the coast of Ban Phe. The island is probably only a mile away, so we can see it from our apartment building. We took a 45 minute ferry from Ban Phe (which went extremely slow…seriously I could have swam there faster). The boats are somewhat small and rickety, and to get on them you have to practically jump form the pier into the boat (not for the faint of heart). To dock them, they just tie them to other boats and you have to crawl across the other boats and climb up onto the dock. It was definitely a little scary, but worth it to get to this beautiful island.
When we arrived, the island was more amazing than I had imagined. I think everywhere I go in Thailand is the most beautiful place I have seen, and then I go somewhere else and am blown away again. Koh Samet had perfect soft white sand beaches with crystal clear turquoise water (also 80 degrees).
We rented bungalows on the beach for about $6 a night (we put 3 in a room which made it $2 each!) These bungalows were right on the water, and had a queen size bed with a big mosquito net over it.
During the day we laid on the beach, sipped tropical cocktails and swam in the water. We wanted to go banana boating but didn’t get to.
On the beach Thai women sell massages. They are about $7 for an hour of full body massage. Not going to lie, I definitely had 2 while I was there. They were amazing.
At night, we had dinner at a place where they sit cushions and a low table on the sand. Above our heads were strung a bunch of paper lanterns, in all different colors and shapes. On the beach people were floating Thai lanterns. They have these huge cylinder cloth lanterns which they float into the sky like hot air balloons by lighting candles on the bottom. We just watched them floating up into the sky until we couldn’t see them glow anymore.
The rest of the evening was spent dancing at the various bars and clubs on the beach. Our placement coordinator Joy, (a Thai girl about 26) came to Koh Samet with us because it was her birthday, so it was extra fun. I don’t think anybody wanted to come back…but we will probably go again next weekend.
Lets see, what else…oh the aforementioned laundry came out quite crunchy. I am missing real washers and dryers. I better get used to hand washing in bathtubs because I have yet to see a washer and dryer (or a Laundromat for that matter)! Well that’s it for now. I am attempting to upload some photos, but there are no guarantees it will actually work. I may need to take my laptop into Rayong and see if I can find actual internet that doesn’t suck!
Love you all! Postcards are coming soon!

Karaoke and japanese game show showers

Hey everyone! Thailand just keeps getting better and better! I am in love with Ban Phe! I am trying to put pictures up but the internet here is pretty shotty so I will have to wait until we go into town again. The last couple of days have been great. During the day we are in class at the temple. The monks are really cool, and most speak English very well. They have taught me a few Thai phrases and I can say 13 words in Thai now! The classes we take at the school are pretty interesting. We have a teacher from Nepal who teaches grammar, and a teacher from the UK who teaches phonology. The hard part is that it is about 90 degrees in the classroom with humidity you wouldn’t believe! They don’t have AC at the temple and most of the fans don‘t work so we sweat a lot.
The temple is gorgeous and on breaks I go explore. There is a nice kitty that we have affectionately named “Mr. Kittles”. There are also 10 puppies that are about 2 weeks old. We play with them all the time. My favorite is one we named “chubbs”. He’s a fatty of course.
When we come back from the temple in the afternoon, we usually swim in the ocean until the sun goes down. The sunsets here are completely amazing. The whole sky turns red and pink and orange. I think they rival Asilomar beach in Monterey which is saying a lot! I have taken some amazing pictures that really don’t even come close to showing the beauty.
The other night, a group of us went down to the beach where they have karaoke (yes every night there is karaoke on the beach). The Thai people LOVE karaoke…it is insane. Their favorite song must be Eric Clapton’s “you look wonderful tonight” because I have heard it sung about a million times in a bad Asian accent. We decided to show them how to sing American songs…and I ended up singing “funky town” with one of the guys in the program. By the time each of us had sang we had cleared all the Thai people off the beach…it was hilarious.
The other night we took a trip into Rayong, which is the largest city near us. They had a HUGE night market, which was filled with crazy stuff. We wandered around for hours just looking at everything.
Tonight I did laundry for the first time. Everything here is hand washed…they don’t have washers or dryers. I did it in the tub, and bought a clothesline. We will see how it turns out.
The shower by the way has an electric heater which heats the water for approximately 3 minutes. There‘s a hose like thing that you have to hold, but it only stretches up to about 5 feet, so to wash my hair I have to duck down. OH and there is no shower curtain so you also have to try and not get the water everywhere. Taking a shower is pretty ridiculous, I almost feel like I am on some Japanese game show every time I attempt to get clean.
There have been lightning storms the past 2 nights, but no monsoons yet thank goodness!
Tomorrow we are going to walk down to the national park at the end of the road and explore. Apparently there are monkeys that live in the trees there…should be fun! Then, we are going to Ko Samet Island this weekend, which I am so excited for!
I will try to update soon, and post pictures next time I am in town and the internet works. Love you all!!

I love Thailand

Hey everyone!
So I made it to Ban Phe on Sunday. The drive down here was about 2 hours, and absolutely beautiful. Thailand is an amazing, exotic country. It is covered in green jungle hills in the distance and everywhere you look orchids seem to bloom like wildflowers.
When we got to Ban Phe, we moved into our apartment. We have a swimming pool and a balcony with an amazing view. About 10 feet away is the beach, and all along the road down the beach are restaurants. The part of the town we live in is really small but beautiful, and the city is about a 5 minute drive. I have a roommate, Sarah, who is 24 and from Canada. She is awesome mostly because she brought a 24 pack of toilet paper (apparently the Thai’s don’t use it). The rest of the people in the program are really cool. Everyone is about my age and come from all over (mostly Americans but some Canadian and UK). There are about 30 of us all together.
Yesterday we went to our first day of class. Each morning they pick us up and we ride in Thailand’s main form of transportation, a pickup truck with 2 benches in the bed and a roof over it. Not the safest but definitely an amazing way to look at the scenery.
We are studying in a Buddhist Temple, where we will also do our teaching practice. It is absolutely gorgeous. The Temple is surrounded by trees and flowers. Everywhere you look, monks are walking around. We will have 3 weeks of teaching practice in the temple, and then a week of holiday before our placement in another location. To be in the temple you have to take off your shoes and have your knees and shoulders covered, which is difficult because it is so hot here all the time. In about 2 weeks we will actually start teaching the monks, who are boys about 13-18. As a woman, I am not allowed to touch the monks, so to hand them something, I have to put it in their robe.
We met the Abbott (the head monk), and we had to sit on the floor with our feet pointed away from him and “wai” (bow) to him 3 times. It all seemed very surreal until he said ‘see you later alligator”. Here in Thailand, teachers are considered 3rd only to the King and monks. To wai the king, you put your hands on top of your head, a monk in front of your eyes, a teacher in front of your mouth, and everyone else below your chin. I am still getting used to people Wai’ing me! They also wear different colors for every day of the week. Mondays are yellow to honor the king, and Saturday’s are purple for luck. I forget the other days (oops).
Another thing I am getting used to (or trying to) is the toilet situation. As I mentioned before, there is no T.P. But what complicates the situation is most toilets are simply a hole in the ground covered with porcelain. I have no idea how Thai women go, because there is nothing to hold onto when you squat that low! To flush, you grab water from a bin with a bowl and pour it into the toilet. Luckily these toilets are pretty much everywhere BUT the apartment which has an American toilet, so I pretty much only pee when I am here!
The food here is AMAZING. Everything is very spicy but delicious. Dragon fruit is probably my new favorite food! Every morning a lady sells fruit outside our apartment. Amazing fresh tropical fruit for about 50 cents…my breakfast every day! We usually eat dinner down the road at this restaurant that we call “Saam’s palace”. I don’t know the real name but it is run by a cool dude named Saam. Basically everything is the best food you can eat for about $1.00. Beer is also $1.00...which makes for some good times. I have yet to experience what everyone is now referring to as “Thaiarrhea”, which is fortunate…but inevitable.
When I am not in class or eating, I am usually in the ocean. The water temp is about 80 degrees (if not warmer). I have gone for a sunset swim every night I have been here. The air temp is SWELTERING HEAT even at night! I have never been so hot in my life (thank god for AC in the apartment or I would probably sleep in the ocean). I drink about a gallon of water each day…and probably sweat it all out by noon.
Yesterday after class the group went into town to go to the night market and the Tesco, which is like Wal-Mart but with NOTHING you need…(yeah dad keep making fun of me for bringing a suitcase full of toiletries…you would be dipped here). The town is a lot bigger and everyone rides motorcycles (without helmets eeek). They drive on the opposite side of the road here, but often drive on whatever side of the road they feel like. They just hold their baby in their lap, or pile up to 5 people on a motorcycle and go. SCARY! Every Tuesday and Thursday we will make trips into town to go to the bank, or get supplies. Pretty much it is cash only here so I will be using the ATM in town mostly.
Last night we had a “welcome dinner” where we sat at long tables with these weird bbq/pots on them. We chose meat and veggies and grilled them then put them in the pot part and added noodles and made some kind of amazing concoction for which I am doing no justice with this description. I have taken pictures of all of this, and will hopefully post them up soon!
The internet situation here in Ban Phe is that there is none. I get internet believe it or not, at the temple. So on my lunch break from class, I will try to update as much as I can. And skype, although it is usually around 10:30 pm California time so skyping could be an issue for some (mom)! There are rumors of an internet café near our apartment building so I will try to get over there one morning! This weekend some of the group and I are taking a trip to the island of Ko Samet, which should be amazing!
Until then, I miss you all but I am LOVING Thailand so much. I have an address but they told us mail takes about 3-4 weeks, so giving it to anyone is basically futile. When I get my placement I will be there for 5 months so you can

friggin jungle crap

ok so its like 6 am here, and I finally got about 4 hours of sleep until I was woken up by what I think is a monkey...a monkey or an insanely loud chattering bird. First order of business....I am off to buy a shotgun and take this thing's life!

I made it here alive!

I am FINALLY here in Bangkok after what seemed like years! The flight from LA to Japan left much to be desired...but I survived. It was me and a dude next to me who must have taken elephant tranquilizers or something because he instantly fell asleep and did not wake up the WHOLE flight. I needed to pee and tried to wake him with no luck. Finally I just crawled over the bastard. Whatever he was on...I want some for the flight back.
The flight threw me off because it was constantly daylight so I could never get to sleep. It felt like a never ending day where the sun never moved (I don't know how Alaskans don't go nuts). I wanted to do the "Nealy special" (2 tylenol PM's and a glass of wine) but just couldn't bring myself to do it when it was constant daylight. I read a 500 page book instead.
Landing in Tokyo was interesting. I expected to see a HUGE concrete jungle, but it was surprisingly very green and lush! The airport was probably selling some of the weirdest stuff I have ever seen. crazy asians! OH and the bathrooms were bizarre...I took pictures and will probably put them up here to show everyone!
It finally got dark outside just in time for my flight to Bangkok and luckily nobody was seated next to me so I moved up the arm rests, layed down over 3 seats, and slept the entire 6 hour flight. I may have looked a little "special" but at that point I was so tired I didn't care.
I arrived in Bangkok around midnight in the 85 degree heat...yes this hot at midnight. And this is their cold season? After an hour of milling around the airport looking at weird Asian food, I finally decided to get a hotel since I am not being picked up until tomorrow at noon. There are hotel reps standing all over the airport with their info. I had no clue if this was safe or not but thats the way my brain is working after being awake for 30 hours. Turns out it is safe, so we're all good.
Then of course there's the fact that I speak absolutely no Thai. I am hoping to just get by on my stunning good looks and charming personality...so far so good!
Right now it is about 1:30 am and I am sitting in my hotel room. Of course technically it is like 11:30 am in CA so I am wide awake...awesome.
I don't know what the internet situation will be when i get to the school in Ban Phe tomorrow but I will try to be in contact. Until then, I am safe and I LOVE YOU ALL!!

Thailand here I come!

I am officially leaving for Thailand in 3 days! Packing 6 months worth of stuff into 2 suitcases has been a challenge, but I am almost ready to go!

I don't have an address where I will be yet, but (hopefully) I will be updating this journal as much as I can over the next 6 months to give you all a taste of my experience. I won't have a phone but you can reach me in Thailand via email (TamraLaird@gmail.com), Skype (Tami.Laird), or AIM (Tami82185).

Asia here I come!