There's a first time for everything

Adventures around Chiang Mai

It’s been exactly one week since I left Virginia, but it feels like a lifetime… and I mean that in the best way possible. Since arriving in Thailand I’ve experienced so many firsts --

First time traveling anywhere in Asia

First time teaching an English class

First time killing two gigantic spiders in one day

First time riding on a motorbike

First time eating rambutan

First time going to a walking street

First time creating a lesson plan on the fly

First time eating food from 7-11 that is actually good

And although I’ve constantly been introduced to new experiences, everything has been effortless. I was a little anxious about “fitting in” here, but I’ve found it easy to jump right into things – even though sometimes I have no clue what anyone is saying around me.

Kendall and I arrived in Chiang Mai and had a couple days in the city to recharge from our travels and buy some necessities – like my new Thai cell phone, which I needed help in setting up because, of course, its preset language was Thai. We spent a full day adventuring around the city streets and saw more wats than I could count. I expected to feel some culture shock while wandering around, but instead of shock I was simply amazed by the beauty of the architecture and charmed by the immense feeling of welcome we received from every person we met. Even the customs officer, who gave me the final OK to enter the country, was jovial and excited to hear that I would be volunteering in Mae Hong Son.

We left for Mae La Noi on Friday, after having lunch with one of the English teachers from the school who was in Chiang Mai for a training session. We traveled about 5 or 6 hours outside the city into the Mae Hong Son Province and arrived at the Mae La Noi Daroonsik School at dusk. Our house is sweet. Based on previous fellows’ experiences I was expecting to be greeted with a squat toilet and no way to escape the persistent Thai humidity, but we were pleasantly surprised to find that our house is equipped with not only a western toilet, but also AC!! The house is located next to the Director’s house and appears to have been donated by the Samsara Foundation (the partner organization of Global Playground here in Thailand) and the Net4Kids Foundation. It’s a short walk from the heart of town and only about a couple hundred yards from Building 3, where all of the English classes are taught at the school.

Top left: our house; Top right: entrance sign to the school; Middle: one of the English classrooms; Bottom: Building 3, where all English classes are taught

We’ve been heartily welcomed by all the students and teachers, who we were told have been anticipating our arrival for quite some time. Kendall and I will both be team-teaching with each of the English teachers throughout the week, taking on 12 classes (2 with each of the 6 English teachers) plus any others we’d like to help with in our free time. I was anxious to see if the students would be too shy to approach me or volunteer in class, but I’ve found the exact opposite to be true. I’m constantly greeted with “Good morning, Teacher” as I walk around the campus and in class the students have been excited to participate. While I constantly have to remind myself to speak slower and in simpler sentences, I feel that the students can understand most of what I say. Having another Thai teacher in the room is definitely a big plus though. I’m eager to learn more Thai so that I can be more effective in the classroom on my own.

That’s all for now! I’ll post more soon about the school and teaching and the surrounding area, but I just wanted to provide a quick update for the time being!

#chiangmai #maelanoi #globalplayground