Sopisaipittayakhom School

      Several of you have asked about the school where I am teaching, so…

So Pisai is located in Nongkhai Province in the Northeastern part of  Thailand near the border between Thailand and Laos. Nong Khai is ranked # 7 in the world for the top 10 places to retire!.

  

The small village where the school is located is close to the mountains, the hill tribes and rural Thailand. The government school is a M1- M6 (junior high and high school age), under the direction of the Thailand Ministry of Education, similar to a public school in the USA. A big difference I notice is that every day the entire student body of 1400 students gather outside to start the day by ceremoniously raising the Thai Flag and singing the Thai National Anthem, then their own school flag and song, a prayer and announcements. This is where I was introduced to the students as the Foreigner English Teacher from America. 

When I first arrived at Sopisia School a Thai Government Official in full uniform complete with ribbons, the Principal, the head of the English department, and all the Thai English teachers were waiting to greet me. This was a big event as I am the first and only westerner that the school has ever had. The message on the card presented to me with a basket of flowers said: “Welcome to Sopisaipittayakhom School. We’re so proud to bring Foreigner Teacher for teaching English and Communication”

My health insurance and house is furnished by the school, and I only have to pay electricity. I do have intermittent wi-fi, hot water sometimes, and even air-conditioning in my bedroom, but not in the school! 

The Foreign English Teachers House!

   

There is one Thai teacher who speaks a little English, and he gives me rides on his motorbike when I go to market to buy fresh fruit and vegetables. 

Needless to say, as I am also the only foreigner in the village, everyone stares at me, being somewhat out of place with my blonde 

hair among a sea of shiny black hair.

All the Thai teachers are very nice and invite me to dinner often, as they all want to learn English too.

The students are very well behaved and respectful bowing their heads and greeting me with a wai (bowing their heads and prayer like hands as in a Namaste greeting). I teach 18 classes per week and some classes have over 40 students. I am truly enjoying teaching as the students are so eager to learn.

 Unknown to me, I had the Directors son in one of my first classes, and he told her that I was very well prepared and that he liked the class and it was fun too. 

She also said several other students came and told her how much they liked me as a teacher. 

I had almost forgotten how much joy it gives me to share a little of my knowledge with students.

 On my five minute walk home from school, I see the golfers walking along the path with their bags (no carts) as they prepare to tee off just across from my little house. 

On the other side of the house the cows are coming home to their shed in the back yard. 

Unlocking my door, I breathe in the beauty of the abundant greenery, colorful blooming plants and trees, with brilliant yellow and bright blue butterflies joyously flitting about. Another day of teaching just ended. 

Only a girl from Wisconsin would enjoy seeing the cows come home!

Trip to Lao

The next order of business was to get an extended Visa, by leaving Thailand and re-entering.

And since I had heard wonderful things about Lao silk, that seemed like a good place to go.

You can see a young girl spinning the silk that has been dyed using all natural plant color.

The skirts, blouses and shawls were exquisite...
but since I am traveling light, I only bought a small shawl.... but there were so many other beautiful items that they were hard to resist... a true test of my new frugality.

One of the most well known sight in Vientiane, the capital of Lao is "Xaysettha, That Luang Stuppa"  or as the tourists call it, the gold building. It is huge and almost unbelievable.

The grounds surrounding had many Spirit Houses, Buddhas and Temples as well as a museum of ancient statuary.

The most amazing thing that happened was while I was standing in line at the border; I met a young woman who is on a Fulbright Scholarship from Fordum University in NY, but she grew up in Stoughton, Wisconsin... the same little town that I came from... Who would think we would meet in Lao?

From there I went to BUDDHA PARK, about an hour drive from the capitol, but well worth the trip.  As you can see a tiny "me" in one of the photos you may get an idea of the magnitude of the statues in the park. Truly magnificent works of art.

Week Four- Certification

A bit sleep deprived, yet energized from 120 classroom hours and at least that many more in homework and class preparation, I now have TEFL = Teaching English as a Foreign Language, and TESOL = Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, Certification! I  am not sure it would be called a typical graduation... no cap and gown, but a real final exam, a completed portfolio and tons of executed lesson plans later, I was given the class title of Las Vegas Mama!

Pre-Avatar!

Week Three - Design for Change

Volunteering even in Thailand! 
                                                     
Design for Change is a worldwide project started by a teacher in India and has quickly spread to schools around the globe.

www.designforchangecontest.com

On a bright Saturday (6am) early morning we met at a high school with over 700 young volunteers who had participated in a contest to to come up with a winning idea to make a positive change in their community. For "Beach Clean-up" we were armed with a colorful banner (see me behind it).  In addition we had hundreds of trash bags that we used for trash. Filled with the energy of youth, we began to comb the beach and pick up all sorts of plastic, bottles and various debris left by locals and tourists alike. The reward of a job well done was a big BBQ on the beach... and we carefully picked up all our water bottles and trash!   

The sunset on a clean beach in Thailand... thanks students 

Week Three in Thailand

Its still raining this week, some flooding near the school, but not in my room! We are teaching at a school run by the monks for orphan children.

The school just added a new library and the entrance has a waterfall where there is a beautiful statue of the Mother of Buddha.

The Monks took us on a tour of the new buildings that will soon house a business school as well. All the buildings have intricate detail and are really works of art. Imagine our delight to come upon  a magnificent carved wooden sleeping Buddha.

Week Two in Thailand

Hard to believe I have been in Thailand for two weeks, and the first two weeks it rained everyday.

We started with 12 student teachers from around the world, and now we have 14 in the class to do their practice teaching for TEFL Certification to teach in Thailand. Members of our group are from; Macaw, Uganda, UK, Marshall Islands, and from the USA.... Miami, New York, Ohio, Utah, and Colorado.

After teaching at a young monks school on Friday we took a ferry boat to the Island of Ko Samet and I found another Temple ="Wat"

 

Why Thailand?

Thanks to those of you who have looked at my blog, written comments, and also sent emails. It is so nice to hear from you all, and as many have asked, Why Thailand? I will attempt an answer.
First, I have never been to Thailand so it was at the top of the "where to go next" list. Second, having just turned 70, I was reflecting on things and jobs that I have really enjoyed. Teaching and working with kids was always very rewarding for me and a place where I feel I can make a contribution. Also there is a demand overseas for teachers that have English as their native language and age does not seem to be a problem. Specifically in Thailand teachers are valued and respected.

In the Thai culture, the status hierarchy is as follows;  The King, the Royal Family, Monks, Teachers, and then Elders, Parents, Adults and Children, so you see it is an honor to be a teacher in Thailand.
Below is a photo of the school where I am doing my practice teaching to non-English speaking children and completing my TEFL certification, and as required by the Thai Ministry of Education.

 For now I am staying at the school, as it has a few rooms on the third floor. I bought a fan because we can only run the air conditioning for a few hours. I am beginning to get used to the COLD water shower and lumpy mattress on the floor. The weather is HOT and HUMID...from living in Las Vegas for 7 years, I was used to hot and dry, but the humidity is another thing. It has been raining for the last three days. Last night all the power went off and we gratefully ate by candlelight. The small town of Ban Phe sits right on the Gulf coastline and the school is less than a block from the beach.

Early morning walks and yoga on the beach have given me great pleasure as well as just sitting in one of the many shoreline restaurants, enjoying wonderful Thai food, and listening to the rolling surf.
And below, next to the school, is where we take our laundry. The cost? 20 baht per piece = less than 10 cents for a shirt or pants or skirt. As a female teacher, I have to wear skirts and blouses with sleeves or what they call a King Shirt, like a polo shirt with a collar and the Thailand Royal Emblem embroidered

Happily, I am adjusting to new food, new culture, new language and new learning and re-learning...

Temple Photos in Ban Phe Thailand

First Week in Thailand

I left Las Vegas on September 30th and flew the first leg of my new journey to Detroit where I spent the night with my bother. It was great to see his wife Cyndi and my Nephew Joel. The next day I was on my way...to Bangkok. After the third airport security scan, in Japan, I had to empty and repack all my carry-on stuff...of course it was all my techie gear, photo cameras, computer, printer, projector, digital recorder and video camera, plus all the connecting gear! goods news, all OK. However the flight from Japan was delayed, so my arrival into Thailand was Sunday about 2am.

Thank goodness my car and driver waited... we then had a three hour drive to Ban Phe where I got to the school at 5am on Sunday and orientation was at 4pm on Sunday... short day and not much sleep. Somehow I did manage to squeeze in my first Thai massage. One incredible hour for 300 Baht, about $10.00 American.

I finished the first full day at 6pm Monday...We had a welcome dinner at 6:30 and then a ton of homework.

We do have Wi-Fi here at school... I just need a little time to figure out the Skype thing. my skype name is Thairoselee.
Now I have discovered  learning a new language can be challenging, so I now know how the Thai students will feel learning English..when I will be teaching Jr High Students on Thursday and Friday.

So here is my limited Thai vocabulary...

Sawadee kah = hello for a female   Sawadee krop = hello for a male

Chan chu koo lab = my name is Rose and even better is; chan chu Koo lab kow= white rose( blonde)

kun chai ali kah = what is your name?

Kap koon ka = thank you

Eating Thai food... however we went to the market last night, and some of the class ate fried grasshoppers with soy sauce. I skipped the delicacy.

Saturday I had time to have my first day as a tourist and visited my first Temple, a Wah,  in Thailand
Hope you enjoy the photos.... I am such a beginner at this blog thing... learning overwhelm continues.

Today, Sunday 10/10/2010 I am going to the island of diamond sand...Ko Samet, more later

Las Vegas Rose goes to Thailand

I'm leaving for Thailand on September 30th 2010... more to follow.