Day 11: Saturday 4th July
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| Fruit at the market that we took to Rowena's |
It’s Saturday!! That
means a nice little lay in until 9:30, then Kanang and I went to our friend
Rowena’s house for lunch. We met her husband Anthony, who is also Filipino,
which is great for me as they both speak fluent English! We had a lovely lunch
of ‘spring chicken’, which is a whole chicken; first steamed, then deep fried
to make the skin crispy. We also had some pasta Bolognese, which was lovely for
me, seeing as I haven’t been able to get my pasta fix so far in Thailand! For
dessert Rowena had made a sweet pudding, a bit like a big crème caramel! So
sweeeeet. We also had an array of fruits, many of which I hadn’t tried before. Rowena
and Anthony are a lovely couple, both teachers of English but at different
schools. We had a lovely time round their house, and Rowena’s kindness didn’t
stop at lunch; she also gave me a lovely dress! The kindness that people in
Thailand are showing me is astounding. More about that later with the taxi man!
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| Some random fruits and the sweetest dessert ever |
After lunch, I met up with some other ETAs who are based in
the Khon Kaen area. We are all about 1 hour away from each other, so meeting in
the centre of KK is the best idea for us all. I met them at the University of
Khon Kaen, and we went swimming in the huge
outdoor pool! It was so nice! The sun was shining and the swimming pool was
the perfect temperature! After a long, hard week, it was the perfect remedy for
me.
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| ETA's at the pool! |
For me, and other ETAs in the same position as me, it’s very
easy to get caught up in situations that we may not deem as perfect. The smallest issue can feel
like a huge knock back whilst at school or staying in a new location. If a Thai
teacher leaves you in the classroom on your own when you need help, it feels
like the worst thing ever! But it is important to remember that in the grand
scheme of things, it’s really not a problem. So, I had my moment of
realisation, whilst floating in the magnificent, blue swimming pool. I thought
to myself, “I’m in Thailand! I’m in a swimming pool, with new friends, having a
great time. It’s been a hard week, but I got through it, and it can only get
better!”
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| Teacher Heidi and Teacher Olivia |
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| Teacher Jodie and Teacher Olivia! |
We got a cab from the pool to the Central Plaza, which is a
huge shopping mall to get something to eat. The cab driver fancied himself as a
bit of a hairdresser, and tried my hair with the car fan for a fair way of the
journey! See how kind these people are?! It was so funny, and the results were
better than any blow dry I’ve ever received in the UK, hehe. We all wanted some
normal food, that didn’t have any
rice/curry/soup/noodles/boiled blood etc in! So we settled for a good ol’
pizza! The 6 of us had a nice civilized meal, before going back to our hotel (B2 Khon Kaen Hotel, £4 a night) to
get ready for the evening.
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| Hairdresser/ taxi driver |
The evening’s plans consisted of beer and relaxation! We went in search of a street that is known
for it’s bars and the amount of farang
(foreigners). We found it, thankfully, and rather than ‘letting our hair down’ we were all soon ‘putting our hair up’ because it was so damn hot in the bars! We
went to a bar called Didines, which was full of Americans and other foreigners.
There was a great vibe coming from there because of all the Americans
celebrating Independence Day. A pint of Beer Leo cost only 90THB, which is
under £2. We had a few drinks and enjoyed our freedom, along with the sense of
feeling normal again, and not in the
TET bubble.
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| ETA Kirsty and I enjoying the taste of a night off (Hair styled by taxi man) |
After a few hours, we were coaxed into going to a club round
the corner from Didines called U Bar, by some wild drunk Americans. We thought
we might as well have a look, seeing as it was free entry! The cub was packed,
mostly full of locals (I think) and there was a live band playing which was
strange for us Brits! We found a nice spot to stand and watch the band play and
attempted to sing along (and failed). In many other countries that I have
visited, the men in clubs are sometimes a bit scary or slimy, but in Thailand
they are very respectful and simply want to say hello! So every now and then
when somebody tapped me on the shoulder, I would say hello and shake their hand
politely, then turn back around to my friends who were dancing like crazy
people. We left after a short while because we were all knackered!
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| I fan-girled a teeny bit over this dude! |
All in all, it was a very good day! I can see us returning
to some of the places that we visited, and making them our locals J
Peace,
Olivia
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