Yesterday, having finished my teaching practice for the week and looking for something to eat for dinner, I strapped on my helmet and bicycled to a local night market, which I had visited with friends the week before. After navigating the often-perilous traffic on the Ring Road (one of the highways), I made it to Meechok Plaza, locked up my bike, and had a look around (unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures!). I was exceedingly hungry, but I couldn't actually tell what most of the stalls were selling; this market, unlike some of the bigger ones, had no signs in English and very few farang customers. Everyone always says that you can just point to something to order, but when everything is in separate bowls and you have no idea what the end product will be, it's not very easy to point to everything. Put plainly, I was pretty nervous about how I would actually get food in my stomach.
After doing the rounds of the market twice, and being too scared to actually order anything, I stopped at a stall which looked popular (always a good sign, right?). There were little fried chicken dumplings floating in a pan of oil, so I approached the guy and said, "Ao ann nii" (I want this). He laughed a little at my broken Thai, scooped up about six dumplings, chopped them up, and put them in a bag (side note: everything comes in plastic bags here--fruit, meat, soup, you name it!). He also scooped a lot of sauce into the bag, and gave me some cucumbers on the side. As I sat down to eat it, I found out that it wasn't fried chicken at all, it was just...fried. As in, no chicken inside. It was like the breaded shell around fried meats, but there was no meat in it, just a little dough. It was delicious, as most Thai food is, but I was thoroughly perplexed while I ate it. The sauce was also really tasty, a spicy and sweet blend that has been cropping up a lot here. However, by the time I finished it, I was still hungry, probably because it was mostly just a fried shell. I managed to find some sort of meat on a stick (also in a bag) and ate that too, and also got orange and passionfruit juice. And all for only 40 baht!
The funniest part of this mystery meal was that when I got back to campus and asked the older volunteers about it, they had no idea what it was! Next time, I'm going to have to take a picture.
Anyway, in terms of a general update, I finish TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) this Friday, and start Thai classes on Monday. Thai will be every morning, but we'll have afternoons off, which is a bit of a relief considering we've had class most afternoons until now. Maddie and I move into our permanent rooms next week, once the old volunteers move out. I can't believe they're leaving so soon!
As a final note, part of the soundtrack to my life at the moment necessarily includes a song that you probably are at least a little bit familiar with: Gangnam Style. Now, I know it's popular in the States as well, but this song is UNBELIEVABLY popular here. Last weekend, it came on in a club and every single person there started doing the dance. I hear it probably at least three times a day, which is pretty excellent, because it's so addicting. Anyway, have fun dancing!
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Monday, September 17, 2012
Om nom nom!!
Because I spend most of the day in English-language classrooms with other anglophones, the Thai language hasn't really become a large part of my life yet. I can't really communicate (at all), though pointing and miming is an effective strategy. However, the situations where I can communicate most effectively invariably involve food. The Grinnell fellows aren't on any sort of university meal plan, and we don't have access to a kitchen in the dorms, so we have to go out for most of our meals. For me, "going out" means going to one of the local food stalls or to a nearby restaurant where I can eat in or get takeaway for about 30THB ($1). This is the one realm where I'm really forced to communicate, so I've figured it out to the best of my ability.
I've really rambled on more than is necessary, so let's get to the good stuff: what I've been eating!
Thais absolutely love their kanoms, or sweets! This is a "Mini Pineapple Cracker." At first, I wasn't sure what it was, but I like it!
Yum! Chicken stir-fried with basil, with the requisite side of rice. Delicious!!
One of my typical lunches--long bean omelet. Notice the little bag of sweet chili sauce to drizzle over it--it's not spicy, more like ketchup. Every time I get this, I chat with the girl who makes it. Her English is really good, and it's nice to be able to catch up with her.
Another typical lunch. Spring rolls! With a delicious peanut sauce! The peanut sauce really makes the whole thing--I would probably just eat it straight. There's also another sauce that you can get (which most of the Thais get), but I don't know the name. It's green and probably pretty spicy.
Woon sen, or glass noodle soup. This is one of my favorite things to get for lunch, though it takes a little while to eat. In the soup are thin noodles, minced pork, pork balls, cilantro, some other greens, broth...yum!!
Khao man gai!!! This is a Singaporean chicken dish, and one of my absolute favorites so far. It looks like chicken and rice, but it's so much more than that. The rice is cooked in the chicken broth, giving it a lot more flavor, and then there is a sweet chili sauce that goes on top, which pulls everything together! The chicken can be fried or boiled. Both are delicious. (Also, PORTLANDERS! I found the website for a Khao man gai food cart in Portland. You should definitely check it out!!!)
Maddie, Betsy, and I went to get Burmese food, which I had never had before. There are so many fresh salads to choose from. This was the tamarind leaf salad, which was excellent. The spices and everything are like nothing I've ever had before--spicy, peanutty, savory, and more!
I've really rambled on more than is necessary, so let's get to the good stuff: what I've been eating!
This is Khao Soi, which is a regional Northern Thai dish. Maddie and I went on an adventure yesterday to find it: it's the most well-known dish of the region, but only certain restaurants sell it, and only during lunch. The first place we went to had already sold out by 2 PM, but thankfully we ran into a friend who directed us where to go! You might not be able to tell from the picture, but there's a whole drumstick in there, plus the onions and pickled greens (and lime!) to go on top. A pretty excellent meal for 25 baht!
If you can't tell, I haven't had a bad meal in Thailand yet--everything I've eaten has been delicious. Except maybe the prawn chips from 7-11...
Peace, love, and food!!!
Saturday, September 8, 2012
Bua Tong Waterfall!
Today was a good day. First of all, my friends Betsy and Kristen are visiting Chiang Mai, and it's been amazing to hang out with them, and to have a mini-Grinnell '12 reunion here. When one of the previous Grinnell fellows gave her on-campus presentation, she talked a lot about Bua Tong Waterfall, or the "Sticky Waterfall." Because we had heard so much about it, we all wanted to take a trip and go see it for ourselves. We hired a song tao for the entire day, which cost about 1200 baht, and managed to gather together a group of eight people to go.
The journey there took about an hour, and we were mostly just socializing on the way up there, while peeking out the windows of the truck a little bit. Finally, we turned off the main road and went a few kilometers further. Finally, we reached the parking lot for the waterfall! It's apparently in one of the national parks of Thailand, but there were hardly any people there. We hiked down to the "third floor," which is the base of the waterfall, and began our ascent.
You might wonder at the word "ascent," but that's exactly what I mean. There are certain minerals flowing through the water that adhere to the rocks and make them sticky, so that you don't slip down when you try to climb up them. "Sticky" might not be the best word; imagine that you are either Spiderman or a gecko scaling walls, and that's a little bit what it's like. The rocks are white where the minerals are, and when you climb up them, you can feel the minerals attaching to your hands and feet! It's a very cool feeling.
We played in the waterfall for a while, and climbed up all three levels. It was so much fun! The minerals really make it so that you don't slip, it's crazy. After scaling the rocks and taking pictures for a while, we all sat down to eat--by that point we were pretty exhausted. Our song tao driver, P'Jew, told us about another part of the park called the fountain of seven colors, so we hiked for a tiny bit to reach it. I'm pretty sure it was the spring where the waterfall comes from, and it was gorgeous--so many shades of blue!
After exploring the waterfall, we headed into the song tao and made our way to a wonderful cave, very near the falls. You have to hike about 200 steps straight up into the side of the mountain, but it was worth it once we got there. There is an enormous cave with a Buddha statue inside. If I understood right, this is supposedly the cave where the princesses of the Lanna kingdom ruled from. It was absolutely spectacular.
Not only did we get to go into that cave, but P'Jew took us into a smaller cave right next to it. It was a little bit of uneasy going, because we had to squeeze a bit, but once we made it through the opening we were in a large room, with "windows" overlooking the forest!
Completely wet (from the waterfall) and filthy (from the cave), we climbed back into the song tao and made our way home. Unlike on our ride there, we were mostly quiet and reflective on the way back, allowing ourselves the time to stare out the back of the song tao and look at all the villages passing by.
The journey there took about an hour, and we were mostly just socializing on the way up there, while peeking out the windows of the truck a little bit. Finally, we turned off the main road and went a few kilometers further. Finally, we reached the parking lot for the waterfall! It's apparently in one of the national parks of Thailand, but there were hardly any people there. We hiked down to the "third floor," which is the base of the waterfall, and began our ascent.
You might wonder at the word "ascent," but that's exactly what I mean. There are certain minerals flowing through the water that adhere to the rocks and make them sticky, so that you don't slip down when you try to climb up them. "Sticky" might not be the best word; imagine that you are either Spiderman or a gecko scaling walls, and that's a little bit what it's like. The rocks are white where the minerals are, and when you climb up them, you can feel the minerals attaching to your hands and feet! It's a very cool feeling.
We played in the waterfall for a while, and climbed up all three levels. It was so much fun! The minerals really make it so that you don't slip, it's crazy. After scaling the rocks and taking pictures for a while, we all sat down to eat--by that point we were pretty exhausted. Our song tao driver, P'Jew, told us about another part of the park called the fountain of seven colors, so we hiked for a tiny bit to reach it. I'm pretty sure it was the spring where the waterfall comes from, and it was gorgeous--so many shades of blue!
After exploring the waterfall, we headed into the song tao and made our way to a wonderful cave, very near the falls. You have to hike about 200 steps straight up into the side of the mountain, but it was worth it once we got there. There is an enormous cave with a Buddha statue inside. If I understood right, this is supposedly the cave where the princesses of the Lanna kingdom ruled from. It was absolutely spectacular.
Not only did we get to go into that cave, but P'Jew took us into a smaller cave right next to it. It was a little bit of uneasy going, because we had to squeeze a bit, but once we made it through the opening we were in a large room, with "windows" overlooking the forest!
Completely wet (from the waterfall) and filthy (from the cave), we climbed back into the song tao and made our way home. Unlike on our ride there, we were mostly quiet and reflective on the way back, allowing ourselves the time to stare out the back of the song tao and look at all the villages passing by.
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Life in Chiang Mai
As the days go on, life here at Payap is becoming more normal. I'm still struggling with the fact that this will actually be my life for the next year, not just some awesome vacation that I'm on, and I'm sure I'll still be feeling like this even a few months from now. In the meantime, though, let me give you an idea of my daily schedule.
6:45 AM: Wake up and use the Internet. We have Wifi in the dorms here, but our room only has strong Internet in the mornings, before we go to class, so this is my requisite "check email, Facebook, etc." time. I'm hoping to get an Ethernet so that I can have better internet all the time.
7:30 AM: Go to 7-11 and get breakfast, which is usually yogurt or a pre-packaged croissant. 7-11 is literally EVERYWHERE here...have I explained this yet? It's probably going to require its own blog post. You know how they say Starbucks is on every corner in the US? That's what 7-11 (or Seven, for short) is like here. Anyway, breakfast isn't a huge thing in Thailand, so this is kind of a good excuse to get some Western-style food.
8:30 AM: Walk to class, or bike to class! Maddie and I just got our new bicycles on Sunday, so we've been able to skip the long walk and just bike! It's pretty awesome, though biking isn't really a thing here. Most people have motorbikes that they ride to class and into town. I'm pretty sure that I'll be getting one later in the year, but for now I'm enjoying zipping around on my bicycle.
9 AM: Class. All the new GVs (Grinnell Volunteers) and CVs (Christian Volunteers) are taking required TESOL classes (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages). The classes are usually pretty interesting, but sometimes it's tough to be in class again for six hours each day. We've already done a few teaching activities, and next week we will be teaching our first group of real students. I'm nervous already!
12 PM: Lunch! There is a little area with lots of food stalls that I usually go to for lunch. So far, I've had woon sen (glass noodles), delicious spring rolls, crab and long bean omelets, and I almost always get some fruit from a Burmese woman who has a fruit stand. She's been teaching me all the Thai words for fruits (and let's be honest, I'm eating so much fruit that it's worth it to learn the names early!). I'll do a food picture post soon so you can see all the delicious things I'm eating!
1 PM: More class, usually. We haven't really had an afternoon off since I've been here, but when we're actually teaching, it'll be more likely that we'll have freer afternoons.
4 PM: Done with class! At this point, it's really varied what I'll do. Some days I have to just hang out and hunker down on my homework, but other days are a little freer. On Monday, I went to an aerobic dance class, which I've never done before. It was really fun and it's going to happen again today! Yesterday, Maddie and I rested a little bit, before biking into the Old City for a free rock climbing class. It was a lot of fun and I reached the top! After that, we had dinner in the old city--I had kao man gai, which is one of my new favorites! It's basically just Singaporean chicken and rice, but always with delicious sauces to pour over the top. We also really wanted smoothies from Mrs. Pa, but she wasn't there yesterday...maybe it was her day off. Oh! and I tried rotee for the first time, which is a little bit like a crepe, but with bananas, chocolate, and condensed milk. So good but so rich!
Today, in comparison, I didn't go to the Old City but I went to a free aerobics class that Payap offers. Maddie and I went to today and Monday. It was so much fun!! Also a great way to make friends with Thai people, mostly staff at Payap.
8 PM: At least yesterday, we biked back from the Old City. Sometimes around this time, I'm just hanging out in my dorm roodI'm really enjoying the new freedom of having a bicycle, which means that if I want to brave traffic, I can really go to the Old City anytime I want, without having to walk 45 minutes to catch a song tao (red taxi), and then possibly have it take me on an hour-long ride around the whole of Chiang Mai (this actually did happen--it took us an hour to go probably 2 miles because we took a detour via the airport...).
6:45 AM: Wake up and use the Internet. We have Wifi in the dorms here, but our room only has strong Internet in the mornings, before we go to class, so this is my requisite "check email, Facebook, etc." time. I'm hoping to get an Ethernet so that I can have better internet all the time.
7:30 AM: Go to 7-11 and get breakfast, which is usually yogurt or a pre-packaged croissant. 7-11 is literally EVERYWHERE here...have I explained this yet? It's probably going to require its own blog post. You know how they say Starbucks is on every corner in the US? That's what 7-11 (or Seven, for short) is like here. Anyway, breakfast isn't a huge thing in Thailand, so this is kind of a good excuse to get some Western-style food.
8:30 AM: Walk to class, or bike to class! Maddie and I just got our new bicycles on Sunday, so we've been able to skip the long walk and just bike! It's pretty awesome, though biking isn't really a thing here. Most people have motorbikes that they ride to class and into town. I'm pretty sure that I'll be getting one later in the year, but for now I'm enjoying zipping around on my bicycle.
9 AM: Class. All the new GVs (Grinnell Volunteers) and CVs (Christian Volunteers) are taking required TESOL classes (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages). The classes are usually pretty interesting, but sometimes it's tough to be in class again for six hours each day. We've already done a few teaching activities, and next week we will be teaching our first group of real students. I'm nervous already!
12 PM: Lunch! There is a little area with lots of food stalls that I usually go to for lunch. So far, I've had woon sen (glass noodles), delicious spring rolls, crab and long bean omelets, and I almost always get some fruit from a Burmese woman who has a fruit stand. She's been teaching me all the Thai words for fruits (and let's be honest, I'm eating so much fruit that it's worth it to learn the names early!). I'll do a food picture post soon so you can see all the delicious things I'm eating!
1 PM: More class, usually. We haven't really had an afternoon off since I've been here, but when we're actually teaching, it'll be more likely that we'll have freer afternoons.
4 PM: Done with class! At this point, it's really varied what I'll do. Some days I have to just hang out and hunker down on my homework, but other days are a little freer. On Monday, I went to an aerobic dance class, which I've never done before. It was really fun and it's going to happen again today! Yesterday, Maddie and I rested a little bit, before biking into the Old City for a free rock climbing class. It was a lot of fun and I reached the top! After that, we had dinner in the old city--I had kao man gai, which is one of my new favorites! It's basically just Singaporean chicken and rice, but always with delicious sauces to pour over the top. We also really wanted smoothies from Mrs. Pa, but she wasn't there yesterday...maybe it was her day off. Oh! and I tried rotee for the first time, which is a little bit like a crepe, but with bananas, chocolate, and condensed milk. So good but so rich!
Today, in comparison, I didn't go to the Old City but I went to a free aerobics class that Payap offers. Maddie and I went to today and Monday. It was so much fun!! Also a great way to make friends with Thai people, mostly staff at Payap.
8 PM: At least yesterday, we biked back from the Old City. Sometimes around this time, I'm just hanging out in my dorm roodI'm really enjoying the new freedom of having a bicycle, which means that if I want to brave traffic, I can really go to the Old City anytime I want, without having to walk 45 minutes to catch a song tao (red taxi), and then possibly have it take me on an hour-long ride around the whole of Chiang Mai (this actually did happen--it took us an hour to go probably 2 miles because we took a detour via the airport...).
Sunday, August 26, 2012
A few pictures of our first day!
Yesterday was a complete whirlwind of activity! It's hard to even describe everything we did, but I'll try. By the end of the day I was completely exhausted, and fell asleep within about 30 seconds of my head hitting the pillow.
Maddie and I started off the day waking up at 6:30 AM due to jetlag, and so we hung out around our shared room, went to 7-11 and the ATM, and tried to snooze a little more before heading out for the day. After meeting up with some of the CVs (Christian Volunteers), we took a tour around the admittedly large Payap campus. We were pretty tired by lunchtime, so we got some fresh fruit and then lunch! I got mango (mat muang) with chili sauce, and then Pad see ew with vegetables. After lunch, we made the trek to Big C, which is an indescribably large grocery store. Grocery store isn't even the right word: it's like a Wal-Mart crossed with a mall, and twice the size of either one. I had to get a phone and some other things like shampoo and towels. By this point in the day, it was getting pretty hot and humid, but we still elected to walk back to Payap instead of taking a song-tao (red taxi). Maddie and I took naps and almost didn't wake up in time to go to the Old City! We hopped on Aki and Alison's motorbikes and they took us into the city, where they dropped us off and we had a chance to explore a bit. Here are some pictures of our adventure!
One of the busy streets of the Old City, with a tuk-tuk coming down the road.
The top of a wat, or temple, peeking out from behind a city wall.
Me in front of some sort of building (unspecific, yes, but I honestly don't know what it was!)
A rickshaw driver just hanging out, a few minutes before it started downpouring.
It had been thundering for a while, so it wasn't a surprise that we came out of a 7-11 to find it torrentially raining. Unlike the Thais, who were waiting under awnings for the rain to stop, Maddie and I zipped up our rain jackets and plowed out into the rain. Looking back, I think the Thais had the better sense to not go out. After meeting up with Aki and Alison, we ate som tam salad (green papaya) and sticky rice (kao nil), which was delicious but also intensely spicy. And then we ended up doing the exact thing we were apparently not supposed to do on our first night in Chiang Mai, according to this blog...we went to Mrs. Pa's smoothie stand, which was absolutely delicious! She made us mango-pineapple-passionfruit smoothies for 20 baht. Needless to say, I'm going to have to go back there soon! We walked around the night market while sipping our smoothies, and then, exhausted, hopped back on the motorbikes to get back to campus. It's actually pretty far from the city, so it'll be interesting once we start bicycling. All in all, it was a packed day and we had a lot of fun!
Since it means both hello and goodbye, I'll sign off by saying sa wat dee ka!
Maddie and I started off the day waking up at 6:30 AM due to jetlag, and so we hung out around our shared room, went to 7-11 and the ATM, and tried to snooze a little more before heading out for the day. After meeting up with some of the CVs (Christian Volunteers), we took a tour around the admittedly large Payap campus. We were pretty tired by lunchtime, so we got some fresh fruit and then lunch! I got mango (mat muang) with chili sauce, and then Pad see ew with vegetables. After lunch, we made the trek to Big C, which is an indescribably large grocery store. Grocery store isn't even the right word: it's like a Wal-Mart crossed with a mall, and twice the size of either one. I had to get a phone and some other things like shampoo and towels. By this point in the day, it was getting pretty hot and humid, but we still elected to walk back to Payap instead of taking a song-tao (red taxi). Maddie and I took naps and almost didn't wake up in time to go to the Old City! We hopped on Aki and Alison's motorbikes and they took us into the city, where they dropped us off and we had a chance to explore a bit. Here are some pictures of our adventure!
One of the busy streets of the Old City, with a tuk-tuk coming down the road.
The top of a wat, or temple, peeking out from behind a city wall.
Me in front of some sort of building (unspecific, yes, but I honestly don't know what it was!)
A rickshaw driver just hanging out, a few minutes before it started downpouring.
It had been thundering for a while, so it wasn't a surprise that we came out of a 7-11 to find it torrentially raining. Unlike the Thais, who were waiting under awnings for the rain to stop, Maddie and I zipped up our rain jackets and plowed out into the rain. Looking back, I think the Thais had the better sense to not go out. After meeting up with Aki and Alison, we ate som tam salad (green papaya) and sticky rice (kao nil), which was delicious but also intensely spicy. And then we ended up doing the exact thing we were apparently not supposed to do on our first night in Chiang Mai, according to this blog...we went to Mrs. Pa's smoothie stand, which was absolutely delicious! She made us mango-pineapple-passionfruit smoothies for 20 baht. Needless to say, I'm going to have to go back there soon! We walked around the night market while sipping our smoothies, and then, exhausted, hopped back on the motorbikes to get back to campus. It's actually pretty far from the city, so it'll be interesting once we start bicycling. All in all, it was a packed day and we had a lot of fun!
Since it means both hello and goodbye, I'll sign off by saying sa wat dee ka!
Saturday, August 25, 2012
WE ARE HERE! Maddie and I got into Chiang Mai around 11 PM last night, where we were met by the wonderful Aki and Alison. We had met up with each other in Seattle, and then had a pretty uneventful trip over to Seoul, which has an amazingly modern airport, until finally getting on our flight to Chiang Mai!! Once we got here, we headed over to the opposite side of Chiang Mai where our dorms are, at Payap University. After a few hours of late-night unpacking, we finally got to sleep, which was difficult due to jet-lag. But now it's morning and we are ready to go!
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Leaving on a jet plane
Hi everyone! This will be my blog while I'm teaching English in Chiang Mai, Thailand through Grinnell Corps. I leave tomorrow! My bags are mostly packed, and I managed to fit almost everything I need into a big, backpacking backpack and one carry-on daypack--this is probably the lightest I have ever packed in my life. I'm so excited to arrive in Thailand, yet also nervous, and so I hope that you will follow my progress through my blog!
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