Straws & Spoons

I’ve taught my last day of 4th grade at Watmethang Karawas, I’ve said my goodbyes to teachers & students, my room is packed into suitcases, and I’m leaving the sweet city of Phrae in just a few short hours. As my time here in Thailand comes to a close, I can’t help but to suddenly remember all the things I never want to forget. 

Forget-me-not Cultural Events: 

• That time we went to the Yi Ping Lantern Festival in Chiang Mai and saw thousands of lanterns float into the night sky, creating a man-made milky way 
• Being in a parade in full-on Thai apparel through the streets of Phrae for Loi Krathong  
• Running into Nongnoot, a teacher from the school, outside her house and having her take us to her mother-in-laws house, and then leaving with Thai hair-clips from her sister-in-law
• Witnessing a monk’s cremation, dangerous fireworks show and all 
• Having dinner with our middle-aged neighbor who spoke no English, and us no Thai (a lot of whiskey was consumed that night) 
• Overseeing the production of Cinderella by our 4th & 5th graders who are off to perform it in Malaysia (“The prince is giving a barrr” and “Imporrsible” were my fav songs) 
• The goodbye ceremony put on for us Foreign English Teachers during which our students gave us countless roses, gifts, and hugs 

Forget-me-not Cultural Tidbits:

• The numerous rides in the back of pickup trucks (a normal form of transportation)
• How absolutely every meal comes with a spoon and every drink a straw (even if both items are purchased at a convenience store)
• The 7/11s up and down every single street and alley 
• The ease of buying meals from street vendors 
• How every restaurant is simply the front portion of someone’s house 
• The phrases “Up to you,” and “Where you go?” 

Forget-me-not People: 

• Towns people
• The immense generosity, friendliness, willingness to accept, and genuine care that comes from Thai people is something I will always remember and attempt to incorporate into my daily life back in America
• Students 
• Even though they drove me nuts, my students will forever hold a special place in my heart for having taught me patience, language learning compassion, and the ability to game like nobody’s business 
• Friends 
• As always, before this experience, I never expected that the people in the coming phase of my life would have had such a grand impact on me, but they did just that. I didn’t even know there would be five other English teachers living with me, and once I found out, frankly, I was a little overwhelmed. But as time went on I grew to learn life with only them. We taught together, ate together, traveled together, and really shared life together for five months. It turned out to be the best, most intense community I’ve ever been blessed to live with. 

To sum it all up: thank you, Thailand. 

Now it’s off to Vietnam & Laos for a month, then back to Thailand for the Songkran festival, then to reenter the Western World in Spain with Wendy before going back to America on April 30th. Here’s to the next adventure! 

Wai Not?

Thailand is a very respectful country. The most common way of showing respect is by wai-ing to one another. “Wai” is when you bow slightly to someone with your hands pressed together in front of you (like praying hands, but the height at which you hold them denotes differing levels of respect, so your hands are held higher for figures such as monks, The King, and Buddha). At school, all the teachers wai to one another out of mutual respect, and our students wai to us to show respect for their elders. While wai-ing is a kind gesture, it’s also something of a cultural requirement, so Thai people go to extreme lengths to make sure they get their respectable wai in, this results in hilarious varying kinds of wais. For example: 

The One-Handed Wai:

Often times around campus teachers will be carrying papers or coffee or something with one hand, but then they see another teacher they haven’t yet seen that day, so they’re required to wai. In this scenario, they just lift the one free hand and pretend the other one is there, like an invisible place holder. 

The Umbrella Wai:

The other day it was pouring down rain in the morning, so everyone was clutching tight to their umbrellas. This did not hinder the immense number of morning wais. Teachers either opted to do a one handed wai, or they struggled to balance an umbrella between their respectful gesturing hands.  

The Driving Wai: 

A lot of the teachers drive to school in the morning and park on campus. In order to get to the parking lot, they must drive through the gate where all the students walk and where two teachers stand for gate duty. Despite the need to navigate through the narrow gate area & avoid hitting students, the driving teachers always manage to take their hansd off of the steering wheel and wai. Dangerous? Yes. Culturally unavoidable? Also yes. 

The My-Hands-Are-Full-Of-Heavy-Things Wai: 

Even when teachers’ hands are full of boxes, papers, storage containers, small children, what have you, they still feel the need to wai...sort of. This is the laziest of all wais. It’s more of a head bob and shoulder shrug to mimic the other body elements needed to wai, minus the actual hand motion. 

The Group Wai: 

This particular wai happens to me a lot. I often climb the multiple levels of stairs in order to get to my 4/5, 4/6, and 4/7 classes six times a week. On each level, there are teachers’ desks. And, of course, I must wai each and every one of the teachers occupying the desks. On the very top level, there are several teachers who are constantly eating a large spread of food. This naturally attracts more teachers to the area. When I approach that level, I adjust my papers & pens and get my hands in optimal wai-ing position for a big group wai. This consists of me wai-ing and holding it for the duration of my walk through the eating area. As I hold one constant wai, the women each wai me and utter a low moaning sound until I pass. It’s a good time for everyone. 

Sometimes when I approach campus in the morning and think of all the wai-ing that’s about to occur it seems scarily daunting. Then I think I’ll only be a teacher in Thailand once in my life, so wai not?