Floating Markets or Eating Out!

I now know what a floating market is. Families and lovers come to the floating market to eat…what else is new? This is Thailand, where they only eat one meal a day, from the time they wake up to the time they go to sleep!

Sylvia and I went to a kinder gentler market called Taling Chan, on the other side of Bangkok, mainly because it was close and apparently off the tourist beat. After getting out of the taxi, we walked down a road which was your typical market to the banks of the canal where there were about 10-15 boats docked, essentially making lunch for people. On the dock, families and friends were eating the fresh fish literally just caught from the boat, drinking and making ‘sanuk’ or happiness. What a great way to spend a week-end day.

It also happens to be election day for the Senate in Thailand. I watched people voting, not as many as for the general election, but enough. At the voting tables, scrutinizers and election officials had to clear away plates and plates of food before they could even put down the ballots. The electors were then given ballots and what is typical in Thailand is that they were also given envelopes to put it in. They then went behind the counter and marked their ballot, then put the ballot in an envelope and then put both into the ballot box. What a waste of paper and manpower opening the envelopes! This is typical in Thailand as everything is wrapped in layers and layers of paper everywhere you go. Street sellers get mad at me when I ask them to just hand me the product without wrapping it is cellophane and then putting elastic bands around them.

As we were examining the food being sold from the boats (you can get a look for yourself if you look at the pictures) I saw various longboats docking, taking and bringing people to the market. Sylvia and I decided to take a two hour boat cruise down a few of these local canals. Bangkok, as you probably know, is built on a series of canals with the houses built on stilts. What is incredible about the houses, and we saw this last week also at Koh Kred, is how open they are. It never gets cold in Thailand and as a result, there is no reason why the houses should be closed. The bottom floor is typically open to the elements and you always see a hammock and rocking chairs as family members relax on a week-end with breezes (hopefully) coming from all directions. Upstairs are the bedrooms with the windows typically wide open.

We also stopped at an orchid farm and saw the most amazing colours and textures which you can see in the pictures. Close by the farm, we were supposed to buy bread to throw to the fish ( you can see the pictures) but we ate the bread instead. It was fantastic. Sort of tasted like Chalah from Bathurst and Steeles and all for 10 baht or about 30 cents.

Since we were close to the river anyway, we went to the Sheraton Hotel for a hamburger, a special treat. Actually, it was quite lousy but had fancy prices. Tomorrow, Ricky is coming so we should be having some fun finding new places to explore.

Gene Kelly

This Saturday morning turned out to be different than most Saturday mornings. After waking up, I had to put on my dancing shoes, put my hat on sideways and head out to the studio to make a music video featuring a bunch of clumsy administrators impersonating kids dancing. It was for an ad promoting a talent night later in the year and we figured if we could make a fool of ourselves, we could ask the kids to do the same thing.

I know I would be a great dancer if I only had rhythm and/or could remember patterns. Unfortunately, I can do neither as Sylvia’s feet can attest. Luckily, I arrived early for the shoot and had a private dance lesson. In a few minutes, I actually learned quite a bit about dancing. I learned that about 90% of songs in the world have 8 beats, an intro, verse, chorus etc. The dance instructor put on the music( hip hop) and got me to clap the rhythm as a first foray into dancing. It did not work for me in kindergarten and still doesn’t work for me 55 years later. After a failed twenty minute clapping lesson, he decided he nothing more to lose and taught me the basic steps. It was actually great, until he put on the music! Even then, I could almost do it until he decided to make a routine for me and asked me to morph into about three different patterns and gestures.

Finally, three other male teachers finally came and one of them, luckily, was the music teacher. He could count, thank God .In one of the routines, I was at the front for some reason, the music teacher in the middle, because he was the smallest and the tall guy at the back. We had to put on a small show with lots of movement, arm waving and jumping. I hope I never have to see the video!

Overall though, it was great experience trying to learn something I have no talent for. It is a great reminder what our kids go through on a daily basis as they are constantly being challenged to learn a whole lot of new things in a language foreign to most of them. Wow, you have got to admire them.

Saturday night, we went to the American Chamber of Commerce annual ball and I am again reminded of one of the points in BLINK by Malcolm Caldwell that resonated with me.. 90% of the leadership of corporate America are tall men over 6 feet. As the leaders of these multi-national corporations got up to make their presentations they all looked like either linebackers or CIA agents. They had short haircuts and square shoulders and talked ‘American’ It is as if everything said in his book was true. Here were all the leaders of American business in South East Asia and they absolutely fit the mold. They were tall, they were men and they all had lots of confidence. Incidentally, our school had students dancing, of all things, and they put on a great show, especially the five year olds doing the Salsa!

Thailand in a Day!

If you come and visit for only a day, I know exactly what we should do... take you to The Ancient city or Muang Boran. Sylvia and I just spent the day there and took our bicycles around this huge park just a little south of Bangkok and boy it was terrific. What it is actually is a fabulous history lesson into Thailand's past. There are replica buildings of Thailand's past going as far back in history as possible. All of the buildings and monuments ( you can see a few pictures of them if you check out my picture site) are formed around some lakes and canals and essentially wind their way around a map of Thailand if you were looking from the air. When we were tired we could find some shady table by the water to relax in the shade.

There were hundreds of school children actually going around with notebooks and viewing the buildings or monuments and writing about them starting from the earliest Sukotai period right up to the last century. What is actually amazing, when you think about it, is that these buildings are made with modern equipment and it takes forever to make. We saw them working on creating a few 'historical' buildings, but the 'historical' Thais actually created these buildings ( wats, palaces, monuments and so on) with no modern equipment. When you look at these absolutely magnificent examples of architecture you marvel at how unique Thailand is. These are not copied from any other country or period. In fact, probably just the opposite in regard to Loas and Cambodia.

One set of school kids ( and you can tell from the colour of their uniform) had an additional task of speaking with any 'farang' or foreigner and asking them specific questions. If they said; "how are you?" and we answered "fine thanks and you?", there would be no problem. If we said something like fantastic, isn't is a beautiful day, they were completely stymied, just as I am when someone deviates a little from an expected answer in Thai.

Anyway, back to what happened. As you can see from the pictures, we were accosted by dozens of kids at a time asking us their assigned questions. The only other time I have ever felt like a sports hero or rock star occurred when we were travelling the Great Wall of China and we were absolutely the only westerners those kids have ever seen. Our Chinese friend (who we met at Tiamamen Square) had to speak harshly with them and shoe them away, I remember, so we could enjoy some privacy when we were eating our ice cream.

The same thing happened today as we were riding our bikes around the park looking at these fascinating buidings. Kid upon kid descended on us for a phot op as well as a few questions. Some kids could not deviate from the script but others went to town on it. Both the kids, Sylvia and I had a ball with this.

I had probably seen about half of the originals but now am really keen on exploring further. I actually know where to go because it was so clearly laid out at the park. I just hope I am not bored by the original. Wouldn't that be a drag!

Bridge on the River Kwai

Girls dancing on tables, followed by a bunch of boys dancing on another table, followed by a third table with teachers competing for the limelight. Where else but a high school field trip could you get this kind of energy? It was like a scene from “Grease” We had just finished eating supper and someone turned on the music and away we went!

Now I remember why I came to Thailand in the first place. I got my chance to return to interacting with kids. Working in university was great, but there is nothing like kids to keep you young and energized. I love going into a primary classroom and working with the kids or alternately playing with the high school kids on this field trip in Konachuburi (Bridge on the River Kwai fame). We are staying at the Pungwaan resort which has all sorts of things set up for kids to do like obstacle courses, bike riding, and a great pool and so on.

I remember last year when I was teaching a Queen’s on-line course and one guy taking the course seemed to be literally working in a different time zone. When I finally asked him why he needed an extension on an essay he told me he was taking his students on a trip Singapore for the week-end from his school in Bangkok. I remember thinking how great that must be and now that person is me! I am living the dream.

With one vital difference. Instead of being a teacher I am the principal, so when the kids are crossing the river on a metal guy wire hanging on to the side ropes for dear life and everyone is laughing and applauding and having fun, I am praying no-one gets hurt. When everyone today is looking forward to the elephant ride and kayaking down the River Kwai, I am thinking not about how much fun this is going to be, but how much trouble can kids get in to.

A day later, and everyone did get wet, that’s for sure. I still remember Bill Armstrong, a former principal of mine; saying a friend of his fell into the river Kwai and had to have major stomach surgery so I used discretion and used the long tailed boat that followed the kayaks down the river. It certainly looked like the kids were having fun.

I also went on the elephant ride which was a bit different than my former ride in two ways. The baby elephant was roped in with the mother, probably so the baby could learn the trail and secondly, the elephant walked right in to the water which was a little intimidating for me since the water practically was touching my feet and elephants are tall animals!

We also got to the Hellfire Pass museum and saw the images of emaciated soldiers working on the railroad to Burma. We then walked down into Hellfire pass itself and, for those of you who know my sense of direction, almost ended up in Burma. When the trucks that were waiting for us called and asked where we were, I asked them to honk and keep honking so I could follow the sound to them. It worked! Off to take a shower and enjoy another dinner.

I’m now in the van on the way back to school on a Friday afternoon. We got to Bangkok in about two hours but looking at this traffic I assume it will be about another two hours before we are back at school. Traffic is unbelievably heavy on Friday afternoon so I suspect we could be here in this traffic jam for a while.

Tomorrow night I am invited to a staff party where I have to dress up as a movie character. Any ideas for me?

Tranquility

As I was leaning over my putt last night at sunset I suddenly stopped for some reason and stepped back. I looked around at the setting sun, the reflection off of the water and the brilliant colours of the flowers surrounding the lake I had such a surreal feeling. These was far more dramatic and spectacular then any photo could do justice , yet it was January 31. Do I ever want to see or feel snow and cold again? I notice when I have to sign documents, which I do every day by the way, I always get the number out right but I can never get the January part. I usually sign September or July. Can’t figure out why?

Yesterday Sylvia went off to India for a few days (doesn’t that sound weird…a few days) and I started my nightly walks again. I went down to Sukhumvit 36, a soi I have not explored before. It is in the middle of the city like my street but yet quite different. I wound my way around streets that apparently went nowhere but was charmed by the tinkling of chimes being gently moved by the breeze, dogs barking behind the gated houses and fantastic apartments. Some Bangkokians obviously live in silence even though it is only a few blocks away from the honking and whistle blowing in front of my apartment. Unfortunately, the street my apartment is on is a cross street between main streets and is therefore quite busy as cars can travel from one main street to another. I assumed all streets were like this in Bangkok but this is obviously not the case and there are probably loads of streets that go nowhere and are therefore very quiet.

After the exploration of this neighbourhood, with its fantastic homes and quiet demeanour, I found a restaurant with a performance of traditional Thai music and dance. I watched that for about 15 minutes. It was absolutely charming and yet in the same neighbourhood of these gorgeous homes. I then passed a massage place where I went in, had my feet washed and was served a drink before the massage and then had a one hour massage with gentle music. All for the princely sum of $6.00

At school yesterday I ran my first staff meeting by handing out chocolates to all of the teachers that did outstanding service to the school so we all had a lot of fun with that. Just another day in Bangkok……Priceless.

Josh, is this short enough?