A Busy Christmas and 1st Anniversary

Merry Christmas everyone! Here is a summary of what I did on the Christmas weekend.

On December 23rd, I attended a Christmas Party at the Person family's place. They had a white elephant gift exchange. They invited teachers from my school and Tan and Ice and others. This is their first year living in Bangkok. They lived in Chiang Mai for 15 years. They went to Baylor and met in Thailand and became missionaries. Suzie's parents were there. That was some of the best home-cooking I have had in a while. Turkey, stuffing, fruit salad and more. It really made me miss Christmas in Texas.

On Christmas Eve, I attended a service at Evangelical Church of Bangkok and then went to a Christmas party at an art gallery run by the Davies family. At that party, I led Christmas carols. That was lots of fun!

On Christmas morning, I awoke and went to Rori's room to a secret santa gift party with the teachers from Baylor who work at my school. Rori played Santa Claus. She bought stocking stuffers and was an excellent host. Then I went to another Christmas service. The message was good. Pastor John talked about how Jesus did not come to bring Peace. In fact, Christ divides the world. Brothers will fight against each other. But for those who really believe in Jesus, they will find peace in their hearts.

Then I went to another party at the Gray family's home. They also had a gift exchange. They have lived in Bangkok for 8 years. They host the Men's bible study group every Tuesday night. I help lead the group. Mark has been a wonderful host and mentor for the men that come. We have recently been studying I Peter. There was excellent food there. Japanese curry (Marie, the mother, is Japanese), turkey, mashed potatoes.

That night Tan and I saw King Kong. I really liked it. It was a bit long though, and my friend Andrew had a good point when he asked,

"Why didn't they bring back a dinosaur from the island instead of a giant gorilla?"

I had to go to work the next day. On December 26th Tan and I celebrated our one year anniversary at Tony Roma's. Last year, had our first date on the 23rd at Larry's, spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day together, and then exactly one year ago I asked her to be my girlfriend. (Coincidentally, December 26th is the anniversary of the Tsunami as well.) We had ribs and barbecue chicken. Tan picked eating ribs over my suggestion of a fancy buffet in a hotel. This shows she would fit right in if she came to Texas. :) We mostly talked about our families. Her family does not celebrate Christmas. She is the only Christian in her family. Most Thais, including Tan's family, celebrate on New Year's by giving gifts and spending time with family. We also watched a horror movie. Sometimes she covered her eyes and asked me when it was okay to look again. I can't really say enough about how wonderful she is. It was our second Christmas together, and it was very special.

Tan and I will go with a group of friends from church to a Thai national park in a province called Prachuap Khiri Khan. It's in the south. The park is called Namtok Huai Yang. We'll spend two nights there. On New Year's Eve we plan to sing songs and do a devotional to welcome the Lord into the New Year.

I asked Tan if it was a big deal that she wouldn't be with her family on New Year's. She said that she wouldn't be the only one that wouldn't be there. Her sister has exams to finish. So the whole family couldn't be together anyway.

I'm still job hunting. I'm applying for ESL/ EFL teaching positions. I have had one interview for a part-time job. I would be teaching creative writing on weekends at a library. It sounds fun.

I found out today that I will have to go on a "visa run." If I leave the country and come back it will extend the time I can stay in Thailand. I wasn't planning on taking a trip. I thought I could go to the Immigration Center and apply for an extension, but the man who notarizes the request letter will not be back at school until January 12th. My visa expires on the 8th. If it expires I would have to pay a big fine. So I'm planning to go to Cambodia on the 6th and come back on the 8th. I have wanted to see Angkor Wat in Siem Riep for a long time. I'm excited about going. Tan and some friends might come with me.

Since I probably won't write again for a few weeks, I'll go ahead and say: Happy New Year Everybody!! Sheesh. I'm lazy sometimes.

The lights are up in Bangkok

Merry Christmas! I know it's early. 

I have some news. I didn't get the job at the SAT preparation center. I'm hopeful that something else will turn up.

The Speech

The 5th of December was His Majesty the King of Thailand's 78th birthday. He gave an annual speech the day before which was similar to the State of the Union speech that our President delivers. I was one of the many guests present. I saw the King drive himself and get out of his Lexus. My friend who is a missionary translated some of the speech while we watched it on TV.

The most important guest was the Prime Minister of Thailand, but he received a few sharp remarks. The King said he himself is not infallible, and that he welcomes comments and even criticism. In fact, it is against Thailand's law to make negative comments about the monarchy. However, the King pardons people who comment all the time. The King told the Prime Minister to drop the lawsuits he filed against people of the media who criticize him. I'm waiting to hear if the Prime Minister dropped them. There are rumors that he will.

There are lots of lights up in Bangkok to celebrate the King's birthday. There are also decorations for Christmas. Bangkok's malls have picked up the capitalist spirit of the Christmas holiday quite well.

Take care.

Thankful

While I've been in Thailand, Thanksgiving has snuck up on me. I haven't thought about it much. I actually scheduled an interview for the same day. Then the lady that works for the company called me yesterday to see if we could reschedule. She's American, and she forgot too. So I said, "Oh yeah. Okay. How about Friday?" So I made reservations for my friends and I to eat at Outback Steakhouse that night.

Americans are passionate about Thanksgiving. We love spending time with family, eating turkey and passing out from drowsiness caused by eating so much while watching sports on tv. Thai people and others wonder why we want turkey so much. It's not a holiday that will be adopted here anytime soon. And without the non-stop onslaught of commercials advertising the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the Dallas Cowboys game, I forgot about it until now. But Thanksgiving isn't just an American thing. Did you know that Canada has it's own Thanksgiving? It's the second Monday in October. The harvest time in Canada is earlier and the holiday has a different history than the American one. If you would like to know the history check out this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanksgiving
Maybe next October I'll try watching some Candadian football and eating a turkey sandwich. Sounds good, ay?

I wish I could be at the dinner table in Waco. It's not possible to eat turkey with my family this year, but I'm thankful for them and many other things. God bless you.

Job interview and other things

I am going to interview for a job at a SAT preparation center in Bangkok called Elite of Bangkok. www.eliteprep.com The interview will probably be on November 24th. I have sent my resume to an online database on Ajarn.com as well. I have also been looking at the UN Volunteer site, and I offered to help a newsletter published by a non-profit group called D-Pal. They will e-mail me a rough draft, and I'll make corrections by e-mail. I won't get paid for this.

Tan will interview for a flight attendant job on Saturday. She expects hundreds of other girls to also tryout for Quatar Airlines.

My friend Robert, who is a refugee from the Congo, is going to move to America, Lord willing. He has been disappointed before, but this might be the month he finally gets to go. All the paperwork has been processed. He is waiting for Congress to sign a Bill to let more refugees enter the country. They usually sign it every month, but they didn't last month because of the refugees created by the hurricane.

Church Retreat in Saraburi

The Lord really moved! The church retreat for LIFT, the 20s and 30s community at Evangelical Church of Bangkok was a great experience. I won't forget it. I was priviledged to play a part in it. There were about 36 young people who attended. We learned about how to grow deeper in faith by following the Christian disciplines. We talked about more than prayer, fasting and Bible study. We talked about the cost of discipleship: dying to ourselves. We have to give Christ everything: heart, soul, mind and strength. I feel energized. I want to do more and be a better witness of the love of Jesus Christ and the hope that lives in me.

The highlight of the retreat for me was that a friend accepted the Lord. Ice and I talked about what it means to be a Christian, and then she made the decision. Tan and I have been praying for her for a long time. We are so happy that she has decided to claim Jesus as her Lord and Savior. This is not easy to say in a country where about 98 percent of the people claim to be Buddhist. Please keep Ice in your prayers. It will not be easy, but it will certainly be better. Please keep all Thai Christians in your prayers. In a sense, they are foreigners even in their own country.

World Series!

I can't believe it! I remember when the Houston
Astros were called the "LASTros" cause they were
always the worst in their division. Maybe it's time
for them to win the Series.

I'm going on a church retreat this weekend. I've been
helping organize it. We'll be talking about spiritual
disciplines and how to grow deeper in Christian faith.
Please pray for us. There will be about 40 young
adults attending the retreat for three days.

Love,
Steve

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Chinese Acrobat Show

The Chinese Acrobat Show was the most impressive thing I have ever seen! They kept doing things which are impossible until you see them happen with your own eyes. The show started with young women spinning tops on strings. The tossed them in the air and kept them spinning. Then they flipped and caught them. They jumped on top of each other and caught them. They passed them to each other very quickly.

The next act was two young men doing tricks with pots. They balanced them skillfully. They dropped one on purpose to show how heavy it was. Then one of them would throw it up and catch on it his back and then on his head. Then he balanced it for a long time.

After that a man and woman suspended themselves by tying a ribbon around them that was hanging from the ceiling. They flew around the stage doing amazing tricks.
Then a contortionist came onto the stage. She did a headstand while balancing burning candles that girls put on her. Then there was a juggler who was very good. He also walked up and down stairs bouncing balls on each step. He had six going at once at the end.

The most impressive act was a man who balanced on a board on top of a cylinder. He did handstands and flips before landing on the board again. Then he put another cylinder under the board. Then he put another. He ended up with four of them. Then he put the board on top. Then he balanced and rotated the board around 360 degrees. That was incredible! I would watch it again if I get a chance.

Peking Duck 

Bejing Food

We ate like kings on our tour. Every lunch and dinner we sat around a table with a “lazy Susan” that was filled with delicious food. We tried Beijing (Peking) duck several times at different places. It was the best duck I’ve ever had. The meat was so juicy. It reminded me of ribs back home in Texas. Another time it was served with rice paper and thick black sauce that poured like molasses. You put what you want inside the rice paper and make something like a taco. We also had pork in green bell peppers, nuts with chicken, three kinds of mushrooms with spicy red peppers, bacon with tofu, asparagus and lots of vegetables and more. This was for one meal. One of my surprising favorites was fried eggplant stuffed with pork.

We also had Coke, Yanjing beer, and sometimes rice wine. Rice wine is more for cooking than drinking. It was awful when I tried it. It burns and has no taste. Will, a father who came on the tour, called it rocket fuel.

While we were eating, it was funny sometimes because someone would turn the wheel while someone else was trying to get their food with chopsticks. We each had to learn quickly how to master chopsticks. Luckily, Will was from Hong Kong, and he taught us how to use them. But it was still a bit difficult. Sometimes food you wanted kept going past you. If Caleb, Stephanie, Jaron and I had eaten with just Chinese people, maybe we wouldn’t have gotten to eat anything. All of us dropped something at every meal without fail. It was funny and frustrating. I was getting the hang of it by the end. I developed my own method of holding them, and it worked for me.

Lama Temple 

The Lama Temple

The Lama Temple is Beijing’s largest temple. Numerous Tibetan monks once lived there. But I only saw a few black robed monks with yellow belts. Emperor Quianlong devised a clerical system that used the Lama temple and another one in Lhasa to determine the Panchen Lama and the Dalai Lama, respectively. The Dalai Lama is believed to be the reincarnation of Buddha by Tibetan (Lama) Buddhists. This was a useful way to control the Tibetan people. The current Dalai Lama lives in exile.

I’ve seen countless temples in Thailand, but this was different in a striking way. Our tour guide from Thailand said Feng Shui was used to design the temple. It was divided between buildings and large public squares. There is a balance, like yin and yang, between outside and inside areas. She also told me this allows the seasons to change the look and atmosphere of the temple. Nature was an integral part of their religious practices.

As in Thailand, there were many Buddhists who came to burn incense. But at this temple they had to do it outside. The Lama Temple had many interesting statues that looked different than those found in Thai temples. Besides the portly, happy Buddha there were statues that had multiple arms and various expressions. No one explained their meaning to me. Some statues showed Buddha at different stages: past, present and future. There were also guardian statues that had long beards and a fresco of the Buddhist paradise. In one of the last rooms there was an 18 meter high statue of Buddha clothed with yellow satin. A sign said it was carved from a single block of sandalwood. Photography was restricted inside the buildings, but I managed to take a few anyway. Click “My Travel Photos” link on the right to see them. (Much of this information comes from Lonely Planet’s Beijing City Guide.)

Beijing Trip Summary and Reflections on China

Here is a quick summary of what I did on my trip to Beijing:

On day one (Friday, 7 October 2005) the tour group left at 1 am from Bangkok on a Air China flight. We arrived in Beijing around 7 am local time. Beijing time is one hour ahead of Bangkok time. We went to Lama temple. Then we ate lunch. Then most of us took a nap. Then we saw an acrobat show. On day two we went to Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, and the Summer Palace. On day three we went to The Great Wall, a Chinese Traditional medicine company, a Jade company, Dr. Tea company, and shopping at Wangfajing walking market. On day four we went to the Temple of Heaven and its park. Then I met Chris Johnson at lunch. He’s a friend of mine who teaches English an hour away from Beijing. We then went to a pearl company. Then we went shopping again for three hours. After that we had dinner. Then two of my friends left to catch a train to Shanghai. The rest of us went to the airport. I got back to Bangkok at 1 am local time on Tuesday.

Before I give more details I want to write some of my thoughts and questions about China.

Is China a country forgetting its past as it creates its future?

I’ve wondered how much contemporary China has preserved from its ancient past. China was once mainly Confucian, Buddhist, and Taoist. Nearly all of that is gone. My tour guide and other people who have been to China told me it is an amoral society. It could be because of communism or Maoism. Mao Zedong (sometimes spelled Mao Tse Tung) came to power in 1914 (I need to check this date). The Cultural Revolution wiped away many intellectuals and traditions of the past. The cultural change also could be attributed to the economic boom.

How will communism and capitalism mix in the capital of China?

"Socialism with Chinese characteristics" is the phrase many scholars use to describe China's political and economic model. It doesn't fit into any category exactly. Communism in theory means everyone is equal in terms of their standard of living. China is surely not that today and never really was. But certainly it has many institutions controlled by the government. Deng Xiaoping led reforms to privatise many of these. In Beijing the system seems to be working well. The city looks modern. The government seems to be firmly in control of society, yet most are prosperous. Of course there were still beggars in the city. But overall, Beijing looked impressive and poised to host the 2008 olympics.

Will I witness any public government crackdown on dissent? Will I feel watched?

I only saw a few minor conflicts. A cop chased some young men who were passing out advertisements printed on small cards. A man in Tianaman square shouted at cops and pounded his hand against a van parked in the square. A crowd was forming to watch but I didn't see what happened because the cops motioned for us to disperse.

All tours to Tiananman are required to be filmed. I don't know if this is because they are used to identify foreigners or if it is simply to pressure tourists to buy the video. I didn't try to test the government and find out how much I could do.

Chinese Economy

Many economists predict China could have the largest economy in the world by 2020. Meanwhile, America has a huge trading deficit with China. Obviously, America’s status as a world-superpower is being challenged.

The China Yuan Renminibi or RMB is the most widely used currency. Currently, the exchange rate is 1 US dollar to 8 RMB. (1 USD is equal to 8 Hong Kong dollars.) The RMB has only recently been changed so that it is not pegged to the dollar. American economists have been complaining that the Yuan is still too low in value. They also say it creates an unfair advantage in the global economy. Chinese labor is very cheap because there are so many Chinese workers and the government has not allowed unions or forced companies to raise workers’ salaries very much. As a result products are usually cheaper as well.

Beijing certainly looked like a booming metropolis. My first major impression of Beijing was how big everything was. The roads, skyscrapers, malls, temples, and parks are huge. Tiananmen Square is the world’s largest public square according to a Lonely Planet guidebook.

I read an article from Reuters. It said that China has the seventh biggest and the fastest growing economy. Experts warn that inequality in China is a major problem for the future. If China is to maintain its economic boom it will need to spread the wealth. Protests and mass discontent could stop economic growth and also topple the Chinese Communist government. The Chinese government recently approved a five year economic plan to address the problem.

Beijing and Bangkok

I could not avoid drawing comparisons between the two capitals. Beijing is much cooler in October. I’m glad I brought a long sleeve shirt that I have worn on only a couple of trips to Northern Thailand. Beijing is better organized. The traffic was much better. The whole time I was there I didn’t experience any traffic jams like the traffic nightmares in Bangkok. Many people riding bicycles there. I only saw a few motorbikes and Chinese “tuk-tuks.” Tuk-tuks in Thailand are motorbikes with carriages attached. The Chinese ones are thinner and less noisy.

There were also less street vendors. Some guys sold apples that were very dry and bland. One stall by a large shopping mall sold caramelized fruit. I spotted some stalls in a back alley selling things like squid on a stick. In the same alley there was a vendor of pirated DVDs. They were even cheaper than Bangkok.

Here are some quick facts about Beijing below.
Population: 13.8 million
Number of cars: 2 million
Number of taxis: 63,000
Number of high rise buildings: 2000+
Expat population: 50,000

Information from the Lonely Planet Beijing City Guide.

Steve meets The Forbidden City 

I'm back from China

I got back in Bangkok at 1am local time. I'll write about the trip soon. I took lots of pictures as well. Take care.

Blah blah blah

Thank you for your birthday wishes. I had an excellent birthday. I don't feel much older. I think it will be a big deal when I turn 30. I'm excited because one of my friends, Chris Johnson (Melody Gantt's brother), will be in Beijing when I visit, so I'll probably get to meet him while I'm on my tour. I'm no longer planning to go to Cambodia this month. I will probably work at an English camp when I get back from China.

I have recorded some songs on my computer with my guitar. I'll put them on my website if you want to check them out. Take care.

So it sounds like everyone is okay

So everyone seems to be safe. Let me know if anything
happened to family or friends. I'm glad to hear the
news reports that there were very few storm related
deaths.

Steve

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Good times at my b-day party!

Alright! Cake!

Hurricane Rita Update

Hurricane Rita is causing all sorts of problems in Texas. I've read a few AP wire reports. There was a fire raging in Galveston caused by a fallen power line. Rain was not putting it out. It was being spread by strong winds. A bus carrying evacuees from a nursing home caught fire and 24 people died who were trapped inside. My mom wrote me that my highschool and middle school both became shelters for evacuees. About 7,000 people have come to Austin (my hometown) to seek shelter. The roads around Houston and East Texas were jammmed with people who were trying to evacuate. Gas stations ran out of gas. My uncle and aunt decided to turn around and go back to Houston because it was so bad. Some of my relatives have decided to wait out the storm. The last report I read said Rita is now a category 3. New Orleans is being flooded again. Keep Texas and Louisianna in your prayers.

My B-Day Party and Rita the Party Crasher

I just had a terrific birthday party! It was five days early, but it was good timing because some of my friends will be leaving soon to go on trips. I think everyone had an enjoyable time. It was at a stylish place called Number 53 Restaurant. Stephanie said the restaurant looked like places in New York. The walls were made of glass and the interior is very modern. Tan helped me find the place. One of her students at school is the daughter of the owner. Tan seems to know the owners of every good restaurant in town.

I am so blessed to know so many wonderful people. The night was memorable for so many reasons. I recorded Steve Loych reciting Yertle the Turtle by Dr. Seuss. It will be good material to use for black mailing him later. Enrique, the one man paparazzi, showed up. He got a photo of me licking the candles from my birthday cake, an awkward photo of me eating cake, and a bunch of really nice shots. Dan Stine gave a nice toast. I really appreciated it. And it was followed by an equally eloquent speech from Rori. I got some generous gifts from Tan, Tan’s mom, Ice, Eve, Pui and Connelly, and Margaret. And more presents are coming. I am so blessed. I don’t know what I did to deserve this.

I wish I could see my family for my birthday. We used to go to Chuy’s Tex Mex restaurant in Austin. They have their Green Chile Festival every September. I used to order a dish called Elvis’s Chicken Fajitas. I miss that. I miss friends back at Baylor. So many of my friends have birthdays close to mine. Neil, Eric and Chad. For all of you guys, Happy Birthday!

Meanwhile, I hear news that Hurricane Rita is making its way to Texas. Hurricane Rita is crashing my friends' party, quite literally. Neil, Eric and Jordan were planning a party for Saturday in Waco, the same day as Rita's projected arrival to Texas. I am amazed by the news of its powerful winds around 290 mph. It will cause storms and tornadoes all across Texas. I pray Rita will weaken and that people will evacuate before its too late. Members of my family live in the Houston area. I’ve heard that most of them have left. Jaron’s parents were there tonight. They’ve been visiting Thailand for a week now. They said that their home in Kerbyville may not be there when they go back.

My thoughts and prayers are with everyone in the Gulf Coast of Texas and Louisiana.

October Break

Hey everybody,

Sorry for not writing again for a while.  I've got a 
break from teaching English in October.  
It's the end of the first 
semester in Thai schools.

I'm going to Beijing with some 
teachers: Caleb, Stephanie and Jaron.  We'll be 
there from October 6-10.  Caleb will
stick around and a few extra days and see Shanghai.
Our trip will be a whirlwind tour of Tianmen Square,
The Summer Palace, The Great Wall, The Forbidden City
and more. Unfortunately, Tan does not have a vacation.
She works at an international school. They get British
holidays and some Thai holidays.  She gets a very long
Christmas break that I don't get. :(

We're using April Travel Agency in Bangkok. Our trip
is going to cost 25,ooo baht (about $625). That
includes plane tickets, tour, accomadations and food
at a three-star hotel and our visas.  Visas alone cost
4,000 baht.  Pang mak (very expensive). Oh well. I've
just accepted that it will cost a lot to get there.
And I really didn't want to go without a tour.  I
don't know enough Mandarin to get around.  Our visas
should be taken care of tomorrow.  We need to get them
done before the Chinese holidays.  October first is
National Day.  I'm glad we are going at the end of the
public holidays.  We'll only overlap one day with
National Week, when everyone travels.  We've been
getting Chinese lessons from Sue in the school van.
She taught us how to count and say good morning and
other stuff, but that's about all I can remember. 

As for my other plans in October.  I am going to try
to work at an English Camp and get a little extra
money.  I've spent a lot of money this year,
especially on the laptop I bought.  I don't know if I
mentioned that.  But I also hope to go to Angkor Wat.
I think I'm going to go the ultra-cheap way, by
catching a free shuttle from Khao sahn road to a
casino across the border.  The casino figures they'll
get your money if you get shuttled up there, but I
won't stop.  Then I can pay for another ride from
there.  It will be a bumpy ride on those Cambodian
dirt roads.

There is also a church retreat for the 20's and 
30's group. We'll be staying at a nearby resort.  
The theme of the retreat is:
Growing Deeper in Christ.  We'll be studying Christian 
disciplines 
like service.  The Assistant Pastor of ECB 
(Evangelical Church of Bangkok) will be the speaker.
  I pray it will be lots of fun and a very powerful
 time for God to speak to us.

The other English teachers are going all over the
world.  Jill and Rori are going to India and Nepal.
Amy is going to  travel around Thailand and Sri Lanka
with her family. Then she is going to meet up with
Andrew Ross and go diving somewhere.  Tim and Shelley
are going to China and Mongolia.  Caleb is going to
America after his China trip. Melissa is going to
Europe.  I think she'll stop in Germany, Turkey and
Italy.

-Steve

Serving

I've heard so many of my friends and family tell me about the refugees from New Orleans. I think about the tsunami in Thailand and now Hurricane Katrina in America. I went to one area that was destroyed by the tsunami. But it was six months after it happened. Some of those who I've heard from have been caring for the refugees just days after the levees broke. I didn't get that close to the disaster. I really admire you all that are sheltering the homeless or going to the Astrodome in Houston to volunteer. You are serving the Lord Jesus as you do this work.

"Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?"
He will reply, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for the least of one of the brothers of mine, you did for me."
Matthew 25:37-40 (NIV)

You wrote to me you could not be where the disaster happened. Now it is the reverse.

Thai people have expressed sadness at the news. A taxi driver asked me if I was from the place that the hurricane hit. Others in the world care about America.

In His hands

I heard the news about the catastrophe in New Orleans. I'm thankful that my Uncle Max and Aunt June are okay. The more I read about it, the worse it sounds. My heart goes out to the people trapped in the Superdome and other places. I hope they can be evacuated soon. The headlines in Thailand have been dominated by Hurricane Katrina and the 900 Iraqis who died in a bomb scare. It's depressing to read about. Anyone can die on any day. It's a fact that everyone tries to forget. Be thankful that we can put our trust in the Lord. He holds us in His hand everyday. I'm trying not to forget that.

CD Thai teachers and a Chinese teacher at Ajarn Yai's house 

Trip to Kanchanaburi

The CD school principal, called Ajarn Yai, invited the teachers to come to her house for a weekend. We had a great time! Her house is located right by the River Kwai. Its design is based on Khmer ruins in Muang Sing which is nearby. Her house has been featured in a few Thai home magazines.

We saw the bridge over the River Kwai. It was an infamous bridge constructed by mostly British, Aussie, and Dutch and also Thai prisoners of war. The Japanese invaded Thailand during WWII. They wanted to construct the bridge to make an easier passage to Burma. The bridge was destroyed by Allied forces' bombs and later rebuilt after the war by a Japanese company as part of war reparations.

We rode a train on the bridge. We saw nice countryside, and we stopped at a cave. Then we rode a house-boat. Jaron and I swam and slid down a waterfall. It was a great way to get to know the teachers at our school better.

I got to know an older couple Susie and Kirk and their family better. Susie is a teacher at the high school. They shared many stories. They met in Thailand, got married and have been living and working in Thailand for 17 years. They studied linguistics and did work with hill tribe people. They help tribal people develop a writing system for their spoken languages. They moved to Bangkok for one year to do some different work with the Thai educational system.

One thing was funny. There is a Chinese teacher that the foreign girl teachers have a crush on. He surprised them. They didn't think he was going. Some of the teachers may try to sign up for Chinese lessons now.

We had lots of fun. I hope we can go on another school trip.

The Bridge over the River Kwai

Bad Seafood

Three of my friends and I got really sick from eating some seafood in Pattaya. We think it was the spicy squid that did it. We ate it at 3 p.m. on a Saturday. On Sunday, I awoke at 5 a.m. and proceeded to empty my stomach completely. Disgusting! I couldn't even keep water in my system. I got worried. I didn't want to get severely dehydrated. So I called Mom. She told me to see a doctor. Then I called Tan, and she came as soon as she could. She wasn't feeling sick. I was able to make it to Rajvithi hospital on my own. Tan was stuck in traffic. I didn't want to wait. Rajvithi is a public hospital. Nobody spoke much English. I walked around a crowded maze and finally found my way to the emergency room. I filled out some forms and sat down. I waited for over an hour and still I didn't seem to be close to seeing a doctor. Tan arrived and suggested that we go to a private hospital. I was ready to try anything. I was in agony. My insides were churning. So we took a taxi to Phayathai hospital. It was like a night and day difference. As soon as the taxi pulled up a man opened the door for me. I was guided to a seat, and then a man brought me a wheel chair. They wheeled me over to another area, and I saw a doctor within 15 minutes after arriving. He listened to my stomach and diagnosed me with acute bacterial gastritis. I was treated early, so I didn't suffer much. I felt much better the next day. So becareful if you eat from street vendors. Make sure you watch how they prepare the food. If they use a grill it should be okay. The others got sick a day after I did. They are all okay now.

The Restaurant Downstairs

For as long as I have been in Bangkok I have lived at an apartment near Victory Monument. One of the things I have enjoyed most about the apartment is the restaurant downstairs. The food has always been great and cheap too. I have gotten to know the family in the restaurant. The father named Gun (or Bern in Thai) is very nice. He tells good jokes, and he is very good with his kid Pang. Gun let me and almost anybody play with him. The kid has a wonderful smile. I took a picture of him when he finally learned how to walk. There were several women that I met too, but I was never sure who was the mother. They acted very tenderly towards the baby. I practiced ordering my food in Thai. They learned a little bit of English from me. It was a great thing. I'm going to miss it.

Unfortunately, the story took a sad turn. The family was asked to leave. The management received complaints that the food was making residents sick. After looking at the kitchen, management decided it was not up to health code. The family moved out very quickly. I almost didn't get to say goodbye. I got Gun's cell phone number. He invited me to come visit him. They are now living in Isaan, northeastern Thailand. I told Gun, "Khap khun mak, krap. Chok dee, krap." (Thank you very much. Good luck!) Such is life. People come and go from Bangkok. Life is always changing, especially in the City of Angels.

CD has 50th anniversary

My school in Bangkok had its 50th anniversary recently. It was marked with a preformance by students, teachers and even one of the royal family. I was very impressed with it. I enjoyed the segment where the kids did something similar to STOMP. While kids were banging on chairs and cafeteria trays, a girl entered with a microphone and began to rap in Thai. She was joined on stage by a break dancer. Other highlights included kids playing Thai xylophones while others students came on stage in costumes. They were dressed as monkeys from the Ramakian story. The story originally came from India and was called The Ramayana. Thailand has adapted it with wonderful, colorful costumes of monkeys and demons. They do acrobatic lifts and cartwheels. One of the royal princesses also showed off her ballroom dancing with a partner. I was glad to see that the students did a good job. They worked so hard, and it paid off.

Karen Village 

A huge chedi that is a copy of the one in the capital of Myanmar. 

Burmese women in Thailand. They're wearing the traditional face powder. 

A Burmese temple right by the bridge from Mae Sai, Thailand. I forgot to mention this one. It's a unique style. 

A morning in Myanmar

If you ever make it to Mae Sai, the northernmost city in Thailand, you can visit the Union of Myanmar for a day. It costs 250 baht to cross the bridge that connects Mae Sai to Tachileik. Be warned. You'll have to let the Burmese officials hold on to your passport until you return.

Tan and I went over the border to see some tourist traps and go shopping. As soon as we exited Thailand, we saw a line of touts with pictures of day trips. The first man in line stepped up to try his luck. If he got us then he had a morning full of work. We made his day because we didn't have any idea of how to get around. So we hopped into the back of his tuk-tuk, a motorcycle towing a horse carriage with bicycle wheels.

At first, it was much like driving through Mae Sai just with the signs switched from English and Thai to English and Burmese. Then I noticed a sign written by the Burmese government. It said, "We must all do our part to eradicate the illegal narcotic trade." Then we drove by statues of soldiers standing with pride at a "Basic Education School."

Tachileik was obviously poor. The roads had some huge potholes, people's homes didn't look as nice, and the sewer channels didn't seem to drain underground. We drove by kids playing in rubble and restaurant patrons glued to a boxing match on TV, which must be an uncommon luxury. In the midst of this, we saw a hotel and a golf course.

As we drove to our first stop a Buddhist temple, I noticed young monks. They were wearing dark red robes instead of the bright orange color that monks have in Thailand. There were many trees planted by the road and misty mountains were spectacular in the distance. It was slightly raining. Our heads were covered, but the monks were getting wet. One of them wore a sour expression. He probably didn't like walking a long way in the rain.

Our first temple was nothing exciting. Buddha looked different, but nothing seemed very different from Thai Buddhist temples. Then we went to a golden spired temple which is a replica of the famous one in Yangon. We were greeted by Burmese women wearing traditional face powder. The yellow and white powder is worn on their cheeks. It looks like sunscreen that hasn't been rubbed in enough. I read that it is supposed to keep their skin protected from the sun and keep it healthy. I set up the tripod that I had just bought. I'm sure Tan was getting bored while I snapped away dozens of pictures. Tan insisted that we set some birds free. The women had birds in small cages that tourists could release for a few baht. We released about 5 birds.

Our next stop was a Karen village. We were in for a let down. We had to pay extra money to go inside. Tan paid about 90 baht. I paid much more because of the white man tax. It seems to be fairly standard throughout southeast Asia. The tribe lived in bamboo huts with all the modern things. I saw a satellite and a TV in one hut. Our tour guide lead us to the top of the village. We saw six old ladies. Three were Karen people or longnecks. They wore rings around their necks. The others had elaborately decorated headdresses. We took photos with them. They were going to do a song and dance if more people showed up, but no one showed up for a while. We decided to cut the tour short. We weren't impressed, so Tan asked the driver to take us back to the city.

The Burmese outdoor markets were similar to Thai markets. Most of the stores were covered in tents or umbrellas and sold items ranging from illegal DVDs to fake Louis Vuitton purses. Much of the things for sale were probably from China. Pesky salesmen with buckets strapped to themselves swarmed me as soon as I came by. They all sold fake Marlboro cigarettes, and some thrusted pornos in my face. I haven't been subjected to this type of behavior since I walked down Silom road in Bangkok.

Tan bought some jewelry. I bought a plate with an imprint of a Burmese warrior riding an elephant and a t-shirt with the Burmese flag. It was a good tour of Myanmar eventhough it was just a couple of hours.

A boat woman at the Floating Market coming to sell her things to the tourists. 

sawat dee, krahp. Hello from Bangkok. 

Happy 4th of July! I took this pic with my new camera. 

How did I get into this position?

Tan has been trying to get me to try yoga for a while. She said it will make you feel good. So I finally caved in because I had nothing better to do, and it was free for first-timers.

We entered a hot room and sat on thin mats. The instructor, a middle-aged foreign woman, greeted us and pointed to the mats reserved for new people.

We began with breathing exercises. "Inhale deeply, slowly. Now exhale completely. Get all of the air out of your lungs."

As we did this we held our hands over our heads. We did this a few more times to finish the warm up.

We did a series of standing positions next. It didn't take long before I could really feel some soreness. WIthin 10 minutes I sweat so much that it looked like I had had gone swimming.
In one position, I had to lean forward with my arm extended towards the wall in front of me and above my head while balancing on one leg and lifting the other one so my ankle was visible above my head in the mirror in front of me. I fell once trying. But I finally got it and the instructor said, "That's beautiful Steve." Jaron made no attempt to hide his amusement from hearing this comment. He was cracking up. I got to laugh at him too though. In another position, the instructor told him to spread his legs farther, and he couldn't do it.

Then we began doing some positions on the floor. I thought it would get easier. Wrong! I couldn't believe that the floor positons could be so painful. My least favorite was one where you have to spread your arms and lift your legs and stomach like your a Boeing 747 taking off. I wasn't able to hold the positon. This position is not ideal for men. The instructor said it was good for digestion, but it didn't feel good at all at the time.

In another position the instructor used an expression that reminds me of all the stereotypical images I have of yoga instructors. "Now curl up like an angry cat." I'm definitely not meant to be a cat. I must have looked angry though. The instructor said, "Good job."

When I finished I was freezing because I was soaked and walking through air conditioned rooms. Tan, Stephanie and Shelley enjoyed it. Jaron and I were less enthusiastic. But I admit I felt much better the next day. My lower back felt good. I felt so good that I will probably do it again. But since it costs $10 per session, I won't be doing Yoga very often.

Yoga is worth trying because it honestly makes you feel great. See y'all later.

a lizard lurking by the moat 

Monitor lizard at my school, not a zoo 

Tan and I say hi! I miss y'all. 

Six months and Tan's surprise

This weekend marked six months that Tan and I have been together. I wasn't sure what what we were going to do. Tan said she has a surprise for me after we went to church. The surprise turned out to be a massage with aromatherapy. The place used lavendar on Tan and another scented oil on me that was called cyntorin (I think). It felt very good, but it was odd because I had never had one before. We had a room with two beds. Each of us had to lie face down wearing a towel. Soft Thai music was playing on a stereo. I heard the Kim, a harp like instrument played in a similar fashion as a drum. The hands of the massuse felt like waves of heat and then seemed to change into something like a block of wood.
It was a wonderful surprise. I wish my surprise for her could have matched it. I gave her a box of nice candles and a candle holder with potpouri and chocolates. I also wrote her a note on the back of a postcard from Texas.
We had a good a weekend.

Andrew Ross, my friend from Australia, has arrived in Bangkok. He will be teaching English at Interlingua a private institute. What's really cool is that he moved into the same apartment building as me and the rest of the teachers. So we'll see him quite a bit.

I love you all.

Tan helps with bird flu documentary

Tan has a friend who works with the French embassy in Bangkok. She asked Tan to help translate for some French journalists doing a documentary of the bird flu problem in Thailand. Tan accepted the assignment and travelled with the reporting team for five days. They started in Lopburi last week on Thursday. Tan translated the questions and answers for the interviews from Thai to English. The Frenchmen will translate what she said to French for the report. The government told the reporters that this farm had the bird flu last year, but the farmer denied it.

The next day Tan interviewed a Senator at the Parliament building in Bangkok. Then they went to Supanburi to see another farm. On Saturday and Sunday, they went to Kalasin province. Tan said it was like she was in another country. "It felt like I was in Cambodia or Vietnam, because the people were so poor. It didn't feel like Thailand." Tan has grown up in Bangkok, so seeing subsistence farmers is not a familiar sight.

After the work on the documentary ended, the French journalists brought Tan to the AP Regional Headquarters in Bangkok. I'm so jealous, as a journalist. I want to see that place. She was introduced to some big wig over there and they recommended her as a translator. AP called her this week and offered to put her on a list of translators to call for AP news in Thailand. I am so excited for her. God is blessing her so much. Maybe I can get connected too. We'll see.

Fresh eyes

I remember how wide-eyed and clueless I was when I first arrived in Thailand. Luckily, I had friends who knew their way around that acted as tour guides for me and the rest of the newcomers. Lindsey, Andrew and especially Erin could tell me how to do just about everything. And if they didn't know, then one of us would consult the know-it-all Lonely Planet Thailand travel guide.

I remember the first time I saw an elephant walk down the street. I saw it at night on my way to the ATM by 7-11. A man carried sugarcane sticks in a plastic bag and offered to let anyone feed it for a price. The elephant strolled down the road running under an overpass as cars and motorbikes zoomed past it. I immediately pulled out my camera.

I think back to this time because now I am the tour guide. If there are any questions I can't answer I ask Tan. She's the real tour guide. I am so lucky to know her. She is a wonderful girlfriend and a very helpful person. I keep telling everyone that they are spoiled because they know her. And I am spoiled too. She translates what we want to eat. She tells the girls where to go shopping. She knows more than any book. Although, occasionally she'll look up information in the Lonely Planet.

There were many initial moments that hit me with great surprise when I entered Bangkok, Thailand for the first time. But let me share some of these moments from the other teachers at my school.

In Hua Hin, we went to a temple and it was crawling with monkeys. One of the monkeys tried to steal Tim's bag of food. Tim fought it away by opening his umbrella and sheilding himself. Shelly, his fiancee, shrieked with surprise. The monkey ran off. Shelly stayed close to Tim for protection as they continued walking around.

We were walking around the school grounds and Jaron saw a monitor lizard. He said, "Whoah. That's cool. Would they care if someone grabbed one and wrestled it." The rest of us were really surprised. "Are you joking? I'm sure they wouldn't like it." I said. "There is a guard right there with a loaded gun. I wouldn't go near the moat if I were you." "They wouldn't shoot me, would they?" "Probably not, but why would you risk it?" Jaron started towards the moat. "Stop. Don't do it. It would be disrespectful to go near the Palace. That's why the guard is there," I said. He stopped. "Okay. I didn't know it would be rude," he said.

While Caleb taught a lesson students were distracted by a black spider. He got fed up because no one was listening. The students surrounded the spider and pointed at it. So Caleb squashed it. The kids in his P4 class got very upset. They started to pray for the spider. Caleb felt really bad. Then the kids spotted a white spider. One of them said, "The spider reincarnated." Caleb says he didn't make this story up.

Jill and Rori have gone to aerobics in the park near our apartment. Everyday at 6pm a group of about 200 Thai people show up and do aerobics for 45 minutes. They play an interesting variety of techno music like the Achy Breaky Heart Song and hits from Michael Jackson. They were trying their best to keep up, but they were a few steps behind. In the front an old Thai man noticed they were out of step. He said, "You come up with me. You come up to the front." He said it forcefully, so they obeyed. He said, "You count out loud in English. 1-2-3." They obeyed. And they were exhausted by the end. Rori said, "He was really into it. He added extra hops into his steps. And he told us to come back everyday at the same time so he could show us how to do it. We were like, whoah, we have other things to do. We can't come everyday. His name's Jack. He grew up in Chicago. He's a really intense old man." They've seen him everytime they've gone back to do aerobics. Usually his wife is there with him, but she doesn't do the extra hops.

I'll add more to this later. Peace out.

Trip to Hua Hin

My first week went better than expected. the kids were mostly polite and didn't misbehave as much as last year.  I hope this trend continues. I went with 12 friends to a jazz festival in Hua Hin this weekend. It was a lot of fun.  Tan planned the trip.  I'll try to get some pics up soon.  I'll put them in the Hua Hin album on my Yahoo! photo account.

 

The bands played on a stage on the beach.  We saw a world famous bass player and a good Thai jazz group.  Tan knows the Michael, the son of the Thai jazz guitarist that we saw play.  He is one of her students.  She took me to say hello to Michael and his mom. 

 

Tan was amazingly nice.  I kept telling everyone how spoiled we are for having her help us get around.  Tan took us to a very good seafood restaurant.  She ordered fish, prawn soup, squid and a pineapple fried rice.  The pineapple fried rice was the best.  It's rice served in a hollowed-out pineapple.

 

The next day we hung out on the beach and then went to see a Buddhist temple and a statue that is built by a cliff over the beach.  I hope y'all are doing well.

 

Take care,

Steve

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Tan's Birthday

Tan turned 22 on Sunday. And I finally got my luggage. It arrived on Friday, two days after I got here. The bags were shipped to my school. Thanks mom. Your labelling helped the airline find my bag. My first day of class went well. I taught P.5 today. I'm teaching P.3 every other day of the week. They are the same kids I had last year. I hope that goes well. The Thai teacher who is my counterpart in P.3 is going to come back in two weeks. Until then I will be working with a different Thai teacher. I think things will be okay. I've enjoyed the time I've spent with Tan and the new teachers. Some of the new teachers met Tan and friends from church at Tan's birthday party. It was held at a very nice Thai restaurant run by Tan's friends. I gave her a purse and a perfume from Victoria's Secret. This is special because there isn't a VS store in Thailand. That's all for now.

A Hectic, Long Trip

It was Sunday night, the night after the wedding. I had planned to arrive in Bangkok by 11 am local time on Tuesday. But I didn't get very far that night. I got stuck in El Paso. Robert dropped me off with plenty of time to spare. I was early for my flight, but I unfortunately was flying America's *cough* Worst *cough* I mean America West. *Cough* Excuse me. Something's in my throat.

A few guys told me that America West has been really bad with delays and cancellations. One guy who was going to miss his connection to Ontario said, "If you've got time to spare, go by air."

There was a problem with the plane's radio. So my flight was cancelled to Phoenix, which is their hub by the way. Why wouldn't you have an extra plane at your hub? By the time this was announced I had missed my chance to get on a flight directly to LAX. I was going to spend the night alone in a Microtel Hotel in El Paso. The airline paid for my room and two meals. Luckily, America West is a partner with EVA air. So they scheduled me for flights the next day for no charge.

I called Tan that night to tell her I was going to be late. She answered at lunch time in Bangkok. I couldn't tell her when I would arrive because I noticed that my ticket said I would arrive on Tuesday. But I knew that wasn't possible, so it wasn't using local times. I was too tired to figure out the time zones. So she couldn't meet me at the airport as she had planned.

The next morning I went to the airport early got my new boarding passes to Phoenix and LAX. Since my flights were different than I had originally, my luggage tags were handwritten. I checked them in, and then I tried to call Tan. I was unsuccessful because the toll free number on my international phone card didn't work on pay phones. So I couldn't reach her. I still didn't have a better idea of when I would arrive anyway. This time there was a slight delay, but the airplane was in the port at least. So I knew we would actually get in it this time.

I made it to Phoenix okay, but I had to scramble to board the plane to take me to LAX. I found it just as it was time for people to start boarding. Then we pulled away from the loading port, and I thought we were on our way. But we were halted. The pilot announced that heavy traffic into LAX was causing us to wait. So we sat on the runway for about 45 minutes or longer. Finally, we got out of Phoenix.

Everytime I go to LAX I feel lost. There are so many buildings and so many people coming and going. It's overwhelming. I left America West and was happily rid of them. Then I asked someone for directions. A nice lady directed me to a shuttle to the International Terminal. There I found departures on the second floor. I got into the wrong line before a lady asked me what airline I wanted. She directed me to a much shorter line for EVA air. So I got in it gladly. EVA Air was not open yet. So I waited for about half-an-hour and then finally got my boarding pass and some bad news. I had lost my luggage claim number in Phoenix or somewhere in the vast maze of LAX. So the lady sent out an APB for my bag. I wasn't sure if things were getting better or worse. It certainly felt hectic. While I waited for about 4 hours, I met a few people. One was a guy who was going to meet his Taiwanese girlfriend and her family in Taipei. Another one was an American visiting family in Taipei. He was a graduate of Illinois University. He was going get a master's in San Francisco and go on to do international business. Finally I met a Thai lady on her way to Bangkok to visit family she hadn't seen for many years. She moved to Baytown, Texas 15 years ago with her husband. She spoke heavily accented English. I mentioned my family connection to Baytown, and she thought that was funny. I mentioned my Grandmother's church, and she gave me a flyer from her Baptist church so I could visit sometime.

Finally, after 13 hours and about 7,000 miles I arrived in Taipei. I had watched three bad movies and was about to go crazy from being in a plane so long when I immediately got on another plane for 4 more hours to Bangkok. I arrived at 2 a.m. local time on Wednesday. And I got more bad news. My luggage had been lost.

I called Tan. I had woken her up. Fortunately, she was not working that day. I got a taxi ride from the airport to my apartment. No one was awake except the night security guard. He doesn't speak any English. I tried to use my Thai phrase book to communicate that he should wake up the manager to give me a key, but I wasn't getting through. Finally, I called Tan and handed the phone to him. She explained the situation and I finally got him to let me in. I took a nap. Finally, Tan came over to see me. It was the reunion we had been thinking about for two months. The school let me have a day off. So we hung out and saw Star Wars III. I slept very well that night. I used to Benadryl to help knock me out.

Remembering Grandma

My Grandma Regena Cross passed away today around 11 am. She probably suffered from a stroke. I know she is in a better place now and she feels no more pain. She was not herself when I saw her last weekend. In a way, that comforts me. I find it hard to put into words the lasting contribution and legacy that she gave to our family. She was a loving mother to my dad and Aunt Kay and Uncle Tracy. She was a wonderful Grandma to me. Grandma Cross had such a servant's heart and a great sense of humor. I miss her. I'll miss the great conversations we had and listening to her stories. It is comforting to know that she is in Heaven, and she is reunited with Grandpa Ray.

Everyone lives in a bubble

I went up to Sugarland, Texas this weekend to see some of my family that I hadn't seen since I acquired the label of "world traveler." I don't really think the label fits me. Sure, I've been further away from the USA than most of the people I know, but I still have seen only a tiny part of Southeast Asia. There's a whole lot left in the world unseen by my eyes and untouched by the soles of my sneakers.

I went up to see my cousin Linda in a dance recital. Her high school Stars team put on a terrific dancing show. Most of the dances combined elements of ballet and cheerleading, with an occasional bit of tap dancing. I've never seen Linda dance before. It was impressive. She can spin like a top, prance like a deer and lift up other girls like a ballet dancer. And she could keep up step for step with Britney Spears in any routine from her music videos.

I also saw my cousin Tori. She had a baby while I was away. Her daughter Alex is adorable. And I met her husband Monty for the first time as well. It was a tough delivery for Tori, but I think she is feeling better now. Thank God that Alex is healthy.

There were so many family members that I saw this weekend. There just wasn't even time to really catch up with them all. And I won't have enough time because I leave in a month. I'll miss everyone.

I've adjusted fairly well to being back in America. I'm amazed at how traffic actually moves. Bangkok traffic makes Austin traffic look very organized. And traffic in Vietnam makes Bangkok traffic look organized. When I was in Thailand, I missed Mexican food and homecooking. Now I enjoy eating them, but I miss Thai food. I tried making some Tom Yum Kung, spicy prawn soup. It was okay but too bland. Not spicy enough. And I miss the excitement of traveling and experiencing Thai culture. The Thai people are so friendly and inclusive. So these two months in America are a transition, an in-between time.

I'm definitely looking forward to going back to Thailand. Having a girlfriend waiting for me is a big part of it. That's one reason I'm eager to go, but that's not all. I just miss the adventure. I miss the friendships I made too. Right now I'm working a lot as a substitute teacher. It's similar to my work in Thailand in many ways. But I don't hang out with friends like I did in Thailand. I had lots of fun on a regular basis. I don't go out as much now. I hang out at home with mom and dad, which is fine. But it's a little boring sometimes. We did go to a Bob Marley Festival in Austin. That was pretty cool. Things will probably change a bit when my brother comes back from college next weekend. He knows how to have fun.

And life has changed a lot since I left. About a dozen of my friends and/or acquaintances have gotten married. I've heard of other surprises as well. And I guess many of my friends are too busy to write. Others things amaze me too. My cousins have grown and matured so much in 10 months. It's true what they say: You can never go home again. Because home is just an idea. Your idea of home is not reality. When you come back everything has changed.

I think one of the most irritating things about not being in Thailand has been just a lack of understanding. Most Americans don't go to Asia. Many Americans I speak to don't know anything about Thailand. Some people asked if they speak Taiwanese.

I've told some of the middle school and high school kids about my experiences. Usually they're curious. Some of the kids laugh at me when I say a phrase in Thai. The kids try to imitate me and they can't. They really laughed when I told them about squat toilets. I'm not ever sure how that came up in conversation. And lots of the teachers I meet say they wouldn't want to go that far away. Lots of people limit themselves. They're afraid of leaving America. They're comfortable in their own bubbles.

The pictures I've shown don't do a very good job of sharing my experience. And my stories aren't any better. It's really frustrating because I can't really share it. If I say something was beautiful, you can only think of what you know or try to imagine from looking at my photos. But you'll never see what I saw unless you go to the same place. You are limited by your point of view, by your bubble. Everyone lives in a bubble. I just live in a different one. One that includes parts of Asia. I hope some of my friends and family will visit me when I go back. If not, just keep reading. I'll continue to share my experiences in this limited way.

More about Songkran

I forgot to mention that Songkran is the Thai New Year celebration. Thais celebrate Chinese New Year, New Year's Day on Jan. 1st and of course their own New Year. They'll take any excuse to party. If you want to read more about Songkran, check out this blog of a friend of mine in Bangkok. http://www.ram-z-online.com/blog/

Me and Neil at Brookstock (a benefit concert for Mission Waco) 

Songkran (Thailand Water Festival) 

Crazy Thai Water Festival

I talked to Tan on the phone today and she told me that the Songkran Festival is going on right now. It's a very interesting Thai celebration. Thai people take water hoses, squirt guns, water balloons or anything to get each other wet. They also throw powder on each other. Sounds like fun. April is the hottest month of the year in Thailand. I think it is a Buddhist holiday. Songkran also sounds like it gets out of control. Guys like to get girls wet and then grab them. It sounds like it might be the Thai equivalent of a Mardi Gras party. Tan doesn't want to go out during Songkran because the Bangkok police won't do anything to control the craziness. Some girls complained about it on the news. I wish I could see it. I'll have to stay for it sometime.

What I've been up to for two weeks

So for about two weeks I've been back in the US of A. I've been working by day as a substitute teacher and by night I AM BATMAN! Um... sorry. As I was saying, I am working almost everyday because there is a shortage of substitutes. It's a little strange working at the schools where I went to middle school and high school. I've seen some of my old teachers and my mom also works at the schools.

I've taken lots of pictures and put them in an album called Austin. Check out my travel photos link. I took some pictures of some murals on the old Tower Records building. The CD shop closed down and now some of the murals are covered with graffiti. It's sad. I liked that place. Austin has a lot of unique stores and live music clubs and bars. Every year more of them seem to go out of business.

I also went to the Arboretum and took pictures of the marble cow statues there. And a girl in Amy's Ice Cream showed off by tossing ice cream and catching it in a scooper.

It's a nice time of year to be in Texas. The trees are green. The weather is a little cool. It's Spring.

My brother came down from UT Dallas to visit me last weekend. Sam, our friend, brought him. He's like another brother to me. We saw a Dr. Seuss art exhibit http://www.arton5th.com

This weekend I went back to visit my alma mater, Baylor University. The Baylor Bears Lady backetball team won the national championship! The whole campus seemed to still be happy about that. I actually met Sofia Young, the Championship Game MVP. She was at the concert/crush event. One of my friends knows her and invited her to come. I worked and lived at Brooks Residence Hall when I was in college. I went back to see a student concert at Brooks. It was for Mission Waco, a really good charity that helps the homeless. It was an awesome show by Ethan Durelle. Check them out at http://www.ethandurelle.net They are hoping to tour in Asia in the future, hopefully Japan. Maybe I can convince them to go to Thailand.

I really enjoyed seeing all my college buddies. I hope I can make another trip up to Waco soon. Well I'm being told to go to sleep by my mom. Good night!

Life in Austin, Texas

The pictures include the marble statues of cows in the Arboretum, murals in the downtown area, my dad holding our family's dog, and a girl catching a scoop of ice cream at Amy's.

Easter time in Long Beach, California 

Last Dinner at Golden Orchid Hotel 

Tan and me 

Bang Sak Construction Project (pic courtesy of Cyndi Davis)