Sky Train & Subway Map of Bangkok

I live off of Ramkhamhaeng near Hua Mark and the university I teach for is about 15 minutes from where I live near the Suvarnabhumi International Airport. If you are unable to view the map, click on the following link. http://www.transitbangkok.com/images/BTS_MRT_Chao_Phraya_Express_Khlong_Boat_BRT.png

 

Things That Are Different

1.     Apartments are built for utility not convenience. The average size of a studio is 27 square meters. My apartment is 38sqm and sits on a corner so I have a bit more space. It’s designed like a studio.

2.     My apartment comes with the following: a queen-sized platform style bed, raised wardrobe built into the wall, television stand, rented flat screen TV (brand new), 4-foot tall silver fridge with built-in freezer and two ice trays, two trashcans, two drinking glasses, bed linens and a blanket and two bath towels.

3.     After the month of October, I will not have a TV, bed linens or blanket, or two towels because I don’t want to pay for the monthly housekeeping services. Plus, I don’t watch television.

4.     Larger apartments include a king-sized bed and western styles often include a divider, wall and door making it a 1-bedroom.

5.     There are no kitchens in a traditional Thai-style apartment.

6.     My fridge and television are rented and are in the same room as my bed.

7.     I have no microwave, oven, or stove.

8.     Ovens are not traditionally used in Thailand, although I’m told some are included or can be bought in western-style apartments.

9.     The bathroom sink has one faucet that produces room temperature water. This never waivers.

10.  The shower includes a heater that needs to be cranked on before the knob is turned to release the water. The water pressure is decent.

11.  There is a small glass wall separating the shower from the rest of the bathroom.

12.  There are no bathtubs in a traditional Thai-style apartment.

13.  Toilet tissue should never be flushed. There is a trashcan for the paper.

14.  I have to step down into the bathroom and down into the shower area. I also need to step down into the hallway when leaving my apartment.

15.  People drive on the left.

16.  Families ride their mopeds and motorcycles with their toddlers in front, no helmets.

17.  People negotiate pay to sit in the back of pickup trucks as a means of transportation. I’ve seen these people hanging out in the back as the truck drives along the expressway.

18.  Food stalls are everywhere and food is cheap. Food poisoning is also a possibility so care should be taken.

19.  Foreigners are everywhere and it’s odd for me to see so many strolling along the street.

20.  Stray dogs wander the street and are collared and fed by the locals.

21.  When getting into a taxi, one must always ask for the meter so as not to be charged too much later on.

22.  It is important to stand your ground when a taxi driver doesn’t want to give you your change.

23.  Say a prayer before hopping on the back of a motorcycle as a cheaper way of transit.

24.  Use common sense, have an open mind, exude patience and learn from the people around you.

Welcome to Bangkok

“Welcome to Bangkok” has been used as a form of congratulations, jocularity and sarcasm as depicted via the situations I’ve experienced over the last two days, or rather the first two days of my stay in Thailand.

The first official welcome that I received was via the Captain announcing our flight’s arrival in Bangkok and thanking us for flying Cathay Airlines. The next time it was said was from my contact who recognized me from a photo she had been shown prior to my arrival at the Suvarnabhumi International Airport.

Arriving in Bangkok produced a drawn out sigh as I could finally rest assured that I had arrived. Prior to arrival however, I had connected three times: once from Boston to JFK, then from JFK to Hong Kong and finally from Hong Kong to Bangkok. I had spent sixteen hours of my two-day travel on a flight with over a dozen small children. It was packed to say the least and I was glad that it was finally over.

The first thing I did was brush my teeth, change my clothes and freshen up before going through security and buying a java chip frappuccino at Starbucks. I had been craving something cold as I had spent the last twenty-four hours drinking room temperature water and juice. When I arrived in Bangkok, I had only slept about six hours in two days and was feeling the results of that. A dull headache had begun to persist behind my eyes from lack of sleep and dehydration.

Amazingly, I breezed through immigration and even more surprisingly, my luggage appeared after only ten minutes of waiting. I then walked out the doors and into the bustling terminal. Less than ten minutes later, I was recognized by Miss Pair, an assistant from the university, sent to pick me up. “Welcome to Thailand,” she said with a winning smile. She was surprised that I only had two main pieces of luggage and a small carry on. The last time I moved abroad, I had five pieces.

After my bags were loaded into a deep gray Honda Accord, we sped off and a few minutes later I was speaking with the director of the Language English Program (LEP) on his assistant’s iPhone. He said, “Welcome to Bangkok. What do you think so far?” I said, “I’m so excited to be here. I can’t believe this is real” to which he told me to enjoy the next few hours as those are always the best.

Twenty minutes later, the Accord was winding through narrow side streets on the left side of the road that barely looked passable before riding up on a steep sidewalk and stopping. Unlike in America, Thai’s drive on the left, which is a hard idea to accept when two cars from opposite directions are speeding towards one another and at the last moment, one of them swerves to the right. Had I been more awake, this would have scared the crap out of me.

In an over-tired state however, I just cared about getting connected to the outside world. In turn, when I stepped out of the car and entered a small 7-Eleven I purchased a sim card and Thai phone number. Miss Pair had originally asked me to pick a number, which I found amusing, as I didn’t care, so I had her choose. A few minutes later it was discovered that my Metro PCS Huawei phone was locked and rejected the sim card. Frustrated, I still paid for the card with the resolve that I would try to get my phone unlocked and even topped off the phone with a 100 baht. At the same time I fought rising panic that I wouldn’t have a way to get in contact with anyone in the city.

When I had first moved to South Korea in 2007, it took me two weeks before a kind teacher gifted me an extra cell phone and put me on her friend’s cell phone plan so I wouldn’t have to pay as I went. I simply had to pay her friend at the end of each month by transferring money from my account into hers. The sharing of bank account information between people was unlike anything I had or have experienced since.

Ten minutes later, we arrived at my new residence. I shouldn’t have been surprised that the building I was staying in was not the one viewed on the website, but I was. It was located directly across from the new building and my apartment was on the corner of the third floor, facing a divide between the two residences. It was at this point that I was introduced to a fellow ex-pat and colleague who had recently moved into the newer of the two buildings. He welcomed me to Bangkok and then offered to show me anything I needed and take me shopping for the essentials like toilet paper and food. I was grateful to have such a smooth transition.

After parting ways with the assistant and getting my bags into my apartment that was surprisingly more spacious than I expected, I insisted that my colleague show me where to buy everything. At this point my headache had disappeared but I was definitely on sensory overload and way past the point of exhaustion. Even still, I insisted on going out. I was determined to buy the essentials, before crashing.

My apartment building in Bangkapi, Bangkok

Standard all utility corner studio: 38sqm

Over the course of the next two hours, I took a taxi ride to a mall up the road and purchased a cheap Nokia cell phone with pay-as-you-go minutes, toilet paper, a laundry basket, two sets of utensils that included a spoon and fork, laundry detergent, four gallons of water, a chicken sandwich and three mini pastries. Another taxi ride back and I was thanking my new friend for all his help. As we parted ways, he said with a smile, “Welcome to Bangkok.”

A few bites into my chicken sandwich and I realized the rubbery taste was cartilage and part of a foot and the mayo was too sweet for my taste. I ate it anyway because I was hungry. I also ate the pastries that I thought were pistachio and turned out to be a very tart lime and were also very sweet.

Two hours later I had unpacked one bag of clothes and was beginning to feel sick from lack of sleep. I hopped in the shower and then laid down to test out the bed. As soon as I hit the pillow, I smiled and breathed, “Welcome to Bangkok” and then conked out.

Bittersweet Beginnings

When students tell me that they are excited to go home and see their families but are also sad to leave Boston, I tell them the word they’re looking for is “bittersweet”. It always feels that way once someone has built roots in a single place and then up and moves away or in the case of my students, moves back to their country or on to another country.

This is how I felt when embarking on my new adventure. Since returning from South Korea in 2008, I felt as though I belonged overseas but I gave it my best effort and remained within the United States. I felt as though I owed it to my family and friends to try and stay put within my country and make my life there. Several members of my family had even made it clear that they hoped I had gotten this adventure ‘out of my system’ and that I was now ready to stay home and build my life. At 28 years old at the time, that statement infuriated me. It still does. I don’t believe anyone should get traveling or new adventures ‘out of their system’ because meeting new people and cultures is what opens our minds and expands our way of how we see ourselves and the people within the world.

For several of my friends, it was a slow and tedious process picking up where we had left off. Many of them didn’t understand my life choices and couldn’t fathom why I would want to leave this beautiful and wondrous country. In fact, I would begin sharing stories about living abroad and after a minute or two, I would see their eyes start to glaze over and the interest begin to wane before they would change the subject. It took me a long time to realize that they couldn’t comprehend what I had experienced because they had nothing to compare it to. Sure it seemed fascinating to try a new food, or figure out how to give directions to a taxi driver in another language, but when it came right down to it, the idea was better on television than it was in reality. Plus, no matter how much I talked about what I had done, they couldn’t understand it because it was too different from what they knew.

Not wanting to give up the dream of moving back abroad however, I looked at positions overseas and even accepted a position to teach at a prestigious British school in China, but at the last minute turned it down due to pressure to stay within the United States. I could not fully blame my decision on my family as much of the pressure came from myself. I felt guilty at leaving my family again and trying to make a new life abroad in another country. I also felt guilty at leaving my friends behind and wondered what would happen to my friendships if I did indeed leave the country once again. The contract had been for two years and having turned it down, I burnt that bridge. I had never burned a contact before and felt worse about that than I did about my decision to turn it down. It has bothered me ever since.

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As drive and fate would have it, I stayed within the world of English as a Second Language (ESL) and had the privilege to teach high school, university and working professionals. Being surrounded by different languages and cultures helped maintain my sanity. Even though I was living within the U.S., I was working with an international population on a daily basis. Eventually, I moved into Boston from Northborough and was able to further surround myself with this diverse culture and plethora of activities that I had grown to enjoy. In the process of improving my craft as an educator, I was coming to the realization that this was the path I wanted to maintain. I was a career ESL teacher within the adult education and university milieu and I wanted to stay there. Of course I would keep the idea of teaching high school on the backburner in the case that this path didn’t work out, but I was finally discovering my niche. I was also making a new group of friends; people who had also taught and traveled the world. From these people, I met others who I later helped obtain positions within language schools around the city. I had an amazing apartment in a house just north of Boston and had even reconnected with friends from my past. I was finally enjoying my life and putting down roots; it just took five years.

I was also beginning to shop at local farmer’s markets and stores that sold products bought from fairly traded locations around the world. I was eating healthier, walking more and ridding myself of negative past relationships and obstacles in my life. After it was all said and done, I was happier, but I still longed to travel abroad. Plus, for those who knew me, I couldn’t stop talking about all the places I wanted to visit.

Just for kicks, a close male friend and I had begun applying to jobs abroad. The original idea was for both of us to obtain positions within the same school. We were both excited at the prospect of moving together as we not only would be traveling with someone we knew but we would be enjoying all sorts of new adventures together. This however, eventually fell apart when I was offered a position with a university in Thailand and he was not. It was a serious blow to our plans. Ultimately however, I think his direction to pursue his love of writing, was the best course of action. I strongly believe that not long from now, I will walk into a bookstore and be able to pick up a collection of short stories, written by him.

In the meantime however, I had to make a decision about this new offer to teach in Thailand. I prayed about it and after some time, knew it was the right decision. God wanted me to move abroad.

The downright reality however, was much more difficult, as I had spent the last five years establishing my life in Boston. It was bittersweet knowing that I was finally pursuing my dream to live abroad again but was also sad that I was leaving everything and everyone I knew, behind. In essence, it was bittersweet.

However, knowing that there is social media such as Facebook and Skype, I reminded myself that I could still connect with people; it would just be via a computer or phone screen. I also felt confident that this time I wouldn’t lose touch with my friends because those I had met also shared my love for travel and adventure and knew exactly where I was coming from. Therefore, it wasn’t a bittersweet ending; it’s a new beginning.   

The Road Less Traveled

The road less traveled is the path I often take when faced with life changing decisions. Why do I do this? Because it's worked that way since I graduated from high school. For example, when many of my friends were going to top schools around the country because they offered stellar programs, I chose a school based on a photo I had seen of a lake surrounded by breathtaking fall foliage. In retrospect, I should have looked more closely at the program. In turn, one bad freshman year later, I transferred to a school closer to home that ended up being the best years of my college career. 

I graduated with a Bachelor's degree in English Literature and a newly created concentration in Women's Studies. What I didn't finish with was my minor in education to teach high school because I became frustrated at not being able to pass the subject area test, and the chair of the department wouldn't let me into a core class that came around once a year. Not wanting to wait an entire year to take the class again, I dropped the minor, and so began a meandering path that slowly wound it's way back to square one twelve years later. 

Having begun my career as a special education assistant in a public school, I eventually transitioned into a teacher role at a residential school. I had the privilege of teaching kids who came from an assortment of backgrounds and had an equally colorful package of issues surrounding how they learned, dealt with feelings and emotions, and had a team to help them with all of these challenges. It was a learning a experience to say the least. Less than a year later, I accepted that this wasn't my niche and quit. From this experience however, I learned how to communicate really well, manage a classroom and how to adapt my teaching style to a variety of needs and levels. 

Jump forward a few years, I discovered that I was less than thrilled with the stream of jobs I had had and the direction my life was going. I re-entered school for my Master's with the idea that I would change careers. When I announced to my family that I was going to earn an MBA, some laughed, other's sighed and my father tried to convince me to stick with education. He repeatedly reiterated how cutthroat MBA programs were and how math had never been my strong suit. Not wanting to acknowledge this second truth, I persisted. More hard work than can acutely be explained here, plus lots of help and patience from my engineer father, I had somehow survived a summer of Accounting I & II, Finance I & II and Statistics. By no means did I sail through. It was more like a crawl and then I kissed the ground when I had passed. Oh and might I add that I worked full time at the school I was also attending. I did this because I was able to take classes for free as long as I earned a "B" or higher and my father had also worked full time while going to school, except that he had a wife and two children. 

Once finished with my degree, I continued working in admissions for the University of Phoenix, until I was laid off. Up until this point, I had taken the road that had overgrown with weeds that no one even bothered with because it was so broken. That's how I felt inside: broken. I wanted to make a change. I wanted to go back to my roots in education and re-enter the classroom because I was convinced that's where my calling laid. I just didn't know how to make that happen. 

Then one day, it was suggested to me that I ponder the idea of teaching abroad. I had always wanted to travel but never had an idea about how to teach abroad. So began my in-depth research, which I now realize, didn't need to be all that detailed, and yet it was. 

A few short months later, I had signed a contract with a public school in South Korea and I boldly announced that I would be moving. My mother just looked at me and my father said, "You are 100% not moving out of the country." Huh. I had pictured that conversation going in a much different direction. For the sake of this entry, let me add that I was 27 years old at the time. Although I had never actually traveled abroad because I didn't even own a passport, I was determined. I was also crushed that my parents, especially my father, didn't share my sentiments. He, who has traveled to more than 80 countries, did not want his daughters traveling abroad, although we both have. 

Something to note: my family is very tight-knit and for that I'm thankful. We all know what is going on in each other's lives and we often connect via the phone or email several times a week. That stated, certain family members are more opinionated than others. Moreover, all the women in my family are especially strong-willed and always make their opinions heard, oh, and they do not enjoy being told what to do, which I have always found ironic. 

Having overcome these opinions however, I persisted and the 2007-2008 academic school year in South Korea was life changing. While abroad, I visited Japan about a dozen times, Thailand and Cambodia. At one point I even remember remarking how I could live in Thailand. It felt like home. 

That year was a game changer for me. I loved it so much that I returned in the fall of 2008 to visit a good friend I had met when I was there. I was then later hired by ASC English in Boston and FLS and later by Kaplan at Northeastern University, thus opening up the chance to work for NEU, which I did. 

My unique education and business background has afforded me opportunities I would not have had, had I earned my teacher's license. Although I'd still like to earn it for the sake of finally having it, I'm enjoying my new path, which is no longer covered with weeds. I'm fulfilled because my students have made my experiences worthwhile. 

Knowing that many good things have come out of these experiences I plan to blog about the new chapter that's about the begin in my life. Starting Monday, September 23, 2013, I will begin my journey to Bangkok, Thailand where I have been hired to teach English and business at an international university. Here's hoping that I will have as much success there as I have in Boston.  

Thanks for reading.

JA

P.S. Not all entries will be this long, but then again, I can't predict what will happen. If you'd like to follow along, that would be fantastic. Please feel free to comment, share your own travel experiences and ask any questions that you may have.