The End of a Chapter.

 Hey Everyone, Let me just start by apologizing profusely for taking so long to finish this up. I know I stopped blogging for a while but I am sure you all understand I was just way TOO BUSY having the time of my life. However, I am very sorry for just leaving you all hanging.

I had the most amazing time in Thailand and wouldn’t trade it for the world. Although sometimes were really rough, sometimes were amazing. It’s like I would tell my mom, the highs are really freaking high but the lows are the lowest lows I’ve seen. Now that I am home I realise how much Thailand changed me and how much I love Thailand. I have now truly learned that you don’t realise how much something means to you until you let it go. On that note I sure hope to go back to Thailand in a few years.

 While I was in Thailand I had a list of things to do. I lost that list somewhere along my travels but I succeeded in many of those things and I would like to share what I remember of that list with you.

To Do in Thailand:

#1. Ride an Elephant

-          I did this TWICE up in Chiang Mai!! I love elephants they are such beautiful and intelligent creatures. I am privileged to have lived in a place where they are so plentiful. I remember every time I would see them on the streets they would take my breath away.

#2. Go to the Grand Palace

-          I went to The Grand Palace a couple times but more specifically to Wat Pra Kaew because it is the most beautiful temple in Thailand and the Emerald Buddha is such a sacred Buddha that you couldn’t help but to be humbled in its presence.

#3. Go down south.

-          I never did end up going to the far south but it gives me a reason to go back. I have to go to Full Moon Party before I die, I just have too.

#4. Go up North

-          I spent quite a lot time up north because I think it is such a beautiful area. It has so much culture and is the most beautiful part of Thailand. Plus it has a great laid back hippie atmosphere that I thoroughly enjoyed.

#5. Stay in a Hostel

-          Yeah, I did this way too many times and let me just tell you, it is not as exciting as it sounds. They are usually pretty gross.

#6. Get a piercing

-          I got my ears pierced again making a total of three piercings in each ear and I got my belly button pierced much to my parents dismay, however I love them!

#7. Ride a TukTuk

-          I did this too many times to count and can’t say it was as enjoyable as I imagined. However I did like when we would shove as many people as we could on them and there would be people hanging out the sides of this little sketchy three wheeled vehicle as you sped through the streets of Bangkok. I miss doing that soo much!

#8. Study Muay Thai

-          I Studied Muay Thai for three months and LOVED it. I am so happy I chose to study muay Thai intensively and not study Thai Dance. Thai Dance is boring while Muay Thai is Exciting and fun.

#9. Learn how to cook Thai food

-          I learned how to make Thai omelets, Tom Yum Kung, Som Tam and Fried Rice very well. To make up for the lack of variety I also bought a vegetarian Thai cookbook/cheat book.

#10. Learn how to speak Thai

-          By then end I could converse relatively well and I am so proud of myself because of that. It was a really big challenge that I worked really hard to overcome.

#11. Go Clubbing

-          That was a lot of fun!

#12. Kiss a NON-Canadian Boy

-          OOOH LAALAA sorry I don’t kiss and tell!

#13. Drink a Cosmo

-          I just always hear about them and honestly they are a little bitter. Gosh, Sex and the City should have prepared me for that.

#14.Learn about Buddhism

-          I learned a lot about Buddhism and religion and it has sparked my interest into a lot of different religions. After being raised with no religion and then thrown in to society ruled by religion it really changed my life and changed my perspective of religion. You are not gonna find me on a corner preaching about God any time soon, but it has inspired me to research different religions and learn about their teachings because I think every religion has something to offer.

#15. Embrace Asian Culture

-          At first there were so many elements of Asian Culture that I despised and there are still quite a few that I do but the one quality I fully embraced was the undersexualization of their society. I love that they live in a world not outwardly ruled by sex. They keep sex very personal and private and I believe that is the way it should be. You don’t see twelve year olds in Thailand running around scantily clad because they understand that sex shouldn’t be broadcast and I truly respect that aspect of their culture. However, They REALLY need to get on the train of letting their teenagers have some fun, like seriously.

So, I have accomplished soo much in the past year that I could have never imagined. I have learned soo much that I never knew I didn't know and I have grown soo much that I am scared to find out how much more I am capable of growing. At this rate I will be a super human by the age of THIRTY. I loved my time in Thailand but I am very happy to be home. My life here all though not exciting is peaceful and enjoyable and still has its twists. In fact I have started another blog about my life in Canada here > http://bigcitydreamssmalltownnightmares.tumblr.com/. So go ahead and check that out. No seriously, go press the link right now and check it out.

 I would like to thank all my supporters and readers especially my family, friends and my fans down in Las Ventanas. I really appreciate you taking the time to read each post. I hope you all check out my other blog and continue to read there too.

Ta Ta for now or until my next adventure unfolds at http://bigcitydreamssmalltownnightmares.tumblr.com/.

Xoxo Chantel <3

Maha Sarakham... ( belated)

Hey, guess what I am back in Maha Sarakham…. Guess how many days until I go back to Bangkok… no common actually guess. 2 days, 5 days, 7 days, 20 days, 50 days, never…

I am going back to Bangkok on Sunday, exactly seven days after I left Bangkok and 5 days from now. What can I say, I love it there and just don’t really like it here in Maha Sarakham.  I am officially on summer break now and it sucks. All my family does is sit at home and watch tv all day. That’s why I am leaving again. Originally I wasn’t going to go back to Bangkok this month because I spent way too much money last month and am seriously beyond broke, like I spent money that I had mentally prepared for next month. But after 3 days of staring at my ceiling in my bedroom, I decided I would rather be broke than bored, ( anyone want to send me money J) so I am heading back down to Bangkok!!

I am not sure who I am going with but a bunch of exchange students should be in and around Khao San because its summer break and because in a week and a half we all have to meet in Bangkok for our big NORTH ADVENTURE TRIP. I think my friend Ashlee is going to come teach English with me on the 26th, 27th and 28th of March and then my friend Annie is going to meet us down in Bangkok on the 28th or 29th.

As for my last week in Bangkok, I had an amazing time. Ashlee and I taught at an English camp for three days up in the mountains in the Rayong province. Then we came back to Bangkok and stayed with my friend Luis and his cousin. We met up with exchange students from our district and from the Bangkok district and just had a blast. We went to the grand palace again and I got in for free this time ( vs. the usual $12) because I had my school ID which meant I was officially “Thai.” That was a major achievement. Then we went to this fancy mall called Siam discovery and went ice skating. It was funny because most Thai people cannot skate, so they have a railing around the rink and everyone just holds onto it as they circle the rink, not quite like Canadians but at least they are trying.

We didn’t do much else in Bangkok we were really just relaxing and enjoying Khao San road. I got hair extensions  but my friend cut them and messed them up a bit. So I had to go to a hair dresser and get them re done, she cut all my hair and now it looks great.

I will try my best to post videos and pictures on my tumblr tonight, I know I have a lot I still haven’t posted so maybe I will sit down for a few hours and just post a months worth of pictures.

I know I didn’t write much today and I kinda just mumbled on, I just wasn’t feeling it. I need some inspiration… or extreme boredom. Wait a couple of days and I am sure I will post more.

Xoxo Chantel <3

Bangkok/Rayong Trip Day 1

So I am in Bangkok right now, in a bar/café with my friend Ashlee, listening to Britney Spears while lying on couches surrounded by our suitcases, waiting for my councilors daughter  to come home so we can go to her house and go to bed. AHHHH I am sooo tired.

Yesterday, I took a bus to Khon Kean to meet up with Ashlee and spend the night at her house. Then this morning we woke up at 6am and drove back to Khon Kean to catch our bus to Bangkok. At 2pm we arrived in Bangkok and went to J.J Market with two suitcases, two purses and one back pack. It was crazy but we did it. I bought one gift for a special someone ;) and Ashlee bought a bunch of dresses. Around 5pm we headed over to the mall to go shopping at forever 21. It’s funny because you know you’re an exchange student when you have pockets full of money you have saved for this trip and your favourite shop in the world and all you buy is new underwear and yoga pants. For two reasons, a) you have learned how to be logical and sensible about what you spend your money on and you really need new underwear and b)  Thanks to lovely exchange weight gain, yoga pants are like all that fits you. After buying some NESSECITIES we headed out for a feast of very random food, raw salmon in balsamic vinegar, spinach and cheese casserole, dumplings, stir fried vegetables and tofu, garlic bread and TWO Apple crumples…. Yeahh. That’s our feast of this trip from now on only vegetables and fruit I PROMISE!! I want to be able to wear something other than yoga pants!!!

Then we headed home and Anin wasn’t home so we found this bar/café with free wifi and that’s where we are now. Tomorrow at 4:30 am for the English camp in Rayong for three days. Then we are not sure how many days we will spend in Bangkok after that because its expensive and fattening, not a good combination!

I will keep you posted on our misadventures.

Xoxox Chantel <3

A lunch with Farangs

A lunch with Farangs

Today I went to Serm Thai, the local plaza in Maha Sarakham on the search for a good lunch and a new bathing suit. I looked and looked for this bathing suit I had been eyeing for months but couldn’t find it. So I headed down to my favorite restaurant, Black Canyon Coffee shop and ordered a sandwhich and pumpkin soup. About half way in to my meal I saw two Swedish ladies I had met earlier this week. We all sat down together and had a good ol’ chat about life in Thailand. It was a mother and daughter who were here for four months to exchange ideas and methods with Thai doctors.

They were amazed at some of the stories I told about Thai life and Thai families. I was shocked they didn’t know. I guess I was naive thinking that all the other people living and visiting this country  saw the same things I did. But they don’t they will never truly know what Thai Life is like until they live it for seven months with a Thai family. It was nice to talk to a mother and daughter because the daughter could relate to me about living abroad with another family and how it will never really be your family and how everything is sooo awkward and the mother was just as shocked as my own mother and told me that she was proud of me and that I am very brave.

I really enjoyed talking to these ladies, unfortunately they move cities tomorrow. But its ok because it gave me a boost and helped remind me why I do it. Also I received a bunch of comments and emails regarding my last few posts saying that you guys love them and that you guys understand how hard it is and are proud of me too. Thank you to everyone. I love you all so much.

Xoxo Chantel <3

SPECIAL POST #5

So this brings me to the end of my special posts... this makes me sad, I liked trying to come up with interesting and creative posts. For this post I made a vlog talking about my life in Thailand and my trip to Bangkok this weekend. PLEASE EMAIL ME IF IT DOES NOT PLAY!!  Thanks for the continued support and love.

xoxox Chantel <3

Me? a teacher? nahhh

Special Post #4

How to Teach at an English Camp?

Teaching at English camps is  a great way to travel and make a little bit of money. Basically you are required to travel for three days with two or three classes of Thai Teenagers. You play games and teach English.

To teach English, basically you just try and converse with the kids as much as you can in English. A good way to do this is ask them about their lives and joke with them a little bit. As the camp progresses you will learn what kids are more outgoing, who’s  more shy and you will actually learn a surprising amount about the students.

You will be required to teach a lesson or two, that has already been planned by the camp organizers. Read the cheat sheet and memorize the information you have to teach. Usually the topic will be something basic that they have previous knowledge about. Then to start the lesson ask the students, to brain storm what they know about the topic. Get them to write the ideas on the white board. Ask good questions while they are brainstorming to help trigger more ideas. Once they have finished brainstorming, fill in any ideas they have forgotten and  let them write it down.

Next get them to work on some simple work sheets. This will occupy a lot of their time and gives you some time to rest. Offer an incentive for each finished piece of work. At the AYC English camps we give out AYC dollars and then at the end of the camp they can use their  money to buy gifts.

Most importantly encourage participation by participating yourself. Laugh, Dance ,Sing, Scream its all part of it. If the kids see you doing the activities and being silly then they will do it too.

Teaching English at  Camp, could there be any better way to make money??

Xoxo Chantel <3

This is not the post you wanted to read...

This is not the blog post you wanted to read but its on my mind and I felt like writing about it. So Basically, I like really miss home. I don’t even know if its that I miss  it or am just super psyched to be home again or what. I think I dream about home at night because every morning when I wake up I feel like its not that far but then when my host mom knocks on my door while yelling at me in Thai and I roll over and see that its six am and  remember just how far from home I am.

So do you want to know what I am so excited to see again/ what I really miss?

Well, I am going to tell you.

Canadian Food: I miss normal grocery stores and constantly having a variety of food in the house. I miss not eating meat and I miss being able to cook my own food without worrying that I am getting in the way. I miss sitting at the dinner table with my family, talking about our days and joking around. I miss fresh veggies cut up with dip. I miss eating food from all over the world instead of the same thing every night. I miss being able to pick and choose what I am going to eat and not being worried that by declining a piece of a cake I will break my mom’s heart. I miss Canadian food.

Canadian Weather: As I am writing this post it is 28 degrees  and its only 8 in the morning by lunch time it is supposed to reach 36 degrees. OMG! Plus Thailand has no seasons, honestly it rains for a couple months, then its hot, then its so hot you want to cry, then it rains again. I miss all the fun the seasons bring and waking up every morning and having to check the weather. It adds excitement to our humdrum lives.

Canadian Skiing and Snowboarding: Gosh, I miss that like crazy. Skiing and snowboarding are such a routine part of life for my family and friends in Canada. It’s just what we do. I mean I worked at the ski hill where my brothers ski team is based, where my parents spend all day, every weekend and where my all my friends had memberships and went as much as they could. It was a huge part of my life and I loved it. I miss having a place to go and having something to do with my family and friends.  Thai families don’t do anything. Seriously absolutely nothing. Its boring.

Canadian School: There I said it I miss school. I miss seeing people everyday. I miss knowing what I am going to do every day. I miss learning and using my brain. I miss projects and homework and essays and assignments. I miss teachers yelling at me to be quiet and I miss being on a hundred bajillion different clubs and teams. I miss school.

Canadian Houses: More specifically my house. I miss my bedroom, here after moving into my third house, I just gave up on trying to make my room feel like my own. The closet is filled with clothes that don’t belong to me. I have a mattress on the floor and there are Buddha beads and ants every where. I will be so excited to climb into my bed the first night when I get home. To go see all my sewing stuff and my painting stuff and ALL OF MY CLOTHES!!  To have a bathroom right across the hall from my bedroom and to have a kitchen three feet away from my bedroom. To have a hot tub and a backyard and a front porch and a basement. To be able to have friends over. To be able to sit and watch tv whenever I want. To be able to walk around my house freely with out  being scared you are going someplace you are not allowed or shouldn’t be. To be in a house where disinfectant and mops are known of. To be in MY HOUSE.

Canadian Friends: I miss friends who like to sit for hours on the beach with me and make friendship bracelets. I miss friends who you can show up at their house walk in the front door, yell hey mom and sit down and watch tv and it be normal. I miss calling  friends you can call at 3 am because you just had the funniest/ scariest/ awesome dream and you thought they should know. I miss being able to call friends and talk for hours. I miss  doing random things with friends like walking to the library, cleaning a bathroom, just lying on the floor staring at the ceiling, things that are only fun when a friend does them with you. To have people you can cry to, to have people you can laugh with to have people you can be your totally awkward self around.

Canadian Hobbies and Past times: I know skiing falls into this but it deserved its own section. I miss biking around town. I miss rowing and Atlantic challenge. I miss swimming. I miss painting. I miss sewing. I miss taking pictures. I miss reading. I miss boat rides. I miss skateboarding.  I miss always having something to do.

Canadian Families: I miss my family like crazy. I know I have said this a million times before but honestly, I only realized how great they are after leaving. I miss Sunday night dinners with as many people as can make it. I miss eat brunch on the weekends with my family. I miss singing  along to music while driving in the car with my mom. I miss talking to my parents. I miss my little brother annoying me, ok maybe I don’t miss that. But I do miss my little brother, Andrew a lot. I miss eating ice cream at night after my little brother had gone to bed with my Mom and Dad. I miss so much about my family.

Canada: I just miss Canada a lot. I think Canada has such a good vibe and such a great lifestyle that its hard not to miss it. I love the life I have in Canada and I love the people who live it with me. I love Canada and I miss it a lot.

Sorry, if this post is a downer but I feel a lot better now that I have typed it all out. Think about what I have wrote here and remember to appreciate what you have now, because you WILL MISS it when its gone.

Xoxox Chantel  <3

What is that in your purse??? Special Post #3

Special Post #4

 What you can find inside an Exchange Students Purse:

1. First please note I have had to switch from a regular nice cute purse to a heavy duty canvas messenger bag. This is because  I  often traverse long distances enduring treacherous conditions, and  your regular ol’ Coach bag just wasn’t working.
2. Laptop: My constant source of information, communication and entertainment.
3. Random Notebooks: Good for jotting down ideas and counting down how many days until I return home.
4. Journal: Keeping all the crazy experiences in one place  so that I can reread them one day.
5. Wallet: A very full wallet, full of  old receipts and lacking money.
6. Camera charger: In place for camera, which is being used.
7. Extra Pair of socks: Just in Case.
8.Toilet paper: Welcome to life in a third world country/
9. Garbage: Once again third world country, has not instituted the public garbage cans.
10. Magic Thai Bug Bite Cream: My life saver, it makes your bug bits go cold and  a bit numb, but they sure don’t itch any more.
11.Ibuprofen: Life hurts.
12. 1 2 Call Card: 100 baht for my phone J
13. Sunglasses: So that I can stare at people and they don’t know. Hehehe
14.Imodium : Seven months and I still have to take this almost daily.
15. Ipod Charger:  So I can always have my music.
16. Ray Bans: So that I can see this country I live in.
17. Cell Phone: So I can fake text in awkward situations.
18. Candy and Breath mints: In case I get stranded in a rice field.
19.Ipod: Music=Life
20. Pens and Pencils : For graffitti of course.
21.Bangkok Map: In case I get lost.
22. Water Bottle: Hydration is key.
23. Fan: Putting the FUN in Functional.
24. Canada Flag: Just  a little pride.
25. Sunscreen: No one wants wrinkles or skin cancer.
26. Deodorant: No one wants to smell bad.
27. Baby Powder: No one wants to be shiny and everyone wants to be as soft as a baby’s bum.
28. Lip gloss: My lip gloss be smacking…
29. Ear plugs: I need to sleep sometime and honestly, would not be possible with out these.
30. Letters my Dad wrote me to open  through out the year: Incase I need to open one on the go.

Xoxo Chantel <3

What to do for a Seven hour bus ride? SPECIAL POST#2

Special post #2

What to do for a Seven Hour Bus ride?

I travel to Bangkok frequently, I will be going for times this month, at least.  And to get there I have to take a seven hour bus ride. To say the least I have mastered the art of occupying yourself for seven hours on a bus. I  even have a formula it looks like this.

Hour 1:  This is a good time to listen to music and either think about what you are going to do in your destination or reflect on what you did in your destination.

Hour 2: Music starts to get boring, this is a good time to cuddle up with a blanket and sleep.

Hour 3: This is a good time to wake up and listen to some more music, preferably something upbeat, that you can dance  and jam out too. Yes dance and jam out on a bus. I do it daily, it doesn’t matter who is  beside you, as long as you keep you dancing and jamming out in your seat zone, then feel free to go crazy. My favorite
 is some air drumming, doesn’t take up to much room but is highly entertaining.

 Hour 4: Dig into that bag of snacks you  brought. Be sure to take your time eating every piece slowly and enjoy it. Then  take the rest of your hour to read the back of the labels. If the labels have another language, try to translate it.

 Hour 5: Grab a notebook, or journal and start writing. Lists, letters, doodles, stories, you would be amazed at how much you can write while on a bus. Also you often  come across awesome ideas. I often take the time to plan my next day, week, month, three months, whatever I feel like. Seriously, you can waste a lot of time doing this and it can actually be rather productive. ( I came up with the ideas for all 5 of my special blog posts while writing lists on a seven hour bus ride… BRILLIANCE)

Hour 6: Go through your gadgets and see what type of free games they have. I personally enjoy solitaire on my laptop, music quiz on my ipod and snake on my phone. Play each game until you break your high score. Then play it again until you break that high score.

Hour 7: Stare at the strange people who are surrounding you on the bus, while you figure out what you are going to do when you get off the bus. This is a good time to call and tell rides when you will be home. I like to make up little stories about where all the other passengers are going. An example of this would be:

The guy to my left
By Chantel Ouellet

The guy to my left has black hair and dark skin. I am guessing he is Thai. He hasn’t done much in the past seven hours that we have sat beside each other, but he did drink a bottle of water. He doesn’t seem very interesting. He is the kinda guy you would just pass by on the street and not even notice. That’s why I am almost positive he is a trained ninja assassin. He is going to Bangkok to meet up with a secret government organization and train other secret ninja assassins. I should be careful I don’t want to make a ninja mad.


And Voila your bus ride is over, you have arrived at your destination and ready to go on your way. Congratulations on conquering the seven hour bus ride. Now you just have to conquer it again on you way back home. -___-

Xoxo Chantel <3

How to Conquer a Tuk Tuk in Bangkok ( special post #1)

 Special Post #1

Guide to taking a Tuk Tuk in Bangkok:

Taking a Tuk Tuk in Bangkok is a very iconic and dangerous experience, but don’t worry it’s a staple for transportation and if you follow this guide, you should survive your Tuk Tuk trip with only a few injuries and only half scammed.

Tip #1: Don’t choose the Tuk Tuks just waiting around speaking broken English to you. They will scam you hard and charge you way too much. They can get away with it too because they are in highly populated areas with lots of stupid tourists. Your best bet is to flag down an empty Tuk Tuk on the road or find a nice quiet respectful driver.

Tip#2: Speak Thai  and don’t be afraid to yell, and even walk away. Its all part of the fun. When you find a Tuk Tuk you want to take, ask him if he can take you to where you want to go. Then BEFORE you get in ask him how much? Try to get under 100 baht, the cheaper the better. The price he gives you is already inflated and you can usually get them to go down 10 -30 baht ( about a dollar).  Your conversation will sound something like this.

You: Sawadee ka, bai Khao San dai mai ka? ( hello, can you go to khao san road?)

Tuk Tuk Driver: ( incomprehensive mumbles and grunts, then nods)

You: Tow rai ka? ( How much?)

Tuk Tuk Driver: 200 baht

You: ( laughs) mai chai, mai chai! Hok sip baht? ( that’s not right, 60 baht)

 Tuk Tuk Driver: Mai, Mai  nueng roi ha sip ( No, No 150baht)

You:  ( yelling and waving hands dramatically) Mai CHAI, Ban Maha sarakham ka, lou jak annie hok sip ka, dai mai ka? ( That’s not right, I live in Maha sarakham I know this on is 60 baht, can you do sixty baht?)

Tuk Tuk Driver: mai dai ( No, I cannot.)

 You : Starts walking away

Tuk Tuk Driver: OK Ok pad sip baht ( Ok  80 baht)

You: OK ka,BAH! ( ok, lets go.)


Tip#3 Even though the tuk tuk only seats two make it worth your money and shove up to ten people in the four by four  seat. Some common ways to do this is sitting on peoples laps and just laying on top of one and other.

Tip #4 Do not be frightened if any of the following occurs. Its perfectly normal.

- The driver goes through a red light or stop sign.
- The driver drives in the wrong lane.
- The driver keeps going up on the back two wheels, every time he accelerates.
- The driver doesn’t look at the road or is multitasking, by drinking a  Big Gulp from 7/11, talking to yourself and staring at you threw his rear view mirror.

This may seem very crazy and dangerous in Canada, but its perfectly normal.

Tip #5 Don’t bother Tipping and pay in exact change. I mean you had to fight with them to get them to actually take you where you wanted to go, then almost killed you on the way there. Just pay the tuk tuk driver and run.

Follow these five tips and should be able to successfully survive and conquer a Tuk Tuk ride in Bangkok.

Xoxo Chantel <3

 ps there are more pictures on my tumblr :)
http://132daysofadventure.tumblr.com/

Back from Bangkok

I am back from Bangkok. I know what you are thinking, wait aren’t you supposed to be spending 3-4 weeks there? Only five days have passed.  Well, as we have all learned nothing ever goes as planned in Thailand. So last Wednesday night I received a call from my councilor informing me I had no place to stay in Bangkok. I told her I had already booked my ticket, and that I had already confirmed that I would be attending the English camp. My councilor  said well fine you can spend one night at my daughters house.

So Thursday  I caught the bus at 7:50 am for Bangkok. I arrived around 3 :30pm and went to hang out at the mall until my councilors daughter Anin came home. I went shopping and found a jacket I had tried on in January on sale for  15 dollars ( instead of 45) and it fit me  ( vs. last time it was to small.) I was so excited I bought it and headed home. When I arrived at Anin’s I hopped straight in to the shower. I was happily washing my hair when I felt something crawling on top of my foot and between my toes. I looked down to see a millipede or centipede or whatever the extremely poisonous one is. I shook my foot violently until it went flying off and jumped out the shower grabbed the towel and ran out side. This is a perfectly normal reaction to finding a deadly poisonous bug on your foot. My councilors daughter went in and killed it and I hopped back in the shower. Then out of no where a giant cockroach crawled across my foot. I jumped out of the shower threw my clothes on as fast as I could and decided I could go to bed dirty.

I woke up the next morning at 4:55 am and left Anin’s around 5:30 am to head to the AYC English Camp offices. We picked up the kids around 8 am and headed to Khorat to stay at  a resort. We didn’t do much on the way down, we stopped at a western themed amusement park, which was interesting and then we arrived at the hotel around 4pm. It started pouring rain so, I was on break until dinner. Then after dinner we just played a few games.

The next day I taught a lesson on volcanoes and the students all got to build volcanoes. Unfortunately the students are sixteen and seventeen years old and the teachers didn’t care what their volcanoes looked like so they ended up just building a ton of giant genitalia. Yeah, that’s Thailand for ya, where the kids get away with the craziest stuff. Then we exploded the volcanoes… yeahh that was graphic, played some games at some dinner, had a party and then I was heading back to bed, when all these girls started freaking out. Some one had taken all the girls underwear and bras that had been drying on the balcony’s. Of course this freaked out everyone because there was a potential pervert nearby, but it wasn’t my problem to deal with so I went to bed.

The next morning I woke up taught a lesson, played some games and we got on the bus and headed home. We stopped at this little Italian boutique village that was really pretty and had tons of vintage clothing and antiques, ( my favorite.) Unfortunately I was broke. Then when we arrived back in Bangkok at 5pm, I was tired, hot, hungry and in no way ready for a seven hour bus ride home. So I called Anin and asked if I could stay there again. She said sure. So I spent the night last night.

I woke up at 5:55am this morning and left Anin’s house at 6:30am. I took the bus at 7:50 am home and arrived a couple of hours ago. When I arrived I  found my bedroom covered in red ants. I was so  mad because I cleaned my room before I left on Wednesday night to assure this wouldn’t happen. I forgot that I left my suitcase with my granola bars in my room, that I was supposed to bring to Bangkok. So yeah, there goes my Birthday present…. Oh well.

Now I am off to the gym, to work off the Krispy Kreme Donut I picked up in Bangkok last night.

Xoxo Chantel <3

P.S. Everyone this is my 50th post J YEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH  so as a treat to all of you who have kept reading all this time. I will be posting five special posts this week.  So keep a look out for these SPECIAL POSTS!!!

BANGKOK BOUND AGAIN!!!

Guess what? In two days I head back to Bangkok. Now I posted last Friday about how I was leaving on Saturday morning at six am to go to Bangkok and I did, so here I am to tell you about last weekend.

So I woke up bright and early at 5:40 am to go to meet my councilor at my school at 6am. I arrived promptly at 6am and no one was there. Around 6:20am my councilor arrived and around 7:20am all the students and teachers had arrived and we were able to leave. We drove to Bangkok in about 5 and a half hours and made three stops to eat along the way. The weird part is I have been to Bangkok five times and every other time has taken me 7-8 hours. I honestly don’t want to know what speed we drove down there at.

We arrived in Bangkok around 12, then took about an hour to find a place to park. My councilor brought me to the Grand Palace and to Wat Phra Kaeo. The Grand Palace Interior was closed and  my councilor was to hot to walk around so I wandered around quickly and took some pictures, but it is so beautiful, I want to go back next week some time and just sit and sketch or something.

Next after sitting and drinking water and coconut on the side walk for an hour, we went to Wat Pho, the temple where the Famous RECLINING BUDDHA resides. The weird thing is if you ask Thai people about Wat Pho they just mention how they give really good massages here, they say nothing and some don’t even know ( like my councilor) about the FREAKING GIANT BUDDHA!!  Thailand is so strange. Next we took a ferry across the river the Wat Somethingorother and I climbed up the bazillion steep steps in a floor length skirt with a 20 some odd pound backpack in 90+ degree weather. Yeah, about that… I did however get to sign my name in both Thai and English at the top on a big gold banner. Then I very carefully and slowly hiked back down.

Next we took a river taxi to a random pier where we then caught a taxi to Siam Paragon. My friends Melissa and Alejandro were in Bangkok that night, so I met up with them at Siam Paragon and we went out for dinner then down to Khao San Road. I am sure I have talked about Khao San Road a ton but honestly, I love it there. During the day it sells like hippy clothing, used books and travel equipment. Down little allies you can find youth hostels or Thai people selling the coolest things. Then at night it completely switches and almost magically food vendors appear from everywhere. The road is closed down and tables are set up on the side walks with people selling drinks for super cheap. There are night clubs in every basement , street performers and people are everywhere. Khao San is notorious for backpackers and the younger crowd, but  you can find people of all age and rank there. Its really quite the spot.

I spent the night at one of our friend’s Host Brothers Condos and woke up early the next morning to go to J.J. Market. J.J. Market is this 36 acre, hot as hell and crazy as it too giant market, that sells honest too god everything. I spent all morning there sweating like crazy and trying to find my way around. I ended up only seeing a  tiny a bit of the market because I got so lost and just kept making circles. That was no problem though because every time around I would spot something new. I bought 7 pairs of dangly earrings for three dollars!! Isn’t that crazy and I bought a long Maxi Dress to wear to temple for nine dollars! Around 2 I met up with my councilor and we went home arriving around 10 pm.

On Thursday I head back up to Bangkok for at least 2 weeks and at the most 4 weeks. I am volunteering at an English Camp in Khorat from the 2-4 and then another camp from the 12-14. My friend Ashlee is hopefully going to come and visit around Bangkok with me for a week or two and do the second camp with me, but as usual Rotary is doing the least Possible to make this easy on us.  We keep telling them like you need to talk to each other, but they are like no, make so and so call me, or yes I will call them later, but it is later. So we will keep trying but who knows.

I have a busy day planned for tomorrow, I have to make a student card at Phadungnaree school, meet with my councillor at Sarakham Pittyakom School, go to my second host families house and see if my packages have arrived, go to the mall to buy a new reusable water bottle and I want to visit the new café in town for lunch. Try doing this much running around in 90+ degree heat with out a car…. Yep, welcome to my life!

Xoxo Chantel <3

P.S. I added 29 new photos on my Tumblr, check them out. Also, let me know how you viewing my pictures on Tumblr is working. If you are having any problems or find it a hassle.

http://132daysofadventure.tumblr.com/

Love/Hate

My love/hate relationship with Thailand.

I know I posted in my last post about how my exchange in Thailand has been quite difficult for me and I honestly go from having one of the worst days in my life to the best and it’s a very hard cycle to deal with. After having a particularly good weekend in Bangkok, I am back in Maha Sarakham with good vibes all around. While in a good mood I decided to share with you exactly why  Thailand and I have this love/hate relationship.

How My Mind feels about Thailand:

Love: In my mind, I love Thailand. I love how laid back of a country it is and I love the way it has changed  me and helped me to become a different person. I love that  Thailand and these times will always be in my memories, to revisit. I love that I am strong enough to be here and to go through all this.

Hate: CULTURE!! Gosh, I know it is a cultural exchange and I guess I just assumed I would like the culture but boy, was I wrong. The culture and societies norms drive me mad. Everyday the culture questions my morals and makes me feel down right uncomfortable. I hate that Thailand is still highly gender bias, I hate  that Thailand considers you a child until you have graduated from university or wed. I hate that they don’t think the same way we do, they are very closed minded and it drives me mad.

How My Body feels Thailand:

Love: I love how my skin is so tan and healthy. I love how my hair is so light. I love how I get to wear shorts and t-shirts everyday, soaking up the heat. I love the way my body feels after snacking on delicious fruit instead of junk food.  I love how you can always go for long walks because the weather is always nice.

Hate: I hate how I have to take diarrhea meds almost daily. I hate how I have to take allergy meds daily. I hate how I do not get enough sleep. I hate how the pollution in the air causes acne. I hate how even a trip to the end of the drive way will turn your feet black from all the dirt and dust. I hate how I am constantly covered in mosquito bites and have become more reactive to them and swell up like a balloon.

How My Eyes see Thailand:

Love: I love how everyday its sunny with bluebird skies. I love how my eyes are constantly observing new things. I love how there is always a palm tree or tropical flower and sight. I love how you can always see massive butterflies. I love being able to watch people from all different walks of life live a life very different than my own.

Hate: I hate how there is garbage every where. I hate how old fat Thai men walk around with the shirt pulled up so that their belly’s hang out. I hate how people watch me with blatant disregard to boundaries. I hate how dirty everything is.

How My Ears hear Thailand:

Love: I love the sound of Body Slam, the only ok Thai Band. I love the sound of the very rare but beloved Silence.

Hate: Thailand is a very loud country with no noise by-laws and I hate it. I hate the sounds of roosters in the morning. I hate the sound of  the trucks that place announcement extremely loud and drive around streets regardless of the hours. I hate how Thai girls talk at an impossibly high decibel. Don’t even get me started on most Thai music.

How My Nose smells Thailand:

Love: I love the smell of the food. I love the smell of the flowers. I love the smell of the shops.
Hate: I hate when it randomly smells like sewage, and this happens a lot.

How My Mouth Tastes Thailand:

Love: I love chili!! I love fruit!! I love kow mon gai, chicken on oily rice!! I love kow neow mat muang, sticky rice, mangos and sweetened coconut milk!!! I love Tom Yum Goong. spicy chili shrimp soup!! I love kow pat, fried rice!! I love Som Tam, spicy papaya Salad!! I love saparot and gleu-a prique, pineapple and chili salt!! I love bahmi (Chinese noodle)!! I love gang keow wan, green curry!! I love  gang pet,  red curry!! I love gloo ay boo at chee, boiled bananas in coconut milk! I love glooay tort, fried banana  in batter!! I love Kai jee o, Thai omelet!! I love Kow lahm, sticky rice steamed inside bamboo!! I love tort man gung , fried shrimp cakes!!!

Hate:
I hate fish sauce!

That’s it for now.

Xoxo Chantel <3

Bangkok Bound

 Tomorrow, I am heading to Bangkok for the night with my councilor. Yeah 7 hours down, spend one night and return…. But hey, its something to do. My councilor told me she would try and bring me to THE GRAND PALACE and some temples. Plus I asked if we could go to this 30 some odd acre market. So hopefully, we make it there too.

Tomorrow I will wake up at six and go to the school to meet my councilor. Its currently around 10pm and I haven’t even packed! In my defense I have only been home for half an hour. Then I am supposed to go up to Bangkok from like the 2nd til the 26th of March. I have mixed feelings about this for three reasons.

THE THREE REASONS I HAVE MIXED FEELINGS ABOUT LIVING IN BANGKOK FOR A MONTH:

#1. Its expensive to live in Bangkok, really expensive.
#2. I JUST bought a gym membership because I have gained 20 pounds since coming here and this worries me. Plus Bangkok has soo much delicious food. How will I ever resist?
#3. That’s kinda a long time.

But you know me I have a solution to all of lifes little problems.

Solution #1:  DO NOT SHOP!
Solution# 2: YOU WILL HAVE NO MONEY TO BUY FOOD.
Solution # 3: Invite friends to join you.

The deciding factor is laying on the friends because I really dislike being in Bangkok with out friends because then boredom makes me break solutions 1 and 2.

I updated MORE pictures on Tumblr, here is the link. I will post about my weekend later.

http://132daysofadventure.tumblr.com/

And hey email me guys if you want a letter or something, because now would be the time to tell me!!

Xoxo Chantel <3

PICTURES

 Hey guys, so I know that now a days it is soo hard to keep up with all the social networking sites and trying to remember each sites individual use, well don't even get me started. i mean you have twitter, myspace, facebook, blogger, tumblr and email. It's enough to write a whole text book about.

Luckily for you I am doing my best to keep it all pretty simple, so I recently added pictures to my tumblr blog and I want you to see them.

Here is a link, please note it is to page 2 of the tumblr so start there and go forward to page one to see all the pictures.
http://132daysofadventure.tumblr.com/

Thanks guys I hope you enjoy!!

xoxo Chantel <3

I have not been run over by an elephant

Dear world,

According to my mother, all of my loyal readers assume that I have been kidnapped by sea gypsies or run over by an elephant when I do not post weekly. THAT IS NOT THE CASE! I am healthy, happy and enjoying my time in Thailand.

February has been a hard month for me. I had a new family, and was bored out of my mind. I was convinced my exchange was over and I wanted to go home. Thailand is a very DIFFICULT country to live in. This had taken its toll on me. Thanks to the help of my family, Rotary and ASHLEE ( a.k.a My savior who would meet me everyday and just talk with me,) I have been moved houses once again and Rotary helped get me involved in activities again.

First off I moved to a new family who is one of those pro/con situations. They have their very goods and their very bads.

Pro:
- Live near the gym, boxing arena and a pool.
Con:
-Live a fifteen minute bus ride from town.
Pro:
- I am allowed to attend my new host brothers school and make new friends.
Con:
-I am SUPPOSED to be on summer break.
Pro:
- My host mom speaks Thai to me.
Con:
- She also has crazy rules.
Pro:
- I go to boxing again three times a week.
Con:
- Ha there are no cons when it comes to boxing.
Pro:
- I have a big room!
Con:
-I am not allowed friends over.
Pro:
-I am on the bus route to Khon Kean
Con:
-My host mom is very protective and doesn’t like when I travel.

So, you know there is a good and bad to everything and I understand that now. Kinda like when I wanted to go home so bad, I made a pros and cons list. It looked like this.

Pro:
-See family and friends
-go to school again
-be in a lovely English speaking western country <3

Cons:
-Do not complete exchange
-No bragging rights ( I.E. Well, I lived in Thailand for ten months so HA!)
- Missing two trips.
- Missing spending time with exchange students who I may never see again.

There is good and bad to everything. The thing is to find the good and hold on to it.
Right now I am in the midst of trying to plan a trip down south, to help break up the next three and a half months. I am trying to go with three of my friends down to Koh Samui an island in the south of Thailand that is renown for its gorgeous beaches.

That’s it that is happening in my life.

Thanks for reading everyone, my mom tells me people actually read this blog and actually ask her about me. THAT’S AWESOME!

Xoxox Chantel <3

Khon Kean Night Market ( Adventure Two and Three)

So as you know if following my tumblr I planned to spend Saturday in Khon Kean with my friend Ashlee and then we were going to spend the night at Nick/ Mamma Kai's house and go to the night market.  So Saturday morning I wake up at 6:45 AM because I am so excited to go buy my new board. I realize the mall doesn't open til ten and my friends don't get up until noon, so I sit around for a while. At around 10:30, I start walking to the bus station.

My councillor pulls up witha  truck load of kids and tells me to get in.So I do. I tell her I am going to Khon Kean and she says oh so are we. Awesome, I have a ride, I think as we drive off.

Around 2:30pm after going to a restaurant and listening to thai kids sing karaoke for hours and then chant for an hour, I finally arrive at the mall in Khon Kean.

 I run over to the skate shop and buy my new board. YEAHH!!! Then I head home to Mamma Kai's to meet up with Nick. When I arrive my friends Melissa and Alejandro are already there and ask me if I want to try and audition for Thailand's Got Talent. I agreed and  we headed up to Mamma Kai's studio to take some cover shots for our registration. This resulted in a hilarious photo shoot involving four crazy farangs and a purple feather background.

One our pictures were taken, we headed over to the hotel where the auditions were taking place to register. Unfortunately, you have  to be a Thai citizen. We found this really upsetting and had my friend Nick fake cry and ever thing but they still rejected us.

Nick and I met up with our friends Emo and Ashlee and headed over to the mall for a delicious and expensive american style dinner at this amazing restaurant called Sizzler. For 179 baht, you can order the salad bar and they have a bunch of different salads, fruits and vegetables, pasta, soups and desert. This is also the cheapest item on the menu. Did I mention its all you can eat? Yeah well we ate til we felt sick, then waited a bit then ate more. After that we headed down to Starbucks for our comfort food and their lovely plush sofa's. 

Around seven Ashlee and I headed to the night market, and the boys headed home. The night market in Khon Kean is awesome. They have so many vintage and antique sellers and its sooo cheap. Unfortunately, after my new board and expensive dinner, I was broke. I did have enough to buy a new scarf though.

We were lucky because for some reason they had this special feature called Art Lane which featured all the local artisans work. IT WAS AWESOME! The art was so good and the people were just good vibe people, ya know. It was like the Thai hippies and hipsters, a fun crowd I must say. All along the road they had different area's set up to try different art forms.

 Once, we finished checking out the art, Ashlee and I sat and watched the local break dancers perform a bit before heading home to Mamma Kai's.

 We put on our P.J's and apparently, I fell asleep within the first five minutes of Mean Girls.

This morning we woke up around 10am and skyped some of Ashlee's friends. Around 1pm we all headed back to Sizzler's for some more salad and soup. I had a genius moment when I figured mixing the kidney beans from the salad part with the spaghetti sauce and sprinkling a little cheese on top makes  chili.  It was awesome because the waiters brought us extra cheese bread and then didn't charge us, which is good because we didn't order it and just had enough to pay for what we ordered. 

After we went outside to soak up the sun and try out my new board. OOOOOOOOOooooooOOOOOOoooo that board is my new best friend. I named it Fitzgerald and he rides amazingly. I wish you could have seen the reactions I was getting as I rode past all these people on my board. First off, skateboarding isn't very common in Thailand, Long boarding is basically unheard off and girls  just would never do such a thing. Then there is this strange young farang cruising in and out of people on this weird looking skateboard. Aha I loved it. People usually stare but now at least they had a reason.

We were supposed to spend tonight at Nick's again but I guess there was a miscommunication which resulted on me having to leave Mamma Kai's abruptly with 5 minutes to catch the last bus to Sarakham. I did catch it and am now home safe and sound.

Tomorrow's adventure: Go LONG BOARDING :D

xoxoxo Chantel <3

132 days of Adventure

 Ok here is the link. Right now the blog SUCKS because I haven't been on any of my 132 adventures. Bookmark it or something. Thanks guys.

http://132daysofadventure.tumblr.com/

xoxox Chantel <3

Dancing Queen, young and sweet, only SEVENTEEN

 Wow, guess who’s SEVENTEEN. ME!! Feel free to express post me a cane and dentures, because damn, that’s old. I had an amazing weekend. My three bestest friends in Thailand came down to my small town of Maha Sarakham on the Friday before my birthday. We had such a wonderful time, just because we were together. We ate a delicious western lunch at this restaurant, I am always to cheap to buy anything but a drink at and then went back to my house. We just talked and chilled in my room until around  7pm when my family made us leave and go to the fair, because they were going out for dinner. So we attended this giant red cross fundraiser/market/fair/carnival/concert thing in my town. It was alright but basically you just had to buy things and well exchange students are broke. So we went and watched a Thai show which was cool for about five minutes until we realized it was just the same girl singing in Thai so we left and walked home. We went to seven eleven and loaded up on junk food then went home and stayed up all night talking. IT WAS SOOO NORMAL!

The next day we headed down to Khon Kean a city about 45 minutes away from Maha Sarakham, to meet up with friends and go out for some more delicious food. We hung out and went to Shabu-shi. Shabu -Shi is this restaurant where you have a hot shabu pot in the middle of your table with two types of soup broth and there is a conveyor belt that encircles the restaurant passing by every table with raw ingredients on it. You grab the ingredients and cook them in your soup broth. They also have a sushi bar and an ice-cream bar. I am not going to lie it is my favorite chain restaurant in Thailand. It is also one of the most expensive, 300 baht. Now for comparison an average Thai dinner from a street vendor cost 30 baht, and average Thai dinner from a Thai restaurant 100 baht. So, yeah quite the difference, but it is sooo worth it.

After that Jacquie, Annie and I headed back to Maha Sarakham and my friend Ashlee headed home. When we got home we had a delicious normal pizza. ( normal pizza is a rare commodity in Thailand because Thai people always put very strange things on their pizza like hot dogs, shrimp corn, mayonnaise, ketchup, yeahh…) Then once again we had a very normal western teenager night of lying around eating junk food in bed while talking about random things.

Well, we didn’t talk about that random of topics, it was rather predictable. We talked about how it is so insane that our exchange is over half over. We talked about how the next two months are going to be hard because we have no planned trips or exchange student get together and it is very lonely. We talked about how once we get to April, time will fly so fast with our two big trips. We talked about our worries for going home. How we are worried that our friends haven’t changed. We are worried that while we have all grown up so much, our friends will still be exactly the same. We talked about how excited we are to go home to those same friends anyways because we miss them like crazy. We talked about the first meal we want to eat when we get home and how nice it is going to be to have your own room again, with all of your stuff. We talked about how even though we are going home, we will leave soon again because this exchange has made us realize we want to travel the world.

The next day we woke up late and walked to the bus station and sent Annie and Jacquie home. I went home and went to sleep because I was exhausted. My host sister woke me up at seven saying we were having a party with my councilor and my other host parents. I was tired and kind of mad they didn’t tell me. But I got dressed and went down and smiled like a good exchange student. This was rather hard because they kept discussing, how they thought I was so homesick and how they thought I had gained so much weight. They were talking in Thai too, so they thought I couldn’t understand. This really hurt me, once I finally am starting to feel happy and content in Thailand they are convinced I am miserable and keep trying to change my life. They think there is something wrong with me. Then they go and call me fat, which is so hard to hear because I have gained weight, but I have been trying so hard to eat healthy and exercise but Thai people only feed me junk food because I am a guest.  I rarely eat fruit or vegetables, not by choice, but because my family doesn’t buy them. It’s such a double standard. They call me fat, then bring me boxes and boxes of cookies.  It really messes with your mind.

The last week has been rather bad, because that birthday party upset me a lot. I thought I was doing so well, I thought I had adapted and created quite a good life for me and then I find out I am doing it wrong I guess. Host families are so complicated, especially in Thailand because they don’t treat you like family. They honestly have no idea how to treat you because their culture sees foreigners as like a whole different species. We are all just human, I do all the same things as your sixteen year old daughter. I do homework, I watch TV, I exercise, I play on face book and I sleep. There is nothing wrong with that. I am trying to live my life as normal as I can here, and it is really hard when my family treats me like I am some explosive mess. They tiptoe around waiting for me to break. They expect me to fail and to be homesick. I don’t like that feeling. I really don’t.

So, my friend Ashlee and I are meeting up in Khan Kean tomorrow to go eat some healthy  vegetarian food, walk around a lot and plan a trip for the end of this month down to the coast to visit all of our friends down there. I also decided this is only going to get better if I make it better. I decided to challenge myself to an adventure a day. That is 132 adventures, and I made a tumblr to blog about it so you can follow progress, if you want. If you are wondering why I don’t just blog it on here, Tumblr is wayyy easier to use for picture uploads than blogger.

That is all for now.

Xerox Chantel <3

P.S. Email me what you would do if you had a day in Thailand. Seriously, all of my family and friends just write me a quick email and I will try to do it.

GOAL!!!!

 Yeahh so we went back to Bangkok for a few days, three to be exact and shopped a lot, ate a lot of good non-Thai food and met up with some exchange student friends. Two girls from my district were also down in Bangkok to go say good bye to one of my friend’s Ben, who has chosen to go home early. We all went to the airport to say goodbye.

This was really hard for me because that thought of going home is so abstract. In some ways I want to go home sooo bad. I miss my family, friends… MY LIFE!! But the thought of having my life flipped again is also scary. I have adjusted to life here, I have learned how to love living here, yet in NOT VERY LONG, I will be going home. Home to a life where I have to work, go to school, clean and I can’t just be crazy because I am an exchange student. I have to go back to REALITY and really who wants that.

I see it as, I have about five months left in Thailand. For febuary and March I plan to stay around home, focus on working out, fostering a good relationship with this family and learning Thai. Then in April I have a huge trip up North with Rotary, and a trip in the middle of a month, makes that month pass quickly, trust me. Then in May, I have a trip down East and to Bangkok with Rotary, which will also make that month pass so quickly. Then June will be my last month, making it go by quick just because its my last month. I still don’t know when I am going home, so it could be even sooner than that, all I know is I have to be out of Thailand by June 29th. It’s insane to think that, I am half done this experience in my life.

On the plus side seeing a friend go home, really made me want to make the most of my time here. So I have established some goals to focus on for the next two months.

Goal #1: Exercise Daily and lose that little bit of exchange weight, that appeared out of no where.
Goal #2: Finish my Intro to Anthropology, Pyschology and Sociology Course.
Goal #3: Perfect my Thai Cooking.
Goal #4: Learn THAI.

So, I have a busy two months ahead of me, focusing on personal improvement and well-being. I figure when else in life will I have two months of complete free-time… never, so I better take advantage of it.

Oh yeah and maybe for Goal #5, I will update my Blog more often.

Xoxo Chantel <3

I AM TRYING TO POST I SWEAR !!!!

 So yesterday marked the half way point of my exchange.  It’s crazy isn’t it. A lot has happened in these past five months. Some of it good, some of it bad but all of it amazing and life changing. I have learned to adjust and to go with the flow. I have learned the value of family. The importance of finding yourself within a healthy loving  family and the importance of always fostering the relationship you have with your natural family. I have learned that a day is long, but a week is short. I have learned that nothing is going to change unless I make it change. I have learned how to stand on my own two feet and live independently. Lastly, and I think the biggest thing I have learned is the value of taking care of yourself and loving yourself.

The last post I left off in preparation for Christmas Eve. I was worried about celebrating the holidays in Thailand because they don’t celebrate Christmas but they still cash in on the phenomenon by encouraging shoppers to buy gifts by putting Christmas trees up in the malls. I however had a wonderfully unique Christmas and couldn’t be happier about how I spent it.

I went down to Khon Kean around lunch time on Christmas eve with my arms full of bags filled with pies, cookies and devilled eggs. When I arrived all of the exchange students met up at Mama Kai’s shop. Mama Kai is a  host mom in Khon Kean who let’s us all hang out at her  house. She is a wonderful lady who treats each of us like her own child. Everyone had  brought a little something. We had pudding, eggnog, spaghetti, pancakes ( with real CANADIAN maple syrup), and lots of sweets. We ate a little bit before heading out to a Christmas party thrown by the Rotarians. When we arrived there wasn’t much to do, so me and my friend went and found the Kareoke Machine and managed the tell the guy to play English songs. The exchange students alternated all night long singing cheesy  songs. We had a delicious dinner and a gift exchange with the thai adults who were there. This resulted in us receiving some strange gifts like wall clocks and photo albums and the thai people receiving gifts like cookies and nutella. I ended up with a white and pink Hello Kitty purse, but being not so fond of Hello Kitty I traded with my friend for a plush dog with antlers. After Dinner  my friends melissa, Nick, Emo and I headed back to Mama Kai’s for a Christmas Eve sleepover. We sat downstairs and ate our pies out of the pan before heading up to bed.

I woke up the next morning to find out the Melissa and Nick had to go to a few provinces over for breakfast leaving me and Emo with nothing to do on Christmas. After Mama Kai invited me to go out for Christmas/birthday dinner with them and stay the night again, Emo and I decided to go visit my friend who lives alone in a village about an hour outside of Khon Kean. We went down to the bus station and just hopped on a bus to Chumphae, with out telling my friend. We arrived there and took a tuktuk to her house to visit for a bit before heading home, for Christmas dinner. I spent the night at mama Kai’s again before heading home to Maha Sarakham.

 Not much happened between then and New Years Eve. On New Year’s Eve I headed back down to Khon Kean to celebrate with my friends. When I arrived, I met up with my friends Emo, Nick and LJ. The guys decided they wanted to get their ears pierced so we hiked around the city in attempt to find a place that would peirce ears. After finding a place in a nearby mall the guys all braced themselves for this “traumatic experience.” You had to be there they sat in a row holding each others hands bracing themselves for the exetreme pain. It was hilarious. The place charged you for the earring not the piercing so, I figured  I might as well take advantage of the 60 cent price tag and get my ears pierced for a third time. Also it was fun to rub in the guys face how nonchalant I was about it

We went back to Mama Kai’s to shower and get ready for our night out. We went out for a quick dinner, then came home and just had a bowl of cereal because dinner was gross. Then we walked over to the big celebration. There was a big concert and according to the t-shirts sold every where 200,000 people celebrating with us. We hung out at the mall’s beer garden with the Khon Kean Rotarians until the countdown. After that we headed out to find a club to go to. We went to a smaller less known one so that it would be less crowded…. It was still packed. We danced for a bit then headed home. All the Khon Kean kids and LJ were heading to Bangkok to the next morning at 8 am, but I had permission to stay and sleep in at Mama Kai’s and to just have the maid’s let me out. So I slept in til around noon then headed home by bus.

 On January fifth, I switched host families. My new host family lives in town and is wonderful. Our house is beautiful, we get English TV channels and I have air conditioning in my room. Honestly, what more could you ask for? My dad is a Police Officer,  my host mom works in an office and I have a host sister named, Beauty, who is a year younger than me. She went to the United States  for an exchange last year. She speaks perfect English but the rest of my family only speaks Thai, which is great because I will HAVE to learn Thai.

 The morning after I moved into my new house I headed down to Bangkok to teach at an English Camp. Unfortunately, I ate some meat on the way down and got sick when I arrived. So I stayed for two nights and one day before heading back to Maha Sarakham, still sick.

I then headed back to Bangkok on the twelfth with my friend Melissa to teach at another camp. We left Bangkok at midnight on the twelfth a few hours after we arrived and drove three hours south to a small town called Hua Hin. We stayed on a resort for the three days we taught at the English camp. It was a lot more fun doing it with someone else. It gave me someone to hang out with in the off time.

Then on the fifteenth we headed back to Bangkok for a few days.

More to come VERY SOOON

I AM TRYING TO POST I SWEAR !!!!

 So yesterday marked the half way point of my exchange.  It’s crazy isn’t it. A lot has happened in these past five months. Some of it good, some of it bad but all of it amazing and life changing. I have learned to adjust and to go with the flow. I have learned the value of family. The importance of finding yourself within a healthy loving  family and the importance of always fostering the relationship you have with your natural family. I have learned that a day is long, but a week is short. I have learned that nothing is going to change unless I make it change. I have learned how to stand on my own two feet and live independently. Lastly, and I think the biggest thing I have learned is the value of taking care of yourself and loving yourself.

The last post I left off in preparation for Christmas Eve. I was worried about celebrating the holidays in Thailand because they don’t celebrate Christmas but they still cash in on the phenomenon by encouraging shoppers to buy gifts by putting Christmas trees up in the malls. I however had a wonderfully unique Christmas and couldn’t be happier about how I spent it.

I went down to Khon Kean around lunch time on Christmas eve with my arms full of bags filled with pies, cookies and devilled eggs. When I arrived all of the exchange students met up at Mama Kai’s shop. Mama Kai is a  host mom in Khon Kean who let’s us all hang out at her  house. She is a wonderful lady who treats each of us like her own child. Everyone had  brought a little something. We had pudding, eggnog, spaghetti, pancakes ( with real CANADIAN maple syrup), and lots of sweets. We ate a little bit before heading out to a Christmas party thrown by the Rotarians. When we arrived there wasn’t much to do, so me and my friend went and found the Kareoke Machine and managed the tell the guy to play English songs. The exchange students alternated all night long singing cheesy  songs. We had a delicious dinner and a gift exchange with the thai adults who were there. This resulted in us receiving some strange gifts like wall clocks and photo albums and the thai people receiving gifts like cookies and nutella. I ended up with a white and pink Hello Kitty purse, but being not so fond of Hello Kitty I traded with my friend for a plush dog with antlers. After Dinner  my friends melissa, Nick, Emo and I headed back to Mama Kai’s for a Christmas Eve sleepover. We sat downstairs and ate our pies out of the pan before heading up to bed.

I woke up the next morning to find out the Melissa and Nick had to go to a few provinces over for breakfast leaving me and Emo with nothing to do on Christmas. After Mama Kai invited me to go out for Christmas/birthday dinner with them and stay the night again, Emo and I decided to go visit my friend who lives alone in a village about an hour outside of Khon Kean. We went down to the bus station and just hopped on a bus to Chumphae, with out telling my friend. We arrived there and took a tuktuk to her house to visit for a bit before heading home, for Christmas dinner. I spent the night at mama Kai’s again before heading home to Maha Sarakham.

 Not much happened between then and New Years Eve. On New Year’s Eve I headed back down to Khon Kean to celebrate with my friends. When I arrived, I met up with my friends Emo, Nick and LJ. The guys decided they wanted to get their ears pierced so we hiked around the city in attempt to find a place that would peirce ears. After finding a place in a nearby mall the guys all braced themselves for this “traumatic experience.” You had to be there they sat in a row holding each others hands bracing themselves for the exetreme pain. It was hilarious. The place charged you for the earring not the piercing so, I figured  I might as well take advantage of the 60 cent price tag and get my ears pierced for a third time. Also it was fun to rub in the guys face how nonchalant I was about it

We went back to Mama Kai’s to shower and get ready for our night out. We went out for a quick dinner, then came home and just had a bowl of cereal because dinner was gross. Then we walked over to the big celebration. There was a big concert and according to the t-shirts sold every where 200,000 people celebrating with us. We hung out at the mall’s beer garden with the Khon Kean Rotarians until the countdown. After that we headed out to find a club to go to. We went to a smaller less known one so that it would be less crowded…. It was still packed. We danced for a bit then headed home. All the Khon Kean kids and LJ were heading to Bangkok to the next morning at 8 am, but I had permission to stay and sleep in at Mama Kai’s and to just have the maid’s let me out. So I slept in til around noon then headed home by bus.

 On January fifth, I switched host families. My new host family lives in town and is wonderful. Our house is beautiful, we get English TV channels and I have air conditioning in my room. Honestly, what more could you ask for? My dad is a Police Officer,  my host mom works in an office and I have a host sister named, Beauty, who is a year younger than me. She went to the United States  for an exchange last year. She speaks perfect English but the rest of my family only speaks Thai, which is great because I will HAVE to learn Thai.

 The morning after I moved into my new house I headed down to Bangkok to teach at an English Camp. Unfortunately, I ate some meat on the way down and got sick when I arrived. So I stayed for two nights and one day before heading back to Maha Sarakham, still sick.

I then headed back to Bangkok on the twelfth with my friend Melissa to teach at another camp. We left Bangkok at midnight on the twelfth a few hours after we arrived and drove three hours south to a small town called Hua Hin. We stayed on a resort for the three days we taught at the English camp. It was a lot more fun doing it with someone else. It gave me someone to hang out with in the off time.

Then on the fifteenth we headed back to Bangkok for a few days.

More to come VERY SOOON