Orientation in Bangkok

Wow this has been a busy, tiring, overwhelming and exhilarating week!  For my first week in Thailand I have been at Orientation for the program I am doing (CIEE/OEG).  We have all been staying at the same hotel, the Louis Tavern Hotel (wait am I back in America) and attending different sessions and classes before we go off to out schools.  We have teacher training, Thai language lessons, info about the Thai Education system,  Thai culture class, visa and permit info and ALL DAY! Like from 8-6! That is a lot of information to pack into my tired brain! I have learned a lot of interesting stuff though! Did you know that Bangkok isn’t called Bangkok here? It’s called Krung Thep, but this is just the nickname! Bangkok has the longest city name in the world and here it goes...

Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Phiman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit.  

Can you imagine that on a street sign??

Also Thais LOVE their King.  It is King Rama IV and there are pictures of him everywhere! Big ones, small ones, travel sized. I could definitely pick him out of a line up already.  He is the longest reigning monarch in the world at 66 years, was born in Boston, (Whaddup Kel?!) and he plays jazz music and even played with Elvis.  Preeety cool.  

Some more fun facts!

-Thailand has more 7/11’s than any place in the world COMBINED.  There are three on our tiny street alone! 

-Thailand is called the “Land of Freedom” because they have never been colonized before.

-There are 10 Asian countries who are trying to combine into an ASEAN Community similar to the European Union.  (Association of South East Asian Nations) These countries are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam, and Thailand! They would all have the same currency and English would be the common language.  Their goal is to have this all ironed out by 2015, so watch out for it!

-Thailand is 95% Buddhist, 2.5% Muslim and 1.5% Christian and 1% Other.  There are Monks walking around everywhere, it’s is really awesome.  There are these meditation retreats you can do for 10 days where you go to a Buddhist Temple and you can’t talk the whole time and you eat two meals a day and it is supposed to be really hard but really rewarding.  I am putting it on my to do list!

-555 means Lol or haha and “mai pen rai” is a popular phrase to mean “no worries!” 

I have been trying to fit a lot of Bangkok in this week because I will be so far away from it but we have been pretty busy! We have been going out and trying lots of different street foods and I have learned the phrases mai phet (no spice) or phet nidnoi (little spice) pretty well!  

On Monday a couple of us went to a mall here and it was SO BIG! We heard later it wasn’t even the HUGE one in Bangkok! I saw a coldstone, McDonalds, Auntie Anne’s and a couple other American places.  I know that when I get home sick I can just go there and get regular sick on those yummy foods to remind me of home :-)

Tuesday we took a field trip and went to the Grand Palace! It is so incredibly beautiful! I don’t even know how to describe it.  Here are some pictures to show you! 

 I haven't really been out in the day time yet and it was so incredibly HOT. I have never experienced anything like it.  One girl fainted! Yeah it was that hot. CIEE/OEG set us up with some tour guides and they took us around and gave us lots of interesting tidbits.  That night the company took us out to dinner and show where we saw traditional Thai dancing and puppets! It was pretty funny and entertaining and I ate a chicken foot. That was disgusting.  

        

On Wednesday we were finished at 5 so my roommate, Lauren, and I went and got a traditional Thai massage!  It was really fun and like no other massage I have ever had before!  They get on the table with you and are basically pulling and bending you into different yoga positions.  I think I liked it though...and it was $6 for an hour! And they gave us tea afterwards! I am going to become spoiled here.  

 After that, we got these really yummy crepe things with bananas and condensed milk and sugar on top! SO GOOD! I think it was called loki? I also bought some durian, this is the really smelly fruit that they won’t let you bring into hotels cuz it has such a bad smell.  Like really gross.  I tried it and it was pretty good, but I had to bring the garbage down so it didn’t stink up the whole room...We changed got other people and headed over to the famous and touristy Khao San Road.  It was pretty cool but definitely a  you go once and you’re good kinda place.  I got some fake ray bans and repeated the phrase “mai ow” (don’t want!) so much it started to sound like meoowww! I also ate a cricket but couldn't choke down a cockroach just yet, give me a few months! It was really crunchy and pokey and gross.  Theeeen we took a tuk tuk over to Muay Thai boxing! This was so cool.  I am more for peace (lol) but just watching all of the different people chanting and the boxers had all of these Buddhist rituals before, during and after the fights.  It was intense and brutal but I am very glad I saw it.  

Now I am packing up because we are heading off to Kanchanaburi for the night where we will see the famous River Kwae, do some rafting, and RIDE ELEPHANTS!!!!!! I am so excited!  Then, we come back tomorrow and meet our school coordinators and they take us to our towns! Sorry that was a lot to fit in! Thanks to everyone who made it to the bottom! Love and miss you all!