Today, November 5, is the 6 month anniversary of me living in Thailand! Ah! Has it already been 6 months/Haven't I lived here forever?! Crazy.
Well we are almost 3 weeks into the second semester and I feel like I am at a different school!
Mel and I are obviously still here and the other two Filipino teachers, Coral and Cem, but now we have 8 new teachers! 5 from OEG, my friend from home, and a couple randoms, 555. I have known Kate since about third grade and was so excited when she decided to come teach with me! We also have an older man Ananda from America, and Manu, a girl from Germany, who I have know in Phrae for awhile.
The OEG people are from all over America. Leah is from Minnesota, Mimi is from Michigan, Brandon is from Pennsylvania, Kate (a second Kate!) is from North Carolina, and Amanda is from Connecticut. The OEGers all live about a 30 second bike ride away from Mel and me. It is definitely a different dynamic but I think it has been a fun change.
We now have an actual department at school! Teacher Eric is in charge of all of us and we even have an English room with real desks that are REALLY nice. The best part...it has A/C!!! It feels like I have a real job now, I'm not just playing anymore. Kinda scary. Because there are so many of us now, we each have a grade and some are teaching math and science. I teach 6th grade, seeing 6/3-7 two times a week and 6/1 and 6/2 (the special/smarter kids, their words not mine!) 5 times a week! It is so different! Teacher Eric gave me the rosters of all of my classes so I am slowly learning more of the kid's names. (I have a kid named Terd, so sad :-( ) They are giving me topics to teach the students so that they will pass this huge test in February and even gave me a book to teach from sometimes. I swear I am not in Thailand anymore.
Sunday was Parent/Teacher Day. They told us we would come to an assembly and then meet some parents. Easy enough! I have been to so many in America, I assumed it would be similar. Poor, naive Teacha Chelsea. Oh my lord. We got there at 9 and the assembly was an hour and a half long of the Director of the school talking in Thai the whole time, while we all had no idea what was happening. Then they made us all introduce ourselves to the parents. The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade teachers all had to stay until 12 and meet the parents and 4-6 had to come back at 1 and stay until 4. When we returned it was ANOTHER assembly for the older kid's parents! AH! Longest day ever and I didn't even meet parents. We later learned that the school is 1million baht in debt because parents haven't payed their tuition and so the director was telling them all about us and showing us off and telling them what our salaries were so that the parents would pay the school. Awkwarrrd.
A cool thing was that Mel and I got the school magazine and we are all over that thing! I feel like a mini celebrity. I feel so proud!
Happy 6 months to Thailand and me! I can't believe only 4 months are left...I don't want it to be over :-(
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