Picture a day August 19

Stopped in here this evening to run an errand with a friend. Some things are just global/universal :) 

Picture a day August 18

This a quiet back street near my apartment. Bangkok is a giant labyrinth of these narrow streets, and this is where life really happens. Some are full of small humble shops and food vendors, this one is every residential- though if you look in the distance there is a nice pack of soi (street) dogs. I always think of picture for this project when I do down these streets because there are so many interesting things, but since I am always in I the back of a taxi or zipping by on a moto I don't have a chance to take pictures. I got this one when the taxi had to stop to let oncoming traffic pass, and we happened to be passing this soi in my side of the car. 

Picture a day August 17

Getting started at Nak Suu this morning- at this point we were missing one load of kids who arrived late, so even though there weren't many there when this was taken, we ended up with a decent number once we really got into it. I taught a short English lesson about weather words. We talked about the weather and played Pictionary. It was fun and they were even reasonably attentive! I also actually joined in the rugby today. They are working with the older girls to form a ladies touch team so I decided to join them instead of just watching/trying to help out. I don't think I will actually play on the team though, in part because I am on a steep learning curve with the rules and regs of rugby, and in part because my fitness level isn't up to it. The running drills today really kicked my butt. I would have quit if I wasn't trying to be an example to the girls! 

Picture a day August 16

This isn't the best example ever of Thai double parking, but it works. Usually the vertical row of cars would be against a curb, or in a parking garage, or something more pinned in. These cars could pull out easily, but just because you can't, doesn't mean someone isn't going to park horizontally right smack in front of you, parking you in. The trick is, if you park horizontally, you put the car in neutral. Most lots, like this one at my apartment building, have guards/attendants who will help you push the cars and slide them out of the way so you can get out. I've seen it done- not convenient, but it works. And it's actually quite common. 

Picture of the day August 15

My small neighborhood is blessed to be the home of three minimarts- there are entire weeks that I subsist off of what I can get at these places. Each has items that overlap and items that are unique. One of the stores has this small fruit section where I can get a package of pomelo, a grapefruit like citrus. It's sweeter than grapefruit, and easier to eat if you buy it peeled like I do. They often have mango as well, and as you can see, that even had dragon fruit today (the white fruit with black seeds in the back). 

Picture of the day August 14

This is an intersection I pass through regularly, and it always amazes me.  Though its quiet in this moment, that is rare, and it has no traffic light, no stop signs, no yield, nothing. Like any neighborhood intersection here (or in Buenos Aires, for that matter) the traffic rule seems to be "slow down a tad and look". I think in Bs As at least, there was an unwritten rule a bit more complicated than that, but that was the gist of it. 

The beat goes on...

Well, school is up and running with five days under our belt. Long enough to start to make some observations about my new kiddos and start to settle into a bit of a routine. I enjoy routine, and so far enjoy the kiddos as well. I do not enjoy the alarm clock going off at 5am, but soon I'll adjust to that too, and it won't feel so much like the middle of the night. 

Every year at ICS is different- new colleagues, shifts in friends and relationships.  I'm not a big fan of all the change, but at least it keeps me from getting bored. Sometimes I wonder if I would ever survive at a "normal" school where I work with essentially the same people year after year. Example: the entire sixth grade team has changed over since I got here, including the PE, art, Bible, Mandarin, and some music teachers- and the principal! The Thai teachers are the same, and the computer teacher. And me, of course. It keeps life interesting, even if it does mean I have to renegotiate the social landscape on an annual basis. 

Rainy season is in full swing, as witnessed by today's photo of the day. I don't leave home without an umbrella and enjoy the looming gray sky that settles over the city many evenings, but other than that rainy season doesn't really affect me much. Watch me now get totally soaked while I am out tomorrow evening and completely regret that last sentence... 

Yesterday was Mother's Day in Thailand, and also a holiday. It made me wonder though, if I had school age children, is it really a holiday if they all stay home? I heard once that when the kids are young, the perfect Mother's Day is for all the children to be OUT all day, and then when they grow up the perfect day is for them all to be there at the same time. I can definitely see that! I don't think there are many things my mom enjoys more than all her kids in one place at one time. Happy Mother's Day, Mom!