No Longer Exotic!

    Now, teaching here for the tenth year, which followed many previous trips to South East Asia, what once seemed exotic and unusual now seems familiar.  Streets clogged with small motorcycles, a variety of three wheeled contraptions, food stalls popping up the usual places with new ones grabbing available roadside space, temples old and new, livestock roaming the neighborhood, Muslim call to prayer,  Buddhist chanting from the temple, acres of historic ruins, spirit houses in the yards, dogs everywhere, but almost never a car horn honking, trucks slowly cruising the streets with loudspeakers blasting their wares. don't occasion a second glance.  Think about writing what is exotic about your neighborhood for somebody far away...what would you say?  Perhaps one just has to see it.
    Teaching is a bit like that, too.  In my tenth year. the epitome of routine.  It seems to go well, the hour flows, but, what once seemed strange is now routine.
    Four students teachers are spending Wednesdays at school and will be here full time next year.  Three of them reached out to me today, striking up conversation and working their English. Increasingly English is spoken at our teacher's lunch.  The 4th student teacher majored in English but has little interest in speaking with me.
   Made a foray to Tesco, the English supermarket, to do a little clothes shopping.  The reality of clothing size was brought home to me when I picked up some shorts marked extra large and saw they were 36" waist.  :)   Nevertheless I had some modest success.

Three year olds dressed up.

My school.

Student teachers in white shirts.