1/31/2019 Caring Bridge

A New Experience

Journal entry by Al Negstad — 47 minutes ago

    Perhaps I should have brought my dark suit, though, while most people were wearing black I didn't see any suits.  Met and I attended the funeral of Chang's mother.  Chang's family live at the end of our street and his wife keeps a convenience store.  Over the years I've had several interactions with Chang and his family including providing some financial help.
    At Met's suggestion we skipped the first part of the funeral which consisted of long chanting by a monk.  When we arrived there was large crowed gathered outside.  Several people, including Chang made remarks and Chang also sang a solo.  After the speeches we all processed past the casket and we were given paper lotus flowers to leave by the bier.  The casket was on a raised dais and the deceased picture was displayed.  As we exited the dais we were all presented with a new rice bowl, symbolic of the gift of life.  (This is a small excursis.  When I was first staying with this family I left some rice in my bowl at the end of the meal.  When Met was clearing the dishes she waii'd the rice (her hands together before her face with a bow).  Upon inquiry I learned she was apologizing to the rice for throwing it away.)  After processing by the casket the crowd disbursed.  Apparently the cremation will be at another time.
   On another subject, i.e., eating in Thailand; there is not much attention paid to eating while food is hot.  When I arrive at my school lunch the food awaiting me is often tepid at best.  Food often stands awhile before it is consumed.  They also like boiled sweet corn served cold!  Give me hot corn with much butter and salt.  Salt is almost never present among the condiments on the table.  If I request salt they bring soy sauce.
   On the subject of Waiing:  The older, more traditional Thai teachers always waii on first meeting during the day.  The younger staff just nod and say good morning.  There's a bench in front of school where I often sit waiting for things to begin.  This morning as I was sitting there a girl was chasing another girl on the sidewalk where the bench is placed.  Running at full tilt they screeched to a stop in front of me, politely waii'd me, and they raced off.

  There is a brief change of venue looming for this blog.  After teaching tomorrow (Friday) I'm doing my personal version of trains, planes and automobiles.  This should all lead me to Melbourne, Australia where I will visit a friend who teachers at the university.  After six nights there I will return to Thailand for two more weeks of teaching. Melbourne is four hours ahead of Thailand so seventeen hours ahead of Minneapolis.  I will continue blogging but obviously posting times will be different. 

Blessings,

Al

Pictures from the funeral.

 

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1/30/2019 Caring Bridge

Thai Life, Con't.

Journal entry by Al Negstad — a minute ago

Yesterday's post was partially about Thai eating patterns.  Met has opened a small shop, think single stall garage, from which she sells coffee and other convenience items.  To her surprise beer is a big seller.  However, the point I was going to make is, she likes to have the shop open from 7am until 7pm.  Because the shop is very near my school I ride with her as she goes to open the shop.  Today I arrived at school at 7:10, but school doesn't officially open until 8:00.  While waiting for school to begin I observed many students arriving carrying food from a food stand...I could tell because the food was in Styrofoam containers.  Their breakfast had been purchased from a food cart on the way to school.
      Eating at a restaurant, as a  opposed to at a food stall or taking home food from a cart, is a rare treat for "my" family.  Perhaps they never do it in my absence.  Frequently I will take them out for a meal.  Being the big spender that I am, the meal for 5, costs about $20.00...isn't that about what McDonalds would cost for 5?  Included would be 4, or 5, entrees and beverages.  They usually choose some form of seafood which includes huge freshwater crayfish....think 6, inches long.
      Mysteries abound.  First a little background information.  Buddhism is the predominant religion of Thailand, though there are many Muslim both at school and in the neighborhood.  Even though people are officially Buddhist that doesn't keep them from embracing some animist beliefs.  When they clear land to build a house they will build a "spirit house", a small structure of some sort, on the property.  This is to appease the spirits that were disturbed by the house construction.  Food and beverages will be placed in the spirit house daily to placate the spirits.  This is intended to keep the spirits satisfied so they will not bring bad luck.
    Now, to the mystery.  The house across the street had an elaborate spirit house that was even wired for electricity.  Perhaps six feet square, it was about three feet off the ground, and had many statues. It's gone!  Where it stood is bare ground.  Why?  Did the spirits raise havoc so the house was razed?  It's just one of many things I'll never know.

Blessings,

Al

Pictures: Met's shop, sunrise over the temple, making hay while the sun shines, compost pile.

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1/29/2019 Caring Bridge

More About Thai Life

Journal entry by Al Negstad — a minute ago

.Thailand is renown, both for its cuisine, and the presentation of the food.  Many Thai don't cook very much.  They either eat in food stalls, inexpensive restaurants or bring prepared food home from the stands, which are ubiquitous.  As I was on the way to school this morning I saw a father and daughter, she was in her school uniform, dismount their motorbike and go to a food stall for breakfast. Many such meals cost less than a dollar.  Here at the house, Met, will sometimes cook breakfast and other times take her motorbike to a food stand to buy it.  I love her omelettes and they tease me about my willingness to eat them everyday.  Then I remind them that they are happy to eat rice three times a day.  The rice cooker is on 24/7 so there is always hot rice available.  Enter a Thai grocery store and you will find a huge section of many different kinds of rice and a tiny shelf of bread. 
       Much Thai food as served is very bland and the flavor is supplied by the condiments on the table.  Thai have a high tolerance for spice and much of the food is incredibly spicy.  Nice, the two and half year old boy in the house, likes very spicy food.  Nature or nurture?  It seems the hotter the climate the spicier the food.
      Go, the nickname of the school principal, is very interested in conservation.  When she first came to Wat Klang School two years ago she had a sizable compost structure built.  Now it is producing, good black soil.  Often the 6th grade boys are working on the compost during opening exercises.  The school yard was mowed yesterday and the boys raked up the grass, with brooms, and put it on the compost pile.  The compost soil is used it improve the flower beds and other plantings.
      During my break today the 5th grade teacher was in the break room.  When I asked who was with her students the principal replied that they were working on compost.  It's not at all unusual to see students moving around the building during classes.  Teachers often leave their rooms unattended for significant periods of time.  One day when I was teaching the 4th grade as a   group the teacher walked over to one of the students an engaged them in some project.  When teachers are present with me and I ask the students a question the teacher will blurt out the answer.  Now I have enough credibility to ask them not to do it.
    So goes life in Thailand.  Tonight I was able to present the gift to the man whose mother was hospitalized and since has died.  We caught up with him at the temple where her mother is memorialized.

Blessings,

Al

Pictures are with grade 3.

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1/28/2019 Caring Bridge

About food

Journal entry by Al Negstad — a minute ago

How are Thai teachers like Norwegian American aunts?  They are always pushing food.  There is a half hour between the end of opening exercises and my first class.  Then there is another half hour break between my classes.  These are opportunities for school staff to feed me; tea, pastries, sweet sticky rice, etc.  Finally, part of the motivation for this feeding became clear when a teacher was surprised that I had eaten breakfast before I came to school.  But, even when they know I have breakfast, the food keeps coming.  There are also special additions to the school lunches for me.  At least I know enough Thai now to turn some of it down politely.  Often it is sent home with me to the delight of my Thai family.
    Mealtimes are not as regular in Thailand as in America.   There is a general sense of breakfast, lunch and dinner, though they are as likely to eat whenever they are hungry. The menu may be identical with Thai eating the same things for breakfast as they would for dinner.  When meals are shared as soon as food arrives those present begin eating even if others have yet to arrive.  Thai are perhaps more comfortable sitting on the floor to eat than they are at a table. When one finishes eating he/she may simply wander off without any verbal notice. The only meals without rice are those in which noodles are a significant feature.  Thai are very adept with chopsticks but use them when the meal served is of Chinese or Japanese origin.  Their typical table wear is a table spoon in the right hand and a fork in the left to move food onto the spoon.
    Legend, perhaps with some truth, traces the use of the table spoon and fork back to a former king.  When Westerners first began coming to Thailand the king invited himself to dinner at an English Anglican priest's home.  The priest went all out with a fancy table with multiple knives, forks and spoons.  Can't you imagine?  At the conclusion of the meal the king said "I will keep these two" as he held up a table spoon and a fork.  
   It is a very efficient way to eat.  It's amusing to visit a Thai restaurant in America and see patrons request chopsticks to eat Thai food.  While they may parade their dexterity with chopsticks they reveal a lack of knowledge about the Thai way.

   The depth of my relationship with the teachers at school is revealed in the way they stay with me after lunch to converse.  Previously teachers would leave as they finished eating.  Now some do but there are always several who stay until they must leave for their duties.  There's good conversation and two or three of the student teachers stay to be in the presence of  spoken English.

Blessings,

Al

Picture:  Coconut/banana wrapped in banana leaf, one of the treats offered me on break.

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1/27/2019 Caring Bridge

Reunion

Journal entry by Al Negstad — 23 minutes ago

It was my second year of teaching in Thailand and I was housed with another American in a very small house on a family compound.  The head of the household and his wife had two children.  Their daughter, Pear, was in junior high and was very motivated to learn English.  We spent time conversing so she could practice.  Though it's been ten years since I lived there I've stayed in touch with Pear and her family.  Last year I traveled to Chiang Rai, Thailand, to attend her university graduation.  At the university all courses are taught in English.
    Tonight we went to dinner with Pear and her family which has become a tradition.  With her initiative the family has developed a four room bed and breakfast on their compound.  Pear and her mother cook breakfast for their guests before leaving for their government jobs.  All of the work is done by family members before and after their regular jobs.  Their rooms rent for $30. per night.
    These relationships honed over time, facilitated by social media and regular contact, are what I find meaningful here.  What was once exotic now seems commonplace and sometimes just annoying.  As in every context it's the people who matter.
    "My" family have become quite adept at leading me to persons in need and that happened today.  A neighbor's mother has been hospitalized and that has put financial stress on the family.  They asked if I would help.  Blessed with generous support from congregations and friends it was easy to say "yes".  Then the dance began.  Me, "how much would be helpful?"  Them "up to you."  After about five minutes I did manage to get a suggestion from them.  Without that I'm clueless where to begin so I'll do at least what they suggest and maybe more.
    So goes life in Thailand and perhaps you've guessed I'm back in Ayutthaya after a weekend in Bangkok.  It hasn't been hot yet but the highs next weekend are predicted to be 98, and with dew points around 80, it will be cozy.

Blessings,

Al

Pictures:  Gift giving with family.
     
     

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1/26/2019 Caring Bridge

Life With A Thai Family

Journal entry by Al Negstad — 30 minutes ago

     Twelve years ago when Joanne said "If you're going to go SE Asia regularly, do something worthwhile" I then did an internet search for agencies that use volunteer teachers.  The International Federation for Research Expeditions (IFRE) does that. (A mighty impressive sounding entity, right?)
They sent me to Ayutthaya, Thailand, and after two years I had my own connections which included a home stay.
     For nine years I've been living with the same Thai family so have experienced Thai life as lived by the natives.  For the majority of Thai life is a struggle.  This is true of the family with which I live even though they might be considered on the bottom rung of the middle class.  They had a house built ten years ago and the fact that they qualified for a mortgage indicates their class.  Less fortunate persons must borrow from a money lender at 20% interest per month.  "My" family struggles to make ends meet even with three wage earners.,,
    The family consists of father, Mai, mother, Met, daughter Poo (Poe), and her son, Nice, two and a half.  Poo's husband left while she was pregnant and, there being no child support laws in Thailand, provides no support.  Mai does maintenance at a hospital, Met recently opened a small coffee/convenience shop, and Poo, does IT work for a large company.  Poo is a university graduate in IT and her salary is $300. per month, working 6, days a week.  She commutes by bus  which cost $79. dollars a month.  She leaves home at 6:30am and returns at 6:00pm, unless she works overtime, and then she gets home at 10:00pm. Compensation for overtime is at the same rate as regular pay.
    I don't know what Mai gets paid at the hospital but not more than $10. a day.  He leaves by 7:00am and returns about 6:00pm six days a week.  Met recently opened her shop and initially business was very good  but then 3, shops opened nearby and that has severely curtailed her intake.  She opens at 7:00am and closes at 7:00pm seven days a week and keeps Poo's son with her.  The store is very near the school where I teach but about 15, minutes from her house.
    Work consumes most of their life and yet they struggle to get by.  In the next post I will continue my report on "Life With A Thai Family."

Blessings,

Al

Picture: Nice, age two and a half.
 

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1/25/2019 Caring Bridge

Show and Tell Time!

Journal entry by Al Negstad — a minute ago

Do they still do show and tell in kindergarten and first grade in America?  Well, they do in Thailand and today was the day.  There is a half hour between the end of opening exercises and my first class. During this time this morning the principal asked me to accompany her to the kindergarten class which is housed in a different building.   When we arrived the students were in a semi circle on the floor facing an empty chair.  The chair was for me and I was the object in show and tell.
     Each student came to me and said "Good morning. My name is........"  Of course next came picture time.  There are fifteen students in the class.  From there we went to the 1st grade room where the process was repeated.  
     When I first began teaching in Thailand eleven years ago I even taught kindergarten.  It quickly became apparent to me that my gifts lay elsewhere.  Today's experience, delightful as it was, reinforced my decision to begin my teaching with 3rd grade.
     The third grade class this year is very small, eight students.  Their names comes easily to me now.  There are no academic stars in the group.  This is teaching me how much I, and the classes, rely on exceptional students to lead the others. In the 6th grade it's Marissa and Poree (male). It is possible I rely too much on academic leaders but with the experiential teaching I do student leadership is important.  Also, dealing with each student individually helps me see how every student is doing. 
    It's Friday evening as I write this and I'm back at the Christian Guesthouse in Bangkok.  There are two reasons I come here weekends.  There is almost no opportunities for me to walk in Ayutthaya so I come here to walk.  Also, the small house with four family members and me gets a bit intense so I come for space for myself.

Blessings,

Al

Pictures from Kindergarten and Grade 1.

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1/24/2019 Caring Bridge

Very Sweet

Journal entry by Al Negstad — 26 minutes ago

      When I  began teaching at Wat Klang ten years ago Aaronsee was teaching 4th grade and the resident English expert.  She was my "supervisor" telling me which grade I'd teach and giving me the schedule.  The epitome of Thai hospitality, she kindly explained the customs and procedures I didn't understand. When she reached retirement age last October she promptly retired.  She owns a kindergarten school and a bed and breakfast so she has plenty to keep her busy.  Yesterday she came to lunch at school so she could see me.
     Accompanying her was Gro, who retired from teaching first grade four years ago, and whom I've only seen once since.  She was the first of the teachers who began teaching me the Thai word for things.  I'm Facebook friends with them both and Gro makes many posts, often of her travels.  She particularly like Norway.  She, too, came to lunch so she could see me.  Very special to see them.
     Three of the current student teachers are keen to practice their English so we have much fun with their English and my Thai.  The 6th grade teacher's English is good and in her class I read Thai from my guidebook and she helps me with my pronunciation as the students repeat in English what I've said.  Today I thought I was saying "close the window" in Thai but said something obscene, to the merriment of all.  She's too proper to tell me what I said but she enjoyed sharing the story with the teachers over lunch.  Risks are necessary ever one wants to venture into a foreign language.
       After school tomorrow I'll go to Bangkok for a couple of days.  In a future post I will tell about the family with whom I'm staying, now for the ninth time.

Blessings,

Al

Pictures:  With Aronsee and Gro but taken against the light so nor very clear.  Students, as are all Thai, are as comfortable eating on the floor as at a table.

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1/23/2019 Caring Bridge

Soooooooooo Thai!

Journal entry by Al Negstad — 20 minutes ago

      Today with a break between my classes at school I wandered outside to see what all the noise was about.  In a bunch of three tall palm trees one was dead and the "school" wanted it down.  It was large and tall enough to be hazard should it fall the wrong way or at the wrong time. The solution was to bring it down, the process was fascinating.
      One of the boys shinnied about half way up the trunk, perhaps fifteen feet from the ground, and tied a rope around it.  It was a very long rope stretching  across the playground.  The 5th and 6th grade classes grabbed the rope and with a mighty tug the tree came crashing down.  This was all during class time.  Obviously palm trees fell much easier than ash or oak.  It was a sizable trunk, both tall and thick, so it fell with a thud.  
     This experience reminded me of the time some years ago when the tress on the school lot had been trimmed.  The students piled the branches at the end of the playground and then they were lit on fire.  Left to tend the fire when classes resumed was the kindergarten class.
     These experiences are much like those that were familiar to me from 8, years in a one room school house with grades 1 to 8.  Obviously liability issues are not paramount.  They are also part of what I find fascinating about life here.


Blessings,

Al

Pictures from the tree felling

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1/22/2019 Caring Bridge

Telling vs Teaching

Journal entry by Al Negstad — 24 minutes ago

     Every day at school open the same way.  The students all gather outside and ,while the flag is raised the students sing a patriotic song, Buddhist and Muslim chants are done by all the students, an English word of the day is given and then one of the teachers gives a long lecture, to which no one listens.  The other teachers are gossiping noisily behind the students and the students are paying no attention while the designated teacher drones on and on.  It never seems to occur that the teacher's speech is wasted breath.  Perhaps it's one of those things in the category of "we've always done it that way."  The current principal, with whom I have an ,excellent relationship,  seems motivated to improve the school so, when the time is right, I'll wonder with her if the speech is effective.
   Meeting with the 5th and 6th grades today was a reunion because I've been teaching them since they were in 3rd grade.  There are a few new students and 6th grade twin girls, who were impish, have transferred to another school.  When I did some testing on phonetics with these classes I found they were much advanced over the 4th grade students. 
     With my teaching rotation I'll be back with 3rd and 4th tomorrow.

Blessings,

Al

Pictures: Monk's prayer chapel not the main temple, the school, and students hanging out before school.

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1/21/2019 Caring Bridge

That Was Fun!

Journal entry by Al Negstad — a minute ago

Wow!  What a warm welcome back to my 10th year at school.  There were two more retirements while I was gone so I'm gaining seniority on the faculty.  The new teachers, who are younger, are more open to conversing in English which is fun for me.  Three of the student teachers are also eager to practice English.  The 4th student teacher, who majored in English, is not interested in practicing it.  There is a teacher shortage so the student teachers are teaching 5th grade in lieu of the teacher who retired.  The young principal is among those eager to use English.
     The 3rd grade class is very small, 8 students, one of who was absent today.  That means fewer names to learn: Phum, Bird, View, Ploy, Da, Fern, Khaw Fang, and Tag-Neem.  O, for a speech therapist!  Tag-Neem has a severe speech disability which makes her speech unintelligible and there are no expert services available.  When I was getting a degree in education I had an excellent course in learning disabilities but nothing in speech pathology.  These students have been studying English since they were three but cannot associate letters with their sound.  I've expressed my concern about this lack to the principal.
    The 4th grade class has 25, students so I had to brush up on their names since teaching them last year.  There were a number I could call by name and the use of nicknames is a life saver for me.  Every Thai child is given a nickname at birth by their mother.  For example the two and a half y

ear old in the house where I stay is nicknamed "Nice", because his mother hopes he will be nice.  Ironically she calls him "Ni" because Thai typically don't pronounce the last syllable.   
    All of my Thai contact knew of Joanne's death but none have mentioned it.  Makes me wonder about their comfort level and if there is also a cultural norm that keeps them from bringing it up?
   Tomorrow I'll teach 5th and 6th grades.  Those names will be easier to recall because  began teaching them in 3rd grade.

Blessings

Al

Opening exercises.

Teaching grade 3.

1/20/2018 Caring Bridge

Change Up!

Journal entry by Al Negstad — 33 minutes ago

       The trip from Bangkok to Ayutthaya requires at least two modes of transportation.  The majority of the trip is on a mini-bus, 18 passenger Toyota vans, which are not scheduled but depart when the bus is full.  The depot from which they leave is some distance from the guest house so another mode of transport is required.  For many years the minibuses left from the Democracy Monument.   The Skytrain (elevated rail) has stops near the Guesthouse and the Monument.  That trip was second nature to me; walk a couple of blocks from the Guesthouse to the train, board, make one transfer and get off at the monument.  Then it was a couple of blocks to the minibus.  Three years ago I did that and when I arrived at the usual minibus stop none were to be found.  After a number of futile inquiries, my lack of facility in Thai was a problem, I was directed to the northern bus terminal.  There, with a bit of searching, I found the minibuses.
      Today I followed the new regimen which involves a taxi from the guesthouse.  When I walked out into the bus yard not a minibus was to be seen.  Advancing a bit farther I saw some in the distance but when I asked for one to Ayutthaya they said "the other side" and pointed toward the terminal building.  Finding an information desk I asked for the Ayutthaya minibus.  The attendant said "over" and pointed to the freeway in front of the terminal.  There I saw multiple lanes of traffic and on and off ramps but no pedestrian crossing.  A taxi that had just offloaded took me there for a dollar.  In Asia there is no central ticket booth.  Each city has a ticket window and there were four ticket buildings from which to choose.  Missing on the first try I was directed to the proper building which confronted me with 12 ticket counters.  Finding the proper counter I ordered two tickets, I get one for my luggage because the ticket is only $2., but, I couldn't pay at the counter I had to pay the driver.
    So the bus system did another change up on me.  Why can't they tell me when they move the place of departure?  😉 The upside is that the new minibus depot is accessible by Skytrain.  This new depot looks quite permanent so I hope it stays put.  Just another little adventure but I successfully arrived in Ayutthaya and will begin teaching tomorrow.

Blessings

Al

Pictures:  The Bangkok Christian Guesthouse and the bus depot.

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