Wow, it has been forever since I last wrote! I had some computer issues but for the most part they are solved. I say for the most part because I lost ALL my pictures I had!!! I saved most of them on the internet and I am in the process of resaving them onto my computer now. So let’s see, from what I remember September wasn’t too busy. I had a rotary meeting which I didn’t know they would want me to speak at, so I had to make a speech up as I went…IN THAI. I did pretty well. Everyone understood me and clapped. (Which you wouldn’t usually do in Thailand). Next time, I am going to have a speech ready, just in case.
I went on 3 trips in Thailand since I wrote last. My first was to Ayutthaya. I was supposed to be there at 7:30, and I was ready at 6:45 waiting and waiting for my brother. I was with my host mom, and she said that he would be down in a few minutes. Finally at 7:25, he came down. That wouldn’t have been a problem except that the university I had to go to was about 20 minutes away!!! On top of that we got lost and we had no idea where we were. I ended up having to take a motorcycle taxi, and I finally got there at around 8:45. HA! I love the Thai because, no one was mad at all, and we still took our time even though we were all running late. In Thailand, if you are on time, they tend to make a stop JUST so they will be later! In Ayutthaya, we stopped at a ton of temples. Our first stop was Bang Pa-in Summer Palace. The palace was decorated in both traditional Chinese and European style. Traditional Chinese and modern are very different. Traditional Chinese style has so much more detail. Our second stop was Wat Yai Chaimongkol which is famous for its line of golden buddahs. Then we went to Wat Lokayasutharam. The temple enshrines the largest Reclining Buddha image. We then went to Wat Phra Si Sanphet is known as the ‘Ancient Palace’ in Ayutthaya. It is one of the oldest temples in Thailand. Last, we all went to Wihan Phra Mongkhon Bophit. This Wat has one of the biggest standing Buddha images. Finally, it was time for the main attraction….ELEPHANT RIDING!!! The elephants were so cute, but it was really sad to see so many of them chained up! I got to pet a baby elephant, and it pulled my hair! I decided not to ride an elephant because I have done it in America before, and it was pretty expensive, and I needed to save my money.
The next day, I went on a Bangkok tour. Our first stop was The Grand Palace. Before coming to Thailand, I always thought the king lived in the grand palace. Instead, I learned that when a foreign king or emperor visits, they stay there. On the grand palace grounds was Wat Phra Kaew or Temple of the Emerald Buddha. This is probably the most famous temple in Thailand. Once inside you are not allowed to take pictures. I found that they are VERY strict about that. I didn’t even have my camera on, and I guess they thought I took pictures of the emerald Buddha, so they made me delete ALL of my pictures. I had to go run all around the grand palace (about a square mile) and retake all my pictures. Our last stop of the day was the Dursit Zoo. It was very hot but the most exciting part of the day. I got to hold the hand of a monkey! Now THAT’S what I call making all types of friends.
My last trip was a two day trip to Ampawa. It was called the “Firefly Trip.”We started off the day by traveling to a bunch of different temples. Most of them looked the same and aren’t very famous. We got to our resort in the evening, and when it was dark, we took a boat along the river and saw beautiful fireflies. It wasn’t until a few days later that I heard the story that one of the Rotarian’s boats stopped working and 10 of them got on a dock which was very small. The dock ended up sinking and everyone was ok! I wish I was there to see that! After the boating trip, all us exchange students (about 10 of us) went into the girls sleeping room, and we played different card games from around the world. It was so much fun! We all learned that we have a lot of the same games, but just different names, like slap, and Egyptian rat slap, are the same game. (Most adults probably don’t know that game, it was very popular for a while in middle and high schools.) After playing cards, we drank red bull (very different than in America.) and we all had a pillow fight. It was about 1am. After the pillow fight we caught a cockroach in a Pringles container, and when a random girl came in, we asked her if she wanted chips. She fell for the trick and ended up throwing it across the room the cockroach flew out almost hitting someone else!
The next day we spent the day traveling to more temples and then at the floating market. You wouldn’t believe all the different things they have there! I tried a fried grass hopper, and it didn’t really taste like anything.
I have been out of school since September 16th, because of a school break. I will return on the 21st of October. On the 20th, I will be going to Pattaya. It’s a beautiful beach with lots to do there. As for my speaking ability, I am almost fluent in Thai. I can understand just about any conversation as long as they aren’t speaking too fast. Already, I have forgot some simple words in English such as purple (see mooang), Orange (the fruit: Somme) and mosquito (Yoong).
I am having the time of my life here. I love Thailand. I can’t believe I have been here almost 3 months already! The time is going by WAY too fast. I switch families for the first time on November 30th which is 5 days after my 18th birthday!! Before I know it I will be on a plane again, heading off to a foreign country . . . America.
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