Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Thailand, Teaching, and Living Abroad





Thailand - The Land of Smiles

I worked as a teacher in Thailand for over six years, specifically in the Pataya/Jomtein/Sattahip/Chonburi areas. 

I know why it is called the land of smiles. The people are so friendly and always have a smile to offer you. I fell in love instantly with Thailand. 

Perhaps it was the delectable, satisfying coconut soups, green curry soups, chicken with cashew nuts, spicy varieties of dishes, or the cheap prices of only a dollar. Perhaps it was the kind smiles and friendly people, or the way they always offered a helping hand. Or perhaps it was the nearby islands which were only a motorcycle ride and a ferry boat away. 

I went on a snorkeling adventure there and had freshly fried squid, caught on the boat while snorkeling. I saw all kinds of fish and beautiful landscape. Amazing!



I went on a couple elephant rides through the jungle and rivers. Wow!

I went on a motorcycle ride over the hills of an island. Fun!

Motels arrangements can be cheap to expense and so can the food and clothing. Just about anything is on a scale of very cheap to very expensive. Depending on what you what you can have just about anything.

There are five story malls, abut ten of them alone in the Pattaya area, but not all that many stories, with a variety of movies to choose from, restaurants from Middle East, India, Russian, Thai, Japanese, and more! 

If you are a lady, you want to greet the people with "Swadee Ca!" and if you are a guy, you want to greet the people with "Swadaee Cup!"




If you don't want something you say, MAI (MY) and put that word in front of anything you don"t want.
If they ask, do you want to go to the beach and you don't want to …you can say MAI. Or you might say  MAI CHOP. Chop means like, and so you've said I don't like.

I highly recommend going to Thailand for any vacation or working as a teacher. You won;t be disappointed. There is just so much to do and while so much of it is so affordable, you really can't loose! If you want to visit nearby countries, flying out of Thailand is also cheap! Much cheeper from Thailand to America, than from America to Thailand.




The people are for the most part, polite and kind and helpful and I think any western person would be missing out he/she didn't experience the Thai culture at least once in life!


    

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