Thought about skipping this this week, but I couldn't resist. After all, it wouldn't really be my blog without a little bit of Mozart's Requiem included. The moment at 1:13 absolutely kills me every. single. time.
January 22, 2011
January 21, 2011
Oliphaunt
For more pictures, click here.
"so there are Oliphaunts, and I have seen one. What a life! But no one at home will ever believe me. Well, if that's over, I'll have a bit of sleep." ~sam gamgee, The Two Towers
"And if you never stop when you wave goodbye..."
...you just might find, if you give it time, you might wave hello again." Why am I quoting "Wheel" by John Mayer? Because you really never know what might happen. I've just returned from the most wonderful day trip with Zoe. As in Zoe from New Zealand who I worked with at Montrose this time last year. Little did I imagine then that a year later we would be in Thailand together. Well, really, little did I imagine that I would be in Thailand period, but there you have it.
Not that the reunion was entirely serendipitous. In true Kiwi style, Zoe has been having her OE, or Overseas Experience. she's just spent several months traveling in Turkey, Egypt, Greece, England and Ireland. Not too long ago, she messaged me asking if I would be around when she stopped in Thailand and of course I said yes. And so it was that yesterday afternoon I drove my motorbike to one of the hostels in town and there, sitting on the veranda, was "Zoicle" as we occasionally called her.
We had a great time. she only had a couple of days in Chiang Mai, but that made it easier to know what to do, especially as I was a bit nervous about my knowledge of tourist activities here. After a quick lunch, I decided we had just enough time to make it up to Doi suthep. In the interest of saving money I decided to try taking her up the mountain on my motorbike. I was a bit nervous about this however, because I only have an automatic and it's overdue for a visit to the mechanic besides. But I decided we would give it a try and my reliable Mio came through. It hasn't failed me yet.
It was great to have a bit of a travel companion and it's always fun to show people around a place that you are familiar with and they are not. After Doi suthep I showed her a couple of other impressive temples in the city and then we went to the weekly spaghetti dinner at Esther and Rob's (again in the interest of saving money). It was strange to have my co-workers from this year meeting a co-worker from last year. I think the world really is getting smaller. Afterwards we wandered a couple of the local markets and I pointed out some of the more interesting food items as well as some of the more appetizing ones.
The only thing Zoe had mentioned as a must-do was to see some elephants. My original plan was to motorbike to one of the nearby elephant camps, since taxis are so expensive. But Zoe managed to find a really good tour package through her hostel and booked both of us on a half day excursion. sometimes having experience in the tourism industry comes in handy. Our group was truly international with citizens of spain, Oman, Australia and New Zealand of course. I was the only American. The camp was about an hour's drive north of town. Our "tour" started with an elephant "show" of sorts in which I witnessed elephants doing everything from playing soccer to playing the harmonica. After this I actually got to ride on one of the elephants. It kind of happened by accident. I was just hanging around and one of the trainers (mahout?) told to hop on. The day also included an ox cart ride, bamboo "rafting," and an elephant ride through the jungle. It was so surreal to be sitting atop an elephant(!) in Thailand (!) reminiscing about the backpackers and Franz Josef with Zoe (!) I had a great time, as did Zoe. We returned to Chiang Mai just in time for Zoe to catch her bus back to Bangkok en route to Phuket. We said our goodbyes, but only casually. After all, who knows where we might meet up next.
Not that the reunion was entirely serendipitous. In true Kiwi style, Zoe has been having her OE, or Overseas Experience. she's just spent several months traveling in Turkey, Egypt, Greece, England and Ireland. Not too long ago, she messaged me asking if I would be around when she stopped in Thailand and of course I said yes. And so it was that yesterday afternoon I drove my motorbike to one of the hostels in town and there, sitting on the veranda, was "Zoicle" as we occasionally called her.
We had a great time. she only had a couple of days in Chiang Mai, but that made it easier to know what to do, especially as I was a bit nervous about my knowledge of tourist activities here. After a quick lunch, I decided we had just enough time to make it up to Doi suthep. In the interest of saving money I decided to try taking her up the mountain on my motorbike. I was a bit nervous about this however, because I only have an automatic and it's overdue for a visit to the mechanic besides. But I decided we would give it a try and my reliable Mio came through. It hasn't failed me yet.
It was great to have a bit of a travel companion and it's always fun to show people around a place that you are familiar with and they are not. After Doi suthep I showed her a couple of other impressive temples in the city and then we went to the weekly spaghetti dinner at Esther and Rob's (again in the interest of saving money). It was strange to have my co-workers from this year meeting a co-worker from last year. I think the world really is getting smaller. Afterwards we wandered a couple of the local markets and I pointed out some of the more interesting food items as well as some of the more appetizing ones.
The only thing Zoe had mentioned as a must-do was to see some elephants. My original plan was to motorbike to one of the nearby elephant camps, since taxis are so expensive. But Zoe managed to find a really good tour package through her hostel and booked both of us on a half day excursion. sometimes having experience in the tourism industry comes in handy. Our group was truly international with citizens of spain, Oman, Australia and New Zealand of course. I was the only American. The camp was about an hour's drive north of town. Our "tour" started with an elephant "show" of sorts in which I witnessed elephants doing everything from playing soccer to playing the harmonica. After this I actually got to ride on one of the elephants. It kind of happened by accident. I was just hanging around and one of the trainers (mahout?) told to hop on. The day also included an ox cart ride, bamboo "rafting," and an elephant ride through the jungle. It was so surreal to be sitting atop an elephant(!) in Thailand (!) reminiscing about the backpackers and Franz Josef with Zoe (!) I had a great time, as did Zoe. We returned to Chiang Mai just in time for Zoe to catch her bus back to Bangkok en route to Phuket. We said our goodbyes, but only casually. After all, who knows where we might meet up next.
January 15, 2011
January 6, 2011
mai khao jai
Break is over, sadly. I had a very restful two weeks in which I was able to explore some more of the city, read a lot (though not as much as I had planned) and reflect. It was all very much needed and has left me feeling better prepared to tackle 2011. But who knows how long that will last. Clarity never seems to stick around for long in my experience. Okay, I stole that from a John Mayer song. But it's true.
With the recommencement of the semester begins my formal education in the Thai language. It's an "intensive" course that meets for three hours every morning. Once I begin my other duties I won't have any trouble filling my time.
The class is small, about 15 or so, half of which are older farang men with Thai wives. At first I didn't even register this. I innocently thought they were all here on business or something. But others are not quite so naive as I am, and also less self-conscious about asking personal questions and well, it's a bit suspect that they are just now taking a Thai class after having married a Thai woman. At least they've gotten around to it. Anyhow, it's a bit weird to share a classroom with a bunch of older men. In general it's quite an international group. Americans make up the majority, but that's only because of our volunteer group. China, Taiwan, France, Germany, Australia and Canada are also represented. Plus the Philippines but that's Rochell, another of the volunteers. But even if it is an odd class dynamic, I still really enjoy being part of an international setting. It's a cliche but I'll say it: Americans ought to travel more. I realize travel is expensive, but I really feel that we are far too insulated, and we're the ones who lose out.
Having just completed tesol training, my brain is in pedagogy mode and I'm afraid I'm guilty of picking apart my Thai professor's teaching methods. On the one hand, she does a good job presenting language in a logical way, getting everyone to talk and adding an element of fun to the class. However the way she gets everyone to talk is pretty aggressive and often the fun is at the expense of a student. Perhaps this is cultural but if I were less confident my first day of class would have been terrifying. I've just internalized discussions on creating a safe speaking environment so maybe I am hypersensitive. still, I can't imagine using the same tactics with my Thai students. I wouldn't have had any left, I'm pretty sure. I'm sure I'm being overly critical, but I kind of see it as my job to assess different teaching practices so I can improve my own.
As far as learning Thai goes, it's hard and it's not hard. Thai intimidates people because it is a tonal language that uses a lot of sounds we're unused to making. But the actual structure of the language is very simple. There are no verb conjugations, which makes it very easy, and statements are "subject, verb, object" just like in English. In general there aren't that many rules to follow, which is something else that I think freaks people out a bit. We don't know what to do with the freedom. But I'm beginning to see the logic of it. I'll try to explain.
The hard stuff - Thai has five different tones: high, low, mid, rising and falling. Actually this is a bit deceptive as I think it's more nuanced than that, but it's an easy guideline to go by. The length of a spoken word also makes a difference (just to complicate things further). For instance, the word "khao" means "rice" with a long falling tone, "enter" with a short falling tone, "white" with a long rising tone, and "he" with a short rising tone. I'm sure it has other meanings with mid, high and low tone. It sounds like a totally foreign concept, but really it's just like music notation. We already use the percussive aspect of sound to create spoken language, why not the melodic aspect? I've been complimented on my ability to distinguish between the tones and on my pronunciation several times by Thais and all I have to say is "thank you Ear Training."
The other tricky thing is some of the "percussive" aspects of speaking (my term, there is a legit one but I can't remember it) are different. In English we only end words with the "ng" sound but in Thai you can begin words with it. Also, there are several sounds that are in between ones we use in English. Often these have to do with aspiration, or whether or not we release breath when making the sound. Phonology has given me a bit of a grip on this, as have voice lessons. Now I'm far from having perfect pronunciation or from hearing all the new distinctions in sounds, but just understanding that there is a distinction goes a long way in taking the mystery out of the language.
The easy stuff - Thai words are generally one syllable, or combinations of one-syllable words, which makes them easy to memorize (although I do love long words, oh German how I miss thee). The monosyllabic nature of Thai explains the development of tones, or vice versa. Basically, it goes together. It also fits well with the lack of complicated grammatical structure.
A phrase I've often heard uttered in my time here is that "Thais are lazy." Thai students are lazy. Thai employees are lazy. There are fish in the rivers, there is rice in the fields. Why work hard? This is the general perception of the Thai mentality and I've already heard my Thai teacher use this concept in explaining the brevity of the Thai language and its lack of structure. And it fits, but I don't quite see it as "lazy." As I've discovered in learning to drive in Thai traffic, there is a certain method to the madness. There is a form of logic at play. You could call it the path of least resistance, but I don't think it's quite the cop out that implies. It's a type of smart. It's the path of least resistance because it doesn't make sense to expend unnecessary energy. It's the same type of smart that all those boys in high school who I thought were so dumb had. They were always goofing off while I was diligently and responsibly trying to memorize all the Presidents or whatever I thought I was supposed to do. It's the type of smart that sees the easiest way from point A to point B. I do not naturally come by this type of smart, but I admire it greatly.
Those high school boys, who I thought were so dumb, often (though not always) excelled in the subjects and activities they thought were important. Even the ones who really were complete losers got the high school experience they were looking for. And that's it really, isn't it? People act on their ideas of what is important. I'm a rule-follower at heart, even if I do occasionally get halfway through something and realize I've been doing it in the most inefficient manner possible. All because I wanted to do it "properly." In some ways, I think Thai people have it right. The lack of traffic laws for instance. I'm not a complete convert but it certainly is nice not to have to sit at a red light, waiting for the stupid thing to turn green when there isn't another soul at the intersection. The freedom to choose allows me to exercise my own logic and creativity, which, ironically, is what the American workforce is supposed to be famous for. I'm beginning to wonder if it's so much that or if it's simply that we're willing to work our butts off just because. Not that I'm any less a believer in the value of work or have lost my good old yankee work ethic. There is something to be said for being thorough and there is something to be said for following the rules. Often they are there for a reason. But it's like with the body of Christ (dang it, I never can get away from religious illustrations, but I did just lead chapel today). Each member has its own function and we need all the other members. We need people of different abilities and perspectives to tell us when we're being stupid.
I was going to blog about chapel as well but I think I'll leave that for a separate post. Basically, learning Thai is cool. It's interesting to me how language can be a window into culture and vice versa. It's especially interesting when you think about how language and music are connected. Yes I am a dork, but I enjoy it. I'll finish by explaining the literal meaning of "khao jai mai." "Khao" is "enter," "jai," is heart, and "mai" is like saying "right?" so the Thai word for "understand" literally means "it enters your heart." Makes a heck of a lot more sense than "understand" if you ask me. What am I under and why exactly am I standing? Maybe I comprehend whatever is under the stance you are taking... That's a stretch. I like "it has entered my heart" a lot better.
With the recommencement of the semester begins my formal education in the Thai language. It's an "intensive" course that meets for three hours every morning. Once I begin my other duties I won't have any trouble filling my time.
The class is small, about 15 or so, half of which are older farang men with Thai wives. At first I didn't even register this. I innocently thought they were all here on business or something. But others are not quite so naive as I am, and also less self-conscious about asking personal questions and well, it's a bit suspect that they are just now taking a Thai class after having married a Thai woman. At least they've gotten around to it. Anyhow, it's a bit weird to share a classroom with a bunch of older men. In general it's quite an international group. Americans make up the majority, but that's only because of our volunteer group. China, Taiwan, France, Germany, Australia and Canada are also represented. Plus the Philippines but that's Rochell, another of the volunteers. But even if it is an odd class dynamic, I still really enjoy being part of an international setting. It's a cliche but I'll say it: Americans ought to travel more. I realize travel is expensive, but I really feel that we are far too insulated, and we're the ones who lose out.
Having just completed tesol training, my brain is in pedagogy mode and I'm afraid I'm guilty of picking apart my Thai professor's teaching methods. On the one hand, she does a good job presenting language in a logical way, getting everyone to talk and adding an element of fun to the class. However the way she gets everyone to talk is pretty aggressive and often the fun is at the expense of a student. Perhaps this is cultural but if I were less confident my first day of class would have been terrifying. I've just internalized discussions on creating a safe speaking environment so maybe I am hypersensitive. still, I can't imagine using the same tactics with my Thai students. I wouldn't have had any left, I'm pretty sure. I'm sure I'm being overly critical, but I kind of see it as my job to assess different teaching practices so I can improve my own.
As far as learning Thai goes, it's hard and it's not hard. Thai intimidates people because it is a tonal language that uses a lot of sounds we're unused to making. But the actual structure of the language is very simple. There are no verb conjugations, which makes it very easy, and statements are "subject, verb, object" just like in English. In general there aren't that many rules to follow, which is something else that I think freaks people out a bit. We don't know what to do with the freedom. But I'm beginning to see the logic of it. I'll try to explain.
The hard stuff - Thai has five different tones: high, low, mid, rising and falling. Actually this is a bit deceptive as I think it's more nuanced than that, but it's an easy guideline to go by. The length of a spoken word also makes a difference (just to complicate things further). For instance, the word "khao" means "rice" with a long falling tone, "enter" with a short falling tone, "white" with a long rising tone, and "he" with a short rising tone. I'm sure it has other meanings with mid, high and low tone. It sounds like a totally foreign concept, but really it's just like music notation. We already use the percussive aspect of sound to create spoken language, why not the melodic aspect? I've been complimented on my ability to distinguish between the tones and on my pronunciation several times by Thais and all I have to say is "thank you Ear Training."
The other tricky thing is some of the "percussive" aspects of speaking (my term, there is a legit one but I can't remember it) are different. In English we only end words with the "ng" sound but in Thai you can begin words with it. Also, there are several sounds that are in between ones we use in English. Often these have to do with aspiration, or whether or not we release breath when making the sound. Phonology has given me a bit of a grip on this, as have voice lessons. Now I'm far from having perfect pronunciation or from hearing all the new distinctions in sounds, but just understanding that there is a distinction goes a long way in taking the mystery out of the language.
The easy stuff - Thai words are generally one syllable, or combinations of one-syllable words, which makes them easy to memorize (although I do love long words, oh German how I miss thee). The monosyllabic nature of Thai explains the development of tones, or vice versa. Basically, it goes together. It also fits well with the lack of complicated grammatical structure.
A phrase I've often heard uttered in my time here is that "Thais are lazy." Thai students are lazy. Thai employees are lazy. There are fish in the rivers, there is rice in the fields. Why work hard? This is the general perception of the Thai mentality and I've already heard my Thai teacher use this concept in explaining the brevity of the Thai language and its lack of structure. And it fits, but I don't quite see it as "lazy." As I've discovered in learning to drive in Thai traffic, there is a certain method to the madness. There is a form of logic at play. You could call it the path of least resistance, but I don't think it's quite the cop out that implies. It's a type of smart. It's the path of least resistance because it doesn't make sense to expend unnecessary energy. It's the same type of smart that all those boys in high school who I thought were so dumb had. They were always goofing off while I was diligently and responsibly trying to memorize all the Presidents or whatever I thought I was supposed to do. It's the type of smart that sees the easiest way from point A to point B. I do not naturally come by this type of smart, but I admire it greatly.
Those high school boys, who I thought were so dumb, often (though not always) excelled in the subjects and activities they thought were important. Even the ones who really were complete losers got the high school experience they were looking for. And that's it really, isn't it? People act on their ideas of what is important. I'm a rule-follower at heart, even if I do occasionally get halfway through something and realize I've been doing it in the most inefficient manner possible. All because I wanted to do it "properly." In some ways, I think Thai people have it right. The lack of traffic laws for instance. I'm not a complete convert but it certainly is nice not to have to sit at a red light, waiting for the stupid thing to turn green when there isn't another soul at the intersection. The freedom to choose allows me to exercise my own logic and creativity, which, ironically, is what the American workforce is supposed to be famous for. I'm beginning to wonder if it's so much that or if it's simply that we're willing to work our butts off just because. Not that I'm any less a believer in the value of work or have lost my good old yankee work ethic. There is something to be said for being thorough and there is something to be said for following the rules. Often they are there for a reason. But it's like with the body of Christ (dang it, I never can get away from religious illustrations, but I did just lead chapel today). Each member has its own function and we need all the other members. We need people of different abilities and perspectives to tell us when we're being stupid.
I was going to blog about chapel as well but I think I'll leave that for a separate post. Basically, learning Thai is cool. It's interesting to me how language can be a window into culture and vice versa. It's especially interesting when you think about how language and music are connected. Yes I am a dork, but I enjoy it. I'll finish by explaining the literal meaning of "khao jai mai." "Khao" is "enter," "jai," is heart, and "mai" is like saying "right?" so the Thai word for "understand" literally means "it enters your heart." Makes a heck of a lot more sense than "understand" if you ask me. What am I under and why exactly am I standing? Maybe I comprehend whatever is under the stance you are taking... That's a stretch. I like "it has entered my heart" a lot better.
December 31, 2010
Happy 2554!
The Thai calendar marks the beginning of the current era from the birth of Buddha instead of the birth of Christ. Thus I am 543 years ahead of all of you. And fifteen hours. My New Year's Eve was fairly low key and not nearly as fun as going to First Night, but better than last year. I ended up going to a "cheese and wine" party hosted by the youth pastor of the church I am currently attending. It was good to be out in a different social circle and afterwards I managed to catch the fireworks show down at Ta Pae gate.
And now, to kick off the new year, here is some Oscar Peterson. He is pretty much my hero. My New Year's resolution is to become as good as this. Just kidding, that is impossible. But I hope that this serves as an inspiration to excel in whatever you do this coming year. Best wishes to all of you and blessings on all your endeavors in 2011. Or 2554. Whichever you prefer.
And now, to kick off the new year, here is some Oscar Peterson. He is pretty much my hero. My New Year's resolution is to become as good as this. Just kidding, that is impossible. But I hope that this serves as an inspiration to excel in whatever you do this coming year. Best wishes to all of you and blessings on all your endeavors in 2011. Or 2554. Whichever you prefer.
December 30, 2010
Thai boxing
Muaythai, or Thai boxing, is a significant part of Thai culture. Like many things over here, it is hardcore. Pretty much everything is legal except for "crotch shots" and there is no protective gear (except for an item related to the only illegal move). There is a scoring system, which I don't understand, but I do know that kicks are worth the most points. It may even be that kicks to the head are worth the most points. Like I said. Hard. Core.
EDIT: Here is an artistic rendition of a rabid leprechaun, courtesy of my brother. Thanks Eric.
Like you, I thought it all sounded pretty violent and so it wasn't a part of the culture that was super high on my list to experience. But then it turned out that one of the FBR guys trains at a Muaythai studio and was fighting a professional match the other night. There were a group of supporters going to cheer him on so I decided to tag along and see what this was all about. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera, so you'll have to make do without pictures.
The match site was definitely a no frills establishment. There was a small boxing ring (why do we call it a ring when it's square?) in the center and a decent crowd of Thais and faraang (mostly farang) gathered around it. The walls were lined with various vendors and bars, although I didn't recognize them as such until someone informed me that the random people sitting at tables could indeed sell me a beer if I wanted one. Like I said, no frills. We found a corner and watched a few matches while waiting for John's and one of the group explained a little bit about Thai boxing to me. Because gambling is involved (and gambling is illegal in Thailand, supposedly) all Thai boxing establishments are run by the Thai mafia. I'm not sure how I feel about this, but I'd paid my admission and there wasn't much I could do. It was rather weird though to be informed that "the guy in the black shirt at our table is a mafia member."
The matches always start with a sort of dance, which shows respect to the opponent and also as a sort of "prayer" for a good fight. During the actual match, there is traditional Thai music which increases in intensity as the bout continues. Unfortunately it also sounds like a cat in heat. Hopefully no Thais are reading this.
Despite all the talk of no rules and kicks to the head, the fights weren't as brutal as I was expecting. In fact, the fights were surprisingly graceful and dancelike in a certain respect. Well, sometimes. There were brutal sections but they don't generally last long. The really good fighters put on quite a show, not that it was staged because it's not, but just that it was like watching a pair of really good fencers or an intense tennis match.
When the time came for John's fight, we weren't really sure what to expect. You have to understand that John is a bit of a character. He has really red hair and a very unkempt beard and this particular night he had styled his hair into a sort of mohawk. The most accurate way to describe my impression of him would be "rabid leprechaun." He looked pretty ridiculous in comparison with all the sculpted, trained fighters who had preceded him and he's a bit of ham besides so he milked the traditional dance before the fight for all it was worth. But once the fight was actually on, he meant business. He positively slaughtered his opponent. It was over practically before it had begun. It was a bit disappointing actually. Where's my money's worth? :-) But our guy won and it was a pretty good time and an interesting cultural experience.
EDIT: Here is an artistic rendition of a rabid leprechaun, courtesy of my brother. Thanks Eric.
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