Ban Phe

Today we leave Bangkok to go to our training course. While I have truly enjoyed exploring the wonders of this modern metropolis growing from a city rich with history, I am anxious to see a more traditional Thai way of life. This will bring me one step closer to the total immersion that I was looking for.
On our final day here, we toured the canals on the east side of the river, getting caught in a deluge along the way. I knew it rained here. I am familiar with the term monsoon. This was the first time that I have seen just how mighty a tropical storm can be, however. It has rained sporadically every day that we have been here, but nothing even came close to what we experienced today. The temperature dropped and the sky clouded, but that is nothing new. But this time what began as a mild rain quickly turned into something that made the river violent and literally stopped the city. No one ventured from cover. While the long-tail boat had a small roof to protect us from the stinging drops from above, it did nothing to fend off the sideways gusts and resultant splash as the drops hit the water around us. We were soaked to the bone in a matter of minutes. For perhaps an hour and a half, this continued unabated. Then, as quickly as it had come, it was gone, leaving behind a glorious day.
After returning to the hotel to change, we again wandered and shopped. I haggled a vendor down for two more shirts. While I'm certain that I could have gotten a lower price, this is a new practice for me and I am still fine tuning my approach. Overall, I feel pleased with the negotiations.
In another 'the world is so small' moment, my friend from college who has been living in China for the past 3 years happened to be in Bangkok as part of a vacation. Erica and I met Matt and his girlfriend for drinks and then dinner. Unfortunately, tomorrow is some sort of election, and the sale of alcohol today ceased at 6. Fortunately, Matt has spent a lot of time here and turned me on to some new culinary treats, including a Thai salad of green papaya, fermented baby soft shell crabs, chili, fish sauce, oyster sauce, and lime (offered with the ubiquitous fresh herbs of course). Sitting down to a true feast then followed after a short train ride. Spicy beef salad, glass noodles with prawn, Chinese broccoli, fish stewed in coconut and galangal, and the piece de resistance: a whole steamed snapper with accompaniments.
Not only was it an exceptional evening doing a few of my favorite things, but I got to share it with some of my good friends. Seeing Matt and meeting his girlfriend couldn't have happened at a better time. As someone who has gone through the same type of adjustments, he was full of insights.  Victoria, his girlfriend, is from northern China and she brought a different perspective to living in Asia.
And so, I look forward to what Ban Phe brings.More challenges I'm sure. Meeting the cast of characters at TEFL International; instructors and fellow future ESL teachers alike is exctiting. I hope they will forgive my inability to recall names beyond a 2 minute span. The realization that I am truly going to be a teacher is getting to be more difficult to ignore.