The final week….
Tuesday
Today we had time to plan our final two lessons. I had simple past tense in the context of going to the beach and then a monsters lesson. I managed to get them done and then I could help the others.
Some of the group only had 30 day visas which they got at the airport so today they had to go and extend them. This cost 1900 baht and took over 4 hours so a little annoying to have to do! When we start working, we’ll have to do a visa run which means we have to go to Laos to get our working visa – just a casual 12 hour drive!
In the evening, we were all pretty tired and just wanted to chill. So after 3 weeks here, Nicole and I worked out how her fire stick works and we were able to watch Netflix. So far I’ve been using youtube to watch TV, mainly ‘Mock the week’ and ‘Bake off’ as that’s all that seems to be available. Oh and a crazy tattoo program called “Just Tattoo of us” it’s awfull! So Netflix was a luxury and we could watch it on my TV so it was a big screen. We ended up watching Jack Whithall taking a gap year in Thailand and then Jurassic World!
Wednesday
We were up bright and early for our 5th lesson. As I was first, I was done by 9.30 which was great as then I could just relax. The kids found the past tense hard “yesterday I..walking/drinks?!” so it took a bit longer to get the lesson going but they got there in the end!
Everytime we go to the school they give us snacks and drinks which have varied alot!! Today they gave us coconuts. They were different to ones I have had before and the skin you pierced with a straw was squishy and a bit like a brain!! Unfortunately, I didn’t like it but didn’t want to waste it so luckily I could donate to Doug!
^ This is the sweaty mess look!!^
We headed back to class to finish planning our final lesson and then a few of us jumped in a red truck and headed to an art gallery I have read about. It was called ‘Art in Paradise’ and specialised in creating optical illusions. The paintings were painted on the walls and ceilings and you were encouraged to stand on the painting to create a 3D image. It was quite amazing! Only slight hitch was that we hadn’t realised we needed to download an app which brought the paintings alive but we soon downloaded it and could experience the full effect!
Thursday
Our final day on the course!! We headed to school and I had a brilliant lesson on monsters. The children were brilliant which meant we could have a laugh and enjoyable lesson. It was and great end to the course! Oh and the snack today was donuts!! I accidently ate 3!
All the children who came to school over the last few days were all volunteers as it’s actually the holidays!
So a month later and we’re all certified ESL teachers ready to start! If anyone’s interested in doing the course and trying out teaching here in Thailand , let me know!
We finished up and then headed back to our hotel to chill before all heading out to Ram bar.
Friday
It was lovely to wake up and and not have to go anywhere! We had a lazy morning, did some laundry and then headed for a massage! This time I had an aroma therapy massage…it was bliss!! Although I did have to ask for her to do it a little more gently at times!!
We ended out hour massage with a cup of blue tea! No idea what it was but it tasted amazing!
We enjoyed an evening by the pool and a final visit to Ram bar!
Saturday
This morning, we were picked up by the Thai teachers from last Friday and headed to a local temple called Wat Suan Dok.
Here were learnt some more Thai as well as information about temples and buddhism.
We were treated to lunch by the teachers.
We were dropped off in Old town and after wandering around for a while we found a couple of other temples to explore.
Sunday
Time to pack! I seem to have gained stuff and my bags seem to have shrunk! But I’ve just about managed to get everything in my bags ready for the trip to Bangkok tomorrow!
Nicole and I headed to Maya Mall where I got an extra rucksack (extra room!) and some new flipflops and then enjoyed browsing the shops – some sell some quite interesting products!
What are these?!?!
You can ride these around the mall!
We enjoyed a little break at Starbucks before walking back.
Then I headed off to church..took an Uber today as a little luxury! After chuch I met the others at Srifaa’s for our final meal and we said goodbye to Ang who runs it.
So the first month is done! Chiang Mai has been brillaint and a great introduction to Thailand!
Things I’ve learnt:
☆ Always have toilet roll on you and be prepared to squat! Also the bum gun isn’t that scary!
☆Be confident crossing the road. Yes you might have to walk out infront of bikes and cars but don’t hesitate midway, just walk and they’ll stop!
☆Always keep you eyes on the path in front. There are many random holes and drains which you might trip on!
☆ Red trucks are brilliant but don’t pay more than 30baht in town but get Uber or Grab to make it even easier to get around!
☆ Get a Thai sim card early on and get unlimited data (300 baht/month)
☆Carry an umbrella during rainy season and be careful what you wear. The rain arrives suddenly and you’ll be drenched/see through if not prepared!
☆ Gradually begin to eat street food but try it as it’s great! Rottis are amazing! But if you’re craving bread rather than rice, head to 7/11 for a cheese and ham toastie!!
☆ Use the water stations to fill up your water bottles! For 1/2 baht you can get 4 litres of water! And it means you’re recycling some of the many plastic bottles which are being used by everyone! Also, you’ll be given a plastic bag for everything -no 5p rule here!
☆ The electricity lines are crazy! Just watch out for the random wires dangling down in your path!
☆ You will have a sensory overload just walking down the streets which are lined with stalls selling everything from raw meat to clothing but it’s amazing!
I can’t wait to see Bangkok then head onto Chaiyaphum!!
Kob khan ka for reading!
Sawadee ka!
Mim's travel adventure 