Thai School

In the village during our homestay :-)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgI4b_EkNB4

Hello Again

Hello again. I've decided to temporarily reinstate the blog since I'm in a different country. I really enjoyed archiving experiences/photos/reflections before, so it seems I should do the same again. It's for my own sake, basically a journal, but feel free to take a look around!

So, context - I'm in Thailand with 3 girl friends. We'll be gone for a total of 3.5 weeks (a day in Tokyo, 3 areas in Thailand, then probably a visit to Bali though we haven't bought tickets yet). Our reasons are:
- get to know another part of the world (Asia!). I'm one of those suckers for new things (culture, people, food, religion, ya know...)
- intend to increase, or at least maintain, mindfulness (hello Buddhism)
- further bonding with each other (side story: the O'Briens and I joke that we were destined to meet either in California or Thailand, since we were all applying to teach in Thailand a few years ago)
- I guess feed and satisfy my wanderlust (*insert any quote from my sidebar on the left*)

However, I've found that this time around, 2.5 years later than my last trip, those "explore the world" thoughts are often interrupted with guilt and anxiety in the form of "omg I'm spending so much money" "how will I ever afford to buy a house" "are people judging me for this trip" and "is this fun and transformative or is this irresponsible?"

I haven't decided yet how I feel about these thoughts. Do they show healthy growth as a human - a sign of becoming older and wiser? Ready to be a real adult, support a family, and live happily ever after? Or are they a sign of becoming more jaded, hardened, and falling prey to work-obsessed consumerism? Where is the sweet spot between joyful experience and selfish irresponsibility?  Being spontaneous and being practical?  Pausing and productivity?

Should pleasure be deserved?
What truly brings me happiness?
Really, what is the purpose of life?
So many philosophical questions to ponder. I guess I have 20 more days to consider them. TBD

Grandma

This has nothing to do with education or travel, but I want to save it here :-)

Rocketship Love

Well I'm going through my phone and found some photos and videos... I'll miss those kiddos! <3 

Europe Flashback

So I was cleaning today and found the old notebook I brought with me everywhere in Europe.  Some notes I found:

- Porto, Portugal: "I think I'm having a physical reaction to how much I love this place. It's like the sunlight and language and waves (beauty?) are running through my nerves. I'll be back here. Probably for a summer or maybe to write a book."

-"Venice feels like two places competing for the same real estate - Venice of history buried under Venice of today, a money-making island luring in 60,000 tourists a day."

- "The setting sun, behind the Italian hills, rivals the rising sun of the English countryside. Both illuminate their respective fields and trees, but one looks like a storybook and one looks like a..."

- Venice: "When noon strikes, a bell tower in the distance begins to ring, long steady strikes. It is quickly lost by the great clanging of another, closer, bell tower. When the song of that one falls away, I notice the ringing of another tower, or two, echoing down the canal, a few second behind the rest of the choir.

The sun bores itself into my arms and ankles as I sit, legs outstretched, on the stone ground with my back against the base of a bridge. People carrying shopping bags or strollers scurry across the arched bridge behind me then down to my left. To my right, the sound of waves lapping in the canal are disturbed only by the occasional boat - locals chug by on power boats, tourists armed with cameras float by on gondolas adorned in red and gold, and Venician men on boats laden with boxes make the delivery rounds. I watch three men deliver a washing machine - off the boat, to the cart, then rolled away, as the boat continues under my bridge to deliver at least six more. The images of the shutters, windowsills, and arches of the brick and plaster, sand and sherbert buildings lining the canal reflect off the blue and silver water; I reach down but cannot touch it.

A white bird expertly sails down the canal, between the buildings. I am reminded that the bright slice of sky above the canal is the same sky above Chicago. A sandwich-eating couple sits near me; after they leave, a pidgeon bobbles around, looking for crumbs.

I decide to wander off for gelato." 


What brings you here? She asks.
I tell her about my traveling through London and Italy before settling, for a time, in Spain.
I see two emotions come to her eyes:
Joy for all the experiences she foresees in my future,
her years of wisdom knowing more than I, deeper than mine.
And recognition of a longing.
I know that she knows she wanted to do the same.
"Good for you," she says. "How good for you."
So it goes with every woman older than me
I've encountered, at cafes, on sidewalks, on trains.
Sometimes her eyes reveal a third element:
Memories from her past stirring up,
herself - on a similar voyage.
But most often there is not.
It's just the two.

CELTA Note

Hello, Nicole :)

I just want to say I liked your lecture a lot.

Your lecture is always organized well (I am not sure how I can say...) and I could enjoy it :)

Your class was my favorite.

I really think your future students will also love your class and you:D

Good luck!

Hearing Impaired School 1: The Kids

Hello again!  It's been almost 4 months since I've written.  In that time, I've fallen into a job at a school for hearing impaired students.  I feel so welcomed and so fortunate to have found it. Since I had absolutely zero experience with hearing impaired (HI) kids before, it's been a learning experience.  I work with 2 & 3 year-olds in the morning, kindergarten-ish kids in the afternoon, and translate for Spanish-speaking parents on occasion.  I was too overwhelmed for a while to decide what to write, so I've decided to split it into 3 topics (kids, parents, adults).  It's detailed, but since I'm just here for another month-ish I want to make sure that I remember everything.  Up first - the kids.

So, I love the kids.  Short Version - I love working at the school and have learned a lot about how the program is structured and the support the kids receive. I've developed habits to encourage their listening and speaking abilities. It's been interesting to see their language develop and is incredibly rewarding. If you're curious to know more, read on. 

Scenes of Europe

A train to the Cotswolds, northwest of London: 

 

Our amazing hotel view in Cinque Terre, Italy:

Plaza del Sol in Madrid on most days: 

Switzerland 1: 

Switzerland 2:

Marina :-) 

Train to Avila, Spain 

My favorite place: Porto, Portugal 

Train to Bilbao, Spain

 

Bilbao  in Basque Country, northern Spain  

Madrid during Christmas

Rambling: Hasta Luego, España

Well I had this post 90% done before I left Spain, but then the holidays happened and I avoided doing anything mildly productive.  Late is better than never, so here is my trip summed up in 24 bullet points:

Things I Will Miss About Spain
1) Meeting up with the girlies, especially for churrrrrros
2) My Spanish family :) And being silly with Chiquita
3) The 20-second commute to work (downstairs to upstairs)

4) Cheap travel - I bought a round-trip plane ticket for $48 total, and one of my fave hostels was $9. And you never go through customs!
5) Being in a constant state of awareness and learning in Spanish. (Current favorite word? Elfo. It means elf) 
6) Feeling like a superior expat or traveler when annoyed at American tourists 
8) 40 degrees is "freezing cold" 
9) The family's massage chair. I will buy one someday
10) Driving the SmartCar.  And just how cute it is. And surprisingly, round-abouts
7) Patatas bravas, fried eggplant by the housekeeper, the kaki fruit, and frozen ready-to-heat crepes
11) So. much. free. time.

Things I Am Looking Forward to in the US

Captured: What I Did In Spain

Well, I started this post months ago, so now that I'm back in the states it makes sense to finish.  Though my schedule has changed over the months (I'd say my level of productivity over time would look like a bell curve), here is basically what I did during the weekdays:

7ish: Wake up, get sufficiently ready, and do 6 minutes of yoga (ok I was good about this for a while at least)