Back home in Philly

So I am back at home. The flight home seemed to be never ending. Thankfully, there were several interesting people to talk with. There was a family from Raleigh, NC returning home from Vietnam with their new adopted baby girl Ada, after having to wait 2 months for her visa request to be aproved and issued. There was a student from Richmond, VA who lived in China and rural Thailand for six months. There were business people involved in international trade. There was a law enforcer from the Navy, and a dentist from Thailand heading to Toronto to sit certification exams. And, of course there were several groups of Lions returning from their annual international meeting held in Bangkok.

Dulles, as the first point of entry in the US, was the place for meeting with immigration and customs officers. The meetings were no problems and went quickly and easily. The challenge was getting to the immigration and then the customs officers. The pathways to the lines were definitely crazy and at times confusing. Thankfully my connecting flight to Philly was delayed, or I would surely have missed it.

I made it home, luggage and all, without mishap. I'll share all my pictures on http://www.kodakgallery.com/

Final night in Bangkok

And so it is ending, this trip to Bangkok, Thailand! Classes ended today. Those who are staying on for the third 7-day session are off both Saturday and Sunday, so trips are being planned to the north, Chaing Mai; to the beaches, Phuket and Pattaya; and the old capital Ayutthaya.

The others, like myself, are packing to head home. Yes, at 6:50 a.m. I am on a 6 hour flight to Narita, Japan, to be followed by a 13 hour flight to Dulles, Washington, DC, and the final leg to Philly. Indeed, about 20 hours in 12 clock hours, because I am scheduled to arrive in Philly at 6:30 p.m.

So much more to see -- definitely a place to return to.

Time Out

I have eaten rice at each of my three meals today - Japanese rice with sauteed fish (I don't know what type of fish and I didn't ask) at breakfast, sticky rice with shrimp and basil leaves at lunch, and white rice with seafood for dinner. Can you imagine?

I'm staying in tonight. I'll meet one of my sister's friends, who is visiting from Alaska with her daughter, for dinner tomorrow night. Definitely no rice! There is an extremely wide range of green (and other colors) vegetables here.

A color for each day

There is no way I could have missed it. Everywhere I went people were in yellow shirts. Today, most people were wearing pink shirts! I just had to ask -- what's going on here? I learned that in Thailand each day is associated with a specific color, therefore the color of the day of your birth is your lucky color. There was another interesting twist. As you porbably know, Thailand has a monarchy, the king has been reigning more than 60 years. Yep you guessed it, the day of his birth is a Monday, so his flag is yellow, and everyone wears yellow in his honor.

Here they are:
Sunday - red; Monday - yellow; Tuesday - pink; Wednesday - green; Thursday - orange/brown; Friday - blue; Saturday - black/purple.

Finally, and a really big deal for me - I went downtown all by myself. I was armed with the thai version of the address for the taxi driver and the card with the hotel's address. I am ligit now!

The One Hour Foot Massage

It was the end of the school day. Alan had a fitting scheduled at the Narry's the tailor in the Sukhumvit section of the city. Like any other section of Bangkok, there was endless shopping , whatever your price point, "spas" offering one hour foot massages, and restaurants galore, whatever your palate fancies.

At Narry's the sign says Package 1 - US $199 - 2 shirts, 2 jackets, 1 summer suit, 2 ties (scarves for women). Of course when you inquired about the package, I was immediately told that the fabric used in that package was not of the best quality and steered toward more expensive facbric. So much for that. Alan has been coming to Bangkok for the past 5 years, and getting a suit and/or shirts made at Narry's was a part of his regular activities. No switch and bait experience for him here.

After the fitting it was off to Joy and Joy to get our 1 hour foot massage. What is there to massage for 1 hour I asked myself. Well, for 250 bahts ($7.85) I could afford to find out. We each sit in the comfortable reclining chair, allowed our feet to be placed on the ottomans and as the massage began we were offered the package deal - 550 bahts ($17.18) we could get the foot massage, a manicure, and a pedicure! Could it get any better? What a special treat having someone massaging from the knees to the toes while another person worked on my hands. Turns out the foot massage also includes the neck as well as hands. Why did I wait this long? It is something I must enjoy at least one more time.

The evening ended eating babaganoush, hummus, and Nan
at an Egyptian restaurant!

Narai Phand and Koh Kret (also spelled Gaw Gret)

Today, my only free day from class, was spent as a typical tourist - sight seeing and shopping. The first stop was at Narai Phand at government supported store for products made by Thais. They had just moved into new spaces so all products were not out on the shelves and some areas of the shop were not yet opened, but there were still lots and lots of excellently made products.

It was then back to the hotel to meet about 5 others on the trek to Koh Kret/Gaw Gret. This island created when a canal was dug in the Thai River to avoid a sharp bend is historically significant for several reasons. One, it was one of the most important pottery making centers in the city; and second, it is populated primarily by Mon, an ethnic Chinese group, who had initially migrated to Burma, were forced out of Burma, and then fought the Burmese on behalf of the Thais.

Like every other location in the city there were several wats (Buddhist temples). Renovations are being made to the historical Wat Chimplee. The grounds are on the banks of the Thai River and is now a playground for children as well as a location for food and craft vendors.

Suan Lum Night Market

Everyone kept asking me if I'd gone to the night market. So tonight six of us set out from our hotel to take taxis to the Suan Lum Night Market. All six of us could not fit in one cab, so with two sets of destination information written in Thai, and confirming we had the Thai version of the hotel's address we all walked to the main street Ramkanhaeng to hail 2 taxis. We agreed on the specific entrance where we would meet and then departed. Ruth, her sister Annette, and I were in the first taxi.

It is an understatement that the traffic jams in Bangkok go on for hours and hours. We were not entirely surprised therefore, when we were stuck in traffic for about 30 minutes. We assumed our fellow travelers in the second taxi experienced the same fate so waited for them at the designated meeting spot. Thirty minutes later they had not shown up. The executive decision was made to go ahead and explore the market. Suan Lum Night Bazaar is open until midnight every night offering food, entertainment, and literally hundreds of independent stores selling everything - curios, household items, pashmina scarves, clothing, shoes, artwork, handbags and luggage. We had dinner after investigating the prices of several items of interest (planning for the second visit) and then returned to the hotel.

You can imagine our surprise when we saw 2 of our 3 fellow travellers sitting in the hotel's "tea room." They had paid the taxi driver an extra 50 bahts (less than $2.00 US) to use the highway (we didn't even think of that option) so arrived at Suan Lum within 20 minutes. Thinking we had exercised the same option, they gave up on finding us after about 20 minutes, did their explorations and returned to the hotel! Oh well, I guess we all got to see Suan Lum Night Bazaar, just not together!

A quick switch of topics here - the protests in Bangkok are reported to be under control. See www.bangkokpost.com - in english.

Global Studies

Today 24 students and I began an exploration of child growth and development within cultural contexts. They are Americans living and working in Taiwan and Japan. They are Canadians living and working in Kuwait. They are Pakistani's working at American schools in their home country. They are Moaris from New Zealand. They are Filipinos and Chinese. . They are from Australia and Greece and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The perspectives represented are mind broadening. We are bringing to the forefront the reality that physical appearances and/or names are often misleading as many times they erroneously represent a sterotypical cultural alliance that is not the case.

Of course we explored models of education delivered within their geographical settings. And would you know it, the majority are affiliated with either American schools or International Schools so the student population and the curriculum did not reflect the majority of the country's population nor the educational policies. Very interesting! For example, students in Pakistan enrolled in the American school are taught in English and then have to learn their native tongue, Urdu, as a second language!

Of note is the local protests -- seeking to get a change in political leadership. Here there is a reigning monarchy. A much loved King (they all say) who has been reigning for more than 60 years -- and will be celebrating his 80th birthday soon.

On the touristy side I learned a lot more about the night market - food, very inexpensive shopping, and entertainment. Get ready to hear all about it in tomorrow's notes.

International Schools

As we say in Jamaica, "mi free paper burn today" as this was the last day before the intensive course begins. So, logically, I think, it is time to visit the middle school where the classes will be held, get my ID, figure out connectivity, follow-up on arrangements for supplies, and the like.

My course will be one of five offered during this second of three sessions being held. The sessions are all being held in classrooms of the Ruamrudee International School. Ruamrudee, Redeemer, and RIS Swiss Section are 3 of the 75 international schools (at least those that belong to the Association of Inernational Schools) in Thailand. They share a college-like campus in the Nimburi section of Bangkok, former rice paddies that are now filled with mansions in gated communities. These 3 schools offer english language based education using an American curriculum from PreK through 12th grade (IB and AP courses are also offered). Tuition varies by school, but the fees range from a low of 179,000 bahts ($5,351.00 US) for PreK/K to a high of 400,000 bahts ($11,958.00 US ) for grades 9-12.

With a per capita income of approximately $3,737.00 US I am guessing that students here are children of expat, business, and governmental families. Of the approximately 62 million people living in Thailand, approximately 10 million live in Bangkok. Education is mandatory through 12th grade. Using a national curriculum, there is a literacy rate of 94.9% for males and 90.5% for females. Very impressive!

Seeing some of the sights

Today I hung out with Charles Russo, a fellow adjunct faculty member, and his wife, Debbie. The day began about 10:00 a.m with a request that a member of the front desk staff write the name of the tourist site and its address in Thai for the taxi driver, and then asking the security guard to tell him where we are heading. A part of the reality is that in addition to not speaking English, several taxi drivers are often not able to read Thai. We then asked for a card from the hotel that had its address written in Thai -- this card we would show to the taxi driver when we were heading back.

With all bases covered we set out to tour the Grand Palace http://thailandforvisitors.com/central/bangkok/ratanakosin/prakeo/. Built in 1782 when the capital was moved from Thonburi, the Grand Palace housed the King's residence (he will be 80 years this year, and no longer lives there) as well as some governmental administrative offices - then and now. Traffic is horrendously slow, and we came upon a road block created by/to contain protestors. Our taxi driver speaks very little English, neither one of the three of us knows more than Khwap Khun Ka (thank you very much) in Thai, so we could not ask about nor learn the reason for the road block. Finally, about 1 hour later we arrive at the Grand Palace.

As we move toward the entrance we are approached by a young man who tells us the palace is closed until 2 p.m. He did not know that we were informed of this strategy to divert us to take a tuk-tuk to sites in walking distance, but would allow the driver and his "lurer" to take us to shops off the beaten path at the request of shop owners willing to purchase gas for them in exchange for bringing in customers. We were able to ignore these ploys and enter the Grand Palace without incident and purchase tickets, thanks to the stories shared by group of colleagues who had that experience yesterday and quickly spread the word.

Palatial took on new meanings as we toured the buildings. At one point we had to remove our shows to enter the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. I was ready with a pair of socks brought specifically for that purpose. Photographs and video-taping were also forbidden in this temple.

Next it was to the Jim Thompson House of Silk http://www.jimthopmson.com/. Here again we had to remove our shoes. The guide told us that traditional Thai meals are served family style on the floor so the custom of leaving shoes outside helped with ensuring that the floors were always spotless. As an aside, the housekeeping staff at the hotel always remove their shoes when entering the rooms/apartment of a guest. American born Jim Thompson did a lot to reinstate the then waning art of hand woven silk, built a large house in Bangkok, collected Asian art, and evntually disappeared without a trace in 1961 while visiting Malaysia. Looking for beautiful handwoven silk items? The store here is the place to shop!

A 10 minute walk away is the Siam Center, a mall for all mall shoppers! http://www.bangkok.com/shopping-mall/siam-center.html High end mall shoppers, that is!Until 1939 Thailand was known as Siam. The name change is associated with an early coup - several have taken place since then. East meets West here as all the US and British stores have branches here, including NYC's Musem of Modern Art! It is also the hangout for teenagers. They were there in droves, wearing uniforms, gathering in several restaurants, McDonalds included, chatting, socializing, and just having fun!

We enjoyed the final day of the orchid show -- WOW!, and did we sample fruits and other goodies in the gourmet food court!!! I felt homesick for Jamaica as I saw and sampled guava, sweet sop which they called custard apple, mangoes, tamarind, and coconut. We enjoyed dessert before dinner tasting gelato, pastries, and other sweets. Finally the trek home began after a scrumptious Thai meal.

The BTS works like the DC metro - fare stages, entering and exiting using the fare-card, and a fare-card that gets "eaten" when the money is used up. The last leg of the return journey mirrored the first leg of this morning's journey -- with a cab ride hampered by traffic. It allowed for a wee bit more sightseeing -- so many food places, so many 24-hour 7/11's, and so many female pillion riders sitting side saddle on motorcycles that are furiously bobbing and weaving through traffic. Needless to say we were relieved to disembark at The Kantary House.

Jet Lag

Today I slept, and slept, and slept!



My intent was to get up for breakfast (at check-in I received a book of breakfast coupons) that is served between 7 - 9:30 a.m. and then return to my room to catchup on sleep. I set the alarm on my cellphone for 8 a.m. I heard it going off in the distance and decided to ignore it. The next thing I heard was the doorbell (real chimes). It was housekeeping wanting to clean the apartment. I passed. Consciousness came at 4:30 p.m.! I slept the entire day!



Instead of going downstairs to the restaurant for dinner I ordered room service - salmon japanese style.



I'm watching TV- a local program about sports that seems to be geared toward teens. No, I cannot understand the spoken word, but who says that is the only way of communicating? There is CNN and BBC World in English, but the segments get repeated endlessly, and of course the range and depth of news is limited.





I'm catching up on e-mail and will go back to sleep.

Getting there - Sunday, June 15 6:30 a.m. - Monday June 16, 10:50 p.m.

Thanks to Win for the 2:30 a.m. wakeup call. I was so deep in sleep that the cheerful chirping of the cell phone’s alarm would most surely have been considered a part of the dream rather than the signal to start getting ready for this incredible journey. And yes, the car service was there 5 minutes before the agreed upon 4 a.m. There were fellow travelers on the Schuykill to the airport, but definitely no traffic jam. Yes, the Philadelphia International Airport was alive and jumping when we pulled up at 4:15 a.m. In fact there was a line to check in at the United Airlines counter. I was not going to give up $2 at the curbside check in for my one bag if there was the chance that I would also be charged the newly imposed luggage fee of $15 per bag . When I got up to the counter I learned that the check in bag fee was only for domestic travel, BUT, my bag weighed 4 lbs above the allowed 50 lbs so it was recommended that I removed something or be assessed a $100.00 fine. Not wishing to dig into my spending money BEFORE getting to the gate I gladly opened my bag and removed the packet of 300 5 x 8 index cards. As I was wondering what else to transfer into my carry on bag, I heard the United representative say – “You are now okay!” and she then affixed the luggage tag. Whew! That was easy.
TSA personnel were extremely pleasant – is it that the real morning people get the morning shift or there has been a super strong dose of “Be nice to the customers” professional development sessions? I was a bit concerned about not being able to get food in the airport and then figuring out how to manage the growling of my stomach that would surely be the outcome of a meal-less 6 hour flight. Mercifully the concession stands start opening about 5 a.m. – well, actually, they are illuminated so all the hungry passengers can start lining up, but the gloves for service and the cash registers come on at 5:30 a.m. My $8.78 breakfast consist of scrambled eggs, freshly done, a raisin bagel and a large bottle of water. No there will be no $3.99 snack bag of nuts for me, to take on the plane. My sole intent is to get on that plane, settle into my middle seat (16 B) and go to sleep for the entire flight. As I wait the few minutes to hear the call for boarding I realize that a telephone conversation will be the only guarantee that the flight will not be missed because I went off to sleep. So the one person who accepts 6 a.m. calls without grumbling shared those few moments with me.
I get the reminder that 6 hours goes very slowing while flying because as tired as I am squeezed into a tiny seat between two persons, being almost upright wrapped in my shawl and the airline provided blanket and still shivering is not the winning recipe for restful sleep. I attempt the crossword puzzle as well as the Suduko puzzles, but the brain is not awake enough to rise to the challenge. Eventually, my neighbor to my left and I strike up a conversation for the rest of the flight. Turns out he is from the Philly area, is an FBI agent wearing a gun (I didn’t know that they just tell perfect strangers that info), who specializes in pedophile cases.
San Francisco’s International Terminal is a duty free mall of high end name brands. I have brunch at a Japanese restaurant filled with people who I think, am hoping, are Japanese. They are all talking at the tables, but there definitely no buzz. The miso soup, grilled squid and pot of green tea are delicious! Satiated I look for the gate, scout out an outlet (not hard to do as unlike most airports, SFO has banks of workspaces, and outlets on every column), plug in my phone and make those Happy Father’s day and other checking in with you calls.
Aboard the plane the pilot informs us that there is a 16 hour time difference between SFO and Tokyo (where I’ll be changing planes) and that we have a ten hour flight ahead of us. On this leg I will cross the International Date Line. I am sitting between a businesswoman from Indonesia who exports exotic fruit to Dubai, UAE and other countries, and a Japanese aviation student returning home after completing his four year program at a university in Washington state. From him I learned that I can listen in on the conversations between the air traffic controllers and the pilots on channel 9 of the entertainment system. I use this leg of the journey to sleep some more, watch The Bucket List, eat two scrumptious specially requested Asian vegetarian meals, and enjoy Barack Obama’s reading of Dreams From My Father. Awesome! I will be listening to it again and again. He was at Columbia College while I was in the School of General Studies. I have to check with my friends to find out who knew him then.
The almost two hour layover in Tokyo’s Narita International Airport goes by pretty quickly. I am not hungry. I find no Cambio’s to purchase Thai baths (approximately 33 bahts to $1.00). I people watch – lots of families travelling. I talk with one African American male, he is returning from vacationing in Germany to finish the last four months of his tour of duty with the US Navy. I see a few black families and some couples.
I am first in line to board the flight for the penultimate leg of this “more than a notion” journey. Wait a minute, in a few days I will have to retrace these steps in order to get back home! This flight is not full – lots of opportunities to spread out and stretch out for better sleep. I realize this after a conversation with my one neighbor in this five seat row. A European American man who worked with FedEx supporting emergency aid to disaster areas all over the world, he and his wife decided to start a relief agency for Asian countries and relocate to northern Thailand. They have been living there for eight years and swears there is no better place to rear a family! I learned about so many interesting places in Thailand and in the neighboring countries that I know now I will have to come back. After more sleep and listening blues on United’s entertainment system (the battery in my mp3 player is all used up), we arrive in Bangkok – I will have to give you the correct name tomorrow. Customs was a breeze, I converted $50.00 to 1,597.50 bahts, picked up my luggage and went to meet the driver from Kantary House – home for the next 2 weeks. I thought I’d crash immediately, but I am really wired now.
What have you been doing while I have been flying more than hall way around the world?

Preparing to get there

So this trip is happenning in the midst of major rule changes by the airlines like check your bag for a fee and no more free water! Those are not my worries at the moment however because I'm heading to Bangkok, Thailand and there are no fees, right now, for checking bags on international flights AND I'm flying on United where the water, last I heard, is still free. But, I have to pack and get to the airport for that 6:30 a.m. flight knowing that despite the 12 hour time difference, more than 20 hours will "fly" by before I arrive at my destination.