The cool weather is fading fast. Some friends and I took advantage of it while we could and went to a harp concert last weekend in Lumpini Park. It was particularly fun for me as the mother of one of my students was a featured harpist. My student was also at the concert and sat right behind me- it was nice to see him outside of a school context! I'm sure my presence really confused him.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Wai Kru Day
Last Thursday we celebrated Wai Kru Day. This day is more or less Teacher Appreciation Day. Many of the students brought in garlands of flowers to give to their teachers. In the middle of the day we had a short ceremony where students presented flowers to their teachers and chanted and sang. When the students hand over the flowers they are technically supposed to crawl towards the teacher on their knees then bow down even more deeply, resting their head and hands on the teachers knees. The garlands were quite pretty. Here are a few that I received.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
The Tunisian Revolution
Having spent so much time living outside of the United States I've gotten used to being a little late on the news. I wake up in the morning and turn on my computer-- suddenly the Seahawks are winning a playoff game. The world events that effect me the most these days are halfway around the world. It upset me to wake up one morning to the news that Rep. Gabrielle Gifford had been shot in Tucson. I'm aware that in the states this is a huge topic of conversation, inspiring people to discuss gun safety laws, mental health, and extreme partisanship amongst many many other things. Being so far from home, with only a small group of Americans to discuss these issues, I feel uncomfortably isolated.
Whether I am in the States or in Bangkok, my group of people to discuss Tunisian politics with is usually rather small. Up until now, it has been mostly limited to a facebook message chain between myself and my classmates from my time abroad in Tunis. Today, President Ben Ali fled Tunisia for Saudi Arabia and suddenly the whole world is interested in this tiny Northern African country.
I didn't really talk much politics on my blog while I was in Tunis because, well, I couldn't. Tunisians did not speak openly about politics out of fear of being arrested. I was even told I was better off just not saying Ben Ali's name in public at all. Ben Ali has been president of Tunisia for 23 years. The President before him, Bourguiba, was in office for the thirty years preceding him. It seemed to me that after fifty years and only two presidents, Tunisians had become resigned to their lot. There is a great deal of censorship and surveillance in Tunisia. Dealing with this became part of my life. I remember asking a friend once why Tunisians put up with it. The short answer is that things could be much worse and Tunisians considered themselves very lucky. Yes, there is some torture. Yes, the internet was often shut off in order to censor things (my roommates and I joked that Ben Ali had a giant switch in his office that he used to turn on and off the internet on a whim). But Tunisian women have many more rights than women in most Arab countries. Tunisia was the first Arab country to abolish polygamy and the first to legalize abortion. Also, over the past fifty years education has improved dramatically in Tunisia. I don't know the literacy rate off the top of my head, but I know that it is much higher than in many Arab countries. I heard rumblings of frustration about joblessness, but I never got so much as an inkling of an idea that Tunisia was ready for a revolution.
What good is having access to higher education if you cannot use it to find a job and improve your family's position in life? As frustrating as it is to be a young American in a difficult economy, I can only imagine how infuriating it must be to be a young Tunisian with an unresponsive government and no freedom of speech to TELL that government what you need. I have no idea what sort of government will be put in place now that Ben Ali has fled the country. This could be a long and difficult road that circles back to where it started, with no change for Tunisians. But if the people get what they want, it could end in a democracy. Either way, this revolution has finally opened up a discourse about political oppression in Tunisia and what needs to happen for the country to move forward.
After skyping with my Tunisian host family this morning I am very hopeful for them that this all will end happily. On one hand, they seem so joyful. They are incredibly proud that the Tunisians were able to get Ben Ali out of office without any outside help from another country. This was a movement of the people-- not of politicians. In their words, Tunisia is free now. On the other hand, they are scared. My host brother had just come back from doing a shift on a neighborhood guard patrol. My host mother said that she doesn't think she'll sleep tonight. They said that there is looting and violence in many areas, though mostly outside of Tunis, from what I could tell. The airport is closed and a state of emergency has been called. My thoughts and prayers are certainly with them and all the other lovely people I met in Tunisia.
Whether I am in the States or in Bangkok, my group of people to discuss Tunisian politics with is usually rather small. Up until now, it has been mostly limited to a facebook message chain between myself and my classmates from my time abroad in Tunis. Today, President Ben Ali fled Tunisia for Saudi Arabia and suddenly the whole world is interested in this tiny Northern African country.
I didn't really talk much politics on my blog while I was in Tunis because, well, I couldn't. Tunisians did not speak openly about politics out of fear of being arrested. I was even told I was better off just not saying Ben Ali's name in public at all. Ben Ali has been president of Tunisia for 23 years. The President before him, Bourguiba, was in office for the thirty years preceding him. It seemed to me that after fifty years and only two presidents, Tunisians had become resigned to their lot. There is a great deal of censorship and surveillance in Tunisia. Dealing with this became part of my life. I remember asking a friend once why Tunisians put up with it. The short answer is that things could be much worse and Tunisians considered themselves very lucky. Yes, there is some torture. Yes, the internet was often shut off in order to censor things (my roommates and I joked that Ben Ali had a giant switch in his office that he used to turn on and off the internet on a whim). But Tunisian women have many more rights than women in most Arab countries. Tunisia was the first Arab country to abolish polygamy and the first to legalize abortion. Also, over the past fifty years education has improved dramatically in Tunisia. I don't know the literacy rate off the top of my head, but I know that it is much higher than in many Arab countries. I heard rumblings of frustration about joblessness, but I never got so much as an inkling of an idea that Tunisia was ready for a revolution.
What good is having access to higher education if you cannot use it to find a job and improve your family's position in life? As frustrating as it is to be a young American in a difficult economy, I can only imagine how infuriating it must be to be a young Tunisian with an unresponsive government and no freedom of speech to TELL that government what you need. I have no idea what sort of government will be put in place now that Ben Ali has fled the country. This could be a long and difficult road that circles back to where it started, with no change for Tunisians. But if the people get what they want, it could end in a democracy. Either way, this revolution has finally opened up a discourse about political oppression in Tunisia and what needs to happen for the country to move forward.
After skyping with my Tunisian host family this morning I am very hopeful for them that this all will end happily. On one hand, they seem so joyful. They are incredibly proud that the Tunisians were able to get Ben Ali out of office without any outside help from another country. This was a movement of the people-- not of politicians. In their words, Tunisia is free now. On the other hand, they are scared. My host brother had just come back from doing a shift on a neighborhood guard patrol. My host mother said that she doesn't think she'll sleep tonight. They said that there is looting and violence in many areas, though mostly outside of Tunis, from what I could tell. The airport is closed and a state of emergency has been called. My thoughts and prayers are certainly with them and all the other lovely people I met in Tunisia.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Back in Action!
I've been back in Bangkok for a little over a week now. Visiting home was lovely. I was able to spend time with my family and many great friends. I went out to delicious dinners and brunches, saw a piano concert, went crosscountry skiing, gazed at many picassos and saw some excellent movies (Black Swan and True Grit). My friend Caroline visited me from Chicago at the front end of my trip. It was great to have a visitor in town, it gave me an excellent excuse to get out of my neighborhood and explore the city. Following Caroline's visit, my paternal grandmother flew in from Green Bay. We really enjoyed having her with us to celebrate the holidays! Other than seeing people, the best part of the trip was definitely eating. I got my fill of Mexican food, ate an awesome steak on Christmas, and consumed an incredible array of seafood (crab, prawns, lobster, salmon...).
Leaving Seattle after such a relaxing stay was sad, but my life is in Bangkok now. I had an uneventful plane trip back and a full weekend to recover before going back to work. Being with my students again has been wonderful. In Seattle I found myself cooing at babies and making faces at toddlers. I was a little anxious that I would return to a classroom of criers-- that they would all be sad to have left their families after such a long vacation. Fortunately for me, this was not the case. Most of my kids ran right into the classroom without a backwards glance at their parents. I have them trained so well! School has changed a bit for me recently. I typically have one class of 2.5/3s that I teach all morning. Now, a second class is starting for students around six months younger than mine. For the first two hours they will be working with another teacher and for the second two hours they will be combined with my class. They are joining me gradually, I had eight students in my class today and I'll be up to 12 by February. Yes, all you teachers out there, I am completely spoiled to have such a small class! That said, adding new students (who are much younger) and doubling my class size completely changes the dynamic of our group. So far, it has gone well. Some of my new students are fitting in easily and are quickly adapting to our classroom routine. Others will need some work... I'm up for the challenge. Another new challenge I'm facing is the addition of quadruplets-- incredibly energetic four year old boys who speak no English-- to one of my extracurricular classes. It makes my head ache a bit to even think about that class, so I won't go into details.
Outside of work, I've been readjusting into normal Bangkok life. The weather here is incredible. I completely understand why this is the high season for tourism. I never check the weather here because I always know what it will say: 90º F and sunny. That said, I never could have imagined that 90º F could feel completely different at one time of the year from another. Humidity isn't so bad now and nights and mornings are downright cool (drifting into the mid 70s). This weather means that I suddenly want to be outdoors all the time. This weekend I joined a few friends from frisbee at an outdoor concert of the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra in Lumpini Park. We bought snacks from vendors, rented a mat, and stretched out on the lawn. This is the first time I've seen a symphony play in jeans and polo shirts. While the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra doesn't really hold a candle to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, we still had a great time. National Children's Day was this past week so the concert played music that was slightly oriented towards children. I can't remember everything we heard, but I do remember "Colors of the Wind" from Pocohontas, the Indiana Jones song, a Thai song teaching children to mind their manners, and "A Little Night Music" by Mozart. There were also some pieces from Thai musicals that the Thai part of the crowd seemed to know and enjoy (they seemed a little slow and morose to me). The night ended with a medley from My Fair Lady. Apparently these concerts extend all winter long while the weather is pleasant. I'm hoping I'll make it to another one at some point. There will also be a French film festival in the park this coming weekend that I'd like to check out.
Lots to look forward to in the coming weeks! My netball league will resume soon and I also have several little weekend trips planned. The first will be to stay at a friend's house near Khao Yai national park, the next will be to Bali, and I'm also toying around with the idea of going to a frisbee tournament in Cambodia. Also, two friends of mine from college, Ashley and Elliott, are moving to Thailand this week to begin their service with the Peace Corps! I'm hoping I'll get to see them some time soon.
I haven't been taking many pictures recently, so I'll just close this post with a picture I took of a popsicle I made with my new popsicle machine that my mom bought me for Christmas. Pomegranate juice and strawberries (which are in season here!). Yum.
Leaving Seattle after such a relaxing stay was sad, but my life is in Bangkok now. I had an uneventful plane trip back and a full weekend to recover before going back to work. Being with my students again has been wonderful. In Seattle I found myself cooing at babies and making faces at toddlers. I was a little anxious that I would return to a classroom of criers-- that they would all be sad to have left their families after such a long vacation. Fortunately for me, this was not the case. Most of my kids ran right into the classroom without a backwards glance at their parents. I have them trained so well! School has changed a bit for me recently. I typically have one class of 2.5/3s that I teach all morning. Now, a second class is starting for students around six months younger than mine. For the first two hours they will be working with another teacher and for the second two hours they will be combined with my class. They are joining me gradually, I had eight students in my class today and I'll be up to 12 by February. Yes, all you teachers out there, I am completely spoiled to have such a small class! That said, adding new students (who are much younger) and doubling my class size completely changes the dynamic of our group. So far, it has gone well. Some of my new students are fitting in easily and are quickly adapting to our classroom routine. Others will need some work... I'm up for the challenge. Another new challenge I'm facing is the addition of quadruplets-- incredibly energetic four year old boys who speak no English-- to one of my extracurricular classes. It makes my head ache a bit to even think about that class, so I won't go into details.
Outside of work, I've been readjusting into normal Bangkok life. The weather here is incredible. I completely understand why this is the high season for tourism. I never check the weather here because I always know what it will say: 90º F and sunny. That said, I never could have imagined that 90º F could feel completely different at one time of the year from another. Humidity isn't so bad now and nights and mornings are downright cool (drifting into the mid 70s). This weather means that I suddenly want to be outdoors all the time. This weekend I joined a few friends from frisbee at an outdoor concert of the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra in Lumpini Park. We bought snacks from vendors, rented a mat, and stretched out on the lawn. This is the first time I've seen a symphony play in jeans and polo shirts. While the Bangkok Symphony Orchestra doesn't really hold a candle to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, we still had a great time. National Children's Day was this past week so the concert played music that was slightly oriented towards children. I can't remember everything we heard, but I do remember "Colors of the Wind" from Pocohontas, the Indiana Jones song, a Thai song teaching children to mind their manners, and "A Little Night Music" by Mozart. There were also some pieces from Thai musicals that the Thai part of the crowd seemed to know and enjoy (they seemed a little slow and morose to me). The night ended with a medley from My Fair Lady. Apparently these concerts extend all winter long while the weather is pleasant. I'm hoping I'll make it to another one at some point. There will also be a French film festival in the park this coming weekend that I'd like to check out.
Lots to look forward to in the coming weeks! My netball league will resume soon and I also have several little weekend trips planned. The first will be to stay at a friend's house near Khao Yai national park, the next will be to Bali, and I'm also toying around with the idea of going to a frisbee tournament in Cambodia. Also, two friends of mine from college, Ashley and Elliott, are moving to Thailand this week to begin their service with the Peace Corps! I'm hoping I'll get to see them some time soon.
I haven't been taking many pictures recently, so I'll just close this post with a picture I took of a popsicle I made with my new popsicle machine that my mom bought me for Christmas. Pomegranate juice and strawberries (which are in season here!). Yum.
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