McGuire's of Arabia: Thailand part 1-Bangkok

Hello all from Thailand!

It is officially spring break and we are spending it in Thailand. The first part of our trip has been spent in Bangkok at the NESA convention. NESA stands for Near East South Asia and is the district that our school belongs to. It's like teacher conventions in the States, but in another country and way more ritzy. The conference lasted 4 days and included some amazing speakers. Never have I learned so much about teaching and been so inspired to improve my teaching. The emphasis this year has been technology. Not just integrating it into the classroom, but changing the way we teach because of all the new technology that is being created. My goal for the rest of the school year (which is only 11 weeks when we get back) is to learn how to create podcasts and use them as resources for students who were absent or who forgot what we learned. The other big push at the conference was 20 brain-based strategies to use in the classroom that will help our students remember what they are taught and become more active in their learning. For any fellow teachers out there, check out books by Marcia Tate and Heidi Hayes-Jacobs, they were my favorite speakers and both are from the States.

There was a lot of "school stuff" going on at the conference, but we found time to have fun as well. NESA threw two great parties during the conference. Both included amazing food and drinks, but each was unique in the entertainment they provided. The first party was in the hotel garden on the river and included a baby elephant who did tricks and posed for pictures. Even though he was a baby, he was still huge! The second party was inside which was good because we got a decent thunderstorm during it, and had traditional Thai music, dancers, and a puppet show. See below for a video of it. We had a great time bonding with our fellow staff members and meeting people from our other schools. One school that we made a great connection with was the American School of Dubai. They had a few teachers from Wisconsin who were our age and were very welcoming.

Despite being very busy with the conference we were able to explore the city a bit and see a few of the sites. The main cultural site we saw was Wat Po otherwise known as the reclining Buddha. It is a HUGE Buddha covered in gold leaf. It is in a building, but the building is not much bigger than the Buddha. Out of respect, you have to cover your shoulders if you are wearing a tank top and everyone must take off your shoes before going in. The architecture is so different than what we are used to seeing, it's beautiful.

Another point of interest was the night markets. It must have been acres and acres of shops selling anything you could want. We picked up some clothes and gifts. We figured if we bartered the price of something in half it was probably close to fair, but you never know for sure. The key is deciding how much something is worth to you and not paying more than that, even if that means offering an insultingly low price to start the bargaining with. Even still, they are the professionals and I'm sure we never really got a "steal."

Lastly, we finished up our time in Bangkok yesterday with hour long massages for only $10 a person. Jamie also picked up his new tailored suit. He got the tailored suit and two tailored dress shirts for the price you would pay for the cheap, off the rack, suit at JCPenny or Boston Store. He looks good ;)

We will update our blog with Thailand part II after we get back from Koh Samui.

Enjoy the pictures!