Month 2: Journal Entry

I think that Thailand started before a lot of the other exchanges because I got here August 9th so while I'm writing my month two journal entry this is really like month 3 for me. Or maybe two and a half.

Experiences in the Classroom

Hmm. I mean class is very similar in a lot of ways to classes taught in the US and also very different. Mainly I think it is the human component that is very different at all. For example Thai students giggle a lot and are "allowed" to arrive late for class. It is called "Thai Time" and it generally means that they don't start on time a vast majority of the time however this can lead to students walking in 1 or 2 hours late to class and I find it to be disruptive.

Actual learning though is similar. We are taught our classes in english and the syllabi are very similar to those in America. Our midterms were very difficult and were set to last 3 hours which is longer than what I'm used to in the US. The Thai kids "memorize the book cover to cover" is what I was told by one of my professors so it is a slightly different learning environment in that sense. We are required to go to class, if we don't go to class we don't get to take the final and effectively fail the class. That is also an interesting rule to me.

Very little time do we do anything but lecture in class though and I'm not sure that 3 hours of lecture is ever beneficial to anyone... It is a rather excruciating amount of time to sit and listen to lecture of the same topic but we manage it. Also in the US we have class twice weekly for 2 hours where as here we have it only once for 3 hours. It makes you kind of forget about class for the rest of the week which is nice but probably not the best for you. Also we have group projects in every class of mine but almost no homework outside of class which adds to the feeling that you aren't in school at all half the week.

Overall though the Thai kids are really friendly to us and our professors for the most part are experienced in the professional world and pretty good lecturers. It can be difficult to be in group projects with Thai students because getting around is timely and expensive for us but when it comes to just being friendly and social they are very willing. They really seem to like the exchange students and like talking to us. They also bring a lot of food and candy to class and share it with us which is really great.

One last thing to note is the uniforms. I still have mixed feelings about them. I like that I don't have to think about what I'm wearing when I wake up for class but its so difficult to walk around Bangkok in a long skirt and tucked in shirt its way too hot. Also they are so restrictive. I can't even raise my hands to the top of my head without starting to pull the shirt out of my skirt which is so annoying. The boys get to wear pants and white button downs and while I'm sure that really hot they at least have mobility and no difficulty getting on a motor scooter and actually look good where as I don't find our uniforms that flattering...

Meeting/Making New Friends

It's been really fun living at Nonsi (our apartment complex) and making friends from all over the world. The concentrations are of course Europe and America with some students from SE Asia as well. Living here surrounded by people constantly and going to school together makes me feel like I'm in high school again or a freshman in the dorms. It is so convenient though to have so many friends literally out your door and be able to have them there at any time.

Some of the more major changes I've seen as we go through this is bigger group changes. At the beginning people would post trips they were going on and huge groups would go because people didn't really have groups yet and everyone wanted to travel. Now tons of smaller groups go traveling together rather than the 50 person group trips at the beginning.

People also used to congregate at the pool and the garage (eating place) all the time to meet new people and socialize. Now that groups have formed there is a lot less "need" to run around getting to know everyone. We have settled down quite a bit. Additionally people used to go out in huge groups every night but we've also settled down in that aspect and remember our need of sleep, attending class, and traveling. It's really interesting how over time the group dynamic has changed around here.

I would hesitate to call Nonsi cliquey but I think obviously groups have formed. I am happy to say that in general though everyone is kind and gets along just fine with everyone else. As for me I've been blessed to make some really great friends here who I consider myself really close with and who I travel with quite often. It was important for me here to overcome any and all social anxiety and to adopt the mantra that "anyone you don't know is just one hello away from being a friend" I've met so many fun and interesting people here and it's funny because even now there are people I swear I've never seen before here. I really like living here and I do find making friends and meeting new people to be easy here at Nonsi.

One thing to note is that the French have a bad rep, and at least in part earned, for only talking to each other in French and not really branching out. Of course this is not true of all of them but I would venture to say a majority. It is too bad.

Adjusting to Life in Your Host Country

I think all in all that I've adjusted in many ways here. The first and foremost to me (and one I hoped for before even getting here) was getting used to the temperature. It was really hard at first to be here in 80-90 degree weather every day with humidity on top of that. A lot of people had sleeping issues because of it and racked up huge electricity bills for using the AC. I've managed to live with just a fan and my roommate has as well and our bill is something like 500 baht a month ($15 USD) versus upwards of 3000-4000 for some of the bigger rooms which is outrageous to me. So that's been nice.

I've also generally adjusted to the shocking and instantaneous thunder storms and being woken up from thunder in the middle of the night. The other night was by far the loudest I have EVER heard and I was scared but able to fall back asleep relatively quickly.

I guess some other major things to adjust to here is the food. I miss american food, I miss Italian food, but I'm managing. At first I felt like I wanted to branch out and try everything and I still like to eat a lot of the traditional Thai food but I have kind of gotten over the novelty of it and it's just kind of life now. I eat a lot more fried rice than I probably should and struggle to get a good variety of vegetables sadly, but I do my best.

Traffic is another thing. I've gotten used to not having a car, bartering with taxi's constantly, and the insane Bangkok traffic. I've even gotten used to motor taxis (motorbikes/motorcycles) (sorry mom) and riding them through the city. I am strict about wearing a helmet though and I kind of hate taking them. The most times I ride them is with friends who have actually rented them to get around while they are here. I think they're crazy but I can't deny the convenience aspect of it.

I've gotten used to honestly deplorable public bathrooms, having to go downstairs to get clean drinking water, having no cleaning supplies to my name but instead having my room cleaned twice monthly by the sweet cleaning ladies here at Nonsi, I've generally gotten used to not being able to understand most of the language spoken around me as well as the aspect of living in a city. All in all I really do feel like I've adjusted. It feels like I actually live here (which I do) rather than it being some long ongoing vacation. It's nice. I've even started going to the gym again which suggests even the semblance of a routine which I really like.

Something I can't say I've gotten used to sadly is the germs in the area. I get sick a lot here and it always seems to be something slightly different than before. I'd like to say I have a stronger immune system than that but I guess not.

Immersing Yourself in a New Culture

I mean in a way you can't really help but to immerse yourself. I live here. I eat all my food here, grocery shop here, all my friends are here, I go to school here and I would consider this widely as my home base. I have gone on cultural trips with the school, visited countless temples and landmarks, and next month I'll be going to a lantern festival in the north which I am SO excited for.

A big cultural factor for us is the death of His Majesty the King. That has been an over arching theme perhaps of the entire trip and learning about how the Thai people are mourning, their preparations of his funeral, and the general state of Thailand. People wear black and white to pay their respects and in this month of October lots of rules around clubs and bars have changed as well as almost every Thai site (if not all) being black and white or having some sort of entrance page describing their grief. Every movie theater starts off with a tribute to him as well as every airplane flight. It really is amazing and something we have nothing to compare with in the US. The only death even slightly close to this in the US was Michael Jackson and even then it wasn't this profound.

I think though "culturally" we don't have a choice but to be immersed and it is not really a process or conscious action or choice it simply is how we are. We live here, we have no choice but to be immersed. We don't go to Thai markets or Thai events for "culture" (okay in some cases yes we do) but we go simply because that is what we have available to us and by that we are an active part of the culture. We don't take the MRT (subway) for "cultural experience" but as we take it every day and get used to the routes and the ebb of commuter traffic etc. we are a part of culture and experiencing it simultaneously. It has been really amazing to be a part of this culture and I don't think I could have done more to be a part of it so much as I could have tried to avoid it. We simply are a part of the Thai culture now in many ways.