This weekend should have been filmed and titled Hangover 2

Returning to NKP after 5 weeks on the road truly felt like going home, and it was so nice to be able to actually unpack and sleep in my own bed (even if that bed is not at all like my bed at American home).  I enjoyed getting back into the office and sharing stories with some of my co-workers.  Meeting Jes' husband, Abe, was also a joy as I'd heard so much about him over the year.  Abe moved to Thailand in March to be with Jes when she has their baby (any day now....c'mon baby!) and it was great to finally get to know him.

Anyway, Jes and I were out to lunch with the office the day before she and Abe left for Bangkok (where she is living now in the last few weeks of her pregnancy) and we were told about an office field trip to Bangkok and Kanchanaburi.  Naturally, we were invited to go too.  Normally, this is an invitation I would refuse, as sometime I feel alienated in the company of only Thai people after a few hours. However, because I would be in the office alone during Jes' maternity leave, I wanted to take the time to bond with the rest of the office staff without her. Kanchanaburi was also one of the places I wanted to hit while traveling but wasn't able to, so I figured it was a good idea to go.

So, at 7 am the next morning I boarded Crazy Bus Thailand (seriously, that's what the bus company was called) and knew I was in for a great trip - especially when all the men broke out their boxes of wine (where did they find wine?!?) Sure enough, the blaring karaoke began as soon as we left the office driveway...and lasted the entirety of the 14 hour drive to Bangkok (as well as any time we spent on the bus - a total of about 40 hours).  I did notice the laser stage lighting that the bus was equipped with and was grateful they opted not to turn that on - until they did on our journey back. Just wait for the video at the bottom of this post :)They tried soooo hard to get me to participate in the karaoke, but I refused.  However, they also know that I'll say "ok" to pretty much anything I don't understand (usually I won't have much of a choice anyway).  So while I had my headphones in attempting to drown out karaoke, someone asked me a question in Lao, not understanding I just said "ok" and immediately the mic was passed to me.  Thankfully there weren't any songs in English, but man those Thai people are tricksters!

We arrived in Bangkok in time for the Educational Directors Conference to begin, which was the reason for this outing.  I was told to wake up at 6 am...even though we wouldn't be leaving until 10? No worries, I was able to find a LIVE Sox game on TV.  Epic. There was a lot of just wandering around the conference center and meeting people.  The Director of the office I work in (I'll refer to him as my boss, but he's not) tried to find me a husband so that I wouldn't have to leave Thailand. I only found this out after the 5th young man brought to meet me could speak enough English and explained my boss' plan. Awkward.

Basically throughout the conference I was dragged in a million directions, because no one knew what to do. There was a redeeming moment though - one of the presenters was from America and was giving a presentation about teacher collaboration and observations.  Perfect!  Taking over the Field Director position I was tasked with site observations and leading a few volunteer conferences, so this guy's presentation was very timely. Of course Pornchai (the liaison between WT and the district office - my closest collaborator) dragged me up to the podium to meet him, and as soon as I turned to introduce Pornchai, he disappeared.  His excuse was that he had to go the bathroom. Yeah, right.

A lot of the confusion surrounding the conference was due to the fact that it was being held at the same venue as the finale of Thailand's version of American Idol. Seriously. Screaming teenagers filled the streets around the center. And the next day the Prime Minister of Education was slated to speak. You could have fooled me...I sort of thought it was a magic show.  It was held in the Royal Jubilee Ballroom and it featured mysterious music, fireworks, and a smoke machine. Seriously.

Then we were off to Kanchanaburi, the site of the Bridge over River Kwai (actually pronounced like "square" minus the s and a little bit of the r). We had about 15 minutes to look at the bridge and take a million pictures and then we were off on our dinner cruise on the river. I would have liked to explore the museums and actually learn something, but there was no time for that apparently. The beauty there was indescribable, and I was even able to enjoy it for about an hour before the karaoke began again! After the dinner cruise we went back to the hotel and were off first thing in the morning for the trip back to NKP.

In all seriousness though, I am so happy I went on this trip.  While I laughed to myself pretty much the whole time about what I was experiencing, I enjoyed every minute of it (ok, not the karaoke so much). I loved getting to know the office folk and even trying to learn their names (eh, I still only know 3). I loved their generosity and their interest in teaching me new things.  My boss would teach me the Thai and Lao words for just about everything we were surrounded by like umbrella, fingernail, sidewalk, etc. - of which I remember not one word.  Because of the gender roles in Thailand, the men and women were distinctly separated, and the women were given the task to care for me even though Pornchai is my main contact in the office.  Pornchai would still sneak over and make sure everything was ok though.  Nok, (not Pi Nok) the woman who invited me, certainly made sure I never got lost - I couldn't even go to the bathroom by myself! I could tell that among the women, though, there was a sort of "you invited her, now you have to make sure we don't lose her" attitude about me.  All of which I still find hilarious. 

Overall though, it really helped me bond with the other people in my office.  Everyday a few people come up to my desk and have a conversation with me.  The cute little old man reads from an English conversation book to me each morning. Nok's sons call me Na Malee (Aunt Malee) and give me hugs when they come to the office after school. And I was even invited to the nearby high school's pool with some of the women. It was a great trip, and the memories of it still make me laugh to this day.

The River Kwai at sunset

The Royal Jubilee Ballroom in BKK - where the magic happens

Me and Nok at the bridge

the bridge

Autumn in New England?...nope. Thailand in the hot season! Who knew?

Houses on the river

"Dump," the karaoke station on our dinner boat...at least they got that part right"

rainbow!

 

And now the moment you've all been waiting for...Karaoke with Laser Stage Lighting. (Please turn the volume all the way up to get the true taste of 40 hours on a bus is like)