I had been wanting to see what a student's dorm room looked like on campus for some time now and finally got around to making plans with some girls I talked with at English Corner last week. I just wanted to stop by, look around, ask some questions and take some pictures, but the four girls of room 502 in West Campus had other ideas. They wanted me to come early in the morning so we could hang out before class. I probably received about 8 text messages and two phone calls the night before just to make sure everything was a go. I could tell the students were really excited and I felt bad because I didn't want to make it a big deal or have them clean or go to any extra work when they are already really busy, but it was not to be so.



Ophelia waited outside building 59 for me in the morning and then walked me over to her dorm sending several text messages and answering phone calls along the way to confirm that yes, we were on our way and would arrive shortly. The girls that I were meeting lived on the fifth floor of a nicer (I think) dorm on campus. They live four to a room and have their own bathroom inside the room as well. Each room has four desks, two bunk beds and four wardrobes. When we arrived, I was greeted by a herd of female students who wanted to "play" before class (all of the foreign teachers and I are trying to switch this overused/misused word with more appropriate alternatives like "hang out" or "spend time with" but we are not having much success). They had snacks out on their desks for me that they had bought the night before and a hot cup of instant coffee ready to go. I was really moved by all the preparations they went to and felt bad that I really didn't have much to offer them besides coffee morning breath, English conversation and picture opportunities. This, as it turns out, is all that you need to entertain 15 female juniors for two hours before class. If there are a variety of stuffed animals around that is even better.


We took loads of pictures, with my camera, with their phones and cameras, in different poses, in different combinations, in different parts of the room, hugging alternate stuffed bears and bunnies and with jackets on and off etc. It was an experience to remember. I had a lot of fun and it was really neat to see how and where my students live. Everything was so organized and clean because they have room inspections at least once a week. They are not allowed to have anything electric in their rooms (ie water heater pots, hair dryers, curling irons, electric blankets) and the electricity is shut off at 11pm. Students have to be in their dorms at 11pm as well. On the way out you could see rows and rows of thermoses that the students use to store the hot water they use for drinking.


It was cool to see a girls' dorm and I hope I will also be able to see a boys' dorm (they can be hard to enter if you are a girl) as I hear that some boys live six to twelve to a room. That's pretty different from my Hope College dorm room with one roommate, TV, mini fridge, loft beds, hot plate and heater - pure luxury!

Before heading to Cambodia the next day, Sean and I spent one last night exploring Khao San Road in Bangkok. While we had been staying in the Sukhumvit area close to the downtown and the Sky train, most backpackers stay in the Khao San Road area. Khao San Road is known for budget hostels, cheap and tasty food and a crazy nightlife.


When our taxi dropped us off we immediately felt like we were in a carnival. There were lights everywhere and music blasting from all directions. Street vendors wheeled around carts of pad Thai and banana pancakes and you could get a massage in a lounge chair on the side of the road for prices that would make you never want to leave. You could also choose from several places to get a tattoo, piercing or dreadlocks in your hair. Bars and clubs lined every available inch on the sides of the main drag and the side streets offered stalls of cheap t-shirts, artsy trinkets and trendy silver jewelry. There was even a cart full of fried insects, worms and scorpions where you could sample your favorite crawly creature. I had fun walking around and seeing everything but was quite happy to take a taxi back to a less-crazed part of the city where everyone and anyone wasn't asking if I wanted some marijuana.

Spring is in the air at our university which means it will soon be time to drag out the mosquito nets and umbrellas (to keep your skin from being dark). Sunny days are also popular for giving your comforter an air bath. All around campus you can see heavy blankets draped on bushes, trees, poles and balconies. Since Kate and Jess, Sean's sister and her girlfriend, are coming tomorrow and are staying with me, I decided to do some major spring cleaning which included washing lots of sheets and towels and spreading the comforters out on the bushes for a proper air bath. I also put some fun spring gel designs on my door. The random assortment of cute things at a Chinese Walmart is an endless supply of entertaining distractions.



Spring also meant that I talked about Easter in my culture and oral English classes. I tried to explain the religious and not-so-religious aspects of the holiday, but I am not sure how much actually got through. It can be a little challenging to explain the central holiday of Christianity when your students are still fuzzy on what it really means to be a Christian anyways. They definitely had fun talking about peeps, jellybeans and chocolate rabbits, however, and things got a bit chaotic when we decorated "eggs" (pastel balloons) and played competitive Taboo and Pictionary for candy using words about spring and Easter.


Spring is also the time when the foreign teachers have to give a speech on the topic of their choice. Ken spoke first tonight and his topic was "Christianity in America: Why people believe or do not." It was a good presentation that explained faith and reason and challenged the students to think about how they make decisions. The students had some really good questions after the presentation and I was impressed at the amount of interest they had in attending a speech outside of class. Ken gave the presentation to a completely packed house and many students had to be turned away or stand crowded in the back. This is just one more example of how foreigners can sometimes feel like a bit of a spectacle or a big deal (Peter, another teacher here, has a really good and recent post about this). When Sean and I poked our head in the room to look for a seat, we were greeted with excited shouts and cries and even some applause. It gets a little ridiculous.

Monkey Town (Lopburi) was just a stop on our way to Kanchanaburi, a peaceful little town to the west of Bangkok. Tourists head to Kanchanaburi for two main reasons: to check out the historical sights from the prisoner-of-war-camp from WWII and the bridge over the River Kwai or to hike the seven-tiered waterfall in nearby Erawan National Park. Sean and I attempted to do both and had a great time. It was interesting to see all of the history and refreshing to be in nature and in a smaller town. Being in Bangkok so much was a little overwhelming and we were much happier getting out of the big city (especially because it was much cheaper in Kanchanaburi too!)



We arrived early in the morning and found cheap bungalows on the river at a guesthouse called Sugarcane for about $1.50 a night. We asked around about the public bus that left for the national park every hour and soon we were chugging our way along the river through the limestone-peaked mountains. Erawan National Park was amazing and we had a blast hiking up the different levels of the huge waterfall, Erawan Falls. At each level you could jump in a pristine mountain pool and duck under little waterfalls for a massage. The only annoyance was that the fish in the pools liked to nibble on human skin. A lot of the tourists were happy with this and let the fish nibble away the dead skin on their feet and ankles. Sean and I weren't really that jazzed about it - it felt a little creepy and was very ticklish especially because the fish were pretty good-sized.

We spent the majority of the day at the park and then in the evening we hopped off the bus on our way back home at the place where we could see the actual bridge over the River Kwai (also called the Death Railway Bridge). In WWII, Japan controlled Kanchanaburi and wanted to connect Burma with Bangkok by rail to transport military supplies. To build the railway they used captured Allied soldiers as well as many other captives from SE Asia as the main labor force. This railway is sometimes called the Death Railway because more than 100,000 men died because of the poor working and living conditions in the labor camps.


The bridge over the River Kwai looks just like your ordinary bridge and is really just a small (but key) part of the Death Railway to Burma. It was pretty cool though because you can still see some damage by bombs from Allied planes. We also checked out the Allied war cemetery and a few of the war museums that described what went on in the area during the war and the Thailand-Burma Railway Centre which had photos of how the Death Railway was built.


Once again, Sean and I could have spent a few extra days here just relaxing and hanging out at the national park, but we were anxious to see other parts of SE Asia as well. We enjoyed the last of our time in Kanchanaburi eating at a Thai cooking school for dinner (fried duck in tamarind with kelp crispies and fried papaya with eggs, prawns and sprouts) and pancakes with honey on the river in the morning.

After the disturbing robbery of last weekend, this week and weekend have been much better. I got two surprise packages in mail: one from a friend from high school that contained candy, magazines and fruit rollups and another from my parents that was an Easter Basket. It's amazing how much English reading material and candy does to lift spirits. Thanks for thinking of me! Zhen Zhen, Ken's girlfriend, is also letting me borrow an ipod for awhile which has been really nice for working out and cruising around town on a bike or in a bus.


I started working at Web which has been easy and fun. I like it because you don't have to prepare any lesson plans or activities. You just show up and follow they plan they have for the student. It is also nice to have really small classes (so far for me just one or two students) instead of an inconsistent group of 10 or so adults. I also worked a private tutoring job this week along with a Chinese English teacher at our school. We went together to meet with a wealthy executive in fashion design who owns a few department stores in the area. Since he travels to and from Europe a lot for business he wants to improve his English and is willing to pay for both a native speaker and a helper/translator. Our first meeting was pretty interesting but since his English level is fairly low, I don't know that much about him yet. We'll see how it goes and how long his motivation lasts.

Today is Easter and I have been steadily devouring my dish of peeps, chocolate eggs and jelly beans on my coffee table. Tonight most of the teachers, Peter's girlfriend, Ken's friend John and I went over to Steve's house for a homemade meal and an animated Monopoly game. It was a lot of fun to hang out with everyone and eat delicious food cooked by Steve's wife, Spring.


Tomorrow all of us are planning on going to the zoo which is supposedly in a beautiful park with lots of canals. Rumor has it that you can buy live food to feed some of the bigger animals which has most of us intrigued if not excited. We have the day off because of the Chinese holiday of Tomb Sweeping Day. During this festival the Chinese honor the deceased. Many of the students that I have talked to are going home and planning to visit the grave sites and cemeteries of their relatives. Once at the tomb I was told that many people clean the area, plant or bring new flowers and burn fake money to bring their ancestors wealth and fortune in the afterlife. Some of the people I have talked to told me they are not going home to the grave sites because they are busy or it is too far away, but everyone is happy to have the additional time off. I know I appreciate only having to work 6 hours this week instead of the usual 8. Bring on the zoo!

One of the day trips we went on while waiting for our visas and suits to be finished was to a town outside of Bangkok called Lopburi. Lopburi, however, is usually referred to as Monkey Town, and for good reason. This is what the guide book says about it, "Yet while the city is abundant in picturesque stone ruins and statues, Lopbury actually owes the majority of its tourism-generated income to a renegade gang of trouble-making monkeys who overrun the town and its ruins."


Sean and I got an early start and headed to the bus station to catch a bus to Lopburi. Unfortunately, instead of an express bus, we ended up getting on a local bus which stopped about every fifteen minutes for about 4 hours. At each stop the passengers were subjected to hoards of vendors who boarded the bus and shoved little sausages, kebabs, cold drinks, papers and fruit at you in hopes of making a few quick sales.


We weren't quite sure how we were going to know when our stop was, but as we pulled into a city four hours later, we began to see giant cardboard cutouts of monkeys placed along the highway and decided to get off at the next stop. Sure enough, we had arrived in Monkey Town.


The town held true to its name; there were literally monkeys everywhere. They seemed to hang out mainly in the center of town where there was kind of a playground set up for them. But they didn't stay put for long, they soon traipsed off in other directions and visited ruins, pestered store owners and sat on roofs, street signs and telephone wires. It was pretty surreal and felt like we were walking around in a never-ending zoo.

It was hot but any soda you wanted to drink on the go had to be done out of a bag since they wanted to keep the bottle

After about two hours we had had about enough of the constant chaos and headed to our next destination, Suphanaburi, a town on the way to a national park we wanted to visit the next day. We're hoping that this next town won't be overrun with any renegade gangs of wild primates.

Sometimes the danger of blogging is to only talk about the good stuff and all the smiling pictures might make it seem like living abroad is always fun, easy and exciting. It’s not. Obviously, life isn’t perfect anywhere but sometimes, especially if you are from Holland, MI, the temptation is to act like everything is fine all of the time. Even though I don’t write about the frustrating classes where my students don’t listen, the annoyances that can come when living in China, the bad cold that won't go away, and the disagreements I have with Sean, that doesn’t mean they don’t happen. This past weekend was kind of rotten so I thought I’d write a blog on the not-so-fun-and-happy experiences of my life in Changzhou.

Saturday morning I got up bright and early to ride my bike downtown to work at a part-time job in a company called Lil’ Giants. I had been told the day before that I would be helping a Chinese English teacher with a class of 5-year-olds for an hour. However, when I got there I was informed that I would be the head teacher of the class. I was not thrilled or amused. Since they said I was just going to be helping, I had not prepared anything to keep an entire class of tots entertained for an hour. Needless to say, the class did not go well as I hastily tried to think of activities to do: ABC’s, numbers, colors, Ring Around The Rosie, Duck Duck Goose, Jack and the Beanstalk . . . It was the longest hour I had had in a while. My TA, a surly teenager who didn’t want to be there and could barely speak English herself, hardly helped at all and said that “maybe I should do better next time.” I biked home feeling very annoyed and discouraged about the lack of communication and honesty in some of the business here and the terror involved with attempting to control a group of energetic children who don’t speak your language.

The afternoon was ok. Sean and I went running and worked on some lesson plans for the next week. Then I taught a group of engineers English at their company. I walked back to my apartment and got a message from Sean that he, Peter, and Jordan had gone out to a bar in town for the night. I picked up some Chinese food and put in a movie and planned to have a relaxing night at home. Someone knocked at the door and it was Ken who came by with a beer in hand to chat. I was happy about that because anyone who knows me knows that I am not a big fan of living alone, especially when it is nighttime. It helps out that Sean, Ken and Steve live next door and are over all the time. We ended up chatting for a few hours but at around 1:30 am I thought I heard a noise at the door. When I heard another noise a few seconds later I told Ken to check it out. I heard a loud yell from the kitchen and I thought Ken was just trying to scare me, but it turns out that there was a man in my house. I had probably forgotten to lock the door and he had walked in, looked through my bag on the table and ran out of my house with my wallet and ipod just as Ken had walked into the kitchen and seen him.

Although violent crime isn’t common in China (you can’t own a gun and punishment for crimes is most often death) petty crime and theft happens quite a bit. Many students have had their cell phone or wallet taken usually in crowded areas. Needless to say, this incident shook me up quite a bit. Since he took my keys too, I had to have my locks changed and Teddy had to take me to cancel my salary card and make a new one. I was pretty disappointed about the ipod; even though it was really old I used it all the time to listen to podcasts while working out and traveling. Ken called the police and they came over and he explained what happened. They were surprised that the thief would enter my house when there were obviously people there and all the lights were on. The experience really bummed me out and freaked me out. I have lived in a lot more dangerous cities and nothing has ever happened to me – this is the first time I have ever been robbed. I guess in the future I will be much more conscientious about locking my door and the gate around my door and never get too comfortable with my safety. Changzhou isn’t dangerous, but since there are so many people and many with very low wages, if an opportunity arises the high risk of the crime is probably well-worth the reward of an ipod, cell phone or wallet. I hope the thief, whoever he is, is enjoying his new tattered, hot pink ipod with lots of Jack Johnson and NPR along with a green Vera Bradley paisley printed wallet. Sigh.