The Gremmers Take Bangkok (and Phuket)

With impeccable, and totally coincidental timing, my mom and dad arrived in Bangkok on Sara's final day of orientation. They took our advice and flew in on Korean Air, with twenty hours in the air split between Chicago, Seoul, and Bangkok. The day they arrived, I'd been staying alone in various guesthouses and hotels all over the north side of town and was elated not only to see them for the first time in six months, but to have a bigger sense of day-to-day purpose than finding the best deal on a bottle of Coke Zero.

Back to Base Camp

After three days of intense relaxation, I was still not ready to go to work. But alas, putting in some time with OEG was going to help fund our month-long vacation. It turned out to be fun to meet two new groups of teachers, scare them shitless with spider and snake stories, and assure them they’d probably suck at teaching because we all do at first.

The most amazing part was going to Siam Niramit, which we did not attend when I was in orientation. It seriously blew my mind with a little bit of Thai history, theatrical depictions of heaven and hell, and a sampling of Thai festivals. Before the show, you can wander around a faux Thai countryside complete with crafting stations and musical entertainment.

Koh Phangan Style

After a few days stumbling around Bangkok in the oppressive heat, Sara and I were both excited about spending some quiet time on the beach. Sara had been talking about visiting the famous island beaches of Thailand even before we left America, but she was still finalizing plans for our trip to Koh Phangan the night before we left Bangkok. She found us an amazing guesthouse with beachfront cottages called Ocean View, whose name turned out to be the understatement of the year.

But, first, we had to get there! We loaded into a taxi and headed to the Bangkok train station, Hua Lamphong. The station is a pleasant enough place to spend four hours waiting for a train, and afforded us the opportunity to do some great people watching - dividing time between guessing the nationalities of the countless hordes of incoming tourists and suffering through the first presidential debate on my laptop.

“Winter” Vacation

The semester’s over, grades are in, and we’re free for the next 4+ weeks! (Well, sort of. I’m helping OEG with 2 orientations in Bangkok, but that’s not until 11 Oct.) We booked the overnight train to pick us up in Lampang and take us to Bangkok for a few days before heading to some sandy beaches. Turns out the night train is our new favorite way to travel. It’s cheap, cozy, and air-conditioned.