Happy Holiday

Hello All,

It has been a while since i have wrote in this. Sorry bout that. The month of November was quite nice. I stuck mostly around the city of Nakhon. Two other teachers and I did have quite the cave experience. We went at least a mile back in a Gigantic Cave with a river flowing in it. It was really cool. The cave had bats flying all around it and it was kind of chilly in there.

We also did a few day trips to the beach. There are some pretty nice beaches about 40 miles away. They are not huge tourist beaches with mostly Thais on it. They are pretty nice.

For Thanksgiving we had a big potluck out at a friends. We didn't have a turkey but we did have some wonderful stuffing and mashed potatoes with some chicken. It was a pretty good time.

One weekend I went with one of the Thai teachers to a festival. It was the history of the city it was very interesting even though I couldn't understand what was being said. They also had a bunch of local food which was delicious, it also gave me a great photo opportunity with people in traditional Thai clothing. Also saw some of my students there.

Two of the last three weekends have been a wonder full. A few weeks ago some friends and I went to the Island of Ko Mook. This was one of the most beautiful places I have been. And one of the quietest. There is not very many people on this beach, just a few bungalows. It was great. We did a day trip of snorkeling in some of the most stunning clear water I have seen. We even saw a dolphin ( but are guide would not stop the boat, it really pissed us off) Then we swam through a cave to an opening where it opens to a little sunlight and a really need jungle. Finished the night with a wonder full bonfire on the beach.

Then just last weekend a bunch of us (18 teachers in total) took the motorbikes about two hours north to Kun Chang National Park where we rented a huge little hostel and enjoyed a really cool day of ultimate frisky and some rafting through the national park. The rafting was really enjoyable but not much of a challenge. It was really pleasant with nice mountain water and magnificent views.

As for teaching it has been going quite well. I have been teaching for 9 months now and you can definitely see the improvement with especially the first graders learning English. Its pretty cool when you start getting results. The Thai school system is pretty messed up though. All the parents care about test results. I mean test results for first and second graders think about it. I don't even remember having a in second grade. Many of the first graders can read English. I think that is very good.

Anyways have a Merry Christmas and New Year. We get a week off and headed to a tropical Island to celebrate and do some snorkeling. I am missing home. But when I see how cold it is it is hard to complain.

I have some new pictures posted.

Martin