Author: Shannon Schroeder

I arrived in Ayutthaya about 3 weeks ago (I can’t believe it!). Ayutthaya is a beautiful city that was once Thailand’s capital about 400 years ago. In 1767 the city was destroyed by the Burmese army and the ruins scattered around this beautiful island are all that’s left. I have had a small glimpse of the ruins on this island, but what I have seen has been absolutely breathtaking. I love this city, I love where I am staying, and I love the people I meet everyday. I live in a hostel on the island called “Sansook”, which means “very happy”. The woman who owns the hostel is Thai and speaks very good English, her name is P-Aut. P-Aut treats us all like her own children and helps us with whatever we need. She is truly a rare gem. My home is close to one of my schools (5 min bike ride) and about 15 minutes to my other work, the language center. I live with about 15 other teachers that are from various places around the world: England, Canada, and South Africa. I am teaching about 25 hours a week between two schools and one language center! I am a busy bee!! I am loving all of the experience I am getting and of course the wonderful students I have the pleasure of teaching.  
       The first school I teach at is a primary school where I teach 8 hours a week. I teach K2/1, K2/2, K3/1, and K3/2-these ages are 4,5, and 6 years old. This age is a challenge, but I am enjoying every second. The other day I was teaching about snowboarding and I had the kids do winter game races! They loved it!! The second school I teach at is about 45 minutes outside of the city in a small, rural town. The school is built on stilts and is surrounded by water/rice fields. The drive is stunning and I enjoy the views. I only teach at this school once a week for 3 hours. I teach M1/1, M1/2, and M1/3 (these children are 12,13,14 years old. This group of kiddos are bonkers but I love em! I am so happy to be where I am right now and to have the opportunities I have. 
       I miss home and the people there. I am VERY excited to say that a piece of home is coming to visit…..HARRY!!! I can’t wait to see him 🙂    He will be here for almost 20 days and we are going to have a blast. We have rented a room on the island of Ko Chang with some of my friends here over the New Years break! I can’t wait to see that handsome face. 
    My town is has a night market where we can buy fresh produce and foods. We also have a big TESCO (Sam’s Club sort of place) and a mini Tesco where we can get most staple items. Things are swell and I hope they continue to be that way. Until next time!

Today marks 1 month of being in Thailand! I can’t believe how fast time has gone by! Today, 4 friends left our home here in Chiang Mai to go off and become teachers. The other 4 us remain and will part tomorrow and Friday. We graduated from our TESOL course yesterday! I honestly can’t believe we are about to embark on the second part of our journey. Lots of things to remember from this last month, but we all have bright futures here in Thailand!

These past few weeks we have enjoyed walking around Old City, eating yummy Indian food, and seeing a coffee house in a tree!! When you walk around Old City, which is surrounded by the original brick wall, you see temples almost around every corner. These temples are colorful and devine. As you walk through the grounds with monks staring at the beautiful architecture you feel at peace.

Sunday: we all were driven to a national park south of Chiang Mai in the back of a pick up truck! We climbed hills where I thought for sure we weren’t going to make it! After the hour and a half drive we made it! The coffee house was SO cool! We sat in a tree, in a coffee house…one of the coolest feelings! After the coffee house we traveled to a local village for lunch, saw a temple, and then went to yet another gorgeous waterfall! We climbed all the way to the top of the waterfall and waded in the cool, crisp water. After the waterfall we headed home.

That night our wonderful landlords, Dtong and Kat, cooked us a yummy dinner: traditional northern food made of noodles, salad, veggies, and chicken foot curry. We had a feast!!! ☺ May I add that all of this took place on the rooftop of our home!! We have the coolest landlords!

Well as I prepare to move yet again, I must do laundry, soak up last views of Chiang Mai and enjoy my girls! We are all going to be placed within 3 hours of each other so I know this won’t be the last time we see each other! I am having a blast and learning so much. I have gotten so many positive vibes and words from my group about the school I’m going to start!! Everyone says the school sounds awesome and would be a great idea! Xoxo chao for now!

Today marks 2 and a half weeks that I have been in Thailand. I feels much longer considering how much soap and money I have gone through! Things could not be better though! I am surrounded by great friends and beautiful scenery. Since my last update we have been very busy in our TESOL course. Most days we just present lesson plans in front of each other and give feedback about the content/presentation. We break for lunch and walk down the street where we have yummy food. The local 7-11 also provides good snacks and drinks!! 🙂  We are fortunate to have a songtaew that takes us to/from school everyday, which is so helpful for the sake of hygiene and the wallet. We are getting well in to our course now. Today, we worked at a English camp where I taught 4 year olds with Madison (a fellow teacher in my group). We had a blast and just enjoyed all the smiles/hugs we received from the kiddos. The children were so beautiful and inspiring. Pictures will be uploaded soon. The thing I love about 4 year olds: they say exactly what they are thinking. We played all kinds of games and taught them vocabulary words. The theme at the camp is “Under the Sea” so you can only imagine the cuteness and fun that came along with that!!

Another update: I have accepted a job!! I will be working in Ayutthaya, Thailand. Ayutthaya is small historical city located about an hour north of Bangkok! I will be teaching at a learning center as well as a public elementary school. I am very excited about this opportunity and the location! I looked at photos and have heard good things about the city. All is well and I am really enjoying my time here.

When I first arrived to this city/accommodation I was relieved! I was so happy to be in a smaller, more quiet environment compared to Bangkok. Chiang Mai is a nice city, especially Old City. Another thing I was also happy about is the size of my group, we have 9 people! Only having 9 people has allowed us to become closer faster, travel around easier, and fit in to one “common room” that XploreAsia has provided us with at the accommodation ((which has a mini fridge and microwave))!! We are also very close to a huge market that we tend to get breakfast at every morning, McDonalds, 7-Eleven, tons of restaurants, TESCO (like Sam’s Club), and a huge mall that is nicer than my mall back at home! I was very surprised to see something like TESCO here for some reason. There are also ATM’s and 7-Elevens everywhere so you can grab anything you might have left at home! Another grocery store that is super exciting is a store that is similar to Whole Foods or Trader Joes!  That is also something I was not expecting to see in Thailand! The accommodation is really nice and the lady that runs this place with her fiance is Kat (she is AWESOME). The other great thing about the accommodation is that our school is nice and close. The school is located in a very nice neighborhood and has a few very good places to grab lunch at. The security guard/gate guard waves and smiles every morning which totally makes my day!  Sometimes his granddaughter?? will be doing cartwheels in the grass but the second she spots our van she is jumping up and down waving also!

TODAY: There are not words to describe the peace I felt today. This morning we started off by doing some traditional Thai painting, which was not my strong point, but I still enjoyed painting/watching the highly experienced painter paint umbrellas! We broke up in to groups and painted on a canvas type cloth. Some people had the choice to paint an umbrella, but I chose not to. Some people also walked around the corner to buy coffee in a bag, in a bag, in a bag-yes, it is a real thing! After Thai painting we headed to the Elephant Sanctuary!! The sanctuary was in the lower region of the mountains which was nice because it was hilly and cooler! The sanctuary was beautiful!!! You can sense the amount of care, love, and respect that is given to the elephants! I am not going to lie, seeing some of the elephants in chains did make me sad but I know it’s for safety precautions at times. We got to snuggle with small elephants, take pictures, and even got the priviledge of watching elephants perform! I was very impressed with the sanctuary and had an amazing time!!! After the sanctuary we all headed home to enjoy some RR time. I had my RR time after an hour, so I headed downstairs to see what was up with Kat. Kat invited me in to the little shop she has and offered me YUMMY tea, crackers, and warm Thai hospitality <3 !!  TONIGHT 4 of us experienced our first Thai movie theater!! The mall down the road has an awesome theater, marble floors, elaborate bar area, and seats that LEAN BACK!

It is hard to believe I have been here for a week and a half! I honestly have loved every minute of it and would do it all over! I love the group I’m with, the instructor, the location, and the FOOD!!! 🙂

*CHIANG MAI ROCKS!!!*