Saturday 31 December 2011
Central Festival Mall
Pattaya for New Years!
Since we'd already done the trip to the islands we decided to hit Pattaya for New Years.
We're staying in the South near the beach and it's absolutely bustling with activity. Last night we decided to explore the beach-front market. Though some prices are horribly inflated there are also some really good deals to be found.
At first my claustrophobia was acting up horribly as the streets are absolutely packed. At night everywhere you look you will see fat russian tourists and Thai hookers. During the day, however, it's actually quite pleasant. The town is absolutely dead til about 11am when people start to trickle out onto the streets.
Today is an absolute scorcher so we are currently sitting on the covered deck of Mulligans (an Irish pub) having their All Day Fry-up. A word to the wise: don't bother. The breakfast was horrible. My cappuccino was pretty good though.
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We're staying in the South near the beach and it's absolutely bustling with activity. Last night we decided to explore the beach-front market. Though some prices are horribly inflated there are also some really good deals to be found.
At first my claustrophobia was acting up horribly as the streets are absolutely packed. At night everywhere you look you will see fat russian tourists and Thai hookers. During the day, however, it's actually quite pleasant. The town is absolutely dead til about 11am when people start to trickle out onto the streets.
Today is an absolute scorcher so we are currently sitting on the covered deck of Mulligans (an Irish pub) having their All Day Fry-up. A word to the wise: don't bother. The breakfast was horrible. My cappuccino was pretty good though.
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Wednesday 28 December 2011
Little Santa Competition
Special Needs
In Thailand the special needs kids are not separated from the others, but are in fact integrated into the normal classes.
This can be a very disruptive and sometimes disturbing sight. The biggest problem here seems to be autism. One is often left unsure of how much these kids actually understand, if anything at all.
In one of my high school classes I have one such student. He mostly sits through classes smiling inanely and occasionally laughing at random things. He's not disruptive though so he's not a bother, but as I only see my students once a week I simply don't have the time to give him any special attention.
My colleague Sam is more unfortunate in that his special student is at primary level and can be very disruptive at times. He has random fits of crying and throwing tantrums and often has to be calmed down by Sam's Thai teaching assistant.
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This can be a very disruptive and sometimes disturbing sight. The biggest problem here seems to be autism. One is often left unsure of how much these kids actually understand, if anything at all.
In one of my high school classes I have one such student. He mostly sits through classes smiling inanely and occasionally laughing at random things. He's not disruptive though so he's not a bother, but as I only see my students once a week I simply don't have the time to give him any special attention.
My colleague Sam is more unfortunate in that his special student is at primary level and can be very disruptive at times. He has random fits of crying and throwing tantrums and often has to be calmed down by Sam's Thai teaching assistant.
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Friday 23 December 2011
Wednesday 21 December 2011
The latest addition to our family
Tuesday 20 December 2011
Our local shop for local people
Our Townhouse
An interesting acoustic cover
Friday 16 December 2011
Sunday 11 December 2011
Thai Braai
Altitude Party
Modern Xmas Tree
Friday 9 December 2011
Thursday 8 December 2011
CCF
One thing I have learned when buying shoes in Thailand is that you have to make sure they meet the CCF requirements: Comfortable, Cool and Flood-proof.
Comfortable: Unless you're a lazy bastard, or live in central Bangkok, you're gonna do a lot of walking. If, like me, you weren't born wearing a pair of 6" heels you're gonna need comfortable shoes if you don't want your feet to be as spotted with blisters as a leper is with sores.
Cool: Other than flip-flops, I personally never wore open shoes or sandals UNTIL I came to Thailand. It is simply too hot for closed shoes, unless you're content with squelching around in two of your very own puddles of sweat.
Flood-proof: Within a week my suede pumps had been ruined by the monsoon. Even if your area isn't prone to flooding, when it rains the roads will be slightly flooded and if the rain itself doesn't ruin your shoes, the puddles in the uneven roads will.
Most Thais will wear some sort of flip-flop or sandal and, if you're of a more fashion conscious mind, there is a great variety of rubber pumps and sandals in a variety of different styles to be found.
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Comfortable: Unless you're a lazy bastard, or live in central Bangkok, you're gonna do a lot of walking. If, like me, you weren't born wearing a pair of 6" heels you're gonna need comfortable shoes if you don't want your feet to be as spotted with blisters as a leper is with sores.
Cool: Other than flip-flops, I personally never wore open shoes or sandals UNTIL I came to Thailand. It is simply too hot for closed shoes, unless you're content with squelching around in two of your very own puddles of sweat.
Flood-proof: Within a week my suede pumps had been ruined by the monsoon. Even if your area isn't prone to flooding, when it rains the roads will be slightly flooded and if the rain itself doesn't ruin your shoes, the puddles in the uneven roads will.
Most Thais will wear some sort of flip-flop or sandal and, if you're of a more fashion conscious mind, there is a great variety of rubber pumps and sandals in a variety of different styles to be found.
Sent via BlackBerry® from AIS
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