Just go, C!
I'm Charity, a proud auntie, wine lover, semi-nerd, and dreamer who can't stay in one place for too long.
Well, friends, I've made it to Tak! And, I'm settled in. In fact, I'm typing this right now as I sit on the bed in my new apartment. I thoroughly enjoyed my travels through southern Thailand and already miss that beautiful water. However, I am beside myself with excitement for the days ahead. I have an agent whom I work with for the teaching placement, and her husband (who is British) helped me find an apartment while she was out of town. It was a pretty painless process; I was able to get one that is just a few minutes' walk from the school I'll be teaching at. Thankfully, he is also fluent in Thai so he basically took care of all the logistics for me, including arranging a tuk-tuk to come pick me up from my hotel, bring me to the apartment to drop off my backpack, and take me to the Big C store (which is kinda like their Walmart or Kmart), wait for me while I shop, and take me back to my new apartment with my purchases. My impressions of Tak so far: It's not a huge city but it's bigger than I expected it to be, which is a good thing as far as I'm concerned. It's beautifully situated near some mountains, and of course having the river nearby is really nice. So far, I've found the locals to be very friendly, though I've only had a few interactions. I am looking forward to spending more time with the people in my neighborhood and throughout the town. It's burning season here in northern Thailand, which means either rice farmers are burning off what's left after a harvest, or hill tribes could be clearing some farm land, maybe both? Either way, it creates a haze over the city and shrouds the mountains, which is kind of a shame since it blocks the otherwise beautiful views, and probably causes problems for people with asthma. But, I will say that it seems to keep the sunlight in check and also seems to be driving away some of the mosquitoes, since I haven't been bitten since arriving here (knock on DEET-covered wood). Meals and transportation are quite cheap, which is great. However, my apartment is a bit of a distance away from the markets so at some point I will need to invest in a bicycle or motorbike to get around since my options are very limited otherwise. The apartment itself is modest by American standards but quite nice by Thai standards. It boasts a Western-style toilet (thank GOD), a hot water heater (not that it will get much use since the Tak province is one of the top three hottest provinces in Thailand), and A/C. Honestly, it's everything I need and I think it's just perfect. My rent and utilities, which include electricity, water, and WiFi, will run me about $150USD per month. Definitely a bargain, but of course I'll also be living on a Thai salary so it'll all work out in the wash. I will still be able to put aside some money every month to fund my future trips! Earlier today, I walked past the school just to check out where I'd be teaching for the next several months. It's very quiet there now, but it'll be buzzing with kids in just over a week. It's just surreal to me to think that I'll be in those classrooms at that school, hopefully making a difference with some of these kids and getting some personal fulfillment in the process. There are so many thoughts and feelings running through me today. I am so proud of myself for making it this far. I just sit here and shake my head and think, "Holy shit. I'm in this small town in Thailand, in my very own apartment, about to start teaching kids in one week. Is this real life?"
I know I've said "surreal" already, but it is so surreal to me. That's the best word I can use to describe it. I often think back to what I was doing a year ago, or a few years ago, and how much my life has changed since then. You know, I just had this feeling several months ago when I left Omaha that as frightened as I was, that I was about to do something that was WAY bigger than my fear. It was going to be an incredible experience for me and it was exactly what I needed to do. And I am experiencing that feeling all over again, sitting on my bed in my Thai apartment. I just KNOW that things are about to become even more amazing.
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I've covered a lot of ground (and sea) since leaving Hua Hin about 2.5 weeks ago so I wanted to share some of the highlights of my pre-teaching vacation! Along the same vein as the last post, I've planned very little, and it's turned out incredibly well thus far. From Bangkok, I chose to fly to Krabi Airport, since I figured that would be a good place to start my southern Thailand exploration. I flew via Thai Lion Air, which I'd never even heard of prior to coming to Thailand, but the reviews online seemed pretty decent and it turned out to be a really good experience. $40 got me to Krabi without a hitch. Let me get off track for a moment to plug an app called Momondo. I'm planning on devoting a blog post at some point to my favorite travel-related apps, but for now, make sure that you download Momondo and check it first when booking flights. I always check it first when price comparing flights and every single time have gotten the best prices off this app versus other apps/web sites. Where was I? Oh yeah, Krabi. I actually stayed in Ao Nang which is a popular beachy touristy area in the Krabi province. Here, I had my first experiences with the iconic longtail boats you often see on the Thailand postcards. I also had my first bout with food poisoning from a TOURIST RESTAURANT in Railay Beach. And you thought it was going to come from one of those sketchy carts I mentioned in the previous post! Nope. It's actually more common from the restaurants that cater to the tourists. Go figure. So that kinda sucked but it was a nice way to lose a couple pounds, haha. My lodging in Ao Nang was in a bungalow, which are very common in Thailand, that had a massage parlor and two restaurants and a bar on site. $20 per night for a nice big bed, shower with actual hot water (still right next to the toilet, of course), and they provided toilet paper. What more could I have asked for, really. While in Ao Nang, I was trying to figure out where to go next (like the day before I was supposed to leave) and read on a Facebook group that Koh Lanta was a nice place to go. I am definitely not a party-girl anymore and have sort of had my fill of drunky, hormonally-charged backpackers so that kinda ruled out Koh Phi Phi and even Phuket for me. I wanted something more laid-back that would have some of the tourist appeal but without sacrificing local charm. Koh Lanta turned out to be perfect for that - it is a larger island than I was expecting, but it's in that in-between phase of no longer being off the radar but it's not too touristy (yet). One day in Koh Lanta, while I was lounging on the beach, sipping a Caipirinha, learning some Thai words on my app, I look over to my left just in time to see a snake coming RIGHT AT ME. I'm not exaggerating, it was heading straight in my direction. For those of you who might not be aware, I have major ophidiophobia (phobia of snakes). I hadn't seen a snake for many years prior to this, but I had managed to successfully avoid situations that might involve snakes and probably just got lucky. One of the reasons I've traveled to Ireland and New Zealand early in my traveling days is because there are no snakes in either country. In Australia, I purposefully avoided hiking most of the time because I was afraid of hiking alone and a snake biting me. Australia has many of the world's most venomous snakes so my fears weren't completely unfounded. Fortunately this fella wasn't a cobra or python (both of which are found in Thailand/SE Asia) or anything monstrous like that, or I probably would have really lost my shit. I felt a scream coming on but all that came out was this pathetic little shriek, and I jumped up into my chair which felt WAY too close to the ground at this point, and he probably sensed the vibrations from my little jump and changed directions. I'm someone who definitely believes in messages from the universe/God/whatever, so I think this is a sign that it's finally time for me to move forward from this phobia. (And on a deeper level, move on from ALL the fears that have been holding me back in life.) My placement is in and near rivers and mountains so there is a good chance I'll see more snakes. So hopefully while I'm in Thailand I'll make some strides, but make no question, I am NOT looking forward to seeing more of them. So regardless of this little incident, I still had a great time in Koh Lanta. I stayed in another bungalow owned by locals, again about $20/night, and the owner was probably THE nicest Thai person I've met yet. When I arrived, he had me "sit and rest" and served me coffee and fresh watermelon. He gave me rides into the village when it was raining and even came and picked me back up. On the day I was supposed to leave, he misunderstood the operator of the ferry I was supposed to be leaving on and I wasn't able to leave until the next day. He gave me another night in the bungalow for free. Just the nicest guy. Every time I would "thank you" to him, instead of saying "you're welcome," he would repeat it back to me in his quiet little voice, "thank yoooouu"... I decided at the last minute (again) to come to Koh Mook. I can't even remember how I heard about this island; it could have been simply a matter of looking up the islands around Koh Lanta on Google maps and thinking hmm, that one will do alright. It's been the best place I've visited yet. It's a much smaller island with very few tourists, which gives you more of the "local" experience. I'm staying at a hostel for $11/night which considering the price is actually very good quality. I'm rooming with two young German girls who are here enjoying some time away before they go to "Uni" later this year. They also traveled to New Zealand and Australia before coming here. It's been nice having company to hang out with on the beach. Never thought I'd hear myself saying that I'm enjoying the company of a couple 18-19 year olds but there you have it! These past couple of weeks have been some of the best days of my life, no exaggeration. I'm really starting to feel myself becoming enamored with Thailand and the Thai people. Admittedly, I wasn't sure it was ever going to happen in my first few weeks, but there is definitely something magical about this place. I'm also feeling a lot of transition happening within myself. I'm gradually learning to fully relax and enjoy the present, something that has never been easy for me to do. I just know that things will work out and I don't worry too much about where I'm going and how I'm going to get there. Everything has worked out well thus far, and there's no reason it won't continue to do so. I do still ask myself sometimes what I plan to do "someday" and if I want to keep traveling, go back home, get a "real" job somewhere, etc. etc. but it's just too early to tell at this point and I don't think that it's necessary to make those decisions right now. After this, I'm heading to Trang to hang out with a few of my TESOL classmates for a couple days before heading up north to eventually spend time in Koh Pha-Ngan and Koh Samui before finally heading to Tak about a week before school starts. If you have any questions about Thailand or anything in general, leave a comment! Thanks for hanging with me! |
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AuthorHi! I'm Charity. I'm from Omaha, Nebraska, USA. I quit my job in October 2016 to travel the world. Archives
June 2022
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