Yesterday we had our first day in schools. The first school we visited was very small with only about 30 kids in the entire school, and only 17 in the class we taught, with ages ranging from about 6-12! They didn't know much english but were very enthusiastic and enjoyed having us there. At one point, we needed the loo and so asked where to find the "hong naam" and ended up with about 4 or 5 girls escorting us there. Very hospitable: very Thai! They gave us lunch (including squid), which was followed by a very interesting dessert... Pink jelly textured coconut in a calpol flavoured syrup... Aileen kinda liked it, Sarah and Siobhan did not agree! Either way, the colouring most definitely was not natural, and slightly fluorescent...
The next school we visited that afternoon was a lot bigger. As we sat waiting in the staff room, children were fighting at the windows to get a view of these strange "farang"-foreigners (though apparently farang can also mean guava!). We used the same programme in this school as the one in the morning and it also went well, though the kids were a little more excitable! This was maybe because there were so many of them, as there were 3 classes all together. When we finished, some of the kids came over to shake our hand and thank us... This quickly escalated in to a stampede of adoring fans who all wanted our autographs, along with hugs and kisses! We all felt slighly overwhelmed, and rather undeserving, though we obliged to the kids' delight.
That evening we visited the market on the other side of the train tracks from our apartment and enjoyed our first "pad thai"-fried noodles. We also had the chance to watch part of a buddhist funeral in the nearby temple. There were a lot of fairy lights and flowers decorating the walls and coffin and the monks chanted in turns, not really like any funerals we've seen before! Many people made offerings and lit candles at a shrine in the corner of the room where the casket was. It surprised us that we could just stand there and watch it (though not go right inside) and there were many other people there watching and taking pictures.
Today we spent the whole day in a high school. This was quite a different experience to the relaxed day we had yesterday. It was a lot more formal, and the school had obviously made a lot of preparations for our visit. The focus of the day was a lot more on direct English teaching although they still enjoyed many of the same activities as the younger schools. This school was incredibly welcoming and they even gave us a gift as we left, even after being fed at regular intervals, including during class time! Many photographs were taken by pupils and teachers of this grand occasion and again we felt incredibly grateful yet humbled. Despite the fact we all ended up in hysterical laughter during one of the sketches (due to the terrified reaction of a poor girl in the front row who jumped when Sarah reached out to shake her hand), and Tim having to wing it for most of the English teaching (we definitely hadn't expected things to be so formal) the day was a really big success doors have been opened for the future, with invitations to return soon. The Christian message we put across was very clear and hope that this may have made an impact on some of the children and teachers.
All in all, the work we've done in Schools so far has been really fun and seems to be going down well, though people still treat us like we're from another planet! We're looking forward to the next few schools and English class tomorrow night.
Thank you for your support and continued prayers,
Siobhan, Sarah and Aileen.
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