My Job, My Family and My Birthday!

Sunday 14th September.

It’s been a little while since I have had much time to write anything. Starting work has really changed the pace and order of my life, in a positive way for the most part. It is really nice to have some much missed structure back in my life and it really works well to nullify the boredom. It feels very different from working at the cinema that all seems like a long time ago now, but it is only about three months. It’s nice not to have that burden anymore; it’s nice to live life at a normal speed without having to arrange everything around erratic shift patterns. Most of all though, it is just wonderful to be doing something that you can see the benefits in, and you get gratitude for. Not just from your colleagues, but from the students as well.

At the moment, my working day is divided into two parts. I will start between 10am and 12pm – depending on the schedule. At this point I get into University and have a coffee, find out what I am doing that day and check to see if I have any tutorials booked. I thought I would be doing more lecturing, but it works out really well because I just take some seminars and have discussions, I also have two hours or so every day for tutorials. So for the six hours I am at university, maybe I am teaching for two, then the tutorials and finally some office hours, which are spent preparing materials and flicking elastic bands. After I have completed my day at Chulalongkorn (6 hours), I go over the road to a new language school called the Boston Bright Institute for a further three hours. This school has only just opened and because so many of the Chula students attend it there is a bit of a deal between them, which gives me the job of representative teacher over there for the university. Now, normally this would probably be really boring, but it is not at all. The school as I say is brand new and located on the third floor of a(nother) brand new shopping mall. The building is pretty magnificent also, it was originally going to be used for the university, however funds were cut during the recession in the late 1990s, and like so many buildings in this city, it was never finished. The building was then bought privately and completed for commercial interests. So the language school, well, it is not you’re every day run-of-the-mill language school. It is going in direct competition with another chain of schools called Wall Street. These schools make a lot of money, and do a lot of the teaching in a much more interactive way than what we are used to. The learning is very conversation based, there are many activities which range from acting classes, writing poetry and going on regular trips to restaurants, museums etc. The aim is to not just teach grammar theory, but to really focus on nurturing confidence in students and getting them to use everything they learn and produce as often as possible.

The feel of the schools is pretty informal, and everyone is easy to get along with. There are three experienced teachers in management roles (one of them a Swedish guy), and then two full-time teachers and then myself. The rest of the staff is comprised of an absolute army of young Thai people. The place is quite big and completely open planned, classrooms are very small (no more than six students in any lesson) and made of glass, there are two receptions (one at either end), There are two large rooms which are filled with brand new laptops, these are for the students to work through the language software part of the course. Down the centre of the first half of the school is a long row of brand new Apple Mac computers back to back, just purely for people to look on the internet and hang out – the monitors are ridiculously big – at the end of this row of about 30 computers lies my personal favourite – the coffee bar! I tend to hang out here a lot with the Secretaries, drinking many different types of coffee and generally getting hyperactive. There is then a space for open planned tables where students can work, but mainly where informal relaxed activities take place, such as discussions and writing. On one side of the corridor (the school is very much like one large corridor with glass rooms on either side!), there is the ‘Empowerment room’ this is where Thai students can go to speak their native tongue. There is also a mirror room, which at the moment seems to be home to the marketing team more than its real purpose, which is for students to use to prepare for public speaking and important events. Further down the corridor, there is a large comfortable seating area which can be curtained off, it has two very large very gorgeous brown leather sofas complete with coffee tables magazines and two large flat screen TVs which can run the same film simultaneously (there is also a digital projector and a large pull down screen). Opposite this area is a performance space with three or four rows of raked seating. This then moves on into a games area which is highlighted by a scaled down American football field complete with a goal. I don’t really know why! There are then some rooms where new students sign up, or are sold the package and then another reception and computer room. All in all, this place is brand new and someone has spent a crazy amount of money. Not just someone, but Khun Prasit, the tenth richest person in Thailand! The guy is a billionaire and im not talking in Baht!

It is really strange to be working in this place, the contrast is very different from the university, however I have to say I am glad that it is only for a few hours, it makes a welcome mixture between the academic approach and the informal. It is also exciting to be a part of a team in a brand new company where money is no object! It makes a horizon for possibilities and in the future and is a great place to meet people as well. All the staff are fantastic and I really get along with them all very well. It is nice to have such a mixture of people in different roles – Teachers, Managers, Secretaries, Personal Coaches (Thai tutors), a musician, the PR team and then Khun Prasit’s own personal crew. Everyone speaks good English and it is starting to become a really good team of people. There is a really happy and informal feel to the place, although I have noticed some tensions in management, but I think that this is more teething problems than anything else – the place has only been open a month!

The challenge is that the school works from this computer program which it bought the rights too, the textbooks are then adapted from the computer program and then the lessons are being adapted from the two. This is kind of like doing it the hard way! It is the opposite way to how it should be done and it does cause some problems. Part of my job is to create these lesson plans and materials which can be used for them, which means that I really have to engage with what is in the course. There is still a lot to do, but it is nice to be in a position where you are shaping the way the school will work. I also run activities and teach some lessons depending on what needs to be done that day. I am given free rein to create activities, so I have been doing some film discussions, some academic writing classes and some acting classes – all of which are great fun.

Aside from the staff, what really makes the school a pleasant place to work is the students. My experience of students in Thailand so far has been more than positive – in short they are an absolute pleasure to be around. They are all different ages from children (although there are not many children right now), high school students, to adults. But the main demographic is university students and mainly from my university. They are all really interesting people, engaging, sweet and always wanting to learn. They also surprise you with their generosity and spirit. It is so rewarding to see the students really engage with you and lose their inhibitions or tendencies towards shyness. When I am teaching them, I am a bit of a joker and like to have a laugh with them which I really enjoy and it is as good for me as it is for them. I have two main approaches, firstly I treat them as though we are all equals, more often than not they teach me as much as I teach them! They are all very intelligent - with good jobs and studying at very good universities - and it is really important not to forget that. Secondly, I try to make myself look stupid and get my hands dirty being ready to embarrass myself at any moment because it really makes the students relax and feel less like they are the ones with difficulties when it comes to understanding. Both of these techniques work well and I am indeed the rapport king! Because of this the staff all like me as well and I think they are really happy to have me onboard, I think they had some problems with teachers previous to my arrival, and were pleased now to see that everything is getting back on track. Every lesson and activity at the moment has feedback from the students and records are kept meticulously to see what is working and what is not. All these comments are passed onto Khun Prasit, who is usually around at sometime during the day. I speak to him quite a lot, he is an approachable guy, pretty fashionable and in his late thirties, he usually brings some strange presents in for the staff – so far I have received a toy car and a large tin of Chinese Moon cake (something not as tasty as it sounds – it has an old egg yolk in the centre).

This week will mark the grand opening of the school and there will be lots of events. The opening will be on the 17th and there are going to be lots of VIPs and some famous randoms in the vicinity. The school has had a really big marketing push and the marketing team are busy doing lots of crazy things. Khun Prasit has invested in one of Asia’s top marketing companies to get the name/brand out there. This reached one of its high points on Saturday when they were making a promotional video and some commercials. I was asked to come in and given some generous overtime for the 4 hours of hanging around I did. Along with some models we filmed some scenes with a film crew and now I will be on Thai TV, on the BTS (skytrain) and at the airport acting like an idiot in makeup! I spent some time chatting to the director and the producer who were really nice, they are back in again on Monday so I will see if I can make some contacts with them. On Friday, it is my birthday, something I have been making no secret of in front of staff and students alike at both places! I will be working, but I can’t really think of much I would rather do given the options. It will be nice to be busy, I will get some presents and I will have the weekend off anyway. There is also a large staff party in the evening all paid for my Khun Prasit. I think there will be a meal and then out for drinks somewhere classy – so all in all it should be a good way to celebrate – especially when it is free.

After work, every day I go back home on the subway. Its only about seven stops – I live smack bang in the centre of the subway line so it’s pretty convenient. It takes about 15 minutes to get to from Phar Ram 9 (home) to Sam Yan (work) which is great for me. I get back to my apartment and by this time im usually pretty tired, and its also getting quite late. I either get some food from the market or from the restaurant, but now I have been officially welcomed into the family. The family which runs the food market and 24 hour shop all seem to like me and I sit outside now and I am cooked for and cared for like a prince. There is a really nice mixture of people and ages – all Thai except for one who is and Pakistani man in this 40s called Maiya, who teaches Tabla, Gurbani Kirtan, Vaja and some interesting stringed Indian instruments which I don’t remember the name of. He speaks good English and great Thai, he has lived here all his life and along with him there are a lot of really good people. We talk, joke and laugh, eat and drink – usually until about midnight – but sometimes it goes on later! It all helps improve my Thai, although I am at a disadvantage because I don’t understand very much, my speaking is also quite limited and so I am always playing a game of conversational catch up/please translate/I don’t understand/I know you are talking about me, and other variations. I know that they are not saying bad things though so there is no feeling of tension. Everything is all good, except that they all want me to be their husband – only in jest though – I think! I am known all throughout the apartment building and court yard now, and I get to hear some juicy gossip! I also discovered that the Thai club which is below me, the one which keeps me awake with its really bad music every night is actually a Gigolo club! Of all the things to find in Thailand! Fantastic – if I get short for money I know how to make some extra cash now! But, I cant help but find it amusing, and it does explain a lot of the eccentricity! Flamboyantly suited men and women in posh cars... it all makes sense now! Apparently, it is actually quite common for women to go and pick up men in these places – at least there is a bit of equality in the industry! So sitting outside, you get to see a lot, and you get to know a lot. It’s good being the darling of all the local Thai’s, I know I am not without a friend and despite our lack of common language, we get on really well and they are all really sweet. There is so much I want to tell them, but I just don’t have the words! In this respect I am finding the limits of my language quite frustrating at the moment, I really need to get better than I am now. I know I will, but at the moment it’s getting to the point where I really need to say more! Last week I was doing my washing and I realised that the two shops which provide ironing services were both closed and I needed a shirt for the next day. I have an iron, but it is terrible, it has no steam and with my shirts it is no good. After moaning and winging around for a while a girl from the shop decided that she would come and iron it for me, but when she saw my iron and that I had no ironing board, she decided against it. I couldn’t really blame her! A few minutes later one of the little girls from the family came to my room and told me that her mother (pee A – who speaks good English) would do it for me! I was so thankful! She saved my life and wouldn’t take a penny for it! However, she did it on the condition that I had to marry one of her daughters – but it was only a joke! Twenty minutes later, there was a knock at my door and the young girl had brought me one pressed blue shirt ready for work the next day - Fantastic! I gave her the tip for her troubles!

Next weekend, after my birthday I also have to go to Cambodia for a day and a night in order to renew my VISA. It expires on the 23rd of this month, and true to the stories I have heard it seems that no matter where you work, Thai people seem to be record-breakingly slow at sorting out work permits! So I have an all expenses paid trip to Cambodia on a luxury bus to look forward to – all be it at 5am! But I will make the best of that situation, I’m toying with a couple of ideas – to get stinking drunk and sleep on the bus, or to just make a trip out of it and enjoy the journey through the Thai countryside – it will be after all the first time I have really ventured outside Bangkok, so I should enjoy it as much as I can.