In Chaing Mai

Heya, made it through CELTA! Yay! Very exciting to finish and have passed... Got our provisional results today (real ones come in a few months), and I got a PASS. Once it was clear that the guy who was late with most (all?) assignments, didn't do a lesson plan for one lesson and was general so laid back that he could've been horizontal, was going to pass, I knew there was no chance of failing! I'm really glad I did the course, especially in Thailand. I have learnt so much in such a little time, and it was especially good to get really busy straight after Japan - I might even be more prepared to find a job now..!! Though. I still can't imagine being a real English teacher... oh scary!

Paul and I went out for drinks and dinner with my uncle on Thursday... our meal alone cost more than we spent together on food in the 4 weeks! Was yummy. On Friday we went out with the course people, was fun and nice to have a few drinks. I seem to have lost the desire to get really drunk, but in the end it snuck up on me. Those red bulls really kick in. We went to Nana Disco (not as in your grandmother, but as in an area of Bangkok.) it was interesting to say the least... Jan and I were the only gaijin women in the place, and Paul, Brett and Craig were the only guys under 40, didn't have beer bellys or balding! We danced around for a bit. Mocked and laughed hysterically at this guy who was THE worst dancer ever! He gyrated, thrusted, jumped, clapped, shimmied and more...quite a sight!

Got the night train up here on Sunday evening, then yesterday wandered around temples and the town. Its a lovely small city, that has a real holiday laid-back feel to it. Today we went on a Thai cooking course at a lovely wee farm where they grow all the produce for it. We made red curry paste, red curry, chicken and cashew nuts, papaya salad, pad thai, and coconut sticky rice with mango. All so yummy! Will have to make it all when I get home!

We head back to Bangkok tomorrow night, then we are hanging out/ being looked after and run around by a homestay student of my parents' Mum. We will take Paul to the airport then I will stay the night before flying out Friday! Crazy shit man! Not a day goes by when Paul or I don't either say "I can't believe we've finished CELTA!" or "I can't believe I'm going home in ~ days!"

So very nearly finished!

YAY YAY YAY!!! Finished my last teaching practice yesterday, and my last assignment! So today and tomorrow are so very carefree that it's as if I've already finished! My last teaching practice, was a new approach - Test Teach Test (T.T.T. - different from TTT - Teacher Talk Time), anyway, I also had a CELTA course assessor watching, adn in general the lesson didn't go well! It wasn't terrible in that I felt sick and panicked that it wasn't working the whole 55 minutes. But it just wasn't working, and I kept realising what I shouldve done, after I hadn't done it! But I didn't care too much, cos I was FINISHED!!

Went out for yummy Japanese dinner and celebratory karaoke after! The karaoke place, although having lots of English songs lacked a lot of the old time karaoke classics, and we may have ODed with 3 hours...2 may have been enough!

I dreamed about lesson planning last night. I had the perfect warmer, and activities for during the lesson, but couldnt think of a good follow-up/freer practice! I was thinking that I'd have to ask Paul for some ideas, but then I woke up and realised I was just dreaming!

Will blog more about the course and stuff tomorrow. Tonight I'm going to meet my uncle whose here on business... yay for company credit cards, and uncles who can take some of my luggage back to NZ!

The weekend...

In a rare un-CELTA related blog I will tell you about the weekend.

Went to Ayuthaya on Saturday with Jan, Brett and Brett. Jan is a NZ Jet in Hokkaido, and the Bretts are also JETs from America. The day started really early at 6.30am, and it was nice to get out of the city for a bit. We went around the historical sites there, great weather and not too much time at each place, nor too rushed. The funniest thing of the day was at the old palace ruins site, and as Jan and I were walking along talking about temples in Japan, I said how there is a penis temple in Yamaguchi. She goes, "what!? Say that again you pronounce it weird." So I said "penis" and she laughed again, so I said, "how do you say it?" she goes, "pianist"!! Oh God it was funny! We were falling over ourselves laughing, and ended up looking well obnoxious as we were just going up the stairs to see the buddha in the temple. In our fit of hysterical laughter, we realised on the way back down that we were meant to have taken our shoes off. So not only were we loud and rude, but also didn't respect the no shoes rule! Oops, but honestly FUNNY!

We came back by river cruise, it was so nice. Sat out in the sun the whole way and got a little burn even. So nice not to be cooped up inside studying or out in fumey Bangkok air.

Went out drinking that night, first to Gullivers. Played some fooz ball, pool and drank lots of Red Bull vodkas. Yum yum. The funniest thing - Paul in his drunken state getting totally pissed off at Gullivers, declaring that he will never drink there again. Not only did the person he was allocated to play pool against start before he got there (something that would not be done in England), but they also turned the soccer game 30 seconds before the end!! One minute Pauls happily swaying/dancing in front of the TV screen, and next he's storming across the bar to the counter! Maybe it's an ignorant girls point of view not to think it was a big deal. But poor Paul, went on about it for so long, then the first thing he said in the morning was "I'm never going to Gullivers again"!

After leaving there, Jan, Paul and I went over to Koh San Rd, thinking there would be a nightclub open to go dancing. But there wasnt. Things were winding down, and only the odd bar open. So we got a drink. Jan and I got Mai Tais...they were the weirdest drink ever. Tasted so sweet and horrid, and were so so potent. We both only finished half, and when we got up realised we were both off our faces! So weird. So we all sat in the gutter and had some Pad Thai. Was very yummy. This dodgy 45+ year old Italian even tried to get me to go home to his hotel for the night cos he was alone... I said no, and ignored him. Then he asked if it was because I don't like Italian guys. I said no it wasn't that, I've met some nice Italians before, but I really wasn't interested. Then he left. How lovely to know you can be sitting in the gutter of Koh Sang Rd and get picked up...

So yeah, fun weekend of doing no work! Was meant to on Sunday, but was too tired and when I tried I fell asleep so gave up! Today had my second last lesson. Wednesday is my last. So will indeed be having a few drinks that night. My uncle is in Bangkok for work so am going to meet up with him (and his company credit card..!!) sometime. We're also trying to work out what we want to do for next week... Yay, 4 days left (and 2 of them I'll have no work left to hand in or lessons to teach!) then it's holiday time again!! Yay yay yay!

Overdue update - on the home straight!

Thought I'd better blog, cos people seem to think I've disappeared! And others are just bored..!

We are now in the second half of the third week. Yay, can smell the end of this course...nearly. I have two more teaching practices - 2 55 minute ones. An assignment due tomorrow, and another next week. By next Thursday, I'll be all done with assessment!! Yay! The course hasn't been entirely bad thus far (of course I change me opinion before the end). Have met nice, interesting, decent people, have learnt some stuff, have recalled some stuff from my university memory banks (a definite plus!), and haven't bombed too miserably at anything. So yeah, it's ok. So can't wait for it to be over all the same though. Looking forward to having a stress-free drink and not be thinking about the work that has to be done the next day or whenever. Am going to that historical place Anaythaya..(so not the name but the real one does have those letters in it) on Saturday with a few from the course (Jan and Brett). Will be nice to get out of the city but want to get most of my planning done for next week before. I also have a stuffy nose/coldy thing. I blame the air-cons everywhere and pollution. But I have been entertaining Paul with my Abra-influenced hypercondriactivity! (that so isn't a word is it..!?) So yeah. Funny and games, and generally all is cool.

Got to get back to this assignment.

Made it through a week of CELTA!!!!

Unbelievable! I feel like I've here so very long, but only a week! I feel so happy to be over with Friday, but I have so much to do in the weekend... Oh well, I'll keep smiling at least for a couple of hours!

So my lesson on Wednesday, I thought bombed. It was meant to be 35mins. and I was finished at 25mins, and had nothing to do. So the surly instructor said we would stop and the next guy continue his part. I sat through Corey's class feeling sick and miserable abotu how bad the lesson had been. Then to my surprise, he didn't tear strips off me in our feedback. Apart from the obvious it was good - "strong to standard" in fact.

Today I had to do a 'guided discovery;' lesson. I had to teach students a grammar point by giving them a reading and a sheet of questions to do that would guide them to discover the correct usage of the grammar - for 50 mins!! I was rather worried, and I of course know shit about grammar. I tried to research the particular point. But in class when students ask me something I so struggled to give a concise answer about why it was one way not the other etc! But anyway, I felt really good about the lesson in general. I generally didn't feel to nervy, and felt pretty relaxed. In feedback he pointed out the obvious things again, and I got "above standard for this stage of the course"!! Surprised I tell you! But he wrote "Relax!" on my form! The first word he wrote when watching me was that! I told him, I felt relaxed! So tell me folks, do I have a nervous disposition? Cos obviously I seem nervous even when I'm not feeling nervous!

Right I'm going, I don't know where Paul is, but seems strange that he's still in his class doing feedback. Think we're going to go out for a drink or two with classmates. Even might get crazy tomorrow and watch a DVD!! Yip we're livin' it up here in Bangkok!

2 days down...

can't be bothered saynig much more. tired, going to go home and do some more work. tomorrow I teach, for 35mins, ALONE!!! Crazy the things they make us do!!

1 day down...

not too bad...think I get the instructor guys style so can grin and bear him. teaching wasn't too bad. Got told I should relax but I was so much more relaxed than I could have been. Damn Japan - I speak like a gimp to the students - slow and leave out words = unnatural!

On the whole it wasn't totally bad.

19 days to go.

pre-day one of CELTA

and already I feel the stress rising, and I wish I'd never decided to do it! We had an orientation today, the people in my class generally seem nice. 6 of 9 have come from Japan. Tomorrow we have out first teaching, and I ended up with the worst section of 15 mins! Our instructor is an arrogant arse and I know will continue to be so, but thankful he's only half of the team and the other guy seems nice enough.

Thankfully when Paul isn't stressing too, which just makes me stress more, we can have a few laughs. That boy continually can think of is stomach and what our next meal should be - even after gorging on salad bar, and a big meal!! Very amusing!!

My brother Shaun and his girlfriend Ann are engaged too. That is very lovely news. But for now its back to the books. Bye!