Kimlee's Adventures in Thailand.

the final days..

2009-05-27T10:30:00.000-07:00

so, i haven't been good on the update.
i relised that for the 8 months i have been in thailand i did a horrible job giving updates to everyone back home, or fellow exchange students who are coming to thailand in the next few months.
for anyone who is an upcoming exchange student to thailand, the next year of your life is going to be the most life changing, breathtaking, crazy, wild, emotional experiacne of your life... and your gonna hate it in the begginging, maybe cry in the middle, and when you get to the last final days, your going to feel this emotion that your not sure.
when talking to your friends back home, and when they ask you ' are you happy to come home?' your gonna say 'hell yeah !' and know your lying right in their face, because, i did it. more than once.
and gosh, maybe my friends read this too to see if i am doing okay or wondering how it is to live in another country, i don't know, i may never know after today.
but let me tell you something. this 'year' as you can call it has been an roller coster ride for me, and even though i love roller coasters, this was the top trill dragster (search it on Cedar Point amusment park)... only my TTD was 10 times more crazer than the ride !

the emotions that i feel thinking about the last day in thailand or the frist day in america or the day i have to leave, or all the memories i had so far, friends, host families, MY family, school, EVERYTHING. it just makes me wanna cry, but the tears don't come out.
i think about the day when i am at the airport in thailand and who is going to send me there at 4 in the morning, sometimes i wish something could go wrong like the red mob goes that day and closes the airport again so i don't have to go home. 555+ that sounds so bad, but its just my dream. :]

anyways, seriously.
this year i have learned so much.
and even though in the begging the whole point of me coming to thailand was to be on my own. to experiance on my own. to get away from my family, who i thought was the most craziest, annoying family in the world.
i hate to tell you, but i am not ready to say i want to go back to that family, or i want to go back home.
im still not done traving in thailand. but i do want to say, i relised that the 'crazy family' is normal, i've seen the more crazy.
the for the reason i wanted to get away and be an exchange student, was the most stupidest reason in the world, but that stupid reason changed my life, forever.
yet, i still don't know if its for the better or worse. .. its up to the viwer.

i know i can aways come back to visit here, just a few thousand dollars and a ticket to thailand and i can come back and see everyone and contue to tour thailand. but from now on it won't be the same. it will still be fun, but not the same.

i fear when i go back, my friends that i've made here, will forget me, or will change if i ever come back to see them.
you know, we say its hard to make a best friend in just one year, it takes time. but these people will be my best friend forever, they where there for me when i needed them.
they helped me when i need help. they took me with them when they went out.
they are FOREVER my BEST friends.

but this year i learned who are my ture friends back home in america as well. i learned what a ture friend is, and i learned who is just causel friends, and 'there for you' friends are to me.

i have so much to talk about, and i could sit here for 3 or 4 hours and just talk about thailand for you, fill up 10 pages on this computer screen and make you sit and read what i have to say for ages.... but today. well save it.

this is mostly just so i can go to sleep.
but yeah. i have less than 2 weeks now, and it sucks... really. thats the word that decribs it all.

i may sound like a kid, and you may say i need to get in relatily...but if you were to do what i did for a year, you would feel that same as well.

and i am not the only one, ask any exchange student how they feel right now, and ask them if they are ready to go back to their home country... and at first they'll tell you yes, but if you look in there eyes, or listent to their voice you can tell their lying.

the whole experiance of being an exchange student is breathtaking, and something you don't want to give up.

some YE (youth exhcnage) didn't want to go to the country they were sent to in the first place maybe,
for thailand, i'll tell you all those who didn't want to come here....now, they don't want to go back. and there having the time of their life. traveling thailand, going on the busees around to different cities.
and each one of they everyday weather on their facebook or hi5 myspace what ever it is...they enter a staus on the lines of ..... ' i don't want to go home'

so , you maybe say im childes for saying something like this, or i need to catch on to relality..
well i already did, and this is realaty for the life of an exchange student.
its reality to realize soon we have to go back to live reality..

so to end this.
now i can go to sleep. maybe.
i have a myspace. (kimlee)
a facebook. (kimlee.)
hi5 (kimlee.)
blogger <--this.
msn: kmlepanda@hot...

so talk to me.
good night to all. its 1am.

kmle:]

your march 4th update. from thailand.

2009-03-04T00:05:00.000-08:00

Well here is the update.
Finally, I have my college applications finished. Tomorrow, I am going to Siam Square, which is like the heart of Bangkok with my host sister, so maybe I’ll stop by a temple and prey for luck. As for anyone who is reading this, pray for me.
Okay, let’s move on. I still don’t know when I’ll be going home, but I am sure it is the date requested which is 13 June a Saturday at around six in the morning. It doesn’t matter anymore, sooner or later I have to go home, so this date is better than nothing. If I do go back home on this date, I will miss my graduation, but I will be able to attend my family’s family reunion.
Moving on, my computer has a virus, I am 100% sure it has more than one. I’ll probably go get it fixed this Saturday. It takes about 10 minutes to load the computer, and then another 5 minutes to load up for me to even click anything. I’m pretty sure that’s a problem.
Hmm, I am going to be moving host families for the last time sometime this month. Can you belive it? I have been in Thailand for almost a whole year now, I made the half way line, and now I am going home in a little while. I remember the day I left home in America, waiting for my mom dad sister and host sister Amy to all get downstairs to send me off to the airport. I remember being in the Michigan airport writing my first ‘log’ for everyone to read. And now, soon I’ll be writing my last ‘log’ in the Michigan airport, and it will only be an hour or two after that I’ll see my parents once again. I hate to say this, but I don’t really want to go home. I have learned so much about myself this year then I think I have ever in my life. Really, its not until your away from everything that your used to do you realize that if it was the most boring thing in the world, or your family was the most abnormal or crazies family in the world that when your away from them like this that actually your dad who you always fought with is not that bad and you can talk to him normally. And your mom really does care for you. Just little things. I learned the way I treated my friends and my family was unfair. Especially my family… really; I learned about myself as well, just the little things that I have changed make me a whole better person. I always used to have attitudes, now I am more clam and able to control myself. I am a more happy person in whole.
And this one, I learned from my Rotary club back home. "Be like Mickey Mouse". Mickey has big ears, good for listening, and a small mouth so he doesn’t talk that much. That is a lot. Listen before you speak, think about what you say. It works. I used to talk all the time, not care if it hurt you or not, Mickey mouse, not only do I love him, I do things like him now.
Definitely I would say this year has changed me… for the good.

Lets move on… on the 22nd I’ll be going to phuket for seven day with my Rotary district and other exchange students. It’s a trip made for all the YE’s who wanted to go to pay a fee of $500! "mai pen rai" expensive a little bit, but its going to be fun, (I hope :/) Well go to the Phuket Aquarium, Phuket Amusement park, go clean the beach, and go bird watching but of course play in the beautiful water. Phuket is a city south of Thailand if you were wondering.
Well I don’t know what else to say, next month is SongKran, or Thai New Years, commonly know as the Water Festival. I can’t wait. I’ll be celebrating new years with my cousins’ aunts grandma and friends from school, and a whole lot of other people who I don’t know.
The water festival is what it sounds like. Since Thailand is so hot during this time of year, on Thai New Years they celebrate by throwing water at everyone for 3 day. Its supposed to be fun and a lot of foreigners come just to be a part of it. Throwing water at people you don’t know, and it’s a lot of water too, because there are tons of people. I just can’t wait for it because it is so hot right now, and its better then going swimming, you don’t even need to put on a bathing suit!
I’ll tell you more about that when its comes up, so wait next month on that one.
But for now, I think that’s all to say today.

Oh, I like updating my blog like this, its seems better for me. SO that means instead of my posting once a month, I’ll be posting more regularly. So you’ll be updated more often. YEAH! Good for you and me.
Well that’s it for now, see you later then.
KMLE=]

Febuary Update

2009-02-21T02:51:00.000-08:00

Wow, well I have had quite a good time so far. This month, February has been going pretty well for me.
I have been getting very good with finishing up my college and university applications so when I go back home to America I will be able to go to college instead of just sit on my butt for a year and not do anything. I applied to Kent State, Cleveland State, University of Cincinnati, and University of Indianapolis. There’s only a few things here and there that I need to finish up, but for the most part I am done and I can pay the application fee and get it sent in. I just need my counselor in America to do little things here and there send out her part, and I wait for the decision. Hopefully I will be going to a college when I go back… pray, please.
I’ve decided that the way I had been doing the diary was horrible because I never gave good updates. I got lazy never wanted to write and things like that. But well see how I like it. I am changing my style to just writing off the head.
Well school here in Thailand is officially finished. It is now summer vacation until May. School in Thailand if you don’t already know, starts in May and finishes in February because March to June is ‘Hot Season’ and literally it is really hot. Everyone can already feel that change everyday when you wake up at 9am on the weekends because your bedroom is on the second floor of your house and your already burning hot. Or you turn on the air condition just for a little cold air and when you turn it off for only 5 minutes you have to turn it back on because its almost as if you never had turned it on! Because of this, Thai new Years is in April.
Thai new years, or the water throwing festival… the name says it all. Throwing water to people you don’t know, but nobody cares because you’re cooling them off! I am patiently waiting for April….PAITINENTLY!
Last weekend (8 and 9) my cousin came back to visit me and my cousins. P`Ton, that’s his name. Anyways, his whole purpose was to look at my computer because its almost at the end of its dying point, and he majored in a computer something. Not so sure, but he’s good with computers. Anyways, he never looked at it. Just my pictures… but it doesn’t matter, because he came anyways. This is the second time I saw him. And he planes to come back on Thai New Years for a few days, so I am patiently waiting.
Well, when he came we went to Ko Kret a little island in Nonthaburi, which is the city that I live in. I had been there before, but on a Wednesday and on Wednesday there is nothing open or anything being sold, so it was almost like a ghost town when I went. I told you about that before. Anyways, we went on the weekend this time… and on a holiday weekend so it was really good, lots to buy lots to eat. You take a boat to cross the river to get to ko kret, its 4 bath for a round trip for each person… that’s like less than a penny. We ate kannom, or thai sweets because this island is like famous for making them really good. It was good, but most of it was sold out already. P`ton bought a purse to give to my sister when I go back to America. Umm, we mostly just bought food and ate a lot while here.
When we left we took a bus to Pantip, like a shopping mall, only its not. Hard to explain. We went here because he, me and my cousin wanted to buy adopters to upload music from our phones to our computers. That worked out well, 3 adopters for 100 baht… 3 dollars.
Also, p`ton wanted to buy a new wallet. He found it.
Before going to Ko Kret and Pantip in the morning we had gone to the Temple because it was a Buddhist holiday. We went to go give merit and pray in the morning.
Anyways, when we came home from Pantip, we had realized that it was going to be Valentines Day soon, we me my cousin and p`ton decided to buy each other a valentine gift and be each others valentine. P`ton bought me a Mickey mouse teddy bear because he knew I liked Mickey mouse, at first when we were at Pantip he wanted to buy me a Mickey mouse wallet, but it was 280 baht, a little expensive. Fern, my cousin bought him a heart hanging thing while in Ko Kret, and p`ton bought fern an adopter at Pantip along with chocolate. I bought fern tickets to see a concert. Which hold on am going to tell you, and I told p`ton that when her comes back I’ll give him his valentine day gift because I don’t know what exactly to get him and ask if my sister wants to send anything as well.
We ate dinner, and then we went to the temple for the night time and p`ton had to go to the bus station to catch the bus back home. It was fun while he came, and he did a lot for us. So it was fun.
Anyways we went to the temple at 8 at night to do the second part of what you do during this holiday which was walk around the temple 3 times. We did it, and then went home.
When we went home we called p`ton to see if he caught the bus on time to go back to his city because when we left the house to go to the temple it was already a little late and I thought maybe he wouldn’t catch the bus on time. When we called, really, he didn’t catch the bus on time. So he had to go n another city bus and have a friend pick him up. He wouldn’t get home until about midnight. Also he had forgotten his phone charger, so the next day he would have to buy a new one. WOW!

Okay, moving one. ToR+ Valentine Day Concert!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OMG!!!!!!!! WOW!!!!!!! LOVED IT. IT WAS AMAZING. And so worth the price. *_*
I heard about ToR+ concert on the radio with my phone, because I listent to the radio on my phone a lot. Anyways, ToR+ having a concert on valentine and well I like ToR+ because he sing it very good, like amazing. (and in person even better) if you never heard of him or heard his music (search Tor Saksit Thai, anywhere on the internet and listen to his songs) Anyways… I told my real mom that I wanted to go to a concert and if it was okay I could buy tickets… she said yes so I went for it. Actually I bought the tickets a day before the show… and they are/were amazing seats.
Right in the middle of it all, fourth row seats. So close to the front, and so clear to see it all, best pictures, everything.
We left at 3:30 to go to the Impact Arena to go pick up our tickets before 5 o’clock. We left early to make sure we would get there on time, even though we live near by Mueng Thong Thani, which is where the Impact Arena is located, we were afraid that because of ToR+ concert and a furniture expo going on at the same time that traffic would be very jammed.
It took us about one hour to get there, so it wasn’t that bad.
When we arrived, we picked up our tickets, and then went to go buy our ToR+ shirts!!!!
220 baht for one shirt. I also bought a pin to add to my Rotary Jacket, 10 baht that’s like 3 cents.
We went to go change into our ToR+ shirts then walked to Easy Peasy to go eat dinner since I was hungry.
By the time that we had done all of this it was about 4:30 so we went back to the Arena to get ready to enter to the concert.
Before we entered though, we walked around and took pictures with all the ToR+ posters, and there was DJ from a radio station that was there giving away stuff and taking pictures with people, so we did the same.
When it was time to enter me and my cousin got in the line and waited. We kept getting closer and closer to the front door. WE opened our bags for search, then went through metal dectors… got our tickets hole punch and walk in…!! OMG! We entered from the back, and the workers once every 30 seconds look at your ticket to make sure you go in right direction… everyone keep say to us go front go up and we get so close! 4th row!!!!!!!!! When we get there, I almost have heart attack from how happy I was we so close!
Anyways, while we wait for the concert to start, my and my cousin take pictures and listen to some backround music.
It was about one hour later from we enter the concert started, so it wasn’t that bad. It was amazing, many guest singers. We sit near by ToR+’s parents and we got to touch ToR+’s hand.
The concert finished at 11:30p.m and there was no taxis to take to get home! We didn’t get home until 12:30. We had to take a motorcycle to the main street and get a taxi there.
Other than that, it was fun. Our shirt, our ToR+ lights, meet ToR and his parents. We had a good time, I had a good time.
Well, that’s it for now. I’ll write later.
Oh I plan to go home 14 June.
KIMLEE! =]

Update for October&November...half way done!

2008-12-09T03:42:00.000-08:00

before you start, can you, if you read my posts send me your e-mail so when I update my blog I can send you an e-mail so you will be informed right away. It doesn't matter if you don't know me, I am happy that you are reading my blog, so please send me your e-mail so I can give you updates about me blog. And sorry it took forever to give you the lastest update!~!

Kimlee=]

my e-mail -- klee811@yahoo.com
December 5, 2008 at 8:44p.m
Okay, this is how I am going to do it. Let me start. Thai people are lazy, and I started to be like them. So I am going to give you a summery of my month in October because it’s really important. Then let you read what I wrote for the month, get more in depth. Then Keep updating from now on, I PROMISE!
Well today is father’s day in the Kingdom of Thailand. As well it is the Kings Birthday. And to add on to that I have a lot to update everyone who is reading this on.
Well, last month I got really lazy about updating my journal, also I have yet to post up for the month of October, which was the month I did the most.
Also, October was the month I had no school, and switched host families (which I have to tell you about).
In October from the 3rd to the 10th I went to Meditation Camp near by Chonburi at Satahep. I went along with 7 other exchange students; 2 from Japan 2 from Taiwan, 2(including me) from America, and 1 from Hungary. All together 5 girls and 2 boys. It was a fun week, even though it started off very tough having to shower in a room with everyone else looking. & for the exchange students it was hard because the little kids want to see how foreigners take a shower ‘Thai Style’ the only way to do it is to wear a cloth like dress that has elastic to stay on you while you take a small bucket and fill it with water to dump on yourself. The bathrooms weren’t Americanized, so you got to Squat on the floor along with that NO toilet tissue. The second day one of the Japanese girls went back home to her host family as well; she just couldn’t handle it. She wouldn’t eat either. But, I loved it, and it was my most favorite activity for the whole month. To be with all young orphan kids and teach them English while they teach me Thai, I learned so much Thai in the one week at Meditation camp then I did for the first 3 months I was in Thailand.
Then I came back home on the 10th late at night to go back to with my host family for one night. Well I had to wait for my host mother to come pick me up for two hours, because she was watching one of her shows and didn’t want to leave. But the host is only 15 minutes away! She didn’t come until almost midnight! I got back at the orphanage camp at 10p.m and the kids went to shower and sleep, and all the exchange students parents where already there waiting for their students… except my host mom. I had just moved in with her, not even one week in the house because I moved in October 1st and the 3rd I went to the camp. Well now I’ll tell you about her before I move on to the next event in October.
I just currently moved out of her house to my 3rd host family, which was an emergency host family move. The first night I moved in with this host family I didn’t quite like it. The first thing I did when I moved in was go on the computer and e-mail my father to tell him that I didn’t feel quite comfortable in this house and I finally became homesick for the first time. I also called my mom and told her about my room. Well my room was like an attic. Hmm, you can fit a twin size bed and one small drawer. That’s about it, can’t do much walking either. Walk in the room and two steps to the bed and one step to the drawer. I had just barely enough room for my suitcases, two big size a medium size a laptop, school book bag, and small carry-on bag. Here we go, for the good part of the room, other than being small; the bed was broken, like so broken the first night I slept on the floor. The air conditioner didn’t work, if you turn it on a few minutes later the room is raining… literally. Well instead of using the AC, I thought okay use the fan that they gave me… it’s broken and doesn’t turn on. So, no big deal tomorrow morning I would just ask for a new fan. So my mom told me that it’s only the first night, give it a while and everything will get better. So I went to sleep the first night crying.
The next morning I woke up at 7 to go have breakfast. When I went down stairs, and realized nobody was home. I called Opiwan and asked when would she come home; never will ask again. I was home alone, actually there is a maid, until about 6p.m and then went to my Rotary meeting in Bunglumpoo with Dr Op (short for Opiwan). Came home from my meeting, packed for the Meditation Camp and went to sleep, peacefully on the floor because I was excited to go to the Camp tomorrow!
Other than dropping me off late at the meeting point to go to MCamp, it all went well.
NEXT!
After coming back from Meditation camp, I went back to Dr Op’s house packed for my weekend to go to Ampawa on Saturday and Sunday, the 11th and 12.
One of the host mother whose YE went to Meditation camp invited me to go to Ampawa, which was perfect timing because I didn’t want to stay at Opiwan’s house for the weekend!
On Saturday I woke up at 7o’clock, got ready really quickly because Opiwan said to be out of the house at 7 to meet up at the meeting point at 7:30a.m. So when I went down stairs I waited, and waited. I asked our maid where was Dr Op, she didn’t know either. Well Dr Op didn’t come down until about 7:45and we didn’t leave the house until about 8o’clock. For sure I thought that they would have left by now, and the funny thing is the whole time while waiting for Dr Op while she was eating her breakfast is that she keep saying "hurry up were already late, there waiting for us." Well, it was more like I was waiting for her because I was already to go; I was just hoping she would finish her breakfast anytime that day. We got at the meeting point at about 8:15, once again making everyone wait for us! I later found out from my friend whose host mom invited me told me that if it wasn’t for her host calling my host, Dr Op would have never woken up probably.
Two tour buses and about 15 exchange students and maybe 40 adults. We went to 3 temples on the way to our destination, a sugar making store, and a school where we donated food to the school children. Once after all the sightseeing and school we went to our guesthouse and checked in to shower, and eat dinner before going out for the night on a boat. Oh yeah, the reason we went on this trip was to go to the floating market, and see Hing Hoy which means fireflies in Thai on the riverside.
We went on the boat to see fireflies at about 9:30ish. It was a half hour boat ride all together, with 7 boats hold about 10-12 people. When we finally saw little dots we thought we saw the fireflies… but the exchange students quickly realized that they were just Christmas lights! I couldn’t believe it; I really wanted to see fireflies in Thailand! I was disappointed in the flies but I liked the boat ride. When it was over, we (exchange students only) went back to go to our rooms and had our little party playing cards and going on the internet, while the Adults had their little Thai party singing Karaoke and drinking beer, all night long.
The next morning at 5 me and my room mate which is the girl who invited me woke up to give food to the monks who were in the boats on the river side. At 7 everybody woke up to have breakfast and check out to head back home. After heading out our first stop was Ampawa’s floating market. Not exactly the ‘floating’ I was thinking. I was hoping we would go on a boat and float around to the shops on the river side. It was more like walking along the river side and the some shops on their boats and some on the river side. Yeah. It was really interesting and exciting though. We stayed there for two hours, and everybody had their lunch where ever they pleased.
The last place was a park, rest stop sort of place. You could walk along the road to find something to eat. Go to the ocean am guessing and swim if you wanted or just rest in the park, or eat food; whatever pleases you. After that, it was time to head back home.
We got back at the meeting location where our host families were to pick us up at 5:30. I asked my host mom to be on time so she could drop me off at the BTS station or the sky train so I could take it to meet Joe, the boy who my family hosted before I came here to Thailand. I hadn’t seen him since he left our home in America so I wanted to see him, and know how he was.
As I thought, my host mom came late. Joe called and asked where I was and I told him I was coming as soon as my host mom would come… she made me miss the movie.
She didn’t come until 6:30, Not only that but one of the Rotarians yelled at her for coming late. Finally someone did, because she is always an hour or two later than everyone else to come pick me up!
To sum it up for you; she said she was going to take me to meet up with Joe along with her daughter and the maid so when she was ready to go home I would have to go back too. We ate dinner at The Pizza Company, which is Pizza Huts competition in Thailand, and while there she yelled at me for making her miss a very important meeting with someone who came all the way from Phuket, so she left me there and told me to go home with Joe’s mom ( as was originally planed). Nice huh?
I did get to meet Joe, and we talked and his mom took me back home. When I got home my host mom once again yelled up me for coming home late. All I told her was that I wasn’t on me because the traffic was badly jammed. She said why I didn’t call, I told her I did and she didn’t answer the phone.
I only got to meet with Joe for a few hours, all because she couldn’t come on time to take me to the BTS station. Whatever, I have a whole year left to hang out with him.
That’s Sunday, next Monday, the next activity!
Thai Massage. And for anyone who wants me to massage them when I got back, $10 an hour! This activity is for one week, Monday the 13th to Friday the 17th, starting at 8:30a.m to Noon. For one week 7 selected exchange students learn to do Thai Massage, which if you ask me that whole week I only learned what my mom really wanted me to learn because it was so hard to learn with the exchange students who were selected, they didn’t want to learn… so we weren’t really taught anything, but I wanted to learn! Anyways, this was the first time Opiwan took me to an event early, and the only reason was because a Rotarian told her that you can act like this because you are part of Rotary and if you are late, you make everyone else wait for you. She dropped me off and told me to go back on my own, which was totally fine because that meant I could do whatever I wanted.
The first day we learned how to massage the feet and legs. There are nine points on the foot. 2, 3 point on the bottom half of the leg along with the top, and a circular motion on the knee. I don’t want to forget.
After the first session was over I went to Victory Monument by bus to take a bus to The Mall, it’s really called The Mall to meet up with friends from school and hang out with them. We went to watch a movie and then I went to Gift, the girl I meet up with, I went to her house to wait for my host mom because I told her I didn’t know the way to get home, because really I didn’t because Opiwan never told me. So Opiwan didn’t come get me at Gift’s house until about 10p.m. Oh yeah, I went to the mall with Gift and her-soon-to-be-boyfriend.
On Tuesday I went to Thai Massage once again to relearn about the feet and legs, then went to Siam Paragon with exchange students to meet up with one of the Host Family Brothers of Rotary who went with some of us to the Ampawa trip (actually, he is the one who help me to get a head start to move out of Opiwan’s house). I went home (Dr Op’s house) at 4p.m because the next day Opiwan and her daughter were going on a trip to India for one week.
Actually, here is the story. Opiwan just finished being a nun before I moved into her house because before I came to Thailand she got into a car crash and hit a motorcycle taxi and killed the woman who was taking the Motorcycle taxi. It was a big story in Thailand, from what some people tell me when I told them about it. Everyone knew about it before I could finish the story. On top of that a month before the accident she lost her husband to cancer. He husband was the number one doctor in Thailand. He is the one who changed the health care system in Thailand to free health care for the people. He had his own foundation, which now Opiwan takes over, and he was really good at his job. He was close friends with my first host, Khun Prateep and that’s why Prateep hosted me because Opiwan asked if they would like to be a Rotary Host family, and they agreed. They daughter also was an exchange student, but now with Rotary about a few years ago now. Anyways, so Opiwan became a nun while I lived with Prateep’s family in the end of August and all of September. She went to stay in the northern area in a small province called Nakon Sakon, and lived in the temple to meditate everyday. Well, she loved it so much she wanted me to go there for one month and meditate and do everything that she did, except become a nun. My only thing was school started up the week she went to India, and I had all Rotary Activites in October, she I didn’t want to go there at that time. She went crazy and that’s why she wanted to send me back to America, because I didn’t do it her way. Anyways, so… I came home at four on Tuesday because Opiwan was going to take me to Khun Prateep’s house to stay while she went on her trip to India, so I could still finish Massage Class and also go to school when school started back up.
So Wednesday, my first host mom took me to massage camp all the way until Friday as well. Everyday after Massage class I went to meet with friends from school or go with the Exchange Students somewhere because I didn’t want to disturb Prateep’s family because they were so nice to let me come back and stay with them while Opiwan went to India.
During the week at massage camp I learned the feet, legs, and back. So if you ever want me to massage those places, I will. But, it was really hard to learn because everyday they started letting us out earlier and earlier because the exchange students kept complaining it was too hard and they didn’t want to learn it, only have someone do it to them! So, I learned what I needed and that was the end of massage class. After classes, I went to hang out with friends. Wednesday, I went to my cousins house to eat food. Thursday, I went my school friends and cousin to Platium, like a indoor shop to shop sort of place. It’s really cool, everything is cheap and all really nice stuff, shoes, clothing, dresses, pureses, anything you want they should have it, fashion wise. Friday I went with exchange students to eat food and then to my cousins house to go to an internet café and eat food again. Everday after hanging out with my cousin or friends I would take the bus back to Prateep’s house. I knew how to take the bus to their house because when I lived with them before I had to take the bus back home from school and they thought me how.
Saturday the 18th Rotary faxed a letter to me saying that I was selected to go to English Camp in Roy-Et for the week of Saturday the 19th to Saturday the 26th. I agreed to go, so I washed all my clothing and packed. But mosly Saturday was just a lazy day, to catch up on some sleep and rest from doing so much so far.
Next activity, Roy-Et English Camp Week

THE UPDATE SINCE 2 MONTHS!

2008-09-21T00:43:00.000-07:00

So I know I haven't posted since i've got here in Thailand, but internet is so slow so its hard to get a post.
So here you go. This is it.
YOU CAN COMMENT IF YOU WANT, I WILL READ IT.

Tuesday August 26, 2008 at 10:50p.m.
Sunday the 24th.
Finally the day arrived for the Rotary Thailand Inbound Orientation. I thought it would never come. I get bored sometimes on the weekend here with my host family. If there’s one thing I learned with this family, is that mom is right, sleeping in until noon wastes your life. The weekend for my host family is ‘lazy day.’ Do whatever you want. Have breakfast at 11a.m., then watch some television, then go to sleep, eat lunch, sleep, television, dinner, shower, sleep.
That is lazy day. Every Saturday and Sunday.
I noticed that I have only been to Paragon, MBK, and The Mall Namongwan & JJ Market (but that was only for an hour to pick up chopsticks, and it was outside the market across the street.). I haven’t done anything with this host family. I want to go out and see all the sites, even if I saw them before. I get bored sometimes with this family. Well not ever family is perfect.
Anyways, Sunday I woke up at 6 o’clock to get ready and have breakfast at 7. My and my host mom left at 8 to go to The Tawana Hotel near Putpong, at least that’s what my host mother said. I went to the bank go get 300$, but my host mom made me get baht instead, so I had to get 300$ of baht, whatever. We got there around almost 9, so we were late, just like almost all the rest of the host families.
Another thing, just about ever Thai person, they come fashionably late.
I checked in, got my allowance of 4 thousand baht, a thousand more then I expected. They gave us a rise because this year they wanted to be nice I guess, no complaining there. Also I received a folder which had a phrase book, little kindergarten learn to write the alphabet book, Rotary Thailand Handbook, and Thai Manners book. Funny thing about the phrase book, it’s a decent size phrase book, not pocket size, I would say purse size; its yellow and well is sitting in my computer room back in my home in America, the last summer I came to Thailand my family bought the exact same phrase book that was given in the folder from Rotary, so It made me laugh.
The last thing I did before I sat down in the meeting room was give my account book, emergency account fund book, insurance proof, and copy of my passport to one of the Rotarians to keep for there records.
We started 1 hour late. It was mostly just like any other Exchange Program Introduction Meeting; give the rules, talk about the host country, meet the exchange students, eat some of the host country food, learn some of the language, meet some of the kids from the host country who just came back from their exchange, and for Rotary Thailand take pictures of you in your blazer for the website (only I forgot my blazer that day and had to use someone else’s),
It was pretty boring, not just for me just about all the exchange students where falling asleep.
I finally meet the girl who also would be attending Benjamarachanusorn School with me. He name is … um… Brenda, no… Brandy. She is from Canada. And she is going to be more popular than me now at school because she looks more Falang than me, so I not really liking it. L
Well one thing that shocked me was Salajit, who is the President of Thailand Rotary this year is a girl. I thought she was a boy, she even told us that she knew we would have thought she was a boy. And when we had to introduce ourselves, she had questions for me instead like, I hear that you are Thai, Your mom is Thai, Why do you come to Thailand, Can you speak Thai, Your have really clear Thai, Have you ever been to Thailand? And instead of listening to the learning Thai lesson, they asked me to say some words a lot like ngaw ngo, raaw reer, mostly hard ones for the exchange students to say. So nobody knew I was Thai before coming to Thailand, they all thought I was Korean.

Wednesday August 27, 2008 at 11:03p.m.
Okay Monday the 25th was pretty boring. It was the first day for Brenda to start school. I meet her and found out that she is in room M5/9. I am M5/10, so she is next door to me. She called me about 10 times on Monday; just asking things like where are you, how are you. She’s just adjusting to the new culture and everything. It may take her, and all the other exchange students longer because they never came to Thailand before, but I have my cousin, and I’ve been here before, so I kind of know what to expect, that’s why it was a fast adjustment for me, and now Culture Shock; Thailand is my culture J

Tuesday 26th.
Well I come last to school everyday, so it wasn’t any different today. School starts at 7:30, it takes about 45 minutes to get to my school from my host families house, and we don’t leave the house until 7:15 sometimes; so you do the math. Everyday I am late. Fine with me because my name isn’t on any attendance sheets, so even thought I am late nobody can mark me late.
Well every Tuesday all the M5 kids go to a auditorium like place and pray for one class period, so about 1 hour and a half we sit in there. Last week a monk came and talked with us, it was really fun and he made us play a game about trust; I enjoyed it. Anyways, after we were done praying my Chinese teacher or ‘Row-Sure’ came to me and told me that I am going to introduce myself to the students today with Brandy. Well at first I was kind of scared, speak to the whole M5 class, in Thai, and talk about myself… OMG. Then I was like wait a minute, Brandy can’t even speak Thai yet, and just about every M5 student knows me because I have changed classes so many times. Next month I change classes again, so I can do Thai Dancing, Thai Cooking, and Thai Massage for my mom, Thai Art, everything Thai.
Well the Chinese teacher talked about me and Brandy, and then we both went up there. Well when we got up there, some girl who just came back from her exchange from Washington was our translator. I was so excited to introduce myself in Thai, then some girl who I think still has horrible English, because she couldn’t translate what we were saying, I even had to tell her that she said it wrong a few times.
We had to answer what brings us to Thailand. Why did we want to do an exchange? What we do plan to gain from this experience. What will we give to the Thai Students? How do we like it so far?
It was fun, and everyone was laughing and enjoying themselves.

TODAY, Wednesday 27
So much fun today. Well yesterday I took my picture for my visa, and today Fern gave them to me. I don’t like how I look, my hair looks messy, and it was hot, but everyone likes it because I look so white. Anyways today in the morning and afternoon it was pretty boring, I just had class and lunch, today I had ‘Khow Mok Kai’ Which is the chicken on yellow rice. Yeah I don’t really like it, but every Wednesday everyone rushes to the lunch room to get Khow Mok Kai.
Tomorrow I go to Fern’s house after my host mom drops me off at school, were having ‘Lad Naa’ oh yeah, I can’t wait.
Anyways on Wednesday we have nine periods instead of eight, so school finished around 4:45ish. Well it started raining really hard the last period, thunder, lighting, and FLOOD! We had to close all the windows and doors because the rain was coming in the room so much and so fast. After class we had to get home and nobody wanted to walk out in the rain to get on the songtell. Well there was a group of girls in my last class which is English who where going to The Mall and where just going to run in the rain to get a took took. I didn’t want to wait with my one friend Fah because I didn’t know when the rain would stop and she didn’t want to leave until the rain stopped.
Well I went with the new group of friends. It was so much fun running in the rain, even though I got soaking wet in 30 seconds. The rain covered my whole feet, so my school shoes and socks were soaking wet too. We fit 7 girls in one took took, which was 15 baht to take us to The Mall. CHEAP. It was fun, I never went in a took took with seven people, but I always wanted to, so finally it happened and it was a blast. When I got to the mall I had to wait for my host sister to come for about one hour and my new friends had to go home, so I said good bye to them and meet up with Fah. Fah told me the M5/9, which is Brandy’s class all liked me better than Brandy. YYYYEEESSS! I was so afraid that everyone who like Brandy more than Me just because she looks like an American, but I am a little more popular than her. I know sounds selfish. Actually even Brandy’s friends asked if I could change to be in M5/9 and Brandy go to M5/10, which is my room. Anyways, I go to The Mall everyday by Songtell or maybe Took Took now. From The Mall I catch the bus 134 to Tah It. From Tah it, If I feel like it I can take bus 203 to drop me off in front of Casa Ville, or I could wait at Tah It for my host mom to come pick me up. Oh yeah, I go alone on the bus. And did you know the some of the busses like 203 are free. Yeah, the government ordered them to have some free busses for the poor people so they can ride, its not that big though, I only save 8 baht.
And right now there is a really Really big Government Crisis. Its like a riot to change the government nearby Sanumlung, which is in Bangkok. I don’t know exactly, but something like the government took control of the news stations, government of finance, and some other stuff, but its pretty big riot. I don’t know how long it will last either.
Well that’s about it for now. Enjoy.

Saturday August 31, 2008 at 11:00p.m.
Well this weekend has been an AMAZING weekend. I don’t know where to begin, so lefts start from Friday Morning.
As always, I got to school late (but tomorrow I want to try to make my host mother leave early so I can try to be on time.) Anyways, so the ‘new’ girl Brandy from Canada didn’t go to school that day. I asked one of her friends where she was and they told me she was at a camp. I remembered that Brandy’s host mom asked me if I wanted to go to it but my host mother told her host mom no because my rotary club Bunglumpoo had an event for me over the weekend. Anothai, my third host mom called and said that I didn’t have to attend my rotary club weekend event because they were going to be doing meditation all weekend and they thought that since I am the only one in Bunglumpoo club I would get bored, so I told me host mother to call Brandy’s mom and get information about her Rotary club weekend and see if I could still go.
About a half hour later my host mother came to my school and I left during second period. We drove home and I packed all my stuff for the weekend in 5 minutes, the fastest every! We left to go to Dhurakij Pundit University, which is on Prachachuen Rd in Laksi, Bangkok. Or check there website www.dpu.ac.th DPU is a university about Law mainly, and this weekend for high school students from schools around the area to go and experience the university as well as get some insight about the law major at the university. It started at 7o’clock a.m., I got there at 11:30a.m. When I got there I was taken to a very nice auditorium room, red and huge, with a big stage and nice chairs; you almost feel as if you’re in a movie theater. One of the high ranked teachers talked about the founder of DPU and then showed us a movie clip about his life. After the movie we went to a museum which had the bed the founder slept in when he was a kid, the judge uniform her wore, the Thai puppets that are mostly played in the north that he played with, and a wax that was made to look like him. It was a nice museum, and it was in the university, across the hall.
Then we got on 2 tour busses with that were the universities (if you ask me this university has money, it’s a privet uni) and we headed to the office of Attorney General. Did you know that the father of Thai State Attorneys is Rama 1? Did you know that his name was Ratchaburi Direkrit? Did you know that he was once Yok-Kra-Bat, or former state attorney of Rachaburi Province? I don’t think you did, but know you know.
We then headed back to DPU and had dinner played some games and just enjoyed the night. Before we went to sleep the college students who were helping with the event set up like a... I don’t know how to explain it but like they gave us luck and each staff member put a string on us, but in the Buddhist religion its good luck. All the HS students got over 50 of them because they are so many stuff members helping. It was really nice. Then we went to pray, and then went to sleep for the night.
Saturday morning everyone woke up early to go out to exercise at 7. I wanted to join them but the female exchange students didn’t want to get up to go exercise for half an hour out in the ‘burning hot weather.’ So I had to stay with them. I was kind of mad because they are so ungrateful. While I was missing the exercise outside which EVERYONE else was doing, these two exchange students were straighten their hair, and sleeping, and complaining; annoying if you ask me. Then we went to go eat breakfast with everyone else, cow-tom kai, or chicken rice soup. In the morning after breakfast two of the highest and highly respected teachers came to talk to us about law major, the college etc... Then we had an activity in the Library. Your group was giving a question and you had to answer it. My groups question was about Dum disappear in the tsunami in phuket and was never head of again, so Dum’s brother Deang two years later went to the court to inherit all his things and money. The court granted it and Deang got 300million baht. 2 years later Dum appears and demands all his money back, but Deang only has 30million baht left. So is Deang supposed to give all of Dums money that he spent back to him?
Left me tell you, I didn’t know how good I am in the law field. I knew the answer so in detail that I was even shocked. I didn’t even need a book, but I guessed what I thought was right. After I told p’chit, who was my groups staff member what I thought the answer would be he told me to get a book to double check.
I don’t know how I did it but I answered it perfectly without using a book! I was so happy.
Deang only is required to give Dum the reaming money back because Deang can go to the court to get all of Dums will after one year of ‘being dead’ or disappearing in this case since Dum comes back. The only way for Deang to get all of Dums will if for 2 witnesses that’s including Deang to be present. If Deang wants to he can repay for the nonexistent money, which means all the money he spent while Dum was thought to be dead.
I am so good. I also found out that it’s the same for Thai Law too because they made me check it in Thai law too since I know the answer for American law so fast. All the other exchange students didn’t even know anything, I answered it all by my self, so I was very happy in myself and I got the 3rd highest score for my group out of 10 groups. I actually enjoy that law field a lot, and apparently I seem to know a lot. It’s quite interesting as well.
After that, there were activities with our group. The first station for my group was to see which group, yours or the others, could make a couchin so the egg won’t break in 2 minutes either out of straw or newspaper; next was how high you can make a tower to hold a ping pong ball using 2 sheets of poster paper, but you have to use a special strategies depending what ping pong you choose. Next was law terms, from Thai to English, then members in your group blow us a balloon and get the letter inside the balloon and spell the new English terms, but you have to be fast and beat the other team. Last was like an obstacle course where you just did for fun, you throw a water balloon to then tie yourself us with someone on your team and like go across some ‘jungle’ sort of thing, then help hold up someone on your team to reach the top of a bamboo pole and with an half watermelon on his head with a nail on the top of the watermelon break the four balloons the go all the way to the top of the bamboo pole, it was very fun.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008 @10:30
…continued story
We went to rest for a while, and had lunch. After lunch we went into the college court room. I think this was one of the funniest, yet most boring of them all. We fit 99 Thai students and 6 exchange students and about 40 college staff members in this small court room, really small. The college staff had mad like a document to start a case going, it was really funny; if you could see it you would pee your pants.
Okay, I’ll tell you, well there is this one guy who was stalking this one man, I think they had worked together or something. So one day the guy finally kidnapped the man. The guy to the man to his house, and in the apartment room there were two more males who were friends with the guy, and they were completely drunk. Well then the guys turn out to be gay and same with the other two males because they raped the man, but it was so funny. Not funny how I wrote it, but really it was hilarious. And it was in Thai, so all the exchange students couldn’t understand it, which made it even more hilarious. After the movie then we had two real judges open a court case. We never really had the case, it would be too long, it was only just 15 minutes of the case, then one of the judges talked about law, and the law major. Really, law is really interesting. Moh-Ki-Yah, do you know that? It means violable.
After that, all the students went back to learn a song to sing to the college staff, even I learned it, once again, the exchange students couldn’t sing it. I am really ahead of all of them, I could even do a test about law that was written all in Thai; there were 30 questions, out of the 20 I got to get up to 20, and of the 20 I got 14 correct, on my own, in Thai, all Thai writing, no English. I felt really good.
Then we just rested.
Around 10 o’clock things started getting back in business. Heres the wrap up, we song the song for the college staff, played this really funny game, I got to hang out with p’chit who is the most awsomest person ever and the guy I hung out with the most the whole weekend. Along with his brother, and one of his friends her name is p’ae [aa] We had a talent show, and I created group falang because the exchange students didn’t like hanging out with there groups. I like it, I was group 5 and I made many friends with group 5, all Thai, all fun. So group falang along with p’chit, p’chit brother, p’ae, and p’trainer danced to the solja boy song for the talent show. I also did the talent show with group 5, which is my original group, we did a fashion show, and it was fun! There was also a singing/dancing contest, which one person from each school tried to win for there school, Benjama got 3rd place. And then the last thing before going to sleep was we said thank you to all the college staff, and gave a cake to them. I love them all, they are all so nice and I like DPU so much, and seriously I like the law major, but I don’t know.
Even started going to sleep around 1 o’clock because that’s when everything was over with. But instead of going to sleep, all the Thai students, and me stayed up and listened to ghost stories, sung songs, walked around campus, played soccer, or just hang out. I didn’t go to sleep until 3 o’clock. And the next morning I was the only awake up 7am, because somehow I had a feeling someone was going to call me, and turned out my dad called me around 7. Nobody woke up until 7:30ish, except the exchange students, 8:30… and that’s late, and was pretty rude.
We had breakfast, and then got our certificates. We then announced who won the games, which were the four activities we did yesterday, the lowest score group, and the highest. MY GROUP WAS THE HIGHEST SCORE and I got a DPU t-shirt. I took a lot of pictures, and we played a game for the last time.
After that we had our last meal, som-tum Thai, or som-tum poo with kai toard (fried chicken) and like a kai yum (like a Thai spicy chicken salad, only no salad.) It was really good, only the som-tum wasn’t spicy at all!
Then it was time to say good bye, my host family had arrived and p’chit brother took me to the car, when I sad goodbye to him I realized how much fun this whole weekend was, that when I got into the car and was driving away I started crying. My host family asked why I was crying and I just said I had a head-ache, but really I was sad that I was going back home because it was so much fun, and then I became homesick. Because every time I do something like this for the weekend, then I go home but want to, because I will see my mom and family, but for the first time I didn’t want to go home. So I became home sick. I knew it would happen sometime.
Anyways, it was a great weekend.
When I got home I had to watch the Thai parliament meeting because right now Thailand is having a crisis with the government, that there have been riots and violence. I had to watch it until 11p.m, and then I just went to sleep. Around 11:30 I heard some bombs go off, about 10 of them.
The next morning (Monday) my host mom told me that during the meeting the prime minister said he refused to resign and about 15 minutes later the riot group went and bombed the police station, so that was the bombs I heard last night.
When I got dropped off at school, something my host mom was telling me about on the way to school just mad me cry when I was at school. I cried so much that I scared my cousin, so she called her mom, and her mom called my mom and my mom called me to see what was wrong. I was just homesick from everything that had been happening. She told me to not worry, and have a good time.
Also today my second host mom, Dr Opiwan called me from her temple in Chang Mai. My Chinese teacher is friends with Opiwan, and today (Tuesday) I didn’t go to school, so my Chinese teacher called Opiwan and told her that yesterday I went to school crying and today I didn’t show up. I just told Opiwan that everything was fine and that I am having a good time and enjoying myself, but I just wasn’t feeling good and I was just a little sick. She is really nice from what I can tell because it is so hard to call where she is at, but she went out to go call me because she was thinking about me and wanted to make sure I was okay. Also, she wanted me to go to Chaing Mai, because she meet two teen age girls who will show me around the town with her; and she even has a way for me to get there, with her family. So Opiwan is really kind and generous to me, even thought she isn’t my host family yet, and she had a lot of things going on with her right now. Well, that’s pretty much even thing that’s been happening so far, hopefully tomorrow I will go to school. And today I talked with my dad, because tomorrow morning, but tonight for them, Dr Opiwan wants to call my parents in America, and talk with them. Really, she is so kind and thoughtful.
So I gave my dad an update on how I am and even thing that’s happened so far and tell he about Opiwan calling them. I also got to speak with my Uncle Mike, which was pretty nice.
So everything is getting better, and I am enjoying myself again. I really miss DPU/ rotary weekend. I plan on hanging out with p’chit and all of them some time.
Well it late, and tomorrow I have to leave at 6:30 to go to school because my host dad is taking me because my host mom is in Chaing Mai for the night to see her brother. So goodnight, talk to you later.

Wednesday September 3, 2008 @ 10:18p.m.
Today was one of the most crazy, funniest, coolest, bazaar day; all-in-one.
Well first of all my host mom went to Chaing Mai yesterday afternoon for the night with her mom to see her brother in Chaing Mai; just a visit. So because she was gone my host dad had to take me to school.
Well one he goes to work every morning, so we had to leave around 6:45a.m instead of 7:20 for the first time, and guess what… for the first time I was on time. Not late, and tell you the truth, I liked it. Friday I plan on going on time to school too.
Well I think for being on time I get rewarded; here they are.
I finally know where my class, which is M5/10 for me. That means I am in M5, which is the grade and classroom number 10. I know where they sit, so if I ever go on time again I’ll be able to sit with them.
Well let me just get to the good part.
Ever Wednesday for the last period I get to choose which friend I want to go to class with, because I don’t have a class that period but I still should go to class. So since I went to Fah for 2 weeks already to English, and I am so so so tired of English, I decided that I would go to flower class with one of my friends which I don’t remember her name. So I went to flower class with her and I made a flower bouquet. I put it on a plate, and I don’t know what the green thing that holds the flowers, I used that and stuck flowers in it. It was so beautiful when it was finished. I was covered with red flowers all over, and little baby breath flowers in between some of the red ones, along with fern on the bottom as a decoration.
After flower class some boy in M5 came up to me and gave me a flower and said “pom chawb...” which means I like you, and gave me the flower and walked away. I don’t know who he was, but it was pretty crazy.
Then today when I went home the security guard at my living area that I live in smiled and waved to me today, but there not supposed to wave to anyone, just salute and say ‘krub’ whenever someone passes them, so that was pretty crazy too.
So I guess a lot happens when you’re on time to school.

Friday September 12, 2008 @ 11:24p.m.
Well it’s been a while since I wrote to everyone that I don’t even remember what I have done.
Well let’s talk about today, and maybe things will pop up in my head… Today I went with my second host family’s family to see like a ‘gay guys who changed to be girls dance and do a show for you’ kind of thing. It was pretty interesting. Well all the ‘guys’ really do look like full out girls, some look even better then natural born women.

Wednesday September 17, 2008 @ 9:25p.m.
The Show was called ‘Calypso’ and mostly it was just dancing and singing to old fashion songs, might I add, lip-synching. Its for the tourist mostly from Europe and Japan, so it was pretty weird that only me and my second host families nephew were the only like kids in there, on top of that I was the only one in a school uniform, so that felt weird to be. Its more of a ‘getting old’ type of show, not for the younger generation, though the show was pretty funny.
Well last weekend I was supposed to go to Khon Kean, I don’t exactly know what is there, but from what my host family was making it sound like I was a mountainous place. We couldn’t go though because there was a lot of heavy rain and the four entrances to get to Khon Kean from what my host family was telling me were closed and nobody was allowed to enter; so yet again it was another resting weekend. I really want to do things because since I’ve been here I have only seen JJ Market, and just recently a Chinese temple (I’ll tell you more when it gets to that point).
Before that last week exactly, on the Wednesday the 10th I went to do a Chinese competition for the local Nonthaburi High School students. On Monday the 8th my Chinese teacher who is actually friends with my second host mother asked me if I wanted to be a part of the Chinese Competition and sing for our school. Well, even though I said yes, I have never in my life learned Chinese, sung Chinese, or any thing of that matter, and had 2 days get learn and memories a song. The Next day my Chinese teacher gave me the soundtrack to the song so I could learn it in ONE NIGHT! I had one day to learn a Chinese song and all the pronunciations and then memorize it and perform it in a singing competition for my school! YIKES! It’s not only a singing competiton there is Chinese Drawing, Speaking, Reading and Writing. My school, Benjamarachanusorn sent two for each event.
On Wednesday I went to school and loaded the Van, there is no school bus in Thailand, and drove to the school where the event was being held at. Sorry I don’t remember the school name, it is long. We got in and we each handed a box of deserts from the local bakery near by. When all the schools arrived the event began. Each section was divided into a different room, except for Drawing and Singing was in the same room. A girl from my class and me went to go sign ourselves in and get our place for when we had to sing. While all the other performers were singing I had my phone and was practicing the song that I had to do until it was my turn. I was so nervous because I had to represent my school which I haven’t even attended for a whole year and sing a song for them! The girl from my class went before me and sung her song. She was really good, or ‘prawa’ which means like ‘on point’ ‘smooth for the ears’
When she was done I went up. Some of my friends who were already finished with there section came in to listen to me and the other girl and record us performing, along with my Chinese Teacher.
I gave my CD of the song to the DJ and went to the center of the stage and took hold of the mic. When the song came on, I went blank, really. I did my best and tried to remember as much as I could, but I thought I did horrible. If I went on American Idol Simon would took his pen and said “This is a pencil, not a wand” because I remembered about 60% of the song. After the rest of the singers from the other schools preformed it was time for lunch. We had ‘puk-a-pow’ rice, soup, and the schools water bottle. Puk a pow is chicken basil, and one of my favorite foods, but of course its not as good if its school lunch.
When everyone was done eating we went back to the awards room to announce the winners for each section. I didn’t even have any hopes of winning, so it didn’t bother me if I did or didn’t win.
For our school We got 1st place in Drawing. 2nd and 3rd in Writing. 2nd and 3rd in Speaking, and 2nd and 3rd in Singing. Well 2nd place in singing went to the girl in my class, and 3rd place, which totally shocked me and I didn’t even see coming was me, I got 3rd place in the singing competition. I was happy, but I didn’t thing I should have got it, but hey, I guess I was good to the judges who came from China just to attend this event.
And for my school, we did really well, only two students didn’t get a place, but I didn’t know how good Benjama does in this competiton, and it was very fun too. After it was over, the Van was going to take up back to the school, but instead Fah, one of my friends from school asked if he could drop her off at home. She asked me and some of our friends if we wanted to go to her house and hang out. So instead of going back to school, I and a few of my friends went to Fah’s house. When we got there, Fah was surprised to see her brother, who skipped school and came home with some of his friends too, so there were about 6 friends altogether at Fah’s house. We watched T.V. and waited for her mom to get home so I could meet her. About four hours later her mom came home and gave me and my friends some desert from the well know desert shop near by, and let me tell you, it was so so good. After eating almost all of the ‘ka-nom’ as it is called in Thai, Me and my friends went back to the bus stop to catch the bus to go home. Well, I got on the bus, and it was a ‘free bus’ so the ticket seller didn’t ask where I was going. About five minutes later I noticed that I was going the opposite was back to school instead of going back home. Well my cousin and friend made me check the bus on the wrong side. So I had to get off the bus, cross the bridge and catch the bus on the opposite side, and pay this time. It was fun, but I don’t want to do that again, and it was raining too.

Saturday September 20, 2008 @ 4:15p.m.
Well, all of Thailand’s High Schools just finished Exam Week. I took the exams too, actually I am the first Rotary Student to take exams in Thailand, and apparently all the other ES just skip it and have a 7 week vacation for them. Yep, you heard right, 7 weeks; after exam week is over all the schools are closed for the month of October and the last two weeks of September. So, what am I going to do with me time?
Well on the 29th of September I am going with RYE to Ayutthaya for a day trip to visit all the monuments and temples. Ayutthaya was the former capital of Thailand, and one of the most, if not the most oldest city in Thailand. I have never been there before, so I am really excited to go there. October 1st is a big day for me, I am moving in with my second host family, Dr. Opiwan, and hopefully everything will go smoothly because she will just be adjusting herself as well into her home since she hasn’t been living there for a month. I don’t want to get in detail of why, but she has been in the Temple for a month doing meditation and such.
From the 3rd to 10th of October I am going to Chonburi to do Meditation Camp with RYE. Were not just going to do Meditation for the long, well go look at the city and sightsee, but it’s mostly to teach us about meditation and how to do it. This Meditation camp is sponsored by my host club, Rotary Bunglumpoo.
From the 13th to 17th I will go to Dhonburi and learn to do Thai Massage, and I am really excited to learn this because then when I go back home I can charge everyone for me to give them a Massage, HAHA, just kidding. J
And then sometime during the 19th to 29th I will go to Sakon Nakon while my second host mother goes to India. I will be staying in the Temple and live with the Nuns and Monks there. From what my second host is telling me, it’s very quite and I will learn to do meditation… great, we have to be quite, let’s see how long Kimlee can shut her mouth?!
Well on Monday, even though school is closed for ‘bit term’ which ‘bit’ in Thai is ‘Closed’ so even though school will be on Closed Term on Monday I will wear my school uniform and go to school. My 12th grade science class is going to Siam Paragon, a really expensive and popular shopping mall to go to Ocean World, one of the best aquariums as I am told.
Well, that’s the update so far. So if anything happens I’ll be sure to check in.

Host Family-Nonthaburi,Thailand

2008-07-26T18:57:00.000-07:00

So if the title didn't give it all away yet, I'll tell you the BIG news !

I got my host family, and I am happy. I am going to Nonthaburi, Thailand. I have a host mom, older sister, and younger brother; but he is going to Germany for the year. Anyways. Nonthaburi is really close to Bangkok, which I am so happy about. It's smack dab in the middle. I don't have a school yet, I sent in my transcripts a few days ago to my host family's house so they can take it to the school so I can get accepted! I can't wait.

My host sister is named Ploy. She just graduated high school a few days ago. And in about 8 days she will start college. Lucky me, she has perfect English, yet she has never been on an exchange before. She goes to an international school, which means she is in one of the top [her school is the top in Thailand] schools in Thailand, and that means the best English program in the country. I couldn't belive it when she sent me the e-mail, I was flabergasted that she never went on an exchange before. She didn't tell me my host mothers name, I guess I would call her 'ma' which is mom in thai when i get there. I don't think there is a dad involed, because she never talked about one and she didn't mention living with her dad when she sent me the first e-mail. Its all good.
Its funny, the thai exchange student my family is hosting right now living in nonthaburi, and he told me that I litterly live 10 minutes away from him ! I am happy about that, idk about him though. I won't go to his school though, I am going to Benjama, he goes to Suwngularb. I am not accepted to Benjama yet, but hopfully thats the school I go to because I kindof want to go there now !

I am so excited I want my host family to send me pictures, show me what they look like. I don't want to call them because I am too afraid. I talk to my host sister on MSN, I think that is good enough for right now. I can't wait to go. One month three weeks.

Fairwell sleepover for inbounds.24/05/08

2008-05-26T18:32:00.000-07:00

Even though I am not an inbound, person who came to their host country, all the outbounds were invited to go to the fairwell sleepover saturday and sunday morning. It was so much fun, you have no idea. We arrived around 4p.m to take our bags and sleeping bag our prospective cabins; boys in one, girls in the other. After that we all went into the great hall, or the dining area to eat a little snack, nothing big just chips, and get updates on how everyone was doing. I still don't know my district, neather the less who my host family is.
They we went to go play soccer. It was fun, big field right next to the horses. I think we played for two hours before we went back in to have dinner. We had pizza and pop, made from the heart of the local pizza shop five minuts down the road =]
We then watched a slide show for the inbounds of their wonderful year. It was about one hour long of so many pictures. When that was over, it was about 9 or 10pm so we made a campfire. There was someone there with an incredible telescope for us to see the stars and planets; it was amazing!

After that we went back in to play sheraids. It was fun. it lasted about hour and a half. it was so entertaining. and the most randomest things you could think of. The tie breaking guesses were 'A Pengin in an swiming suit playing golf' and 'Jay, [the inbound chairman] in a garabe can with a banana peel on his head'. Crazy huh?

After the sheraids game, some of us went back to the fire and some went to sleep. Execpt the Brasil boys, and about every other boy along with one girl who is going to agentina and I stayed in the DINING area to play soccer once again. Now the dinning area has windows, is inside and doesn't have a very high ceiling, so imagine what is about to happen soon. We played until 4 in the morning. the only reason we stopped was because one of the boys BROKE! the window by kicking the ball to hard, but other than that it was fun!
Some of us stayed up all night. Me, Hope, Shannon, Allison, Anders, Suhyun, but Jay had gone to sleep for a little bit and wake up around 5. We talked, looked at the incoming exchange students for next year, and enjoyed ourself while waiting for everyone else to wake up.
When it was time for breakfast some woke up and we had donuts, milk or orange juice; and some people didn't wake up at all to have any. We packed our stuff then went to the playground to take pictures and then slowly said our good byes as people left.
Overall this was a fun weekend and I love all the inbounds and I can't wait to be in Thailand and have just as much fun as they did coming here to America.

Niagra Falls Trip. 03/05/08

2008-05-04T18:07:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to Niagra Falls with all the Northeast Ohio Inbound and Outbound students. IT WAS SO MUCH FUN! We left at 9a.m. When we got there we had a picnic and walked around the falls.
In the beginging I met two other Outbounds. One going to Finland and the other to Argentina. I enjoy them so much. I had a blast with them. We are like best buds now. I talked to the other Inbounds which was really cool. And they gave us a lot of advice, and we all just talked about normal stuff. FUN!
We had hamburgers at the park in Niagra Falls, New York. While it was raining the whole time. It never Stopped! Then we just walked around and explored the falls. Then our YEO, I guess, took us walking, to the place we just went to!

Which is the picture I took on the right. That is also the Canada side. And the guy from Hungary just happend to get in. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Then we all walked for like 20 min to go ride the Maid of the Mist, as if we weren't soaked enough already. lol. We just wanted the poncho! [left picture]

After that we headed for home. Most of us went to sleep on the way back. And someone took pictures of the sleepers! lol. We stopped at Erie, Pa to grab a bite to eat at Quaker Stake and Lube. It was once again, fun. The picture on the right is at Quaker Stake and Lube. >>>>
It was supposed to be about an hour more drive until we would get back home. It started getting darker, so to pass time we had like a flash war on the bus; just take your camera out and start taking pictures with your flash!. Everyone had their cameras out and was seeing whos flash was better!

About 20 min after we stopped that it felt like we were going 20 mph on the freeway; actually it ended up we were going 20 mph on the freeway! We had to exit, stop the bus at the side of the exit ramp and everyone had to get out and stand at the side of the road because the bus was catching on fire! The fire truck and police came. Some students called their parents and host parents to pick them up because we were only 10 min away by then. It was still some how FUN! I got a ride with Jay and 3 other Inbounds back to the high school. We were the last ones there. We has to cram 4 people in the back seat of a Dodge Neon, while Jay and his friend got to sit in the front all nice and cozy. We were supposed to be back at 8:30p.m., but we ended up getting back at 10p.m.
I had so much fun. I loved talking to all the people. And I can't wait for the next event! omg I love RYE and I love the Northeast Ohio Kids!

Presentation gone bad?

2008-04-15T18:04:00.000-07:00

Last week I was asked to visit my local Rotary club, or the club that sponsored me to go on my exchange, and give a presentation about how my 'exchange experience' is so far.
Okay, that didn't seem so bad to me. Yesterday in school I was called down to the office to get my exit pass for tomorrow, which the president of my local Rotary club called in for, so I guess it was really going to happen.
So when I got home I wrote up a little presentation on word, it was four paragraphs long, and basically I explained what I did to get to the point that I am in now. I talked about how I began my whole exchange experience, and the interviews that I had to go through, and how I am preparing myself right now before I leave. It was about 5-7 minutes long, so to me it wasn't that long because I am supposed to give like a ten minute presentation. I was presenting it to more older people so, I didn't want to get them too bored.
But anyways, so they introduced me, and I went up and read my presentation. I thought I did very good. I made them laugh at some of the things I said, and made some of them smile, so I thought I hit the jackpot. Well actually I did, to everyone but one gentalmen. He said, it was too long, I should have done note cards instead of just read off my paper. blah blah blah. Acutally, he seemed to have something to say to everyone, not just me. So other then that, everyone else loved it. They came up to me and wished me good luck, told me have a good time. I told my club that before I leave I would do one more presentation, and during my exchange I would give them updates to how I am doing in Thailand. If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't even have the chance to do this, so I am really greatful of them.
Over all. Today was a good day. I need to do some college searching, do more SAT studying. and get ready to go on my exchange. I need a camera. and a hard shell for my i-pod, and maybe a charger to charge it instead of putting it in the computer all the time, and am I even going to take a labtop?? hmm.

My first [officical] blog.

2008-04-13T17:56:00.000-07:00

Yeah. I know this isn’t really the Departure, or day before. I don’t plan on making to many pre-dee posts, but pre-dee is just as important as actually exchanging. [p.s.-this is my official blog site.]

So I just recently went to an outbound meeting for Rotary. I got my shirt, duffel bag with there logo on it, American flag, and I am getting pins with my district '6630' on them. I am pretty excited about it. I found out approximately when I leave too, the last week in July or the first of August. I am so excited, and I come back around the middle of July. So its really a year of exchanging. Soon I get my as they called it, blue packet, which is really my packet to get my visa which will let me get my plane ticket and my host guarantee! The travel agent who is affiliated with our district said the a Visa to Thailand on a scale of 1-10 is about a 2. It's really easy to get a Visa, thats good. Did you know for France its about a 9! Ouch!

Well thanks for coming and checking it out. Hopefully when I am in Thailand I can come one and update. I won't be one EVERYDAY but maybe every two week or once a month. Well see. I want to explor first!
I have a long time before I go! Time to get preparing.