Where to next?

With my application done and sent away, I suddenly feel like I have a massive amount of time on my hands. I’m not sure if this is just emphasised by the fact that I’m not in work today (Monday) due to illness (and now, today being Tuesday), but other than being ill, it feels good. Thank you to all who helped tweak it and check it, it’s very much appreciated.

I was going to write about teaching the younger groups today, but we have had two blogs already on teaching and if I’m going to be perfectly honest, the teaching methods for these last two groups don’t really change that much over the time in Thailand. For the most part it is teaching new sets of words or very simple sentences. So I shall talk about teaching them another day.

Instead I find myself with an urge to write about Ayutthaya, the second place we visited. As I said in my Kanchanaburi post, I hadn’t really done my research. I was rushed and made a sudden decision and the things on my mind were mostly sorting out the flights, get a mosquito net and all the other things I needed to sort out in the two or three weeks between confirming I was going to going. And on top of that, I was working full time. And on top of that still, what the hell am I going to teach? How am I going to teach it? Can I do this? I’m very scared! So ‘nice places to visit in Thailand’ was not top on my priorities.

But during the week I did some research. I looked at more local places and wanted to visit somewhere more cultural. Kanchanaburi was an adventure break, but I didn’t manage to see all the museums and other such sites that I wanted too. So this time around my concentration was on another place. Vanessa didn’t seem to mind too much where we went either, she was going to be visiting the places she really wanted to go and see after her time at the school was over.

So after a few days on the internet and reading my various guidebooks I settled on Ayutthaya. This is a city with rich cultural histories. Founded nearly a thousand years ago it was the old capital of the Siam. It was destroyed about two hundred and fifty years ago by the Burmese army. The old part of the city is surrounded by a large moat that is fed by a river. Here are where all the old ruins are.

Sounded good. Now, finding a place to stay. When we went to Kanchanaburi (and I just realised I didn't tell this story in that blog) we just looked through the guide book, picked a place, and literally on the bus there called and said, do you have rooms tonight? And that worked out. This time we decided to book a little more in advance. I say in advance, first of all, this is just a week after Kanchanaburi. Really not even that... we got back Sunday night and would be leaving Friday afternoon. And we didn't decide on Ayutthaya until Wednesday. There were also other factors going on this weekend, Sunday was the kings birthday. So it was going to be a long weekend with no school on Monday. But we had to be back by Sunday for a festival thing. So, since not only would the tourists be out, but the Thai's would be out. Might be an idea to book a place.

Vanessa wanted to stay somewhere decent. A hotel, with hot water and soft beds and air con. After speaking with someone she met through the teachers, we got a discount on a... four or five star hotel. I was uneasy with the price. But she's leaving next week, anywhere I stay after this will be cheap and I have hardly spent any money yet. It's still less than twenty quid a night. So we booked it.

Friday and we set off, a minivan on that totally suicidal "bus stop", same as before. But this time, we learn why these minivans can be more uncomfrotable than the buses. Just because there are nine seats, doesn't mean it will just fit nine people. More than double the numbers, easily. Firstly, two people per seat. Secondly, no where to put large bags... or sacks of rice other than on you. Then once you literally can't fit anyone else on the seats there is the floor. And the floor has various steps to sit on. You can stand in the doorway as well. So there is plenty of space. Oh. Em. Gee. O.M.G. Ohhhhh myyyyyy god! It's not comfortable. It's a squeeze. Fun times. but they drop us opposite the hotel and this two hour journey has cost less than two quid. Mint.

Hotel ain't half posh. I don't belong here. I like my room. Two beds (on my own here, not sharing). Which one is bette... oh my god this one. It's so soft. I literally melt into it. I feel like Charlie Sheens face when he's on Charlie Sheen (that's new... I've added that). We actually arrived here early, Friday, because of the kings birthday, was not a teaching day. So in the midday heat a swim in the outdoor, rooftop pool seems like a good idea. Except this pool is freezing because it has sun blockers all over it, not allowing it to heat up properly! So I give up after just putting my feet in (don't forget, I have cold showers every day, this water was seriously cold).

Went for a look around, a bit of a walk. The map shows a floating market somewhere. After about an hours walking we realise we either went past it, it doesn't exist or we went the wrong direction. It's starting to get dark now, lets head back and along the main road the hotel is on is a lot of eateries and I could do with a beer.

A Heiniken sign in what looks like a trendy bar. Lets go for it. Wait, no. We have our beer and ice and they do food. There is discussion on which menu to hand us. We get a Thai food menu. No idea what any of it is. The pictures are the same on every page so I don't know what I'm looking at. Do you have "Pad Thai?" "Mai" (no). "Cow Pat?" "Chai" (yes). Pointing at myself, I order a rice dish. As does Vanessa. Waiting for the meal a lot of... dodgy looking women start to arrive. Then one of them takes a picture of us sitting drinking our beer. The food arrives and I have to say, best rice I've had in Thailand, some of the best food I had out there it was amazing. More dodgy women and now dodgy men arrive. Vanessa turns to me "Do you think this is a brothel?" "Yes. Yes I do." Moments later a lady comes up with an over-friendly demineur and asks if there is anything else we would like. "No! I'm fine! Thank you though." She leaves. "I gotta say, the food here is fantastic! Maybe it's like before you go for a run and eat a load of pasta before hand." My god. Drink up. Let's leave. "Bye!!!!" We get from everybody while paying the bill.

Back at the hotel I need a real drink. Cocktails. I don't care that they are expensive (like, 5 quid a drink, so actually, yes, not just expensive for Thailand. Expensive!) I had a fair few of them, went and checked out the very disappointing and completely empty Karaoke bar that I had been looking forward to since hearing the hotel had one. Big day tomorrow. Time to melt away in my bed! Oh yes.