Alrighty, so it's been a week since I've hugged my mom goodbye. Since then, I've completed most of my TESOL certification, and will be done by TOMORROW. Things are really picking up now! With my almost being finished with TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages), I will be able to increase my pay rate, as per my aunt. She has been the biggest help in this whole process, and I don't want to let her down.
Now, as for the class, I'm (understandably) nervous, since this will be my first experience teaching a class. Although I'm nervous, I'm excited, because with this arises many new opportunities. I'm already starting to make friends here, with some of my future students, this brings me delight because I love increasing my social circle. Plus, we will teach each other; I will teach English, and will be taught Thai in return. This, in addition to networking, makes me feel a little more comfortable, because my uncertainty, though very strong, is diminishing, little by little.
On the topic of cooking, I've yet to figure out how to operate the oven. My uncle says not to use it, my aunt says that it is in working order. For all who know me, we know that I can bake up a storm when the urge overtakes me; here poses a little bit of a challenge. I have been introduced to new foods, as well as the lack of common luxuries I'm used to in the States. What does that mean? Time to get creative! The options are extremely colorful with all the fruit here. As I mentioned before, I am all about that Salak fruit. It is just so succulent and tart and sweet and mmMmm! I think that if I can figure out a good pairing with that fruit, it would make a delicious fruit tart. Or a filling to cake! The rambutan have the texture and taste a little bit like an apple... Rambutan-ginger-lime hand pies? How about Longon... hmmm very many options! Then there is dragonfruit. It took me such a long time to relate it to a fruit, there was a certain squish to it, and a crunchiness with the seeds; and then it hit me, KIWI! Similar texture, even the crunch with the seeds. And the flavor is light and sweet, I think I could have some fun experimenting with that.
Now, restaurants, I've been to quite a few, and the ones I enjoy visiting most are the Thai-cuisine restaurants. It's not that I don't appreciate the other cuisine restaurants, but if I'me visiting another country, I would like to eat the food it provides, and enjoy the culture that joins it. Soup, seafood, noodles, and fruit are all just a small portion of the wide variety there is in Thai food! I may go to a KFC or Italian restaurant at some point, but I'd like to acclimate first. The other thing, if I haven't mentioned, is the coffee. Seriously, here, it's like: coffee CoffEE! COFFEE!!!! There is practically a coffee shop every bloc here. I will never have to worry about being left to dry and frazzled without coffee. I'm not saying I have a caffeine addiction, far from it, but I do love the taste of coffee, even if it's decaf.
On to the social and personal life stuff. I've kept in touch with anybody who has informed me that they would like to keep in touch: friends and family. It is also nice to see who would like to stay in touch, in addition to having an anchor to something that brings comfort. By that, I mean, support and interest, not necessarily the location of which I've left for the time being. While I enjoy being reminded of "home," and what's going on there, life moves forward, and so shall I. Time for reminiscence is to be limited so that the time to learn is given ample opportunity. Therefore, living in the present is actually happening. That is one of the major problems of society today; so many young adults attach themselves to their electronics, and to their "glory days" or the "easy days" that they don't notice what is happening right in front of them.
And finally, a philosophical thought.
That is one thing being a theater major has taught me: to live in the present. If one were to look at this, they'd probably say, "Yeah, well I am," but think, what does that command even mean? Yes, we are living in the present, but, are we living in the present, really experiencing, smelling, seeing, hearing, feeling, tasting this moment. I think that the phrase is rich with the subtext that one must find the quality in each moment they are living, rather than reading into it and giving what they think is the appropriate response. The only appropriate response is your honest response.
Good night, and live in the present, live in YOUR presence.
-K
Monday, September 9, 2013
Sunday, September 1, 2013
9-2-2013 All Ends Welcome a New Beginning
Today is the big day!
It is the end of the vacation for my mother, so we (we being my uncle, cousin, and myself) will be going to Bangkok to drop her off at the airport and send her back on her way to the good 'ole United States. I will make sure to remember my response to sending her away, since this will be a big first for me. Where my parent is more than a day away, even flying! As the title says, all ends welcome new beginnings, and this will be the new beginning.
Now, I would like to catch everybody up on our recent adventures! (I must apologize for my absence, but in order to fully enjoy the thrills of Thailand, I needed to put down the internet and connect).
First of all, I have made some new connections, with people that I will see soon, and work with in business, but we have Nai, who has such a positive disposition, and positive energy, I really can not wait to work with her on her English, because she understands it very well, I want to give her that confidence so she will speak it more often! She, and Jai, a friend of hers, took my mother and I out on two trips, one to Art in Paradise, which is a fantastic museum of illusions and artwork in which the museum-goers can actively participate in the picture-taking with the works. Some were cool, and a lot were funny. After that, we went to Mimosa, which was a cute little park that was like a miniature town, and there weer shows, much like "drag shows" with the drag queens lip-syncing, but some of the performers were female. There were some that were serious, and some that would knock you off your feet with laughter. (I wish I took pictures of this!) The next trip, (Yesterday) we went to Suphattra Land, where we went on a bus tour, where our guide would stop occasionally, after informing us about the fruits and trees, and pick some fruit for us, and demonstrate, look at what freshly-picked fruit we had the opportunity to eat!
Salak Fruit
About midway into the tour, we made a pit stop, where we could feast on as much fruit as we pleased, and let me say, I could eat a lot!
It is the end of the vacation for my mother, so we (we being my uncle, cousin, and myself) will be going to Bangkok to drop her off at the airport and send her back on her way to the good 'ole United States. I will make sure to remember my response to sending her away, since this will be a big first for me. Where my parent is more than a day away, even flying! As the title says, all ends welcome new beginnings, and this will be the new beginning.
Now, I would like to catch everybody up on our recent adventures! (I must apologize for my absence, but in order to fully enjoy the thrills of Thailand, I needed to put down the internet and connect).
First of all, I have made some new connections, with people that I will see soon, and work with in business, but we have Nai, who has such a positive disposition, and positive energy, I really can not wait to work with her on her English, because she understands it very well, I want to give her that confidence so she will speak it more often! She, and Jai, a friend of hers, took my mother and I out on two trips, one to Art in Paradise, which is a fantastic museum of illusions and artwork in which the museum-goers can actively participate in the picture-taking with the works. Some were cool, and a lot were funny. After that, we went to Mimosa, which was a cute little park that was like a miniature town, and there weer shows, much like "drag shows" with the drag queens lip-syncing, but some of the performers were female. There were some that were serious, and some that would knock you off your feet with laughter. (I wish I took pictures of this!) The next trip, (Yesterday) we went to Suphattra Land, where we went on a bus tour, where our guide would stop occasionally, after informing us about the fruits and trees, and pick some fruit for us, and demonstrate, look at what freshly-picked fruit we had the opportunity to eat!
(Left to right) Lemongrass, starfruit, mulberries.
About midway into the tour, we made a pit stop, where we could feast on as much fruit as we pleased, and let me say, I could eat a lot!
(Left to Right) Salak, bananas, (upper) Rambutan, Longon, (Uppr right) Mangosteen
Salak, and mangosteens are by far, my favorite fruits! Both are tart and juicy.
To better understand what a mangosteen looks like, here's another picture, close up.
See how the meat of the fruit is white? that is the only part of it you eat, like watermelon or oranges, you don't bite into the skin.
We also tried durian, and, if you look at the picture below, it looks like some weapon of the Medieval era!. They also do not have the most pleasant odor (like a smelly gym locker) BUT, if you hold your nose and take a bite, the fruit is creamy and sweet, with the consistency of an avocado. Not too bad!
After the fruit pit stop, we traveled across the road to the other part of this place, saw many grapes (the Thai word for grape sounds like "on-goon"), and made yet another pit stop, and had "sam-dum," also known as papaya salad. And it was prepared before us!
Yum! Tomatoes, garlic, chili, young papaya, peanuts, ginger, lime, this was refreshing and delicious!
And then after that, Nai, my mother, and I picked up Jai, and went to the beach near Rim Pae Beach, and watched the beautiful sunset.
No joke, this is very much worth the visit!
And I've already picked up on words to know, such as food I would like to order and such, you know, the important stuff. ;)
As for now, I will have to write up another entry later, but I need to spend more time with family!
-K
Saturday, August 24, 2013
8/23/2013-8/24/2013 Days 3&4
Good day, all! So I had a post written for the 23rd, but apparently it only saved as a draft and then got trashed, but here's the breakdown. My uncle took my mother and me to my six year old cousin's school and to Pattaya (เมืองพัทยา); there, we went to Central, which seems to be a chain of malls.
8/23/2013
In Thailand, education is very important, but also is private. Each school has a tuition; the one we went to is per semester. Even with the tuition, the cost is relatively inexpensive compared to the cost of those in the United States, and the quality of education is excellent. Kevin, my cousin, is currently in kindergarten, and his school teaches kindergarten up to the twelfth grade. After that, they have a university in Bangkok. His school has about five thousand students, but when you think about it, it isn't that many students per grade unit since the ages range from about five years to eighteen years of age. Here's a picture of his school!
8/24/2013
Today, we all took a trip to Chanthaburi (จันทบุรี), to purchase Thai jewelry. Chanthaburi is considered the 'jewel capital' of Thailand, known for the excellent quality of jewels that are sold there. Also, the quality of gold is exceptional. 22 karat gold is considered the norm here, versus the 18 karat gold standard in the United States. Also, the designs of the jewelry is superb. One of the most familiar is the Thai princess design, due to it's elegance and that it looks like the crown of Thai Royalty. Here is the building we went into that had a plethora of jewelry to select from.
Before we left, we had the hearty breakfast of Joke!
On our way to Chanthaburi, we passed through Khlong (คลอง) which is a suburb. It was actually very pleasant and quiet, in the opinion of my aunt and uncle, residents of Thailand who have witnessed the population growth and urbanization of Pattaya and Rayong in the last few years. We traveled around, finding the "private" beaches, aka the beaches that the tourists haven't found yet. Let me say, these were beautiful and uncrowded.
Later, we went to lunch at a restaurant that had the interior design that was inspired by American design, because it was very modern. The food was good, but we had the problem of it coming out slow. The reason for this was that, after we had ordered, a "rally" of people associated with Nissan all came in at once, about 40+ cars. I didn't really understand what was going on, so I will have to ask someone who is more familiar with these groups and what their purposes are.
The infamous Thai soup cooker!
8/23/2013
In Thailand, education is very important, but also is private. Each school has a tuition; the one we went to is per semester. Even with the tuition, the cost is relatively inexpensive compared to the cost of those in the United States, and the quality of education is excellent. Kevin, my cousin, is currently in kindergarten, and his school teaches kindergarten up to the twelfth grade. After that, they have a university in Bangkok. His school has about five thousand students, but when you think about it, it isn't that many students per grade unit since the ages range from about five years to eighteen years of age. Here's a picture of his school!
Our trip to Pattaya was specifically for the purpose of purchasing some spices we were unable to find in Rayong, specifically chili flakes and sage. Luckily, at Central, you have everything you could possibly want. Besides clothing stores and food hubs, there were electronics, departments stores, grocery marts, spas, banks, pharmacies, and other things you didn't realize you needed until you saw them. One funny observation I made was that there were many "Farangs" (pronunciation by Thai people: fuh- long). Farangs are identified as foreigners, typically with European ancestry. Many of the Farangs in Central, and Pattaya were from Russia, as we had noticed. Apparently Pattaya has turned into a haven for Russians, where the influx of the Russian immigrant population has risen to the point that there may quite possibly be a 'Russian Mafia' about there. Many of the public access locations are owned, or have been built by Russians, which I find intriguing. What I mean is that Thailand is turning into a melting pot of foreigners. There are also a lot of Australians, and Swedish Farangs.
Back to Central, here, if you are a Farang, you won't feel too far off from home because there are many popular name brands in clothing, like Fox, Body Glove, and French Connection. I will have to warn you though, if you are expecting low prices, you may be disappointed, because they about the same across countries for these name brand stores, if not more expensive due to these being imports.
Other familiar icons: Carl's Jr. (also known as "Hardee's" in the United States)
Lunch! (peking duck, and crispy pork, my Dim Sum comfort food)
Today, we all took a trip to Chanthaburi (จันทบุรี), to purchase Thai jewelry. Chanthaburi is considered the 'jewel capital' of Thailand, known for the excellent quality of jewels that are sold there. Also, the quality of gold is exceptional. 22 karat gold is considered the norm here, versus the 18 karat gold standard in the United States. Also, the designs of the jewelry is superb. One of the most familiar is the Thai princess design, due to it's elegance and that it looks like the crown of Thai Royalty. Here is the building we went into that had a plethora of jewelry to select from.
Before we left, we had the hearty breakfast of Joke!
On our way to Chanthaburi, we passed through Khlong (คลอง) which is a suburb. It was actually very pleasant and quiet, in the opinion of my aunt and uncle, residents of Thailand who have witnessed the population growth and urbanization of Pattaya and Rayong in the last few years. We traveled around, finding the "private" beaches, aka the beaches that the tourists haven't found yet. Let me say, these were beautiful and uncrowded.
Later, we went to lunch at a restaurant that had the interior design that was inspired by American design, because it was very modern. The food was good, but we had the problem of it coming out slow. The reason for this was that, after we had ordered, a "rally" of people associated with Nissan all came in at once, about 40+ cars. I didn't really understand what was going on, so I will have to ask someone who is more familiar with these groups and what their purposes are.
The infamous Thai soup cooker!
Well, that is all for now! Tomorrow is a trip to Bangkok. The trip takes about two hours, but we will see considering how busy the traffic becomes heading into the city.
-K
Thursday, August 22, 2013
8-22-2013- Day 2
Alright guys, this is my second full day in Thailand, and so far, we are still adjusting. In fact, today consisted of my going to the local mall and purchasing some much needed products that weren't necessary for the plane ride to Thailand. I.e.- Face wash, toothpaste, floss,writing materials, a hairbrush, deodorant, the list goes on.
In reference to any skincare products, I noticed that there is a fascination with skin-whitening products. I'm sure many of you have heard of lotions, body washes, make-up products, and so on, but to think that about eighty percent of anything related to skin care advertised whitening products was definitely a surprise. The question I have about it, of course, is why there is this...let's say it, obsession. As in, what is the actual benefit of skin whitening? Are there health benefits? If so, what are they? Or are they just for the aesthetic purpose? And why is it considered aesthetically pleasing to have lighter skin? Not that I'm complaining, though there are negative aspects that come with having lighter skin. For one: higher risk of skin cancer. Due to the lower amount of melanocytes, which, if you did not know, are the reason for the coloring of one's skin, and why we tan, fairer skinned people are more prone to skin cancer. Should I also mention melanocytes perform a protective function against the sun's rays? Yep! (Of course, there can also be a negative effect for those who live further from the equator with dark skin, and depression [Vitamin D production]). But anyways, is there a difference between skin whitening, and skin bleaching? Obviously, I have way too many questions, and I will probably post some longer, better-researched piece that focuses on skin whitening and the positive/negative effects it may have, and all that fun stuff. Let's move forward!
This was probably the major highlight of my day, besides my adorable cousin pretending to cry until we ate dinner because he couldn't find me, although I was napping in his room. That was a hoot! We (The 'we' being my mother, uncle, aunt, and myself) found it humorous, but after about thirty minutes, we were a little tired of it; then we ate dinner and all was forgiven because Kevin decided he wanted to play hide-and-seek in the grocery store with me while we shopped for ingredients to make breakfast sausage. Oh! That reminds me: I will be assisting my uncle in making breakfast sausage tomorrow, it'll be a first for both of us! Get ready for a recipe, even if it's not quite Thai cuisine.
Speaking of Thai cuisine, for dinner, we ate at a restaurant, where we were served two different curries, one red, one green, an omelette with onion, mushroom, and pork, raw veggies, and chicken that reminded me a lot of Panda Express Orange Chicken, without the spice. Let me tell you, the Red curry, though delicious, was SPICY! I'm a weenie when it applies to spicy foods, and my spicy-veteran uncle and mother both informed me, as I was putting the first spoonful in my mouth that it was so. I could handle a few bites, mostly because there were such interesting ingredients, such as the green pea eggplant (which looked, well, like green peas!), pineapple, chiles, curry, lemongrass among the key ingredients. The green one had a lovely coconut taste and, I was told, it was milder than the red curry. I couldn't really tell, though, because I was still recovering from the Vengeance of the Red Curry. Let's just say, I was recovering for the next hour from the burrrrrrrrn (it burned so good!). Tears were streaming down my thoroughly ruddy face, and I was just sniffling and chuckling as I soldiered on eating.
That's about it for now, as I'm sure my ironing of all the clothing I unpacked is probably not part of your interest to read. Tomorrow will consist of a trip to Pattaya for some minor shopping (we are on the hunt for sage!) for the sausage. Perhaps we will find yet another tasty restaurant, maybe some shopping, but I will also be working on my TESOL certification, because I have been lazing around way too much on that, and I need to get that completed so that I can work with my aunt who has been so helpful. I also came in contact with a friend who is in the business of exporting merchandise, and he told me he wanted to help, so who knows? It looks like I have already a couple paths to choose for my future and, well, it is somewhat nerve-racking, yet exciting. Time to go to bed, now, and look forward to a productive day!
-K
In reference to any skincare products, I noticed that there is a fascination with skin-whitening products. I'm sure many of you have heard of lotions, body washes, make-up products, and so on, but to think that about eighty percent of anything related to skin care advertised whitening products was definitely a surprise. The question I have about it, of course, is why there is this...let's say it, obsession. As in, what is the actual benefit of skin whitening? Are there health benefits? If so, what are they? Or are they just for the aesthetic purpose? And why is it considered aesthetically pleasing to have lighter skin? Not that I'm complaining, though there are negative aspects that come with having lighter skin. For one: higher risk of skin cancer. Due to the lower amount of melanocytes, which, if you did not know, are the reason for the coloring of one's skin, and why we tan, fairer skinned people are more prone to skin cancer. Should I also mention melanocytes perform a protective function against the sun's rays? Yep! (Of course, there can also be a negative effect for those who live further from the equator with dark skin, and depression [Vitamin D production]). But anyways, is there a difference between skin whitening, and skin bleaching? Obviously, I have way too many questions, and I will probably post some longer, better-researched piece that focuses on skin whitening and the positive/negative effects it may have, and all that fun stuff. Let's move forward!
This was probably the major highlight of my day, besides my adorable cousin pretending to cry until we ate dinner because he couldn't find me, although I was napping in his room. That was a hoot! We (The 'we' being my mother, uncle, aunt, and myself) found it humorous, but after about thirty minutes, we were a little tired of it; then we ate dinner and all was forgiven because Kevin decided he wanted to play hide-and-seek in the grocery store with me while we shopped for ingredients to make breakfast sausage. Oh! That reminds me: I will be assisting my uncle in making breakfast sausage tomorrow, it'll be a first for both of us! Get ready for a recipe, even if it's not quite Thai cuisine.
Speaking of Thai cuisine, for dinner, we ate at a restaurant, where we were served two different curries, one red, one green, an omelette with onion, mushroom, and pork, raw veggies, and chicken that reminded me a lot of Panda Express Orange Chicken, without the spice. Let me tell you, the Red curry, though delicious, was SPICY! I'm a weenie when it applies to spicy foods, and my spicy-veteran uncle and mother both informed me, as I was putting the first spoonful in my mouth that it was so. I could handle a few bites, mostly because there were such interesting ingredients, such as the green pea eggplant (which looked, well, like green peas!), pineapple, chiles, curry, lemongrass among the key ingredients. The green one had a lovely coconut taste and, I was told, it was milder than the red curry. I couldn't really tell, though, because I was still recovering from the Vengeance of the Red Curry. Let's just say, I was recovering for the next hour from the burrrrrrrrn (it burned so good!). Tears were streaming down my thoroughly ruddy face, and I was just sniffling and chuckling as I soldiered on eating.
That's about it for now, as I'm sure my ironing of all the clothing I unpacked is probably not part of your interest to read. Tomorrow will consist of a trip to Pattaya for some minor shopping (we are on the hunt for sage!) for the sausage. Perhaps we will find yet another tasty restaurant, maybe some shopping, but I will also be working on my TESOL certification, because I have been lazing around way too much on that, and I need to get that completed so that I can work with my aunt who has been so helpful. I also came in contact with a friend who is in the business of exporting merchandise, and he told me he wanted to help, so who knows? It looks like I have already a couple paths to choose for my future and, well, it is somewhat nerve-racking, yet exciting. Time to go to bed, now, and look forward to a productive day!
-K
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
8-21-2012: Landed!
Ah! It is my first official day in Thailand! Time: 8:47PM (EST- 9:37AM). With the time zone difference, I am conflicted: my body is lively and awake, yet mentally, I'm EXHAUSTED. The time spent dedicated to flying, and the short hiatuses in the airports sums up to 26 hours, with about four and half to six hours of sleep out of those.
That being said, somehow I have managed to maintain energy for the past five hours, playing with my six year old cousin. I think it is due to the fact the he is one of the most adorable six year olds I have ever encountered. Even as I have been attempting to type this enry, he has been grabbing my face to direct my attention to a game involving a Tremors-like worm game he was playing. Plus, he introduced me to Fruit Ninja, (new game obsession found?) I've also been informed that he's a favorite of the girls in his class.
My lodgings are more than enough for me; this is an ideal house set up. (Pictures will be posted soon!) Two story house with beautiful bathrooms, gorgeous kitchen, four bedrooms, one office, living room, and a dining room. My current bedroom even includes a balcony that is perfect for morning/evening yoga.
As for the food, we (my mother snd I) alreaďy have feasted...twice! Breakfast was (I will have to check the spelling) Jok (sounds like "joke"), also referred to as Congee. Congee, if you're not familiar with Chinese food, is a porridge. Also, there were pieces of fried dough, much like beignets but tubular, and with sesame seeds. Lunch consisted of a fried snapper, papaya salad, Tom Yum Kung, grilled squid, and fried rice. Dinner consisted of sushi, yum!
In addition to our food trip for the day, we also ran some errands, like pharmacy shopping for my aunt. In running this errand, we went to a place called the Big C, which looks like it would be something similar to a Walmart, and it kind of is. Minus all the kiosks, coffee shop, clothing marts, and should I mention ramp-like escalators? I made a (somewhat crude) joke, mentioning that those would not be the best for people who needed assistance of wheelchairs, since there didn't appear to be anything to lock them down. Apparently, as I was explained to by my uncle, they are for the shopping carts; magnets in the escalators are activated, locking the carts on the slanted escalator so that they don't run loose. Obviously, my explanation isn't the best, but as I mentioned, I will work on taking pictures so that any readers can see some of these wonders. We also visted a plant flea mart (not really a nursery,) and saw some beautiful plans. The funny thing is that it looked like one of the shops was attempting to sell dollarweed as a desirable plant. Whoever is familiar with dollarweed may agree with me that it, most certainly, is not a desirable item. Haha!
Tomorrow, I hear that the beach is in the agenda, as well as attending the hospital my (Thai) aunt works at, and where I will hopefully be working at soon!
As for now, my body is beginning to catch up to my mind, shifting from gear four to gear one. Tomorrow will be another adventure!
-K
That being said, somehow I have managed to maintain energy for the past five hours, playing with my six year old cousin. I think it is due to the fact the he is one of the most adorable six year olds I have ever encountered. Even as I have been attempting to type this enry, he has been grabbing my face to direct my attention to a game involving a Tremors-like worm game he was playing. Plus, he introduced me to Fruit Ninja, (new game obsession found?) I've also been informed that he's a favorite of the girls in his class.
My lodgings are more than enough for me; this is an ideal house set up. (Pictures will be posted soon!) Two story house with beautiful bathrooms, gorgeous kitchen, four bedrooms, one office, living room, and a dining room. My current bedroom even includes a balcony that is perfect for morning/evening yoga.
As for the food, we (my mother snd I) alreaďy have feasted...twice! Breakfast was (I will have to check the spelling) Jok (sounds like "joke"), also referred to as Congee. Congee, if you're not familiar with Chinese food, is a porridge. Also, there were pieces of fried dough, much like beignets but tubular, and with sesame seeds. Lunch consisted of a fried snapper, papaya salad, Tom Yum Kung, grilled squid, and fried rice. Dinner consisted of sushi, yum!
In addition to our food trip for the day, we also ran some errands, like pharmacy shopping for my aunt. In running this errand, we went to a place called the Big C, which looks like it would be something similar to a Walmart, and it kind of is. Minus all the kiosks, coffee shop, clothing marts, and should I mention ramp-like escalators? I made a (somewhat crude) joke, mentioning that those would not be the best for people who needed assistance of wheelchairs, since there didn't appear to be anything to lock them down. Apparently, as I was explained to by my uncle, they are for the shopping carts; magnets in the escalators are activated, locking the carts on the slanted escalator so that they don't run loose. Obviously, my explanation isn't the best, but as I mentioned, I will work on taking pictures so that any readers can see some of these wonders. We also visted a plant flea mart (not really a nursery,) and saw some beautiful plans. The funny thing is that it looked like one of the shops was attempting to sell dollarweed as a desirable plant. Whoever is familiar with dollarweed may agree with me that it, most certainly, is not a desirable item. Haha!
Tomorrow, I hear that the beach is in the agenda, as well as attending the hospital my (Thai) aunt works at, and where I will hopefully be working at soon!
As for now, my body is beginning to catch up to my mind, shifting from gear four to gear one. Tomorrow will be another adventure!
-K
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
8-7-2013: Packing and Traveling
August 7, 2013
I can see that I'm terrible with keeping up with writing a regular blog but, to be honest, I'm okay with that. It has been a busy few weeks since my last post; regularly working 35 hours a week, trying to get on with my TESOL [which, might I add, is much more difficult to complete when it is on your own time, and online], packing to move out of my local house, and then packing up for my overseas traveling. Maybe you, as a person, have been told by your elders that you never realize how much stuff you have, or, stuff really accumulates over time. Well, it definitely is true; over the year that I lived at my most recent living space, I had gathered a lot of... stuff. Even with me organizing all of this....(let's just say it...junk) I still had more. On a positive note, I have it very cathartic, this ridding of items, whether it be for donation, or just throwing out for good. Thankfully, my donation pile was bigger...MUCH bigger.
A quick list of my donations:
Queen-sized mattress and box spring
Clothes I no longer wear or, at least, haven't worn in the year I had them
An antique-looking small mirror with a drawer
Printer
Air mattresses
Bicycle (Wal-mart brand)
Canned goods
My mother once said, "Three moves equals one good house fire," and I can see what she means... in both the getting rid of the accumulation, and...well, some relational stuff with people. Moving, while it doesn't necessarily bring out the bad side in people, it doesn't show them at their best, where it just reveals their worst characteristics. It can also bring out the best characteristics in some people. Some would say these characteristics are for that of survival. The fast survive, and the slow, and unprepared, starve or are killed by the predator. I think that best sums it up of my exprience, and what I realize are some of my better, and detrimental characteristics. Good: Prepared and quick-thinking, therefore ready to move fast. Weak: Easy to make feel guilty of my work in order to help those lacking.
Even after my move to my "liason" location before my big move, I am still making piles for donation, while also packing up for storage. Some of it can be fun, such as the excitement I receive when using a Space Saver vacuum bag (...ooooOOOOOOooooooooh!), while other aspects, such as organizing closets and garage stuff, wrapping shoes for storage, deciding which shoes I can bring, and which I must leave behind for at least a year, arranging for a financial appointment, and learning how to cut off ties with people who have no real positive influence in your life. Bummer, but you have to survive somehow.
As for updates: I have officially gotten into the "techie" era, with the new Samsung Tab 3, look it up, it's pretty nifty. I am still pretty new to it, but so far, I have Netflix, and some Google music application where you use your google account to upload music from your personal collection on your computer, then you connect to your account via your tablet, and you can stream your music library on your tablet. Seriously, that's nifty...it's like Spotify, but without the cost! In addition to that, I have also recently purchased a new computer, for business; it has lots of memory, a faster processor, made of aluminum, and is touchscreen. Of course, I will have to try to figure it out, seeing as I have had a Mac for the past 4 years. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my Mac (and it's GREAT!!), but I need a PC for business, as I mentioned before. Now I'll have a PC and a Mac, and if anybody knows a good way to reformat the Mac, PLEASE let me know! I would love to clean it up, saving some stuff, like pictures and some music, but otherwise, CLEAN IT UP, so it can run faster again. It will serve as my "for fun" computer. Also I have been working on mending clothes, like altering some pants to fit me better (Their version of a size 6 is a size 3... no thank you), as well as finishing up clothing projects!
Now, on to traveling.... In less than two weeks, I will be on a plane to Thailand, for what may be one of the biggest adventures of my lifetime, and thank goodness I have most of my packing done, because now I need some time to get excited! I still have a few more errands and tasks to complete, but good progress has been made. We will land in Bangkok after about 26 hours of flying, get picked up by my uncle, and then make our way to Rayong. There, I will get to see my cousin, who is now six, and my aunt. On the slightly down-side, we recently found out that my aunt was diagnosed with breast cancer, and she will be undergoing her second round of chemotherapy a week before we fly in. Although it is not under the best conditions, the timing is oddly fortunate since my side has been planning this trip for over a year. So, for at least the first two weeks, I will be assisting my aunt and uncle, and from there, we will start getting a move on with the Teaching medical English. My aspirations with this program is that it turns out successfully, and I will be given more opportunities for travel, not only in Thailand, but in Asia, maybe Europe.
In other preparations, I have set up my Skype account so that I can keep in touch with friends in the United States, as well as wherever some of my friends may be , but one thing I know for sure is that I can't wait to be back in Thailand and eat the food! (That means that I will try to post recipes on here, as well as any music I find, you know the deal)
For now, I must return to my somewhat duller activities that will further my skills, and assist me in my uncertain future.
K.
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
6-29-2013, It's time for a celebration!
Hola, readers! Happy summer! I know it is about the halfway point for most of the students, especially those in college, so here are my updates since I've been MIA for way too long (I know, please don't shoot me!):
- My TESOL courses are going well, definitely not something I expected once I hopped in.
- My flight to Thailand is booked
- My last day at work has been put in for the end of the month
Now, to business! This past weekend, I visited Miami and my dear friend, Spencer, who recently was accepted into Med school! Wahoo! So, what better way to congratulate her than to make her a cake from scratch? And by cake, we all know it's going to have to be something interesting, not the run-of-the-mill, everyday carrot cake, or coconut cake... See, my friend is also a fan of making delicious concoctions, and does not shoot for the stuff she can just buy at her local Publix or Winn-Dixie. No, for her, I decided to try something new, and flavorful. Ginger. It's spicy, tantalizing to the taste buds, and beneficial to one's health. Now, with that being said, how would ginger go well in some cake? Spice cake! To pair it off, by cooling it down, and complement the earthy heat of the ginger, I decided a lime cream cheese frosting would knock this cake up a few notches.
Now is that not a gorgeous cake? See those orange-ish stuff on top? That was actually a spur-of-the-moment decision made, candied ginger. And let me tell you, this addition blew my mind into space of gustational ecstasy! Also, I learned how to candy ginger, and I hope to use candying for other edible decorations!
The recipe is as follows; the flavor measurements are relative, it is really to your own personal preference of taste, my goal was to ensure this cake tasted like ginger. Also, there is a lime glaze option, which would work better for bundt and tube cakes.
Ginger Spice Cake
2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
1 tsp. Baking powder
1 tsp. Baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. Ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
Fresh Ginger, finely chopped, to taste
1/4-1/2 cup ginger ale
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine first seven ingredients in a large bowl, make sure to mix evenly.
In a separate medium-large bowl, beat the granulated sugar with the butter so that it is light and fluffy; add eggs, one at a time.
Add brown sugar, vanilla extract and buttermilk.
After the wet ingredients are throughly mixed, slowly add them to the dry ingredients in the large bowl, make sure to not have the mix clumpy. Depending on your preference of ginger flavor(we used about half a tablespoon), beat in the chopped ginger to the mix, and add the ginger ale.
*Depending on the pan, the cook times will be different, for a Bundt tube, it took 40-45 minutes, but in a 9-in diameter round pan, it may take 28-30 minutes. Use a toothpick to check: Insert toothpick into center of the cake, if it comes out clean, the cake is ready.
Lime Cream Cheese Frosting (Great for sheet cakes and layer cakes!)
Zest of Limes
12 oz Cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup Lime juice
2 1/2 cups of Confectioners sugar
Zest and juice the limes. In a large bowl, add cream cheese and powdered sugar. Beat until smooth. Add lime juice, and zest. Once thoroughly mixed, apply to cake.
Lime Glaze (Perfect for tube cakes!)
1/2 cup lime juice
1 1/4 cups Confectioners sugar
Pinch of Salt
**Lime for decoration
Place juice in a saucepan over medium-high heat; bring to a boil. Cook until reduced to 3 tablespoons (about 4 minutes). Cool slightly. Stir in powdered sugar and remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt. Drizzle over cake.
**If you can make lime shavings, this would add a cute decorative touch to the cake.
Candied Ginger
Ginger, sliced
Sugar
Slice ginger thinly, making "ginger coins"; you will want enough to cover the cake so that there is at least one coin-sized piece per serving. For any small leftover, chop it and use it as well. In a small pot of water, add ginger, and cook over medium-high heat for at least 30 minutes to make the ginger tender. Drain most of the ginger, but reserve some of the liquid. Return the ginger and reserve to the pot. Add, in weight of the ginger and reserve, sugar, and let simmer for at least 25 minutes, stirring frequently. Most of the liquid should have boiled out, and the sugar should look as if it is about to re-crystalise. Remove ginger from the heat, placing on either aluminum foil, wax or parchment paper to let the ginger cool and dry. When cool and dried, decorate the cake, evenly distributing the ginger.
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