Field Trip and English Camp

This has been quite a busy weekend. Yesterday a group of us went to visit the Than Tim Waterfall, a modern temple and a street market somewhere 120 km west of Nong Khai. The waterfall was amazing. We got to go swimming and the water was surprisingly refreshing. One of the most interesting things about swimming in rural Thailand is that people swim fully clothed. I mean fully clothed as in Jean shorts and t shirts or button down shirts. I'm surprised more people don't drown. After the waterfall, we wandered to a busy street market. Charcoal grills are very popular to prepare food with. They grill chicken, stuffed talapia, eggs, hot dogs, and sausages. It's all very good.














The monastery was very interesting. It was created to house the bones of the founders of the meditation center. The monks were buried with great Honor's including a parade umbrella. Only monks of the highest ranks, princes and official consorts are allowed to carry umbrella in the king's royal procession. The monastery is right on the Mekong River,about 500 meters from Laos. It's amazing looking across the river into another country.

English camp was a very interesting experience today. First of all, both of the words camp and English are used very loosely. It was more like a school day only for selected gifted English students. I worked on the ecology unit. The teacher who lead the unit was excellent. She was very engaging and her English was very good. We talked about ways to save the planet and how each pardon can do one or two little things and really make a difference. For the most part, the students were engaged and responsive. However it was very difficult because many of them had no idea what we were saying when we were speaking in English, which led to the teacher if the unit translating everything g into Thai and therefore defeating the point of English camp.

For the afternoon session, we listened to groups present on the various countries of ASEAN. Some groups danced, some did role plays, and some spoke in English. The kids seemed to enjoy themselves. Unfortunately one of the things I walked away with from the camp was just the lack of English skills that these students have. It's sad because many of the students are very smart and hardworking; the system in place is just not effective and many students after many years of "learning " English have just given up. It definitely makes me grateful for the education system we have in the States. While it isn't perfect, it does give most students a reasonable chance of success.


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