School's Out for Da Summah!

It's hard to believe that my teaching stint at Prabhassornvidhaya has come to an end.  Though I've had my ups and downs, my time here has been unforgettable, and I am really glad that I decided to embark on this adventure.  I've met some incredible teachers, students, and parents, and have had some really amazing social and academic moments, both inside and outside of the classroom.  I've learned a lot here, and I hope I've left a long lasting impression on some of these kids.  They gave me a great send off today, complete with roses during our morning assembly, a beautiful piece of Thai art made by a student, and a really pretty framed picture collage (not to mention a tasty seafood dinner on Bang Saen beach).  Though I am sad to say goodbye to the many great people that I've met, I'll admit that I am pretty happy to be finished teaching.  I can now appreciate how teachers at home must feel in mid-June!

While I've been busy the past two weeks grading finals and writing reviews, the students have been working on graduation preparations and school closing activities.  The high school graduation actually takes place next week (I'll be gone already), but here are some photos from my last days at Prabhassorn.  La kawn Prabhassorn, joe gan mai! (Goodbye Prabhassorn, see you again!).

Saying goodbye to everyone at the morning assembly

Boy Scout and Girl Scout activity day

How'd I get talked into this one?  FYI- I won.

 

Graduation for kindergarten kids- think 'Toddlers and Tiaras'

Like many of my friends here who also finished up teaching this week, I had a fairly low key weekend last weekend, as many of us are getting ready to take off on extended travel.  I headed up to Bangkok on Saturday for some last minute shopping, and on Sunday, I finally made it to Ayutthaya, Thailand's ancient capital http://thailandforvisitors.com/central/ayuthaya/oldcity/index.html
The whole town of Ayutthaya is made up of different areas of ruins, so when I got off of the bus, I found a tuk-tuk driver and negotiated a price for him to take me around for 4 hours (my bargaining skills are decent...drivers and street vendors are less likely to rip you off if you speak some Thai).  The ruins in Ayutthaya are really cool; though I am kind of 'templed-out' at this stage of my trip, I will never get tired of exploring ruins.

I am officially ready to hit the road and see so much more of what this area of the world has to offer!  I'm excited to have more than two days at a time to travel, and hope that I can actually relax in some of these places.  I'll be beach hopping in Thailand for the next two weeks, then heading to Hong Kong on the 21st to meet up with my friends.  We'll come back to Thailand and do a few more beaches before we fly to Bali, Indonesia at the end of March.  After that...who knows?  Countries on my hit list include Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Singapore.  I'll likely be myself for the majority of this travel, which could be incredible, kind of boring/lonely, or both (time will tell).  My blog entries will likely be fewer and farther between because I won't be on any sort of schedule, but I definitely won't be dropping the ball completely.  Expect my next post to come from a place of white sand and turquoise waters!  Until next time....Sawatdee kah!