Dave at Lampee Primary School

Back in Sydney, Australia, for 2 months now, and I still think of the kids at Lampee Primary School, Anders, Nett, and all the new friends I made in Thai Mueang on an almost daily basis. Though I only spent a week in Thai Mueang with Anders and Nett, I can honestly say that it was the most fulfilling chapter of my life. It felt like I was exactly where I was meant to be – where all my experiences, skills, training, and decisions I’ve made throughout my life brought me to Thai Mueang.

Dave with the sixth graders at Lampee Primary School

In Australia, I am an educator at a university. However, it felt as though I created more value for the kids at Lumpee Primary School in one week than I did in a year of teaching and research at a university. Why? The kids at Lumpee Primary School were disadvantaged, with many having fled Burma to seek refuge in Thailand. These kids were like sponges, attentively listening to every word I uttered, and their enthusiasm was endless. When I speak of creating “value”, I refer to it as meaning, “Is what I am doing easily replaceable and, if I were to leave, would I be missed?” And I must admit, in my everyday job, what I do is indeed quite replaceable and the institution will run as a well-oiled machine – with or without me.

Classroom setting at Lampee Primary School

But compared to the connection I made with the kids at Lumpee Primary School? The connection between myself and the kids is invaluable – to them and to myself. Contrary to teaching at a tertiary level, I’ve come to learn that teaching children involves giving them your full attention, listening to them, and just showing that you care about their welfare. I’ve learnt that this is crucial in developing their sense of self-worth by showing them an adult can take them seriously. More so for the kids at Lumpee Primary School, where most come from a disadvantaged background.

Ice cream on a hot day for the students at Lampee

In terms of logistics, TM Volunteers were great! Anders and Nett were awesome hosts, always ensuring that I was comfortable and happy with my time there in Thai Mueang. The food in Thai Mueang is wonderful, and the people were so warm and friendly. I found the experience to be very nourishing on the soul, giving me a new perspective on my life and the opportunity to re-assess the values many of us take for granted in Australia. I look forward to coming back to Thai Mueang on an annual basis to teach at Lumpee Primary School.

Traditional Burmese song and dance at an ASEAN conference

My favourite memories: Nawin (one of my students in my year 3 class) bawling his eyes out when I was leaving; one of my students giving me a small present (a really pretty key-ring) after class; the kids performing traditional Burmese song and dance at an ASEAN conference.

I first volunteered with TMVolunteers in September for two weeks with two friends, Ami and Hazel. Nett and Anders were then living in Takua Pa, about an hour on the bus from Thai Mueang. In Takua Pa, it honestly seemed like we were the first foreigners the people there had ever seen! People often weren’t sure how to react when they saw us. Cars would beep at us in the street and, as the first volunteers in the school, some of the Kindergarten we were teaching almost passed out when they saw us for the first time. Teaching Kindergarten was brilliant and we tried to make it as fun as possible. We sang songs, played games, got the children to run, jump, hop, touch their toes and much more.

Kindergarteners are very active and made the lessons challenging for us because we were constantly thinking on our feet of new ways to keep them excited about learning English and stop them from losing concentration. It was amazing to see the children actually remembering what we had taught them and using their new words in the next lesson.
The teachers at the school were so nice to us. They came and chatted to us whenever they had a spare moment and they always made sure our lunch needs were catered for. When we were too picky to eat chicken feet (a delicacy here) we would be ordered a takeaway.

We also taught in the Diamond Hotel resort in Khoa Lak because the school holidays started at the end of our first week. It was a more challenging experience engaging adults in activities and we enjoyed getting them into groups and persuading them to ask each other questions. I really enjoyed teaching them how to give directions and to understand useful phrases like “the AC is broken”. I was amazed at how little English the hotel employees could speak, even at this luxury resort in Thailand. Thailand is unique in that it makes so much money from tourism, yet even the English Teachers here can’t speak English! If you would prefer to volunteer teaching adults than children, there is plenty of opportunities to do that here.

In Takua Pa, there were 7 volunteers, me and my friends from home, Sasha, Jodie, Kim and the only boy, Sean – who had come to Thailand to get away from women for a while. We had a brilliant time together and made several weekend trips as a group. One weekend we went to Bang Niang and took surfing lessons! Although Sean had to go home, the rest of us got on so well that we decided to all travel around Thailand together!

I actually enjoyed volunteering for TMVolunteers so much that I decided to come back and do it again. Nett and Anders have now moved back to Thai Mueang, an old ex tin mining town on the coast, just down from Khao Lak. When I arrived here I met the lovely Rose. I took over from her, teaching at the same school and I was able to discuss the material she had already taught the kids with her. She also gave me a great tour of the local area and introduced me to some of the locals, including my friends George and Uncle Tin.

This time I volunteered for a month, because two weeks just wasn’t long enough. I have a million good memories from the past month, so here are just a few. The children at the school are so fun and enthusiastic. I love how they all shout “Hellooooooooo!” when you arrive. I love how in a month you get to know each child individually and can see their personality traits. I really enjoy eating lunch with the head master, Mr. Arrom. He always teaches me Thai and he has been really great about introducing me to the Thai teachers, who are sometimes quite shy around you because of the language barrier. I can now go to any Thai restaurant and order Thai food in Thai, which is all thanks to Nett, who orders our dinner almost everyday, and Mr. Arrom.

In Thai Mueang I’ve been teaching at Wat Patchatikaram primary school. Surprisingly, I’ve actually really enjoyed the lesson planning for school. It’s great to design a lesson and then see how it pans out in class. When you do a lesson plan and your lesson runs really smoothly, its so rewarding. I enjoy finding a range of ways to teach the children. I’ve used flashcards, games, songs, worksheets from the internet, worksheets that I made myself and listening exercises. It’s fantastic to see children learning and smiling at the same time.

Of course, the teaching is only for about 4 hours most days so you get plenty of time to spend exploring Thai Mueang. The food here is amazing, and my favorite thing to do in Thai Mueang is eat. There are lots of restaurants you would never be able to find unless you were told by the people that live here. One of them probably has the best Pad Thai in Thailand and it only costs 40 Baht (about 80p). I also like going to the beautiful white sandy beach here. I go most days, sometimes in the morning before school. The beach is breathtaking and stretches right up the coastline. Nine out of ten times it’s just you and whoever you’re with! But if Thai Mueang is too quiet for you, you are just a bus ride away from plenty other places, which Anders is always more than happy to advise you about.

Staying in the volunteer house is also really fun. I like staying up, listening to music and chatting on the porch at night. At the moment I’m living with a really cool couple from California called Kat and Garrett. We have got on really well and always seem to have a laugh together. We always go for tea with Nett and Anders and we’ve even started going for lunch with them quite often as well! Chris, our friend who teaches at another local primary school usually comes too. So our dinner table is always full of great stories and banter.

Overall, I’ve had an unforgettable time volunteering in Thailand and I will be very sad to leave. I think this experience has definitely taught me to be more independent and given me more confidence in myself to overcome the challenges that life brings. I would like to thank Nett and Anders for having me in Thai Mueang this month. They are really friendly, enthusiastic people who really believe that the volunteers make a big difference in Thailand and they are always there if you do need anything. If you are thinking about travelling to Thailand, in my opinion, volunteering is the best way to get to know Thai culture and you will not regret it.

I have just finished my first year at Uni, and I wanted to push my limits and figured volunteering would be a good bet. Thailand is one of the best places to do volunteering. The people, the culture, the atmosphere and so much more make this experience like nothing you will get at home. I remember first arriving here and meeting Anders, Net and the other volunteers. Instant friendship. Without each and everyone of them I am sure Thailand wouldn’t have been the same.

I had no idea how teaching was going to go. I mean it all sounded pretty straight forward, all you need to do is follow procedure. Screw procedure, I thought, I can do things my way, I don’t need to lesson plan. I will improvise. If I was ever wrong, well, that was the moment. Lesson planning is like the Holy Grail of teaching English as a second language. Make sure to go into the lessons over prepared. Better to be safe than sorry. But once you are in the lessons, you just feed off the kids energy, it’s like your adrenaline is pumping 3 hours straight, every day. There would always be laughter, and the concentration some of them had was just remarkable. Also make sure to cover your ears when you say the word ‘Game’. The kids just go nuts. Best way to end a lesson.

As a volunteer I not only taught English at a public school, but I also experienced Thailand from a non-tourist perspective. Which in my books equals towards: Priceless. Net, the other volunteers and I went to Khao Lak (semi-touristy, but not anywhere close to Patong), to a Waterfall, to shopping malls and almost everyday we went to the beach. Bliss. There is a 13km beach here, just for our pleasure. Not another soul is on the beach. Sweet as. The weekends were filled with fun stuff, and meeting just cool people. The friends that I have made here, will go down in history with me.

The memories are also priceless. I mean how many people can say that they have eaten chicken feet and crocodile, been stung by a scorpion, driving a motorbike everyday and been given fresh coconuts almost every day.

Unfortunately all good things come to an end. And my one month (Not nearly enough, next time I am going for 3 months, for sure) volunteering came to a quick end. Saying goodbye to the kids went alright up until the point where the wanted to hug me and kiss me on the cheek. Crying my eyes out is an understatement, I literally balled my eyes out. And what happens when 25 kids see a ‘farang” (foreigner) cry, well, they all cry, which made it even worse. Cheers. Off I go back to the ‘land of the long white cloud’ aka New Zealand. But as Arnold Schwarzenegger says “I’ll be back!”

Thank you Net, Anders, Rose, Lisa, Tom, Chris, Matt, the lovely people at Bam-Bam’s Restaurant (where we had Dinner almost every night) and the crazy cool people in Khao Lak. This ride has been AWESOME! Cant wait to catch you again soon.
Also future volunteers, a tip: You will have an amazing time here in Thai Mueang. No matter where you come from, how old you are or what your profession is you will love it! I promise!

Smile!

Photography Lesson with Michele and the students

Phratom 3 and Michele volunteer English teacherVolunteers in Thailand swimming in the waterfallMichele having fun with RoseAt Tonprai Waterfall in Phang Nga Province

Sat 14th Nov
Up at 6.00 to get an early bus to Phuket with Andoo. The bus took an hour and a half and cost 60 Baht – just over £1.00! Wow was Phuket busy and hot? We wandered round and Andoo was looking for a flat to rent, she found one, amazing she just walked up to sales people in shops and asked around. It may well not be what she wants for the duration but certainly will suffice for the present. We went shopping, had lunch and went to Central shopping plaza. There were so many white people! I then went to Tescos. A little disappointed, couldn’t find any cereal although I’ve been told its there! Better luck next time. Back to Thai Muang on a very smart bus and then early night.

Sun 15th Nov
Up at 7.00 as Andoo was leaving for Phuket at 8.00, Anders had arranged a lift for her. I was sorry to say goodbye to Andoo and Beakie! It was nice to have some company. Lazy day, a little cleaning, washing and reading. Went to a funeral in the evening with Net. Anyone that knows the deceased goes along to, I guess what we’d call a wake, makes a donation for the food and listens to 8 Buddist monks chanting. Not a bad experience, just a word of advice, do not sit in front of the speakers!

Mon 16th Nov
Am with Fon’s students this week, mechanics and computer students first up. Not too bad. Had lunch with Fon in the canteen, tasty but I was concerned by what Fon was eating but didn’t say anything, however I was to find out what it was the next day!! We arranged to have a meeting with Sunisa and Anders later to discuss how we are going to do these English lessons. They are not getting the best from me and I’m incredibly frustrated with the student’s lack of English. They can read and repeat, parrot fashion but the minute you ask them the same question but in a different order, they’re lost, completely. They write beautifully, probably because they’ve been doing it for 6 years, copying down what has been written on the board. They have little to no understanding of what they have written. It’s so sad.
Did I forget to mention the rain? Seriously when I say rain I mean the heaviest and wettest rain that you could imagine. One minute blazing sunshine, then the wind starts and low and behold the heavens open! The thunder is to say the least thunderous! And the lightening, a sight to be seen. Having said that, it doesn’t stop anyone from getting out and about and when in Rome etc….. and so there I was in flip flops, ¾ length trousers, shirt, very thin jacket all covered by a very fetching purple plastic rain mac with the hood held in to place by my baseball cap! Anders had threatened to take a photo and so you guys may get the last laugh yet! However, travelling in the wind and rain on a motor cycle has two drawbacks – firstly the mac wouldn’t stay over my knees and so was soaked and secondly, my glasses steamed up! Great fun but once inside I was dry within ¼ of an hour! The track outside the house is a challenge though as the puddles just grow and grow until its totally covered in water and you just hope for the best that you don’t hit a pot hole on your way through!

Tues 17th Nov.
Great class with Fon, computer and accounting students, we managed to get beyond the introductions, my name is and where I live to what they do during the day and at what time! Satisfaction. Short lived as I then had 6 mechanics and it was back to square one with my asking the question “What is your name”? answer “I live in…….”! Trying to get them to understand ‘to have’ was almost an impossibility but I think in the end we made it with the help of lots of Thai translation! I went to the canteen again with Fon and this time she ordered me a special treat – yes, you’ve guessed -what she had been eating the previous day. When I looked at it, I thought “they look just like chicken’s feet”! Guess what they were! I had to say something to Fon and explained that we English didn’t really go in for chicken’s feet but thanks all the same. Fortunately she saw the funny side and took them back to the kitchen! The whole school could have heard my sigh of relief!! Meal with Anders and Doon in the evening as Net had gone to another funeral. Again, I witnessed another culinary delight (apparently) this time Ander’s ate it……. a duck’s beak! Have you ever heard the like? Good lord whatever next…….(Actually, I don’t even want to think about it, I find not thinking too much about things is by far the very best way!!) Rode my bike in the pouring rain, covered head to toe in plastic and carrying my laundry basket – what an experience!

Tues 17th Nov
Accounting and computer students were first for today. Very good class, their English was more advanced than any other group that I’ve been with. I was able to go a little further with them, their names, where they live, where they go to college and the times of the day and what they did at those times. It felt really good to actually get somewhere! Wham, into the next class, mechanics and it took me right back to day one. When I asked “where do you live”? the answer I got was “My name is……” It took me ages to help them understand the word where and its meaning. I then moved on to the alphabet and its sounds. Went back to ‘where is something’ and they had no reply! It’s totally demoralising. The basics need to be taught to these students but there isn’t any time. Can you imagine, they have big exams in February, which includes English, and what their chances might be of getting good results!

Wed 18th Nov
Only one lesson today and so I had a late start, actually I had an even later start as my bike wouldn’t start. Rang Anders who came and collected me and took me to school, wasn’t too late. Good lesson with accounting and marketing students, it makes such a difference when it goes well. Got a lift from the Asst Director in his brand new very smart 4 wheel drive thingy and he dropped me at George’s Pizza. I have become addicted to Veronica’s cold coffee, absolutely delicious! Anders picked me up and I went back to the house to wait for Tin (owner of bike) and his mechanic. Apparently, I had a flat battery – (the bike has….) easily remedied and I’m out and about again. Dinner in town with Anders and Net, it’s so nice to know that I have company every evening and I’m always home by 8.30pm!

Thurs 19th Nov
Two classes today, first Mechanics. They were really quite good and we managed to talk about the family and who lives where so all in all a good lesson and they seemed to enjoy it especially when we did the alphabet and I asked for a word for each letter, amazing how many makes of car and bike they know! Then I had a tourism class, these students were excellent (in comparison to some of the others!) and they really got involved in the lesson. It feels so great when you know they have learnt something new, mind you, am not sure how long they will remember it for. My weeks are split between two teachers and their students and so I don’t see this week’s students until the week after next and that’s way too long. Did I mention that each lesson is two hours long but the time doesn’t seem to drag!
Just figured that I haven’t really described the house. It’s out of town going towards Ban Kownoi and you get to it via dirt track. It has its own front garden with a huge pair of sliding gates (left open though) and a covered front porch. You enter straight into the living area, lounge, open plan area (call it what you will) its L shaped. Off this are two bedrooms. At the end are the kitchen and the bathroom. The kitchen is large with a tiled work top, sink and fridge. There are no cupboards and now I understand why (well for food really) because you must keep nearly everything in the fridge. The heat destroys things at an amazing speed. Speaking of the heat you must regularly air your clothes otherwise they start to smell! Odd but true. There is a covered back porch and back garden, have to add, not a single flower in sight! Every window has a built in metal window guard so windows can be left open but no-one can get in. Both front and back doors have the same metal gate. Each morning I leave both doors open and several windows, happy in the knowledge that it’s safe. Must confess it took me at least a week to feel comfortable about doing it! The house is relatively cool because of the air and it may mean that someone can’t get in but it doesn’t mean that something can’t get in! Every time I come home I call “Anyone home”? Just in the hope that if I have an unwanted visitor, mouse, very large spider, rat or snake, they hear me and think “That’s it I’m off she’s back”! I can forever live in hope. Actually it’s not been too bad but I still jump 6ft if something moves and I haven’t seen it beforehand! I may well still be doing that at the end of my time here. There are three electric fans in the house, an absolute necessity. Your fresh water comes in 20 litre containers which Anders kindly brings up. No way could I handle that and the motor cycle. There is water from the well (in the kitchen) apparently there is an abundance of water and every house (and new ones being built) have their own wells, a machine just comes along and drills into the natural water supply. Good water pressure too. There is a small house immediately next door but it’s empty at the moment. On the other side is a larger house, with flowers in their garden, and loads of dogs. Can’t figure whether all the dogs belong to people around here or whether they are mostly strays, I think after having talked to Anders, it’s the latter. Noisy lot is all I can say but you do get used to them. Just don’t plan on having a lay-in! No chance. I have now been here two weeks and have settled really well despite the total difference to our way of life. That was partly what this was all about, seeing a different culture, experiencing, learning and living it.

…to be continued.

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