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Travel The MEGA Travel Thread!

chilling in some of the most beautiful places in the world,
learning to smile again simple plesentrys (this is the land of smiles and you will often be greeted by a new person with a smile)
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Yes, this was what Thailand was for me.. also doing some things I was always scared to do/never thought I'd do (riding a motorcycle, getting tatted). It will always be a special place to me.
 
ajarn.com is a great site. The regulars are a bit condescending, but there's loads of good info.

I'm going, for sure. I have 2 BAs, one in English and one in Philosophy, as well as almost 4 years experience teaching ESL.

I'm looking at August, but may put it off till the spring. So excited! :D
 
eDDe9 said:
Bah they want £1250 to take a 4 week CELTA course.. how can I do this with a grant or something since I've not even been to university yet?

My intention is to buy my BA in Saigon and teach there for a bit, I met some teachers on the Ha Long Bay trip who gave me some good contacts, they all bought their degrees and have each been teaching for 4-8 years at $2000 a month!

I just wanna take the CELTA so I can actually help people learn.
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I'm doing a five-week TESOL over May. Think I shall stick around the UK for a few months after that and try and get UK classroom time on the CV before heading East in Autumn.

China or The Philippines being likely destinations.

Edde - my course costs 825. TESOL stands with CELTA as the two with most universal recognition. www.cactustefl.com list many good schools and rates. Best just to use them to find one, and the Google the actual school's page to avoid cactus' booking levy.
 
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junctionalfunkie said:
ajarn.com is a great site. The regulars are a bit condescending, but there's loads of good info.

I'm going, for sure. I have 2 BAs, one in English and one in Philosophy, as well as almost 4 years experience teaching ESL.

I'm looking at August, but may put it off till the spring. So excited! :D
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^ With those credentails you should be looking at the very least 50,000 Thai Bhat per month - up till 80,000 Baht per month and after a year or so experience teaching in Thailand even more. Wish I had a Edicational degree.

They will be posistions open all year round (people who have left). However the best time to aply for teacher posistions in Thailand are:

(The Thai Academic year is from Late March – Late March as follows:
Late March – End April = Summer School, Early May – Early October = Semester 1, November – Late March = Semester 2, Late March – Early May = Summer Holiday)

tHIS IS A GOOD FORUM TOO:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/
 
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^ Woo hoo! Thanks for that! I do like the money, especially as poor as I am now. I have been told I will be extremely marketable as a teacher in Thailand, not just because of my degrees/experience, but because of my Western name, height, looks, etc. (Shallow folk, those Thais). But I'm willing to exploit any (perceived) assets I may have.

Thanks for the link!
 
Jamshyd said:
Lol, interesting timing for this response, as I am just starting with preparations to leave this disgusting country ;) (My contract ends prematurely next week, and I don't intend on finding more work with these racist, judgemental, narrow-minded, and not to mention, very stupid people... Not a single day has passed that I have not, in some way, been insulted, ripped off, dodged being ripped off, lied to, lied about, judge for my physical appearance, or otherwise negatively affected.

I feel nothing but despise toward this country, which seems to have recently turned into a compassionate pity instead of active hatred, thankfully.

What a shame.
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This thread got bumped, so I know this is a late reply - this surprises me! I always considered going to thailand on a spiritual journey to maybe rid stress or get away from the city life.
 
Jamshyd said:
The teaching life is so-so. It would be great if I had students that are not outright rude, ones that actually want to study English. That's why I'm trying to find a job teaching grown-ups in a private school. But for now, I'm stuck in this public school :\

As for how long I'll be staying there, depends. I am not that fond of Thailand - as I mentioned, I'm using it as a springboard and to make a quick buck. I will actually be going to Vientiane next week to sort out my work visa, so Laos is definitely next.

I am very excited about Burma!!
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Sounds like how kids are over here :\

You would think they would be more inclined to actually learn something really.
 
Mmmm Thailand... the place where I rode a motorbike for the first time as well... and 2 of my 3 tattoos are from there... been there on holiday and/or travelling a few times during the last 10 years but I am soon going to leave Europe and move to Bangkok- because I am very much in love with a wonderful Thai girl who lives and works there and I have had enough of Europe really.

Just checking in here to find out if there any more Bangkok-based Bluelighters?

junctionalfunkie, we shall meet up for sure :-))
 
Oh yeah, to those who have taught English in Thailand - how well equipped are the schools?

I am an English teacher by trade, and although I am thinking of not working at all for at least a year or two (I can afford this right now) I feel that perhaps I might like to get back into teaching at some point.

Would it be clever to have my own teaching material at hand, or is good stuff generally provided by most schools? I know I could have all my teaching material on a memory stick if I wanted to, but actually scanning the myriad of pages I have seems like so much work . . .
 
Ximot said:
but I am soon going to leave Europe and move to Bangkok- because I am very much in love with a wonderful Thai girl who lives and works there and I have had enough of Europe really.
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Please don't make this very, very foolish mistake!

When someone tells me he's married to a Thai girl, I smile, give them my sympathies in my head (and I won't lie to you - I secretly laugh at them too... but I won't laugh at you since you're my friend).

There is no such thing as a sincerely faithful thai girl.

Think I'm being racist AND sexist? think again - Thai girls are taught since childhood, by their parents, peers, and even school, that farangs = money.

*Sigh* but I know you won't listen to me, but I do expect you to come back a few months after you do this and regret it, like the at least 17 other foreign men I met who have had Thai gfs/wives.

I personally never understood how anyone would want to leave europe for the shithole that is Thailand. N. America I'd understand... but europe????

Sorry if this sounds overly blunt, ximot, but I'm saying it out of concern for you.

p.s. No, I have not forgotten about the message you sent me. I just never got to replying to it, like the hundred other messages in my inbox (as many BLers here would attest ;)).
 
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jamshyd,

I am pleased to notice you took notice of my post...

allow me to say that I find your statement that "there is no such thing as a sincerely faithful thai girl" is complete and utter bollocks, or, to put it more politely, a sweeping over-generalisation that I am unwilling to just let go without responding. Perhaps it is true for most if not all bargirls and other (freelance) prostitutes, but I met my beloved in different circumstances and she actually has a normal job... i have been going to Thailand on holiday for years and avoided the bar scene - my interest there used to be purely the climate and the sights, as well as meditation and fasting and such . . . until I met her, last year.

Anyway, thanks for your concern. I know that what you are saying holds true for so many thai women, particularly of the backgrounds i have already mentioned - but I like to think that the one I have met and chosen is different. Anyway, I'll be giving it a go. We spent 5 weeks together last summer, and we talk online almost daily, and she came to visit me in Europe as well, just recently, for 2 weeks.

I am fully aware of the "farang=money" equation... and who can blame them? it is simple economics, come to think of it. Guess who paid for her flight ticket here? I did, of course, because she couldn't have afforded it. ... But just as "farang=money" one could say that for a heterosexual western guy "thai woman=sexual attention" ... again it is true but it is, at best, half the story. Even if she does get a financial advantage out of being with me, and even if I love having sex with her (for various reasons that do not belong here, feel free to pm me if curious) I like to think that there is something else... like... love . . . time will tell if it's substantial... but I have just come out of an ultimately unsatisfactory relationship that lasted a decade... where I played around a fair bit in the end... I have no desire to do so any more and I honestly don't think she does that either.

Really, i think that anyone making such sweeping statements about Thai women shows evidence of having just scratched the surface of what Thailand is really about. Not all Thai women are Sukhumvit hangabouts . . .



edit.. Oh, and about Europe... yeah, well, you haven't lived here. To me, it's a sad place packed with charmless introverted unsmiling folks who onlyx seem to use their left brain hemisphere and have zero emotional iq and are suffocating in their middle-class material comfort and who are spiritual cripples who do not even know what reflection or compassion is. But then I live in one of the wealthiest countries of Europe... and the longer I stay here the more I become just like them . . . I truly have to leave here, believe me. ... Having said that, I left before, to live in Japan, 10 years ago... and i thought that Asia as so cool... that sentiment didn't last long, and I know very well that when it comes down to it people in Asia are every bit as selfish as Westerners. Perhaps they are more honest than us hypocritical Westerners - they do not even try to conceal the fact that they are racist (I actually believe we are all racist, it is a natural state, albeit an unfortunate one).

edit-edit... about Europe and its social security and whatnot... how can I put this... hmm... ok... life's a jungle and Europe (at least where i am from) is a zoo... pandas don't breed in captivity . . . you can probably understand why.... i crave authenticity and struggle and not the life I have here, even though i work hard here at times. This is not to say that I won't be back here in Europe for purely financial reasons at some point, if all else fails. Or because I get too irritated with the Thai drug policy or the racism or if I just can't subordinate my self-righteous ego enough to keep a low profile and keep my occasional rants of indignation internal. I got punched in the face for showing a reckless 4x4 driver the finger while I was walking once... so I know about their temperament...

Big love to you and thanks for your concern nonetheless. Time will tell :)
 
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Jamshyd you can't be serious with that post? That's a complete generalisation. How can you honestly tar every Thai girl with the same brush.

You're showing just how bitter and resentful you are at the country and the people you experienced but that's not to say everyone is like that.

They can't be.....can they? 8o
 
First of all, let me start by clarifying that, although it did seem I was generalizing Thai girls (actually my wording is inexcusably so), what I meant to generalize was thai-western relationships, or in other words, to generalize Thai girls w.r.t. western men.

Also note that I am only including socially-integrated Thai girls - meaning those that have lived outside or are otherwise alienated from Thai society are not included.

Thai society, being pluralistic (as well as, if I may, simplistic) as it is, actually lends itself to generalization. This is something that some westerners (certainly most ones that don't travel) are unable to comprehend because they themselves come from societies that are individualistic and therefore cannot be easily generalized.

Ximot said:
Perhaps it is true for most if not all bargirls and other (freelance) prostitutes, but I met my beloved in different circumstances and she actually has a normal job... i have been going to Thailand on holiday for years and avoided the bar scene - my interest there used to be purely the climate and the sights, as well as meditation and fasting and such . . . until I met her, last year.
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I actually was not referring to prostitutes at all :). I am talking about your average Thai girl. I know very well that you, Tom, are above the sleaze, and apologize if I ever implied so.

Anyway, thanks for your concern. I know that what you are saying holds true for so many thai women, particularly of the backgrounds i have already mentioned - but I like to think that the one I have met and chosen is different. Anyway, I'll be giving it a go. We spent 5 weeks together last summer, and we talk online almost daily, and she came to visit me in Europe as well, just recently, for 2 weeks.
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But that's what they all say :)

I am fully aware of the "farang=money" equation... and who can blame them? it is simple economics, come to think of it. Guess who paid for her flight ticket here? I did, of course, because she couldn't have afforded it. ... But just as "farang=money" one could say that for a heterosexual western guy "thai woman=sexual attention" ... again it is true but it is, at best, half the story. Even if she does get a financial advantage out of being with me, and even if I love having sex with her (for various reasons that do not belong here, feel free to pm me if curious) I like to think that there is something else... like... love . . . time will tell if it's substantial... but I have just come out of an ultimately unsatisfactory relationship that lasted a decade... where I played around a fair bit in the end... I have no desire to do so any more and I honestly don't think she does that either.
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See, Tom, you know I have no reason in the whole world to try and rain your parade or anything like that. I'd be happy to see you happy. But what you tell me is exactly what every single other guy told me a few months before their relationship started showing some cracks - that is, if it ever did last more than a few months. In your case, I do hope you don't end up like every single other guy I know... my point was, though, better safe than sorry.

By the way, I would have been shocked if it weren't you who paid for her tickets, lol.

Reread your paragraph and see how you seem to be squeezing out every single word in order to reach what you attempted for at the end: Love.

It is my opinion that since Thai society and western society are so many worlds apart, that real unconditional love between members of the two is about as possible as love between a swallow and a reed (to reference St. Wilde ;)).

Really, i think that anyone making such sweeping statements about Thai women shows evidence of having just scratched the surface of what Thailand is really about. Not all Thai women are Sukhumvit hangabouts . . .
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My friend, I do not think there is much more to Thailand than a surface ;).

edit.. Oh, and about Europe... yeah, well, you haven't lived here. To me, it's a sad place packed with charmless introverted unsmiling folks who onlyx seem to use their left brain hemisphere and have zero emotional iq and are suffocating in their middle-class material comfort and who are spiritual cripples who do not even know what reflection or compassion is.
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Heh, had I not known better I would have thought you lived in North America ;). This is the reason why many N. Americans I know would love to live in Europe - it is the same, but with a more flowery culture due to the longer history, more interesting nature, and more "fun" all around.

But then I live in one of the wealthiest countries of Europe... and the longer I stay here the more I become just like them . . . I truly have to leave here, believe me. ... Having said that, I left before, to live in Japan, 10 years ago... and i thought that Asia as so cool... that sentiment didn't last long, and I know very well that when it comes down to it people in Asia are every bit as selfish as Westerners. Perhaps they are more honest than us hypocritical Westerners - they do not even try to conceal the fact that they are racist (I actually believe we are all racist, it is a natural state, albeit an unfortunate one).
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No disagreement there at all.

Have you tried living in the poorer or less westernized places in Europe, out of curiousity?

edit-edit... about Europe and its social security and whatnot... how can I put this... hmm... ok... life's a jungle and Europe (at least where i am from) is a zoo... pandas don't breed in captivity . . . you can probably understand why.... i crave authenticity and struggle and not the life I have here, even though i work hard here at times. This is not to say that I won't be back here in Europe for purely financial reasons at some point, if all else fails. Or because I get too irritated with the Thai drug policy or the racism or if I just can't subordinate my self-righteous ego enough to keep a low profile and keep my occasional rants of indignation internal. I got punched in the face for showing a reckless 4x4 driver the finger while I was walking once... so I know about their temperament...

Big love to you and thanks for your concern nonetheless. Time will tell :)
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Like I said before, I truly wish you all the happiness in the world. But if you crave authenticity as you say, then I have a feeling you won't be staying in Thailand for too long. Perhaps you may be conflating the exotic with the authentic?

But I may be wrong about all this - after all I do know one good man who thinks Thailand is the next best thing after Ayahuasca and Chocolate :D.

p.s. Sorry if this post is a bit disjointed and babbly, but my mind isn't very clear at the moment...

p.s.s. And yes - I never hide the fact that I AM bitter and resentful toward the Thai :)
 
I so have to sticky this because I want to see how this Ximot thing works out.

So which SE Asian country was the one with loads of drugs, and which are the straight, clean ones? [edit - this isn't a discussion about drugs, please keep on-topic, thanks :)]

Anyways, so the concensus is which SE Asian countries are the nice ones, and not completely impovershed but at least comfortable enough by developed standards? Taiwan? Singapore?
 
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