I remember reading years ago that one of the greatest joys in teaching was working with your colleagues. The beautiful thing about teaching in Asia is meeting teachers from all over the world. 

We had our school  induction yesterday and it was wonderful to see so many bright and eager faces of teachers from a lot of the world's continents,  They were excited, eager to learn about the school and Asia and determined to be successful in their jobs,  They have so much to learn but are so eager that  it renews the human spirit. 

Meeting new people and potentially reinventing yourself to be anyone you want to be is one of the greatest benefits of living and working in a different country. If you are as old as the hills, as I am, it is great to stay young and pay back all of the teachers before by teaching young teachers the tricks of the trade. If you are retired you just might want to come out of retirement and do some teaching in Asia. 

I thought my book It all started in Mandalay  might be considered unbelievable by some in terms of the illicit sex that permeates the book, but I am learning more and more that it is quite tame compared to real life. I am on vacation for a few days in Bangkok and what happens in Bangkok stays in Bangkok!

Yesterday, an older Indian woman was in a shop asking about the "Metro" There is no Metro in Bangkok so I started to speak with her and asked if I could help. After sorting out the subway system for her and explaining some areas she could explore, her husband, 68 years old ,asked me where he could find a "sexy" massage. The ensuing conversation, which lasted about 30 minutes was fascinating and will have to find it's way into my next book. 

I asked if they both wanted to go and she said she sees enough vagina every day to last her a lifetime. I asked her what she meant by that and it turns out she was a gynecologist. The husband was a doctor also. I told them to save their money and just go back to their room for a little wild session and she said they do not do that anymore. If eyes could speak he would have killed her. He then replied that if he went with another woman she would grab him by his ear and twist it off. Not at all, she said, just take lots of condoms! I left them arguing in front of a store as I slipped away.

I then walked further up the road and sat down for a Coke in McDonald's of all places. A young Ugandan woman ended up sitting next to me and we started to talk. Apparently an older Ugandan woman promised her a job as a nanny in Bangkok and brought her over on a plane. In mid flight she was told there was no job and she had to do sex work to "pay back" the money she owed her. The woman told me that over the course of the year she had to pay back $6,000 and now to extend her visa she had to pay another few thousand. In actuality it cost about $40.

This girl ( in her twenties I would guess) was an indentured servant and she saw no way out of the mess she was in. In a few months or weeks, after she pays off the next debt, there will always be another debt to pay and another. As I left her, I saw a man speaking with her and no doubt will be in his bed in moments. 

After I walked out of McDonalds a woman approached me and asked where I was going? Just looking around I told her and then she asked i I wanted company. I gave my standard answer which is maybe on my way back. I went on my walk, turned around and headed back to my hotel. Out of nowhere someone hit me. I could not believe it. When I turned to see who it was, the woman shouted "you forgot me already!"

I guess some dalliances are more pleasant than others! I always like to add pictures to my blog, but what picture could I possibly put here? Words might have to suffice!

In Thailand, the traditional New Year's Water Festival is called Songkran and it is celebrated right now from April 13-15. Of course, it starts before and goes long afterwards as Thais drink to excess, splash water on each other continually and enjoy themselves immensely. It is the hottest part of the year and generally speaking a little water is very welcome!  The water metaphorically washes away all of your sins for the year, just as Jews at New Year's wash away their sins in the nearest body of water. 

The problem, and I call it a problem, not a challenge, is the stupid "farang" or foreigners who buy the biggest water cannons they can find and walk near the street spraying motor bikes and tuk tuk drivers with pails full of water. This results in many traffic fatalities every year in Thailand and it is very dangerous. 

This is what you see all the time if you are lucky enough to be alive after falling off a motorcycle. I have personally witnessed two fatalities in the last two days and I dare say it was the foreigners and not the Thais who created these accidents as the pavement becomes deadly slippery and the drivers swerve to avoid fools who put ice in the water.

People are also walking around sprinkled with powder which can cause momentary blindness. 

I am begging all "farangs" to let the Thais do their thing and just watch and enjoy. If you must throw water, do what the Thais do. Fill a little small bowl with water and sprinkle it on passers by. Put the guns away.

You are visitors in this Land of Smiles. Not an invading army!!!

I took a 12 hour bus ride today from Phuket to Bangkok. We were not supposed to stop so I was surprised when we pulled into a bus station in the middle of the night. I relaxed a bit when I realized what was happening. There was a shift change and a new set of drivers came on. Frankly I was relieved and felt a lot safer crashing through the Thailand night with a fresh set of eyes and reflexes, although who knows how long these new drivers were up for.?

You will be surprised if you teach at an international school how teachers are turned over like bus drivers during a shift change. I think there are a lot of reasons for this. Teachers who come overseas to teach are a special breed and are often running away from something or are quite adventurous people who do not like to live in one place.

The other reason, I think, is that senior management at most international schools see teachers as bus drivers that are interchangeable at any time or place because they only see one role for teachers....as transmitters of knowledge and do not see the transformational  parts of job where we turn young people into adults. Teacher turnover is high in international schools which I find really disturbing, although in my book, which I wish you would read, the teachers did stay a long while in the same school and with the same organization. If you want to read my book, just click on the link on the right and thank you so much for the wonderful reviews. They are much appreciated. 

Teachers have to look for the inner beauty of each of our students and be responsible for their growth. Bus drivers just have to get us from point A to point B in one piece! Talking about beauty, have a look at this picture I took yesterday.

Perhaps this says in all in regard to the role of women in Asia. In the west, the default position in any house will have the toilet seat down in respect to women in the household. 

In every Asia house I have ever been to, the toilet seat is always up when not in use. ( providing there is a western style toilet)

I think this fact alone adds a lot to my discussion in the last blog about sex roles.

By the way, I have next week off and as I said in the last few posts I am in the south of Thailand. Any ideas where I should travel next week?  Pray tell write and let me know!