Burning the Evening Oil

Thursday, August 26, 2010
Pak Kret, Nonthaburi, Thailand
Two nights in a row now I've gotten home at the crack of 9pm. Such a whirlwind lifestyle.
Yesterday, Scott (the new young farang teacher) and the head-teacher and I went to the Central Plaza Mall in Pak ket and saw Salt. For 2.40, you get great seats and can reserve your seat online beforehand.   You must sit through about 20 minutes of trailers, then stand as they play a video tribute to the King, then enjoy the very loud sound and very plush seats.

After the movie, we went to Sizzler because they have an outrageous soup/salad/dessert/fruit bar which is discounted on Weds nights. There we ran into a tableful of our co-workers, which was fun. Scott got some MORE passport pictures, May showed me where to get the best facials, and I took the 10 B van home; they drove.

The head teacher had driven us to the mall, and since she lives in the expat community where the school is located, she parked in their private parking area in the malls' parking garage. I guess you know you've arrived when you have private parking space at the local mall.

The elevators are cool, too. There's one large keypad for a bank of about 8 elevators. You press in your floor and it tells you which elevator to go to. Each elevator only works for a specific floor so 1) you don't press any buttons when you get in, and 2) it's fast because it doesn't make any intermediary stops. How clever.

Tonight, I got Voravit to call for the roving pink golf cart to take me to the developments' villa where there is a dentist, bank, clinic, small supermarket, pool, beauty salon and hydro phonic pick your own vegetables.   I went to the beauty salon and got a manicure and a pedicure. I had 3 girls working on me at once, one on each hand and one in the middle on my feet. I feel like royalty. I saw a sign for an electric cellulite massage for 300B -$9. I'm tempted. Semi-permanent glued in false eyelashes are big here too, as well as tinted eyelashes and tattooed eyebrows. Thais are big into keeping up appearances.

Then the head teacher picked me up and drove me to the mall (again) - she was going to her exercise class and I went and got a one hour facial (today was beauty treatment day.) I have no idea what all creams and steams and scented lard and vegetables and at least 2 masks she put on my face but it was grand. She massages your face forever with circular motions and butterfly wing flutters. While the masks are processing, she massages your legs, arms, hands and neck. I swear my face feels thinner.

Then I had to go get MORE passport photos taken. Despite the fact that I had brought at least a dozen with me, I had given 3 to the school and 3 for the visa, and 3 for the work permit and now they want more big ones and I'm down to only the smaller size.   Remember in Mahasarakham, I went to the Kodak shop three times. Here we go again -watch for me on your next calendar, Miss Farang August. I think there's a black market for farang photos, I really do.


I bought some origami paper at the Japanese store to do some fun projects with the kids, came home via the 10 B van, got off 2 blocks early as the traffic was snarled and in that two blocks, I got lost. How, I do not know. When I crossed a large intersection with 2 big islands, I leaned left and wound up on a backstreet parallel to mine, but these streets are often fenced off so you can't just cross over anywhere; I had to retrace my steps and figure out where I went astray.

I have to cross 8 lanes of never-ending, bumper to bumper traffic to get to my side of the street (or if I'm in a taxi he has to go about 1/2 kilometer past my street till he gets to a U turn, then back again, extra time and money.)
My system is to wait for a gaggle of Thais to get ready to cross (it doesn't take long) and meld myself into the center of the group for safety. I haven't been killed yet, knock on wood. I wonder if they notice a strange blond farang a full head taller amongst them.






















f






m
Other Entries

Photos & Videos

Comments

Jay
2010-08-30

Somehow you always make me laugh... Thank you...lol

2025-02-17

Comment code: Ask author if the code is blank