Exams are slowly and creepily sneaking up on us and along with them comes the sad and lonely late-nights studying and lack of sunshine and other outdoor activities. Actually my first “final exam” is in 5 days and I haven’t started studying for that one yet. I’m too busy doing the last few big assignments that needs to be handed in as well. It’s a very, very boring life currently and I’m stuck in my room procrastinating at least half of the time.
Something I wrote last year, really defines how I feel right now;
“My words are far from blooming, as I sit buried and forfeited starring upon the blank piece of paper in front of me. Constantly reminding myself of what I should be doing. How sad to think, calculus has become my temporary life. Money, numbers and finance have become my friends (and still contemplating whether I could also define them as my close enemies) in this solitary room. But this indefinable feeling of feeling blessed, is somewhat my motivation.”
Only “calculus” should be replaced with “Greek default crisis”.
I had a religion presentation today.. about… atheism.
I was standing by the board drawing my beautiful graphs (I cannot believe how anyone can write even remotely nice on those boards) and it was going fine, until my phone started ringing. My bag was placed in the front row and I was the only one sitting at the table (since Lilou wasn’t present) so it rather obvious where it was coming from.
I tried to evaluate the situation to the best of my abilities and decided to ignore it at first… but then it…. freaking.. kept… ringing.
It was embarrassing, but it was made even more awkward when my teacher suggested I just take the call in case it was important. It was my dad. I didn’t pick up.
Also I really think I need a new phone. The sound button on the side has fallen off, the screen doesn’t really react anymore and the camera takes pictures as if someone licked on the lens. Hmm…
Something to cheer me up though, is this beautiful little note that was stuck on my bike the other day. (Anna you are so beautiful, I love you, Secret admirer)
If I hadn’t known my best friend for so long that I wouldn’t be able to recognize her handwriting in a split second… perhaps… (and only perhaps) would I have fallen for it. It’s cute though and definitely made me laugh.
The hotel is doing some crazy Christmas decorations. Everywhere. Anywhere and the CD being played in the reception downstairs often repeats “Last Christmas – Wham” – hard not to get into some sort of Christmas mood despite the 28 degrees and burning sun….
The lovely Christmas tree and snowman that greets us in the reception.
I bought the most lovely advent calender with milk chocolate. A great way to spice up your breakfast a little!
The best part is my calender candle though. I’ve cut a square around the “19”th to mark the date of my return to Denmark. So. Excited.
Also, don’t ever underestimate a “Starbucks Coffee Frappuccino” – it’s simply amazing.
Okay, enough ramblings (and yet another way of procrastinating)
I shall get back to my studies as it is currently 1 o’clock at night and I still have not done the marketing presentation due tomorrow.
Friday the 18th of November, my dad came. I had been so excited for weeks to see him so it was really the highlight of my week. We stayed at the Hilton, which is located perfectly ? right by the bars, right by the beach, in the middle between the hotel I live in and the big shopping market. It was nice just relaxing, as I had been studying really hard during the week, to finish all of my assignments (one of them was a critical thinking essay, where I chose to write about people using God?s law to beat up on homosexuals ? and trying to defend it! It was an interesting assignment and it really opened up my eyes in many aspects).
My dad had also tried to finish off his work before coming, but unfortunately had to compromise the last of the 2,5 days we had together to finish his business in Thailand. Quite sad, but it was still amazing to see him and we managed to catch up on quite a few things ? he helped me get a motorbike! And it?s beautiful! I love it so much, something I must have inherited from him, as he himself is a big fan of them. My dad is currently looking into importing one to Denmark, because they are so cheap here, unfortunately Denmark is, as always, a nightmare with taxes. I?m crossing my fingers though! The weekend was spent tanning, swimming, shopping and getting tons of massages (and a couple of beers.)
This weekend I caught some sort of flu going around and as I was lying in bed, eating my rice soup (which I?m completely addicted to by the way) and violently sneezing which caused it to spill down my shirt, complete red eyes, possibly fever and a running nose, Lilou convinced me that going out the day after would be a good idea.
So, we took our bikes to Tesco and bought lots of alcohol. (I also bought a new perfume; Dior Addicted 2. It?s so unbelievable good and I only paid 700 baht for it. That?s a little more than 100 crowns. Thus about 1/5th the price. Crazy) We drove back, but by the time we wanted to ?freshen up? (do make-up and such) we were both pretty drunk ? the pictures from that night is the evidence that we sucked at it. However we quickly decided that it didn?t matter though, because after all ?it?s just Hua Hin?. So we put on our flip flops and headed out to our local bar? where we drank a little more. After a while the drunk-hunger snuck in on us and we ?ran- to McD?s and ordered food. As we stood by the cashier, two drunk guys came in. I don?t remember much, except they were out of the ordinary rude and annoying. They apparently faked a Singaporian accent, but Lilou (who?s lived in Singapore before) completely undermined them and showed them a real one ? they must have felt embarrassed because they started arguing with us. I decided not to bother with them anymore and walk out with my tray to sit outside. After a few minutes one of the guys comes out with the menu card and hits me in the head ? which was the drop that made the glass overflow?. Or? well? the large coke to be thrown at him (In my drunken state I thought that would be a nice way to show him that I was not going to take lightly on him hitting me ? based on his expression I think he understood my gesture?) but before anything else happened a whole bunch of Nepalese guys came and surrounded the guys. Turns out one of the guys that Lilou and I go to school with had called up his friends to help us. Needless to say, the guys quickly disappeared ? and I ate my meal in peace. 😀
(The only proper photo from that night.)
The following week passed by slowly until Thursday which was Thanksgiving. Anita and I decided to go to a nice restaurant and have a real Thanksgiving meal ? and it was amazing. Mashed potatoes and gravy and turkey and AMAZING desserts ? I was in heaven. It almost tasted like Danish food. 🙂
Despite going out after dinner, I was home early (before 12!) because I had classes the next day.
My classes are boring?actually I?m writing this right now in my Roots of Religion class ? the a/c isn?t working, there?s a snake outside the window on one of the palm trees, Lilou is editing photos and the teacher is talking complete rubbish. The only class I ever thought was really interesting (despite Art of course, but that?s not really a ?true? class) was my International Relations class. However, the teacher has just been fired ? for no apparent reason other than encouraging the students to stand up for themselves. The administration here is corrupt ? we pay for stuff that we never see. It?s awfully sad because I do think this campus ?could- be good, there just needs some major restructuring in the upper level. Once again, I really can?t wait to go to the London campus. It?s weird to think that in less than 3 weeks I?ll be back in Denmark! I am so excited, but of course I will be missing many things that I?m sure I?m taking for granted by living here and I won?t know till I leave. But then again?. The thought of sitting in front of the fire in the living room, with a blanket and a hot cup of cocoa because it?s so cold outside, surrounded by my family…. it?s quite lovely.
🙂
– Anna
P.s. Speaking of boring classes, Lilou and I always try to think up funny things to do in our Critical Thinking class. The previous times we have made lists of how we predict each other to be like when we’re older and lists of our future husbands (multiple of them, since we both predicted divorces as well)
What do you think of the drawing I made of “Lilou in the future”? Quote herself she wants to own a massage parlor…
Returning to Hua Hin after having had a great time in Denmark where I caught up with some pretty cool people, saw Sak Noel, got lost in my own home city, cried because I couldn?t get my ends to meet, slept in my own amazing bed, went to my favourite cafés, but most of all spent time with the family that I love more than anything, was a bit of a bummer.
However, just a week after my return, Lilou, Anita and I all went to Phuket again. It was Halloween weekend so we all had costumes prepared. Anita went as a devil (and got many comments but she always had the coolest comebacks that left many of the guys stunned) Lilou as Pocahontas and I went as a roman zombie. I had the coolest fake wound that I had bought months before, but unfortunately it wouldn?t stick to my skin? even after having bought real glue and superglue (which Lilou wouldn?t allow me to use? smart move by the way ; thank you for possibly saving my life) so I had to stick with fake blood. But it was still pretty cool. We met up with an old friend from British International School (the school where I met Lilou 4? 5.. years ago) and she was dressed up as a cat.
In general it was a fun weekend aaaaand we made it back to class Monday morning! (Despite being slightly knackered)
Time passed quickly and soon November came up. November = my birthday.
I was not expecting anything whatsoever, casually planning on going out at night and perhaps buying some bottles but honestly nothing spectacular. However, 4 days before my birthday I was sitting in the library studying for a marketing test (that I managed to get an A on 😀 ) when Lilou and Anita came and ?disturbed? me with their nonsense chattering. This lovely conversation turned into us making a spontaneous decision to go to full moon party the day after!! Full moon party is a party held on a white sand beach and begins at dusk. Around 10,000-30,000 people go there each month and there is something for everyone. It’s a wild and crazy dancing frenzy, with lots of different styles of music and many entertainers and entertainments. Definitely worth going there again.
Obviously, the day passed really slowly from there on. We were a group of 5-10 people all going on the same bus + ferry so it wasn?t that boring. The bus ride took around 3-4 hours as did the ferry to Koh Phangan. (The island where the party is held) We stayed at this gorgeous girl?s guesthouse, which was located right by the Pier and relatively close to the beach where the party is held. It was a lovely cute place with a great restaurant and we only paid 750 baht all together (that?s like.. 150 crowns!) for one night. SO cheap and so lovely and worth all the money.
The party itself?. Oh my, where to start.
We had all bought neon shirts/dresses/shorts and we made some crazy body paint on each other so we were literally glowing in all the colours of the rainbow.
The party was insane. Lots of drunk, happy, loud, funny and passed out people. We all got buckets filled with alcohol and drank x number of them. Anita and I decided to go down a slide that had flames on the side? I had to force myself to climb up there but once I made it, it was all worth it ? it was such a thrill.
We named Anita ?monkey? that night, because she was climbing anything and everything she could possibly get near; including the burnt out letters of the picture below. Crazy girl.
We only stayed one night and therefore left the day before my birthday. We had previously decided that we wouldn?t be able to make the ferry in the early morning and decided to go for a smaller ferry that would leave later. If I say it what the worst decision of our lives I would be underestimating. The ferry was indeed, small, but it was also unstable, no a/c and the toilet was merely the ocean flushing away waste. The waves were ridiculously big and the whole ferry was tipping and moving so much that it was impossible to stand.
After a while I finally fell asleep??.. but???? after about 15 minutes I got woken up by a big splash of water straight into my face – I had been leaning my head against the wall near the window, which we had to keep open in order to get some fresh air due to the lack of air condition, and due to the boat was tipping so much, a huge wave crashed in through the window.
So not only was I seasick out of my mind, I was also completely drenched. It only got worse. I was scared to walk anywhere in fear of falling into the water because the waves were so crazy, but decided to cross my fears in order to help Lilou to the bathroom as she had to puke (no, not due to the alcohol we had previously consumed, but because of seasickness.)
We finally arrived on land after 6 hours (worst 6 hours of my life) and when we got on land, I almost wanted to cry and I was so close to kissing the ground. We took a picture of all three of us after the trip, because we all looked so awful it’s almost funny.
After that, we had to take a small bus the true thai way; that means we were about 40 people cramped into a bus that was meant for 10 people. Sitting there, everything started to become a joke. We were stuck in between strangers, sweating, tired, hungover, feeling sick. We arrived at the train-station, but turns out we had to wait about 3 hours for the train to arrive, so we decided to take a tuk tuk to the bus station instead.
We arrived, but they told us that they weren?t any busses within the next few hours and that there probably wouldn?t be space on the next one. I was on the verge of a break-down. Honestly.
Thankfully, the irony of our whole trip turned around and we were able to get on the bus 1 hour later. I was beyond thrilled as you could imagine.
The bus ride took about 5 hours and I officially turned 19 on that ride. After taking a motorbike trip from where they put us off we FINALLY arrived home.
It was wonderful. Beautiful. Amazing to be home after a 12-14 hour trip.
We all went straight to bed and I slept well into the morning. I decided to take a well-deserved shower, but as soon as I got out of the shower (only wearing a towel) I heard some people giggling on the corridor and then knocking on my door. As I opened, I saw two crazy girls standing, holding plates with buns, a huge cake, balloons, candles, presents, flags and I-don?t-know-what. It took me by such a surprise I almost started crying (I shall deny any picture of me with teary eyes) The candles were ?trick-candles? which neither of us knew, so after I blew them out the first time they re-lit! Huge confusion occurred as we were desperately looking for a way to turn off the candles before burning the cake. We finally achieved it by using wet toilet paper and squeezing the candles.
I got the most lovely presents from Anita and Lilou, despite some of them being.. well.. perhaps, slightly inappropriate???
My mum sent me Christmas stuff. I think she might have mistaken my birthday for Christmas Eve, but it was still lovely of her to send it. I received the most beautiful letter from my brother though, that I can?t deny left me with tears in my eyes.
I quickly got dressed and we left to get oil massages. It was amazing, until the point where the lady massaging me, told me to turn around and pulled down the towel. For the people who don?t know what an oil massage includes; you?re naked. (or only wearing underwear.) I quickly pulled the towel back up to cover my, ehm, more private parts and mumbled that I would prefer not to have my THOSE parts massaged. That was probably one of the more embarrassing moments of my life and I?m sure I will be able to laugh at it.. in a few years, perhaps.
After eating lunch, we all started getting ready for our night out. I had previously decided that we should eat at a steak house, which is really good. As I mentioned before, I don?t eat much meat here except at that place? and Lord was the food amazing. We had lovely cocktails and I couldn?t have wished for better company (perhaps only had my family been there.) After dinner we went out to the local bar that everyone goes to here.
The night involved a few body-tequilas (I blame it all on Anita), playing and losing pool, dancing, eating McD’s, running around and being surrounded by lovely people. Inevitable I got a little drunk? very fast.. so I was sound asleep in my own bed at 2 o? clock as far as I can remember.
Despite the fact that I didn?t see my family (they called me and sang the Danish version of ?happy birthday? though which was really cute) it was a great day 🙂
Due to numerous complaints about the lack of updates on my blog, I have decided to pick up on it again. I had otherwise previously decided to lay the writing aside for a bit, in order to focus on school, but I guess it all comes down to prioritizing. Perhaps fewer body tequilas will help in this case. As I haven’t updated in a while, this will be a very long update, but I have decided to split it into smaller sections in chronological order as to not bore you too much. 🙂
= more blog updates.
I am not sure where to start. For the past many months, so much has happened and yet ?so little? to me, because it has become an everyday experience having to stop in the middle of the road while driving, because some cows decide to randomly cross the streets, or seeing 5-6 years old at 2 o?clock in the middle of the night, running around desperately trying to sell roses (and punching the boys in a certain area if they don?t). Finding snakes on campus, seeing hookers everywhere ? and trying to decide whether they are in fact women or men. (Usually if you look at the size of their feet, their height + width of shoulders and their throat it?s mostly visible, but otherwise I separate the most beautiful ones into the lady boys section.) I?m not kidding. Some of them are beyond gorgeous?
I have developed an unfortunate hatred towards most pale, fat, middle-aged and older men (whom are in my theory mostly bald) down here when they walk around with a petite Thai woman my age.
I am not sure if it?s because I have watched too many romantic movies, but I hardly believe that >true love< can be bought in the middle of a wild night. I find it to be a slightly naïve and superficial way of compensating for something else. (But, of course, I won’t deny that it happens sometimes… still though…)
During one of our weekends, we went to Bangkok which was a unfortunately a disappointment. In my opinion it?s too crowded, too stressed and too dirty. Honestly I think it?s overrated?. (Except the shopping part, which was quite lovely.)
Phuket on the other hand?. My God, Phuket is the reason I love Thailand. It?s smaller than Bangkok, simpler, more beautiful, down to earth, I know my way around and I. Just. Love. It.
Lilou and I made a trip down to Phuket during September. It was indescribable.
Hua Hin doesn?t have an airport that actually works so we took a bus down there, which takes about 9 hours (a nightmare) but thankfully we took it at night so we could sleep through most of it. We stayed at our friend?s guesthouse which is located perfectly ? right near the shopping/food mall and in walking distance to Bangla Road (the party road which is also connected to the beach.) We left on a Thursday night because our art classes were cancelled on that Friday and our plan was taking the bus Sunday night back to Hua Hin in time for our classes Monday morning.
However, it was impossible to leave. We had so much fun, partying, drinking, dancing, shopping, meeting people and so on that we decided to stay one more night?.. bad idea, because when the time came to leave on that Monday we realized that we had gotten wrong information regarding the bus schedules and had missed it by 30 minutes?.. which meant: 5 minutes of regret that we would be missing another day of school and another 23 hours of pure freedom and fun. 😉
Lilou knows a wonderful, tiny place where tequila can be bought for 30 baht -> ~5 crowns. We would start each night there (I would have approximately 2-3 shots, whereas Lilou ?the crazy tequila drinker- would have at least 4.) and then see where the night took us. At one point (I blame the tequilas again) I decided to go skinny dipping on the beach. Not the best idea, but at least I can now tick that off my list of ?things that must be done while young?.
September went by quickly. Needless to say we had lots of fun during the weekends, especially one night is memorable as we decided to drink near the pool which lead to the decision to have our own little pool party.
We also went and saw some tourists things such as the view of the whole of Hua Hin (which meant that we had to walk a lot? again needless to say this wasn?t the thing for neither Lilou nor I, but joyful and hyper-active Anita seemed to love it) and we also went to the ?floating market? which is a basically just a market built on top of a small lake. Cute, but prices were ridiculous.
Hua Hin doesn’t offer too much of a nightlife, but we have our own little local bar called Sam Sam (33 in Thai) where we play pool and if we get “really” drunk, we go to the only real club that Hua Hin has, which is filled with hookers and Thai gangsters. It’s usually always fun though, because it’s almost an unwritten rule that you only go there if you’re really drunk.
This weekend Anita, Lilou, Charlene (a swedish girl who also attends Webster) and I all went to Bangkok together, where we met up with Stefnie and Austin (Adorable couple from California, students at Webster too).
Only Lilou and I have classes on Fridays, because we both chose art. Our teacher is brilliant, I was so confused all the time, because he didn?t speak a word of English to me. Yes, he even spoke Thai to me, and as much as I pride myself on being able to understand numbers, ask ?how much? and order my favourite dish at a restaurant, I had absolutely no idea what he was talking about.
However, as art is mostly visual it didn?t matter. He showed me some great techniques and I?m so excited about our next class, because even though I don?t know what exactly I will be doing work-wise in the future, being creative definitely will pay off in most jobs.
(my drawings from art class)
Straight after class, we hurried home, packed and ordered a cab to downtown, so we could catch the mini busses that drive between Bangkok-Cha am-Hua Hin every 30 mins.
It would be a understatement if I said the trip there was good!
The mini bus was so cramped, we were 13 people in a bus the size of the car you would usually have 7-8 people in in Europe. It was also hot and humid and whenever the car would go over the tiniest bump in the road (which there are a trillion of in Thailand) the bus would literally be bouncing because of it for 2 seconds, which meant that by the time we arrived, I had knocked my head into the window numerous times, had a banging headache and was in a general bad mood. Furthermore, 4 indian/Chinese/Thai girls were sitting behind us and were so unbelievable loud and rather annoying because they apparently didn?t understand the normal courtesy of speaking with low voices, and, most definitely not playing loud music and singing along to Thai songs. I was close to throwing myself out of the car, especially by the time we reached Bangkok and made it into rush hour where it was literally faster to walk than stay in the bus (so we did).
Anyway!
We arrived ?well? and found our way to our hotel, where we had to take the Skytrain! Definitely an experience 🙂
4 girls, in a 2 persons room with one extra bed was where we were destined to stay for the weekend. It was quite fun, despite the hotel being far off and not very luxurious. The funny thing was that it was called the “Convenient Park”, very ironic and at least we can laugh at it now.
Lilou had been talking about a so-called ?Playboy Party?, where a guy from BIS (our previous school) would be DJ?ing, so we decided to go there. However, as she had to pick up the pre-paid tickets first and both Charlene and I weren?t ready yet, we decided to split up and meet at the club later. This was a terrible idea, because the cab driver that Charlene and I got did not know his way around Bangkok. He didn?t even know where/what the place we were talking about was/is. So, there we were, casually driving around in underground parking lots for 10 mins, driving in circles. We both got quite frustrated and even after Lilou talked to the guy in Thai explaining him the way, he still didn?t take us there. I can?t figure out if he was only trying to make more money or if he was really lost (which he seemed to be, because at one point Charlene got really angry and threw him her opinions about his driving. )
However, we finally arrived and met up with Lilou and Anita as well as the other couple. Everything was finally going right? till we went inside and saw that the party was filled with 14-year olds local Thai?s. We were, not only almost the only foreigners, we were also way too old. The bartenders ignored us so many times that we were all getting into a bad mood.
Therefore, even before the open bar was over, we decided to leave.
We went to a few more places that were definitely better than the first, however, nothing could really compare to the chilled atmosphere that both Anita and I so admire from Phuket. We had funny moments though, such as being 8 people in a small 4-persons cab (sitting on top of each other, because that’s what you do in Thailand, haha) and dancing on various podiums and laughing at drunk people.
We ended the night in McD?s, (terrible for our healthy lifestyle, but by then we had already broken it) and the food was delicious?
We went home rather early and completely sober, something I can’t recall I have done in quite a while.
Next day, we went shopping. And, Oh.My.God.I.Love.Shopping.In.BKK. I bought so many adorable things, including a lovely leather bag that I intend to use as my school bag, as I?m currently without one. I also bought cute shoes that are excellent to wear for school. Furthermore I bought earrings (3 pairs for 50 baht?.: 10 crowns / little more than 1 euro) Flip flops (40 crowns), a brush set (!!!!! 40 crowns!!!! That?s the price of one freaking brush in Denmark and here I got at least 10! I was so excited about this, that I bought it even without the need of it), eyeshadows (20 crowns).
All in all, I felt rather poor but in reality I hadn?t spent more than 110-120 crowns?..
In one of the shopping malls we went to, there was a Japanese fest. Everyone was dressed up (or I wasn?t sure whether they would usually dress like that, which I have heard isn?t at all that uncommon?)
There is also a ?Madam Tussaud? in Bangkok, which is a famous wax museum where celebrities are sculpted. Despite not entering it, ?Tom Cruise? was casually standing outside and we took a photo with him. Unbelievable how truly realistic he looked!
At night we went out again, this time on the famous ?Khao San?-road, which is sort of like ?Bangla Road? in Phuket minus the hookers. It?s a place with many bucket bars and a few clubs. This night was definitely a trillion times better than the night before. We all had a blast, despite Anita accidentally losing her phone in the cab where it must have fallen out of her pocket/bag and the fact that it was raining like crazy and we were all drenched. Lilou and I also bought a the most hideous friendship bracelets for 10 baht each (2 crowns..) and had a thai massage at 2 am in the middle of the street.
After having a blast at numerous clubs and bars, we went back to the hotel, all safe and in a very good mood.
We had tried to different opportunities of traveling home, but unfortunately it was either too expensive or not possible. So, as we were walking towards the horrible busses, we decided to buy two seats each, which made the trip so much more comfortable and I am not afraid to say I will do the same again, next time we go to Bangkok.
When we came back, we were all exhausted and just ate in our rooms. However, both Anita and I made it down to the restaurant where there is free and unlimited coffee/chocolate/cookies etc. Doubt it?s a good deal for them, with the amount we drink.
Today I had my first Marketing Communication classes. Unfortunately the A/C wasn?t working properly, it?s hard to concentrate when it?s 30 degrees+ in a classroom. Despite that, it was fun. We had to think of slogans and made a competition. In the end, I believe both Anita and I were quite frustrated because we were able to think of so many Danish slogans (?Hvem ka? ? Bilka?, ?Det skideskægt i BonBonLand.? ?I Legoland, land? ?Alle har råd til et fedt køkken? etc.)
We came in second place though, with slogans such as ?The only place where it?s allowed to dance naked on the bar? (The Happy Viking/Den Glade Viking.) Just in case you were wondering, it was hard to seem serious when reading out that one.
I also had International Relations classes. Our teacher is so engaged and has so many opinions, the classes are actually really interesting.. and I can?t believe I?m saying this.. but.. I actually find politics really exciting and interesting and I truly look forward to my next class! However, as we were talking about the average age in various countries and the teacher read out that ?The average age in Scandinavia, that is Sweden, Norway and Finland, is 40+? I had to bite my tongue from correcting him. I don?t think that?s the best way to make a good impression on the teacher, in the beginning at least. So despite having at least 30 different comments where I could casually place the content ??.In Scandinavia.. that is Sweden, Norway and Denmark, despite the common mistake of thinking Finland is included there is?.? and ?? the Scandinavian countries, Sweden, Norway and Denmark ? not Finland?.? Etc. I didn?t say anything? but I will keep it in mind and definitely drop a comment sometime in the future? 😉
We are still looking for a good restaurant nearby, because the few ones we have eaten at so far we have either been waiting for hours or feeling quite insecure about the quality of meat. Hopefully we will stumble upon one soon, because constantly eating cereals and bread with Philadelphia is slowly beginning to get quite boring. I would pay a lot to get a really nice Danish salad right now!
We are also still looking for a place to rent a car. I really think it?s important to see more than where we are, considering all the opportunities we would have if we could just drive around a bit. Also, I would love to go to Phuket soon, but getting there is more difficult as such, because first we would have to go to Bangkok, in order to take flight which isn?t always that cheap and once we arrive there, there?s quite a drive from the airport to where we would be staying. In the end it would take the same amount of hours as driving, but be a lot more expensive as gas is really cheap here.
We also haven?t received our SU yet, (money from the government that students get each month for studying), because it?s so complicated and the government does not seem to want to help us and they want all sorts of irrelevant information and can?t seem to ask for it all at the same time.
However, despite all these ?problems?, I am having a good time. I miss my family, my friends and the areas I know, but I?m enjoying the culture, the new friends, our ?home? and the weather here.
I’ve been really lazy with updating lately, because there is just so much happening, so much confusion, so many new things to get used to and I’m still adapting to it all.
I have changed just about all my classes, because it turns out, that I get 90% of my general education subjects covered by the IB (one of the few times where I have actually praised the IB..) so it would’ve been a waste of time doing my other subjects. Therefore, I am now doing Marketing, Business, International Relations, Critical Thinking, Roots of Religion and Art.
I am loving the three last subjects. I haven’t been taught Religion since I-don’t-know-when, because International Schools don’t seem willing to teach it. Our teacher is from Italy and despite it being a bit tough decoding some of his homemade-Italian-translated-to-English words, he is brilliant. He has published many works, comes off as a bit clumsy but seems to be a really nice person.
Critical Thinking is a really interesting subjects too. It’s a bit like Theory of Knowledge, but with a greater focus on our behaviour and thinking patterns. I’m really liking what I’ve read in the book so far!
In general I very much enjoy attending school (so far). The teachers are good, students are nice, dress code is chill… the only bad thing would be the constant walking in and out of air condition… something I doubt I will ever get used to! 🙂
Lilou, Anita and I, all have a wish to become more healthy and adapt a better lifestyle and because of that, we have all been working out at the gym quite a lot and have been eating healthy. Very proud of myself 😉
It’s actually a lot easier than I would’ve expected it to be. I think it’s because everything is so new, I don’t have to break off any “old habits”, because I haven’t had the time to develop any yet.
Anyway, tomorrow we are all going to Bangkok to go partying and shopping together with a few others from Sala (other Webster students.)
… and I still haven’t packed.
Goodnight 🙂
P.s. I miss a lot of people, can’t wait to see you all again!
One of my biggest fears is being late. Whether it’s late for the bus, a meeting, work or like this situation; first day of school: I absolutely hate it.
Friday night as I was drowsily glazing upon the clock, to get the satisfying feeling of “Aah, I Have Another Two/Three/Four Hours To Cuddle Under My Blanket” I slowly process the number; “07.44”. Within seconds I was up, dressed, running around looking for the stuff that I hadn’t put out the night before because I had convinced myself I would just wake up early and enjoy a quiet morning and get everything ready within time. Unfortunately that’s not how things would work out. Thankfully I wasn’t “late enough” to be “really late”, I still made it to the bus and managed to bring everything that was needed.
However, not the best way to start the morning of my first day at the school.
(I’m late, I’m late, I’m late!!!)
We drove to Sheraton Hotel first where the information would be given out. As we entered the hotel, we noticed that most people were standing in a line, waiting to have their picture taken, which meant that everyone was looking at each person while they were being photographed – rather awkward really. Turns out, they needed the photos for our Student ID, our bank card and our library card; which is all in one card!
Because both Anita, Lilou and I know each other, the whole process wasn’t so intimidating for us, as I could imagine it being for many others. We decided to go sit front row (mainly to start off our new >life< working hard and getting good results… and mainly because most seats were already taken in the back.)
The President of Webster Thailand held a beautiful and rather inspiring speech. He talked about the possibilities Webster students have, because it is so easy to transfer (they have more than 100 campuses worldwide, incl. Vienna, London and numerous more in the US) and that students at Webster are not just a number but a name. That is because the classes are held so small on purpose, as to give the professors and the students a chance to get to know each other; their strengths and weaknesses.
After that, the teachers were introduced, more speeches were held, we had lunch and eventually went to choose our classes. Unfortunately, because the classes are held so small, many of the classes I had wanted to choose before I came here, were already filled because students from last year had had a chance to pick their classes last year.
So, I ended up choosing; “Introduction to Business”, “Psychology”, “Introduction to Studio Art”, “Photoshop and Illustrator” and we were obligated to choose an English class as well.
In the short term, I’m quite happy about these subjects, because they are definitely already some of my strengths, however I’m scared in the long term I won’t be able to work as much as I would have wanted on my weaknesses (or the areas in which I know nothing of.)
But, one step at a time, I’m going to speak to the school tomorrow about my possibilities.
We eventually left to get a tour of the campus. The trip between the hotel and the campus was most likely less than 30 mins, however both Anita, Lilou and I managed to fall asleep in the bus. It was probably a mixture of having paid attention to so much previously and the fact that none of us are used to getting up “early” in the morning.
When we arrived to the campus, I was surprised. I had previously been warned about the campus by my father who had told me that it wasn’t anywhere near the standard of the schools I have previously attended in Thailand/Austria. However, they have been renovating it all summer and I was pleasantly surprised.
(Looking very excited upon the arrival on the campus)
After the tour, which featured tennis courts, fitness room, cafeteria, classes, green areas, nurses, officers and student lounges, we were taken to the beach to the “beach activities”. Unfortunately, at this point (it was late afternoon) we were all so tired so we decided to go back to our hotel instead and relax.
This turned out to be a good idea! We all fell asleep, but I was awoken by a call that confirmed that I could move into my current (amazing) room. I love it so much! I don’t want to seem too spoiled, but the other room was a little cramped for me, especially because I tend to feel a bit claustrophobic. Instead this room, which is around 1,5-2x bigger than my old one and also has a couch and two extra tables, is perfect. I also have my own kitchen, double bed, bathroom, a big tv and a balcony with the view of the swimming pool and the sea 🙂
(I apologize if it looks a bit messy, but I’m still trying to unpack and weighing various ideas of making the room as good as it can possibly be.. so therefore, the messiest areas have been excluded. Also, I took the photos at night, so therefore no photo of the view. I will try and see if I can remember to take a picture tomorrow)
.. but you get the overall picture. I love my room <3
Friday night we met some of the other Webster Students in the restaurant at our hotel and decided to join them for some drinking. It’s so great meeting new people, with new inputs and ideas. We played quite a few drinking games and all in all had a great time.
Later we went to a club, which was supposed to be okay… (considering that this is the Royal Holiday Resort–> where the Royal family goes on holiday, Hua Hin is very “clean” compared to other big cities in Thailand and there are therefore not many clubs/bars/prostitutes) .. unfortunately we were the ONLY foreigners in the bar and it was completely stuffed so it didn’t take long till we decided to leave and pass by 7/11 to buy the chips we so desperately were craving.
A young Thai boy followed us and seemed (to be honest) very interested in me and didn’t leave till I had promised him I would call him the following day. Lilou typed his number in as “creep” and I think, to his great regret, I probably wont ever call him.
We went back to our rooms and was on the phone with McD for half an hour, desperately trying to make them do take-away to our place. They put us on hold but never got back to us… weird…. 😉
(I believe the pictures speak for themselves; We had a great night!)
Saturday my dad came! I was so excited to see him again, despite it only being 2-3 days since I saw him last. Both him and his work colleague came. We spent most of the day shopping, as both Anita and I needed more necessary stuff, such as plates, knives, water and so forth.
We went out for dinner down town, at a really great place. The town all of sudden awoke and for a few moments I was reminded of the streets of Phuket (in Patong.. the main party city) with loud music, fake bags, blinking lights and men shouting “taxi madaaaam”…
For the first time since we left Denmark, I ordered western food (that is, I ordered a Tom Kha Gai soup first, which is the traditional thai soup with coconut milk) followed by some spaghetti.
Anita ordered a coconut shake and drank it from the coconut it self; welcome to Thailand!
After dinner (and a couple of beers) we went for a massage. Anita and I had an oil massage which was lovely.
My dad and I spent the rest of the evening discussing various ways to get a car, finance, possible transfers, subjects, insurance and so forth while Anita and Lilou were just chilling in my room until we all went to bed.
However, I did NOT sleep well.
… I spent most of the night chasing sneaky little bastards (also called mosquitoes), as I had been awoken by one little guy who had bitten me in my face (TWICE!) and my hand. I was desperate at this point as I had no tiger balm and it was itching like crazy so I decided to stay up and catch him.
However, he lived up to his name (sneaky!) and I never caught him. Many times I thought I had him, especially at once where he was trapped in the lamp, but he managed to escape each time and eventually I was too tired and went to bed… without being bitten luckily.
As we woke up today, we all went to the swimming pool, had fun, tanned and relaxed.
After that, we went out for lunch and then unfortunately my dad had to go back to Denmark.
It was a bit sad, seeing him leave.. but I guess it should be like that, because if I wasn’t sad that would be a bit weird as well.
So we spent the night just chilling, ordering pizza, eating chips and cookies in Lilou’s room while watching a movie… until we got distracted by our schedules and started comparing them. I think we all can agree that Lilou’s schedule is the worst, because she has classes till 17.30 almost everyday! What a nightmare.. it will actually be dark before she returns! Currently working on perhaps changing a subject so she can get home a bit earlier (like Anita and I.)
Anyway, tomorrow is our first real day of school and I’m off to bed.
From Bangkok to Hua Hin there is a 3 hours drive. Which isn’t long… unless you have to pee! We arrived at Sala Hua Hin, which is actually a hotel, but the school bought some rooms here for students. It’s a lovely place, with a swimming pool, fitness room, near the beach and each room had it’s own balcony, fridge, TV etc. Anita, Lilou and I all live on the same floor, which is epic.
When we first got here, I was given a room with neon green walls….Imagine what it’s like being inside a kiwi multiplied by 100x saturation and you’ll sort of know what I felt like being in there. The view was a creepy, old house with lots of hens and cocks outside…
So Lilou and I went to the reception and I got a nice dusty pink room instead, with the view to the swimmingpool – I am SO much happier 🙂 I’m planning on taking some photos of my room/the hotel but I would rather wait till I get all my unpacked (I’m just about as back unpacking as I am with packing) and made it nice, so a picture of Lilou’s room will have to do for now 🙂
After that, we went to the restaurant here at the hotel. We all ordered a cocktail each, but none of us finished ours, because it was 50% bad thai alcohol and I’m not sure what the rest was but it was awful. The food, however, was wonderful and really cheap. (I paid 60 baht for my favourite dish; Pad Kaprow Gai Kai Dow (chicken with basil leaves and an egg on top, spicy) which is equal to about 10 kr.)
Lilou and I were watching Criminal Minds in my room after dinner but I fell asleep while watching it… unfortunately as I was trying to turn off the light previously (we have a light control by our beds) I had managed to put the alarm on as well, which woke up us at 7 o’clock…. Total panic, because both Lilou and I were terrified it was the fire alarm for a few seconds.
All day today was spent shopping because Lilou’s parents were here and they had a car. We weren’t informed about having to bring towels/toilet paper/kitchen utilities etc. So I spent 2000 baht in a store and thought for a second while paying that I must be completely broke, but then I converted it and felt stupid. I love that everything is so cheap here!!!
When we got back here, Lilou went for dinner with her parents and Anita and I went for dinner at a local restaurant 200 meters away from our hotel.
It was really nice, and I’m happy to say that both Anita and I have done the stupid ‘police greeting’ back at the official people instead of doing a wai.
After that we went to 7/11 and bought spoons and forks (they didn’t sell normal knives?) where it was possible to buy a “St. Anna” diet drink and an “Emo” drink. Pure Epicness!
As we were walking back, we found a small massage parlour as well and had a Thai massage which was quite amazing! The lady understood just about no English whatsoever, so I caught myself numerous times almost drifting off to sleep.
We went back to the hotel and as we got into the elevator to get to our floor, a guy we had previously exchanged a few words with signaled us to come join him and some other people from Webster for some drinking at the bar. (He didn’t understand my “2 mins we have to go put our stuff in our room” hand signal, but thought I was trying to say peace to him.) Quite funny, when we came down and the ‘mystery’ was solved.
They all seemed really nice, but apparently everyone speaks french here? I remember when I had to choose between German and French in 7th grade and my dad told me that “German is a lot more useful, French is bleeh”! Right now, I wouldn’t mind being able to speak the latter!
We are all in Lilou’s room now on our computers. Tomorrow is Orientation day, so we decided to not go to the party the others were speaking of and instead get a good nights sleep… I was just completely blown away by the time. It’s 00:16, but it feels like it’s 19-20-ish… I must still be jet-lagged.
(Currently just being true nerds)
Hope all is good whereever you are in the world. 🙂
I finally managed to get my bags packed, after a lot of struggle, as some of you may have noticed on Facebook. Seems I have a personal relationship with almost all of my clothes, so whenever I would look at a piece of clothing and conclude that I have not worn it for more than a year, all of sudden I could think of many wears to wear it and that it would be perfect for ?one-such-situation-especially-in-Thailand-because??
So thankfully my mum helped me? or ?helped me?. She made me throw out at least (!) 10 pairs of shoes and get me started on what?s important to bring and what?s not. Worst case scenario, my dad?s company ships from Denmark to Thailand a couple of times a week, which means it?s not that much of a problem to get my ?oh-my-god-I-did-not-just-forget-that-piece-of-clothing/shoes/papers/?? shipped here.
Ever since we left Denmark, I have been troubled by the same problem I always get when I leave for somewhere, the ?what did I forget, I must have forgotten something? feeling. I still have not managed to figure out what it is and considering I made a very thorough ?REMEMBER TO BRING LIST?, I?m almost confident that if I have forgotten something, it?s not crucially important? yet it still nags me?
I said goodbye to my little brother in the morning (he left for school) and had a lovely last breakfast with my mum and dad and Anita and her parents. However, as I had already opened my favourite bottle of Asti at 9.20, where Anita and her family were supposed to arrive at about 9.30 but didn?t till 10.15, I was on my third glass of alcohol when they came, which made the breakfast taste even nicer. 😛
Saying goodbye to my mum was hard, but I?m so grateful to have her support in this, because I wouldn?t have been able to go without that.
Quite a few people have been asking me how I have the courage to once again rip up my roots and move to the other side of the world without my family. Honestly, I couldn?t do it, if I didn?t know that my parents are always at my back and that, though it?s far away, an amazing opportunity to explore and get a new view upon the world. But, far by distance, close by heart. It?s only 4 months till Christmas and thereby till I see you again!
The flight from CPH to Dubai was quite pleasant. It wasn?t completely filled. We had our own TV-screens and quite a lot of space so nothing to complain about. Anita and I decided to move to the back of the flight to get two seats each which meant I got to sleep for a while (actually I just fell asleep while watching an episode of Glee?.)
When I woke up a bit later I looked out the window and was blown away by the beautiful sunset I was met by. I quickly told Anita to look out the window as well, and we were both quite absorbed by the astonishing view for a few minutes? all of sudden I turn around and see the male steward looking over Anita?s shoulder. He leans in closer and closer and Anita doesn’t realize it, so I tried getting her attention without making it too awkward. However, as she turns around to look at me the face of the steward is less than 30 cm?s from her own head. The look on her face was indescribable, I?m actually giggling while writing this, because it was so funny.
The steward explained that he was only trying to see what we were looking at so intensely. Then he followed up with a conversation about where we heading for, why, for how long, where we were from and so on. I believe both Anita and I thought it quite awkward and slightly funny at the same time because he had taken us by such surprise. He ended the conversation with ?well, then when you are done with your university, you will come work for Emirates (the airline that we are flying with) in the management?. We didn?t say anything but nod and agree?.
When we landed in Dubai we had three hours to kill, so we went to the Priority Pass lounge and relaxed there. The food was surprisingly good too, except this little Arabic cake that Anita and I had decided to share. It was, according to my taste buds, absolutely disgusting! I actually had to reach over and eat some of Anita?s pasta with tomato sauce just to try and get rid of the after taste. It tasted like a mix of fish, rotten eggs and raspberries.
We flew to Bangkok in an Airbus A380, which is by far the biggest airplane I have ever flown with (surprisingly it is also the biggest passenger airplane currently in the world), it was quite extraordinary! However, they had moved us around so that we weren?t seated together, despite having pre-booked our seats. So of course my dad got angry and told them that it couldn?t in any world be right that we were seated like we were (20 rows between each other) and his anger ?paid off? and we got the seats we wanted in the end…. 😛
When we got on board, I heard some Amercians talking and came to wonder how long it takes to fly from the US to BKK… My dad didn’t know but we agreed that they would most likely fly “backwards” around, probably not over Dubai. All of sudden Anita asks; “Is there actually anything behind the world map?” My dad and I only looked at each other and laughed until she eventually realized what she had just asked 😛
We made it here, I am currently in my room with Anita and Lilou and I am absolutely knackered, hence the very abrupt ending of tonights blog, I will continue where I left off tomorrow.
Lilou and Anita says hi.
