English Camp

I'd like to start off by saying that with the exception of Rob and Sara, YOU PEOPLE are REALLY bad at commenting. My last post has been up for 5 days and nobody has commented. Now I KNOW people have read it. PLEASE, comments (and letters) make my day. So get to it, comment or on wednesday (for those of you with facebook) my blog will be the only note you will see all the way down. I will upload EVERY SINGLE ONE, unless you take the time and comment here. Because I KNOW you'll comment on facebook.

Alright, now that's over with, on to the main point.
Bai See Su Quan. It's the string tying ceremony. I did it for a second time on saturday night and this time have pictures, but am too lazy to upload them. Teachers and students told me they loved me, or wished me good luck, or even that I find a handsome boyfriend, as they tied my strings. I was given so many roses, eggs and a banana leaf dumpling (that's the closest english word there is, they called it banana bread, but it isn't). I'm keeping the strings this time. I think they might make a nice addition to my blazer, along with the feather mask on the back and the fairy wand on the front.

So on friday, I went to the english camp to help out with Emma. I'm pretty sure these children (teenagers really) had never seen a white person their own age. They must think all white people are fat woman and middle aged men because they were so excited to see us.

Emma and I are celebrities here. I should change the title of th eblog to My Life as a Superstar. Thse kiddies not only wanted pictures of us, and with us, they wanted autographs, our names, our skin, to touch our cheeks. They wanted our phone number and our e-mail (BIG MISTAKE) and they wanted us to remember them. Two days later and I get eight phone calls from the same girl. I can't understand a word she says because she doesn't even speak thai. She is speaking another dialect. I handed the phone over to a friend and it turns out her name is Fa. I think, "which one was Fa?"

I have a new friend named Poopey (yes that is actually her name, no, she doesn't think it's funny) and I gave her my cell phone number because I actually liked her. I have six text messages from her. They are all cheesy and they all RHYME! After talking to Emma, it turns out that she got the same messages.

Oh, the aftermath of a great experience.
During the camp I learned so much. I learned a tongue twister in poothai (the strange dialect of the region) and I learned the thai version of the chicken dance, the banana dance, and the row your boat song. Look at Emma's blog and you'll find the chicken dance lyrics. It starts out with "CHICKEN IS DEAD!" There's a lot of bongo drumming involved.

On the last day, we had a closing ceremony for the english camp.
The students one by one, got up, waied to us, and shook our hand. One girl got up the courage to ask if she could hug us and the next thing I know, Emma and I are in the midst of a giant group hug with people fighting to get to the center. Girls are kissing my cheeks and I'm kissing theirs. "Magic Kiss," they say. They all want pictures. I gave over two hundred hugs in thirty minutes. I almost cried from happiness and just from the sheer amount that these girls cared for us after three days together.
"Don't Forget! Don't Forget" they cried.
I'm trying not to.
Because of the huge success that we were, Emma and I are invited to join them on a trip to Chiang Mai in January. We both gleefully accepted the invitation.