They Call Me Teacher

January 18,2009
Rio Monte Apartments Bangkok, Thailand

I arrived on Bangkok Airways from Seim Reap in a half full plane just as the sun was setting. Bangkok from the air is a sprawling, smoggy morass of canals and the Phraya River snaking erratically through the major centers of the town. There were no business travelers on the 35 minute flight. Seim Reap is totally a holiday stop for foreigners and SE Asians who want a little culture, a little nightlife, and a bit of money left after the trip is over.

Customs was surprisingly fast and uncomplicated which was an answer to one of my travelers’ prayers as I raced toward immigration hoping that I would get an agent who was both kind and quick. The airport is new, a mass of glass and chrome with shapes that are reminiscent of the Opera House in Sydney. Hard to believe that this same huge space was taken over by protesters, unhappy with the Thai prime minister, less than two months ago.

A colleague was waiting for me above the foray of what is called The Meeting Place, a confused space with hawkers, drivers with signs, and general mayhem. John handles new recruits here, and is an old hand at orientations which he does brilliantly.
Night had fallen by then, and the famous song from the Broadway play, Chess, was ringing in my ears: “One night in Bangkok…” The city of nearly ten million smells like ( dare I say it ) a bit of a bad odor( which probably comes from the polluted canals ) and car fumes—a departure from the countryside in Cambodia, and even HCMCity. The skyline is a hodge podge of skyscrapers that pop up in all directions. Bangkok has many centers, and each one seems to have a “temple skyscraper” to denote it. And, there are temples or wats as they are called, everywhere because this is a very Buddhist country.


The next day, Sunday, John shepherded me around Bangkok, patiently tutoring me in the simplest directions. The challenges are many. For example, it is very easy to mistake one street for another--and believe me, they aren't laid out like Manhattan. Thai is difficult to learn. I don't know it, and it isn't possible to try to figure out western words that are similar--different alphabet and tonal. John patiently suggested that I learn landmarks to find my way to my teaching assignment, about twenty minutes away. He took me for food ( although he and another colleague, Alma, had already stocked my little fridge, made the bed, brought iron and hot pot for tea.

But Monday was the real baptism by fire. John B, who has been in Thailand for 18 years, had scheduled an outing for all the English students--both the monks and the lay students. It was a bus trip toward Pattaya, a seaside town about 90 miles from Bangkok.

We met at 7am ( Alma got up early I'm sure to take me to the meeting place, near the office, amidst my protests! ), and that was my introduction to my Buddhist monk pupils. During the whole trip--the zoo, a miniature park w/ replicas of world icons like the Eifel Tower, Angkor Wat, the Colosseum, and the Stone Garden which was acres of beautiful sculptured stone amidst topiary type gardens--all 40 students were asked to speak English. As we rolled down the 6 lane highway as the sun tried to burn off the smog, one of the assistant abbots of the Wat where I will be teaching, picked up the mike and asked each of the passengers to come to the front of the bus, and speak English for ten minutes. " English today", he would say, his dayglo orange robe bright against the dull bus decor. He introduced me to all of the passengers. "This is our new teacher. She is from New York. Welcome, Teacher Mary Catherine."

During the day, all of the students, lay and monk alike, greeted me, asking me if I would pose in a picture with them, their warmth absolutely overwhelming. The day was long, we returned to Bangkok at 7:30pm but it was a great way to meet them before we were together in the classroom at their temple.

And so I begin, hoping I am up to the task of teaching these men most of whom are in their mid20s how to improve their facility to speak English .

But more likely, they will teach me things I never knew I didn't know.
M.C,