My Final Days as a Teacher in Maptaphutpanpittayakhan
- Vincent Perez
- Feb 26, 2018
- 3 min read
My final days living in Rayong are coming to a close. Four months of teaching at Maptaputpanpittayakarn School flew by and I can't believe it is over already. Just when I started to get the hang of the city, the language, the people, and the teaching, I have to leave. It is a bittersweet time for me because I am going to miss all my new Thai friends that I have met these past four months and, believe it or not, I am going to miss the students (well, some of them). There are a few students who I built a strong relationship with and I even remember a few of their names. Cream and Khafil are two students who I will miss and it's not because they speak great English, cause they speak very, very little of it actually. But, it's because of their personalities and their willingness to learn. Then there's another girl who speaks good English in one of my classes and she is adorable. I wish I remembered her name, but she wanted to take a photo with me after class and that made me almost tear up. I, of course, made sure I got a picture with her, Cream, Khafil, and other students as well. So at least I will be able to remember them forever.
Then there are the Thai teachers who I've gotten close to and turned our work relationship into a friendship. Oom, Nan, Ying Ying, Som Som, Nat, Joom, Jan, and Kong have all made me feel like I belonged here and I tried my best to fit in with them and not be an outsider or "loner". Whether it was by saying "Sawadee Khap", eating lunch with them, going out with them on the weekends, or by giving the proper greeting (wai) to them, I did it all. I really tried not to isolate myself like the other teachers and really tried to learn the Thai way of doing things. I even learned how to speak a little bit of Thai! I'm going to miss them all and I want to thank them for showing me what Maptaputpanpittayakarn and Rayong is all about. I hope that one day we will meet again. Feel free to come visit me in California anytime! :)
To all my other friends and CIEE teachers that I met on this wild four month journey, it has been a pleasure getting to know all of you and learning about your life story. Whether we met in Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, Koh Phagnan, or Rayong, just know that you will forever be apart of this experience with me and you will be locked away in my memories forever. Hopefully one day our paths will cross each other again and we can continue to make more memories together. Safe travels my friends and "ดูแล" (take care).
As for me, I'm not ready to go home just yet, so now I embark on a 2 month traventure around Southeast Asia! My first stop is Vientiane, Laos! I will spend 4 nights exploring the city before I head to Siem Reap, Cambodia to see the magnificent Angkor Wat! I will then make my way up to Hanoi, Vietnam. A dream come true for me as I will finally get to learn about the Vietnam war from the "enemies" side. Next up is the tropical paradise of Bali, Indonesia. I will spend 6 nights on this tropical oasis exploring the beauty and beaches of this island. Then I will go from the beach life to the city life and visit Singapore! My time here will be short but I'll make it sweet!
After Singapore I will head back to Thailand to visit Chiang Mia, Koh Samui, and Phuket to show my friends & family, who will be vistiing, what life in Thailand is all about. I will finally get to show them around beautiful Thailand and teach them how to live like a Thai. Once my family leaves, my brother and I will be off to the Philippines! We will spend 9 magical nights here. 4 nights in Cebu and 5 nights in Palawan, where we will be gathering some awesome footage and breathtaking photos. Our last stop that we will be making is in the buslin' and hustlin' city of Hong Kong! We will explore the huge skyscrapers, busy streets, and try to fit in with the locals.
Finally, after 2 more long and amazing months of traveling, I will make my way back to the great state of California on May 1st! I am excited and can't wait to meet other travelers, explore, and create even more lifelong memories. I am truly living the dream and I couldn't be happier. See you soon.
With love,
Vin
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