Confusing Day in Bangkok

Wednesday, August 13th. Woke up this morning at 8am. Was supposed to be at a "counselor meeting" at 8:30 am at school. Oops. I leave my apartment complex at 8:20, walk to the ferry and sit down at around 8:45. Look down at my uniform (black skirt, white button up, brown belt. Why brown belt with black skirt is a mystery to me!) and think "Wait, wasn't I wearing a belt this morning!?" The belt had just fallen right off my hips and I never even noticed. A few hours later another exchange student said he saw a belt lying on the ground while he was walking to school. Lol!

I get to school at around 9 and I have no idea where everyone is! I ask a Thai girl for help and she walks with me all the way to the other building...thai students are so nice! I finally walk into the "counselor's meeting" at a bit past 9. 5-10 minutes later, they dismiss us. Oops again!

I hang around the classroom to try and figure out what I missed. I happen to glance behind some people and see the TU (University here I am attending) website on the computer screen. I see one of my classes, Principles of Marketing, has been canceled for next Tuesday and rescheduled for this Saturday!! Not only that, but it is rescheduled for 9:00- 14:00 o'clock!!! A 7 hour class, are you kidding me? And, were they planning on telling us about this "little" change?!?!? Um, no. They are so inefficient here! I would have missed class this Saturday (well, I'll be missing it anyway. 7 hour class on Saturday? No thank you, I think I will go to the islands instead. Sorry Mom and Dad!), and shown up on Tuesday, really confused as to why the professor wasn't there.Unbelievable. Mai ben rai. It's okay, no problem.

Then, I am told I need to get my picture taken at a photo place so I can put it on my student id. Okay. I go to the street behind TU (so crazy, one block from TU is 3rd world country, complete with street vendors and stray dogs. Oh a word on stray dogs. They are EVERYWHERE in Thailand. Like, everywhere. Hundreds. It is so sad....you can tell they have a tough life). So, I get my picture taken and in true Tracey style, the picture is horrendous!! haha, that's okay, I just wont show it to anyone:)

Okay, so after this, I have lunch at this great restaurant on 2nd floor of the cafeteria at TU. I spend 5 minutes trying to ask the waiter if the chicken is fried or stir-fried. He just looks at me. I keep talking. He keeps looking. I keep trying to ask "Is this fried?" He never says a word for 5 minutes; it is just me talking. So, I say, "okay, we'll just order this and be surprised". Ended up being a great meal! :)

After this, I wander around with some other people for a few minutes and then go to class. It is a 3 hour class and I am bored after 20 minutes. I leave (again, sorry Mom and Dad!). I go try to find Narisa, the bba exchange coordinator, to get my classes settled. The class I left was one that hasn't yet (and probably wont) be approved by UT (my home university), so I was trying to figure out if I can take another marketing class in its place, so I dont fall behind in credits. Again, nothing gets accomplished by this conversation. More funny looks and confusion.

After this, I meet up with my Thai friend, Warren, and we attempt to open a Thai bank account for me, bc I am almost out of money! I decide not to do it, bc I opened up a citibank account, which has branches in Bangkok, before I left. I will try to go there asap and get some money... I need to pay rent!! eeeee...... I'm sure that trip will be an adventure in itself.

Oh, I also checked out Muai Thai (thai boxing) while at school. I think I am going to join that while I am here! haha, I will come back a boxer :)

Oh, and Warren taught me some thai on the way home from school. Today, I learned how to tell a taxi driver to "turn left/right" and I also learned numbers 1- 900ish. Now, I can bargain with street vendors! I will probably not fool anyone with my Thai; I am such a farang (foreigner). ps. my spelling is awful, sorry!

pps. I am eating rice which I cooked myself! haha, I think cooking rice is about as easy as boiling water, but hey, I am proud of myself! A true asian in the making.... by the time I come home, I will be "asian"-fied!

Until next time!