Temples!

Yesterday we spent the day touring the two most visited temples in Thailand.  First, we went to the Temple of the Emerald Buddha and the Grand Palace.  I was amazed at just how much there was to see.  My photos aren't as fancy as those on the wiki, but here is the link.

My favorite part of the day was our trip to the Temple of the Reclining Buddha.  It was huge and beautiful, and allowed us to get quite close to take photos. 

We had a great lunch at S & P, a popular restaurant chain in Thailand that had a similar in feel to Panera in the US.   I have fallen in love with Som Tam, a thai dish similar to coleslaw made of green papaya. 

Today, we're visiting another temple in the Dusit district of Bangkok.  I'm interested to get an idea of how long it will take us to get there.  Mahidol University, the institution I'm assigned to work with, is in this area.  So, I'll get a chance to see what my morning commute will be like.

Also, I learned that we are getting a bit of news coverage.  One of our fellow doctoral students, Chuck Carney, is the Director of Communications and Media Relations for the IU School of Education.  He wrote a news release about our trip that was picked up by Inside Indiana Business!  So, we're pretty much big time now.

Fun, Flowers, and Feet: A Dispatch

Yesterday was a beautiful day in Bangkok!  We began the day with a tour of Chulalongkorn University, one of our partner institutions.  I enjoyed the opportunity to hear more from their staff about higher education in Thailand.  Chula is big, similar in size to IUPUI.  We happened to visit during the first day of welcome week, so it was fun to see all the students doing many of the same things that our students do during WOW, sporting their free, residence hall t-shirts and sitting in circles meeting new friends. 

We had some flexibility with the rest of the day, so a group of us took a water taxi to the flower and fruit market.  I bought some green tangerines and wandered through aisles of fruit and flowers I'd never seen before.  Photos are here.

We ended the day with dinner, and a trip to the MBK for groceries.  While I'm having a lovely time, my feet are covered in blisters.  Too hot, and too much walking, I guess!  Note to home: buy stock in Band-Aids.

Safely to Bangkok

Our whole group has made it safely to Bangkok! There was a flight cancellation for one pair, but it was quickly resolved. While my traveling group was delayed by a few minutes, Mr. Siamchi, our cab driver was very nice and waited for us.  He also should consider a job with UPS considering the number of people and bags he fit into his car!  When we arrived, despite all the people who told me just HOW hot it was, I have to admit I was still surprised.  It's not that I didn't believe them, it's just crazy to think that it was midnight and 90 degrees.  The air is incredibly heavy with humidity.  I'll be taking multiple showers a day, that's for sure!

We've settled into our rooms, and the accommodations are fine.  Certainly not the JW, but I am quite happy!  A warm shower, a (relatively) comfortable bed, and a place to be a bit more settled for a few weeks.  The view is not quite what I had in Hong Kong!

Today, we are getting a tour of one of our partner universities and heading to the MBK, a massive, seven-story mall.  They appear to have everything from a drug store to a Pizza Hut to a karaoke bar and a bowling alley.  

Hong Kong

Today is our last day in Hong Kong. We've had a great time seeing the sights and trying the food. Yesterday, we traveled to "The Peak" which is the highest point in the city. While the view was beautiful, the walk down was pretty serious. It was, by far, the steepest hike I've ever taken. Definitely worth it for the view and the stories, though! We had dinner at the best Chinese restaurant in town, which was delicious! They seemed to have some trouble handling the crowd, though. Here's a pic of the view.

Today, we're going across the bay to Kowloon. We hope to take in a few more cultural attractions before our flight to Bangkok late this evening.

Jersey

We are on our layover in Newark, NJ. All of us are hoping we can sleep on the plane. Unfortunately, I just brought up that a fifteen hour flight is almost like two days of work! When we arrive in Hong Kong, it will be 7pm local time.

I've brought my new iPad which I hope will have enough battery life to power through, because we learned that the in flight movie is "Country Strong." Next post will be from the other side of the world!

Last Day in Town

Today is my last day in town. Our group met to review final logistics and make some plans for our arrival. We had our photo taken as a group and plan to bring copies to give to our Thai partners with IU and IUPUI photo clips. I'm all packed, and if the weather cooperates, we'll be leaving tomorrow morning.

Am I freaking out? Maybe a little. It is just hard to plan for all the unknowns. I hope I can get enough rest tonight and on the plane, so I'm ready to explore as soon as I arrive in Hong Kong. Many of my colleagues are flying through Helsinki. I hope they don't encounter too much volcanic ash!

Pre-Trip Context

I'm headed to Thailand in less than ten days.  As many of you know, I'm doing a study abroad with the Indiana University School of Education as a part of my doctoral work in higher education administration.  I'll post pics and other updates here.

I'm traveling with a number of other students.  We're headed to Hong Kong for a few days, prior to moving on to Bangkok.  There, I'll be working with Mahidol University to develop some teaching workshops on active learning techniques and talk about medical education in the US.