Humbled & Happy

If I could use two words to describe my time thus far in Trang I would use humbled and happy. Everyday I find myself in awe that this is really my life.

I am so humbled & happy to share with you all the post that I wrote for Greenheart Travel. Give it a read here! 

The past two weeks at school have been nothing short of amazing. I teach 11 different classes two times a week (for a total of 23 classes). I teach P3, P5 and one advanced M1 class (ages 9-13). I absolutely love the variety that I have in my classes and how I am able to do different things with different grades. My younger kids love speaking and showing off their new words in class. My favorite thing about my P3 classes is how proud they are when they learn English on their own.  Last week I had a student excitedly raise her hand in the middle of class. I walked over and bent down as she slowly and methodically asked me, "Teacher Kelsey, do you sleep in an apartment?" She was SO proud of herself for saying this complete sentence that she learned all on her own.  Her peers looked on in awe as I replied, "Yes!  I sleep in an apartment!" While in the real world that is a very strange question to ask someone, I was incredibly proud of her for learning something new on her own and practicing it in front of the entire class!  

My older kids are very independent and absorb everything that I say. I absolutely adore my one M1 class because it is a refreshing change of pace from being with little kids all day. I am actually able to hold conversations with them which also means that we are able to do more interactive activities. We talk about friends and our plans for the weekend and eating out. I love having this small group of 13 year old students because you can truly see the personality and uniqueness in each and every one of them. 

Here are pictures of one of my classrooms and the foreign teachers office:

The TV's are great and I use PowerPoint in every class!

Teacher's Office

Outside of school everything has been smooth and simple as I'm learning to "make my own normal". I am slowly mastering driving a scooter, I am exploring more of town, and I joined a gym right around the corner from where I live! 

Swinging by the sea in Phuket

I have also been traveling a lot on the weekends. A few weekends ago I traveled to Phuket to meet up with some friends from XploreAsia to celebrate a birthday. We went to the beach, visited markets, and sang karaoke until the sun came up (just kidding, it was only 11 pm, you know me). It was refreshing to spend time with a large group of friends and to remind myself that being in Thailand isn’t all work. 

This past weekend I had an amazing experience at a yoga retreat at Krabi Life Homestay. I left for the bus station Friday after school, hopped on a bus and arrived at the homestay by 8:30. I was greeted by our yoga retreat host, Inanna, and the homestay owner, Rong.

My "room" at Krabi Life Homestay

Inanna showed me to my room and then we ate a delicious curry dinner. Saturday and Sunday were the perfect balance of yoga, meditation, hiking, chakra workshops and relaxing. On Sunday morning, we woke up at 4:30 AM to climb 1,237 steps to watch the sunrise at Tiger Cave Temple. This was easily one of the best views that I have seen so far during my time here in Thailand. For the entire weekend, Krabi Life Homestay had some of the most incredible Thai food I have tried since moving here. It

Tiger Cave Temple view of Krabi

was spectacular sharing this weekend with a group of six strangers in such a special place. 

This weekend moved spiritual mountains for me. I had forgotten the strength and energy that comes from practicing yoga in a group rather than alone. I had forgotten how strong my body is to be able to climb 1,237 steps to a temple and still smile at the end. I had forgotten how brave and independent I am after not being phased by jumping on a motor bike taxi, bus, and van to a new place by myself. These past few weeks have been exactly what I needed to remind me that this is where I am meant to be right now.

The open air yoga studio @ Krabi Life Homestay

Before I go, I want to share an amazing surprise that I had this morning. I FaceTime my parents a few mornings a week before school so that we can talk and so that I can start my day off with a smile. This morning when I called my parents, my dad answered and said, "Kels there are some other people who want to say hi to you too." Not knowing what to expect, on the other side of the line were my aunts and uncles, cousin, and grandparents. What a marvelous surprise! The phone was passed around so that I could say hello and see everyone's smiling and beautiful faces. I have never felt so much love to start my day.

Views from the Tiger Cave Temple

So here's to being humbled by new places, people, and experiences  every moment of every day. And here's to being happy and blessed to be able to call this beautiful place home. I can't wait to see what the upcoming months have in store!