Sunday, December 21, 2008

Rudolph the red-nosed buffalo...

You will no doubt be relieved to know that I have decided that I will no longer open my posts with elaborate apologies for the paucity of my reports from up here, but simply glide serenely into the latest news...

First, the weather...

Up here on the misty Mekong, the big, dry teak leaves are falling with their usual clumsy clatter, the restaurants continue their wild serenade of completely different music played at the same time. But not so loudly that I can't sit out here on my little balcony in the balmy air that passes for a wintry afternoon in these parts, before the evening chill sets in. (Early mornings are bloody cold, and all we have in the way of actual winter.)

The rains have abruptly ceased, the roads are rutted and dusty instead of rutted and muddy, and the rivers are falling, but still fairly big, with no trace yet of the massive sandbank that usually appears outside our house every year.

How am I?

Am I still happy? I ask myself that question on a daily basis, and the answer is still a resounding YES!!! The tourists slowed down a bit during the Bangkok Airport Unpleasantness, and are taking a while to build up again, but as long as one stays out of the little tourist strip, life goes on unchanged.

Teaching

I am unconscionably busy with teaching and training, but loving it. At last count, I'm up to 37.5 contact hours per week, (between Amantaka Resort and Pasabandith College) which probably accounts for that stunned feeling and the baggy eyes that are my usual mien these days. My New Year's resolution is to bring some sanity to that regime, by cutting teaching hours to allow for some preparation time, currently minimal, due to the need to eat, sleep and take the odd shower. The upside of this timetable, of course, is that I spend far less time in Bacchanalian pursuits with my friends at the wine bar, some of you will be happy to hear.

But my lovely students make everything allright, even the recalcitrant ones who refuse to remember what a verb is and still say ge how instead of guest house. Recently, we held a massive Exorcism ceremony---Amanataka is being built on the old hospital site and is positively reeking with bad spirits and threats to one's composure---which involved two hours of chanting, no fewer than 22 monks and the entire staff of the hotel, plus management and guests. At one point I turned around and saw all 126 of my trainees smiling at me and it was a wonderful moment that I will never forget.

As far as my employment goes, Ping is as wily as ever. I am waiting until he renews my visa before I start hassling him about various sources of discontent, but I know he needs me far more than I need him.

My students there are learning Writing and English for Everyday Activities. The first is made difficult by the fact that no one has told them about sentences, punctuation, parts of speech and little things like that so I have to start from the beginning again. The EEA class is learning how to talk about catching a bus, using shaving cream, using a toaster, none of which they will probably ever need to do and know nothing about. Never mind, as I keep saying, they are all gorgeous and I love every minute of my teaching time.

I have the first few volunteer teachers starting soon, despite Ping's attempt to ignore my efforts to set up a co=teaching project. Had a great and unexpected trial run with this when Brisbane teacher Susan Whiting showed up the other day saying that two friends had told her to look me up here. We had a great time over dinner and a bottle of wine and then I enveigled her into taking two of my classes that I couldn't do due to work at the hotel and she did a great job! The students were delighted to hear another voice and Ping was no doubt tickled pink that he didn't have to PAY anyone to take my classes.

Amantaka Resort is still a building site with Opening Day receding steadily into the distant future. (Probably March). I am actually pleased as it gives me more time to prepare my charges for their jobs.

It's a huge task. From security guards to sous-chefs they all have different challenges, levels, vocabulary, etc. many have never used a knife and fork or seen a French fry, and now they are being trained to handle silver service and to know their croutons from their choucroute. And all of it has to come out of my head...

Monk-y business....

Recently I sponsored my maid, Mimi's, son Thep to go into the temple as a novice. He seemed a bit lost, with three sisters, the two little ones very bright and the older one very capable and poised, so I suggested the idea and he leaped at it. This meant that Mimi and I went along and spoke to the abbot of the temple I had chosen for him---the best in town---- and happily, we got him in!!!

Then we went out and bought all the orange bits and pieces he will need, robes, bag, umbrella plus bedding, bowl and spoon, begging bowl, etc. Then an auspicious day was chosen and we had a great ceremony, starting with a procession from their house; twelve year-old Thep --all in white robes---and his father going first, Dad Keo with his hand on the lad's shoulders and an umbrella over his head, followed by me carrying his robes, and then the elderly ladies of the village, lustily singing wailing, traditional songs and clapping, then Mimi and guests carrying various things, especially my young friend Phone, who kindly volunteered to mastermind the whole thing with two of his friends.

At the temple we presented gifts to all the monks and novices and there was an elaborate ceremony in which I had to sit at the front and ceremonially hand him his orange get-up, and there was lots of chanting and tossing of rice and lollies. At some point Thep went off with some older novices and they dressed him in his orange robes for the first time and he came out beaming from ear to ear. The old monk doing the ceremony was stone deaf and very ancient so he kept forgetting his prayers and chants. The village elders running the show had to keep reminding him what to say and do and everyone had a good-natured laugh about it all.

I paid for it as his parents couldn't, but it means I get a lot of merit for my next life. Now we take it in turns to take food to the temple every day and I've paid for him to have a special English course, so his parents are especially delighted. It's basically for the 5 years of high school, so he gets a good education.

Christmas in a Buddhist Climate

Now the next celebration is Christmas, which up here consists of shops decorated with masses of multicoloured tinsel and lights, waiters in Santa hats and expats retreating to restaurants for dinners and parties, although I'll be working every day anyway, I imagine.

Tonight I'm off to an opening of my friend Thep's (different one) latest paintings and tomorrow to my friend Ric's baci ceremony to bless his new house with dinner for 12. Then on Christamas Eve, our little coterie of Lao/French/Canadian friends are having dinner at LÉlephant, followed by a private party hosted by our friend Keo at his wine bar. And that doesn't even include Christmas Day! So one's social life is still active which is very gratifying and jolly.

Help!!!!!!!!!

But, jolly as we are, this year as usual, I am appealing to everyone I know to help me to help people up here. As I mentioned in my last post, I need people to help me send Phone, a promising young man, to medical school on Vientiane. I have paid his first term fees, but I am hoping that everyone who is able will help me with this as he needs living expenses as well and it's a long course! It will cost about $150 Usd per month, so it's a big ask, but I'm hoping that a little bit from a number of people will do the trick......

On the Home Front...

The boys and I are still getting on famously and our little house is a very happy one, except for the recent trauma of losing our darling doggie Dam-dam under the wheels of a truck, followed by the loss of little Buster, one of our replacement puppies only a few weeks later. Now we cling to the gorgeous Milo, a fluffy caramel and white all-breed, with lovely smudgy eyes and a delightful personality, despite a tendency to poop in inconvenient places.

So despite deeply missing my family and friends, you can see that I am FINE and thriving. I hope you all are, too and that you will have an excellent Christmas Holiday and New Year !

Now to fashion a Christmas tree out of banana leaves.....