Waking up at 7AM on a Saturday (one of the two days you have out of the entire week to sleep in, mind you) to act as a mandatory camp counselor may sound like pure drudgery. This was my attitude on the whole matter when contacted by Media Kids, my agency here in Thailand, to help organize and lead a high school English camp. After a long week of teaching, the very last thing I wanted to do was travel to Akat Amnuai and act as team leader for a group of kids who would probably abhor participating as much as I would. Oh, how my notions were misguided.

In short, I ended up embracing the day and having a blast with my brilliant students! You're probably wondering: Now just what is an English camp? Essentially, students pay extra money to enroll in English camps that take place every weekend throughout Thailand. The important thing to note here: these students want to be here and are seeking out other methods to learn English. This culminated in a very different vibe than my normal routine, which entails the forcing of kids who are reluctant to learn in a classroom setting. The day is generally scheduled with games, activities, and contests that disguise learning with "oodles of fun." I was a complete skeptic at first, yet I'm pleasantly surprised by how many laughs I had with my crew of youngsters.

The theme of the camp was "ASEAN Community" which stands for "The Association of Southeast Asian Nations." Recently, Thailand has begun to stress its vital geo-political and economic role in the world, in conjunction with Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Phillippines, Singapore, Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. The Thai government is aiming to embed the motto of "One Vision, One Identity, and One Community" within its schools. This way, students begin to learn more about the history, culture, and politics of the nine other Southeast Asian countries.

As team leader of "The Wolves," (each team was given a diverse animal mascot), I made up quite an impressive chant that had my students swiping their wolverine claws and howling in total badass-ery. We were given the ASEAN countries Singapore and Brunei (which I honestly had zero previous knowledge of). Our teams were asked to build makeshift museums and incorporate aspects of the country's culture in a creative presentation. Their innovation was certainly a sight to behold, as most of my group were phenomenal artists.

A clever exhibit of paper cuisine!

Cuties!

David, Charlotte, and Rina covered in baby powder after a messy game.

Teeeamwork!

BEEP! BEEP. BEEP!

You roll over: Your 600 baht Nokia cell flashes 5:45 AM. I still have 15 more minutes of sweet, sweet slumber.

....BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

You roll over again. This time, with disdain, knowing full and well this wake up call is for real. 7:00 AM. Shizah!  You jump out of bed in haste, race to brush your teeth, slip on a slightly wrinkled blouse and a matronly black skirt that practically grazes the floor, and fly out the door.

The clock strikes 7:30 AM and somehow you've managed to stumble to Sakolrajwittayanukul's front gate. Sweeping your hair back into what you hope is a sleek, professional look, you then plaster the biggest smile you can muster on your face. "Good morning!" "Hello!" you chant over and over like some perverted parrot to the sea of students flooding the school entrance. In this small junction of time, you can already feel the sweat pooling on your lower back and beads of moisture sliding down your cheeks.

Just another start to a teaching day in Thailand.

Indeed, this was the beginning of my first week and life as "Teacher Christine" at Sakolrajwittayanukul School, the largest and most prestigious high school in the Southeastern province of Thailand. The school has about 4,000 students ranging from ages 12-18. I have the pleasure of teaching a grand total of 880 students, comprising 17 classes. If I could sum up my job as a high school teacher in a third-world country, I would relate that it's not altogether hard, but entirely taxing. Note: the classrooms have no air-conditioning, so by the time I'm done teaching a fifty-minute class, I'm drenched in sweat and running to my next lesson looking like a waterlogged train wreck.

My Matayom 1's (12-13 year olds) English ability levels are all over the place, which has made teaching that much more difficult. These little hooligans also have attention spans equivalent to goldfish and are just entering puberty, so you can imagine how much time I've had to spend managing the classroom, rather than truly teaching. For example, last Friday I was introducing myself, and a student in the back literally pulled out a guitar and started playing. Although I complain, these kids challenge me everyday, and I now thrive off of their defiance. They are so receptive to my seemingly "witty" jokes and are interested in having a giant, pale falang teacher in their presence, that I can often use this outlandishness to my advantage.

I also teach Matayom 6 (17-18 year olds). These students are in their final year of high school, and most are planning to attend university. Simply put, they are my angels. They are conversationally adept at English and most importantly, are quiet and diligent workers when I give them an assignment. Although I must deal with different problems (like the class cooing "oooohh" when I choose a male student for an activity), I'm able to relate to this age group more and talk to them on a personal level.

I'm still adjusting to the 9-5 working lifestyle, yet it feels good to be busy and making money once again. I have a great friend base here in Sakon Nakhon, which are a mixture of American and British foreign teachers. Everyday Thailand grows on me! I now see why so many people travel to this country thinking they'll visit for a couple of months, then end up staying another five years. The food is amazing, the people are helpful and whimsical, and everything is so cheap. How could a starving, post-undergrad student not love it here?

The hustle and bustle of The Wax Castle parade in Sakon Nakhon.

The renowned wax castle!

My newly-built apartment complex.

My lavish room!

Our Thai girlfriends at the local club, The Golden Pond, on Halloween.

"Modeling" for a co-worker's new Thai textile line.

Morning assembly on Scouts' Day.

The English Department office (aka, my second home).

Teacher Christine and Teacher Rina, too early in the morning.

Traditional Som Tam at a Thai wedding I attended.