Christmas Eve day began with gifts received from a few students, including two who aren't even Christian. The day continued with wine (brought from Mae Sot when I first arrived here two months ago) and dinner at a tea shop, owned by one of my favorite people in Nupho.
I don't believe this tea shop owner ever stops smiling - and if he does, I've never seen it. Tonight when I walked by his shop, he was strumming his guitar and singing. He immediately stopped long enough to flash a big smile and ask "where are you going/coming from?" (as is typical in Burmese culture), before I waved goodbye and continued on here, to the internet shop. I truly wonder if he smiles when he sleeps too.
Christmas Day began with "Feliz Navidad" blaring from the Chin (an ethnic group in Burma) church next door (Zion Baptist church) at about 7am.
It continued with oatmeal (with cinnamon) and hot chocolate, sent by my colleague's mom; then lunch, shortly followed by a nap; then late lunch #1 at the Karen church at 4pm (pronounced Kah-rehn - another ethnic group in Burma and I believe the largest ethnic group residing as refugees in Thailand); closely followed by late lunch #2 at the Chin church at 5pm, and then Heinekens and pad thai shared with an Irish, a Dutch, and an American ex-pat for dinner at about 7pm.
Spending the whole day eating was pretty typical for Christmas, but I can't say that four plates of rice in four hours was typical for Christmas - or any other day.
Mainstreet, Nupoh
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Stories from Nupho
I am teaching my students how to write summaries and book reports in preparation for writing their own reports in a few weeks. One of their homework assignments was to write a short plot about their lives. They all chose an event or period of time in their lives and wrote a brief "plot" about it. Here are some of the events they shared with me this week:
One student had a baby last year, a daughter, who passed away when she was just about four months old. My student explained how sad she was after this event and how taking classes at ESC (the school where I teach) and learning English, along with the passage of time, has helped her to attempt to recover from this tragedy.
This student's husband explained how his father was arrested by the Burmese government in 1988 for participating in the student uprising (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8888_Uprising), where thousands of students were killed for opposing the government. His father spent over 18 years in jail. After his father's release, his father continued to be involved in the political movement against the government and was forced to leave Burma after his involvement in the Saffron Revolution in 2007 (http://uscampaignforburma.org/learn-about-burma/saffron-revolution). His father has been resettled to the United States.
Another student, a Buddhist monk, is Karen (pronounced Kah-rehn) and is from Karen state in Burma. Karen people have been the target of on-going ethnic violence by the Burmese government and its military for more than 25 years (http://www.tbbc.org/camps/history.htm) and the violence continues today (http://www.burmapartnership.org/2010/11/karen-villagers-still-fleeing-post-election-attacks-by-burmese-army/). My student wrote about how his village was attacked and burned when he was about 11 years old. His father was taken away by Burmese soldiers at that time. He is now 26 years old, he hasn't seen his father since that time, and believes that he is dead.
A fourth student wrote about how her father left her and her mother before she was a year old. Because of her father's abandonment, she told how her mother's life has been very hard. However, she explained how her life has been so easy because her mother has always put her needs first.
Other students wrote about an imagined future, a few writing about what life they hope to lead, if they are resettled to the United States. One of these students wrote that she hoped to be a Burmese teacher for Burmese children in the U.S. She explained that she doesn't think that the children will want to speak Burmese if they grow up in the U.S. So, she hopes that she may be able to encourage them to learn to not only speak Burmese, but to also read and write the language as well. She also plans to donate money to her church with her first paycheck, give to the poor, and also help orphans.
I have never taught in the U.S., so I don't know if it is typical for students to share such deeply personal information with a teacher, just for a homework assignment, particularly one they have only known a few months. However, I was really taken aback by the honesty of my students with this assignment. I felt really privileged to be entrusted with this information, as I am unsure if they were really conscious of the fact that what they were writing in their personal notebook would be shared outside of it. I wanted to share their stories with all of you though, because I felt that sometimes we all forget how privileged we are compared with many people in the world - and this definitely reminded me.
One student had a baby last year, a daughter, who passed away when she was just about four months old. My student explained how sad she was after this event and how taking classes at ESC (the school where I teach) and learning English, along with the passage of time, has helped her to attempt to recover from this tragedy.
This student's husband explained how his father was arrested by the Burmese government in 1988 for participating in the student uprising (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8888_Uprising), where thousands of students were killed for opposing the government. His father spent over 18 years in jail. After his father's release, his father continued to be involved in the political movement against the government and was forced to leave Burma after his involvement in the Saffron Revolution in 2007 (http://uscampaignforburma.org/learn-about-burma/saffron-revolution). His father has been resettled to the United States.
Another student, a Buddhist monk, is Karen (pronounced Kah-rehn) and is from Karen state in Burma. Karen people have been the target of on-going ethnic violence by the Burmese government and its military for more than 25 years (http://www.tbbc.org/camps/history.htm) and the violence continues today (http://www.burmapartnership.org/2010/11/karen-villagers-still-fleeing-post-election-attacks-by-burmese-army/). My student wrote about how his village was attacked and burned when he was about 11 years old. His father was taken away by Burmese soldiers at that time. He is now 26 years old, he hasn't seen his father since that time, and believes that he is dead.
A fourth student wrote about how her father left her and her mother before she was a year old. Because of her father's abandonment, she told how her mother's life has been very hard. However, she explained how her life has been so easy because her mother has always put her needs first.
Other students wrote about an imagined future, a few writing about what life they hope to lead, if they are resettled to the United States. One of these students wrote that she hoped to be a Burmese teacher for Burmese children in the U.S. She explained that she doesn't think that the children will want to speak Burmese if they grow up in the U.S. So, she hopes that she may be able to encourage them to learn to not only speak Burmese, but to also read and write the language as well. She also plans to donate money to her church with her first paycheck, give to the poor, and also help orphans.
I have never taught in the U.S., so I don't know if it is typical for students to share such deeply personal information with a teacher, just for a homework assignment, particularly one they have only known a few months. However, I was really taken aback by the honesty of my students with this assignment. I felt really privileged to be entrusted with this information, as I am unsure if they were really conscious of the fact that what they were writing in their personal notebook would be shared outside of it. I wanted to share their stories with all of you though, because I felt that sometimes we all forget how privileged we are compared with many people in the world - and this definitely reminded me.
Many of my students are single young men, here in Nupho without a family to support them and no way to earn a steady income. They are forbidden from working by the Thai government and so are limited to odd jobs they can secure from time to time. While in most contexts single, young, educated men in their twenties would have many advantages, including a generally higher education level than their female counterparts in the job market and more disposable income than older men with families to support; in Nupho, they are at a disadvantage.
These young men actually seem to be one of the most vulnerable groups here, as their rations are smaller and they are forced to share already cramped quarters with other single male friends. Additionally, they lack the family support that is so central in Burmese culture. Unfortunately, many of them become depressed, having no work or family to keep them busy, and they often spend too much time drinking as a result. They have so much potential, but being on their own makes it hard to remain positive about their futures.
Despite the challenges they face, my students seem to be on the right track for the most part, even though I do worry about their futures if they are forced to languish too long in a refugee camp. One of them was out of class last week, after finding some temporary work in a nearby town. He told me that he hadn't read any further in the book assigned for class since I had left for my visa run two weeks earlier. Then after a discussion of the book in class, I come to find out that had just "skimmed" the last 100+ pages while I was away. So, not only had he kept up with the reading for class, he had finished the book three weeks ahead of everyone else. He said "skimming" it didn't count.
These young men actually seem to be one of the most vulnerable groups here, as their rations are smaller and they are forced to share already cramped quarters with other single male friends. Additionally, they lack the family support that is so central in Burmese culture. Unfortunately, many of them become depressed, having no work or family to keep them busy, and they often spend too much time drinking as a result. They have so much potential, but being on their own makes it hard to remain positive about their futures.
Despite the challenges they face, my students seem to be on the right track for the most part, even though I do worry about their futures if they are forced to languish too long in a refugee camp. One of them was out of class last week, after finding some temporary work in a nearby town. He told me that he hadn't read any further in the book assigned for class since I had left for my visa run two weeks earlier. Then after a discussion of the book in class, I come to find out that had just "skimmed" the last 100+ pages while I was away. So, not only had he kept up with the reading for class, he had finished the book three weeks ahead of everyone else. He said "skimming" it didn't count.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Things to know about Nupho...
The residents of Nupho - of all ages - are huge fans of Celine Dion, Justin Bieber, Scorpion, the Eagles (every Burmese boy with a guitar can play "Hotel California"), Boy bands, all things Korean (i.e. movies, soap operas and boy bands), horrid Burmese soap operas, Avril LaVigne, and life-sized posters of puppies and babies to decorate their homes.
You will often see men here taking care of their children, at least the ones under five. In Mali/Tanzania, it was rare to see a man holding a child, never mind traveling with one on his own. However, it is common to see men carrying, traveling with, and being generally affectionate with their children.
It is customary to remove your shoes before entering anyone's house. It is also customary in offices, at school, and often in many shops as well. It is disrespectful to ignore this custom.
I teach my classes barefoot.
People use umbrellas more often to protect themselves from the sun than from the rain.
If you invite your students to lunch, breakfast, or even just for tea, they will inevitably insist on paying for you, despite the fact that you invited them. Being crippled by a lack of understanding of the language doesn't help when attempting to ensure that the tea shop owner will take your money, instead of theirs.
Anything but Burmese traditional music is copied from someone, somewhere. Currently, I am listening to the World Cup song made famous by Shakira being sung in Burmese. Surely they don't have a copyright for that...
You cannot be Burmese without loving tea leaf salad (http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSJAF3DYJp4xYpp55fznJ9v7dc0GJgGowZGyV4ut5HnIl3RsGsPbw)
They chew beetel nut and still manage to procreate - (http://www.yachtaragorn.com/photos/Gallery/SumbaBetelNutManAndKids.jpg) - the beetel nut: (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Areca_nut).
All of their "coffee" is in packets and consists of 40-60% sugar and less than 10% coffee.
If you order tea, a quarter of your cup with consist of sugary condensed milk.
None of the residents of Nupho understand how you cannot eat copious amounts of rice at EVERY meal.
They all love Aung San Suu Kyi.
They pronounce "Kyi" like the letter "G." Apparently, when the British transcribed the language into our alphabet that sound got lost in translation.
They are former photo-journalists, farmers, tour guides, truck drivers, teachers, government workers, etc...
They love their country and their culture, but none that I have talked to plan to return to Burma.
It is rarely quiet - pigs squeal; the church band plays - at concert level volume, especially when it is just a practice session; 5+ rooms of 40+ students scream their lessons, in unison, at the top of their lungs, from the school next door; monasteries are blasting prayers at any and all points during the day; children squeal; drunk men gather after their one beer puts them in a stupor (Burmese men cannot hold their liquor); someone is seemingly always testing a microphone, saying approximately 20+ times (in English) "hello? hello. hello! hello, hello, hello,"; the cat whines, though not often and not loudly - but still...; radios, videos, and REALLY bad kareoke cannot be listened to at anything but full volume; guitars everywhere, and they aren't afraid to play them - or even a mandolin.
Prayer call from the mosque is the quietest thing in Nupho, except for my students when they are asked to speak or read aloud in class. They speak at inaudible levels, except maybe when I make them stand at the front of the room and speak or read aloud. Then they are wicked excited and speak at a level slightly louder than a mute.
Phone conversations overheard at the internet shop can almost entirely consist of the word "ok" repeated over and over and over and over again, in a rushed manner that indicates they are about to hang-up, but go on for 20+ minutes..."ok, ok, ok, ok.ok? ok! ok! ok, ok, ok....ok....ok, ok....ok" - 20 minutes later (click).
You will often see men here taking care of their children, at least the ones under five. In Mali/Tanzania, it was rare to see a man holding a child, never mind traveling with one on his own. However, it is common to see men carrying, traveling with, and being generally affectionate with their children.
It is customary to remove your shoes before entering anyone's house. It is also customary in offices, at school, and often in many shops as well. It is disrespectful to ignore this custom.
I teach my classes barefoot.
People use umbrellas more often to protect themselves from the sun than from the rain.
If you invite your students to lunch, breakfast, or even just for tea, they will inevitably insist on paying for you, despite the fact that you invited them. Being crippled by a lack of understanding of the language doesn't help when attempting to ensure that the tea shop owner will take your money, instead of theirs.
Anything but Burmese traditional music is copied from someone, somewhere. Currently, I am listening to the World Cup song made famous by Shakira being sung in Burmese. Surely they don't have a copyright for that...
You cannot be Burmese without loving tea leaf salad (http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSJAF3DYJp4xYpp55fznJ9v7dc0GJgGowZGyV4ut5HnIl3RsGsPbw)
They chew beetel nut and still manage to procreate - (http://www.yachtaragorn.com/photos/Gallery/SumbaBetelNutManAndKids.jpg) - the beetel nut: (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Areca_nut).
All of their "coffee" is in packets and consists of 40-60% sugar and less than 10% coffee.
If you order tea, a quarter of your cup with consist of sugary condensed milk.
None of the residents of Nupho understand how you cannot eat copious amounts of rice at EVERY meal.
They all love Aung San Suu Kyi.
They pronounce "Kyi" like the letter "G." Apparently, when the British transcribed the language into our alphabet that sound got lost in translation.
They are former photo-journalists, farmers, tour guides, truck drivers, teachers, government workers, etc...
They love their country and their culture, but none that I have talked to plan to return to Burma.
It is rarely quiet - pigs squeal; the church band plays - at concert level volume, especially when it is just a practice session; 5+ rooms of 40+ students scream their lessons, in unison, at the top of their lungs, from the school next door; monasteries are blasting prayers at any and all points during the day; children squeal; drunk men gather after their one beer puts them in a stupor (Burmese men cannot hold their liquor); someone is seemingly always testing a microphone, saying approximately 20+ times (in English) "hello? hello. hello! hello, hello, hello,"; the cat whines, though not often and not loudly - but still...; radios, videos, and REALLY bad kareoke cannot be listened to at anything but full volume; guitars everywhere, and they aren't afraid to play them - or even a mandolin.
Prayer call from the mosque is the quietest thing in Nupho, except for my students when they are asked to speak or read aloud in class. They speak at inaudible levels, except maybe when I make them stand at the front of the room and speak or read aloud. Then they are wicked excited and speak at a level slightly louder than a mute.
Phone conversations overheard at the internet shop can almost entirely consist of the word "ok" repeated over and over and over and over again, in a rushed manner that indicates they are about to hang-up, but go on for 20+ minutes..."ok, ok, ok, ok.ok? ok! ok! ok, ok, ok....ok....ok, ok....ok" - 20 minutes later (click).
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
A new school session and a new addition
So, our latest school session has begun and the students seem to be happy to be back, except when it comes to homework and quizzes - much like most American students feel everyday, I am sure. I found enough copies of an easy reader version of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" that I used in my Intermediate class today. They seemed to enjoy playing the parts and I am determined to get at least some of them to be less shy about speaking in front of others - and maybe even get them to shout every once in a while! My Burmese students are very humble and shy and when asked to read aloud, most speak in a voice barely audible to anyone, including themselves.
In other ESC (English Speaking Course - the school where I am teaching) news, we have finally gotten a cat to help to keep out the mice, or at least capture and kill them should they decide to pay us a visit. The cat doesn't seem to know what to do, or where to go though. He seems to enjoy the safety and comfort of a box previously used for computer paper, hiding under a cabinet in one of the bedrooms, or hiding out elsewhere in the school. He manages to purr and cry at the same time and we wonder if he might be a bit bipolar, not seeming to know if he is happy or sad and often seeming to be a bit of both at the same time. We aren't sure that he will actually ever capture any mice, but hopefully his mere presence, particularly his scent, will help to keep the mice from stopping by at all.
Since I originally wrote this post my Intermediate class finished "Romeo and Juliet" and loved it so much that they asked to perform an act of the play for other students at the school. They were so nervous and excited, it reminded me of how much fun I had doing plays in high school. They can't wait to read another play and will maybe perform the whole thing next time.
As for the cat, he has decided to stay and finally gotten out of the box. He has even started to follow us a bit like a dog would, which may be why I like him so much. I am not a lover of cats. Truthfully, I don't like them much at all. This cat is an exception though, particularly because he was keeping the mice away, for a while at least. We have to feed him a bit less fish, I think. We named him "Jah-lay" ("little tiger" in Burmese) and he is now a permanent fixture at the school, even joining me for class from time to time.
In other ESC (English Speaking Course - the school where I am teaching) news, we have finally gotten a cat to help to keep out the mice, or at least capture and kill them should they decide to pay us a visit. The cat doesn't seem to know what to do, or where to go though. He seems to enjoy the safety and comfort of a box previously used for computer paper, hiding under a cabinet in one of the bedrooms, or hiding out elsewhere in the school. He manages to purr and cry at the same time and we wonder if he might be a bit bipolar, not seeming to know if he is happy or sad and often seeming to be a bit of both at the same time. We aren't sure that he will actually ever capture any mice, but hopefully his mere presence, particularly his scent, will help to keep the mice from stopping by at all.
Since I originally wrote this post my Intermediate class finished "Romeo and Juliet" and loved it so much that they asked to perform an act of the play for other students at the school. They were so nervous and excited, it reminded me of how much fun I had doing plays in high school. They can't wait to read another play and will maybe perform the whole thing next time.
As for the cat, he has decided to stay and finally gotten out of the box. He has even started to follow us a bit like a dog would, which may be why I like him so much. I am not a lover of cats. Truthfully, I don't like them much at all. This cat is an exception though, particularly because he was keeping the mice away, for a while at least. We have to feed him a bit less fish, I think. We named him "Jah-lay" ("little tiger" in Burmese) and he is now a permanent fixture at the school, even joining me for class from time to time.
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