My Next Job Is Professional Beach Bum

Krabi, I miss you already. You were so beautiful (as in, probably the most beautiful beaches anywhere in the world) and, for the most part, did a thorough job of refreshing me from the particular weariness that comes from teaching children who mostly do not want to be taught. Physically, you could have been a bit kinder to us.

We left Friday and after traveling on a van, bus (for a 10 hour overnight, it wasn’t that bad), truck, and long-tail boat, we made it to Railay. Railay isn’t an island, but it’s still only accessible by boat and it’s teeny tiny. And also absolutely gorgeous. After the long trip to get there, we were all in a rush to get a room, change, and run for the beach. And I almost made it, too.

We had changed and were on our way to grab lunch before hitting the beach, when I started feeling a little weird. But I’d woken up with a cold on Friday (which I probably caught from Jenny, who’d been sick all week) and figured it was acting up again. But by the time we got a table, I couldn’t stand up, or really move at all and I started reconsidering the cold theory.

And then I realized I hadn’t had anything to drink in 16 hours. And looking back on it, I can’t figure out why. Maybe it was my cold, or I was trying to keep from using the bathroom on the bus, who knows. But for the first time since coming to Thailand, I wasn’t thirsty and I also wasn’t paying attention. Sitting in an air conditioned bus, you don’t really notice but once you’re on the water, in the heat, you notice really fast.

Unfortunately, by that point I was so dehydrated I felt too full to drink anything. So Jenny helped me back to the room, where I spent the next six hours sleeping and drinking water. By dinner time, I was mostly recovered, if sad to have missed my first beach day.

I was only the first to be stuck down that weekend. Or second, if you count Jenny’s continuing cold. Katie Poor and Brittany fell victim to a stomach bug and we decided that there wouldn’t be a time during the trip that all of us would be healthy at the same time. And, so sadly, we did not get to go rock climbing, which was the thing we really wanted to do, since Railay is famous for climbing.

But despite our bodies attempts to keep us down this week, we still had an amazing time. We braved a more treacherous than it seemed climb to a lagoon (the last leg turned out to be too treacherous and we didn’t actually make it all the way, but the climb made us feel accomplished and muddy), logged some quality beach time, went kayaking, met really cool people, and spent a perfect day snorkeling.

We returned yesterday bruised and battered from snorkeling and climbing (my leg is still stained with mud) and slightly weak from our various illnesses. But we are also sporting excellent tans, we have beautiful pictures, and I managed not to spend my entire month’s salary, even with island prices. I woke up this morning almost ready to go back to teaching.

It seemed like school wasn’t quite ready either, because it was unusually quiet when I got there this morning. With 3000 students, school is never quiet and in the morning, when I’m not yet completely awake and they all want to say hello to me individually, it seems especially loud. But this morning there were only a few hundred students milling around and they all seemed subdued. Suspicious.

When I got to my office, I asked one of the teachers where everyone was. “Home,” she said. I waited. And waited. “Why are they home?” I finally asked. And it turns out the answer was swine flu. As in, a couple students have it. And everyone else seems to have the regular flu or is too afraid to come to school, because more than half the students were missing. Maybe two-thirds. I asked if school would be canceled (some other schools have been for the same reason) and was told there was a meeting in the afternoon to discuss it. So I went through my day, teaching classes that were missing half the students and trying to convince people that no, I really didn’t need a mask. This afternoon, I had a conversation with the same teacher from before and it left me with a feeling I’ve become very familiar with. The feeling that yes, that conversation did happen and no, it doesn’t make sense, and yet I’m the only one that thinks so.

Me: So what happened in the meeting?
Teacher: Oh, there was no meeting. The hospital said not to gather in groups, so the director canceled the meeting.
Me: Oh. So I guess there’s no school tomorrow.
Teacher: Yes, we still have school.
Me: But you said we’re not supposed to gather in groups.
Teacher: Yes, that’s why they canceled the meeting.
Me: But we still have school.
Teacher: Yes.
Me: …Okay, moving on. My M6’s didn’t show up for class today. Are they all sick?
Teacher: Oh, no. M6 does not have class today.
Me: Of course they don’t. Will they have class tomorrow?
Teacher: Maybe. If you go to class and they do not come, then they don’t have class.
Me: I’m going to stop asking questions now.

So now I have no idea if I’ll have school tomorrow. The teachers say yes, but they are often wrong. I suppose I’ll find out if my van doesn’t show up tomorrow.