Wang Chan, Rayong, Thailand

Ratings
Overall
5
Benefits: 5
Support: 5
Fun: 2
Facilities: 3
Safety: 5
Review

Packing up and leaving my air-conditioned home, with heated water, a queen bed with multiple fluffy pillows, the easily accessible grocery store around the corner, 24/7 food delivery service, and my loving family and friends to living in Rayong, Thailand where I have a shared bathroom, a shower with freezing cold water, one 7 eleven, and a variety of spiders, insects, and geckos to keep me company was a difficult transition that also included teaching english to high schoolers for the first time. There were times I felt it was too much, particularly when I first arrived in Bangkok and was informed that my luggage was being held at the airport due to complications resulting in the airport holding all of my belongings for two weeks or when all of the money in my wallet was stollen while I was running on the school track. It's funny though because if I could rewind and undue all of the difficult things that happened to me I wouldn't change a thing, none of it, because I have come so far and I have learned so much from all of my mistakes. This experience has made me less afraid. Less afraid to ask questions, to try, to fail and to learn. The relationships I've built here have been so genuine and humbling. My tutoring sessions with my students quickly became hang out sessions where we would not only learn but go out to dinner, water parks, or make sandwiches and watch a movie. I became not only a teacher but a friend. I even attended a thai wedding for one of my co-workers and wore a traditional thai dress. As my year abroad is coming to an end I can't help but plan for my next trip hopefully teaching english at another school in another part of the world where I can use the skills I have gained here in Thailand and continue to better myself and make a difference in someone else's life.

Would you recommend this program?
Yes, I would
Year Completed
2018
Media
Photos