Fancy Dinner in Pratthanathom

Wednesday, 18 August 2004

We had parent conferences and an open houe after school today. It started with a very formal presentation with coffee and muffins and a welcome to me and farewell and thank you to Jill. As is usual Thai custom, we the English teachers were sitting at the head of the table, near the administration. The parents were very complimentary of Jill and the English Program thus far (This is the first year of the program's existence, and the school year started in May.) They are sad to see Jill go and want her to change her mind about going back to the states. I know Jill feels conflicted herself. She has become so absorbed in the life and culture of the people, and has made many close friends here.

Tonight, Pi Paw, the financial officer of the school, took us out to dinner, along with a team of six auditors who are auditing the school. We drove about half an hour away to a city called Pratthanathom. The restaurant we went to was fancy dancy with resort-like grounds, and you could tell it was expensive when there were men in uniforms waiting with an armful of umbrellas (it was pouring out) to greet us at our car doors. As we walked from our car to the restaurant door, past the beautifully terraced gardens and lake, I laughed out loud as we heard Jimmy Buffet songs playing on the loudspeaker, and then I noticed the very European décor inside, which caught me off-guard. Pi Paw even commented that we would have to visit the bathrooms because they are air-conditioned. (Later, when we did, she did point out the air condition, but it wasn’t even on, although the portable fan was.)

It was a very pleasant dinner of seafood dishes and Pi Paw, as all Thai people do, kept refilling my plate and soup bowl as soon as I would put the last bite into my mouth (part of this is normal Thai courtesy, but I also forgot how to say no thank you in Thai.) It was a very expensive dinner I am sure. This is the first time I've eaten in a fine dining Thai restaurant, which wasn't a street vendor or a restaurant off the beaten path by the river. If it’s one thing for sure, I know that I will gain a few pounds during my time living here in Thailand, for I am eating well, and no one exercises here! (Except for aerobics, which is a huge thing here, especially at the large outdoor court across the street from part of our school campus.)