Beach Bonding and Stupid Sickness

WARNING: CONTENT OF THIS ENTRY MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR THE SQUEEMISH. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED. ;)
Sawat di kaa! Yes, I know that it has been an awfully long time since I have updated, but I have a legitimate excuse. I have been sick pretty much nonstop for the last week and a half. It has not been fun. Last Wednesday, I woke up with the stomach flu. I’ll spare you the details, but trust me when I say that it was quite unpleasant.

I unfortunately did not have a lot of time to recover, however, as we were all leaving on Thursday afternoon to go to Pattaya, which is a coastal town. I rested up as much as I could, and I’m glad I was able to make it as it turned out to be a lot of fun!

Once we arrived and got settled in, a group of us decided to go out and walk along the beach. The water was nice and warm, but not very clear. One nice thing, though, was that the beach is raked daily, as I learned, so there is very little trash and debris. That makes it very pleasant to walk along.

Anyway, so we were walking along the beach, and a few of us decided to jump in for a swim. I decided to join them, and we had some fun splashing around…until a jellyfish got me. Yes, that’s right. I’d been in the water for maybe 15 minutes when I got stung by the horrible little creature. Understandably, that was it for my time in the water.

By the time I got out, my ankle was starting to throb quite a bit. I had a few offers from people to pee on me (thanks guys!), but I figured I’d just go take a shower instead. Unfortunately, the shower didn’t help very much. My roommate, Jill, checked in on me, and we decided to give the urine thing a try, mostly just to see if it would work. By the way, it didn’t. I ended up using some toothpaste instead, and the menthol soothed the burn quite well, however.

The next day, the farang, the Filipino, and the Thai teachers were all grouped up and sent out into the poor city of Pattaya for a scavenger hunt. We did ridiculous things, like pretend that a stranger on the street was someone famous and ask for their autograph, put a leash on a soi dog (stray) and take him for a walk, have a 7-11 employee do a cartwheel in the middle of the store, etc. We took pictures of everything we did, and it was awesome!

After the scavenger hunt, we hung out on the beach for the rest of the day. I did end up going in, but left once the jellyfish made themselves known. It was very nice getting to know the other staff in a relaxed environment away from the school.
Sunday, I went to what will likely become my new church in Thailand, Evangelical Church of Bangkok (ECB), and heard an amazing sermon, as per usual. He was discussing how Christians often have a tendency to become too focused on their circumstances that they forget their God who is above all things. The illustration that he used was the story of Paul and Silas being thrown in prison. Instead of focusing on the fact that they were beaten and locked up, they praised God. When the prison doors were opened, they stayed where they were instead of seeking their own freedom. Rather than seeking to preserve their own lives, they protected the life of their jailer. In short, when the obstacles in their lives were turned over to God, what seemed insurmountable became laughably easy to overcome. Referring back to the previous weeks’ sermon on Jericho, the walls that were so intimidating literally crumbled before them. They did not have to do anything except listen and obey.
After being rejuvenated spiritually, we left to find some physical nourishment, thus beginning the weekly debate of ‘where to eat.’ In this case, it was not too difficult as Patrick, a volunteer who had been with us for a few weeks, was to leave soon, so we left it up to him. He chose Lebanese, and it was unbelievably delicious!
The next few days were typical, until Wednesday, when I felt sick again. I KNOW!! This was definitely different from the stomach flu, however, so I went to the hospital after school to see a doctor. Another staff member had gotten very sick, and I apparently looked as dead as he did, which heightened my concern and encouraged me to seek immediate help.

And so began my introduction to the Thai medical system. First off, the doctors here dress impeccably. Instead of scrubs, they are all dressed in linen suits. They look very sharp. As I was clearly a foreigner, they took good care of me in making sure that I knew where I was supposed to go. Most of the people there spoke English very well, and many doctors go to medical school in the States. That made the communication process much easier.

The doctor was pretty concerned about my fever, as I had a temperature of 38.1, which translates into just over 100 degrees fereinheit. He gave me an antibiotic, an anti-parasitic, extra-strength Tylenol, throat lozenges, and an order to come back on Friday if I still had a fever. One thing about visiting the doctor here in Thailand is that you will never leave empty handed!

Fortunately, my fever did scale off for the most part, so I did not have to return on Friday. Instead, I’ve been resting, drinking lots of water, and attempting to eat something solid at least once a day. On the plus side, I’ve lost about 3 kilos since my first stomach flu. I just hope I don’t gain it all back once I can eat again!
I am still not feeling well enough to return to work on Monday, but I am hoping that I will be able to go back on Tuesday or Wednesday. I really miss my kids! They are truly adorable and have worked their way deep into my heart. I miss playing with them and seeing the lights of understanding go on above their heads. If ever I was in doubt about whether or not I should be a teacher, I now know for sure that I am exactly where I belong. And praise God for that!

Halleluiah! God is Good!