My Experiences Living Overseas as an International Teacher
I've been living overseas for 11 years now and for 10 of them I've been supporting myself with my teaching career. It's a lifestyle that suits me and I'm sure would suit other teachers too.
This lens is about me and my experiences, mainly in Thailand, but also other places I've lived abroad.
I've written a guide to finding a job teaching abroad at international schools and a number of articles on the subject too.
The Complete Guide to Securing a Job at an International School
Overseas Teachers Talk is an interview series where you can hear 7 experienced international teachers talking about their experiences teaching abroad. Get your copy today!
What Poo?
April in Thailand brings several things: the rainy season, Thai New Year and a week long vacation!
This year I am spending my Song Kran (Thai New Year) vacation in Bangkok learning how to do traditional Thai Massage at Wat Pho. Wat Pho is a Buddhist temple famous for massage practice and training.
I am attending a five day basic course with Maggie, one of my colleagues from school. If you have a copy of Overseas Teachers Talk - an Interview Series with International Teachers, you'll have heard her interview.
When we pass the exam in another 4 days (I refuse to entertain any thoughts of failure!) we'll be able to practice traditional Thai massage on healthy people. In order to practice medicinal or healing massage, we'd have to attend another course in advanced techniques.
I am attending a five day basic course with Maggie, one of my colleagues from school. If you have a copy of Overseas Teachers Talk - an Interview Series with International Teachers, you'll have heard her interview.
When we pass the exam in another 4 days (I refuse to entertain any thoughts of failure!) we'll be able to practice traditional Thai massage on healthy people. In order to practice medicinal or healing massage, we'd have to attend another course in advanced techniques.
New Job!!
I'm now teaching in the Philippines!
After 3 years in Thailand teaching in an international school I decided to move on. At the 2008 job fair here in Bangkok I was offered FOUR contracts and now I'm teaching in the Philippines!
Come to Bangkok and Become a Massage Therapist... or Just Hang Out!
Wat Pho Massage - Day 1
I was very nervous going to the massage course on my first day. I'm very squeamish about strangers touching me, and I hadn't ever had a Thai massage. Sad, I know, considering I've been living in Thailand for nearly two years!
However, now that the first day is behind me, I'm feeling great! Not least because I spent an hour receiving a massage from one of my classmates!
The course runs for 5 days, 6 hours a day. The first day starts with registration between 8-8:30am. Then the class starts at 9am.
Day 1 consists of a demonstration of the 5 positions in the morning and students are given the opportunity to add notes to the visual (it has many pictures but no words!) hand out given to them.
In the afternoon students take turns giving and receiving massages in position 1.
I'm still a little squeamish about the whole stranger touching thing, but I'm paired up with Maggie and I seem to be coping okay so far...
However, now that the first day is behind me, I'm feeling great! Not least because I spent an hour receiving a massage from one of my classmates!
The course runs for 5 days, 6 hours a day. The first day starts with registration between 8-8:30am. Then the class starts at 9am.
Day 1 consists of a demonstration of the 5 positions in the morning and students are given the opportunity to add notes to the visual (it has many pictures but no words!) hand out given to them.
In the afternoon students take turns giving and receiving massages in position 1.
I'm still a little squeamish about the whole stranger touching thing, but I'm paired up with Maggie and I seem to be coping okay so far...
Wat Pho Massage - Day 2
Day 2 starts at a more civilised 9am. Maggie and I nearly didn't make it because our friend Max the taxi driver was a bit late picking us up at Maggie's house. So we missed the prayer...To begin the massage, or in our case the day's learning, we have to say a prayer in Thai and then we meditate for one minute to clear our heads. Personally, I'm finding one minute simply isn't enough!
This morning we practised position 1 again. I was very pleased to discover that I could go through the whole 28 steps without looking at my notes. Not that it was perfect, but the teachers were quite happy with what I was doing.
It takes a while! By the time I'd practised on Maggie and then she'd practised on me, it was lunch time!
After lunch we started learning positions 2 and 3.
Position 1 is with the 'massagee' lying on their back.
Position 2 the 'massagee' is lying on their side.
Position 3 the 'massagee' is lying on their stomach.
At one point in the third position I ended up sitting on top of Maggie, we couldn't stop laughing at how ludicrous it would be for me to go back to school and tell our colleagues that I'd broken her when I sat on her!
Luckily I haven't broken her yet... there's always tomorrow!
In the Interests of Lifelong Learning - Learn Thai Massage
Thai Massage: Sacred Body Work (Avery Health Guides)
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Thai Massage
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Thai Massage Manual: Natural Therapy for Flexibility, Relaxation, and Energy Balance
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Nuad Thai: Traditional Thai Massage
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Thai Massage Workbook: Basic and Advanced Courses
Amazon Price: $13.57 (as of 12/02/2009)
Wat Pho Massage - Day 3
Maggie and I have decided to travel to the school by river boat. It's a great way to start the morning, and it is a lot cooler on the river.
I was gutted to realise that Maggie had been practising on her husband. I have no such opportunity, but that's offset by the fact that my memory for this kind of thing is better, so I don't need to go through it as much. Although she's coming over later tonight to go through it again before tomorrow.
Day 3 involved lots of practice of the 2nd and 3rd steps that we learnt yesterday afternoon.
Maggie and I got split up. Apparently we talk too much. I had four different massage 'models' before I had made it through the every step we'd learnt so far.
My final model was the tiniest Thai woman in the class, and in step 3 I had to sit on her. I seriously thought I was going to break her. I don't think she was at all confident of her safety either!
At least in the afternoon I got swapped and paired up with Kenny G, our Japanese classmate. Then we learnt the last two steps. All in all, there are nearly 100 steps to remember, but some are repeated.
Maggie and I are too slow, and we press too hard. We'll need to speed up and use a lighter touch tomorrow!
I was gutted to realise that Maggie had been practising on her husband. I have no such opportunity, but that's offset by the fact that my memory for this kind of thing is better, so I don't need to go through it as much. Although she's coming over later tonight to go through it again before tomorrow.
Day 3 involved lots of practice of the 2nd and 3rd steps that we learnt yesterday afternoon.
Maggie and I got split up. Apparently we talk too much. I had four different massage 'models' before I had made it through the every step we'd learnt so far.
My final model was the tiniest Thai woman in the class, and in step 3 I had to sit on her. I seriously thought I was going to break her. I don't think she was at all confident of her safety either!
At least in the afternoon I got swapped and paired up with Kenny G, our Japanese classmate. Then we learnt the last two steps. All in all, there are nearly 100 steps to remember, but some are repeated.
Maggie and I are too slow, and we press too hard. We'll need to speed up and use a lighter touch tomorrow!
Wat Pho Massage - Day 4
Today I got paired up with the tiny Thai woman again. She doesn't speak English but she's very sweet. I'm not going to even try and spell her name here!I managed to work faster, but she kept telling me to be 'soft' so I think she found my technique a bit hard! In the afternoon I swapped and worked on Maggie again, but I had to promise not to talk!
Tomorrow we have to pass a practical exam in order to get our certificates. Our teacher says we should pass 'no problem'!
The massaging is quite hard work. I am quite tired after 4 days of it, my thumbs especially as most of the massage is done with your thumbs.
I have favourite moves and some that I absolutely hate. If I manage to pass tomorrow, I'm going to never do some of the moves again.
Apparently, when you go for a massage, you get a selection of the moves depending on how much time you've chosen. A one hour massage may not include all of the moves we're learning. So I feel okay in chopping out some of the bits that I really don't like doing.
Well, I'm off to study the parts of the body that you aren't allowed to massage as that's something I'll probably be asked tomorrow.
Wat Pho Massage - Day 5
Graduation Day
Today we just practiced and practiced to get ready for the examination.If we did anything wrong we got sprayed with water in honour of the Thai New Year (which is a water festival!).
At 3pm we went to a different building and did a final run through of the full 5 steps as our exam.
Luckily we all passed! Maggie and I have made a pact to practice on each other at least once a month so that we don't lose the skills we've learnt this week.
Tomorrow the water throwing for Thai New Year really starts getting crazy so I'm off for a long weekend in Singapore before heading back to work on Tuesday.
Where I've been...
I've been teaching for a decade now, and travelling for longer than that.
- 1996 - 1997 London, United Kingdom
Barmaid
Nanny - 1997 - 1998 Taipei, Taiwan
Teaching English to Children and Adults - 1998 - 1999 Wroclaw, Poland
Teaching English to Teenagers and Adults - 1999-2001 Auckland, New Zealand
Teaching English to Adults and Night School
Attending Auckland College of Education - 2001-2005 Carlisle and Slough, United Kingdom
Teaching Design Technology - 2005 - 2008 Bangkok, Thailand
Teaching Design Technology at an International School - 2008 - Philippines
Teacher Librarian at an International School
Check Out My Published Articles...
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Packed full of tips and resources for the budding international teacher.
A New Direction
I thought to myself, how can I help others achieve this kind of lifestyle?
When the school year started in 2006, I decided I needed to do something to keep me busy and stimulated. I decided to write a book to help other teachers get positions at international schools just as I had done.I spent several months researching and writing The Complete Guide to Securing a Job at an International School. I'm proud of the guide and truly believe it will help any teacher embark on an international teaching career.
Lenses On Teaching Overseas
Please check out my lenses on Squidoo, they're all about teaching
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5 Things I Love About Living and Teaching In Thailand
I was thinking the other day, why am I so happy here??
I love having a pool
I went down to the pool in my apartment building today after work and swam for a while. When I got back to my apartment, it struck me that having my own pool (okay, I do share it with the other people in my building but I am usually in it by myself) is one of the things I love about living here in Thailand.
It is hot enough here in Bangkok that I can swim all year round. I am sure I'll get to the stage that I feel it is too cold for that one month of the year when the temperature sits at around 23C (73F), but I have not acclimatised to that point yet.
The pool in my building is maintained by the building manager's staff and cleaned every morning. I can decide to go down there anytime and sunbathe (not that I do this much, I'm a New Zealander and as such quite aware of the damage this can do), swim lengths or read a book in the shade.
I love Thai food
Thai food is very spicy, but has a balance of many flavours. Every meal is a gastronomic feast for your taste buds. The seafood is always fresh and I love it when it is prepared in tasty curries or soups.
The first meal I learnt to order was Phat Thai Jay, a traditional noodle dish that is a staple on most menus. I order it 'Jay' which means vegetable. This is not a spicy dish, but it is full of peanuts, so it's no good for people with a nut allergy.
But Phat Thai Jay isn't my favourite Thai dish. That's reserved for Gang Kiew Wan Jay, Sweet Green Vegetable Curry. I would eat this everyday, and have had guests come and stay with me who did! This curry is not spicy by Thai standards, but sometimes it nearly takes my head off.
I love Thai food so much that I went to a Thai cooking school when some friends came to visit last year. You can find Thai cookery schools all over the country, wherever you are likely to find tourists. The courses are inexpensive and available in a number of languages. Usually you cook your own portion of the food, then you sit around with your classmates and eat it. This week when I was on vacation in Chiang Mai I did a second cooking course and learnt how to make Phat Thai Jay!
I went down to the pool in my apartment building today after work and swam for a while. When I got back to my apartment, it struck me that having my own pool (okay, I do share it with the other people in my building but I am usually in it by myself) is one of the things I love about living here in Thailand.
It is hot enough here in Bangkok that I can swim all year round. I am sure I'll get to the stage that I feel it is too cold for that one month of the year when the temperature sits at around 23C (73F), but I have not acclimatised to that point yet.
The pool in my building is maintained by the building manager's staff and cleaned every morning. I can decide to go down there anytime and sunbathe (not that I do this much, I'm a New Zealander and as such quite aware of the damage this can do), swim lengths or read a book in the shade.
I love Thai food
Thai food is very spicy, but has a balance of many flavours. Every meal is a gastronomic feast for your taste buds. The seafood is always fresh and I love it when it is prepared in tasty curries or soups.
The first meal I learnt to order was Phat Thai Jay, a traditional noodle dish that is a staple on most menus. I order it 'Jay' which means vegetable. This is not a spicy dish, but it is full of peanuts, so it's no good for people with a nut allergy.
But Phat Thai Jay isn't my favourite Thai dish. That's reserved for Gang Kiew Wan Jay, Sweet Green Vegetable Curry. I would eat this everyday, and have had guests come and stay with me who did! This curry is not spicy by Thai standards, but sometimes it nearly takes my head off.
I love Thai food so much that I went to a Thai cooking school when some friends came to visit last year. You can find Thai cookery schools all over the country, wherever you are likely to find tourists. The courses are inexpensive and available in a number of languages. Usually you cook your own portion of the food, then you sit around with your classmates and eat it. This week when I was on vacation in Chiang Mai I did a second cooking course and learnt how to make Phat Thai Jay!
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I Love the Rich Cultural Experiences I Have Here In Thailand
I love bargainingWhen you buy something at a market in Thailand, you get to bargain the price down. To me, this isn't only about the money. I love bargaining. I consider it a challenge to get the vendor to come down on his/her asking price. Often in the past I have paid the vendor their original asking price, if it was a reasonable one. I just enjoy the experience of bargaining.
I find it especially rewarding if I can do it in the language of the vendor. Here in Thailand learning to say the numbers in Thai was a priority for me. I can now bargain quite successfully in Thai. When friends come to visit they usually tell me what they want to pay for something and get me to do the bargaining for them, they like the price I get for them and I have some fun with the vendors.
I remember being at a night market looking at some cushion covers that I wanted for my mother. It took me about 15 minutes to bargain the vendor down to my price, she was great fun. She made no allowance for the fact that I didn't speak very much Thai, I had to guess what she was talking about from her body language. When we had settled on the price, I paid her the original asking price. It was well worth it for the entertainment she'd given me.
I love Thai people
The Thai people that I've met here are happy and contented. The Thai people are gentle and friendly and kind. The culture here is to 'keep a cool heart', which means don't get angry. I am a calmer person here in Thailand and could count on one hand the number of times I've been angry in the 18 months I've lived here.
Even when I haven't been able to communicate well with people here, they have, without fail, smiled and helped me.
This has a knock-on effect into my professional life. The children I teach are polite, respectful and cheerful. I really get a kick out of walking into school of a morning to be greeted by smiling children left and right on the way to my classroom. Teaching at an international school is how I support my lifestyle in Thailand, and it's a lot easier than the teaching I've done in state schools in the UK and NZ.
And not all the children greeting me in the mornings are Thai, so there's a knock-on effect on other expatriates and their children too.
The state of the planet scares me, here's how we can help!
Sometimes It's Great To Be A Girl
I love being femaleThailand is a great country in which to be a girl! Thailand is abound with shops to get foot massages, full body massages, manicures and pedicures, facials and everything else you can think of.
I have one colleague who always has immaculate hair because she gets it washed and blow-dried a couple of times a week!
Last weekend I got all dressed up in a ball gown and went to the NZ Society Ball. In May I might go to the British Embassy Ball. If you like going out, dancing, eating great food and wearing posh frocks, then Bangkok is the place!
All in all, I'm happy here in Thailand. Happy with my teaching job, happy with my apartment and happy with the experiences I'm having while I live here. If you're considering moving abroad, you should definitely consider coming here.
Do You Want To Know What Teaching Overseas Is Really Like?
Overseas Teachers Talk will answer all the questions you have about teaching overseas.
The decision to teach overseas is the best one I have ever made. Learn all there is to know about teaching overseas, answer all your questions and fire up your enthusiasm!Overseas Teachers Talk - 7 Teachers = 50+ Years Experience in International Teaching
The Handiest Little Gadget Everyone Should Have!
I want to apologise for being selfish...and not sharing this little gadget with you before.
I don't even have the excuse that I forgot about it, as I use it everytime I'm on the internet and would find my internet activities curtailed without it. "What are you talking about?" you say...
I'm talking about Roboform2Go, a software program that encrypts and stores all your passwords for you. Then when you need to log in to your email, your Amazon account, your Ebay account, or your internet banking account (remember when you secure your teaching position abroad, you'll need to use the internet to maintain your banking relationships at home), you just click on the Roboform2Go button in the toolbar in Internet Explorer and 'wah-lah'!
Did you know that internet theives can 'look' at your computer and 'see' what letter keys you type on your keyboard? This means that when you are in the privacy of your own home, on your own computer, you can still get hacked and lose your personal information!
PLEASE don't let this happen to you! Roboform2Go stores all of your passwords using encryption (which means it's almost impossible for anyone to get the information out, certainly your average computer nerd can't do it, only super computer nerds) and when you log in to websites, you can enter just one password via an onscreen keyboard that you click with your mouse. How cool is that? You don't even interact with the Roboform2Go with your keyboard. Completely protecting yourself from 'key loggers'.
Roboform2Go is very inexpensive and you can get a fully operational version free at the website. The free version isn't a trial version, you can use it for as long as you like! The only difference between the free version and the one I bought is the number of passwords you can store on it. I have an unlimited number and the free version has around 10, I think. I started with the free version and upgraded when my internet activities forced it on me!
My Roboform2Go does actually go with me. I have the version that you install on a USB drive. You don't need a large drive for this, 64mb will be sufficient. I can use my Roboform2Go on any computer that has a USB slot. That means when I travel, I can use it to protect my personal information in internet cafes and hotels.
Seriously, you need this! You should go and download the free version right now! Protect yourself from hackers and other predators on the internet.
I'm talking about Roboform2Go, a software program that encrypts and stores all your passwords for you. Then when you need to log in to your email, your Amazon account, your Ebay account, or your internet banking account (remember when you secure your teaching position abroad, you'll need to use the internet to maintain your banking relationships at home), you just click on the Roboform2Go button in the toolbar in Internet Explorer and 'wah-lah'!
Did you know that internet theives can 'look' at your computer and 'see' what letter keys you type on your keyboard? This means that when you are in the privacy of your own home, on your own computer, you can still get hacked and lose your personal information!
PLEASE don't let this happen to you! Roboform2Go stores all of your passwords using encryption (which means it's almost impossible for anyone to get the information out, certainly your average computer nerd can't do it, only super computer nerds) and when you log in to websites, you can enter just one password via an onscreen keyboard that you click with your mouse. How cool is that? You don't even interact with the Roboform2Go with your keyboard. Completely protecting yourself from 'key loggers'.
Roboform2Go is very inexpensive and you can get a fully operational version free at the website. The free version isn't a trial version, you can use it for as long as you like! The only difference between the free version and the one I bought is the number of passwords you can store on it. I have an unlimited number and the free version has around 10, I think. I started with the free version and upgraded when my internet activities forced it on me!
My Roboform2Go does actually go with me. I have the version that you install on a USB drive. You don't need a large drive for this, 64mb will be sufficient. I can use my Roboform2Go on any computer that has a USB slot. That means when I travel, I can use it to protect my personal information in internet cafes and hotels.
Seriously, you need this! You should go and download the free version right now! Protect yourself from hackers and other predators on the internet.
Do you have experience living overseas? Please share them here!
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- mrsphillips mrsphillips Jul 14, 2008 @ 12:24 am
- Great site...I didn't get a chance to look at everything yet but I will definitely be coming back. My husband and I are planning on teaching overseas next year so hopefully I'll get some good tips!
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- trying trying Mar 28, 2007 @ 6:50 pm
- Another super site. Thank you.
by Miss_Kelly
Kick-start your international teaching career today!
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