After
four weeks of studying and practicing, I received my TESOL (Teaching English to
speakers of other languages) certification. In the first two weeks of the
program I stayed in Phnom Penh with a group of twenty two teachers in training.
During that time we were reminded about English’s grammatical rules, were
taught how to teach English to people who have not a clue of what we are saying
and, most importantly, were encouraged to have a wonderful time. The following
week to the trip to Angkor Wat, I started mingling more with my classmates. It
is not that I did not like them before; however I arrived in Asia determined to
following a strict routine: get up early; do yoga; eat only super-healthy foods;
study and go to bed early. This did not give much space for amusement, something
that my classmates did enjoy lots of. Perhaps because of their young age, their
livers can handle vast amounts of alcohol and “happy pizza”*, and they can be
up in the morning after long hours of clubbing and karaoke. For me, who gets buzzed
with half of a glass of wine, that kind of life was something I could have not
handled. Regardless, I started participating in some other activities, such as
a couple of tours to the Central and Russian Markets at lunchtime, and even went
to a boat ride on the Mekong River one night.
I
finally let my guard down (for a little bit) in Sihanoukville. And who wouldn’t
in a crazy place like that?
*Pizza
that is spiced with herbs that do not grow at your granny’s home.
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