Flood Warning

First of all: SEPTEMBER?!? This week marks 3 months in the land of congealed chicken blood soup and kids named Bank. I am already feeling nostalgic about time passing too quickly.

Given that it is rainy season in Nan - and "rainy" is the understatement of the year for the relentless state of downpour we've been experiencing lately - it came as no surprise that flood warnings circulated around school yesterday. The river floods at least once a year in Nan city during the rainy season, due to runoff from heavy rainfall in the mountains. We were told by a co-teacher that one year, the school -  which is very near the river, but further from it than our apartment - flooded so badly that there was water up to the blackboards on the first floor.

I stopped by the river after school to take a look yesterday, and it was incredible how much the water level had risen in a single day. Normally, there are about 15 big stone-and-dirt steps on the river bank, descending from the "boardwalk" to the water itself; yesterday, there was only one step showing above water. The opposite bank of the river was already consumed by water, with whole trees nearly submerged. I was a little concerned at first by all the commotion yesterday afternoon - kids being pulled out of school early, ground level classrooms being cleared out, traffic and crowds gathering around the riverfront - but on the whole, everyone seems to be treating it as the routine, annual occurrence that it is.

Actually, everyone seemed sort of excited about it. I guess potential mini-natural disasters tend to have that effect on people... there's something exhilarating about the possibility of no school the next day, seeing familiar places rendered completely unfamiliar (like water filling a riverside basketball court, as it did yesterday), and finding yourself dangerously close to emergency.

(One might ask, though - since the flood does happen every single year - why build so many restaurants, schools and homes right along the river? But then, such logic wouldn't make any sense in Thailand).

I wasn't sure what to expect when I woke up this morning - would I bike or boat to work? - but so far, our apartment and the school have stayed safe and dry. However, not all parts of Nan escaped flooding last night. A ton of kids were absent from school today, held home either by an inability to get out by bike or car, or to help their families deal with water damage. In Kindergarten, about 20 kids were missing from each class.

With only a small handful of kids to teach, I ditched my lesson plan and decided it was a perfect day to introduce "Duck, Duck, Goose." The game was a huge success, particularly in K2.2. The Thai teacher for K2.2 is Aj. Warunee, a new teacher at Bandon Sriserm who wears bright pink lipstick everyday (we called her "Lips" for a long time) and who, at every school assembly, somehow winds up singing poorly-pitched tunes on the microphone. She doesn't speak a lick of English, but is always excited about my activities in class. When we play the "Alphabet Name" game (I call out a letter and students have to raise their hands if appears in their name), Aj. Warunee raises her hand the highest for the W's and E's, giggling to herself. When we sing "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes," Warunee's voice bellows above the rest, even adding extra syllables where she sees fit.

Needless to say, that same enthusiasm shone through during Duck, Duck, Goose today. Since we were short on players, Warunee and I joined the circle. The kids caught on to the rules pretty quickly, with the exception of Tangmo, who kept running the wrong direction and thought she had to check in with me first before calling anyone a Goose. Aj. Warunee caught on pretty quickly too, except she didn't quite get the pronunciation. During her turns, we were playing a round of "Duss, Duss, Goop." I guess every children's classic needs an alternate version.

Last but certainly not least: Volume 5 of "Over Fruit," featuring the purple mangosteen. It is our very best yet - with a brand new intro! Enjoy.