Bangkok Heat

The land of smiles. That’s what they call it. 5 days in Bangkok for an Asian and Oceania Conference was a big break for me. Although I missed being in the centre, well…a little bit, it was so much more than words can say when meeting friends from other countries, and have not met for almost a year. Everyone changed a little bit every year. A few got slimmer, a few got chubbier, some got older, and so many got more and more colorful, with their hair. However it was truly nice to see all of them back.

Back in year 2003, I made a good friend in Sydney, Australia. We didn’t really keep in touch. The year after that, I met her again in Cairns, Australia for another conference. We somehow bonded well as a friend. Our only common ground was that we’re an instructor. I met her again this year and realized how connected we are.

We did a lot of sharing and changing of ideas. Every year, during conferences, it made me realize how important it is for us as an educator to build the nation. It’s a far fetched line to use, but don’t you think every leader in this world started their journey by being in a classroom? In the classroom is where it all started. People learning how to share, learning how to live side by side with each other, learning how to solve little crisis in life.

I was privilege to be given a chance to visit a centre there. It was an established centre with the instructor who has a great heart. It’s funny if I’m being asked how would I know if a person has a great heart. You can just tell by the way she speaks and how her eyes smile when talking about what she’s passionate about.

During the conference we did a lot of networking. It’s amazing to see how much one common language can do to bond friendships of people from different countries. I just love all the different accent and ways people speak at the conference. There were presentations and they were all in English. This time no interpreters were needed. Every year, more and more people are speaking English. How much confidence knowledge can bring. I remember in year 2000, I participated in an International Conference and we were not really talking to one another. We just attended the conference and enjoyed the sight seeing tour and that was it.

I love conferences. I take it as a good break from my ordinary classroom days and it’s always nice to see all my international sisters…. 99% of us are women!

Next year…..we’re going to have it in Malaysia.