Student brings Thailand to East

June 16, 2009 • Dan Perlman ('10)/ Eastside Global Commentary Editor  
Filed under Global Commentary

Not many kids you meet around here in South Jersey have a rice paddy bordering their backyard. In Roi-Et, Thailand—well, that’s another story, as one can learn from Ouan, who has been here in America since August.

The town of Roi-Et is not big; it resides in an agricultural province in the northeast, far from the coast and the bustling capital of Bangkok. Ouan—or Sarawut, Ouan is a nickname from his childhood meaning “fat” (lean though he is)—lives in Roi-Et in a house with his father and mother, Pongpat and Wilailuck, bankers, and his brother Nappadol (nicknamed “Da,” from a popular soda brand). Over in Thailand, he attends a private school Monday through Friday from 8:30 in the morning to 4:30 in the afternoon, with occasionally private tutoring afterwards to prepare for the university. Hanging out with friends after school—listening to music, congregating outside, or going to the movies or the library—is the predominant pastime. Soccer and American-style basketball are the most popular sports in Roi-Et. Festivals occur at many times during the year, as they do all over Thailand. Songkran, the Thai new year, is one of the most popular in the whole country, and in Roi-Et rituals and celebrations are held, usually ending with games involving play water fights.

“I wanted to come here to improve my English,” said Ouan, who does in fact speak English well, sometimes referring to his electronic translator—jokingly, he says “it is my life.” Ouan had to apply to the program which brought him here on August 28, to live in Willingboro with a “parent” involved in the program. After attending school in Willingboro for a couple of months, Ouan switched host families and is now living with Mitchell and Loraine Morgan. Ms. Morgan is a teacher at Cherokee High School, but due to residency Ouan is going here.

What is the transition like, from Roi-Et society to Cherry Hill society? “I know that there are some differences between Thai and American people—but I can’t explain,” said Ouan.

Looking at lifestyles, some contrasts are immediately evident, but just as starkly are some perhaps unexpected similarities: Ouan’s house in Thailand resembles very much an Eastern-aesthetic version of a newer suburban home here. He and his family, like most Thais, are Buddhist, but not strictly observant. Ouan attended a church service for the first time with his host family, and noticed that the most prominent difference between Christian services and Buddhist services at home is the singing, of which there would ordinarily be none in a Thai Buddhist ceremony. Ouan’s private school does not hold dances as do schools around here—the primary formal event of the year is the celebration of the founding of the school, a much more toned-down affair than, say, Junior Prom.

Ouan is spending a lot of his time during the week and on weekends doing schoolwork. “I should wake up earlier, but I always sleep late on weekends,” said Ouan laughingly—a problem most everyone at East can relate to.

Once a month, the student program organizes a trip—Ouan has gone with other visiting students to Florida and Costa Rica, for example. He also communicates through email and telephone with home, talking with his parents routinely. His brother Da is in America as well, working at a hotel up in Vermont, though Ouan has not yet had a chance to visit him.

Out of this experience, Ouan hopes to use the knowledge gained to help him study in Thailand and return to America, or even study other cultures abroad, particularly European culture. He will be departing, at least for the time being, in June.

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