First Day of School

Today, I attended my first two classes at Rangsit University. The campus is enormous compared to Columbia College, but it is completely fenced off from the surrounding area. All of my classes are in the International College. It is the largest building on campus, going all the way to the 15th Floor.

I woke up at about 7:00 am and finished Wild by Cheryl Strayed. Then I showered, and made my way downstairs. The College Football National Championship had just kicked off and I tuned into ESPN radio to listen to the first half of the game (A routing by Ohio State 42-20 over Oregon) as I ate my breakfast.

I eat Breakfast #4 every day and today was no exception. It is the "Dutch Breakfast" which is fitting because all of the students living in the building, for the most part, are from a school in Holland. It comes with 1 egg with cheese, 2 pieces of toast, and a plate of fresh watermelon and pineapple. I always buy and extra egg and a cup of coffee as well. Together, the meal totals 80 baht ($2.44 USD).

After breakfast, I put on my uniform and headed to school to continue handling some visa issues. The uniform consists of a white button down shirt and black slacks with dress shoes. Walking a few blocks to school in 80 degree, humid weather can be uncomfortable. Especially on top of the requirement that long sleeve shirts must not be rolled up. Once in the classroom though, it is time to shiver because the air conditioners are set very low. A short sleeve white collared shirt is not enough to keep you warm during the 2.15 hour classes.

My first class of the week is Comparative Political Systems which begins at 12:15 pm. I think that I will do well in the class. The second course on Tuesday's is Principles of Democracy. In this class, I am the only student from a truly democratic country. The teacher is very enthusiastic and I look forward to the class (although we have the whole month of February off from the class).

I started reading The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway while waiting for my 12:15 class. It's a short read and I was able to finnish it shortly after I got back to my apartment.

Tomorrow morning is the one week mark.