Good Bye

So this is it. Today is my last day in Bangkok.
I actually still can't believe that my time here is over. As much as I am looking forward to my home and my family I totally fell in love with Thailand, Bangkok and most of all with the beautiful people I met here. They made this semster abroad so special. I love you all so much!! :*

We will all keep in touch and I am already planning on how I can visit all these countries to see you all again!

 Bangkok, this is definitely not a good bye forever! This city will always be in my heart as my second home, and I know that I will have many more great expeirences here!

And now, back to Germany here I come!!!

Merry Christmas to everyone =)
Love, Sina

King's birthday

The 5th of Dezember is the birthday of the king. I only heard good things about what is going to happen in Bangkok on this day and I was looking forward to it. I couldn't really believe that the protests will just stop for 24 hours but well who knows?
That was the biggest surprise for me. These people here have some real problems with the opposing group. But for this one special day they all worked together to show their king how much he means to his people.
We went to the Grand Palace to experience the celebration from the central point in Bangkok. All the Thais in yellow shirts (colour of the king, of his birthday a Monday) gave us a hint on how many people will be there with us... But noone could have imagined something like this. We stood together with an uncountable amount of people somewhere at the Grand Palace. They all wore yellow and had a candle in their hands. And then they started singing, all together, one song after another. I think one was the national anthem but all the others I didn't know which made it even more impressive to me that literally everyone here seems to know these songs. A firework started and all the Thais were happy and cheering. It was just beautiful.

We went on to a place where a big TV screen showed parts of a show and people were crowding to see it. Amd everyone was so happy! They would smile at you and show you the way to the best place or just ask you in englisch(!) how you are and if you have fun.

A few meters away we saw lots of vendors with T-shirts, food and accessoires. The reason why everyone was wearing shirts with the Thai flag or in yellow - you can just buy them at the event. And bands for your hair and whistles and ...

Amazing Thailand always amazes you.

Update

So I'm updating on how I experience the protests here. I hear about the deaths of people. About it getting serious.
I am not leaving the residence at the moment but I wouldn't leave it anyway because I am totally satisfied with sun bathing after the semester so I am not running into protesters now. But I got an email from the university saying to be careful and not go to the protest places.
I hear people talking, giving their opinion. I get news from the german embassy, also telling us to be careful.
Well let's see...

It's done!

It's over! Semester 3 is done! UNBELIEVABLE!!
I have just finished my third semester - in one year and one month. 13 months. For 3 semesters.

I just handed in everything, had a final presentation and still can't really believe it. It seems like my life as a student just started but I am already close to having done half of it. Crazy!

I can't say how much I love my parents for giving me the opportunity to go to MHMK and through this to go to Thailand. I love you so much!! 100000 Thanks!!

And again: if you can do it DO IT!

Now the countdown starts, I have only weeks left... time to go shopping, sun bathing and relaxing!

Kisses to all my freinds out there and all the other students who are currently studying abroad and to everyone else!

Protests

Yep, there are protests here. Finally the rest of the world heard about it too. What has been going on for weeks now reached the west. But the media only found it to be interessting enough now, close to getting dangerous.
I am not into politics and I really don't know enough about Thai politics to tell you who is fighting against whom and for what reason. I do know it but there are lots of articles in your language out there that tell you what exactly is happening here much better than I could.

I want to tell you how I experience this. I am living here close to Klong Toei MRT station and I drive to Chulalongkorn university every once in a while and in the city to go shopping. In the first weeks all I saw and heard from the protest were voices far away and some banners hanging around. But as I am attending a TV news class in university I found out more and more. We interviewed students and protesters for a fake newscast, just for practice. But the interviews were real (they thought we were TV guys ^^)  and we got people there telling us how bad the government is in their opinion and a leader saying they don't want to be violent.
We discovered that the whistles they sell here everywhere became the symbol of the demonstrations. People go around here, carrying flags and wearing bands in the Thai colours - and they blow whistles. Thousands of people. It's really loud.
They want to be heard - up to now it seems more or less peacefully here. But who knows what's going to happen next? I don't feel fear. I know that some things just have to be fought out. But I am just hoping that, if they have to fight, it happens after I am safely back in Germany.

Today a group of protesters walked by me at Central World. First motorbikes then people by foot. They cheered to what a leader said and blew their whistles - LOUD
(the video's gonna turn after a few seconds)

Before Christmas Time in BKK!!

Here in Bangkok Christmas is mostly not celebrated itself.
But decorating is loved by every Thai person - so it seems...
Let the pictures speak!

Chatuchak market

Huge. Chaos. Colorful. Crowded.

Chatuchak Weekend market!
You should really go there. It's the biggest market of his kind in the world. No problem to reach it with the Skytrain - in fact it's a very nice ride!
When you get there just follow the crowd ;) You will be greeted with music and then all kinds of goods. The market is organised in halls and outside. in sections that are parted in Sois - so you can find your way even if it is really big. You can get a bit lost but after a while you will have found the right way out. There are soooo many things there! I think it is especially nice if you want to find hidden treasures - like vintage dresses or real handmade arts and crafts. There is even a part like a gallery for those who want to buy art.
Sadly they also sell animals - puppys and so on - and tourists stand there, watching the dogs in the tiny cages...
But all in all it's a great market and fun to go there!

(P.S. And I finally know enough about photoshop to use it ^^)