Kn EP Christmas Party 2011

It’s a tradition here at Kanchananukroh School that the English Program students celebrate Christmas with a party. This year, it was celebrated on the 23^th of December. Every EP students invited their parents, relatives and friends to join in the celebration.

Aside from devouring the foods prepared, there were lots of activities prepared for the guests. It includes a Power point presentation of the achievements of the English Program since its inception, performances from each class, games and singing Christmas carols.

Merry Christmas and a Happy Holidays to everyone…

River Kwai Bridge Week 2011

Kanchanaburi is one of the tourist destinations at the Western part of Thailand. Every year starting on the last week of November to early December, Kanchanaburi is celebrating the River Kwai Bridge Festival.This is usually a 12 days’ affair which commemorates every evening in a very realistic way the bombardments of the Bridge over the River Kwai against the Japanese occupation, which put an end to the World War II in South-East Asia.This is why it is culturally and historically significant for preservation here in Kanchanaburi.

In this 32^nd year’s celebration, Kanchananukroh School was among the selected Schools to be the announcer for 6 nights during this said festival. This is to advertise and welcome all visitors not only Thais coming from the different provinces but also those foreigners from different countries who came just to attend and witness this celebration. Kanchananukroh School was the only school who did the announcements in 4 different languages; Thai, English, Japanese and in Chinese.

Tastings some unusual foods from the street vendors..I tasted some exotic foods back in the Philippines but this one’s different…

 

In this festival, the focal point of celebration is the Light and Sound Presentation. This is a production portraying the making of the Burma – Siam railway which is meant to deliver goods daily to India. Watching this said presentation makes you an eye-witness to what happened many years ago as it was presented in an informative and lively way.

 

This year’s River Kwai Bridge Festival was the first year that they offer free admission so you cannot imagine people start queuing at 5:30PM just for their seat reservation. The presentation starts at 7:30 and at about 6:30 PM, all seats were all taken..

 This also featured a replica of POWS on the other side of the river, fireworks and the vintage train which is still operational until now.

Dec 5 is a double celebration as we also celebrated the Kings 84^th birthday. Spectacular fireworks and candle lighting ceremony was held as part of the celebration. This was also our last day as part of the celebration.

Just wandering around the area as there is an enormous commercial fair for shopping which allows everyone to have a great fun…You can also experience the local Kanchanaburi products and some regional specialties..

Special thanks to this year's Committee Organizers who gave as a chance to participate in this annual festival.

We look forward to seeing you all again next year!

YFU visited Kanchanaburi

Youth For Understanding's (YFU) is one of the world's largest and most respected international educational exchange organizations. YFU specializes in offering students the opportunity of a lifetime to live in a new country for a year, semester, or short term and learn new cultures, and most especially study other languages.

A total of 18 YFU students visited Kanchanaburi on November 30. Showing hospitality, some teachers with their host sisters/brothers showed them around some of the tourist attractions here in Kanchanaburi Province. Among the planned places to visit were River Kwai Bridge, Krasae Cave, Saiyoke Noi Waterfalls and Prasat Muang Singh Historical Park.

Students excitedly waiting for the train to come but unfortunately, we were informed that the train won’t arrive maybe until 11 – 12 noon depending what time it leaves Bangkok. Students were disappointed about this so we just went straight to Krasae Cave.

From Krasae Cave, we ate in a local restaurant in Saiyoke noi before the students went their way to the falls. Some dipped in the water, others just walked around.

The most delicious “Roti” I ever tasted…It’s mixed with scrambled eggs, coconut, condensed milk and sprinkled with sugar…

Prasart Muang Singh National Park. Students went their way…There is a small museum but no one is interested to go in except for one.. Due to the hot weather, some students played water...

Ruins found inside the small museum....

Back to school…

After staying in Kanchanaburi for 4 nights and 2 days, it’s time to say goodbye to their host sisters and brothers....

Tribute to a dear friend..

Friend leaving is sometimes difficult, but memories are great..Yes, it’s really very difficult to part ways with a true friend.. A friend who was always there for you when you needed one.. A friend who shared so many nice times and made so many special memories.

For two years, we’ve almost spent every moment together – dine together, do things together and even visit other places together…Shared everything together - laughters, sadness and that passion for life that made tough journeys easier.

Snapshots when she came to the Philippines. She visited the Philippines on April 3 - 11, 2010 with the vice director and the head of the English Department in our school. We visited some places in Manila then went to Baguio. We've been to Botanical garden, The Mansion, Mines View Park, SM Baguio. We also visited Bontoc, Mountain Province where we attended the Lang-ay Festival. And.. to my very own hometown..Barlig..

And now, it’s time to say goodbye....Difficult as it is, we cannot do anything as her contract with the government was already finished.

Pictures taken few days before she went back home to Japan...

I want to thank her for being a friend to me in so many meaningful ways. It's rare to find a friend with whom you can trust with your most personal thoughts, but also who won't be judgmental and who truly cares about you and wants to help. I know someday, we will meet again....