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| Q |
The Lonely
Planet guidebook says......? |
| A |
It is
the smallest province in Thailand, in fact, some Thais don’t even know that
this province exists. Part of Ratchaburi province, Samut Songkhram comprises
three small districts and is home to the famous Amphawan Floating Market and
Firefly Sanctuary. The place is said to be the birthplace of King Rama II
and also the legendary Siamese twins. But BEWARE - most of the Thai people
here speak little or no English. |
| Q |
In general, what are the
pickings like for an EFL teacher? |
| A |
There are plenty of schools in the province
but only few have foreign English teachers and most of those are Filipinos.
As far as I know, only one school employs English native speakers- and that
is Tawaranukul School. English Plus is a famous language center of the
province and there are so many nameless language centers growing like
mushrooms. Most of those language centers are owned by Thai teachers from
different schools in the region. Some students even have extra classes in
language centers in Bangkok. Most of the schools provide free accommodation
to the foreign teachers. |
| Q |
How far from Bangkok or
civilization? |
| A |
It’s about 70 kilometers from
Bangkok and you can take anything from an hour to an hour and a half during
rush hours. You can reach Samut Songkhram by van going to Maeklong or bus
going to Damnoen Saduak Floating Market. You can start either from Victory
Monument or Southern Bus Terminal. The fare is 60-70 baht. |
| Q |
Is there any
entertainment or do you invite friends round for Scrabble? |
| A |
Most of
the market stalls and shops close before ten o’clock. It can feel quite
dangerous when you walk along the street at night. At nine o’clock people
generally scurry back to their houses and apartments. |
| Q |
How much to rent a house
or basic apartment? |
| A |
It’s not expensive. For an
apartment it ranges from 2,500 baht to 3,500 baht. It depends on the type of
apartment you want. You can pick up fully-furnished apartments which are
actually quite cosy. Compared to other provinces, the rent here is cheaper. |
| Q |
Shopping malls,
department stores? |
| A |
There is a TESCO Lotus and plenty of small
convenience stores like Seven-Eleven and Twikit. Samut is very near to
Bangkok so if you want to go 'malling' you can do it in Bangkok during
weekends. The nearest mall is “Central Rama II”. |
| Q |
Internet cafes?
(snail-speed Hotmail default page or fatties playing Ragnarok?) |
| A |
The province has plenty of internet cafes.
Most provide high-speed cojnnections but if you don’t want those noisy mouse
potatoes playing computer games, you're better off buying your own PC
because most of the cafes are games centers. |
| Q |
Will you be stared at?
and what's the likelihood of a good beating? |
| A |
If you are white, everybody will be staring at
you saying, “FARANG, FARANG”. I had one British and one Canadian colleague
before and almost everybody couldn't keep their eyes off them. |
| Q |
Taxis, buses....or horse
and cart? |
| A |
If you want to travel from one district to
another, you can ride songtaews, tuk-tuks and motorcycles. All of these can
be seen around the Muang District or even Amphawan and Bangkontee Districts.
The regular fare is 10 baht. |
| Q |
Main advantages of living
there? |
| A |
If you want to save your money, Samutsongkhram
is a great place because there's nothing to spend money on. There are no
malls or beer-bars or any of those other things that seem to suck up
salaries if you're not careful. |
| Q |
And what are the
downsides? |
| A |
It's boring. Believe me. |
| Q |
Any local attractions? |
| A |
King Rama II Memorial Park, Amphawan Floating
Market and Firefly Sanctuary, Siamese Twin Memorial Park and historical
temples. There is an annual Lychee Fair and Pratu (a kind of fish) Festival.
Don Hoi Lot is also a famous local attraction because it’s the only place in
the world where you can see the unique worm shells (apparently). |
