Betina in Bangkok
Bangkok,Thailand, Thailand
It's been exactly two months since I left Bangkok and packed all my nearly forty kilos of luggage and took the flight to Finland. At that point, Bangkok was in near civil war and it was neither the nicest nor the safest place to be, as the protesting was at its peak. Just a week after we arrived to Finland, I found myself looking at images of my beloved Central World in flames. Looking back, those are however not the memories I have of Bangkok. I find myself thinking about and missing...
I'm Betina and this is my blog from my student exchange spring in Kasetsart University, Bangkok. My student exchange was organized by Asia Exchange (AE), which provides study programs at Asian universities for students or graduates from Western countries. For more information, www.asiaexchange.org.
Bangkok,Thailand,...
56 days ago
It's been exactly two months since I left Bangkok and packed all my nearly fo...
Bangkok,Thailand,...
104 days ago
I've been asked a lot of questions about the university and the studying in B...
Shout something!
17 March 2010, 02:18
Rachel: Hi Betina, How are you? My name is Rachel and I am from Australia.I am in the middle of... Read more organising an exchange to Chula university in Bangkok next year. Just wondering if I could ask you a few questions regarding Bangkok. Have you made many friends over there? What are ypu studying? Are there many Western students on exchange? Is the workload well balanced? What kind of accomodation do most foreign students/you stay in? Sorry for all the questions! I would be very thankful if you could answer at least a few of them for me. It looks like you are having an amazing time! I went to Bangkok in December and really loved it. Looking for ward to your reply. Thanks, Rach --------------------------------- Hey Rachel, Thank you for your message! Sorry I didn't notice it earlier! I'll be more than happy to answer any of your questions! I would have loved for someone to answer mine when I was planning my exchange. I've been really satisfied with my exchange in Bangkok, I'm so happy that I decided chose to come to Bangkok. The city can be quite overwhelming at first: the heat, the traffic, the noises, not knowing thai language... The first few days (or weeks maybe!) might be a bit of a shock, but once you learn to move around the city and express yourself even a little, you'll love it! There is so much to do and it's so easy and affordable to travel from Bangkok to nearly anywhere in Asia. I'm studying at Kasetsart University via Asia Exchange (http://www.asiaexchange.fi/en/index.php/site/asia-exchange) at the Program for International Business and Thai Culture. There are quite alot of western students at our university (we're a group of 40!) and I think the number growing in many Asian universities! And yes, I've made lots of friends! The lectures are really interesting (especially the whole Asian point of view!) and the school is really nice. The studying is quite different from my home unis: the lessons are a bit more casual and interactive, there is a bit more home work and assignments, but then again a little less pressure on the exams. Nothing overwhelming! Kasetsart has organized a lot of really nice activities, like thai culture activities and dancing lessons with Thai students, which has been really nice. I'll do a post about the finding an apartment later! We all live in privately rented apartments (not campus), they are quite nice and very cheap (compared to western prices). Have fun organizing your exchange! Betina