If Disney made a Thai princess, I think this is what she would look like.
Ooooohhhhh weeeee the Princess is here (if you didn’t read that to the tune of 1,2 Step by Ciara then I’m sorry for the confusion).
Whether you choose to admit it or not, we’ve all dreamed about being a princess at one point or another. This was a dream I had when I was little, that was recently revived when I first watched Frozen. The closest I’d ever gotten to being a princess was dressing up as one when I was just a little rugrat and more recently, belting out “Let It Go” shamelessly with my housemates/Carol and I serenading each other to “Do You Wanna Build a Snowman”. Coming to Thailand, I anticipated hiking mountains, swimming in clear seas, playing with elephants, and teaching little kiddos. But I never expected to become a princess. Until I became one.
Okaaaay, so maybe I wasn’t technically a princess, but I looked and felt like I was a Disney Princess. I was approached by the director of the foreign language department about being a part of the Sport’s Day parade at my school. I’d have to dress in traditional Thai costume and march a few kilometers. Easy peasy. I went with a few of the Thai teachers from the foreign language department to a costume shop, and it was then that I realized how legit this was. I chose my dress with a little help from my friends, tried on a pair of shoes that they wanted me to wear that I was certain would kill me (see below), and we set up our appointment for getting ready. The parade was to begin around 8 and I had to be to the shop for hair, makeup, and costume at 4 am. 4 AM!!!!!! As excited for this opportunity as I was, starting my day at that hour kind of put a damper on things. My mind was running through my crazy schedule wondering how I would manage to tutor til 6:30 pm, wake up at 3:30 am, have a full day, then tutor again at night. I simply decided that December 15th would be the death of me. I’d either die from walking 3 kilometers/falling in my crazy 6 inch heels, exhaustion, or heat stroke.
Obviously I survived. It was quite a day! Starting my day at 3:30 am was less than pleasant, but it ended up being okay! The hair and makeup process was quite extensive. First, they did the face makeup. I was wearing more face makeup that I ever have before and felt like a corpse. Then was hair—there was fake hair added in and so much hairspray that it took days for my hair to feel normal again. Next was full makeup, and they doubled the size of my lips and eyebrows. Finally, was the princess dress and my transformation was complete.
I arrived early to the parade with some of the other Thai teachers and I was getting looks of bewilderment. First, a group of my boys walked by staring. I could tell they were trying to decide if it was me or not, so I waved. That same scenario repeated for the rest of the day. The Thai teachers I work with literally didn’t even recognize me. It wasn’t until I talked to them that they realized it was me.
Countless selfies with strangers, students, and teachers later, the parade began. I marched a few kilometers down the roads of Ubon Ratchathani to Benchama School. I felt like a total celeb. People were jumping up and cheering, waving, taking pictures, and my students were calling my name. It was pretty cool, I’m not gonna lie. By the time we reached Benchama, I thought my feet were going to fall off. My calves were sore from the heels, I could feel the blood trickling down my foot from the heels, and my cheeks were becoming sore from the smile that was fixed on my face. I had just a few more hours of standing in the field during opening ceremony before I was finally finished. Lucky for me, tutoring and classes were cancelled for the day, so I could catch a well needed nap after the day finished.
My overall experience was pretty cool. It was really awesome to see people essentially “fangirling” over me. My students would run to me, take selfies, and literally scream and squeal about how beautiful I looked. I’m glad I had this experience, but it’s something I probably will never do again. I thought it was interesting to see hands on what the Thai standard of beauty is and be transformed into it. Having such fair skin has always made me stand out to Thais, but I really don’t put much more effort into my daily look. But on this day I looked flawless. Though it was super fun, it was another (much more concrete) example of how my biggest asset to the the school is being a trophy. I’m their little Barbie that they dress up and show off to the world. My brain, intelligence, intellect, and personality aren’t very important at my job (which is funny because I’m a teacher), but that’s just the way it is. For today, I let it go. I got to live my childhood dream of being a princess for a day, and I’m so so grateful for that! Now, it’s back to being my normal self and I’m living happily ever after (well, at least I’m trying to).
<3 Erin
