I just had a moment that I wanted to get down on "paper" so I would never forget. I am 28 years old, sitting in a nonprofit in Bangkok, working on a proposal to the UN for funds to provide HIV/AIDS training to out-of-school youth in the Tsunami affected provinces of Thailand. It's an indescribable feeling of elation when you realize that you are actually living in a moment you've only dreamt possible. I hope to have many, many more such moments.
I am feeling quite pleased with myself. :)
Thursday, March 31, 2005
Markets and Thai Massage
On Wednesday, we had students from Wat Po School of Thai Massage (http://www.thai-massage.com/) come to talk about Thai Massage. We were quite excited about the prospect of free pampering.
Before the massage, another volunteer and I headed out to MACRO, what I'd heard was similar to Wal-Mart back home. We boarded the 3.5 bhat bus (Bangkok's cheapest mode of transportation) and made the 10 minute journey. When we got there, we found that it was more like Sam's Club than Wal-Mart and made our way back to the neighborhood market, where we found everything we had gone to the store for. Lesson learned.
The Thai Massage students were suppossed to arrive at 5:00, but due to exceptionally horrendous Bangkok traffic, arrived two and a half hours late. At this point, we were all ready to forgo the whole thing, but did not want to have had them sit in traffic all that time for nothing.
Thai massage, from what I can gather, is based on specific points on your body that relate to other, some related some seemingly unrealed, parts. Some make sense, neck points for neck and head, back points for back, but others are less connected, "when I push here (putting pressure on a spot on my back), you should feel it in your eyes. Do you feel it?"
It turns out that Thai Massage, or at the very least, this particular form of Thai Massage performed by these particular students on the virginal massage recipient, is not all that pleasant. Most of us spent the session trying to hold back grimaces of pain as fingers were gouged into backs and sides. I made the smart move of saying that I had lower back pain, which lead to my lying on my stomach on the recieving end of some very painful jabs into my legs (which, in some way, had to do with the pain in my back). I hate to be a sceptic, so I'm not giving up on Thai Massage yet. I'm sure there is something to it. There is a place called Health Land that is suppossed to have amazing 2 hour massages for 300 bhat (about 8 dollars) that I just can't pass up at the price. I just hope I don't regret it!
Before the massage, another volunteer and I headed out to MACRO, what I'd heard was similar to Wal-Mart back home. We boarded the 3.5 bhat bus (Bangkok's cheapest mode of transportation) and made the 10 minute journey. When we got there, we found that it was more like Sam's Club than Wal-Mart and made our way back to the neighborhood market, where we found everything we had gone to the store for. Lesson learned.
The Thai Massage students were suppossed to arrive at 5:00, but due to exceptionally horrendous Bangkok traffic, arrived two and a half hours late. At this point, we were all ready to forgo the whole thing, but did not want to have had them sit in traffic all that time for nothing.
Thai massage, from what I can gather, is based on specific points on your body that relate to other, some related some seemingly unrealed, parts. Some make sense, neck points for neck and head, back points for back, but others are less connected, "when I push here (putting pressure on a spot on my back), you should feel it in your eyes. Do you feel it?"
It turns out that Thai Massage, or at the very least, this particular form of Thai Massage performed by these particular students on the virginal massage recipient, is not all that pleasant. Most of us spent the session trying to hold back grimaces of pain as fingers were gouged into backs and sides. I made the smart move of saying that I had lower back pain, which lead to my lying on my stomach on the recieving end of some very painful jabs into my legs (which, in some way, had to do with the pain in my back). I hate to be a sceptic, so I'm not giving up on Thai Massage yet. I'm sure there is something to it. There is a place called Health Land that is suppossed to have amazing 2 hour massages for 300 bhat (about 8 dollars) that I just can't pass up at the price. I just hope I don't regret it!
Tuesday, March 29, 2005
Crossing the Cultural Divide
Today was a great day. If I weren’t so exhausted from the effort, I’d be positively glowing.
Yesterday was my first day back at the office (after just one day last week) and I was a little anxious. I am suppossed to be in the office all this week helping the administrative staff and learning more about the organization and I thought it might be a good chance for me to get to know the staff better and to help them to be more comfortable with my presense (and to hopefully be helpful along the way!).
I entered the vestibule and traded my shoes for house slippers (you don't wear shoes inside anywhere in Thailand except for public buildings and shops) and said my "Sa-wa-dee, kas." Pong, offered me a seat and I sat. After a few minutes, I asked if I could help her with anything, to which she replied "mai bpen rai, ka," literray "nevermind or it doesn't matter," or in otherwords "no, thank you." So I thought I would ask Fawn. Same reply. Hmm. So I sat. And I sat. And I began to think over everything I'd ever read or heard about international volunteering. You are suppossed to be proactive, innovative, patient, open-minded and friendly. I had the friendly down pat.
Finally, Usana, came over and gave me a copy of the brochure that they want me to update. Relieved, I happily took out my pen and began editing, enjoying having something to do and being back in my element. After a few crossed out lines, some arrows and write ins, I realized that I was writing on a color brochure. Maybe this was the original... And it turned out that I was right. Pong came over and said, "I make copies from that. That is all I have." My heart sank, but was soon lifted by Vikram, who said, "mai bpen rai. You've done it. No use worrying" and I continued on with my edits. That afternoon, Usana gave me a list of topics to research and set me up on the Internet. I spent the rest of the afternoon feeling quite productive.
Today, most of the program staff is out of the office for the next few days doing training and so the office staff temporarily consists of the director, Sua, myself, Pong, Ni, and Usana. Sua is program staff, Usana is the head of administration, Pong is the office administrator and Ni is the general staff caretaker (cook, housekeeper, etc.) This morning I continued on my assignment from yesterday (research on Child Abuse Statistics both general and in Thailand). Since it was just Sua and I in the office, he really opened up and in between boughts of working, he would ask me questions about myself along with telling me about his wife and son and where he was from. He then started plying me with questions about English word meanings and pronunciations.
“How do you say “three?” Now how do you say “tree”? (Thai’s have a hard time pronouncing “th.”) "How do you say “sick”? Now how do you say “sixth”? “What is the difference between “pretty” and “beautiful”? “What about for a man? There is handsome and what else?” (For this we looked up “handsome” on thesauraus.com. I had no idea some of those words even existed! ) “Why do western women wear trousers and Thai women wear skirts? Do you have any skirts?”
All along, he taught me sayings and words in Thai. I can now say, “I really like the food here” and “I need to drink a lot of water. The weather is hot!” “Di-chan chawp ah-han nii mai, ka” and “Di-chan tong-khan deum naam ma. Ah-kaht ron!” respectively. He is also teaching me that some of the things in my lonely planet guide phrase book are considered rude. For example, “I don’t understand” according to lonely planet is “mai khao jai,” but he said if he “explain, explain, explain” something to me and I said afterward “mai, khao jai,” he would feel bad. So I should say, “Koh Todd, ka. Poot mai see, ka,” or “I’m sorry, please repeat that again.”
I suggested that maybe I could teach English to him and any of the other staff who were interested for 30 minutes a day or so (an idea given to my by our CCS director) and he was very agreeable. (I asked the director at lunch and he thought it would be great as well. After the English training last week and our back-and-forth this morning, I really think I am going to enjoy the lessons).
Lunch was just me, Sua, Pong and Ni and Sua proudly asked me “what are you doing?” pointing at my water bottle. “Di-chan duem naam (I drink water),” I replied and he lit up. We spent the rest of the meal going back and forth in very rudimentary English and Thai.When the director joined us, he explained to me that the research I was doing was for a concept paper that was to be part of a proposal for new project. He said that it would be about 1 – 2 pages. Then he said, “tomorrow, we will talk more about the paper and maybe you can write some of it… maybe 1 – 2 pages.” It turns out I might be helpful here after all.
Along with my success in the friendly department, I've also had to wrestle today with patience and innovation. I’ve found that internet research here is not as easy as it would be at home. For one there are the disconnections every 15 minutes. Also, the version of WORD here is in Thai, so if I want to insert a table or a page break or change the spacing, I have to work by trial and error, guessing at where the commands are on the menus in English. Most of the time I can figure them out but it was a huge accomplishment when I figured out how to change a table to text. I was quite proud. I encountered another hurdle when I tried to save the document I had created to a disk to be printed downstairs. For some reason WORD kept crashing every time I tried to save my document to a disk. I thought I would fool the computer and simply drag the files from my document folder to the A drive in Windows explorer, but it was on to me and explorer crashed when I tried to move the files. So finally, I came up with the bright idea of emailing the files to the HAT email and having Pong open them downstairs to print. After about 40 minutes of trying to upload the files between crashes – SUCCESS! Now I just hope the director is happy with what I put together!
Yesterday was my first day back at the office (after just one day last week) and I was a little anxious. I am suppossed to be in the office all this week helping the administrative staff and learning more about the organization and I thought it might be a good chance for me to get to know the staff better and to help them to be more comfortable with my presense (and to hopefully be helpful along the way!).
I entered the vestibule and traded my shoes for house slippers (you don't wear shoes inside anywhere in Thailand except for public buildings and shops) and said my "Sa-wa-dee, kas." Pong, offered me a seat and I sat. After a few minutes, I asked if I could help her with anything, to which she replied "mai bpen rai, ka," literray "nevermind or it doesn't matter," or in otherwords "no, thank you." So I thought I would ask Fawn. Same reply. Hmm. So I sat. And I sat. And I began to think over everything I'd ever read or heard about international volunteering. You are suppossed to be proactive, innovative, patient, open-minded and friendly. I had the friendly down pat.
Finally, Usana, came over and gave me a copy of the brochure that they want me to update. Relieved, I happily took out my pen and began editing, enjoying having something to do and being back in my element. After a few crossed out lines, some arrows and write ins, I realized that I was writing on a color brochure. Maybe this was the original... And it turned out that I was right. Pong came over and said, "I make copies from that. That is all I have." My heart sank, but was soon lifted by Vikram, who said, "mai bpen rai. You've done it. No use worrying" and I continued on with my edits. That afternoon, Usana gave me a list of topics to research and set me up on the Internet. I spent the rest of the afternoon feeling quite productive.
Today, most of the program staff is out of the office for the next few days doing training and so the office staff temporarily consists of the director, Sua, myself, Pong, Ni, and Usana. Sua is program staff, Usana is the head of administration, Pong is the office administrator and Ni is the general staff caretaker (cook, housekeeper, etc.) This morning I continued on my assignment from yesterday (research on Child Abuse Statistics both general and in Thailand). Since it was just Sua and I in the office, he really opened up and in between boughts of working, he would ask me questions about myself along with telling me about his wife and son and where he was from. He then started plying me with questions about English word meanings and pronunciations.
“How do you say “three?” Now how do you say “tree”? (Thai’s have a hard time pronouncing “th.”) "How do you say “sick”? Now how do you say “sixth”? “What is the difference between “pretty” and “beautiful”? “What about for a man? There is handsome and what else?” (For this we looked up “handsome” on thesauraus.com. I had no idea some of those words even existed! ) “Why do western women wear trousers and Thai women wear skirts? Do you have any skirts?”
All along, he taught me sayings and words in Thai. I can now say, “I really like the food here” and “I need to drink a lot of water. The weather is hot!” “Di-chan chawp ah-han nii mai, ka” and “Di-chan tong-khan deum naam ma. Ah-kaht ron!” respectively. He is also teaching me that some of the things in my lonely planet guide phrase book are considered rude. For example, “I don’t understand” according to lonely planet is “mai khao jai,” but he said if he “explain, explain, explain” something to me and I said afterward “mai, khao jai,” he would feel bad. So I should say, “Koh Todd, ka. Poot mai see, ka,” or “I’m sorry, please repeat that again.”
I suggested that maybe I could teach English to him and any of the other staff who were interested for 30 minutes a day or so (an idea given to my by our CCS director) and he was very agreeable. (I asked the director at lunch and he thought it would be great as well. After the English training last week and our back-and-forth this morning, I really think I am going to enjoy the lessons).
Lunch was just me, Sua, Pong and Ni and Sua proudly asked me “what are you doing?” pointing at my water bottle. “Di-chan duem naam (I drink water),” I replied and he lit up. We spent the rest of the meal going back and forth in very rudimentary English and Thai.When the director joined us, he explained to me that the research I was doing was for a concept paper that was to be part of a proposal for new project. He said that it would be about 1 – 2 pages. Then he said, “tomorrow, we will talk more about the paper and maybe you can write some of it… maybe 1 – 2 pages.” It turns out I might be helpful here after all.
Along with my success in the friendly department, I've also had to wrestle today with patience and innovation. I’ve found that internet research here is not as easy as it would be at home. For one there are the disconnections every 15 minutes. Also, the version of WORD here is in Thai, so if I want to insert a table or a page break or change the spacing, I have to work by trial and error, guessing at where the commands are on the menus in English. Most of the time I can figure them out but it was a huge accomplishment when I figured out how to change a table to text. I was quite proud. I encountered another hurdle when I tried to save the document I had created to a disk to be printed downstairs. For some reason WORD kept crashing every time I tried to save my document to a disk. I thought I would fool the computer and simply drag the files from my document folder to the A drive in Windows explorer, but it was on to me and explorer crashed when I tried to move the files. So finally, I came up with the bright idea of emailing the files to the HAT email and having Pong open them downstairs to print. After about 40 minutes of trying to upload the files between crashes – SUCCESS! Now I just hope the director is happy with what I put together!
Buddhism
Last night we had a guest speaker on Buddhism and Meditation – a Buddhist Nun, originally from Austria. She started out the conversation by saying, “I am probably not a good example of a Buddhist Nun,” and went on to win us all over with her tales of how she became a nun, her life as a nun and stories about the temple and meditation. She was originally from Austria and attended her first 2 months meditation retreat in Thailand 18 years ago. She said that she felt called to the life and has now been a nun in Thailand for 17 years. She is not your typical Buddhist nun in that she travels to Europe once a year to teach meditation and carries a cell phone wherever she goes. Her email address is “cybernun2002.”
When she began to talk about the practice of Buddhism, she said that she considers it, not so much a religion, as a philosophy of life. She talked about the five noble truths: 1. Suffering exists; 2. Suffering arises from attachment to desires; 3. Suffering ceases when attachment to desire ceases; 4. Freedom from suffering is possible by practicing the Eightfold Path. The Eightfold Path consists of Right View, Right Thought, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, Right Contemplation. She also talked about the importance of being mindful and staying in the present moment, something that can be learned through meditation.
She explained the five precepts that the monks have to follow: 1. Do not harm any living thing; 2. Do not take anything which is not freely given to you; 3. Do not participate in sexual misconduct; 4. Refrain from incorrect speech (lying, harsh language, slander, idle chit-chat); and 5. Abstain from alcohol and drugs. Practicing Buddhists are supposed to follow the first four. The nuns have eight, these five and then three more: 6. Do not wear ornaments or engage in entertaining activities (singing, dancing, etc.); 7. Do not sleep on a wide or comfortable bed; and 8. Do not eat after the noon hour. I need to look up why there are more for nuns than monks.
One story she told was that her teacher likened consuming alcohol to consuming the blood of four animals: the blood of a bird, the blood of a monkey, the blood of a snake and the blood of a pig. He said that when you drink, the first blood to come out is the blood of a bird (when you want to talk and talk and talk). The second to come out is the blood of a monkey (usually on the dance floor). The third to come out is the blood of a snake (when you sway side to side and can’t walk in a straight line) and the last to come out is the blood of a pig (when you just crash wherever you are and sleep for hours). I found that pretty amusing.
She described the typical day of a Buddhist nun: 3:30 a.m. rise; 4:00 – 6:00 morning meditation, 6:00 – 7:00 walking meditation; 7:00 – 8:00 preparing the morning meal (from the offerings brought back by the priests from the village); 8:00 – 9:00 morning meal and daily chores; 9:00 – 11:00 meditation; 11:00-12:00 break and more chores; 12:00 – 2:00 afternoon meditation; 2:00 – 3:00 chanting; 3:00 – 4:00 break/chores; 4:00 – 5:00 walking meditation; 5:00 – 7:00 evening meditation; 7:00 – 8:00 break; 8:00 – 9:00 walking meditation and bed (I may be off a little, but those were the basic elements of the day). I asked her if the Buddha taught compassion, how did the nuns practice compassion in their everyday lives if they didn’t leave the temple. She explained that, in Thailand, the temple is often the social center of the town and serves as a social meeting place, a place where people can come to seek counsel, a place for drug addicts and battered women to find refuge and the place where many ceremonies are held. So in between all of the meditation and chanting, the nuns act in a social work capacity.
After she finished her stories, one volunteer asked “What do you consider to be the meaning of life?” I thought that was a little strong for a first question, but she took it in stride and responded that, for her, the meaning of life is to do the most good you can with the life you have for yourself, your family, your community and society at large. I really liked her.
Many of the wats here offer meditation retreats for westerners. At her wat, she is the teacher, but she will be out of the country until the middle of July. If I want to study under her, I would have to extend my stay in Thailand, which is something I can decide later. Or I can always study at another wat. It definitely gave me a lot to think about.
When she began to talk about the practice of Buddhism, she said that she considers it, not so much a religion, as a philosophy of life. She talked about the five noble truths: 1. Suffering exists; 2. Suffering arises from attachment to desires; 3. Suffering ceases when attachment to desire ceases; 4. Freedom from suffering is possible by practicing the Eightfold Path. The Eightfold Path consists of Right View, Right Thought, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, Right Contemplation. She also talked about the importance of being mindful and staying in the present moment, something that can be learned through meditation.
She explained the five precepts that the monks have to follow: 1. Do not harm any living thing; 2. Do not take anything which is not freely given to you; 3. Do not participate in sexual misconduct; 4. Refrain from incorrect speech (lying, harsh language, slander, idle chit-chat); and 5. Abstain from alcohol and drugs. Practicing Buddhists are supposed to follow the first four. The nuns have eight, these five and then three more: 6. Do not wear ornaments or engage in entertaining activities (singing, dancing, etc.); 7. Do not sleep on a wide or comfortable bed; and 8. Do not eat after the noon hour. I need to look up why there are more for nuns than monks.
One story she told was that her teacher likened consuming alcohol to consuming the blood of four animals: the blood of a bird, the blood of a monkey, the blood of a snake and the blood of a pig. He said that when you drink, the first blood to come out is the blood of a bird (when you want to talk and talk and talk). The second to come out is the blood of a monkey (usually on the dance floor). The third to come out is the blood of a snake (when you sway side to side and can’t walk in a straight line) and the last to come out is the blood of a pig (when you just crash wherever you are and sleep for hours). I found that pretty amusing.
She described the typical day of a Buddhist nun: 3:30 a.m. rise; 4:00 – 6:00 morning meditation, 6:00 – 7:00 walking meditation; 7:00 – 8:00 preparing the morning meal (from the offerings brought back by the priests from the village); 8:00 – 9:00 morning meal and daily chores; 9:00 – 11:00 meditation; 11:00-12:00 break and more chores; 12:00 – 2:00 afternoon meditation; 2:00 – 3:00 chanting; 3:00 – 4:00 break/chores; 4:00 – 5:00 walking meditation; 5:00 – 7:00 evening meditation; 7:00 – 8:00 break; 8:00 – 9:00 walking meditation and bed (I may be off a little, but those were the basic elements of the day). I asked her if the Buddha taught compassion, how did the nuns practice compassion in their everyday lives if they didn’t leave the temple. She explained that, in Thailand, the temple is often the social center of the town and serves as a social meeting place, a place where people can come to seek counsel, a place for drug addicts and battered women to find refuge and the place where many ceremonies are held. So in between all of the meditation and chanting, the nuns act in a social work capacity.
After she finished her stories, one volunteer asked “What do you consider to be the meaning of life?” I thought that was a little strong for a first question, but she took it in stride and responded that, for her, the meaning of life is to do the most good you can with the life you have for yourself, your family, your community and society at large. I really liked her.
Many of the wats here offer meditation retreats for westerners. At her wat, she is the teacher, but she will be out of the country until the middle of July. If I want to study under her, I would have to extend my stay in Thailand, which is something I can decide later. Or I can always study at another wat. It definitely gave me a lot to think about.
Monday, March 28, 2005
Ko Samet
This weekend, two of the other volunteers and I went to Ko Samet (you have to scroll through to see all of the pictures - click "next page"), one of Thailands many islands. We had planned to leave on Friday evening, but did not get back from Lopburi until late, so we decided to leave early Saturday morning. Up at 5:45, we left for the bus station to catch our bus to Ban Phe where you catch the ferry to Ko Samet. We arrived at 6:30 purchased our tickets for the 7:00 a.m. bus for 97 bhat (about $2.50). The bus was airconditioned, but there wasn't much leg room, so I spent much of the journey trying in vain to get comfortable. Luckily, I was able to get a little sleep.
The bus dropped us off at the pier for ferries to Ko Samet where we bought our 50 bhat tickets headed across. The trip across took about 30 minutes, but seemed like much less. It had started raining during the last 10 minutes of our bus ride, but cleared up before we boarded the ferry. The stretch of the Gulf between the shore and the island was dotted with ferries, ancient looking fishing boats and snazzy new speed boats. There was even on Thai fisherman in an old longboat with a bamboo pole.
When we arrived at the pier, there was no room for the ferry to dock, so they simply docked next to another ferry and we jumped from one to the other to the pier. The entrance to Ko Samet was not what I expected, but it was true to it's "backpacker haven" reputation. The main road to the beaches is lined with shops and cafes, similar to what you'd see in other beach towns in developing countries. We had read to skip the first beach, which is the most touristy and expensive and headed down the road to the beaches farther down the east coast of the island. As we walked along the dirt road, we were passed by numerous pick-up trucks (or songthaews) filled with people heading to the beaches. Always the budget traveler, I had read that the beaches were close and that there was no need to pay for a ride, and luckily I was right.
We soon left the road and began walking along the coast. According to my Rough Guide, the farther down you go, the more secluded the beaches become. We found that this was somewhat the case and in a very "bear went over the mountain" fashion, we found a new beach each time we rounded a corner. We finally stopped at about the third beach, figuring that we could always stay at one and walk to the other. We got a bungalow at the AO Phi huts (pictures in the island pictures above) for 1200 bhat (about 30 dollars) with a view of the beach. We had lunch at one of the many restaurants on the beach and spent the rest of the afternoon walking down the east coast, over beaches, over rocky outcroppings; and swimming in the warm, clear blue waters of the Gulf.
We made it back to our hut around 6:00 and went back down to the beach for dinner and drinks. I ordered the same thing, pan-fried noodles with squid, three times on the island and each time it was different and each time it was delicious - although not once did I get squid, but the shrimp was plentiful. When it got dark, we were treated to a fire dance on the beach. The bar connected to the restaurant began playing American dance and hip-hop and we joined the other tourists and Thais on the dance floor and had a ball.
I woke up at about 8:15 and headed down to the beach. After a luxurious brunch of what?, pan friend noodles and shrimp, we checked out of our hut and headed back for the long journey home. It was a really nice way to spend the weekend - minus the 4-5 hour travel time!
The bus dropped us off at the pier for ferries to Ko Samet where we bought our 50 bhat tickets headed across. The trip across took about 30 minutes, but seemed like much less. It had started raining during the last 10 minutes of our bus ride, but cleared up before we boarded the ferry. The stretch of the Gulf between the shore and the island was dotted with ferries, ancient looking fishing boats and snazzy new speed boats. There was even on Thai fisherman in an old longboat with a bamboo pole.
When we arrived at the pier, there was no room for the ferry to dock, so they simply docked next to another ferry and we jumped from one to the other to the pier. The entrance to Ko Samet was not what I expected, but it was true to it's "backpacker haven" reputation. The main road to the beaches is lined with shops and cafes, similar to what you'd see in other beach towns in developing countries. We had read to skip the first beach, which is the most touristy and expensive and headed down the road to the beaches farther down the east coast of the island. As we walked along the dirt road, we were passed by numerous pick-up trucks (or songthaews) filled with people heading to the beaches. Always the budget traveler, I had read that the beaches were close and that there was no need to pay for a ride, and luckily I was right.
We soon left the road and began walking along the coast. According to my Rough Guide, the farther down you go, the more secluded the beaches become. We found that this was somewhat the case and in a very "bear went over the mountain" fashion, we found a new beach each time we rounded a corner. We finally stopped at about the third beach, figuring that we could always stay at one and walk to the other. We got a bungalow at the AO Phi huts (pictures in the island pictures above) for 1200 bhat (about 30 dollars) with a view of the beach. We had lunch at one of the many restaurants on the beach and spent the rest of the afternoon walking down the east coast, over beaches, over rocky outcroppings; and swimming in the warm, clear blue waters of the Gulf.
We made it back to our hut around 6:00 and went back down to the beach for dinner and drinks. I ordered the same thing, pan-fried noodles with squid, three times on the island and each time it was different and each time it was delicious - although not once did I get squid, but the shrimp was plentiful. When it got dark, we were treated to a fire dance on the beach. The bar connected to the restaurant began playing American dance and hip-hop and we joined the other tourists and Thais on the dance floor and had a ball.
I woke up at about 8:15 and headed down to the beach. After a luxurious brunch of what?, pan friend noodles and shrimp, we checked out of our hut and headed back for the long journey home. It was a really nice way to spend the weekend - minus the 4-5 hour travel time!
Friday, March 25, 2005
Paper Flowers and Tiny Feet
Wednesday, we went to the annual funeral ceremony at the Bang Khae Home for the Aged. I believe the bodies are preserved until this day, when they are all cremated in a communal ceremony. A monk spoke first about each of the diseased and about how the home is a place for people to live and be cared for in their old age when their families can no longer care for them (or so I was told, the whole ceremony was in Thai). Then we were treated to a traditional Thai dance. After the dancing, we were all given paper flower arrangements that we placed on the "alter" near the coffins out of respect for the dead.
At one point, Foon motioned to me that someone wanted to speak to me. It was a woman who lived at the home and spoke perfect English. She was in her eighties and asked where I was from and why I was there and shared some stories about herself. She was a boyscout leader and a royal staff member. She traveled to 10 different countries in the region working on children's issues. She asked me to come back to visit her. I hope to have some time either this week or next to stop in to say hello.
After the funeral, we went to a local Thai boxing camp. Instead of taking us to a match, something anyone can do, CCS took us to a local camp where kids from the neighborhood can come to train. Often, if a family doesn't have a lot of money, they will send their sons to box for money. The kids we saw there all seemed to really enjoy it and obviously looked up to the older fighters. The camp was in the middle of a lower-class Thai village, with closely spaced houses, no bigger than a room and interlaced with canals and bridges. Following our guide through this maze, we arrived at the camp, which was a large covered area with a boxing ring in the middle and an area to the side with mats and punching bags. There were three older fighters and about 12 young boys about 8 - 10.
First they treated us to a "fake" match, which was still pretty rough. Thai boxing is unlike US boxing in that there is much more use of the legs. If you don't watch out, you can get a brutal kick to the head. Before the match, the boxers perform some sort of dancing routine, which was very foreign to me as boxing in the States is such a "manly" sport. After their dances, they fought three short rounds, with a lot of staged falls. The young boys really enjoyed it and shouted out encouragement when things got rough. After that match, the youngest champion fighter came out and sparred with an older man (using pads for him to punch and kick). This little guy probably weighed no more than 50 pounds and his legs were about the size of my arms, but I wouldn't want to cross him! Afterwards, they showed us how to do some of the moves and we took a picture with the kids. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera, but the other volunteers got pictures and will post then within the next few weeks.
At one point, Foon motioned to me that someone wanted to speak to me. It was a woman who lived at the home and spoke perfect English. She was in her eighties and asked where I was from and why I was there and shared some stories about herself. She was a boyscout leader and a royal staff member. She traveled to 10 different countries in the region working on children's issues. She asked me to come back to visit her. I hope to have some time either this week or next to stop in to say hello.
After the funeral, we went to a local Thai boxing camp. Instead of taking us to a match, something anyone can do, CCS took us to a local camp where kids from the neighborhood can come to train. Often, if a family doesn't have a lot of money, they will send their sons to box for money. The kids we saw there all seemed to really enjoy it and obviously looked up to the older fighters. The camp was in the middle of a lower-class Thai village, with closely spaced houses, no bigger than a room and interlaced with canals and bridges. Following our guide through this maze, we arrived at the camp, which was a large covered area with a boxing ring in the middle and an area to the side with mats and punching bags. There were three older fighters and about 12 young boys about 8 - 10.
First they treated us to a "fake" match, which was still pretty rough. Thai boxing is unlike US boxing in that there is much more use of the legs. If you don't watch out, you can get a brutal kick to the head. Before the match, the boxers perform some sort of dancing routine, which was very foreign to me as boxing in the States is such a "manly" sport. After their dances, they fought three short rounds, with a lot of staged falls. The young boys really enjoyed it and shouted out encouragement when things got rough. After that match, the youngest champion fighter came out and sparred with an older man (using pads for him to punch and kick). This little guy probably weighed no more than 50 pounds and his legs were about the size of my arms, but I wouldn't want to cross him! Afterwards, they showed us how to do some of the moves and we took a picture with the kids. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera, but the other volunteers got pictures and will post then within the next few weeks.
Lopburi
Today we traveled to Lopburi, about two and a half hours north of Bangkok to visit and HIV/AIDS Hospice, Wat Phra Bhat Nam Phu. We were greeted at the entrance be a garden of stone statutes of various human forms. One was of a human form, its face contorted, its arms reach up, but cut off a few inches past the shoulder. I wasn't sure if that was intentional or simply decay, but soon found that it was intentional. The hospice houses around 400 patients and their rate of death is about 2 to 3 a day on average. I had no idea that that number of people living with HIV/AIDS in Thailand was so high, about one in every 55 people. The patients at the hospice are often living there not only for the care, but also because the stigma about AIDS and the lack of knowledge of modes of transmission is so high.
Walking into the reception area, we were offered photo albums. The pictures depicted the patients in the hospice, some enjoying daily activities, but many more, on hospital beds, barely more than skeletons. Little did I know that the our next stop was to visit some of these very patients. We were taken to the hospital room were about 12 patients in various conditions were laying on hospital gurnies. There was no air-condition, but the room was clean and neat. Most of them were sleeping or covered in blankets, but those who were awake responded to our wai's with smiles and a wai in return.
From there, we went to an area with a Buddha image surrounded by thousands of white bags, which, as were were told, were the ashes of the patients who had died there since its inception - over 10,000. The ashes were always sent to their families, but more often then not, were returned as undeliverable.
The next room was a room which housed the mummified remains of patients who wanted their bodies donated for science and study. Some of these were encased in glass coffins, but others were simply laying out in the open. Many still had their hair and three were small children. It was hard to see, but also in many ways didn't seem real.
After the tour, we were treated to a cabaret show put on by patients of the community. After each skit, the patients were identified by age and how they contracted the disease. One very striking young woman, turned out to be a 16 year old boy who had contracted the disease through sexual transmission. Two middle aged women had contracted it through their husbands and another woman had been gang raped at a factory where she worked.
One of the shows, starred a Thai ladyboy (see below, none of the sites I found to link to were appropriate for a family friendly blog), who was obviously not a lady, who picked an unsuspecting visitor out of the audience and proceeded to give him a lap dance. The poor man was obviously uncomfortable, but it made for an amusing scene for the rest of the audience.
After the shows, the audience was asked for donations (I believe that a portion of our program fee goes to the organizations that we visit.
After the AIDS temple, we went into town to visit the monkey temple, which is literally overrun with monkeys. If you sit down, you are inviting monkeys to jump on your shoulders, pick through your hair or run off with any of your loose possessions. We enjoyed watching the other tourists go through this, but the term "ebola" kept running through my mind as we watched, and I kept my distance.
Addendum
Thai Ladyboys:
They are called ladyboys, shemales, transsexuals or hermaphrodites, born as a man with the soul of a woman many transsexuals feel themselves caught in the wrong body.
The Kathoeys (ladyboys), as they are called in the national language, count among the most beautiful of the world. Due to the centuries old tradition of Thai ladyboy dancers, who in earlier times performed their art even before the king, Kathoeys are largely accepted in Thai society. All over the country beauty pageants take place, much to the enthusiasm of the population. The most beautiful Kathoeys are awarded prizes. To win one of those competitions is a great honour for the ladies. Compared to other countries Thailand boasts above-average numbers of transsexuals and transvestites. Strolling through the streets of Bangkok it is not unusual to encounter several of the pretty shemales. Due to their mostly tender physiques Thai Kathoeys appear very feminine and are for the untrained eye hard to tell from a girl.
Walking into the reception area, we were offered photo albums. The pictures depicted the patients in the hospice, some enjoying daily activities, but many more, on hospital beds, barely more than skeletons. Little did I know that the our next stop was to visit some of these very patients. We were taken to the hospital room were about 12 patients in various conditions were laying on hospital gurnies. There was no air-condition, but the room was clean and neat. Most of them were sleeping or covered in blankets, but those who were awake responded to our wai's with smiles and a wai in return.
From there, we went to an area with a Buddha image surrounded by thousands of white bags, which, as were were told, were the ashes of the patients who had died there since its inception - over 10,000. The ashes were always sent to their families, but more often then not, were returned as undeliverable.
The next room was a room which housed the mummified remains of patients who wanted their bodies donated for science and study. Some of these were encased in glass coffins, but others were simply laying out in the open. Many still had their hair and three were small children. It was hard to see, but also in many ways didn't seem real.
After the tour, we were treated to a cabaret show put on by patients of the community. After each skit, the patients were identified by age and how they contracted the disease. One very striking young woman, turned out to be a 16 year old boy who had contracted the disease through sexual transmission. Two middle aged women had contracted it through their husbands and another woman had been gang raped at a factory where she worked.
One of the shows, starred a Thai ladyboy (see below, none of the sites I found to link to were appropriate for a family friendly blog), who was obviously not a lady, who picked an unsuspecting visitor out of the audience and proceeded to give him a lap dance. The poor man was obviously uncomfortable, but it made for an amusing scene for the rest of the audience.
After the shows, the audience was asked for donations (I believe that a portion of our program fee goes to the organizations that we visit.
After the AIDS temple, we went into town to visit the monkey temple, which is literally overrun with monkeys. If you sit down, you are inviting monkeys to jump on your shoulders, pick through your hair or run off with any of your loose possessions. We enjoyed watching the other tourists go through this, but the term "ebola" kept running through my mind as we watched, and I kept my distance.
Addendum
Thai Ladyboys:
They are called ladyboys, shemales, transsexuals or hermaphrodites, born as a man with the soul of a woman many transsexuals feel themselves caught in the wrong body.
The Kathoeys (ladyboys), as they are called in the national language, count among the most beautiful of the world. Due to the centuries old tradition of Thai ladyboy dancers, who in earlier times performed their art even before the king, Kathoeys are largely accepted in Thai society. All over the country beauty pageants take place, much to the enthusiasm of the population. The most beautiful Kathoeys are awarded prizes. To win one of those competitions is a great honour for the ladies. Compared to other countries Thailand boasts above-average numbers of transsexuals and transvestites. Strolling through the streets of Bangkok it is not unusual to encounter several of the pretty shemales. Due to their mostly tender physiques Thai Kathoeys appear very feminine and are for the untrained eye hard to tell from a girl.
Refrigerators and Wardrobes
On Thursday CCS had set up an English camp for the teachers at a local school and we all agreed to help, relieving us from our placements for the day. The camp was divided into three sections: my home (where teachers would learn the words for the rooms in their homes and things in the rooms); my school; and an internet section where they would learn to search for things on the internet. The final section would teach them the English words for all of the ingredients and steps in making Thai spicy papaya salad and would then have to explain in English before making the salad.
There were about 30 teachers and almost all of them were married women in their 40's and 50's. For the initial ice breaker exercise we gathered into a circle and there was a space left between two people. These people were then to grab hands and seek out someone else in the circle to fill the gap, thereby creating another gap. The two new people on each side of this gap were to do the same, until the music stopped, leaving those not in the circle to come up and introduce themselves. After one round, we started with two gaps and the result was mass chaos and plenty of hysterics.
I was in the 'my home' group with Ellie, another volunteer from England. We had a model of a house and drawings of the various rooms taped up on the wall. After talking about the various rooms and items in the rooms from the model, the teachers were to find the word for the items in the rooms and the picture, match them up and tape them to the corresponding room on the wall. After this, they were asked to write, in English, a description of a house.
The women were all very good natured and interested in learning, repeating the English words for household items with serious determination. Because I am from the US and Ellie is from the UK, we often gave them two words for the same object (Sofa/Couch, Wardrobe/Closet, Cooker/Stove, Cupboard/Cabinets). The words that gave everyone the most trouble were "wardrobe" and "refrigerator" and the results were quite amusing (to both the women and volunteers). "Wardrobe" most often came out "Wartheb" and "refrigerator" was just unintelligible. A few of the women got it after a while, but it made us realize not only how ridiculous we must sound trying to proonounce Thai words, but also how difficult it is to learn English as a second language. The few who did get the words down often became so excited that they would run around the room yelling out the word. They all seemed to enjoy the class and each other.
After the three sessions, we all joined together again for the salad making. After teaching them the words for all of the items and the motions necessary to make the salad (peel, chop, grind, etc.), we asked them to write the steps down and present them in English. One thing I have yet to mention here is the vast difference in the reception of western men and western women from Thai women. Thai women love western men; women are tolerated. Tony (tall, handsome, 25 and married) was offered various hands in marriage and one woman said that she was too old for marriage, but when she died she would like to be fertilizer in his garden (one of the more disturbing things I have ever heard. Bill (64, retired, slightly over-weight) had a women bowing at his feet proclaiming her love in between steps to make papaya salad.
There were about 30 teachers and almost all of them were married women in their 40's and 50's. For the initial ice breaker exercise we gathered into a circle and there was a space left between two people. These people were then to grab hands and seek out someone else in the circle to fill the gap, thereby creating another gap. The two new people on each side of this gap were to do the same, until the music stopped, leaving those not in the circle to come up and introduce themselves. After one round, we started with two gaps and the result was mass chaos and plenty of hysterics.
I was in the 'my home' group with Ellie, another volunteer from England. We had a model of a house and drawings of the various rooms taped up on the wall. After talking about the various rooms and items in the rooms from the model, the teachers were to find the word for the items in the rooms and the picture, match them up and tape them to the corresponding room on the wall. After this, they were asked to write, in English, a description of a house.
The women were all very good natured and interested in learning, repeating the English words for household items with serious determination. Because I am from the US and Ellie is from the UK, we often gave them two words for the same object (Sofa/Couch, Wardrobe/Closet, Cooker/Stove, Cupboard/Cabinets). The words that gave everyone the most trouble were "wardrobe" and "refrigerator" and the results were quite amusing (to both the women and volunteers). "Wardrobe" most often came out "Wartheb" and "refrigerator" was just unintelligible. A few of the women got it after a while, but it made us realize not only how ridiculous we must sound trying to proonounce Thai words, but also how difficult it is to learn English as a second language. The few who did get the words down often became so excited that they would run around the room yelling out the word. They all seemed to enjoy the class and each other.
After the three sessions, we all joined together again for the salad making. After teaching them the words for all of the items and the motions necessary to make the salad (peel, chop, grind, etc.), we asked them to write the steps down and present them in English. One thing I have yet to mention here is the vast difference in the reception of western men and western women from Thai women. Thai women love western men; women are tolerated. Tony (tall, handsome, 25 and married) was offered various hands in marriage and one woman said that she was too old for marriage, but when she died she would like to be fertilizer in his garden (one of the more disturbing things I have ever heard. Bill (64, retired, slightly over-weight) had a women bowing at his feet proclaiming her love in between steps to make papaya salad.
The women then returned to their tables and began making the salad. One woman broke out a tambourine and her whole group began singing and dancing as they worked. It made for a very festive end to a great day.
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
Culture Shock
I have realized that traveling in another country is one thing; living and "working" in another country is another. Culture Shock is defined as a condition of confusion and anxiety affecting a person suddenly exposed to an alien culture or milieu. I can't say I am confused or anxious, but this is definitely the end of the honeymoon period and the beginning of the hard work.
Monday was my first day at my placement and I found myself in an office, surrounded by people who speak a language I haven't even begun to comprehend (aside from surface pleasantries) and I was completely at their mercy. A bit disconcerting to realize when you're in the midst of it. The office staff includes two women in administration, four program staff (three men and one woman), one driver (or that I was I assume his position to be) and the executive director. The women in administration were very nice, greeting me and buying me flowers for my birthday. The men in the program staff are Vikram, an older gentleman who speaks English well enough to communicate and is very funny and happy to chat; Champ, who is 21 and quiet so far; Moo, who is the only woman and hasn't said much, and Sua, who is about 40 and looks like an Asian gangster with an expression to match. He hadn't said a word to me.
At lunch, all of the staff eat together and they invited me to join them. Once in a while, one of the men who spoke English would clue me in as to their conversation, but for the most part, I ate and smiled. Near the end of the meal, the conversation came around to what my Thai nickname would be. The threw a few things around - putting me in an uncomfortable spot, knowing the conversation was about me and having no clue as to what they were saying - at one point one of the woman from administration pointed at a lemon and said "lemon" in Thai and the director explained to me that she had suggested a lemon because "it is sour like (your) actions"!!! I couldn't even begin to understand where I'd gone wrong. All I'd done all morning was nod and smile and try to look interested. "Slow" or "mute," I could understand, but "sour"?? Luckily for me "lemon" was discarded and they decided that I should come up with my own nickname.
We spent the afternoon discussing my schedule for the next 10 weeks, afterwhich I happily jumped in a cab back to CCS.
Tuesday and Wednesday were spent in a day care that is somehow connected to the organization. There were two teachers and a director (or so I believe that is his position). Neither of the teachers speak English, so the director was my sole interpreter.
The Thai's are a very hospitable people and I was constantly plied with drinks and food and questioned as to my emotional state, "are you happy???" To which I would respond with my most un-sour radiant smile, "yes, I am very happy!" I spent the days observing the kids and playing a bit (today I brought in paper and crayons for them to draw), but mostly talking with the director, assuming "talk" does not imply comprehension. He speaks little English but seems to read and write better than he speaks and understands. We passed the days with conversations that went a little something like this:
Director: "You Thailand see here?"
Me: "I'm sorry?"
Director: "You Thailand SEE HERE?"
Me: "Oh.. Yes!...?"
Director nods happily.
Director: "Someone like something, some not."
Me: "Yes!" Nodding smiling in affirmation.
Director beaming.
Director: "You like apples?"
Me: "Yes, I like apples." Smile.
Me: "How long have you worked here?"
Director: Look of abject confusion, wrinkled brow.
Me: "You work here, how long?"
Director: "Ahh. 10 year." Smiles.
Monday was my first day at my placement and I found myself in an office, surrounded by people who speak a language I haven't even begun to comprehend (aside from surface pleasantries) and I was completely at their mercy. A bit disconcerting to realize when you're in the midst of it. The office staff includes two women in administration, four program staff (three men and one woman), one driver (or that I was I assume his position to be) and the executive director. The women in administration were very nice, greeting me and buying me flowers for my birthday. The men in the program staff are Vikram, an older gentleman who speaks English well enough to communicate and is very funny and happy to chat; Champ, who is 21 and quiet so far; Moo, who is the only woman and hasn't said much, and Sua, who is about 40 and looks like an Asian gangster with an expression to match. He hadn't said a word to me.
At lunch, all of the staff eat together and they invited me to join them. Once in a while, one of the men who spoke English would clue me in as to their conversation, but for the most part, I ate and smiled. Near the end of the meal, the conversation came around to what my Thai nickname would be. The threw a few things around - putting me in an uncomfortable spot, knowing the conversation was about me and having no clue as to what they were saying - at one point one of the woman from administration pointed at a lemon and said "lemon" in Thai and the director explained to me that she had suggested a lemon because "it is sour like (your) actions"!!! I couldn't even begin to understand where I'd gone wrong. All I'd done all morning was nod and smile and try to look interested. "Slow" or "mute," I could understand, but "sour"?? Luckily for me "lemon" was discarded and they decided that I should come up with my own nickname.
We spent the afternoon discussing my schedule for the next 10 weeks, afterwhich I happily jumped in a cab back to CCS.
Tuesday and Wednesday were spent in a day care that is somehow connected to the organization. There were two teachers and a director (or so I believe that is his position). Neither of the teachers speak English, so the director was my sole interpreter.
The Thai's are a very hospitable people and I was constantly plied with drinks and food and questioned as to my emotional state, "are you happy???" To which I would respond with my most un-sour radiant smile, "yes, I am very happy!" I spent the days observing the kids and playing a bit (today I brought in paper and crayons for them to draw), but mostly talking with the director, assuming "talk" does not imply comprehension. He speaks little English but seems to read and write better than he speaks and understands. We passed the days with conversations that went a little something like this:
Director: "You Thailand see here?"
Me: "I'm sorry?"
Director: "You Thailand SEE HERE?"
Me: "Oh.. Yes!...?"
Director nods happily.
Director: "Someone like something, some not."
Me: "Yes!" Nodding smiling in affirmation.
Director beaming.
Director: "You like apples?"
Me: "Yes, I like apples." Smile.
Me: "How long have you worked here?"
Director: Look of abject confusion, wrinkled brow.
Me: "You work here, how long?"
Director: "Ahh. 10 year." Smiles.
Needless to say, I need to spend my spare time working on my Thai!!
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
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