Thailand: Mid-trip Reflections

Nemo

Nemo~

Why would I stay here longer? Hmmm. That one’s kind of hard to put in words. I guess the main reason, other than what out team always says about why they would stay longer (the people), is that it is so different than what I have come to know in my seventeen years of living in America. It really is a completely different environment. It was really easy for me to come here and feel at home. In America there are only a few places that make me feel that way, and it took it a little while to make it a new home. But here, especially in the slums and the villages, there is an instant warmth that captures you and holds you there and lets you want to not let go.

Thailand: Tap Tai Homestay

Dean~

The next day we headed back into Tap Pai village for another three days with our families. It was a blur of working and hanging out with our families.This time they seemed a lot happier to see us. They were up waiting for us when we arrived and wanted to hear about what we did. They first asked if we were hungry and if we needed to take a shower and then they just listened and we had a language lesson that went both ways. We would point to something and we would say it in English and then they would tell us how to say it in Thai and Khmer. It was a good few days. One day we had to do a two and a half hour English lesson with students from the local school. The last night we would be staying in the village we prepared for a feast and a good-bye ceremony.

Ecuador: The Amazon

Students in the Amazon

Flor~

One important thing that people from Portland, and simply throughout the world, is that the Sarayacu are a very strong community base that is independent from the government yet they fight with all they can in order to preserve one of the few, and the biggest, patches of serene pure terrain. Regardless of anything they take up this responsibility to help us all around the globe, they find no burdain in this and they do it so unselfishly.

Thailand: Week Two

Laurel~

We are now in the village of Serine, which consists of only 85 families. The people here are so kind! They live a very mellow life and are very family oriented. The children help out willingly and people smile often. However, there are many cultural differences that make it difficult to be completely comfortable. Personally, the diet is not one that I am used to. Having never been around meat causes extra sensitivity to cooking smells. Showering and using the bathroom is very different too. The water is cold, but often feels good in the heat. It is hard to wash shampoo out of my hair with a bucket of water, and using a hose to wash my bum is very different too.