Learning Thai

Last week Eliza and I accompanied the REACH team on a trip to northwestern Thailand. We taught at an English camp and visited several villages in an area along the Myanmar border that is home to the Karen tribal group. It was a good trip - the camp was a success and I think that all of us learned more about Thailand. Unfortunately, I took along a camera that didn't work so I came home with only a few pictures that the REACHers kindly let me take with their cameras.

The camp was held at a church in the town of Mae Ramaat. Fifty some kids attended and the REACH team did a great job of organizing a fun combination of teaching, crafts, games, and songs. I did some translation, ran errands, and helped with just a little bit of teaching.

After the camp we spent several days in some more remote villages. In this picture Eliza is posing with a Karen woman in a very remote village where we attended a wedding ceremony. The ceremony itself was disappointingly Westernized - complete with a ring bearer and bride in a white veil. Odd features included a maid of honor dressed exactly like the bride (including the white veil) and at least two guests crashing to the floor after unsuccessfully trying to sit on plastic chairs that were missing one leg. We only arrived at the village after a nerve-wracking trip over an incredibly steep and rutted mountain road that was made even worse by a rickety truck and a driver who failed to inspire confidence.

We also got to experience at least a little bit of the more mundane life in the villages as well. We slept under mosquito nets in houses on stilts and I even got to try the traditional way of bathing - outdoors on the porch while wrapped in a sarong. It's always good for me to be reminded that Thailand consists of so much more than Bangkok. Village life has formed the basis of Thai culture. The developed, frenetically paced Bangkok is a much more recent addition.

Another village we visited was right on the river that separates Thailand and Myanmar. We spent some time with some Karen Christians and also visited a settlement of Karen people who have moved in from Myanmar in search of work. This area is close to a large camp that was recently visited by Angelina Jolie. While she was there she made some comments that were not well received by the authorities. When we stopped by that camp we were told we couldn't enter or even take pictures because of the minor uproar she had caused.

Eliza did a great job on the trip. She had to put up with a lot of attention from strangers, strange food, and long, hot truck rides. She also developed a new appreciation for animals - discovering that she's not afraid of cats and that she really likes to feed pigs.

We got back home very early on Friday morning and have enjoyed a couple of relaxing family days since then. The REACH team, meanwhile, is continuing their tour of the country. They'll spend the next week in Chiang Mai and then head to northeastern Thailand for another 10 days or so.

-Tom