Saturday was a fun filled day! We (Me, Abby, Madison, Courtney, & Mckenzie) woke up at 7:30 to wait for our ride outside of our hotel to go ride elephants!! They picked us up & a few other groups then we headed to the jungle, about an hour away. The place we went to was called "panda tours" it makes no sense & it's kinda hilarious. Haha it was such a good place though. We were nervous about the elephants being treated badly & stuff like that but we didn't get that vibe at all. They were very informative & told us everything. The place was actually located in a village & the owners of the elephants ARE the villagers. They are working elephants for the villagers. We were basically taking care of the elephants for them & the price we paid (50 dollars) pays for the food for the elephants, our lunch, & obviously the experience. Oh & I guess for the trainers to get paid too. So it is very self sufficient. When we got there we first changed into these dirty denim clothes & hung out with the elephants & fed them. I think the point was to get us comfortable with them. They are the cutest animals to me. It's trunk alone almost seems like an animal itself. It's weird. There was a little baby elephant that was 3 years old that kissed our cheeks. It felt like a vacuum suction! 3 is very young for an elephant. Elephants can live up to 90 years old!!! Like humans! So cool. We took a bunch of pictures & then the trainers taught us some basic Thai commands to control the elephants. Like stop, go, left, right, etc. We also practiced getting on & off the elephants. You grab it's ear & a chunk of fat on its side then step on its foot & say "lift, higher" in Thai.. (I already forgot oops) & it lifts & you walk up its leg & hop on! Just like that! Then to get off, you slide off the front by its trunk. They are so strong & thick, I felt like a feather on top of it. Playing with them is not like playing with a cat (that's what the trainer was saying) you have to be firm with them & sometimes that makes people think you are hurting them. But they like it! You can tell the trainers have good friendly relationships with them. Just like someone would with their dog. I guess it's possible that they could just be putting on a show, but I like to think the best of them & again it seemed legit. Anyways, Abby, Madison, & I rode on an elephant together. They took us around the jungle, not too far because they actually walk really slow. Big steps, but slow. We went through a river & a lot of mud. At first it was difficult to stabilize yourself on the bare back but you got used to it. Half way through the trainer (when I say trainer just know I'm talking about the same one every time) he was the fun/funny one! So halfway through he jumped onto the back of our elephant & rode the rest of the way with us. He kinda came out of nowhere, I don't even know how he jumped on... Maybe off a big rock or tree... I don't remember. Haha then we rode to a watering hole at the end & slid off the elephant into the water. They gave us buckets & this weird tree bark stuff to scrub & wash the elephant with. After we finished scrubbing the elephant ate the bark we washed it with. I guess they will eat anything. Haha Then the trainer started throwing buckets of water on us & thus began our water fight! We got completely soaked, head to toe. That was one of my favorite parts. Just hanging out in the water with these huge elephants having a water fight in Thailand! Cool. I still can't believe I rode an elephant. It's been something I've wanted to do for so long & now I've done it!! Makes me realize how possible it is to do so many things on my bucket list. Check! Afterwards they fed us lunch, curry. & then we headed back to our hotel & relaxed a bit before going to the walking street (street market) oh wait. Before that we went to Dukes! I can't forget about Dukes! They serve the best American food in all the world. Seriously. & its run by all Asians. Their menu is huge they have everything! Madison & I split a calzone. Bomb. The only problem with the place is that their wifi never works. Haha THEN we went to the walking street. I like this market best because they have more hand crafted things, it was just so crowded! We were there for a while then some of the girls wanted to go back to the hotel because they were tired. It was only 8 & I still wanted to go to Muay Thai boxing. I've realized since being here that if there are certain things I wanna do sometimes I just have to make it happen. I thought everyone would be the same way because we are in Thailand! But I guess not. Plus a lot of the girls have been here longer so they have already experienced things that some of us haven't yet. Anyways long story short only Madison & I ended up going. We got a tuk tuk to a bar & realized once we got there that it wasn't the training match (free) one we thought. So we were trying to decide what to do. We were gonna go back to the hotel cause we didn't want to pay, plus it was a sketch environment.. but then we got the price lowered from 400 baht to 200 baht each. Half off. Score! A lady took us back & we got front row cushioned seats. I don't even know how... I was confused, we paid half price & got "special treatment" cool. It was just a small place at a bar so it's not like it was really that much different than the back row, but it was still just funny. The match was sweet! I've never seen anything like it so close in person. I don't know how legit & good they really were but the experience was still awesome! Madison met a Russian man that was sitting next to us (she served in russia) & they were talking the whole time. I think it was fun for her to speak Russian & he couldn't believe she was an American, speaking Russian in Thailand he thought she was like a princess! He was floored when he found out she was married. Too young he said. Ha She shared the gospel with him a bit cause he asked how she knew Russian & then she gave him LDS.org. So cool. We were only going to stay for a bit but we ended up staying till midnight! We got out of there way fast after though & got a tuk tuk to our hotel. Met another cool dude in the tuk tuk. That's one thing I love about Chiang Mai. All the people we meet from different countries & places. It's fun. Such a great day. They run her legs & dump ice water over her after each match.
0 Comments
We spent the morning at the Akha village preparing a garden & washing walls to paint a mural on it. We're helping them make a garden for the little kids to grow veggies. We flipped old bike tires inside out because they are using them for the garden. It's kinda hard to explain but they are going to lay the tires down & plant inside the circles. Cute idea! Then a sweet lady at the village fed us lunch. They've been feeding us a lot lately. Haha it's great! Then we left for Chiang Mai around 2:00. Everybody went in a van but Abby & I left a little earlier on the bus because it takes longer. It was quite the adventure. NO ONE IN FANG SPEAKS ENGLISH, or very little of it. The ladies at the bus station were just laughing at us, it was actually really frustrating & rude but they didn't know what else to do I guess. Finally we called Russ to talk to them on the phone & explain what & where we needed to go. I like the bus better cause it's more airy & it's cheaper! 3 hours later we got to Chiang Mai & ate at a Japanese buffet. So bomb. The freshest sushi ever. Then... I had a life changing experience. A couple of us got a Thai massage. It was literally life changing. They really go all in, using their whole bodies to stretch & massage ours. It was seriously the best service & only 8 bucks for an hour. Tea & cookies included.
Hello! Hope all is well. I am doing good. These past two days have been a little slow. Some things fell through yesterday so I ended up taking a long (much needed) nap through the afternoon. Yesterday morning we did paint at the Lahu village though. We are painting a small building that I think they use as a cafeteria. We're painting the inside walls a light light blue & a Noah's ark mural (upon request) & Adam & Eve (also upon request) haha then the outside is a bright bright blue! It's a pretty color, I really like it. It will probably take a week or two to finish the murals & stuff. Especially because the kids keep breaking in before it dries & putting their dirty feet on the wall & drawing on it with sharpie. Literally. Ugh. They're cute though sooooooo. Ha They have some other paintings that were here before I got here & it's amazing how much better it makes their village look. Most of the painting are from HELP In other years. Project beautify is what we call it!:) Anyways so that's what we did before I slept the afternoon away. Then last night we taught first aid and had a BBQ at the Akha village. It pretty much was just us eating chicken & veggies with our fingers as it came off the grill. Haha it was so yummy. Russell (team lead) is a great cook turns out!
Ps. My friend Madison I told you about, please keep her in your prayers. Her dad has ALS & just passed away this morning. She is so strong. I know she will be okay. Thanks guys!!! Hello! So I was texting with Tyler last night & he was asking me some specific questions & it made me realize there is a lot of feelings I have about the villages & the people here that I haven't shared with you guys yet. So I'm going to do that now.
First I'll start off with some of the volunteers: Madison (24) & Abby (19) are my two closest friends here. However I get along great with everyone & they all have their own unique personalities that I've enjoyed getting to know. Madison is married to a very adventurous man & they do a lot of crazy cool things together. A very outdoorsy & cute couple. I'll meet her husband at the end of the summer when he comes out. Madison also is just the sweetest & is so genuine & caring. Abby brings so much energy & fun to the group! She is the filmer/photographer for this trip & is amazing at what she does! Liz (23) served in Thailand so she knows Thai. She is going to be a great mom. Haha she is just so kind & caring. Very sincere. We have some twins here & they are fun. Along with a few other great girls! (Yes all the volunteers for third wave are girls) but then we have our two team leads David & Russell. They are the best. They both served their missions in Thailand so they also know Thai. We got lucky with great team leads. Russell's wife Dani is here with him as well. She's adorable. Such a fun group! Villages: It's so hard to learn all of their names (especially when their names sound like just random sounds) so I'm just going to speak about them in general. I have loved getting to know these villagers, especially the kids because they are who we spend most of our time with. This trip has already been a changing & growing experience that is definitely shaping me. I've learned so many new things about this culture & seen things that I have only really read about. I love being a part of something that is good & positive. It's been a very humbling experience. It's pushed me out of my comfort zone & that alone has been a changing experience. What I have a hard time with is the fact that we come here for this experience & help them...then we just leave. They don't have the choice to just leave. And even if they did I don't think they would because it's their home & they love it. But to me it's just still sad. Like there is a small kid here that is so athletic & I want him to be grow up to be an athlete. Or I want one of the young girls to become a doctor! & they totally can! But it's not likely. They will probably live the rest of their lives farming at their village. Or if they value education then they might get a job possibly in Chiang Mai. But they can do so much more!!!! Hopefully they continue on their own with the things that we teach them & get motivated about it. Because that's when real change will start to happen. Tyler made me realize though how I don't have to just leave. I can continue to "help" in so many ways after my time here is finished. & he's 100% right! We went on a team building activity this morning through the smokey mountains. We were driving through the clouds, which made it look that way. It was unlike anything I have ever seen before. It was so green, misty & mysterious. & actually kinda chilly. We drove on these windy roads to the top of the mountain. The hills were so steep our truck could hardly make it up them. In fact, we had to take a few breaks to give the pour guy a breather. At the top of the mountain was the Burma border & a small market with some older ladies selling ponchos & blankets, along with some other random things. A lot of the older ladies here chew "this thing" I'm calling it "this thing" because I don't know exactly what it is. But it's kinda like tobacco to them. It must be so addicting because their teeth are just rotting & falling out. (If they have any at all) It kinda felt like a scary movie walking through the market. (Not in a mean way) but picture crippled old ladies with rotted teeth that looked like their mouths were filled with blood, desperate for you to buy their merchandise. It was kinda sad actually. I did buy some pretty cool stuff there though that I'm excited about! We then went to the royal agricultural center, it was just a few minutes from the top of the mountain where we were at. It's basically where a lot of Thailand's produce is grown. It seemed like a national park but not cause people still lived there, even though we had to pay to get in... Idk. It was so beautiful. We had lunch there at a really nice restaurant. It was kinda like an Asian park city feel. I finally had that coconut soup I've been dying to have! Then we just toured around for a bit & walked through some beautiful gardens they had there before heading back home. We didn't get back until about 5 (we left at 9 & our plan was to get back home by 12, oops) that's one thing that I've realized since being here is that our plans are always changing. Things take longer than you think. So we kinda got a lot of the day off. It was actually a really great break. We did go to the Lahu village after though & teach first aid & aerobics. When we first got there they were we're going crazy with the stickers & sticking them on us. I had like 5 on my shirt & 3 on my forehead! Haha Sawanii, a cute little girl there made & gave me a cute pink bracelet. I love it! She sticks around me a lot it's funny, I think she likes me yay! I taught some of the kids how to play rock, paper, scissors. & also thumb wars. They loved it! We did Aerobics inside because of the rain. Monsoon season has definitely kicked into gear. It's really hot most of the day but down pours usually at least once. It's good for the drought. Well that's all for today! The following pictures are from our adventure in the mountains today. We got an earlier start this morning & left to the Lahu village to help plant rice. It was such an amazing experience. We did a small area for about 3 hours & it was so tiring. I was getting light headed from bending over so long & my back killed. Haha they are so much quicker than us at it buuuut they do this for a living everyday! They make about 200 baht a day/7 dollars. I'll send a picture of the rice fields so you know what exactly it looks like. We went in barefoot in this calf deep muddy water & would stick a small little bunch of this weed type looking grass into the mud. It was kinda relaxing at first but that went away pretty fast. Being barefoot in the mud was nice & soft though. It's so crazy to me that rice comes from these plants. They offered us lunch after so we ate with them just on the side of the fields. Very similar to last nights dinner with them but a few new dishes. Same hot HOT stuff. Haha They are so kind to feed us I try to get the message across to them how much I appreciate it by smiling & saying thank you even though they don't understand. Actually I usually say it in Thai because we have been learning basic Thai here, but I don't think these villagers even spoke Thai. So something kinda interesting about these villages that we go to is that they all speak their own different tribe languages. They don't speak Thai. Well some of them learn it in school but a lot of them don't know it. Kinda crazy! After lunch a couple of us went & picked up some of the Akha boys after school & took them to the pool for swim lessons. Madison & I were in the back of the truck with them & it was surprising how much we were able to communicate with them from basic Thai that we know & hand motions. They are such punks! But so so sweet. I offered them an apple & they are all so caring and just took a bite & passed it on. The pool was so relaxing & different than what we usually do. Maybe cause I wasn't really teaching, I just went along for the swim & good time. Wearing a swimsuit felt really weird though. It was the least amount of clothing I've worn in quite some time. Haha but it felt so nice being in the pool & just relaxing! We went strait from the pool to their village & finished up the canal & played with the kiddos. I was so so tired by this point, I literally could have fallen asleep on the playground tires. Were finally home now & I just finished hand washing my clothes. Today I learned how to plant rice & hand wash clothes. Sick. I really feel like I learned a lot today & everyday really. Things that I really probably would never need to know specifically for my own life, but these experiences are changing & shaping me just as it is them. This trip has already been such a growing experience. I love it. Another solid day.
Monday's are kinda like our "p-day" we had a lazy morning & just relaxed, & then had a preparation meeting. We planned projects & went to the store to get supplies for the week so that we are prepared & things run more smoothly. We didn't get to the Lahu village until about 5. We had so much fun there tonight! We painted the inside walls of a meeting building at their village. We kept the kids out because that would have just been obnoxious with them in there. But they just stood at the open windows the entire time & watched & occasionally called out our names & waved. "Mel!" 👋🏼 so cute. There are so many stinkin kids at the lahu village. We are going to be teaching some sex ed classes pretty soon so that the girls know what a healthy relationship is. The kids are the best though! I just had so much fun with them today! They make you feel so loved! I'm usually with the girls cause the boys just do their own thang but occasionally a lil boy will come jump on my back & I'm just like oh hey. What's up dude? Haha some of the older girls know very basic English so I can communicate a bit better with them. They love practicing their English with you. Occasionally I can tell a group of girls are talking about me so I'll ask David (a team lead) that speaks Thai what they are saying. It's always good things, like today one of the girls asked him what drugs I used to make myself so beautiful. I almost died. I just looked at her & laughed & shook my head. No no no. No drugs. It was so funny! They will come up to you & touch your face & say "so beautiful" if that's not a self esteem booster I don't know what is! AND THEN, the best part of the entire week was doing aerobics with them. It was seriously the funnest thing! We had music blasting through the speakers & everyone was dancing & following one of the volunteers up front. She has a little routine that we follow along with. When we finished we kept the music going & just danced for at least an hour more! They will just stand there & copy you. So it was like non stop dancing with a group of lil kiddos following your every move! So fun. So so fun. By about 7:30 we had dinner. Two villagers that I think are married made us dinner & ate with us. We were outside & bugs were everywhere, I guess you learn to just get over it. The food was AMAZING though. There was a very spicy dish I thought my eyes were gonna fall out! Every meal is my new favorite meal! Seriously it just keeps getting better! Then we ate Tim Tams dipped in milk. You bite each end of the cookie & suck the milk through it. It is heaven. I'm pretty sure you can get them in the U.S. But I'm gonna bring some back anyways! Today started out slow but ended with a bang! Such a solid night.
Abby my friend and the photographer/videographer for our trip posted a video for week one of our trip. It's amazing you've gotta watch it! The link is on her bio on Instagram. Search akeenster on Instagram and click the link in her bio. Melanie is in this video briefly at 1:48. How sweet it is!
Today was so rad! Literally one of the craziest days of my life. We came down to Chiang Mai this morning bright & early. We arranged a hike to a waterfall with a former branch president. Well he invited us so we planned to meet at the church, he was late so we got lunch real quick & walked the streets before heading back to the church. FINALLY we got on our way. 13 of us jammed in the bed of a truck cruising down the streets. Literally cruising. He (former branch president) was driving so fast! Like unsafe fast for all of us in the back. I was a bit terrified. Oh yeah, there's no speed limits here. We were driving on the highway going at least 65. I thought I was gonna fly out. Then it started to rain so hard, it was like pelting our skin. It was so funny we were all dying laughing. As we kept driving the scenery was amazing. We were driving through the jungle. So green! The further we got in the more beautiful it became. We drove past some elephants on the side of the ride & it made me so pumped for next weekend when we get to ride the Ellie's. Anyways so were driving through this windy jungle road & then we stopped to pick up a UVU tour group to join us on our adventure. We had no idea this was happening, next thing we knew 21 of us were crammed in the back of the truck!!! It was so insane. He was driving so fast. People were just laughing at us as we drove by! We finally got to our destination. He took us down this basically vertical mud slide hill with only small bamboo shoots to hold on to. By this point we were covered in mud! We then trudged through a river to a waterfall. It was waste deep & so intense! We were slipping all over the place. We finally made it to the waterfall & cliff jumped! So fun! Lots of the girls were nervous & weren't going to go but we got most of them to & it made me so happy seeing them do something they thought they couldn't & you know they'll be glad they did after!! High five everybody! We hung out here for a bit before heading back down the jungle roads. All 20 of us, all the way to Chiang Mai this time. More than an hour drive! So so crazy. We were having a riot! Our group then split up & we did our own thang. Me & a couple girls checked into our very ghetto hotel & showered before going out for dinner. Then we went to the night bizarre (street market) & did some souvenir shopping. The best part of it all was when we stopped for fish pedicures! We were so obnoxious but it was just the craziest thing! These girls are so fun! I love my team & I love Thailand! Day 4 videos
We went to the Lahu village today to finish up the net fence we are putting around their dirt soccer field like literally up on top of the mountain of their village. It's such a pretty look out up there but there is a huge cliff so they always lose their balls. Which is why we are putting up the fence to prevent that. These ppl are so ambitious & resourceful they just need the idea or a push in the right direction. Once we bring up an idea to them they make it happen & actually do a lot of the work. They were up there with us helping tie the nets & they actually did a lot of the welding stuff with the poles that we tied the nets to. They are awesome. They have a bunch of dogs, I don't know if they are stray dogs or have owners. Probably a mix of both. But one of the dogs got caught in the net today & it was literally the saddest thing. He was yelping & squirming, a Thai man helped the dog out but they were laughing & I just watched with wide eyes. Hopefully that's not a problem with the net....? Okay so a little about this village... they don't have clean water but they drink it anyways & get sick, as in diarrhea. So we are putting a filter in the cistern. It amazes me how long they have been without clean water. It gets really bad during rainy season because it washes dirt & mud into the water so it's not as clean. They wash themselves with a bucket & a cup. They just dump it over their head & call it good. They live in tiny little huts, it reminds me of a tree house on the ground almost. I'll send a video that hopefully does justice. Occasionally you will see a nicer home & it's cause they sell drugs & have a little more money. Therefore, nicer houses. But that's in other areas not at the Lahu village. I just keep picturing myself living in these circumstances & I could not even imagine. It makes me angry I think that way but it's just cause I have a "standard" that I'm used to. I've been living so differently for so long that this lifestyle is almost unimaginable. It makes me feel so ungrateful sometimes. We were complaining about the heat & how it would hurt so bad to run on the dirt & rocks barefoot, next thing we knew a little boy comes running past us barefoot with the biggest smile on his face. They live in such terrible situations but they are so happy & make the best of it. We have such a high standard in America that we feel we have to meet. Cause it's what we know & are used to. But these ppl have always lived this way & they are so humble & grateful. I'm actually writing right now in the bed of our truck. Were on our way to the Akha village (correct spelling) right now. Were going to be working some more on the canal. Like I said, this village is a little more educated & they have an overall cleaner, nicer village. For example, they have less decayed teeth here because they brush their teeth after every meal. Better than me. I am actually going to be teaching a very basic dental health class with another girl at the Lahu village. She brought tooth brushes & floss to give them. Her mom works at a dental office so score! Anyways, the Akha village also has less trash. They just keep it tidy, I think that's a big part of why it feels much nicer than other villages. They have a ton of land for rice fields & whatever else they grow. At least it seems like it goes on forever. I'm assuming it's all theirs but not positive. Their houses are much sturdier. Still little huts but they just seem more "put together" if that makes sense. They understand the importance of education at the Akha village which is such a huge thing. Some families will sell all their stuff to get their kids in school. Amazing. Definitely not like that everywhere though. We wanna get the kids some jump ropes. They would love them! They tied rubber bands together & made a long rope thing that they play games with. We taught them limbo & then practiced their high jumps. Haha so jump ropes would definitely keep them entertained I love all the different ppl we come in contact with. I wave to everyone on the street as we drive by because I love the giggles & huge smiles on their faces when I do. Everyday they make me want to be more friendly & just a better person! The reasons kinda why these mountains tribes are so poor is because they came from Southeast Asia 20/30 years ago & they aren't technically Thai citizens so they don't have the same rights as the rest of Thailand. They are taken advantage of by ppl & even police men. When they get sick they often aren't able to go to the hospital even. So they aren't really treated fairly & don't have the opportunity as easily as others to get an education. So that's a very small summary. Oh yeah, after we left the village we got some food. I had Pad Thai & it was my favorite meal yet. Street food wins every time man. So good. Okay so here are a couple videos & pictures. This above video is at the Akha village. Well about 5 minutes from it. So not really their village but their land, I think. He was learning our names:) |
purposeWe can all make a difference. That's why I set off on a 38-day, 7,000-mile journey through the slums of Thailand to give food to the hungry, hope to the helpless, and relief in the face of despair all along Categories
Archives |