an adventure into Argentina!

"Can you hear that knocking in your soul?" the Delays song "Wanderlust" asks. Why yes, I can. It has been a full four months since I returned home, and it is certainly time to venture out again into the great unknown. The unknown is much different on this trip. I am going with a student group; I already know many of the people in my trip. We are doing a Spanish Immersion program in Patagonia. You might think, "Amy... don't you mean French?" No, actually I do not. I wanted to challenge myself and learn a language that I am embarrassed to say I struggle through. André Gide (a French author ironically) said that one "cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore." Some might say a new language is not a new ocean, but I believe that each language forms a unique pattern of thought and belief that is valuable to learn.

I have enjoyed my most recent semester at Austin College, but I am quite ready for this adventure. Jane Austen said that "if adventures will not befall a young lady in her own village, she must seek them abroad." I am simply following her advice. I will start off in Buenos Aires, the Paris of the South where those of you who continue to read will have to suffer through a few ill-advised Evita quotes. Most of our time will be spent with host families in a town called Rawson in Southern Patagonia. Emerson reminded us that "all life is an experiment. The more experiments you make, the better." I will only be gone for a little over three weeks, but I hope that I learn and feel and breathe exciting new experiences.

home...

I am now back in the good ol' USA. Emily Dickinson said "where thou art, that is home." While I had an absolutely incredible time abroad, I tend to disagree. I loved Thailand. Chiang Rai was my home, but there were times along the way that I didn't feel quite as comforted and secure. Sometimes, though, I think that feeling of excitement and danger helps us a long. There's a saying by Cesar Cruz, which states "comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable." I think there is truth inherent in that order. Sometimes we get too comfortable in our lives. We don't challenge ourselves or each other, but we can grow through exploration.

On this trip, I learned about myself and about how I can adapt to new situations. I love planning, but after many trips "we find... that we do not take a trip, a trip takes us." I think John Steinbeck had a good point. We can prepare as much as we like, but if we're true to our purpose of the adventure, it leads us. We should let, as Anatole Francis calls it, "this sensual yearning for knowledge, this insatiable wanderlust, this long desire" capture us and take us hold. We live in a world filled with adventure, beauty, and chaos. We should explore it. Embrace it. Feel it.

captivated by Cambodia...

We started early in the morning in Phnom Penh and headed first to the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek. It was a deeply saddening place. The most distressful part of the visit was seeing the clothes of the victims come up from the ground because of the rains. Near the mass graves, there was the killing tree. Democratic Kampuchea soldiers would smash babies against this tree to kill them. It was horrific, but William Wordsworth said "we will grieve not, rather find / Strength in what is left behind." The museum left behind honors these victims and their remembrance should bring us strength. In the fields, there are a disproportionate number of butterflies. The Cambodian people say that the butterflies are the renewed souls of the victims. They were finally set free from oppression after death. As Cormac McCarthy said, "all things of grace and beauty... have a common provenance in pain." Though their lives finished with suffering, their souls are gracefully dancing through the fields. We went, next, to the Tuol Sleng Prison Genocide Museum. Although it was not organized or decorated, the simplicity and barrenness were representative of the prison itself. As you walked around the cells, you could see the splattered blood of the prisoners on the walls and floors. It was quite the dreary morning.

I ate lunch at "Friends," an NGO restaurant/ school that employs and trains street children. After lunch, I sat by the Mekong for awhile. While I was sitting on the bench reading, a preteen boy came up and asked if I wanted to buy a book. I told him I already had one and looked back down. He was still there, so I glanced back upwards. He proceeded to ask me if I wanted marijuana, opium, or cocaine. I was bewildered; he was only a child. I sent him on his way, but I wonder if there is anything I could have done. I wandered the Royal Palace, whose grounds were massive and quite beautiful. Nearby, was the National Museum, which I explored for a few hours. We took the "five hour" bus ride to Siem Reap, which took almost eight; then, we settled into our hostel.

The next day, we took our first adventure into Angkor Wat. Before we left the hostel, we were told it was a holy day, and to wear long sleeves and pants. It was sweltering outside, but we obliged. We went to a few crumbling temples, and we thought they were incredible. Our driver told us that these were some of the minor temples. What?! We also learned some interesting information: evidently, we did not need to wear long clothes. Oh, bother. Instead of facing another several hours baking in the suit in my linen pants and long-sleeved shirt, I bought more weather-appropriate clothes from our restaurant. In the late afternoon, there were three brothers. The six year old was Nga and the twin eleven year olds were Dey and Nee. They were exploring these abandoned temples and running in the jungles surrounding. They showed us around the temples and I was sad to say goodbye to them and their mom (who had ten kids)! On the way out, we saw the sunset over Angkor Wat. I knew then that waking up at 4am to see the sunrise would definitely be worth it.




















The next morning came almost unbearably early, but we decided to follow A.E. Hausman's order: "up, lad; when the journey's over / there'll be time enough for sleep." We forgot a flashlight, so we tripped and stumbled through the first temple before we settled by the pond in front of the Great Temple. The sunrise over Angkor Wat was breathtaking, but brief. When it was almost finished rising, Andrea and I hurried into the Great Temple. There were less than a dozen people inside the Wat. It was superb! After exploring for a few hours, we sat and relaxed on a nearby temple. I even nodded off for a few minutes. We headed next to Ta Prohm, which is atop a hill. The walk up the mountain was easy; the steps to the actual temple, however, were not nearly as simple. You were forced to walk sideways up the stairs, and the width of your foot is nearly too much. Once we stood looking over all the temples, we breathed in the astounding view. We did our best to "stuff [our] eyes with wonder... see the world," because Ray Bradbury was right that "it's more fantastic than any dream." On our way down the mountain, we noticed a man playing a beautiful melody with a set of bongos and a blade of grass. We, then, explored the grand expanse of the Temples of Angkor Thom. We wandered through the jungles and admired the ancient trees and stone temples. When we came upon Angkor Thom, we were awestruck. It was massive and filled with huge and intricate carved faces; there were dozens and each were different. I sometimes forget when I'm looking at beautiful monuments, how they came to be so beautiful. It was painful for me, when I occassionally saw monks kneeling with their heads bowed and hands clasped in reverence, to see Farangs like me taking disprespectful pictures and talking loudly. I'm sure that, I too, am guilty of this. People use this temple to meditate and honor Buddha. This sacred ground deserves more respect.
























That night, we saw an Aspara dancing show. Their costumes were gorgeous; when they moved gently, almost dreamlike, they told such interesting stories. We left the next morning on a bus to Bangkok saying goodbye to the beautiful people and fascinating history.

venturing through Vietnam...

We arrived on Vietnam soil after the most painful customs process I have ever been a part of. We were pushed into an airport shuttle; we asked to be taken to the train station so we could buy our tickets for the night train for Danang. Our flight arrived into Hanoi in the early afternoon, so we assumed we would have some time before the 11pm night train. One of the first things you will learn about traveling is that things don't always work out as planned. The traffic in Hanoi is insane. Actually insane. Our shuttle bus hit a moto, and we didn't even stop to check on the riders. The shuttle dropped us off "five minutes from the train station." We didn't really mind because we were ready to get out of that crazy van. Unfortunately, the five minute walk took us forty minutes. I had my oversized green backpack on, and because of the "crosswalks" unreliability, I found myself alone walking to the train station. I was even clipped by a moto when I was walking on the sidewalk! It was much too overwhelming for me after slow-moving Laos. When I walked into the train station and met Ashley and Andrea, I asked them if instead of wandering around the city, do you guys just want to get out of here. They readily agreed. When we sat in the train station waiting for our train, I chatted with a Vietnamese boy named Nam who was studying technology. He taught me some Vietnamese and gave me a better view of Vietnamese people than the streets of Hanoi. When we saw our beds on the train, we were shocked to see the top bunk. Can people fit up there? We decided we couldn't; Andrea and I squished into one.


We arrived in Danang quite well rested and ready to head to Hoi An. When I walked outside to hire a taxi, I was absolutely surrounded. There were ten taxi drivers around me. I somehow managed to keep my calm over their shouting and we loaded into the first SUV I had seen in awhile. We stopped at the Marble Mountains in Danang, and I am so glad for it. It was a beautiful mountain with incredible statues and temples. Also, everyone around me was speaking French. I was so glad that speaking French could be useful here!



Hoi An was an incredibly slow moving and delicious touristy town. The main tourist attraction is having clothes tailored for you. So mostly, we did that. We also explored the river and had the best food of our trip so far. We frequented this restaurant on Le Loi street. The real adventure happened two days later when we tried to leave the city. Our flight was initially scheduled for 830pm, but I received an e-mail the night before saying the flight had been pushed until midnight. That wasn't a problem; we just adjusted our airport drop-off time. At 8:25pm I checked my e-mail. It announced that the flight was changed back to its original time. Oops. After trying to call the airline, we realized the only thing we could do is take the half hour ride to the airport and go from there. When we arrived, there were six people total in the Danang Airport... including the three of us. That was definitely a bad sign. One of the men there had the airline's number, so we called him and he said that he would put us on the next flight out of there in the morning. We only needed to come back to the airport at 6:30 the next morning. We called our Hoi An hostel; they were fully booked that night. Oh my. Luckily, the man who lent us his phone, also owned a hotel. We were concerned that we were being scammed into the hotel, but without any other options we took a taxi there. It was a nice and cheap hotel. I guess we were wrong! After eating some admittedly sketchy street food, we went to sleep. The next morning went smoothly enough; we were on a plane toward Saigon before we knew it.

After checking in at the hostel, we went straight to the War Remnants Museum. I can't eloquently explain what it's like to walk into that museum as an American. From all the information I knew about the "American War" as they called it, I would have been opposed to it. However, I was not alive, nor did I take part in the strategy session in which the US decided to invade. The few hours I was in the museum, I felt guilty about a war that neither I nor anyone I'm close to pushed upon these people. They even had a translated version to the Declaration of Independence, which attempted to demonstrate the hypocrisy of our intervention. The museum told the story of Robert Capa, a photojournalist who was killed by a land mine in the war. John Mecklin, who was with him at the time, was told by a soldier that Capa's death "is a harsh way for America to learn. Evidently, America did not learn this harsh lesson.

After the stressful War Remnants Museum experience, we took a Vietnamese cooking class. My dad is the best cook I know, and he knows his Vietnamese food; so, I was quite excited to take this class to show him some exciting new recipes. We started by making a rose out of tomato peels, which is much harder than it sounds. For the appetizer, we made vegetable spring rolls; the soup was tomato cloud, and we made caramelized pork for the main dish. It was absolutely delicious! After dinner, we were surprised when they lined us up and told us we were going to take a test to earn our certificates. We were so scared, but we all answered our questions about how to make the meals and what spices to mix. After our class, we wandered the night market before we headed back to the hostel to pack for Cambodia.

lazy in Laos...

The border crossing in Laos was inconsequential and after only a bit of misdirection, we arrived at the hostel. The manager of the Amirid Hostel was great. As I walked up to him, he asked, "Amy, are you Amy?" When I told him yes, he developed an infectious grin and showed us to our room. On the way he taught us a few words in Laotian. We were all wiped out, but we managed to muster enough energy to head out to get dinner. After waiting for our food for almost two hours, we learned a very useful lesson-- make sure they have what you order. I ordered a dish that was on the menu, but unavailable. Instead of informing you that they don't have it, you will just wait until they find a way to give it to you. We fell asleep as soon as we got back to the room.

The next day, we wandered Huay Xai some, but mostly prepared for our bus to Luang Prabang leaving at 2pm. We boarded a 45 passenger bus that was supposed to be 13 hours long. It wasn't. I learned a great deal on this bus ride. I learned that you could become accustomed to almost any noise. Every corner our bus turned (every other minute), the driver did 5 loud honks. I learned that a 45 passenger bus can bottom out. It felt as though we were the first vehicle to happen upon this path through the mountains. I learned that no matter how long the drive, buses aren't required to stop for bathroom breaks. They would pull over every few hours and our bus would unload a dozen men to relieve themselves on the side of the road. There were no stops, however, which could be deemed useful for women. I learned that when you look out the windows and it doesn't seem like you are close to your destination, you probably are right. The thirteen hour bus ride ended up taking sixteen.

We arrived at 6am and slept. Aldous Huxley said "your true traveler finds boredom rather agreeable than painful. It is the symbol of his liberty-his excessive freedom. He accepts his boredom, when it comes, not merely philosophically, but almost with pleasure.” We made this our motto of our time in Laos. The first day, we went to this wonderful place aptly named Utopia. We rented some books from a local bookstore and read as we looked over the Nam Tha River and Old Bridge. We ate, relaxed, and took in the beauty of the view at Utopia. The next day, we rented bikes and rode around historic Luang Prabang. We explored the National Museum and Wat Xieng Thong. Then, we were back at Utopia for the evening. We saw Phu Si Hill and wandered the windy streets along the Mekong River. The next morning, we woke up early to experience the giving of the alms with the monks. It was such a beautiful, yet simple expression of faith by the Laos people. We went to the fruit market and meandered back to the hostel before we headed to Vietnam.

goodbyes...

My last few weeks in Thailand were a blur of finishing projects and saying goodbye to the people I called my brothers and sisters and the country I called my home. About a week before I left, we finished up the square foot gardens with the Ayui Foundation. The kids were all so excited to finish mixing up the dirt and to plant their seeds. After we finished planting, I joked and played around with the kids. When it was time to go, I resisted. I wanted to stay at our gardens and play games, but the project was finished. We had one more day of computer and economics lessons that I could look forward to. The lessons went really well. There were more laughs and hugs than usual, but they were mostly the same. After the lessons, the girls performed an Akha dance for us. It was beautiful. Whenever my eyes are opened to a culture, I feel my heart widen along with it.

I went for the first and only time to teach English at soccer school. The kids were sweet and it was quite fun. That afternoon for the soccer tournament, it was so much more fun when I knew the kids who we were playing against. It was fascinating to see their dynamic on the field in comparison to their dynamic in class. The team captain was the most popular kid in the class. When we would ask questions, everyone looked to him to see the answer. They learned about how to describe their friends in one class session; every student wrote about him. The soccer tournament was so much fun and these kids were giving it there all. In the end, they ended up beating us 4-2. They were so excited that it was hard not to be happy that they won!



I also went one last time to the Samah Mit Community to the Watch Tower. The people in the community are like a family. They eat together and work together and drink together. We went the last time to plant trees. It was a way to symbolize our partnership and say goodbye. A part of me will always be in that village because I planted there. Many of my last couple days were spent at the Chiang Rai Regional Hospital. We finished the overflow room and I went to Pediatrics a few times. One day in the overflow room, they were showing the handwashing video. It was so funny to watch everyone's reactions when they matched the Farang in the video with the Farang in the room with them. I said goodbye to the kids in Pediatrics and the staff that worked there. I even did medical supplies one last time.

The saddest goodbye was undoubtedly my last time in the Akha village. Dr. Dum, Ayu, and Laum Chai had become my dear friends. They welcomed me into their community with open arms and open hearts, and I was leaving them. When I said goodbye to Laum Chai he didn't understand I was going away. When I told him I was leaving, he asked me "forever?" Initially, I started to chuckle at his question, but it occurred to me that, yes, I was leaving forever. I told him I was going back to America. At this point, this thirteen year old trickster looked up at me with sad eyes and asked "why?" I told him that I had to go back to finish school and to see my friends and family. He asked if I would come back to the village to see them. All I could say was "I hope so." I wished him "chok dee" (good luck) and went back home.


















I will never forget my summer spent in Northern Thailand. I will never forget the beauty of its surroundings, the kindness in the heart of its people, and the richness of its culture. My work here has reminded me to follow my passions in life. Howard Thurman said "don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and then go and do that. Because what the world needs is more people that have come alive." My time here has shown me what makes me come alive. Being with these people in their beautiful lives and working with them drives me; it inspires me; it keeps me going. I hope that my life continues to take me down this incredible path where I am able to do things that I love in incredible places.

my southern vacation...

The day after the eighth lunar month, the Buddhist monks participate in Khao Phansa day. It marks the beginning of the Buddhist lent period for monks where they stay in their temples for the three month rainy season. I did quite the opposite. I traveled far, along with Andrea, Ashley, Holly, and Ryleigh, to the beautiful beaches in southern Thailand.

The first bus ride of our trip took us to Chiang Mai where we boarded a plane for Phuket. We arrived in Phuket just after midnight and arrived at our hostel at around 1AM where we quickly went to sleep. The next morning, we wandered for a while and saw some cool Wats, a neat bridge, a watch tower, and a little of the city before we went to catch our ferry to Ko Phi Phi. I enjoyed the gorgeous ferry ride which I spent partly at the bow of the boat, we arrived at the paradise of Ko Phi Phi.

The waters were crystal turquoise, the sandy beach was a soft white, and the cliffs were filled with incredible forests. The first day we mostly laid around the beach until the evening when Andrea got this incredible elephant tattooed on her arm with bamboo. We woke up early the next morning to go snorkeling! We went to Maya Bay and some of the surrounding islands where we saw some fascinating fish and beautiful beaches. There was even a Monkey Island!

The next day we headed to the east side to Ko Phangan where we relaxed on its rocky beaches with the gorgeous sunsets. We, then, travelled to Krabi where we went hiking in the mountains of the national park. There were supposedly tigers in the mountains, but luckily a few monkeys were the limit to our excitement.

We headed back to Phuket to watch the sunrise at the Big Buddha in the morning. It was well worth the lack of sleep. It was a breathtaking view of the island and the sunrise was clear and colorful. A monk who served at the Wat at Big Buddha blessed us all and told us-- "happy, happy, happy and good luck!" It was a perfect end to a wonderful trip.

Teeth Brushing, Rice Planting, and Meandering into Myanmar…

Monday morning, I went to Pediatrics in the Hospital. The waiting room in the hospital is overflowing with patients and the families of patients, so we are helping the Hospital draw the families of patients to a new room. We brainstormed ideas of how to encourage its use and helped design and decorate it. That evening, Maple—who does Public Relations for the hospital—invited Blake, Nate, Pim and I to play badminton. Because everyone kept score in Thai, my counting knowledge was tested.

Tuesday, we went to teach the students how to brush their teeth. We started by handing out string to pairs of students so that they could “floss” between each other’s fingers. We fashioned a toothbrush out of a broken badminton racquet and rolled up paper and had one student brush another in circles. The student being brushed started out as a dirty tooth (with a browning t-shirt on) and ended as a clean tooth (with a white t-shirt on). We showed the students the seven regions of the mouth that needed brushing and told them to brush for three minutes. We asked them if they knew what was bad for your teeth. The first and most enthusiastic response was “Farang!” Emily, Nate and I exchanged confused glances. White people are bad for your teeth? Apparently, the kids were saying “Mah Farang,” which means gum. When we taught the sixth graders, one of the girls looked strikingly familiar to me. I tried to brush it off, but after class she came up to me and said “Amy, you remember me?” As it turns out, Lebin was a girl who recently had surgery that I did arts and crafts with in the hospital. What a small world we live in!

Wednesday, after Pediatrics, Pi Buwa saw the gauze pad on my leg from the exhaust burn and went into action mode. Before I knew it, I was laying on a table with six nurses around cleaning up my leg and wrapping it up. Nate, Blake, and I met with Maple about doing health videos for the overflow room. After our meeting, several of the volunteers came with me to start the square foot gardens with the kids from the Ayui Foundation. Sue separated the kids into five groups of four, so that they have ownership over their plots. One of the little girls had this crazy straw hat that she put on my head and I wore while we were gardening. When it was time for a water break, we realized that we didn’t have any cups. To jump over that hurdle, some of the kids folded leaves into little triangle cups and others used their machetes to make bamboo cups. Their ingenuity amazed me.

Thursday, I learned an important lesson—herbal remedies can be painful. Tiger balm is used to soothe muscles and I was sore from a recent run, so I decided to give it a shot. Evidently, with tiger balm less is more. It felt like thousands of needles were poking into my leg through the thick layer of orange balm. It was also our second day at Nam Lad and we were teaching hand washing. We did two separate exercises. For the first we had powder that we put on one student and we showed how the transfer of germs worked. For the second demonstration, each of the kids went to wash their hands and we put a drop of oil so they could see the importance of soap. We had two bars of soap; we handed one to the girls and the other to the boys. The girls stood in a line and passed it back. The boy who was handed the soap screamed “mine!” and proceeded to run around outside with a dozen boys running after him. I also learned today that little boys in Thailand are the same as little boys in the United States. Later in the afternoon, we all went to soccer school for the soccer tournament. It was the Farangs vs. the Thai kids. They were incredible! I don’t have very good brakes, unfortunately, and I crashed into some of the kids. They recovered more quickly than I did, though.

Friday, we headed to the Samah Mit community to start work on the watchtower. We made it early enough to watch the local shaman perform the groundbreaking ceremony. After the groundbreaking, we struck down trees with machetes and dug holes for cement. I worked with Dinai, a local with a slingshot in his back pocket. I thought that was funny and cute until Dave informed me that it was used to kill birds. Oh my! On our way to lunch, we stopped by the rice fields and helped pull out the rice grain to be replanted. It was strenuous and detailed work. I most certainly felt guilty the next time I paid 5 baht for a bag of sticky rice. Lunch was… a new experience.

There was raw ground beef, chicken’s feet and full fried fish. The most notable aspect, however, was our inability to wash our hands in between pulling out the rice and eating our meal. After lunch, we cemented poles into our dug pits. That night, Pim, Nate and I went to karaoke. Most of the songs were in Thai, but sometimes you have to just go for it. There were a few songs in English, though, set at an unnaturally quickened pace.

Saturday, we started a hand washing video that I sincerely hope will finish one day. It goes to the tune of these ridiculous songs that outline the seven steps of washing hands. Saturday afternoon, we went to the Ayui Foundation home to teach computer classes and finance classes. We also did arts and crafts with the students. The kids were excited, but I was often shocked at how little the kids knew. We definitely have a long way to go from here. Saturday night, when we were playing basketball we heard loud music. Pim remembered a concert that was going on that night, so she and I headed in that direction. The concert was absolutely incredible. Bodyslam was the headliner, but performances by Micro, Sek Loso, and Big Ass—yes I know—were wonderful as well. It was such a fun adventure… and it was free! Sunday, we went to Chiang Mai to sell the art therapy from the kids of AIDS Access. Unfortunately, we didn’t sell that much of the art, but we did pretty well in donations. Monday, we went to the hospital and Nate showed Maple the hand washing video. From the looks of things, we still had much to do.

Sometimes when serious and somber things are happening around me, I feel the urge to go and climb trees. J.M. Barrie once said “if growing up means it would be beneath my dignity to climb a tree, I'll never grow up, never grow up, never grow up! Not me!” I wholeheartedly concur. I believe that being silly and adventuring in little ways keep me grounded and let me fly.

Tuesday, we went to the Akha village to check on the adobe stove. Unfortunately, it was drying even slower than we had imagined it would in the humidity. This is going to be a longer process than we had originally thought. That afternoon, we re-filmed much of the hand washing video and Nate edited it. Wednesday, we went to the hospital with high hopes for the video. It still wasn’t quite on par with where it should be, and we had to add a new part. That afternoon, we went to the Ayui Foundation. After playing a few games with the kids, I did a presentation about compost for their square foot gardens. We went to maintain the square foot gardens and put the black tarps down. Wednesday night, Maple took Pim, Nate, Andrea—who had just arrived that day—and I to her favorite karaoke place. They were private rooms with a monitor and two microphones. While it was exciting at the last karaoke club, this one was definitely more fun. Thursday, we filmed and worked on the video.

Friday, Garrett, Nate, Pim and I went to Burma to renew our visas. It was definitely an adventure. When we crossed over, it was clear we were in a different place. The Burmese people were much more impoverished than any Thai people I had ever seen. The women put yellow powder on their faces to enhance their beauty. New information like that reminds me of the subjectivity of beauty. The people were crying for my attention and my money. It was truly sad. We wandered around for a while, ate lunch, and headed back home to Thailand.

River Rafting, Building Stoves, and Lighting Fireworks...

Early, early Saturday morning nine of us piled in a van and headed to Chiang Mai. We arrived around noon to the Mae Tang River to go rafting on the white water rapids. It was my first time rafting in some time, so I was a bit nervous. Christopher McCandless reminded me, though, that “the core of mans' spirit comes from new experiences.” Katy, Mike, Matt, and I climbed into our river raft expectantly. When I asked our guide his name, I heard Rambo. I asked him to repeat himself; unfortunately, the second time he said Bo. When he saw our disappointment, he told us that we could call him Rambo. And so our adventure began. It was absolutely wonderful. We went on through the mountains on this river and were soaked in the incredible rains. Rambo yelled “to the right!” suddenly. We were quite confused because it was pretty calm, but we obliged nevertheless. We flipped over and Rambo was laughing so hard. It was all a ploy. We enjoyed swimming around in the river until we were upon the next rapids. The kayaker who was to save us if we fell off also pulled me out of the boat into the water. I think lighthearted fun makes the world go round.

We checked in to the Pagoda Inn in Chiang Mai and I had my first warm shower in weeks. It was delightful. I also had my first Thai massage that evening. As the six of us were walking together to get our massages, I joked that we should get a group massage. We were, then, led into a big room with lots of beds on the ground. I laughed. We put on these massage outfits, which were loose and colorful. The massage was painful and quite different. We journeyed to the night bazaar, which was more expensive than in Chiang Rai and full of Farangs. It was overwhelming. I felt like there were more white people than Thai people. The next day Emily and I wandered around the Sunday

morning market. Then we all went to the Doi Suthep Temple on top of the hill where a Buddhist monk blessed me. We went higher into the hills to a Hmong village. It was really touristy at first, but Mike, Emily and I went up into the village and saw these beautiful gardens. While I was walking around, a Hmong girl held my hand and sang me a song. I assumed she was trying to get money from me, but she just skipped away once her song was through. It reminded me of how cynical we become as adults and how far we move from the simple joys of a child.

Monday, it was back to work with the Akha tribe. We were going to build the adobe stove in the community center. Because it was a holiday, we were told there would be nearly a hundred villagers who would come to be a part of the stove’s construction. Unfortunately, only a few dozen villagers came to build it. While some of the volunteers went to collect materials for the stove, Ryleigh and I were sent to the water tower. The villagers were putting netted tarp over the water tank. To thread the tarp together, they used the plastic ties that hold boxes of televisions together. Their lack of waste astounds me; I consider myself an eco-friendly person, but the thought of using those would never have crossed my mind. After we covered the water tanks, we headed back down into the village to help with the adobe stove. We guided as the community members put the bricks together and cemented them. It was beautiful to see the village come together to achieve a task. As Henrik Ibsen noted: “a community is like a ship; everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm.” In this village, they each clearly were.

Tuesday, I went to Nam Lad where we are building the wash station. We had a meeting with the school about teaching the children basic hygiene, teeth brushing, and hand washing. We will be starting with lessons next week, which I think should go well. We, then, painted the wash station. In the afternoon, I went to a meeting with Sumalee where we finalized plans for the coming weeks and our new partnership. Wednesday morning, I went to the hospital. As usual, in the morning I did pediatrics and in the afternoon I did medical supplies. After medical supplies, Nate and I went to get alternative massages near the hospital. They used menthol and different methods to calm and stretch my muscles. It was nice to have two massages in one week, but I don’t think it can stay a trend. Thursday started with delicious chicken and rice for breakfast followed by most of the group heading to Nam Lad. We worked together to clear the area and organize the sand, clay, and gravel around the wash station.

Friday, we went to the Akha village. We checked to make sure the adobe stove that they finished on Tuesday was drying well and to give instructions on its care for the next couple weeks. The Akha villagers spent much of the day making jokes about me marrying an Akha man and living there forever. The community is really welcoming and in these gorgeous hills, but I think I would have trouble not being able to communicate with any of the villagers. We

cemented the walls and roof on the inside and outside of the alternative medical sauna. That night Dr. Fah—our partner for economics classes—invited us to a barbecue for his daughter’s 16^th birthday. After eating burgers and what I assume were supposed to be hot dogs, we sadly watched the Netherlands beat Brazil.

This weekend was aimed at being low-key and relaxing. It did not finish that way. My first mission was to find papaya salad. It took quite a while to reach my goal, but I was victorious. The woman with the cart asked me if I wanted two peppers in it; I shook my head and said just one. Wow! I cannot imagine if I had asked for two peppers; that was my spiciest meal in Thailand thus far. I made it out alive, fortunately. When we returned back, Dave, Blake, and Nate asked if we wanted to go ride motos to the waterfall. About 10 minutes into the ride, Pim and Nate got a flat tire. Luckily—despite being in the middle of nowhere—there was a repair shop nearby. We thought that would be the most exciting moto-related event of the day. We were quite wrong. The drive to the waterfall was breathtaking.

After we arrived at the park, we had a one kilometer walk to the waterfall. The Cheun Korn Waterfall is the highest waterfall in the Chiang Rai Province at 30 meters. I was absolutely awestruck by its power. I went to the base and stood in the waterfall. It was refreshing and strong. On the way back, Blake taught me how to drive the moto. I was driving in circles, when I suddenly lost control of the bike. I had forgotten how to use the brake! A foot away from a brick wall, I found my foot brake. It was certainly more excitement than I had planned for the day. Back in Chiang Rai city, we wandered the Saturday night walking street and watched some of the dancers before we headed home.

Sunday, I celebrated the Fourth of July like an average American—with fishing, hamburgers, and fireworks. One of the teachers at the soccer school—Wara Wut brought us to a canal near Chiang Rai beach where Shawn, Jordan and I unsuccessfully cast Shawn’s makeshift bamboo pole into the water. Once we returned, we helped cook for the barbecue. We had hamburgers and corn with pineapple and onion rings. We lit off fireworks and sang patriotic songs. All around, it was one of the best Fourth of July weekends that I have ever had.

Scaling hills, hauling bamboo, and packaging cotton balls…

Monday morning several of us headed to the Akha village to work with building the clinic. I climbed the hill to the village and carried down supplies to build the sauna. The Akha use saunas as a method of improving breathing and general health. While some of the volunteers dug the hole for the sauna room, a few of us went to collect bamboo. We climbed up a mountain to gather the bamboo from where the villagers were chopping it down. Shawn, Rose, and I exchanged several telling glances; we barely could climb up the hill without the bamboo. The situational absurdity increased when we saw the bamboo that we were to carry. They were ten meters long each. As we examined the task we faced, I hoped that Walt Disney was right when he remarked that “it’s kind of fun to do the impossible.” Without any ideas or options, I dragged bamboo poles down the edge of a mountain and through a creek. It was exhausting. We crossed the little bridge over another creek and tossed them into the pond by the clinic. On our last trip down the mountain, the rain began to pour down and reminded us why they called this the rainy season. We now were charged with moving the poles from the pond to the side of the clinic. The little boy who first taught me how to build the roof of a clinic, Sup Juay, just jumped in the water and started moving the poles. As we were soaking wet, we all dove in the water to get the poles out. It was a refreshing way to end a day.

Wednesday, I went back to work at the hospital. In the morning, I worked in Pediatrics with a little Akha boy. He was sweet and shy; I used my very limited Akha vocabulary to talk to him. In the afternoon, we made dialysis packets. We had some great conversations, which eased the usual drudgery of packaging cotton balls. Thursday, we were back in the Akha village. We presented a proposal to build adobe stoves in the village. The community currently uses open fire in each home, which causes respiratory issues and wastes considerable energy. The village elders were so excited about it that they said they wanted to start construction on Monday. We carried bags of sand and rocks to form the walls of the sauna. Friday, we were back to bamboo. When we climbed even further into the woods and were told that we couldn’t drag but must carry it on our shoulders, I stared at Ayu in disbelief. I remembered, though, Winston Churchill’s wise words to “never, never, never, never give up.” After a few failed experiments of balancing bamboo on my shoulders down the hill, we discovered a solution—one person on each end of the bamboo poles. It was still quite exhausting to bring all of the bamboo poles down the mountain, but we did it! It reminded me of a couple years back when our current President and my former boss declared—“Yes we can!”

Hill Tribes and Elephant Rides...

This past weekend was unbelievable. Pi Ti-- one of our partners-- was taking us to a Lahu tribe up what I call a mountain, but what everyone from Utah tells me is a hill. On the way, we stopped in a Karen village where he showed us attempts at sustainability. Many of the attempts failed because the volunteers and organizations did not communicate or work with the villagers. The lack of unity in their efforts has led to a failure of utility, which could have easily been avoided.

Pi Ti’s truck drove up the side of a hill to the Lahu tribe. The road was quite treacherous; I had the plausible idea that we were the first four wheeled vehicle to ever take that trip. However, as Ralph Waldo Emerson advised us: "do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." Once we arrived at the village, it was as if we were entering into a new world.

There were animals absolutely everywhere: dogs, pigs, cows, chickens, roosters, cats, goats and all kinds of bugs. I originally thought it was difficult being in Thailand where I know a limited number of phrases; I know NO phrases in Lahu and that was quite hard. We spoke with some of the villagers through hand motions and simple Thai phrases. They seemed very happy with their life there. I wandered by myself for a while and as JRR Tolkien said “not all those who wander are lost.” I found this gorgeous viewpoint of the mountains (hills) and stood in awe for a half hour.

We had dinner with the village elder and we played Crazy 8s with him. Soon after this, he invited Matt, Nate and I into his hut to watch the World Cup. We were taken completely off guard. The village had recently acquired running water and we had not seen any signs of electricity, but there we were—watching Ghana v. Australia. That night the animals kept me up all night and I learned a valuable lesson: I should not work/ live on a farm.

The next morning I “woke up” relatively early and noticed something on the side of the village elder’s hut. It was a poster with a woman’s face on it and some writing. Through Pi Ti, I discovered that there were recent elections and the village elder’s preferential candidate had a great amount of sway in voting. From my campaigning days I learned it, but I didn’t think it would follow me here; the world is in love with yard signs.

Garrett and I climbed on our elephant—Nuang Li, who we believe was recovering from a cold. My right leg was damp from elephant snot by the end of the journey. It was incredible that the elephants were taking us down a mountain (hill) as we soaked in the great view. Once it was time to get off the elephant, he wouldn’t let me go. He let Garrett and the trainer jump down, but he loved me so much he was unwilling to crouch down to let me dismount. After much effort from the trainers, I had to jump on another elephant’s back to finally get down.

We walked around the corner to the beautiful Kuang Pow waterfall where we swam and I jumped off rocks into the water below. It was exhilarating. We drove the rest of the way in Pi Ti’s truck to the Akha clinic where we helped put on the roof. It’s fascinating how they use bamboo and grass to make an entire structure. I am so glad that I am being presented with these opportunities to learn about and participate in different cultural activities. As Ken Keyes once said “everyone and everything around you is your teacher.” Through these experiences, I’m trying to live the world with that understanding.

My first week in the land of smiles...

Monday, I worked in the Chiang Rai Regional Hospital. In the morning, I worked with two boys. One was part of the Akha hill tribe and the other was Thai. The Akha boy seemed very sick and the other boy recently had an operation. We painted papier-maché balloons. Around halfway through our painting, a man in the next room was very audibly dying or in serious pain from a moto accident. I saw the Thai boy put his head down and the Akha boy start to cry. It was terribly sad. In the afternoon, we worked on medical supplies. It is a very important job to make dialysis packs. It is also, unfortunately, painstakingly boring. After that, we met with our country director and I talked about project ideas that I had. Dave called three of the projects and set up meetings for Thursday.

Tuesday, started off at a village school called Nam Lad where we are building a wa

ter station. As one of the teacher's was giving us a tour of the school while we took a break for water, we saw Céline Dion lyrics on the board. She said they were translating the lyrics into English. I under my breath sang to Ryleigh (another volunteer) a line of the song. Ryleigh said "you should sing that for the class, Amy." We laughed until we remembered that the teacher spoke English. Before we knew it, the four of us were singing "Because You Loved Me" for a room of 11 year olds. The teacher was crying after because she said it was "so beautiful." I can assure you readily that it was not. She was so touched that she gave us all bracelets.

After working through the afternoon, we finished much of the wash station and started heading home. On the way, we

passed a very steep set of stairs with what looked like a temple at the top. Blake and I raced up them to find a monk's burial site that was quite beautiful. We hitched a ride with a truck back home and got ready for the evening.

Rose, Emily, Kenny, Pim and I went to the Samah Mit Community. The previous few weeks, the group had been teaching them about

finances and keeping records; we went to do house calls to check on our students. Soon after, we were offered dinner by family of the community elder. We had rice (as always) with mackerel and fried fish eggs and greens. It is apparently expensive and rare, so we were quite honored. In the village there was a little boy named Golf. Polio had crippled his hands, so he could not hold anything with them alone. He loved to draw, so that's what he would do. It reminded me of Helen Keller when she said that "although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of overcoming it." He would use his leg to guide his hand across the page with a smile on his face. I was truly inspired by his patience, perseverance, and joy.

For the trip back to the house, Kenny, Rose, Emily, and I rode atop the taxi. It was incredible feeling the wind in our hair and in our faces. I felt so free. In Thai, Farang is slang for a white person. So on the way home, it was hilarious to watch all of the Thai people stare in awe at four Farangs senselessly riding atop a taxi.

Wednesday morning, we headed to DEPDC (Development and Education Project for Daughters and Communities). It is near the border with Burma, so we had a long and bumpy bus ride on the way. DEPDC works with trafficking victims and those at risk of being trafficked. In the morning we taught English in two classes and in the afternoon we did square foot gardening. That morning, as I was catching up to the group I looked both and ways and didn’t see anyone. A group of Thai people gladly pointed me in the direction of the other Farongs and I found them without difficulty.

Thursday was meeting day. At 9, we met with Pi Ti who worked with the Akha hill tribes on cultural and self-sustainability. We were able to go to one of the hill tribe communities where they organization and community members are building a clinic. As we were on our way to the site, there was a large snake in the middle of the road. Pi Ti stopped the car suddenly. My first thought was that he didn’t want to run it over until he pulls out a knife as he gets out of the car. He says something in Thai, which Dave translates as “that snake is delicious; it can be our lunch.” Unfortunately, it slithered away too quickly.

Our second meeting with Dr. David was no less exciting. He worked in remote villages on sanitation and medical supply. He had no funds other than what each volunteer brought. He condescended on other NGOs with their grants and offices and salaries. We later learned his mistrust of organizations like those came from his days as a Burmese freedom fighter. Our third meeting was rescheduled for Monday. That night, we went to the night bazaar—always entertaining. There were quite a few Farongs in the center of town, however, that I was not accustomed to seeing. I slept under the stars and a mosquito net.

Friday morning, we were back at the hospital. In the morning, we arrived early to the Pediatrics unit. Hoo-aay took the time to teach us some Thai. I worked with a brother and a sister. The little girl had stomach surgery earlier that week. We colored and painted. I played a few games with them and sang some songs. They were more lighthearted than my previous two pediatrics patients. Mae, one of the Pediatrics workers, and her friend Koi taught us a Thai song about elephants to prepare for our weekend and we all went to lunch. Afterwards, we sorted and organized medical supplies. That afternoon, we were meeting with the director of an AIDS orphanage with whom we might volunteer. We went around the bazaar that night with two Thai girls we had met and watched the US v. Serbia World Cup game. Saturday morning, I climbed some trees and went on a run around our village, excited about the upcoming events of the weekend.

Planes, a Bus, and a Birthday...

I woke up at 5:30 in the morning on June 9th to finally arrive in Chiang Rai the afternoon of June 11th. It was certainly a long trip. The flight from DFW to Tokyo was long and I was squished in the middle seat, but was overall pleasant. I had a six hour layover in the Narita Airport, which went by quickly. The flight to Bangkok from Tokyo was incredibly bumpy, but the stewardesses were unfailingly nice. I arrived at the Bangkok airport at 10:30pm and relaxed and read until my flight to Chiang Mai at 6:45am. The flight was only an hour long. I, then, ventured to the Chiang Mai Arcade Bus Station.

I spent the bus ride in awe of the goings on around me. There were overwhelming mountains to the left and monks walking on the right alongside a Carrefour complete with a Pizza Hut. As Ken Follet said, "culture clash is terrific drama." This incredible mix could be due to two separate ideas. Firstly, it could come from cultural imperialism and strong-hearted rituals in conflict. Secondly, it could be a simple fascination with a culture so different from ones own in collision with long-held traditions. The Chiang Mai Bus Station as both overcrowded and calm. Although the lines for bus tickets were long, no one acted impatiently or rudely. I had intended to purchase a VIP bus ticket, but somehow failed in that endeavor. My bus ticket was only three dollars and was an exciting, but bumpy ride. The police man who sat next to me in the bus was sleeping and I haven't the faintest idea how he managed that. It was a beautiful three hour ride with views of mountains and temples and national parks. It became increasingly evident on the bus ride that there are a disproportionate number of Playboy bunny stickers on cars and motor bikes. After being here a few days and seeing children wearing shirts with the icon , however, I discovered that it does not hold the same meaning here. There are also innumerable Che Guevara pictures, but after being in Europe for several months, I have grown accustomed to seeing his face randomly in inappropriate and odd places.

Once I arrived, I was greeted by most of the team and had a delicious lunch of goo ay dee o paht. We went to the craft store and the local market to pick up some supplies and headed back to the group home. With a program called AIDS Access, they had done arts therapy with HIV- positive children and we were organizing the paintings, bracelets, and keychains. Dinner was gaang kee o wahn, which our land lady Pi Pi made for us. I was exhausted after nearly three days of travel and very little sleep, so even the hard Asian bed looked heavenly to me.

The next morning, I awoke as a 21-year old. For my first full breakfast in Thailand, a few of us walked down the street to a woman who sells sticks of pork and rice in front of her house. They were delicious. The group, then, went to see a mountain with monkeys near the Burmese border. It was interesting to watch the interactions between the monkeys.

One of the monkeys was clearly the alpha male and his dominance overshadowed the hunger and needs of the other monkeys. I sat next down to a monkey on a bench and he made a whimpering sound; I glanced over at him, at which point, he snarled and lunged at me. I made it away safely, quite startled by an animal smaller than my cat, Joe. We climbed the mountain where the monkeys lived and breathed in the incredible view.

We descended into the caves of the mountain where there were many statues and relics. Unfortunately, my limited Thai did not extend to the signs that declared their significance.

After a day on the monkeys' mountain, we went to the walking street market where we sold the art and did double dutch jump roping for donations. The booth across from ours was a group of children and teenagers raising money for children whose parents had died. One of my group members told them it was my birthday and they sang and danced for me! Overall, a pretty incredible birthday. I think Thailand is just the place for me.

my new journey...

I leave tomorrow morning for Thailand. As the land of smiles awaits me, I catch myself thinking about the path that is leading me there. If you know me, you must be aware that I love to travel. My heart is set on exploring the world and the people in it. When I told a good friend that I was planning on volunteering abroad this summer she said that I am full of wanderlust. As I reflected, I realized how true that was. Beyond wanderlust, however, I find myself struck with wonder upon the beauty and ugliness I see around me.

I know that many of you have concerns and fears about this upcoming trip, and I understand. The world can be a scary place full of danger and evil, but from my travels abroad that's not what I have seen. I have seen that people are genuinely good at heart. If you are lost or in need, strangers will lend a hand. I am not reckless; I will still approach this adventure cautiously. William Shedd, a famous theologian once noted that while "a ship in a harbor is safe, that's not what ships are built for." I believe that is true about people. I think it's my purpose and my duty to follow Mark Twain's advice to "throw off the bowlines; sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in [my] sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

Thailand is my new journey, my new adventure to explore, dream, and discover. I hope that I am able to serve the community surrounding Chiang Rai, as its beauty, culture, and people teach me new and incredible things. I hope that their perspectives enlighten me and show me how they interpret their purpose and role in the global community. My wish is that through this blog, I can give anyone and everyone a glimpse at the world through my wanderlust and wonderment.