Photo Update

Mae Hong Son

Phra That Doi Kong Mu Temple

The view of Mae Hong Son from Phra That Doi Kong Mu Temple

A waterfall near my host family's house where we sometimes go swimming

Woman from a Karen long neck village near community weaving traditional clothing

I tried on a fake neck ring (cut in half with a ribbon to tie in the back). The real thing is a wire that is coiled around the neck - supposedly they can weigh up to 5 kg!

Poy Sang Long

In April Ban Nai Soy had a five-day long Poy Sang Long Festival where almost 100 boys from the community were ordained as novice monks.

The boys are dressed up and made up like Buddha when he was a prince (before he was Buddha).

Their feet cannot touch the earth for the duration of the five days so they are carried on other men's shoulders from place to place.

On the third day, I got to lead a parade in front of a donkey (or mule?). I was starting to feel an ego boost with what I thought was so many people taking my picture, but then I realized they were trying to take photos of the donkey/ mule.

I got to dress up in traditional Tai Yai dress.

On the last day of the festival, the boys change into the orange robes that monks traditionally wear. They are ordained as "novice monks" (whereupon they can walk on the ground and stop being carried) and partake in the monk lifestyle for several weeks.

Songkran

The week after the Poi Sang Long Festival, we celebrated Songkran, the Thai New Year, which lasts for three days. It's also called the "Water Festival" because they believe water washes away bad omens. It wouldn't be Thailand if the traditions weren't mixed in with some fun.

During Songkran, Thais throw water at passersby (see above)

Or they fill a tank of water and put it in the back of their pickup trucks and actively seek out people to throw water at!

My host sisters and their friends are getting ready to properly celebrate.

As you can imagine, I don't have many photos from this because I got in on the water throwing too, and cameras and water don't get along very well.

Food!

This omelet and pancakes may look like an everyday meal to you but it meant a lot to me after living without "farang" (foreigner) food for most of the past 5 months!

Cashew chicken - not as common of a dish in Thailand as you'd think - this was the first time (and only time so far) I've had it here!

Khao Soy - yellow noodle curry soup, a famous Northern dish, extra special because it was cooked at a ladyboy named Henry's restaurant

Hill Tribes

Some background on the different ethnicities (Karen and Tai Yai) in my community:

Foreword from pamphlet on hill tribes

"The plateau areas of upper Northern Thailand consist of many ethnic groups scattered throughout the region in villages and small communities. Some groups, such as the Karen, migrated here 200-300 years ago. Other groups are more recent arrivals - the Akha, Lisu, Kachin, and Palong - who have migrated within the last 60 years. Some of these groups are considered to be indigenous like the Lawa. Groups or tribes are referred to differently according to their race, language and ethnicity and each has many different names. Some groups are now regarded as flatland Thais such as the Tai Yai, Tai Leu and Tai Kern. Nevertheless, these groups are generalized as hill tribes, mountain people, or people of different cultures.

According to an ethnic survey completed in 2001, which covered 36 locations in five northern provinces in designated areas of the Royal Project Development Center, 15 ethnic groups were identified - the Karen, the Hmong, the Yao, the Lahu, the Akha, the Lawa, the Tai Yai, the Tai Leu, the Tai Kern, the Tai Saem, the Haw, the Kachin, the Palong and the Pruerk."

...

H.S.H. Prince Bhisatej Rajani

Chairman Royal Project Foundation

"Karen"

"In the past Karen lived in accessible areas of the Salawin River in China. They migrated to Burma and Thailand about 200 years ago. In Burma, there are two Karen states. When there was a dispute between the Burmese government and a Karen state or another minority group, it usually produced war. Therefore, many Karen sought refuge in Thailand..."

There are two types of Karen: white Karen and red Karen. Red Karen are also called Karenni. My host family is Karen/ Karenni, and Karenni make up 20-30% of my community. Some of the Karen are known for the neck rings they wear. There is a Karen long neck village less than 5 km from my host family's house.

"The Shadow Thailand"

Where has the time gone? It's been almost 2 months since I arrived at site and I feel like so much has happened since Day 1. I haven't even started teaching yet! (Students are on summer break from mid-March to mid-May. The new school year starts this Wednesday.)

The day I arrived at site and moved in with my new host family, I met my host dad's friend from Malaysia. That is to say, I saw him, said hello and wai-ed, but he didn't smile, return my greeting, or otherwise say a word to me for the first 24 hours I was here. All of a sudden, the next night, he started speaking in fluent and fluid English and spouting words of wisdom. (He looks and sounds Japanese, so imagine a wise samurai-looking and sounding guy.) He said, "You seem like you are interested in learning about refugees from Burma as much as the Thai culture. If you want to learn only about the Thai culture, this is the wrong place for you; but if you want to learn about the Shadow Thailand (yes, "the Shadow Thailand" were his exact words), this is the place for you." He said he doesn't like speaking English in front of Thai people, but he wanted to speak to me because he wanted me to learn about "the Shadow Thailand" in addition to Thailand. I guess I passed his test. :)

My community is a melting pot of cultures. About 70-80% of my village is Tai Yai, people who are ethnically Thai, but have their own language, cultures and traditions. (And half of the Tai Yai are from Thailand whereas the other half are from the Shan state of Burma.) The remaining 20-30% is Karenni, many of whom fled after the political unrest in 1988 and sought refuge in Mae Hong Son. My host parents come from the Karenni state in Burma. It's been eye-opening listening to my host dad's stories of when he lived in Burma and how he came to Thailand and built the life he has here now. At the same time, I love learning about the Karenni and Burmese languages and cultures from my host family. Sometimes I feel like I'm not in Thailand anymore! I suppose I've opened the door to exploring what my host dad's friend calls "the Shadow Thailand."

Revelations (post training)

The other day, I taught my friend the expression, "Things are not always as they seem."

Some things I realized by the end of training:

• My host sister took 75 second showers - not 5 minutes.
• She washed her hair outside and I think that was the trick to taking such quick showers at night. (On the other hand, I'd only seen her wash her hair once in the two months of training, but she didn't smell bad, so she must have done it when I wasn't looking...)
• My host mom didn't cook (as often as I thought). She bought most of our meals at the market, so that must have been the secret to getting delicious meals every day. But they were still homemade Thai dishes - just as somebody else's house - and still delicious!

Photo Update

We've made it through training and will be sworn in as official volunteers on Monday. We move to our sites on Wednesday!

Here are photos from the last several weeks of training.

During my site visit, over the course of 5 days I spent each night in a different city or on a night bus, in transit. (My site is a 15 hour bus ride from Bangkok.)

Bangkok

View from our hotel room

Western toilet and *gasp* a showerhead/ bathtub!
My roommate and I got so excited we had to take pictures and were late for our meeting-oops!

Clean beds!

Farang (foreign aka non-Thai) food!



Chiang Mai


Tapae Gate


My Site

House at site (next to potential homestay's house)

View from potential homestay's house

Sunset
I think I can get used to this over the next 2 years


Back in Ayutthaya

Thai wedding
(I have no idea who the bride and groom are, but they let me join in their photo - and had me stand in between them at that!)

My first Mardi Gras celebration - and it's in Thailand

Me in Thai traditional dress
(It was tight and bright pink and hot - I was not as happy as I looked in the photo but when in Thailand, do as they do - just SMILE!)

Birthday party
(My host family also gave me this bright pink shirt.)