My Week In Review

What a week! Full of work, and play.

The working aspect of my time spent here is getting increasingly better. I'm beginning to develop relationships with the kids and am starting to understand their behavioural problems a little bit more. I now understand Neung, a blind autistic boy will only wear pants that have a certain elastic, I understand Uhn-Uhn, a child with down syndrome, will hit me right after she makes a certain face, I know how to make some kids laugh, cry, and obey! Obeying is the most important right now, for the first week I was just a ting-tong falang or a "crazy foreigner!" But I have cracked down and some will actually sit in time out when I put them there, or turn the shower hose off when they hold it up to me threateningly, or LISTEN!

I am having a lot of fun with the kids. It is neat to see them every day. The kids who come from the wards are typically the worst behaved ones, but who can blame them? I think I would hit other children too if that's all I knew. If my "ward moms" hit me with brooms, or kicked me in the thigh, I would definetely bite another child once in a while. That's not to say the staff and volunteers just allow it, but there's a sympathy in the punishment of these kids.


Goofing off with Joi, a very sick little boy with a severe liver problem. His stomach is swollen from malnutrition due to his failing liver. The past week we spent some time in the sensory room (a dark room full of flashing lights and music) and became instant friends.


I have grown quite close to these two! Ton is the little boy, he has no mental disabilities but is crippled from the waist down. Samon, the girl, is 14 and suffers from a variety of mental disabilities as well as physical. She is a blast to hang out with! Always up for a song, and dance.


Me and Ton again

The weekends here are always a blast! I am trying to save as much money as possible, so my excursions aren't weekend getaways on the Thai beaches, but I do manage to have fun on a budget!

Things I did, all on ONE weekend!





Me, Catherine, and Linda went out on an ice cream date to a very western style Swensens. Pakkred is not like Bangkok at all, it is rare to see white people, and rare for westerners to have the option of being immersed in their own culture. SO, our trip to Swensens was a nice treat, not a common occurance, but a welcomed one!


Me and Linda took a boat to Bangkok this weekend!

We went to the Oriental Hotel to eat lunch and Linda insisted on a photo with the Thai bellboy

We also went to Jim Thompson's house. He was an American architect who came to Thailand and encouraged the sale of the very beautiful Thai silk back in his home country. He is pretty much known for his success, and built a traditional Thai home with his wealth. We were fortunate enough to receive a tour of this beautiful house!

I was very excited to head into Bangkok this weekend. But as I rode on the boat that we took, more and more tourists piled onto the cramped ship. I should've felt at home! These were westerners that I had more in common with than the local Thai. However, as they took their pictures, spoke to the Thai people in English and ignored Thai customs, I became increasingly more embarassed and was relieved to come back to Pakkred. I hate feeling like a tourist here, even though really, I am one, but I don't want to be. I want to be able to relate to the people here, however as I rode that boat and entered the very westernized Bangkok, I realized how different my culture actually is from the Thai population. It was a little discouraging to come to the realization that I can read all the Thai books I want, struggle with the language, try the customs and still, I'm Canadian, and very much a foreigner.

Another bizarre encounter I had with Western culture this weekend was when a volunteer from a different organization invited those staying at Sirin House to an English meal she was preparing. She was on vacation, house sitting for a family she knew. The house, was located in a place called Nichada. The Nichada community was unbelievable. Totally fenced off, hundreds and hundreds of western style houses filled the property as well as starbucks and pools and tennis courts and international schools and even western trees. The house had a maid and a driver and air conditioning. It was weird. I crossed a gate and was back in North America.

Sethi was disgusted with the idea, that people come here and totally block themselves off from Thailand, but I guess I sort of understand it. The people living in this community are here based on work opportunities. They didn't come here to experience Thailand, so I get that they want the comforts of their home. It is strange though, so strange.

a picture of Nichada in all it's expensive nature



There are things I could talk about for hours, or pages rather
I really love all the comments I get on my blog, it's so encouraging to see that people actually read and are interested in what I'm doing over here.
I miss the people at home often. Sometimes when I go to work and just want to break down in tears, I know it's the prayers of the people I love keeping me strong, and helping me to stay motivated. Thank you all for your tremendous support thus far!