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Tuesday June 19, 2018

Hello! Welcome to Thailand!

We’re so happy our students arrived in Chiang Mai safely and full of smiles today! We’ve been so excited to meet our first 21-day “In and Beyond the Classroom” group! Today’s been a tranquil arrival day, adjusting to Thai time, meeting one another, and exploring the Woodfield Resort, our home base for the next 3 weeks! Needless to say, all our students are a little tired after 2 days of traveling, so resting was s a highlight of today! We were welcomed with a delicious Thai dinner with chicken/tofu curry soup, fried rice, fresh fruits, and veggie spring rolls! After dinner we briefly looked over tomorrow’s orientation day plan and our fun filled 3 weeks! The international staff can’t wait for the adventures and leadership activities to begin!

We’ll be updating this blog at least twice a week with stories, quotes, and photos from our days at service, and in the community! Check back!

Best wishes from your international staff,
Lexi and Mark

Wednesday June 20, 2018

First full day in Thailand, and what a day it was! We started the day with a buffet breakfast with foods ranging from veggie fried rice, to waffles, and back to Thai noodles! After breakfast, we met in the large conference room for Orientation! We reviewed the code of conduct, house rules, and dos and don’ts in Thailand. Then off to an awesomely international lunch buffet (they even had green tea ice cream)! Post lunch was the city tour! We saw 2 of Chiang Mai’s wats (temple) including the oldest one! After a quick Thai tea in the park, GLA met a local chef in the market to pick out ingredients for our cooking class. We learned how to cook pad Thai, green coconut milk curry, fried spring rolls, and mango sticky rice for dessert! We even used a blue flower, butterfly pea, to turn the ricey dessert blue! Back to home base for a mentor group regarding hopes and fears for the program along with silly and serious group goals! The last student arrived this evening! We’re so happy to have all11 students safe and sound in Thailand! We can’t wait to see what tomorrow has in store!

International Staff,
Lexi and Mark

Thursday June 21, 2018

Today we woke up bright and early to head off to a local pottery village. We toured the village and saw the processes behind the beautiful Thai artwork. After touring and seeing how effortless the Thai potters made it look, we took a stab at making our own pottery. We learned that many of us are not natural artists, but with the help of the potters, we were able to make small, beautiful vases. Once our time in the pottery village was up, we ventured out to Huay Tung Tao reservoir for lunch.

Our delicious meal was devoured inside a cabana overlooking the lake. We ate live dancing shrimp, soup, rice, and some good old french fries. Bon appetit! Once our lunch was finished we took a picture with a giant gorilla (see picture below) then played games and had an intellectual discussion about Children’s rights. After a long day of fun, food, and friends we headed back to our beautiful home base for a swim test. All of us passed so we were able to swim around and play pool games.

Following our pool fun, we chowed down on dinner which was scrumptious! Then our wonderful mentor, Lexi lead us in an activity to inspire meaningful conversations. We learned about the importance of being open and talking about things that are important to you. We closed the night off with some group bonding. We can’t wait for more adventures, learning, and bonding.
– Paige

Friday June 22, 2018

Saw-wad-dee-kah everyone!

We started off our day today with an hour long trip down a windy road to the Doi Suthep temple about an hour away from our home base. After climbing all 306 steps to get to the temple (yes, Clare and I counted), we all had the chance to walk around, take pictures, and ask questions to our local staff about everything we saw. We also were able try out some interesting fortune telling techniques to find out if our wishes for the future will come true, like shaking a cup full of sticks and waiting for one to fall out, or lifting a heavy gold elephant with one finger. We then had the chance to get some amazing views of all of Chiang Mai from the mountaintop where the temple stood.

On our way home, we visited a Northern Hill Tribe village where we learned all about the different tribes in Thailand. We even had the chance to shoot a crossbow at a hanging vegetable… with varying degrees of success. On our way out of the village we walked through a market where most of us bought elephant pants for only 100 baht! (About the equivalent of 3 USD). We then came back to the home base for some free time. Most of us spent our time doing yoga led by our mentor, Lexi… also with varying degrees of success. Despite a lot of tripping and complaining about exercise, we all had a great time. After dinner we all got together for a leadership activity in which we all discussed ways we can overcome the things we feel hold us back in life.

Hope everything’s going well back home!

-Cara

Saturday June 23, 2018

Hello! (Say wah dee kah )

Today marked day 5 of our adventures in the scenic Chiang Mai, Thailand. Today we started off by visiting an adorable nearby community which is known for making cotton umbrellas. We learned the history of the community that has existed for over 40 years and saw the umbrella making process ourselves. After we saw the steps of making an umbrella we got the chance to paint our own umbrellas.

Many of us have quickly realized in the past few days that our artistic abilities are more to be desired. After our artistic attempts we proceeded to a little market of highly talented painters where many of us got our phone cases painted with flowers, elephants, and dragons. Then we went to the cafe for a pick me up. We have been practicing ordering in Thai and getting all our drinks without straws (mai aow lòrd).

We get a lot of weird looks from barista when attempting to drink things from smoothies to iced drinks without our straw but we are trying to save marine life one straw at a time thanks to our awesome mentor Lexi’s influence. After that we went to lunch at a local restaurant where we could try anything on the menu. With the freedom many choose pad Thai and spring rolls but some went outside there comfort zones and tried a totally new dish.

Mid- afternoon we returned to our beautiful home base where we had a leadership activity. Each of us dived into our goals and what we want in the future whether that may be tomorrow or years from now. Also parents if you get a postcard in the mail before our return please don’t read them. They are for our future selves. After that we had a pretty laidback night of self care, getting to know each even better, practicing our Thai, and then a family pool night . That’s all we have for the today.

Hashtags for the days included:

#dontbelackluster

#doorsarentforgiving

-Clare

Sunday June 24, 2018

Today was a really great day! The first thing we did was go zip lining. It was a blast and everybody was proud of Lexi for facing her fear of heights and falling. The instructors were really fun and loved to tease us. They dropped us down the belay rope half way, shook all the bridges we walked on, and even scared us into thinking that we started zipping the line when everybody wasn’t ready. In the evening, we went to the night market to eat dinner. While we were there, we bought many items that the vendors had for sale such as: elephant pants, shirts, sandals, essential oils, playing cards, jewelry, and wood crafts. Overall, today was a very successful day and I hope to have more just like it.

-Milan

Monday June 25, 2018

Hey parents and readers,

Time is flying by here in Thailand! It’s been a tiring day; we did a lot of physical work. We started our morning workin’ on our biceps while trying our hand at carving wood. Emphasis on ‘trying’. Though many of us struggled, Jolie and Cara killed their wood carving; it’s not as easy as it looks!

Next stop: the rice fields. Before we got down and dirty in the paddies, we saw a variety of agricultural practices. We fed hungry catfishes kept in above-ground pounds and learned how Thai farms keep frogs in captivity. Afterwards, we learned about how rice is grown and processed. First, rice seeds are thrown randomly into their respective paddies — essentially large muddy ponds. Then, after around one month, the rice seedlings are picked and replanted in orderly rows. Wait four more months and the rice is ready to be harvested. We part took in the seedling replanting process and it was a really fun experience. Knee deep in rice paddy mud, you really appreciate the work it takes to get every grain of rice. Note to self: don’t waste any grains of rice.

To end our excursion we went to the orphanage Baan Praporn. Unfortunately we weren’t greeted by kids — they were still in school. Instead, we were greeted by sand, stones, water, and the final ingredient: cement mix. We mixed and poured cement for the foundation for a new bathroom. We probably got a third or fourth more done with it then where it was left off. After some hard sweaty work, with plenty of hydration breaks, we enjoyed a peanut butter sandwich to boost our energy for the arrival of the kids. Trust me: we needed it. We ran around what seemed like for ages. The amount of energy bursting from the young kids was insane! We played tag, kicked around a soccer ball, and introduced ourselves. Our playtime was cut short by a sudden down pour of rain and our hot dinner waiting back at home base. Today was another novel and adventure packed day for the GLA team.

To many more!

— Adam Zawierucha

Tuesday June 26, 2018

Today, we started out the morning by enjoying our resort breakfast and headed out to another popular Thai market; Warorot. We got to try some local snacks, such as rice crackers, and explored the many parts to the market! Most ventured off to find skirts to purchase for our teaching beginning on Monday. After a couple hours at the market and a pit stop at a nearby coffee shop that had complementary WiFi, we continued our service project at Baan Praporn. Six bags of cement later, we got to enjoy playing with the kids for an hour and a half. It was a beautiful, sunny day, which allowed us to participate in some of the favorite activities amongst the children, which include soccer, frisbee, duck duck goose, tag, and decorating our hair with flowers. After saying our dreaded goodbyes to the kids, we returned to home base and enjoyed a well earned dinner. We’re all so excited to spend more time with the children and can’t wait to see what’s yet to come!

-Bri

Wednesday June 27, 2018

Today we woke up to some beautiful pouring rain. We started our day off in the “leaf room” of our resort with Ajarah Todd. He taught us everything we need to know before we head off to teach Monday morning . After our seminar, we headed off to the school to meet the principal,check out the classrooms and the students. By then it was lunch time so we headed to the famous 89th Plaza. By now we were excited and ready to start service as soon as possible so that we could play with the kids at the orphanage.

Because of the rain we couldn’t play outside, but that didn’t stop us. We went into a hut together and played a hand game. It breaks our heart to say goodbye everyday, but we know that they’ll forever be in our hearts. We may be impacting them in some way, but they’re doing so much more for us… we headed home for dinner and had a leadership seminar with Lexi and Mark. We discussed our vision of what we would want the world to look like. We ended our night with some ice cream and good laughs.

-Esme

Thursday June 28, 2018

This morning, we woke at 7:30 am for the usual breakfast buffet. Shortly after, we left home base in our temple-appropriate outfits and made our way to Wat Suandok, or Flower Garden Temple. We gathered in a private room and awaited our chat with the chief monk who holds a position of respect and honor in the Thai community. Phra KK warmly greeted us and began recounting the origins of Buddhism, emphasizing that it is a philosophy rather than a religion. He also told us of his childhood and experiences with his discovery of self. Towards the end of our time with Phra KK, we asked about his daily routine and his fluency in multiple languages.

After an enlightening chat, we headed to lunch, and on our way out witnessed the younger monks as they left the school near the temple. We ate at Boat Bakery, and then returned to the orphanage for a new day of service which centered around digging holes and dumping the dirt into the foundation of the bathroom. Once the children returned from school and the rain subsided, we picked up where we left off the day before and enjoyed our time with the kids, keeping in mind our limited time. After a long and tiring day, we convinced Mark and Lexi to stop at 7/11 on the way back to Home Base and we stocked up on “healthy” snacks. We closed out the day by preparing a dance for later next week which took a lot of coordination that not many of us had. I can’t wait for tomorrow, our last day of manual labor at the orphanage!

-Mia

Friday June 29, 2018

We woke up an hour early to drive to the Hmong Village that was about an hour and a half away from home base. We drove through the beautiful mountainside of Northern Thailand, giving us the opportunity to experience once in a lifetime views. Once we arrived we met with Mr. Yua the village community leader and he gave us an overview of the village history. We began our exploration of the village with a hike through the national park in the surrounding area. Mr. Yua explained what different plants were used for and what types of produce they provided. We were able to try fruits and vegetables from right off the tree. As we concluded our hike and made our way back to the meeting room we went down village streets and were able to see different aspects of their culture, such as “spirit catchers” and chickens used for sacrifices to the spirits. At the meeting room we learned about the art of beeswax painting. All of us were able to create our pattern on a cloth and trace it with beeswax using a special tool. The beeswax can be used as a “barrier” to keep the cloth white during the dyeing process. At around twelve o’clock we hopped back into our vans to go to the Baan Praporn Orphanage that we have been working at for the past 4 or so days. The drive down from the mountain was very quiet as almost everyone was tired from our trek.

After the long car ride was over, we resumed our service and finished our 2 meter holes for the septic tanks. This was our last day of manual service and we wanted to to make sure that we finished and we savored the moment. The kids arrived back from school at around 4:30 pm. We all played on the playground and fields. A few of the girls, including myself got their hair braided because the little girls love to do it and are really good at braiding. We were overall sad to leave the orphanage today because this was our last time seeing some of the kids that we had grown so attached to in such a short amount of time. We got back to home base and did our normal evening activities such as dinner circle, dinner, and tonight leadership group where we talked about the meaning of development. We are excited to see what tomorrow brings for us as Mark has organized a special surprise for us GLA teens and some of the kids from the orphanage!

-Marietta

Saturday June 30, 2018

Today we all headed over to the Baan Praporn orphanage for the last time, giving us a chance to play more group activities and say goodbye to most of the kids. After a few hours of games and laughter we had lunch at the orphanage, coconut curry, vegetables, and rice!

Next, we took a designated group of children to a Thai waterpark and enjoyed the slides and lazy river for a few hours. Lastly, we concluded the day by organizing our English lessons for Monday’s first teaching day. It was for sure one of my favorite activities so far.

-May

Sunday July 1, 2018

After waking up and eating our typical Thai breakfast, we set out for a day full of fun. First, we took a 15 kilometer (9 mile) bike ride on a route that had a beautiful view of rice fields and mountains in the distance. After returning to our starting point, we all ate a big lunch which included rice, chicken, and smoothies. Once our bellies were full, we changed into our bathing suits and took a short bus ride to Sri Lanna National Park where we got to kayak in the lake. We swam around in the lake and played a game called Chicken Dance, where you and your buddy stand on the kayak and try to knock each other off. Back on shore, we changed into dry clothes and headed back to home base and ate dinner. The group practiced the performance for cultural exchange that will be preformed at a local high school tomorrow. Off to bed we went, ready for the next eventful day.

-Jolie

Monday July 2, 2018

Today was the first day of teaching Prathom 3,4,5, and 6! Despite having to wake up early (breakfast at 6:30am) we got to watch the school’s morning assembly! We all were excited to start teaching! Teaching went really well, and we now know what works and what we need to work on for the rest of the week. The kids were eager to learn and made teaching fun and worthwhile. Im totally excited to teach again and cant wait for what tomorrow holds. Our classes were overall successful and we are all prepared (fingers crossed) for tomorrows day of teaching.

Afterwards we visited high school students at Sarapee Pittayakom School. It was eye opening to see the difference in culture between us and Thai high school students our age. We spent time sharing cultural performances, like dances and musical talents. All of the performances were so awesome and we were in shock at how amazing the Thai students are. After getting the chance to learn some of their cultural activities like bamboo dancing and gong-like drums, we can conclude that it is way harder than it looks. After the performances, groups of high school students gave us a tour of their school. We exchanged our goodbyes, took some selfies, and ended the night journaling and reflecting on the past few days.

-Adam, Bri, Cara, Clare, Esme, Jolie, Marietta, May, Mia, Milan, Paige.

*This blog post was written as a part of tonight’s journaling exercise. Each student wrote one sentence about the day and passed it to the next student leader.

Tuesday July 3, 2018

After waking up bright and early we all headed to the elementary school to teach our classes. After eating a quick lunch at the school, we hopped on the vans and went back to home base to change into athletic clothing. Once we were changed we went to Chiang Mai Muay Thai gym and learned how to Muay Thai box.

After getting our hands wrapped, we started off with a warm up of running around the boxing ring for 5 minutes followed by stretching. We were showed the moves and techniques and practiced on punching bags, trainers, and each other. Tired after the two hour work out, we stopped by the grocery store to buy snacks such as gold fish, cookies, candy, chips, and salsa. Back at home base we helped ourselves to a nice big dinner followed by a movie night. Curled up with our blankets, pillows, and newly bought snacks we watched the movie Inside Out and then off to bed we went.

-Paige and Jolie

Wednesday July 4, 2018

Happy 4th of July 🇺🇸

Today we headed back to school for our third day of teaching. We spent our mornings teaching lessons and playing games with our students. Some of us even explained that in was the United States 242nd birthday and we had our classes sing happy birthday. After our busy morning we headed back to home base and prepared for the afternoon in the city center.

First stop of the afternoon was at a 3D art Museum filled with all sorts of different exhibits. Then we headed to our much awaited Thai massages. Thai massages focused more on muscle tension rather then relaxation. There were lots of laughs shared to say the least.

Next stop was the grocery store across the street to buy any snacks or candy we wanted for back at home base. That night we went out for dinner at Duke’s where we had an American meal to celebrate the 4th. We were served pizza, nachos, mozzarella sticks, salads, ribs, fries and more. After our delicious meal we headed down to the market on the street below. We each got time to buy gifts and explore Chiang Mai markets once again. After our night on the town we once again returned to our beautiful home base. Upon our return home we were surprised with sparklers. We finished our night singing some patriotic songs and enjoying each other’s company on the 4th of July.

-Clare and May

Thursday July 5, 2018

This morning we woke bright and early! We headed to the school to have our last lessons with the classes. Then after a quick lunch prepared by the school we rushed back to home base. We began planning our english camp games for tomorrow. We separated into groups and created a list of items that was needed for our games. With only a short break we went straight back to brainstorming and creating posters for our stations. We then went to dinner and indulged in smiley face french fries! Today’s activity with Mark consisted of tips on how to manage your anger as a leader. Okay We’re tired, its been a long day. See you guys soon!!

-Esme and Mia

Friday July 6, 2018

We woke up bright and early this morning to make some lasts minute preparations for our full day of English camp! Split into 4 groups, we all prepared to put the plans we had spent the last day coming up with into action. Our stations included “camping,” soccer, a clothing relay, and a scavenger hunt. The day was overall a huge success! Despite some challenges due to the large class sizes, we had so much fun playing with and teaching the kids. At the end of the day, we were thanked with a closing ceremony where we were able to watch our students preform some traditional Thai dances. We were also able to thank the school for allowing us the opportunity to teach for the last week. Cara stood up to say a few words to the school while Milan translated, revealing to the entire astonished crowd that he speaks fluent Thai despite having taught his classes entirely in English all week! After the camp, we headed back to home base and ended our night with a mentor group where we discussed each of our personal mission statements.

-Bri & Cara

Saturday July 7, 2018

Today was our dreaded last day of activity, but we were all excited for what the day held. At 9:15 am we left home base and headed out to the elephant sanctuary. All was good until van 2 got stuck in a ditch just before we got to our destination. Luckily everything was fixed and we were able to get to the sanctuary in time. We first learned a little bit about elephants in general and then about the elephants specific to the sanctuary. Nut, our elephant guide, then set us free with our colorful ponchos to play with the elephants. First we fed the elephants bananas and avoided getting sat on by a baby elephant. We had a quick lunch break before jumping into the mud pond to cover the elephants in mud. Then we rinsed the elephants, and ourselves, in the river. I don’t know who got splashed more: the elephant or us. To conclude our day we went to the Saturday night market to make our final purchases, and spend our last baht.

— Marieta & Adam Z.

Sunday July 8, 2018

Today was the last full day of our GLA trip to Thailand! It was a pretty relaxed day for the most part. In the morning, we hung out near the pool and went for a sweat in home-base’s sauna and steam room. After our spa morning, we left for lunch at the Central Festival Mall of Chiang Mai. Central Festival is the biggest mall in Chiang Mai. We had time to walk around to shop and get some food. Many stores were visited and a lot of clothes were purchased. During the evening, we had dinner on a river boat and sailed the river. We listened to some teen tunes and enjoyed our last night together. Love to our entire GLA family.

-by Milan and Jolie

Monday July 9, 2018

Departure Day!

And just like that, it’s our students’ last day in country! How time flies! One final breakfast at the Woodfield before our first student departure! Our morning was filled with laughter, reminiscing, and holding back a few tears, oh and packing, so much packing. Checking out at noon we headed to a mall near the airport for lunch, the last Thai meal for many! We headed towards the airport in the early afternoon and checked everyone into their flights and checked their bags – no overweight bags! Hooray!

Around 3:30 the flood gates opened and through tearful goodbyes we said goodbye to most of our students. One student hung out with international and local staff until her later flight. At midnight we had confirmation that all of our future leaders were homeward bound! We’re so thankful for this amazing group of humans and the adventurous times we shared over the last 21 days! Kopkoon and see you soon!

-Lexi and Mark
International Staff

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Saturday July 21, 2018

Sawasdii-kha from Thailand!

We all landed safely and are on our first excursions out into the city of Chiang Mai today.

Sunday July 22, 2018

Today we had our first outing into Chiang Mai. We explored a museum dedicated to the history of the city and then learned more about Buddhism after visiting Chiang Mai’s oldest temple, Wat Chiang Man. After visiting the temple, we returned back to our beautiful home base for our lesson in teaching English to non-native speakers, and then we jumped into lesson planning for our first day at school tomorrow. We can’t wait!

Monday July 23, 2018

Hello!

Today was our first day of teaching the students here in the beautiful city of Chiang Mai! All of us prepared lesson plans the night prior and today we put them to the test- many of us had very diverse teaching styles which gave the Thai students different approaches to learning. The kids were eager and happy to learn and constantly smiled.

Proceeding the school day, we headed over to a Muay Thai gym where we underwent a very rigorous training session. We rotated through three different stations that focused on agility, precision, and quickness. Despite our pain, we all enjoyed the experience!

After a very smelly car ride, we arrived at home base and anticipated a swimming test, but due to Thailand’s rainy season, only a select few of us were able to undergo the “trial.”

Following the draining activities of the day, we all promptly crashed in our rooms. Some of us crashed a little too hard and slept through the beginning of dinner causing the early birds to wait. After dinner, we grouped up in the meeting space to discuss our lesson planss for the next day. As a community, we also came up with a definitive list of agreements of how we should treat one another.

We’re ready to take on the day tomorrow!​

Tuesday July 24, 2018

Sawadii-kha everyone!

Today is our second school-day and we got to know our students even better! The kids were adorable! Some of us got to play fun Thai games at recess. Now that the kids are closer with us, they are even more friendly and won’t stop hugging us! They had a hard time saying goodbye to us even though we’ll still see them tomorrow.

After school, we all got together for the Monk Chat. We got to ask the monk many questions and we learned all about Buddhism. Prior to the Monk Chat, we all thought it would be a much different experience. We learned that the monk had a good sense of humor and joked around a lot with us. He was very kind and made us feel very comfortable asking any type of questions. He told us a lot of personal stories which helped us relate to him more. Some of the students who were more familiar to the culture had a different experience than the ones who did not. Nevertheless, the students who were familiar with the philosophy of Buddhism still got a new perspective on the subject. The students who were new to the culture, learned more about the origins of it.

Once the Monk Chat was finished, we all felt more enlightened and excited to move forward in life with the knowledge that we received.

Goodnight!

-Leaders of the day: Leela Cullity and Jennifer Nguyen

Wednesday July 25, 2018

Sawasdee-krap from Thailand!

Despite the gloomy weather, the GLA team had a very productive day. It was our last day of teaching individual grades, but tomorrow we are putting together an English Camp full of fun, educational games for the kids at Baan San Kayom School and Baan Ta Luk School.

After school ended today, our groups met up at the Art Paradise 3D Museum, where optical illusions covered the entirety of each wall. We participated in a scavenger hunt throughout the museum, taking photos with giant cats, giraffes, and even underwater!

Later , out taste buds were delighted by scrumptious Thai delicacies that we prepared and cooked ourselves. It was a truly eye-opening experience to encounter another culture’s food first hand. We all loved the food, and some of us struggled with the spice. All in all, it was wonderful!

Stay tuned for more posts!​

Thursday July 26, 2018

Today was our last day working with the Thai children. It was bittersweet leaving the kids but many new adventures await us. We hope they enjoyed our lessons as much as we did! The schools had closing ceremonies and gifted us some fun souvenirs, including cups and flowers. After an hour of downtime, we headed into town for a western styled dinner. The smells and flavors of pizza and french fries reminded us of home. Accompanied by our very full bellies, we headed into the night bazaar, a street market filled with various unique items to purchase. We went home with bags filled with keychains, clothes, soaps, wooden toys, and much more. After a quick evening game of “Splat!”, we headed to bed excited for the adventure that awaits us tomorrow!

Sawasdiika!

Leaders of they day,
Hanna Malec and Maddy Hays

Friday July 27, 2018

Sawasdee ka!

Today was filled with the outdoors and adventure! We learned about the indigenous Hmong population by visiting one of their villages and seeing their farming lifestyle. We also learned about the art of umbrella making and got to paint some ourselves.

The Hmong village was high up in the mountains and we reached it after a beautiful car ride. Once we got there, we took a hike through one of the farms in the area guided by a village elder. He told us that the forest that surrounded us, which was his garden, was completely edible. After the hike, we tried our hand at batik, the art of creating designs on fabric with wax. Then we have some traditional Thai food along with traditional Hmong food prepared with ingredients from the forest around us.

After the hike, we headed to an umbrella making factory. We got to paint fun designs on our very own umbrellas.

After painting our umbrellas, we made a pit stop at a local 7/11 and picked up some fun Thai snacks and candy.

Overall, it was a fun and exciting day, even though we’re kissing our kids.

Leaders of the day: Savannah and Leela

Saturday July 28, 2018

After a tiresome night, we hopped in the vans and headed to Doi Suthep. The bumpy ride left some feeling nauseous, but we managed to climb over 300 crowded steps up the temple. We were blessed by a monk who provided a gift of holy string bracelet; we proceeded to have our fortunes told by means of shaking a holy cup until a numerical stick fell out. Afterwards we departed on another bumpy ride to the Hmong village of Doi Pui where we had the opportunity to shop, see gardens, and get some ice cream and coffee. Despite the rain, the views were breathtaking and it made for many great photos. We then took a sleepy drive to the Saturday Night Walking Street where we underwent a time trial to buy as much as we could with what little Baht we had left. We then headed home and proceeded to have a rather heated debate about the content of our student cultural exchange on Wednesday. Despite some disagreements we were able to come to agree on a “History of American Dance” performance. Stay tuned to see if we actually stick with it. Good night peeps/parents.

Leaders of the Day: Parker and Olivia

Sunday July 29, 2018

Hi GLA parents. Today was a fun-filled day of elephants, elephants, and elephants. To start off, we fed the elephants a scrumptious treat of bananas. After that, we trekked down a slippery mud trail for lunch and then rest of our activities. A few of our shoes broke along the way, but we proceeded to fix them in innovative ways. After lunch we used our strength to mash up the elephant’s medicine, then prepared for our mud bath. The mud was sticky but we were able to wash it off and splash at each other in the river. Then we headed home and made a pit stop at 7/11. For dinner, we enjoyed a western meal that we were all waiting for. Thanks for following the blog. Stay tuned for more!

– Aastha and Olivia

Monday July 30, 2018

Sawadii-kha!

We woke up nice and early, to the pleasant surprise of delicious pancakes! We then traveled to a cultural village to learn about the indigenous Tai Lue people. They speak a different dialect than the Thai people of Chiang Mai. Before we entered they blessed us with water to clear the bad spirits and welcome us to their home. When we entered they gave us bracelets to wish us happiness and luck. They taught us how to paint a wooden doll and produce textiles. Next we visited the locals and they taught us how to make rice cracker desert (which was very tricky).

Around noon we had a traditional Tai Lue meal including: grilled egg omelet, rice crackers, Tai Lue pad thai, and spicy sticky rice. While eating, we listened to authentic Tai Lue music and singing! Then some of our own group performed “Riptide” for the Tai Lue people. Lastly we made stencil bags and wrote goodbye notes.

We returned back to home base for well deserved free time. We ended our night discussing and practicing our dance moves for the cultural exchange happening on Wednesday!

– Aliyeh and Caroline

Tuesday July 31, 2018

This morning we woke up to an amazing breakfast from our home base staff. We needed the fuel for a fun day of ziplining. Then it was off to the vans, and an hour later we arrived at Eagle Track Zip-Lining. We conquered our fears with 35 platforms of adventure and teamwork, ending it all with a 40 meter drop! After an exhausting adventure in the jungle we were off for relaxation. What relaxation you might ask? A Thai massage! At the end of the amazing day we came back to Tianna and practiced our performance for the cultural exchange tomorrow.

– Leaders of the day: Kaitlyn and Hanna

Wednesday August 1, 2018

a-wat-dii-ka!

Curious about our activities for today? Well, keep reading, folks! You’re in for a good one!

We began our day bright and early at 7:30 to visit a Thai pottery workshop. We learned about the different clays used in certain pieces, how each piece is polished, and got to watch & experience firsthand the amount of effort it takes to create one pot! We circled around in two groups, each one following the instructions of a professional potter. After about an hour, we all finished with our own unique pots, made with heart and soul 🙂

Once we left our pots to dry, we headed out to lunch at a community mall area where we were met with some familiar fast food brands, such as McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, KFC, and Dairy Queen. I suppose you could say we were craving a little bit, seeing that most of us visited each food stop.

After a hearty (and greasy) lunch, we drove to a Thai high school to do a cultural exchange. We arrived to see many friendly and excited faces. The students there performed a traditional music piece for us and in return, we performed a dance piece! Twice! It was a cool experience being able to see a part of their culture while sharing a part of ours. In addition to that, the students had two stations set up for us; one taught us how to play the musical instruments used in their performance and the other had us write out our names both in Thai and Lanna (traditional Northern Thai language). We also had the opportunity to play some sports with the students! It was an incredibly fun and tiring day!

I hope tomorrow is just as good, maybe even better 🙂

But that’s it for today! Thanks for reading! See you later!

-Charlene and Leela

Thursday August 2, 2018

Hello and sawasdee-ka from Thailand!

Today was our last full day together. We kicked it off by heading to a local market when we got to try different fruits and candies local to Thailand and Southeast Asia. We tried jack fruit, mango sticky rice, bamboo worms, and most divisive of all: durian. We either hated it or we loved it, and it was a pretty even split! After trying all of the great foods, we were given time to walk around a do our last little bits of souvenir shopping. Some of us ended up with fish slippers!

After visiting the local market, we headed to a Tesco Lotus where we had our last opportunity to stock up on Thai snacks before we set out tomorrow. After lunch, we headed back to home base to relax, start packing, and get ready for our farewell dinner.

We went to a restaurant on the Ping River for our final dinner in Thailand. We had all of our favorites: spring rolls, chicken wings, and pad Thai. After we finished dinner, we headed back to home base one last time in the vans to have our farewell party. We viewed our photos from the scavenger hunt and then sang the night away karaoke-style.

Eventually, we headed back to our rooms to finish packing and start saying our goodbyes. It’s a bittersweet feeling to know we’re leaving Thailand, but we know we’ll be back again.

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Thursday July 5, 2018

Good morning from Thailand! Everyone landed safely last night and went straight to bed. Here we are at breakfast ready to take on our first full day in the country!

Written by Kathy Youngkin, International Director

Friday July 6, 2018

Sawadii-kha to everyone back home!

Today was all about getting to know Chiang Mai, both its history and its food culture. We explored a museum dedicated to the history of the city and then learned more about Buddhism after visit Chiang Mai’s oldest temple, Wat Chiang Man. Our history lesson was sandwiched by a buffet lunch at Siripanna restaurant and a shopping trip to a local market to learn about the fresh ingredients that we would be using in our evening Thai cooking class. At dinner we tried our hands at cooking Thai food and surprised ourselves with how delicious everything was. What a great first “taste” of the city and Thailand.

Saturday July 7, 2018

Hello! We can’t even begin to tell you how amazing Thailand is, how much fun we’re having, and how much we’ve learned already.

Today, half of our group went to the village of Hmong Mae Saa. When we arrive we explored the village and learned about the lifestyle of the local Hmong indigenous group. Then, we took a hike touring the farm of one of the village leaders who grew over 100 different varieties of healing herbs and many other fruits and vegetables, including coffee beans. We ended our visit by making our own wax design and trying some local food.

The second group went to a local market where they tried new, local foods such as: durian, bamboo worms, and other Thai candies. We also had a chance to explore, buy souvenirs, and practice their bargaining skills.

To end the amazing day, both groups got the opportunity to tour a pottery village and then make their own clay pots under the guidance of one of the local potters.

– Leaders of the day: Emma P., Rachel R.F., Amanda S.

Sunday July 8, 2018

Sawatdii-kha!

Today, we split up into our two groups from yesterday to visit the local market and the Hmong village. At the market, we had the chance to try durian which we had expected to be disgusting because of all the terrible reactions from the last group, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as we had thought! Luckily, there was an assortment of exotic fruits, which were extremely delicious. We had the chance to bargain with the locals, which proved to be difficult at times. While we were exploring the market, the other group had the opportunity to hike and explore the Hmong village. They listened to the village elder play a local instrument, tried batik art, and bonded with kids in the village.

Our local administrator, Todd, returned to Tianna to teach us how to teach our students for the first day of school tomorrow! We learned to use our “teacher voices” by screaming at each other across the room😉. Then we split into our teaching groups, planned out our lessons for tomorrow, and also began practicing routines for our high school cultural exchange.

By leaders of the day: Taylor and Isa

Monday July 9, 2018

Today was our first day of service!

We woke up nice and early, gulping down our breakfast within minutes so we could jump on the vans to start our first day of teaching! We split into two groups to teach at two local primary schools, and as our vans pulled up on the school grounds, we were greeted by the bright smiles and enthusiastic waves of the students at Wat Phra Non School and Wat Rong Oor School.

The three class periods that we taught went by in the blink of an eye as our students learned occupations, animals, numbers, sports, colors, and more! We had a delicious lunch with the students at school and then ran it all off at recess as we played tag and soccer with the kids. We also played jump rope with the students at Wat Phra-Non School, and the kids even gave us flowers to put behind our ears which were the absolute cutest! When the buses came to pick us up, we were overwhelmed with happiness and love while hugging every student in our path goodbye for the day.

After that, we drove to Wat Suan Dok Temple for the monk chat. It was super eye opening and inspiring, we got to know all about the lives of monks and the teachings of Buddha and its history and philosophy. The monk (which is ‘pra’ in Thai) had a great sense of humour and was happy to answer every single on of our questions! We then went on a beautiful tour of the temple, and walked through the graves of the Royal Chiang Mai Family.

We ended the night preparing for our Wednesday cultural exchange and for classes tomorrow! We can’t wait!

-By leaders of the day Adele and Lydia 🙂

Tuesday July 10, 2018

Everyone loved their second day of service! Once again, our students greeted us with warm smiles and never-ending enthusiasm.

Our teaching groups of four of five volunteers tackled eccentric classes up to 49 students! We used feedback from yesterday to make today’s lessons more clear and fun for our loving students. After class, we saw many of the same faces coming to greet us with hugs and smiles during recess. We can’t wait to see what the next few days of teaching will bring as we better ourselves in the classroom.

After school we went straight to Muay Thai. We got to learn about Muay Thai boxing from experiential professionals as well as try it out ourselves! For most of us who were trying something completely new, all of our peers gave it their all! Not to mention the hardcore workout we all got.

Our dinner tonight was a special treat of Western food that gave us all the energy we could need to haggle prices at the night bazaar. We walked around countless tables of handmade crafts and souvenirs as we start to stock up presents for home.

We ended the night with our final prep for the cultural exchange tomorrow. We couldn’t be more excited!

Love, the leaders of the day,

Aine, Jillian, Teerith

Wednesday July 11, 2018

​​​​​​Sawatdii-kha!

Today was day 3 of teaching. The kids are still so excited when we pull up to school, and the opportunity to teach continues to be just as rewarding.

After our service at primary schools in the morning, we made our way to Sacred Heart College, a local, private, all-girls Catholic school in Chiang Mai. During our visit, we got insight into Catholic Thai culture. The students performed traditional Thai dances for us, and in return we performed “The Cup Song” and danced to “Uptown Funk” by Bruno Mars. It was so fun to watch how excited they got by our performances. We made so many new friends and won two out of three friendly basketballs games with the Sacred Heart students.

We finished the day by preparing for Thursday’s classes. We can’t wait!

Thursday July 12, 2018

Today we started the day with breakfast at Tianna. After breakfast we jumped into the vans and headed to school for our last day teaching in the classroom. The games that we prepared, such as charades, songs, and Simon says, left the kids with big smiles on their faces. After teaching, we enjoyed playing football and running with the kids. The kids were excited to have us sign their books and sent us off with endless hugs.

After teaching and returning to Tianna, we enjoyed free time at the pool. When free time was over, we met back to prepare for English Camp. To prepare, we came up with new dances, scavenger hunts, and fun ways to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. We then enjoyed a nice dinner which included pad thai and chicken wings. Evening games we played after dinner included human knot, partner shoe tying, and the human bridge. To close the night we watched a Ted Talk about happiness and reflected on how we view our own happiness. Groups finished polishing off the rest of their English camp materials and are excited for our last day with the children.

-by Nathan and Gracie

Friday July 13, 2018

Hello!

Today we had English Camp. This wasn’t a normal teaching day, it was our last school day. We first started off by doing an ice breaker game. The Wat Phra-non School made a 100+ person conga line, and it was super fun! Meanwhile, Wat Rong Oor School played rock, paper, scissors.

At each school we set up 4 stations. At both schools the kids’ favorite station was making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. They were excited to make and eat them. Watching them smile when they bit into the sandwich was heartwarming knowing that our American food was good to them. We really bonded with our kids even more when we did the stations. Knowing that we could give the kids such an amazing time felt awesome.

Leaving the kids at the end of the day was the hardest part. The kids lined up one-by-one so we could give them individual hugs. There were a lot of tears from the students and from us. It was evident that the kids taught us as much as we taught them.

– Leaders of the Day: Faye, Hudson, Juliette

Saturday July 14, 2018

Today we got to sleep in and enjoyed a late breakfast at 9 AM. After breakfast, we jumped into the vans and drove up windy road to Doi Pui, another Hmong village in the mountains. We got to explore a beautiful botanical garden and then tried a delicious Northen Thailand curry dish, called khao soi (pronounced cow soy), for lunch. After lunch, we walked through a museum and then another botanical garden before a coffee break.

Then, we drove a little down Doi Suthep to Wat Phra Thot, the “Golden Temple on the Mountain,” where we did fortune sticks and were blessed by a monk. For our last activity of the day, we finished our drive down the mountain to a walking street market where we bought food and shopped for a little. Finally, we returned to home based for a brief round of games before bed.

From Leaders of the Day Hannah, Paige and Nicole

Monday July 16, 2018

Today, we explored the ancient art of umbrella-making and we learned first hand about the process. After, we got to experiment through painting umbrellas of our own. When we finished painting, some of up got our water bottles, phone cases and other accessories decorated by local artists. At a shopping mall nearby that umbrella making center, we ate lunch and purchased some popular Thai snacks.

After our delicious lunch, we went to a 3D museum in which we completed a scavenger hunt. We later rewarded ourselves with coffee, smoothies, and other treats. Once we were fully hydrated we split into two groups for our traditional Thai massages. The massages made us feel rejuvenated and ready for tomorrow’s ziplining extravaganza!

-by Chloe and Álvaro

Tuesday July 17, 2018

Our final day before departures kicked off with one of the most anticipated activities of the program: ziplining. After another great breakfast at our home base of Tianna, we piled into our vans and set off for one of the nearby mountains. Once at ziplining, we got suited up and set off on a 35 platform, 2.5 hour adventure in the trees. We zipped across rivers, tackled high ropes courses, and pushed ourselves with guided drops of up to 40 meters!

After ziplining, we headed to an internet cafe for some wifi time before heading back to home base to get ready for our farewell dinner. Our farewell dinner was located at a restaurant just a couple minutes down the road, and still on the Ping River. We listened to the rain as we ate a delicious meal of Thai food and chatted with our friends. We finished the evening back at home base with karaoke and a viewing of our scavenger hunt photos from the 3D museum. Tomorrow is the day we are least looking forward to: leaving Thailand and saying goodbye to our new friends.

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Monday June 18, 2018

After many hours spent at airports and on airplanes, everyone is finally together at Tianna! We will rest and sleep tonight with many Thailand adventures to look forward to tomorrow!

Tuesday June 19, 2018

We had our first ‘taste’ of Chiang Mai today. From a delicious breakfast at Tianna Home Base, to a buffet lunch at the Siripanna restaurant, followed by a shopping trip to a local market to find out about the fresh ingredients for our afternoon Thai cooking class. Lovely food, all the more special as we made it ourselves. In between the eating, we learned about the history of the Lanna region and the Buddhist temples. A great day!

Wednesday June 20, 2018

Our day started by going to an umbrella making center. It was fascinating to see the effort and skill required to make a wooden umbrella. We each got to paint our own umbrella and it was really interesting to see the different GLA student perspectives on creativity and art.

We then had an authentic Thai lunch at Setthasri to prepare for Muay Thai boxing later that day. We didn’t expect that good of a workout, but everyone was really invested in doing their best and trying to learn a new sport. We tried the different fighting styles and learned about the art behind Muay Thai.

On returning to home base we had swim tests in the pool. In the evening we discussed our thoughts on Thailand in our mentor groups.

It was a great third day of the program!

 

 Thursday June 21, 2018

This morning we had Todd, the country co-ordinator, come and hyped us up about teaching the Thai students for the service part of our program. He showed us the ropes, before we started on our lesson plans. After a delicious lunch, we went on a tour of the schools we will be teaching at. The kids were adorable!!

In the afternoon, we headed over to the old Chiang Mai food market to try different foods, including durian and worms!

After a busy day we came back to Home Base and took a dip in the pool. We ended the night with a debate on mega sporting events and the impact their development has on the lives of local children. It was really interesting to hear different viewpoints.

Friday June 22, 2018

Today was our first early morning at Tianna and we awoke with eager anticipation for the many activities of the day.

After our ever delicious breakfast, we began to prepare for the journey to the Hmong Village. After the twisty drive up the mountain in Mae Rim, we arrived at the village and were introduced to two men who have high rankings among the indigenous Hmong. We split into groups for the village and mountain tours and saw many different sights: pigs and chickens, puppies, small farms owned by individuals, and of course the lush forests of Mae Sa Mai. Ending up back together in the main meeting hall of the village, we then enjoyed a craft seminar, local lunch and a musical rendition by one of the Hmong villagers.

In the afternoon, we visited the 3D mural Museum, Art of Paradise, where we were tasked with creating a dramatic video, interacting with the artwork. We ended the day with a super relaxing traditional Thai massage. In the evening, we reflected on the people we had met and what we had learned, challenging some preconceived beliefs.

Saturday June 23, 2018

It is day six of GLA Thailand and it has been quite the adventure. It started off with a race up the 306 steps to the Doi Suthep temple. From the top we could see the entire city of Chiang Mai.

We then went to a nearby Hmong village, where we had some very delicious Khao Soi for lunch. This was followed by a stroll through the beautiful botanical gardens, and the temptations of handcrafted souvenirs from local stall holders.

In the evening we headed to Chiang Mai’s famous ‘walking street market’. Here we were able to look for gifts for family and friends, and also get a taste of authentic Thai street food.

Overall, we had a great day, further immersing ourselves into Thailand’s unique culture. We can’t wait for more activities tomorrow.

Sunday June 24, 2018

Hey everyone!

Today was full of elephants, mud and lots of laughter. We went to an elephant sanctuary, which was an AMAZING experience.

We began by learning about the elephants, their trainers and the work that the sanctuary does to protect them. We got the opportunity to actually feed the elephants! We fed them bananas and sugarcane and were able to observe their behaviour and how dexterous they are with their trunks.

We then hiked down to the camp with the elephants and made medicine for them by hand. We then got into the water and bathed them. This was the best part of the day! It was muddy but totally worth it because it was a once in a lifetime experience. We covered them in mud and then cleaned them off with fresh water (we were covered in mud too).

To end the adventure, we hiked to a beautiful waterfall that was located near the camp.

After a long ride home, we ended the day making our lesson plans for our first day of school tomorrow. Everyone is nervous, but super excited – we can’t wait! This week of service is going to be a challenge, but we can’t wait to see what lies ahead.

 

Monday June 25, 2018

We kicked off the second week of adventures with our first day of service.

Split into two groups, we went to our schools. The children greeted us with a traditional Thai ceremony, making us feel very honored. We all had smiles on our faces throughout the challenges of teaching such young children. They loved to play games like tag with us at their break time.

After school, we went to the Buddhist University for a monk chat. The monk enlightened and taught us about the philosophies of Buddhism. He made connections with us and told us his personal stories. We also explored the university grounds, which was home to a beautiful white temple.

In the late afternoon, we headed back to homebase to prepare our lesson plans for the morning and our performance for the cultural exchange, taking place on Wednesday.

We have had such a lovely time in Thailand so far, the food is amazing and the country is so beautiful.

Tuesday June 26, 2018

We began the day by eating a unique breakfast of rice and various meats. There were some familiar features like eggs and fruit. We then prepared ourselves for the daily adventures of teaching.

The students received the lessons magnificently, and the children were left with bright, shinning faces despite the few bumps in the road. Although there were struggles we quickly learned what it meant to be a good teacher.

After the tiring but joyous day at school, we trekked to a small pottery village. We created our own pots as well as learned how the villagers lived day by day, sustained by the pottery business.

After immersing ourselves in the Thai culture of pottery, our famished group continued on to dinner at the American-styled Duke’s family restaurant. The group demolished the food placed in front of them and burned it all off by walking through one of Thailand’s lively night bazaars.

The night was concluded with preparations for the cultural exchange, which you will read about tomorrow.

Wednesday June 27, 2018

Today was, yet again, another great day in Thailand. We started our early morning, dining by the river with our usual eggs and toast. Then, the third day of teaching English – colors, numbers, the alphabet, occupations, sports and culture – to the cutest kids on the planet. Our favorite part of the school day is recess, when we get to play hopscotch and tag, and share popsicles with the children in the courtyard.

After lunch, we headed off to the local private school where we engaged in a cultural exchange with Thai teens our age. After hearing their versions of Ed Sheeran, Stevie Wonder and an authentic acoustic Thai song, we shared our own performances. This consisted of our own rendition of Cotton-Eye Joe and the Cup Song from Pitch Perfect. Following the ceremony we tasted traditional Thai food such as Papaya Salad and Khanom Bueang, and bonded with the high schoolers (many of whom spoke English better than us).

We returned back to home base for a well deserved two hours of free time and celebrated Mariel’s 18th birthday with cake and perfectly pitched singing. We ended our night discussing leadership with our mentor groups, preparing for our last day of teaching, and planning for Friday’s English Camp.

As we enjoyed another amazing day in Chiang Mai, we find ourselves dreading the end of this life changing adventure.

Thursday June 28, 2018

This morning, we had our last teaching classes at our schools. We had time to play with our closest students after lunch and said our goodbyes to the younger students, who won’t be at the English camp tomorrow. There will be various stations where we teach vocabulary related to different topics, including how to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, dances to American hits like the cha-cha slide and cupid shuffle.

We had lots of time to hang out with friends at Tianna this afternoon. Some of us went swimming and others hung out with friends around the resort. After dinner (which included crinkle fries and garlic bread), we all gathered in the meeting room and had a heart-to-heart activity that helped students relate to each other with stories that have impacted who they are today.

Friday June 29, 2018

Our final day of service was an English Camp, the aim of which was to reinforce the English we had taught over the week.

We have made friends with the children, and so when it was time to say goodbye, it was very emotional. This week of teaching has made a huge impact in all of our lives because of the welcoming nature and eagerness of the children. The experience has touched us all very deeply, and we are thankful for the opportunities we have been given.

Note – due to poor internet connection tonight we are unable to upload photographs.

Sunday July 1, 2018

Bags packed. Time for goodbyes and looking back … buddies; cooking Thai food; eating Thai food; temples; monks; different cultures, new ideas; Muay Thai; ABBA – SOS; elephants; markets; zip line; teaching; the children; Tianna; new friends … happy memories.

Wishing everyone a safe journey home.
GLA Team – Tianna

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Friday July 13, 2018

Hi Parents!

All 27 students have arrived safe and sound in Tanzania! We’re so happy that our group is finally complete, and we are all looking forward to spending the next 3 weeks together in this beautiful country.

With some students arriving yesterday, and the rest today, we haven’t been able to take a FULL group shot yet. But below are some photos from the various arrival groups.

Please note: Tyler Milner, Madison Stock, and Madison Feldman are not pictured, as their flights arrived around midnight Tanzania time, but our staff were ready and waiting at the airport to greet them, and they are now at home base with the rest of the group getting a good night’s rest in preparation for a low-key orientation day tomorrow.

Stay tuned for updates from our 3-week adventure, and we will be sure to update the blog with a full group photo tomorrow!

Sincerely,
GLA Tanzania Program Staff

Friday July 14, 2018

The energetic people of Tanzania are some of the most selfless and heartwarming individuals I have ever met. We have spent hours and hours with the children playing catch, soccer, dancing, and running. The children seem to never run out of energy. Though we haven’t done any service work yet, we have been introduced into the community and already feel like a family.

The majority of today was spent on orientation. In orientation we met the local and international staff, did icebreakers, went over the code of conduct, and to top it off we did the Amazing Race! The Amazing Race was a team activity where we had to go through Tengeru figuring out clues in order to finish. For example, we had to buy nyanyas from someone at the local market (tomatoes), we had to take a selfie with a goat, and we had to go a local school gate and take a team photo. In the end, we all met up and played sports with locals and got to know our peers better. Megan and her mentor group won the Amazing Race and got a prize of hot chocolate and getting to give Lodrick (Local Director) and Debra (International Director) a makeover.

After the Amazing Race, we all got together and talked more in-depth about the code of conduct and general safety. The night ended with a slideshow of our Amazing Race photos and a delicious dinner. Overall we have had great food and a great time!

-by Rohan Kalra

Sunday July 15, 2018

Yesterday was an amazing day because we experienced the honest culture of the fellow people of Tanzania. The students gathered in groups at homebase and met their host families, some had children and some were alone. We all sat and ate lunch together and asked many curious questions including questions about their daily routines. After eating together our individual host families took us back to their homes. The language barrier was a problem for some groups, but thankfully we had translators! Later into conversation, some of us learned their views on religion and politics.

Some had very traditional values and the students were very open to hearing about the opinions and beliefs of their host families. We got to see their homes and had a peek into how they live their lives. It was very different from our homes because many of the host families grew their own vegetables and partook in animal husbandry (raised their own animals). Later in the evening, we had our first mentor groups with Kate, Lolly, and Megan.

This morning we all walked to Patandi Primary School to orient ourselves to our service site and see the children and classrooms. We also met the Principal that has worked there for six months. Then after touring the school we took our bus to Arusha where we shopped for snacks and went to a WiFi café, which everyone appreciated.

Then we went back to homebase on the bus and ate a delicious lunch courteous of Jackie and Joseph. We then went to the open air Tengeru Market to shop for fabrics for students who want a custom garment sewn. We have a seamstress coming in to make the designs the students sketch out for them. After that we went back to home base and had our first Swahili lesson. Then we had dinner and ended with our second mentor group session of the trip.

-Tyler Milner

Tuesday July 17, 2018

Entering the small cream-colored classroom made me feel like I was in a movie. All of the 5th graders were sitting at their wooden desks, dressed in formal white and navy uniforms. Their faces filled with light and energy, even though it was only eight in the morning. I was amazed by the confidence in every single student as they covered adjectives. In fact, their enthusiasm towards learning English inspires me to put forth that same amount of energy towards learning Spanish.

Recess was the time I got to bond one on one with the students. With 27 Americans and 800 children, all the Americans were swarmed with love and affection. Watching the kids bonding together in their small friend groups really exemplified recess when I was in elementary school.

Later that morning, I got to get my hands dirty in the delicate garden. Our first service was divided into two groups of either sanding the inside of a classroom or watering the garden. By watering, I mean flooding the plants. By the end of the gardening, I looked like I rolled around in mud. However, I did not mind the dirty clothing because it felt so lifting and empowering to make a difference within the school. By the end, the children did not want to let go of us.

For the second half of the day, we took a long and intense hike up to a coffee farm. I’m not kidding, I had to stop at least ten times and I used my hand against the rocks to help me power up the hill. Walking through the gates of our destination I heard loud, bold, spirited music, which was being performed by the farmers. They were in bright yellows and oranges dancing in a circle. Step by step we were taught in detail the procedure of making the perfect decaf coffee. It was amazing! I even bought by parents a bag of coffee to make at home.

As the sun started to set, we had a relaxing walk back to home base shouting “jambo” or “mambo” to the locals as we passed. Today was a day jam packed with love, excitement, and learning. I am so excited for a good nights rest, in preparation for another unforgettable day!

-Emma Fuller

Wednesday July 18, 2018

Today we woke up to the iconic rooster yet again, ate a delicious breakfast of eggs and rice puffs, then began our walk to the school. We split up into teaching groups of 4th, 5th, and 6th grade then taught two 40-minute classes. As this was our first day teaching a full class; we’re still getting the hang of it, but we feel that the kids are learning a lot. We then played with the students during recess, which even helps us pick up some Swahili.

Afterward we began the physical service, which consisted of painting the buildings, repairing the broken desks, and tending to the school garden. We then headed back to the homebase for lunch, then met with our teaching groups to plan our next lesson. Also, we all met with the seamstress to make clothing out of the fabric we previously bought. We ended the day with free time to enjoy each other’s company!

-Olivia Phillips and Ella Beard

Thursday July 19, 2018

Today was our first official day of teaching our different grades at Patandi Primary School. It was awesome to be able to fully interact with the kids as well as adjust each lesson to what worked and didn’t in the previous lessons we had observed Tuesday and Wednesday. The kids are adorable and very bright and we love to be around them just as much as they like to hang around us.

We put our second coat of crème colored paint inside one of the classrooms and finished the outside of one the main buildings. We repaired some desks and worked on our sawing and hammering skills. After lunch, we walked to the local high school nearby our homebase and sat down with the students and teacher. The teacher told us about the levels of education in Tanzania and the different grading system.

There’s a lot of testing that the kids have to pass to continue onto high school and university. The teenagers were really fun to talk to because they told us their favorite American movies and musicians. We asked them about what they do on the weekends and what their favorite part about living in Tanzania is. The students thought we were all a lot older and in college. After our time at the high school we drove to a local orphanage. The orphanage cares for 150 kids, ages ranging from around seven months to twelve-years-old who don’t have parents or just a single parent.

Some of them stay in the dorms and go to the preschool built in their orphanage. It was bitter sweet to give them a lot of love but know that we can only do so much for them in the short amount of time we were there. It takes only $10-$20 to sponsor a kid who goes to public school. Some of us talked about how for the amount of money we’ve spent on this trip in trinkets so far we could have sponsored at least five kids. After we left we reminded them that we would see them next week so it was a bit easier to say goodbye. Going to the orphanage put things in perspective for the lives we live and the parents we have that want the best for us.

-Ali Detjen-Creson

Friday July 20, 2018

We woke up to the sound of the neighbor’s cow mooing. The GLA students captured the scent of Joseph, the chef’s famous fried rice balls. Then we walked to school with our friends. We taught the students English, painted the windows and classrooms, and fixed desks. Later that day we had the privilege of talking to a group of people with HIV and we were able to hear about their experience battling the virus. Best part of the day: Joseph’s vegan potatoes.

-by Sydney Anish

P.S. We love you Joseph

Saturday July 21, 2018

Today the staff and students got to visit the Maasai people and experience traditional tribal life. Our day began at 3:30am and we left homebase on our buses at 4am to head to the Maasai boma. After our two-hour journey to meet our friends for the day, we arrived at the village, which is called Mferejini. We first milked goats that belonged to the Maasai and got to hold them. After a light breakfast, we began our walking safari trip.

Everyone was able to see giraffes and one group was able to spot antelopes. When we finished our excursion we had a group conversation with the elder of the Boma, Olengobei, who is married to 11 wives. We were able to ask him questions about his wives and children and the Maasai culture. Following our conversation with Olengobei, we watched the other men in the village start a fire from sticks on donkey dung.

They used the fire to boil water to cook the goat. Following this, we were taught spear throwing and were welcomed into Olengobei’s home. Before we left, we were able to purchase jewelry the Maasai women made. To end our day with the Maasai, we celebrated new friendships with a dance circle and said our goodbyes. When we arrived back at homebase, we ate dinner and had a free night to shower and relax after our exciting and busy day.

-by Madison Feldman

Sunday July 22, 2018

Jambooooo! Today we slept in and it was such a blessing. Half of the group learned batik painting and the others learned to cook local cuisine and prepared lunch for everyone. We made our own batik paintings with the help of the batik artists. Everyone created incredible paintings and they all turned out so well. The batik artists brought other paintings they did themselves to sell, as well as flowy pants for us to buy. The rest of the group cooked a delicious lunch. We cut up vegetables for a salad, made pancakes, a beef stew with cooked bananas as well as watermelon. After everyone ate the lunch we made, we got ready to go to the supermarket to go get WiFi and whatever else we wanted/ needed.

After a few hours in that area, we went to the Maasai market. That was a bit stressful because everyone working there tried to make you go into their kiosk to buy something. But I know that everyone got a lot of really cool and amazing stuff for themselves and their loved ones. There were some super interesting things being sold and it was a great experience. It was also fun to bargain with the vendors at the Maasai market too. When we went back to the home base everyone went to show each other what they bought before a yummy dinner. Afterward, everyone got into their teaching groups to prep for our school day tomorrow and for the rest of the remaining days at the school! Overall today was very fun and I can confidently say that everyone enjoyed it, especially the part that we got to sleep in… well at least I did 🙂 Also mom if you’re reading this- I miss and love you

-Madi Stock

Monday July 23, 2018

Today was phenomenal. We danced, laughed, turned up, connected, and were educated. We were up early to go to the school. We taught the students our lessons for the day and then did our physical labor, which included breaking concrete floors and painting the rest of a classroom and a play structure. We have a few more days left with the kids so we’re trying to appreciate our time with them as much as possible.

When we returned to home base, we switched groups for the batik and cooking class. We cooked and also decorated for dinner for our mentor Kate because it was her birthday. Before dinner, some of us went for a walk and visited the river we have nearby. Everybody had a blast painting, cooking, and getting ready for the celebration!

As we ate dinner we sang happy birthday to Kate about 10 times. We ate cake, good fresh food, and at the end we had the best party ever! We danced and jumped and sang. This day was one of the best days of the trip so far. Until tomorrow!

-Sonic Fleming and Ariana Morales

Tuesday July 24, 2018

Today started off as weekdays usually do with going to school in the morning. Our classes have been progressing very well, and it’s so rewarding to see the kids getting excited when they understand a concept. For service, some of us dug holes to plant trees and others worked on breaking the floor of a classroom with axes and hammers. Despite the blisters, everyone maintained positive attitudes and we’re looking forward to finishing our work for the students.

In the afternoon, we listened to a heavy discussion on female genital mutilation with some speakers from an advocacy group. Although it was very disturbing, it was an important talk that led to further discussion on our previous interactions with the Maasai people in our mentor groups. We are all very sad that there is only one week left of this trip, but there is still so much more to come!

-Anika Phuvasate

Wednesday July 25, 2018

Hey guys! Lets splash into a pool of possibilities! Today, we went to go hike at Kilimanjaro. The day started out extra early with a pit stop at Moshi to buy “schnacks”. The ride from homebase to Mount Kili is approximately 3 hours long. Yikes! Before starting the hike we visited a cute, little gift shop near the base of the mountain. After that, we walked down to a beautiful, remote waterfall. Moving on, we hiked up to a large pool of water.

There, we ate our home made lunches (shout to Joseph and the kitchen team!!!) and took a freezing dip in the pool! #articplunge After drying up, we made it up t the official starting point for the Kili National Park. There, we learned some history of the mountain and its tiring trails. We all learned that it takes 6 days to make it to the top of the mountain! WOOAAHHH! On the bus ride back, the group stopped at a large gift store. Finally, we made it back safely to homebase and were welcomed home to our kitchen staff preparing us dinner. What an amazing adventure!

-Jonah Harris and Reena Agarwal

Friday July 27, 2018

Hi parents! Friday was our last day at Ptandi Primary School. We started the day of by teaching our final lessons to the students. It was touching to think back on all the progress they had made in the last two weeks. Then we had a farewell assembly with all the students where we sang songs, listened to students’ appreciations, and said our final goodbyes. Afterwards, some of us stayed to mix concrete and paint while others headed back to home base. Once we had all return we had another fantastic lunch prepared by our the famous Joseph. A short while later, we headed over to the Serena Hotel where many of us ordered ice cream, cake, fries, and anything else we had been craving. While we were there, we listened to Mama Simba tell us her life story. Mama Simba is the founder of Experience Tanzania. It was so inspiring to hear the story of how she pursued her education and how her values have changed over the course of her life. After heading back to home base, we celebrated Hailey’s birthday! We at two cakes and had a small dance party led by DJ Jonathan. It was a pretty eventful day! We’re so grateful to have been welcomed by Ptandi and will miss the students greatly! Much love to our families back home, especially my parents. And ya, that’s about it.

-Howie

Saturday July 28, 2018

Today we were blessed to sleep in with a late breakfast at 9:30. Shortly after we took a quick walk to Duluti Lake, this absolutely beautiful location, we learned and inquired about the fascinating history of Tanzania. After exploring for a bit, we separated into our mentor groups. We drew the river of our lives and discussed how our sojourn to Tanzania was going so far. We returned to home base for a delicious lunch of egg and fries omelette. Then after lunch we set off to the orphanage. There we had a blast playing with the sweet and wonderful children. Once we finished at the orphanage we came home for yet another scrumptious meal. After dinner we had ice cream and movie night. After the film we were all collectively exhausted and marched straight to bed. That brought the end of a spectacular day!

-Remi Chester-

Tuesday July 31, 2018

Lions and rhinos and wildebeests, oh my! After a 4:30am wakeup and breakfast at the Twiga lodge, we packed into the safari jeeps for our second day of safari. Although every jeep had their own experience, every group saw the same amazing animals and scenery that the African savannah provides. From fearless baboons to sleepless lions, today will never be forgotten. Once we got back to homebase we found a beautiful decorated dining room with candles and farewell artwork by the amazing Jonathan. At 7 we gathered around in our final chakula circle.

Dinner was served with love from the local cooking staff and shared with laughs and smiles. We said our goodbyes to Mama Simba and Vinny and prepared for our flights tomorrow afternoon. The tailor arrived and we all received our customs bags, outfits, and other accessories. Everyone was more than happy to strut their new designs in a GLA Tanzanian fashion show. Tomorrow will be full of many see you laters, I think we can all agree that saying goodbye to Tanzania will be a difficult one.

-Grace Clark

Wednesday July 1, 2018

When we first arrived to Tanzania seven weeks ago vibrant green corn stalks greeted us, their tops waving like hands as we drove from Kilimanjaro Airport to the GLA Arusha homebase. Over the next few weeks, we would be greeted with a warm karibu sana, or very welcome, by many more who would soon become family. First by the homebase staff, who work from the wee hours of the morning to prepare delicious meals, the students at Patandi who greeted us with “good morning teachers!”, and the Maasai at Mferejini village who taught us to milk goats as the first rays of sun welcomed the day. From the beginning, Uweza, the Tanzania Country Director, and the local staff told us we were family and that she loved us.

With each day our bonds grew and our love deepened as we learned more about each other. Many of us realizing that our commonalities far outweighed our differences. Our world views expanded by seeing the world through the eyes of resilient women with HIV diagnosis, exuberant school children, and educators spreading awareness about FGM.

We expressed our gratitude for the lessons with engaging English lessons, covering ourselves in paint splatters, planting trees and veggies, and replacing the concrete floor of an entire classroom.
We climbed mountains inside and out. Reaching the gates of the Marangu entrance to Kilimanjaro and summitting Coffee Mountain to harvest, prepare, and taste our own brew. We overcame fears of acceptance, speaking our voice, trying new things, and making new friends. Our journey culminated in a two-day safari, where we observed the majesty of the animal kingdom. We came to recognize the inside and outside beauty of the land, animals, people, and stories of this magical place.
We are all forever changed.

This time after hugs and tears we headed back to Kilimanjaro Airport. For now our time here has come to an end, the stalks of corn have been harvested, mountains climbed and lessons learned, and the dry blades wave us farewell. But as Uweza reminded us, we are all forever family, our story is just beginning and we are always karibu sana.