Time Capsule Letter – October 2016

I hope this letter finds you in good health mentally and physically. Have you processed this summer and the amazing experience we had with the elephants? Is your elephant rash healed? I am just beginning to reflect on the experiences of our trip, and I am very thankful to have shared such a unique experience with all of you.

We talked a lot about community in this program. Each of you contributed a special asset that helped create this community-whether it be you enthusiasm, intelligence, athletic ability, humor, illness, or crabbiness! We were all fortunate to meet one another and create a community for a short time. Always know that you can reach out to this community and share you ideas, thoughts, dreams, and struggles. If I had to describe this group in one word, it would be “kind”. You were all very accepting, open, and extremely kind to one another, which was great to see.

We have many things to be grateful for. Cheers to the amazing staff at Thai Elephant Home that took care of all of us by providing delicious food, keeping us safe around elephants, and showing us a window into their world. The true stars of the trip were, of course, the elephants. They are such interesting animals- cute, yet gross. Strong & dangerous, yet well trained and accepting of us Elephants are endangered. They need people to care about and support their plight. Please never forget that, and think of them often. We saw and discussed lot of complex things on this trip, and at times it can be frustrating and feel hopeless. Just know it is not. You can make a difference now and in the future. Harness you power and get out there to make the world better. Don’t wait for someone else to take action- you must do it.

Sending love to you all,

Laura

Memories:

The amazing misty view every morning

Elephant Pants

Epic Bananagram battles

Mitch’s PMA mentality

Critically thinking about/discussing elephants

Coconut ice cream at the farewell dinner!

Another Time Capsule Letter – October 2016

Sabai di mai?,

was for me. It was a pretty remarkable and unusual experience that we shared this summer. Not many people know what it’s like to stand on a mountain in Northern Thailand and hunt for bugs while listening to the sounds of elephant bells clonking in the distance or understand how much the bellows of pachyderms sound like ferocious dinosaurs roaming the Mae Tang Valley. Not many people get to examine the complexity of environmental stewardship from such a unique and close up perspective. I hope that the lessons you learned about yourself and the world help inform the next adventures in your lives. Don’t forget to keep exploring, embracing the discomforts of personal growth, and using your critical thinking. It was a pleasure being your mentor this summer and I wish you guys all the best!

Sawadee Khrop!

            Sam

Summer Blog Posts

8/9/2016

Today we woke up and went downstairs in the Imm hotel to get breakfast. It was buffet style with foods like rice, fried eggs, pineapple, cereal, mini muffins, and chicken or pork sausages. At 8 am we had orientation so after breakfast we went to the presentation room. We started with a chow circle which is when we stand around in a circle and hook arms. We played a few name games and then sat down to start orientation.

We went over Thai culture and language where we learned the dos and fonts of Thailand and also how to wai (the standard greeting in Thailand). After orientation we went downstairs and met up before heading out to lunch at a different hotel. The food was very interesting and Delia tried curry blood soup with pork.

After lunch, we traveled to two Buddhist wats (temples). We took off our shoes before entering and kneeled in front of the Buddha structures. Each of the temples had intricate decorations with lots of color. We then went to the elephant parade which is a elephant conservation organization. There were elephant sculptures painted by artists that they sell and give some of the profit to elephant conservation.

Each of us painted small ceramic elephants to take home. After the elephant parade, we headed to the large Chiang Mai mall where we ate dinner at the food court. Most of us ate pad Thai, fried rice, or crepes (not Thai food but they were good). We walked around the mall for a little exploring the different stores on each of the 4 levels.

After we arrived back at the hotel, we broke off into groups to begin planning for our school exchange tomorrow! We will be presenting aspects of American teenager culture and they will share aspects of a Thai teenager’s life. The exchange will take place tomorrow afternoon.

-Danielle H.

August 13

So our morning started off with service for the elephants.  We cleaned the elephants dung and and swept it’s enclosure. We then got breakfast and breakfast was great. Afterwards we started our separate community service projects. One group went to go cut grass to feed the elephants with while the other went to go build dams to stop soil erosion. After the group projects we had some break time and proceeded to have a great lunch.  We then started the elephant Olympic Games. Six teams competed for ice cream and honor. We competed in a series of six games to see who is to see which team is the most physically, mentally, and architecturally adept.

After a fierce competition team Shia LaBeouf came out with a win. After some grueling competitions we had some break time to cool down and then we went to go watch the elephants. We walked the elephants down to the river where we then proceeded to splash water on them and get debris off of their skin. After taking showers to wash the river water off we then proceeded to our mentor groups where we were then reflected on what happened that day. Then we had a delicious dinner consisting of spring rolls, curry, rice and chicken. After dinner all the kids had their own general free time until 9 o’clock where we all went to sleep.
-Khyber and Mitch

August 14

The halfway marker of the trip!! A bittersweet moment for most of us here because as much as we miss home and our families, we don’t want to leave the family we have created here.

Today after cleaning our elephants, our service project group went down to see the two other elephant camps in the village. We all wrote down five good things and five bad things about each camp. This may seem like a small task, but it was challenging. We all found it very difficult to see these two anthropomorphic camps; treating the elephants more like an attraction or ride than a living creature. We were lucky enough to have Dr. Nick Kronilopogous teach all of us about the pros and cons of elephant tourism and how our generation can make elephant tourism better for the animals.

At Thai elephant home, the elephants never wear the heavy chairs that the elephants at the other camps have to wear. Those chairs are only for the comfort of humans since elephants are not supposed to carry more than 441 pounds on their backs. As much as this is a downside to the two other camps, it is clear that most of the mahouts truly care for their elephants and want to protect this amazing species that represents their culture. And probably one of the most delicious parts of today was the desserts we got after the presentation! As group leaders of the day me and Savannah decided how we should split up all the sweets so everyone could have a variety of snacks and ended up splitting everything in half. Today was a major day of bonding as a family at the Thai elephant home. From playing cards, to mentor group and hula hooping, all of us are becoming closer and growing together as people.

-Kerry

August 15

Today, after waking up early to care for our elephants as always, we ate a hearty meal and headed off to our service groups.

The grass cutting group moved on to grass planting, and we spent the morning putting old plant stalks in the ground and covering them with mud. We got the whole field done really fast and got really muddy doing it, and we had a ton of fun when it started raining playing in the mud!

After taking the truck back to camp, we showered off and ate lunch while we played games. After we ate, we wrote thank you cards to our mahouts and we got Thai massages from women in the village.

The dam building group took a trip to visit the Thai Elephant Home Nursery, where we spent the day hiking and playing with baby elephants. We started out by meeting the babies and feeding them sugar cane and longan. Then we trekked up into the surrounding jungle with the baby elephants, their moms, and their mahouts, so that they could have some time to romp around. While we were in the jungle, it began to rain which was very refreshing and fun for both ourselves and the elephants!

After the hike, the elephants had some time to rest while we ate lunch and played some games. Once we finished eating, we went into the river with the baby elephants to wash them off, since they were very muddy from our rainy nature hike! We had a great time playing with the elephants in the rive and splashing each other with buckets of water.

The groups then got together again to go bathe the elephants in the river. As always, the mahouts splashed us as much as they could while we tried to defend ourselves. We trekked back up to camp, where we showered off and regrouped for an all student discussion group before eating dinner and tucking in for a good nights rest.

-Aria and Delia

August 18th

Today, our team visited the grass planting fields. It was a 10 minute drive in the back of a truck filled with pre-sprouted stalks and lots of cute little snails. Once we arrived (9 am) we began loading the grass stalks off of the truck and into the heavily flooded field.

After about 5 minutes all of us abandoned our hope to preserve the cleanliness of our tennis shoes and stomped around in the mud with no worries. We completed 3 fields within two hours. On our way back we stopped to buy some refreshments (ice cream and tea!), where we received some strange looks for our mud covered bodies. At the elephant home our showers and lunch awaited us.

After our much deserved rice, tofu and banana spring roles, we prepared for our THAI MASSAGES! Not to brag, but it was quite outstanding.

The rest of our day was regularly scheduled; elephant washing in the river, group activities, dinner and a movie. It was the end to yet another memorable day.

-Codi Gambino

Time Capsule Letter – October 2016

Hello Mini Mahouts,

I hope this letter finds you in good health mentally and physically. Have you processed this summer and the amazing experience we had with the elephants? Is your elephant rash healed? I am just beginning to reflect on the experiences of our trip, and I am very thankful to have shared such a unique experience with all of you.

We talked a lot about community in this program. Each of you contributed a special asset that helped create this community-whether it be you enthusiasm, intelligence, athletic ability, humor, illness, or crabbiness! We were all fortunate to meet one another and create a community for a short time. Always know that you can reach out to this community and share you ideas, thoughts, dreams, and struggles.

We have many things to be grateful for. Cheers to the amazing staff at Thai Elephant Home that took care of all of us by providing delicious food, keeping us safe around elephants, and showing us a window into their world. The true stars of the trip were, of course, the elephants. They are such interesting animals- cute, yet gross. Strong & dangerous, yet well trained and accepting of us Elephants are endangered. They need people to care about and support their plight. Please never forget that, and think of them often. We saw and discussed lot of complex things on this trip, and at times it can be frustrating and feel hopeless. Just know it is not. You can make a difference now and in the future. Harness you power and get out there to make the world better.

Sending love to you all,

Laura

Memories:

Students thinking the mangosteens were a tray of brownies

Hula hooping skills

The amazing misty view every morning

Phucome’s zit

Critically thinking about/discussing elephants

Talent show!

Another Time Capsule Letter – October 2016

Sabai di mai?,

was for me. It was a pretty remarkable and unusual experience that we shared this summer. Not many people know what it’s like to stand on a mountain in Northern Thailand and hunt for bugs while listening to the sounds of elephant bells clonking in the distance or understand how much the bellows of pachyderms sound like ferocious dinosaurs roaming the Mae Tang Valley. Not many people get to examine the complexity of environmental stewardship from such a unique and close up perspective. I hope that the lessons you learned about yourself and the world help inform the next adventures in your lives. Don’t forget to keep exploring, embracing the discomforts of personal growth, and using your critical thinking. It was a pleasure being your mentor this summer and I wish you guys all the best!

Sawadee Khrop!

            Sam

Summer Blog Posts

Day 2

The GLA staff started our morning by teaching us about the Thai culture and language. We learned the basics like hello, thank you, excuse me, sorry, asking for names, and numbers. We exercised our new knowledge by visiting temples and shopping at a local market. The temples were so beautiful and we even got the chance to talk to a monk who spoke English. There were so many wax statues of ancient monks and it took us a while to figure out if they were real or not. Elephants are a huge part of the Thai culture and that is shown by the number of statues of them in temples and around the city.

Then, we ventured to the markets which are so different from the US. First of all, thai markets are so much cheaper. 35 bahts equals about one dollar and one could buy a pair of pants for 100 bahts. Food such as: sushi, fried fish, fruit juices, squid, and vegetables can be found in the market along with handmade crafts and jewelry.

We had an adventurous day of trying new foods and bonding with other students.

-Anna-Kate and Emily

Day 3

Today was another amazing day in Thailand! Our group traveled to an elephant hospital, the first ever created in Thailand, and got to meet two very famous elephants using prosthetic legs. Listening to their stories and actually getting to be within ten feet of them was something I and most of our group has ever experienced before. After interacting with the elephants in the hospital we traveled around the corner to a museum where we watched movie about the treatment of elephants in Thailand and got to walk around the museum which was full of very interesting facts about elephants. I learned that they are pregnant for two whole years, they can run up to 30 mph and that they really have horrible eye sight and use their trunks to get around because their sense of smell is amazing! After learning as much as we could about the elephants we ate another authentic Thai meal and it was amazing yet again! Next came the part we were probably all the most excited for! We got to get up close and personal with several elephants! We got to touch them and feed them and watch them bathe themselves. For many of us it was the first time every touching or coming this close to an elephant. It was a very emotional experience for almost all of us. These animals and truly amazing and to be able to touch them and connect with them is something that can not be described is words. Everyone should get the opportunity to do this!

We then got to go watch the elephants perform their tricks for us such as walking on logs, pushing them with their heads, pulling up a flag on a flag pole, throwing balls into a bucket, and painting pictures! These are huge creatures performing all of these tricks and it was amazing to watch! After thw show we walked to the nursery part of the conservation center. There was a baby elephant with his step mom! Let me just say this step mom was massive, like all elephants are big but she was huge. She kept putting her trunk in our faces and grabbing our hands! Then came along the little baby elephant who was climbing the fence desperately try to get closer to us. He had so much energy and loved throwing dirt on his head. Unfortunately after the nursery it was time to leave so we saod good bye to the elephants and traveled all the way back to our hotel. For dinner we walked to a little restaurant and all ate different versions of pad thai. These little authentic restaurants are so fascinating and make such good food. After dinner we went home and finalized our plans for our presentation for the highschool kids during our school exchange! Today was a full day of excitement and adventure! For many of us it was our very first encounters with elephants which made it a very emotional day as well. As the rest of the week goes by there will be hundreds of more memories but today was definitely a good one!

-Ashley

June 22

Today we went to Chiang Mai Christian School. As the vans pulled in the lot and we exited the bus, we could seek out Thai students poking their heads around corners, over walls, and through windows with excitement to meet us. We entered the school, taking off our shoes and were greeted with around 30 high school students and flower necklaces. They presented us with their principal and two traditional dancers. After, we presented to them about American High School and dances for them. They thought the dance was hilarious, and we thought it was rather funny that we were doing it for them. We were granted some time for a break and snacks when we got to meet and talk with them. There was a very strong mutual interest in each other which i think both groups were able to recognize. The students taught us how to make paper jellyfish, which were described by the Thai students as “suoy” – beautiful. They taught us some words and we taught them some recent cultural movements like selfies, the dab, and hand gestures. We were provided with a traditional Thai soup for lunch; very spicy! We had some time to go out to the courtyard and play basketball and soccer. There were so many kids outside that it was hard to keep track of them, but we all had so much fun! We split the teams to make Team America vs. Team Thailand. Even though Team America got beat decisively, everyone on the sidelines cheered for both teams. We parted ways and say goodbyes, sorry to see each other go. The weather was very hot and humid, especially around the school, so luckily we got to go back to the hotel with time to shower. We went to a place called “Elephant Parade.” Here you paint small porcelain elephants. A part of the money raised is donated to elephant conservation efforts. They work with the elephant hospital that we went to yesterday.
Tomorow we go the to Thai Elephant Home, our home for the next week. I’m so excited.

June 24

GLA students woke up at 5:30 to get ready for their morning taking care of the elephants. At 6:00, students walked down the hill to see the elephants. They had to scoop the elephants poop, then wash the elephants with the hose and finally feed the elephants corn and other grasses. Students ate breakfast and started their service work for the day. Half of the group worked at building a dam to stop the water from eroding the hillside and to conserve the water. The other half of the group worked at cutting grass for food for the elephants. Students would use machetes to chop down grass then put them into bundles so they were easier to transport. After service, students are lunch and then had a few hours of mentor groups. During this time students watched a Ted talk on single stories and the power of how only hearing a part of a story can change a person’s perspective of another. Students shared their stories so that we could learn more about each other.
After mentor groups, students took the elephants to the river to be bathed. Students had the option to ride the elephants or just walk alongside them. When students returned they enjoyed a few hours of free time until they had dinner. Students hung around the community area by playing guitar and listening to the rain until it was time for bed.

June 26

Today I woke up in a room with 3 new friends at 5:30am and pushed snooze as the other girls and I groaned in response to the early hour. The sun wasn’t out yet and we were exhausted from a week full of adventure. Five minutes later the alarm went off again and we prepared for another great day.

It was one of those remarkable days where the sun never went away and there were rainbows in the sky when you rode your elephant to the river. The day started with the usual poop scooping and elephant bathing, followed by breakfast which consisted of delicious sugary cereals, toast, and salad. After our morning routine, we divided into our two groups and I went to plant grass with Group A. We were all in agreement that after two days of ruthlessly hacking grass down with machetes, it felt good to give back and make our mark on the land in a positive way.

Post completing our community service many of us got massages from local Thai women at Home Base. At around 4:00pm the two groups merged once again for the daily walk to the river to bathe the elephants. Some of the elephants were unable to join the group, but we all worked together and found everyone an elephant to ride, if one so desired. I hopped on (literally) Phu-come, the larger and feistier ellie with fellow student Anna Kate and we rode P-c down to the river for a cold bath in the river. The bumpy walk to the river was filled with singing and story sharing with our mahouts and a distant rainbow appeared over the mountains. A Kodak moment for a picture perfect kind of day.

Exhausted from community service, the sun, and killing mosquitos with our electric fly starters, we all relaxed before dinner and had brownies generously supplied by the local GLA coordinator. A plethora of veggies and rice was served for dinner along with curry. Later in the night the students divided into mentor groups and discussed goals we had set and how we were achieving them and what we could do to fully accomplish what set out to do when we came to this side of the world. All of us students have different reasons for being here and different goals and ideas about what will come of this trip but each student had truly reflected on their experiences and how they have effected them.

9:30pm came sooner than any of us wanted but we all headed to bed and easily fell asleep, knowing another busy day in this terraqueous country awaits.

July 2

Today, at the Thai Elephant Home, GLA had a fantastic day of planing grass, building a damn, and participating in the Thai Elephant Olympics.

We started the day by waking up at 5:30, and from there we cleaned and fed the elephants. After breakfast our volunteer groups split and went to their working stations. Group B, the group I was in, left for 3 hours to plant grass for the elephants to eat. After a successful day of planting we were rewarded with ice cream. Next 4 teams competed in the first ever Elephant Olympics. Unfortunately, the championship was claimed by the blue team were they were prized with ice cream. Next we did our daily elephant washing down by the river. Finally we ended the night with a half our of bug hunting and star gazing.

-Luke

Time Capsule Letter – October 2016

Dear Alumni of GLA Elephant Village Initiative,

As I sit here looking through pictures and notes from you all from this summer, I am again amazed how quickly time passes, and how much I miss our little herd.  This past summer was one of amazing memories, hard work, and friendships that I hope will last a lifetime.  I hope that reading this letter will provide you all with an opportunity to reminisce on the experience that we had with the amazing elephants of Thai Elephant Home, and that you don’t forget the things you have seen, the opinions you have heard, and the experiences you have lived this summer.

The community we created on this trip was truly special.  The bonds that you made with one another, the staff at Thai Elephant home, and the elephants are some of the strongest I have seen.  I hope that you don’t forget that the community we created is not restricted to the confines of Thailand and that you all take this letter as an opportunity to reach out to friends that you have not spoken to or seen.  Remember:  we are a support network that will be there to support you in all you do.  Be kind to one another and yourselves.

In all honestly, the true stars of our trip were the elephants.  I still remember the sound of their bells gently ringing as they walked through the jungle and down to the river with heavy-footed grace, and the sounds of their dinosaur like grumblings during morning chores.  They are majestic, dirty, beautiful, and endangered creatures that need help.  Please remember to think critically about their welfare, and do not become overwhelmed by the complexity of elephant conservation here in Thailand.  Always remember that you can make a difference!  Talk to a friend, raise money, or even come back to Thailand to help and know that you have one another to make your conservation goals possible.  Elephants are amazing, and I think it would be a shame to see the world, and especially Thailand, without them.

Thank-you all for making this past summer unforgettable.  I am lucky to have met you all and I hope that all is well!  Don’t forget to keep me updated on your amazing, exciting and fun lives!  In closing, I’ve made a short list of my favorite moments from the summer.  I am sure I am forgetting many, but here are the ones I do remember.

Special Memories

• Moge stealing food from Jason while he tried to feed Ellie
• Rafting! “No flip, no fun!”
• The elephant games! ☺
• Jenny showing off her amazing dance moves in the mud pit
• The talent show, and Sams’ Kung-Fu abilities
• Trunk juice from the elephants (Ewwww☺)
• Hot Chocolate Sammy G style
• The undeniable cuteness of the puppies at the Nursery and Obama and Nemar
• Dumbo the wild child at the Nursery

Peace, and nothing but love,

♥Emma

Another Time Capsule Letter – October 2016

Sabai di mai?,

was for me. It was a pretty remarkable and unusual experience that we shared this summer. Not many people know what it’s like to stand on a mountain in Northern Thailand and hunt for bugs while listening to the sounds of elephant bells clonking in the distance or understand how much the bellows of pachyderms sound like ferocious dinosaurs roaming the Mae Tang Valley. Not many people get to examine the complexity of environmental stewardship from such a unique and close up perspective. I hope that the lessons you learned about yourself and the world help inform the next adventures in your lives. Don’t forget to keep exploring, embracing the discomforts of personal growth, and using your critical thinking. It was a pleasure being your mentor this summer and I wish you guys all the best!

Sawadee Khrop!

            Sam

Summer Blog Posts

Day 1

After having a long and exhausting day of travel, today was mainly for aclimating ourselves to the Thai culture and recovering from jet lag. In the morning we had orientation and discussed rules and expectations and practiced our Thai. For lunch, we ate at a delicious buffet where we were able to sample all sorts of new foods. Following lunch, we visited two beautiful temples and received a blessing from a monk. Later on, we returned to the hotel and prepared our presentation for the school exchange. The mentors brought us fried rice for dinner and we were able to get to bed early.

July 9, 2016 – Chiang Mai, Thailand

Waking up in Chiang Mai, Thailand is no doubt a privilege. Yet us, the GLA team were downright spoiled in the opportunity that had been so graciously presented. Though we all had to wake up fairly early (7:00), the mood was energizing and up-beat. We pushed through an hour long drive to a privately run elephant hospital called Friends of the Asian Elephant (FAE), where the most famous elephant in the world resided. Motala was found with a severed leg after barely surviving a land mine blast. She was treated by a record number of surgeons, and survived the tragedy. She now is the face of elephant conservation in Thailand and quite possibly the world. The group toured the hospital and met a few more permanent residents before driving to a government operated elephant ‘sanctuary,’ where the residing elephants performed tricks such as walking across a skinny log and painting a picture. In awe, many of the group members (including myself) purchased the stunning self portrait, landscape and flower paintings. After returning home and having a traditional Pad Thai dinner, we all met in the ‘bean bag room’ for discussion and an educational but disturbing documentary about the use of elephants in modern society, and how the have been and most likely still are being abused and mistreated. We ended the night on a happy note by announcing roommates and elephant assignments for the following day at the Thai Elephant Home.

-Taylor

Day 4 – Day 1 of Elephant Boot Camp

We woke up on Saturday excited to go to Thai Elephant Home. Breakfast was at 7:30am and we hopped on the bus at 8:00am for hour hour and a half bus ride! We greeted at the elephant home by the elephants and their mahoots; then we quickly got changed for our hike.

Although the hike up the mountain was rough, the view from the mud pit was worth it. We ate lunch just above the mud pit then we treated to spa day with the elephants. Everyone got mud masks and jumped into the pit with the elephants. After we smothered the elephants in mud we traveled back down to the river so we could all wash off the mud and spend quality time with our elephants. We loved getting pulled by their trunks and having them spray water at us.

After the extreme amount of fun with the elephants with our mahoots it was time to say goodnight and have dinner. Rice and chicken was delicious and everyone loved spending quality time with one another during and after dinner. After a long day we all went to bed excited to start our service project the next day!

-Sammy Gates and Erin O’Connor

July 13 2016

The day began with our morning chores. After waking up at 5:30, we assist our mahouts in cleaning and feeding each of our elephants. Then at 9 O’clock we begin our service work. Today group A went and built a dam on a hill near our home base. The dam was located at the sixth dam location and was properly named, Dam Sixey. Group B began their first day of grass cutting which is used to feed the elephants. Due to the lack of rain that day, service was very hot but both groups were able to come together and complete their days work.

After eating lunch at noon, it was time to begin the elephant Olympics. With two people not feeling well, there were 20 people who were able to participate which meant their would be 5 teams of 4. Over the two hour period, the teams participated in games that challenged our mental,physical, and artistic abilities. Throughout the duration of the games all teams stayed positive and supportive of one another. In the end, the red team/Team Diablo (Sam Awe, Haley Koenig, Erin O’Connor, and Jason Kehoe) came out on top. They were rewarded with ice cream and bragging rights. Immediately after, we went down and played soccer with the mahouts. It was a blast!

At 4 O’Clock we rode down to the river on our elephants. The trek is about 25-30 minutes and the views are fantastic. When we reach the river, most students swim and play with the elephants in the water. The mahouts love to splash and play with us all. The river is always a highlight of our day. After returning back to home base we showered and met for our mentor groups. At 7 O’clock we ate dinner which is always yummy Thai food made by local thai women. The night ended with free time, which some people spent journaling, watching Cheaper By The Dozen, or sleeping.

We are all having a great time here in Thailand, but we cannot wait to see you all soon!

Jason Kehoe and Morgan Lesniewski

Time Capsule Letter – October 2016

A great big hello to Session 3 of Thailand: Cultural Kaleidoscope, Tianna Home Base, we hope you are all doing well!!! It is a little crazy to realize how quickly time has passed since we were fortunate enough to spend an incredibly memorable two weeks together in Chiang Mai. This ‘Time Capsule Letter’ is a great way to look back at the people we met, the places we saw, and the experiences we shared while in Thailand. Hopefully all of you are able to think back to your time walking through one of the many temples we visited, or one of the classes you taught at Sai Moon School or Don Pung School, or the relationships you built with the local community, the Thai school children, and each other, and you are able to smile, laugh, and appreciate what a unique opportunity we all shared together.

As the third and final group of the summer, we were looking forward to an energetic group that would allow us to finish the summer on a high note, and you guys did not disappoint! Despite all the chaotic schedule changes and flight delays that accompanied the Hong Kong typhoon, everyone came together to welcome the late arrivals and make the most of the time we did have during our time in Chiang Mai. We were incredibly fortunate to have such an interesting group of people that supported each other and got along so well, and we were impressed by how well everyone managed to overcome the challenges that came with such crazy start to our program. Your group in particular seemed to click from Day 1 (even if ‘Day 1’ for you was actually ‘Day 2’ or ‘Day 3’!) and it was amazing to see how the group interacted over the course of the two weeks together. You guys were all awesome and it made the experience so much more rewarding to have been able to share it with so many other great people. That’s not to say everything was wonderful all day, every day. There were mosquitos (lots of them); there were upset stomachs and other various illnesses; there were early mornings and late nights; there were schedule changes and long van rides and nightly curfew checks. But that’s all part of what makes traveling to new countries and experiencing new cultures such a rewarding experience: you never know exactly what you will get. It’s all about making the most of those experiences while you are there, and all of you are the ones that made that happen.

GLA programs can be exciting, a little overwhelming, and a whole lot of fun, but one thing GLA hopes to stress is how the experiences you have while in Thailand, Costa Rica, India, or wherever else you may travel with GLA can be an opportunity to learn about a new culture, become more informed about how interconnected the world has become, and reflect on ways you can make a positive impact on the world around you. In addition to being an opportunity to travel and learn about what life is like in a different place and culture, a GLA trip can also be a valuable opportunity to grow and learn more about yourself, about your strengths and values, and about what motivates you to be the best person you can be. So as you make your way through your high school classes, or as you settle in to your new surroundings on a college campus, or wherever life takes you this fall, winter, and beyond, remember to think back to your experiences and the relationships you built last summer in Chiang Mai, to cherish them, and to use them as a part of what makes each of you unique. And then go out there and keep being awesome!

Before we wrap this up, here are a few of our favorite memories from Session 3:

The crazy first few days with staggered arrivals thanks to a typhoon in Hong Kong
Funny faces during fish foot massages
The third “first” day when we finally all came together in our Tianna home base during our candle-lit ‘String Welcome Ceremony’
P’ Aey’s inspirational words of wisdom: “We are all here together for a reason”
Riley kicking butt at Muay Thai
Eating bamboo silk worms. Eating chicken Nam Tok (blood mold). Eating Chiang Mai spicy sausage. Eating durian on DAY 1! Basically, eating our way through Thailand.
Late nights dancing in the meeting room
Helen’s voice
Frankie’s huge shirts
Rose’s view of the world
Maya getting stepped on by an elephant
Ryan’s van listening to Jubel every day for 3 weeks
‘Hit the quan’ and successfully pulling off all of the dances at the cultural exchange
The wedding game during the cultural exchange
Paul getting lots of love from all the Thai girls and boys at the cultural exchange
Placing fragments of gold on the buddha statue to represent generosity; actions that simply cultivate joy, respect, and gain religious/spiritual merit
The “river crew” getting infiltrated by Ryan
Sophie’s amazing henna abilities
Paul’s henna tattoo. Paul getting his nails filed. Paul championing his actions while being the one male in a group of 34!
Abbie killing it at the chicken dance
Multiple attempts to explain and play the ‘wedding game’ to the Thai elementary students
The incredible dancing of the little Thai student, Kitima, at Sai Moon School!
Kaye, Lundon and crew sinking Ryan’s hat to the bottom of the pool
Everyone’s amazing teaching skills! You guys all rocked it!!!

Finally, from all of us that had the pleasure of meeting you this past summer – P’ Aey, Orn, Prae, Ton, Kaitlyn, Ryan, Chelsea, Kaye, and Keith – Thank you again for being such a great group and we wish you all the best in wherever your future takes you! You are all awesome!!!

-Keith

Summer Blog Posts

Title: Arrival Day!

Greetings from Chiang Mai, Thailand! Unfortunately, we all learned a lot about the often chaotic nature of international travel. With typhoons basically shutting down Hong Kong, where 28 out of our total group of 34 students were originally scheduled to transit through, we spent much of the day in communication with GLA’s fantastic staff team over at Headquarters receiving updates and reworking plans. At this point, we are glad to share that 14 of our students for Session 3 at Tianna Garden Village Home Base (August 2 – August 15) were able to make their way through airports, flight changes, layovers, and many long hours of traveling, and we are looking forward to welcoming the remaining 20 students once they are able to safely travel to Thailand in the next day or two!

It has been a long day of making trips to and from the airport, and double checking the latest weather and itinerary details, but after taking some time to settle in to Tianna Garden Village (our GLA Home Base and our home away from home for the next two weeks) students were given their first taste of local Thai food, including fried cashew and chicken with rice and some exotic Thai fruit before heading to their rooms for some much needed rest.

The GLA staff team at Tianna Home Base has been working hard preparing for the students’ arrival and trying to fine tune our schedule for the next couple weeks, and we are all very excited for what we have in store going forward. With a large portion of our group still in transit, our GLA Thailand Orientation will be pushed back to tomorrow evening and Thursday morning, leaving tomorrow open for a Chiang Mai city tour, a lunch buffet at the Chiang Mai Grand View Hotel, a visit to a few notable temples in town, and our evening cooking class. Once we have the majority of our group here in Thailand, we will run through an orientation that will include an introduction to Thai culture, safety and security protocols, highlights of our service learning activities and adventure excursions, and a few other minor details (like staying hydrated in sunny Thailand!).

We’ll be getting an early start tomorrow morning so we’ll wrap up this first blog post here. Future blog posts will be authored by our student leaders and will include pictures from our busy days as well so be sure to check back often for updates on all the amazing adventures we are having together in the Land of Smiles! As they say here in Thailand, Khob Khun Krap!

Author: Keith Wingeard (International Director)

August 3, 2016

Title: Arrival Day, part 2

With all the delayed flights pushing back arrival day for a large portion of our students, we started our day with the 14 students that had already made it to Chiang Mai. After breakfast, we headed into the central part of Chiang Mai for a ‘city tour’ that included a stop at the Tha Pae gate where students had an opportunity to feed pigeons and fish in the moat around the old city and get their own feet nibbled on by small fish at the ‘foot fish spa’.

An additional group of six more students arrived earlier this morning and were able to stop by a separate city park before meeting up with the rest of the group for our buffet lunch. Everyone was able to fill up on a variety of delicious Thai food options before we got back into the vans to head over to a couple of Chiang Mai’s oldest and most revered temples. The sun was out and it was pretty hot, but students had an opportunity to duck inside one of the temples to receive a welcoming blessing from a local monk.

After our city and temple tour ended, the group headed over to a Thai cooking course. This began with an introduction to many of the ingredients used in Thai dishes and led to an opportunity for students to try their hand at mastering some of the most delicious Thai food options.

An additional group of students arrived in the early evening and met up with the larger group at our Tianna Home Base. These five students, Hannah Oliver, Lily Vaz, Taisa Graca, Paul Vu, and Nikki Macolino are not yet pictured since they arrived later in the day, but we can reassure you that they are all here in Chiang Mai with us now and will be pictured in future blog posts. Tomorrow we will go through more orientation type activities and will begin preparing for the service project at local schools, and we are very much looking forward to welcoming the remaining 9 students from our group that are still in transit to Thailand. Almost there!

With today still being relatively chaotic, this post was also written by GLA staff, but from here on out our blog posts will be written by our GLA students on this program, so be sure to check back here for more updates on our exciting schedule and many, many pictures from our busy days here in Chiang Mai!

Author: Keith Wingeard (International Director)

August 3, 2016

Title: Arrival Day, part 3, but fun!

To start our day, we had a delicious western breakfast! After, we had orientation with the GLA staff to review the code of conduct and created skits to model what not to do while in Thailand. Later, Todd, the local Thailand GLA administrator and school coordinator, came and spoke to us about proper ways to teach the Thai children English. We learned to speak clearly, loudly, correctly, and slowly when talking to the children.
Next, we took a 20 minute van ride to visit the Thai schools that we’d be teaching at. Each group toured one of two schools that GLA would help out at. Most students were introduced to the Thai students and were able to see how different schools are compared to schools back home.
For lunch, we ate at a restaurant owned by a GLA staff member, P’Aye, and his family. P’Aye’s grandmother invented the famous Thai dish known as Khow Soi. This dish is wildly popular across northern Thailand, and can even be found in the States!
With full bellies, we stopped at our first Thai Mall! We discovered Thai Tea with boba, which became extremely popular within our group. Finally, we headed back to home base and got to cool off in the pool. Around dinner time, thankfully, our last nine students arrived safely. We greeted them with open arms, and quickly bonded over a giant flying beetle in the common area (while we were having our first mentor group meeting).
Since we finally had everyone, we had a traditional Thai Welcoming Ceremony known as Lapnong (translated as “welcome younger brothers and sisters”). It involved linking all of us with a string and we each received a bracelet to keep us all connected. We are all looking forward to teaching in the schools tomorrow and an exciting lesson of Thai Boxing!

Author: Abbie Allhusen, Maya Martinez, Clara Dossetter

August 5, 2016

Title: First Impressions

We had an early start this morning, 6:30 Thai breakfast. At 7:30 we all got in the vans and headed to our schools to catch the flag raising ceremony. This was our first day of teaching, everyone was very excited. We taught age groups starting from 6 and up to 15, teaching various topics such as colors, numbers, and sentence structure in English. For some of us, this was our first time teaching, others not so much. Today was the day to evaluate the students’ abilities in the English language. It was a little stressful at the beginning adjusting to the language barrier, but the students caught on quickly and we adjusted to them as well. After everyone was done teaching, we had lunch which was prepared by the students. This was followed by some play time and non-academic interaction with the kids. After, we had to say goodbye until Monday and go back to the home base to prepare for the next activity!
Next, we had to prepare for our Muay Thai boxing class! This was a very sweaty adventure, let us tell you. First we all had our hands wrapped for extra support. Then, we watched a traditional ceremony that payed respect to past boxers. Then, we finally started to stretch to get ready for the real action. The masters taught us simple moves such as kicking, blocking, punching, and elbowing. After we mastered this, a few of us at a time moved into the ring. We practiced one on one with the instructors for about 10 minutes each. This is when it got really sweaty. But don’t worry we took long hot showers afterwards!
To finish the night after our great workout, we all met with our mentor groups to discuss the day. After, we had another yummy Thai dinner at the home base. Next, we had a group meeting to chit chat about the elephant home we will visit tomorrow. We are all looking forward to the weekend filled with many new adventures!

Authors: Sophie Celentano, Noe Abe, and Frankie Mendenhall

August 6, 2016

Title: Elephant Day

The day began with a different breakfast than usual; Thai pancakes. Their delicious vanilla flavor was a great way to jump into our adventure-filled day. After separating ourselves into our vans, we headed down the hour long road trip to what we would soon know to be the greatest experience of our lives. When we arrived at the Thai elephant home, we were warmly greeted by their kind staff. They provided us with useful information, like key elephant commands, a bottle of water, a Thai shoulder bag, and their amazing patience and support. The adventurers were split up into groups of three, and then were paired up with their personal elephant; which they would be spending the day with. Along with meeting the huge, yet majestic elephants, we met with their mahouts; their “parents”. These men knew their “long-nosed puppies” like the back of their hands. After meeting and feeding the elephants, we headed for the hills!

The mountain hike began with a lot of excitement and giggles. We all got the chance to touch their warm, rough skin, feel their powerful muscles, and stare into their intense hazel eyes. It was especially funny when the elephants would stop at every other tree, use their massive and strong trunks, and rip out a generous amount of leaves to snack on. The view was amazing- a vast forest with rice fields at the bottom, and beautiful cloudy mountains in the distance. However, it was tiring; going uphill made us all huff and puff! About halfway through the hike, the sweat began to wash way the bug repellent; the mosquitoes began to attack! Luckily, the mahouts kindly offered us some of their own spray. At the top of the mountain, we were welcomed by a delicious coconut rice wrapped in banana leaves and cute little cabanas where we could sit and rest. The hike down was a lot shorter and easier than the hike up.

By the time we got to the base, we were served with a yummy pad Thai and fruits for lunch, but the adventure was not finished! Afterwards, we reunited with our elephants and headed towards the river. The walk was very muddy, but refreshing. Once again, the view took our breath way. By the time we arrived, we were all relived to see cold water to cool down our sweaty bodies. We hopped in with the elephants and got a chance to ride them. One elephant in specific lifted us all on its trunk and let us pose for a picture. After saying our goodbyes and heading back into our vans, the day ended with a calm, quiet, and sleepy ride back.

Author: Alivia King, Taisa Graca, and Zoe Abronson

August 7, 2016

Title: Zipping through Thailand

Today we left at 8:15 for the bus to the Eagle Track zip lining site. Once we arrived there, we filled out some paperwork and waivers. After that, we put on our safety equipment and followed the trail to the first zip line. There were 35 zip line stations in total, and we got to successfully complete all of them! The overall view and scenery overlooking Thailand was breathtaking. Throughout the zip line tracks, there were several challenging rope courses. Once we neared toward the end, it started to drizzle and made things quite slippery. It stopped raining as we approached the last drop, which was 40 meters. We made our way back up to the lunch area, where we dined like kings and queens. We savaged through the meals like no tomorrow. We headed home after a long day of zipping through the forests of Chiang Mai. Once we boarded the buses back to Tianna Garden Resort, aka home base, we planned our lesson for the next day and met in our mentor groups. The last activity of the day was to head out to the Night Bazaar for 2-3 hours and shop there. Along with shopping, we got a chance to get a fish pedicure for 15 minutes, which was a once in a lifetime experience. After the long day of adventure and fun, we came back to home base and went to bed. Goodnight.

Author: Nicolette Macolino, Rose Caplan, and Paul Vu

August 8, 2016

Title: What an art-tastic day!

We started the day off going to our schools to continue the student’s English classes. We all enjoyed spending time with the students in their classrooms. They are all so welcoming and seem to enjoy their classes. After our classes we all enjoyed a delicious lunch prepared by the students and staff. After that we were able to bond with them during their recess as we joined them in their games. Then we went back to the home base for a quick change and broke into two groups for the next activities. One group went to get a relaxing Thai massage while the other went to the amazing 3D art museum, Art in Paradise. While the massage was a great way to relieve the stress of travel and lesson planning, the museum was a definite highlight. The many exhibits included an underwater adventure, Egyptian tomb, and giant kitty. The groups then switched and after their massage and tour we headed back to the home base to enjoy an appetizing dinner and quiet evening.

Author: Riley Asher-Stalbaum, Kiley Asher-Stalbaum, and Hannah Oliver

August 9, 2016

Title: Cultural Exchange Day and American Food

We started the day by waking up and going back to our two schools. After we taught the day’s lesson we got on the buses and went to a local high school. The reason we went was for a cultural exchange with the students. They welcomed us with open arms, lovely necklaces of jasmine and well written speeches by students. After we were settled our group got in front of everyone to present our part of the exchange.
The whole reason behind the cultural exchange was for the GLA students to share our culture, and the local Thai students share theirs. We went first and did a silly medley of The Cup Song, The Quan, Cotton Eyed Joe and finished by dancing with the Thai kids to the Wobble. We were all laughing and having a great time. The students from the school then preformed and taught us a traditional Thai dance. The kids were kind and patient while teaching which was much appreciated. We then had a break with delicious fruits and fun games.
After saying our goodbyes we took a short, yet hot, walk down to a temple. It was absolutely breathtaking. We walked around the grounds to see the amazing architecture and gardens. Some of us even had the chance to talk to a monk for a bit until we headed to an American restaurant for dinner called Dukes. Dinner came out plate after plate buffet style of onion rings, ribs, pizza and more! Some of us should have done a better job pacing ourselves, but the food was just too good. After that we headed back to home base for some much needed sleep after a long eventful day.

Authors: Helen Frazer, Lundon Mellen-Fontanelli, and Kayla Cabral

August 10, 2016
Title: Cultural Immersion and Teaching

As our time here in Chiang Mai is quickly coming to an end, GLA students soon found themselves teaching their students for the last time. It’s safe to say that every GLA student cherished the time spent in the schools! Due to such a positive experience, the Thai students have left us with an unbelievable sense of fulfillment. It was an unforgettable opportunity that we were lucky enough to have.
After our last official day of teaching came to a close, GLA students were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to learn traditional Thai dances. In addition we also got to become immersed the art of weaving, thanks to Baan Mon Fai’s excellent staff.

Authors: Lily Turner-Kipke, Emily Dorsey, Laura Swaim

August 11

English Camp

Today was an eventful day at the school: not only was it Mother’s Day in Thailand, but it was also our last day teaching at the schools. We were instructed to get into groups and plan a fun, all-day, English activity for the Thai students. Some of us made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, while others taught the children English songs and dances. Although the day was long and tiring, it was worth it in the end to see the children smiling and having a blast. At the end of the day we were able to present the children with small gifts we brought from our home towns. After a tearful goodbye we went back to the home base to have a pool party complete with root beer floats.

Authors: Quinn Fox, Erin McCoy, Katherine Gring

Time Capsule Letter – October 2016

Our days at Lanna Dusita were so full. We all woke up to calming music (usually soundtrack music we would be singing without realizing we were because we heard it so often) and walked around our huge fish pond—trying not to squish snails or lizards—to eat noodles, and fish porridges, and exotic fruits for breakfast. But actually no one ever ate boiled fish except for the director, ever. Oh, and we loved the mosquitos after a while, because after a while we were given those big electric racquets that electrocute them. Zap! We didn’t even feel like bad Buddhists because the Thai staff told us that we were kindly accelerating the life cycle of the mosquito so it could move onward to a next and better incarnation.

We did so many things together. We hiked and biked, zip-lined, muy thai boxed, and shopped too much at markets (of course always with buddies or “truddies”). But, as is always the case, the more meaningful part of our experience was serving in the local community at the schools and orphanage. The kids were so sweet and receptive, always wanting to participate in sports or games or dances. The teaching was difficult, but not so difficult as we had thought. We were always anxious beforehand but during the classes, even the rowdiest, everything always worked out just fine. The snacks the head teacher brought us were sometimes pretty weird and gelatinous, but we appreciated it so much still because she was just so thoughtful and kind. The time painting and plastering was…swampy and muggy and horrible, but when we took the friends we made at Nimmit on excursion and got to really know them it all seemed so worthwhile and so permanent.

What an amazing time it was and thanks to everyone who was a part of it!

-Nicole

Memories from Ryan:

·         Getting to know the amazing Thai Staff

·         Eating at the DUUUUKES!

·         Amazingly successful cultural exchange Song and Dance

·         Mountain biking through rice fields

Summer Blog Posts

August 4 and 5, 2016

Despite hardships caused by cancelled flights, the group was finally able to bond during orientation. Our amazing director, P. Nikki, told us about all the rules and regulations that we must abide by while we are in Thailand, and got us excited for all the amazing excursions we will go on. We got to know each other by sharing where we are from and a little bit about ourselves. We are all so excited for what’s to come during our time in this beautiful country.

Following orientation, we were visited by P. Todd. He told us how he ended up living in Thailand from the great city of Cleveland, Ohio. He also gave us helpful tips and tricks on how to teach the local Thai children. Shortly after, we went to a delicious Thai buffet for lunch. Everyone tried new and exciting foods, which pushed us out of our comfort zone.

With full bellies and a great attitude, we began the winding car ride to Doi Suthep, one of the most important temples in Chiang Mai. We were awed by the exquisite ambiance of the golden pagoda.

Nice golden temple
Got a decent Thai fortune
Ooh a Popsicle!
– Group written Haiku

After we left the temple, we came back to the hotel where we cooled off the the pool. We then ate dinner where we discussed the plans for teaching the next day.

After an early rise, we made our way to Watsankayon, the elementary school where we are helping to teach the children. First we were introduced during their morning assembly, then we split up into our teams to teach. We were floored by the adorableness of the children! Following our fun lessons and games, we sat down to eat the best cafeteria food in existence. The super nice head teacher made us fresh chicken and rice. The whole experience was amazing.

As we were traveling to the umbrella factory, we made a quick stop to a cafe. We cooled down with coffee, tea, and smoothies. At 1:00, we arrived to the umbrella factory where we learned about the history behind umbrella making in Chiang Mai. We also had the chance to paint our own umbrellas and get various items of ours painted by talented people after the tour.

Once we arrived back to the hotel, we met the fantastic, fantabulous, wonderful, and cool P. Wa. We then cooled off in the Pool and ate dinner as a group. We ended with some battles with bugs and astrology. Despite all the superlatives in this blog, the last two days have really been wonderful. I’m not being sarcastic. 🙂

August 6

Today, we went zip-lining. But first, we signed a waiver to make sure the company didn’t have to pay for any hospital bills (hahaha half-joking). None of us were injured. In order to get to the actual course we rode in a fast truck over a really bumpy road. It was a little bit scary. The zip-lining and ropes course itself was a lot of fun. The instructors were nice but they liked to mess with us and shake the ropes while we walked on the bridges. Our harnesses prevented us from falling, but it was still kind of unnerving. The last obstacle was a 100 foot drop straight down!

After we went zip-lining, we had lunch and then planted trees in the forest near the course. Before we went back to the hotel, we stopped at a café for coffee and snacks. There was a really cute dog inside that we could actually pet because it was domesticated and didn’t have rabies. But about halfway through our meal, it started pouring rain, leaving us stranded outside at our tables with only patio umbrellas to keep us dry (but it was still fun).

When we got back to the hotel, we took a personality test to see what kind of leader we are, and shared our personal goals. After dinner, we all played cards and mafia and ate more snacks. One of the card games we played was spoons, but we didn’t have spoons, so we used leaves. Then we played BS, which was really entertaining because some people had never played and didn’t understand the game. Hanging out and having fun as a group and sharing personal information was a really good bonding activity, and everyone definitely felt a lot closer afterwards.

-Lilly

August 7th, 2016

To start off our morning, the GLA group traveled to the oldest temple within Chiang Mai, Wat Chieng Man. Wat Chieng Man is hundreds of years old, built by the sixth king of Chiang Mai. While we were able to encounter Buddha relics that are thousands of years old, we also learned how to correctly praise Buddha. Our second stop of the day was Wat Chedi Luang, another temple within Chiang Mai. We walked clockwise around the biggest temple around. We donated money to the temple, while being able to write our names on roof bricks in return. It was a sight that will never be forgotten.

Shortly after our temple excursions, we headed off to the market to meet our cooking instructor. We spent a majority of our afternoon learning how to cook Thai cuisine. We started off with a Thai soup. Afterwards, we made Chicken Pad Thai. We were able to try our latest creations before continuing to cook Green Curry and Mangoes over Sticky Rice. In addition to an amazing afternoon with the Thai cooks, we were even given cook books to take home.

After a busy first half of the day, the GLA group took a few hours to regroup at the hotel. With a full week of teaching and a cultural exchange up ahead, there was much to do. We got into our groups and put together our lesson plans with the help of our amazing GLA staff. We have a lot planned for the children of Thailand.

With evening rolling around, we all headed out the Night Market. We spent the next few hours haggling good prices on souvenirs to bring home. The street food was delicious, and the souvenirs bought were extremely eccentric. This day was a success for the GLA group.

August 8, 2016

This morning was extremely eventful! The GLA group was woken up early to set out for a morning of teaching at a local Thai primary school. We ate breakfast at the hotel before hopping in the van to venture off to Thai school. With marathon one through six now our responsibility for a few hours, we were extremely busy. We completed two classes per group each lasting one hour and thirty minutes between 8:30am and 12pm. It was intense.

Because of recent changes within and around Thailand, it has become increasingly important for Thai people to learn English. It is our job to do as much as we can to help children between the ages of six and twelve learn as much English as they can in four days. We do our best to incorporate games and fun filled lesson plans to help them remember what they are taught. That is what we spent our morning doing.

Because we were fed lunch at the school, we headed straight to an older village that is known for their pottery. We spent the afternoon within this little village. We started off with a tour of the ground where we learned the ins and outs of pottery making. We were able to speak with the leader of the village along with a second generation villager. The skills of these people are incredible.

After the tour of the village, we were able to hand spin some of our own pottery masterpieces. We discovered that some of us are more artistic than others. With the help of the villagers, we were able to create somewhat acceptable pieces. The generosity and friendliness of the Thai people continue to shock us the further we get into our program.

With our day quickly coming to an end, we headed to the nearest mall to pick up a few necessities before heading back to the home base. We had a nice dinner with Kevin, a visiting mentor from headquarters. We went on to plan our next day of teaching before heading to bed to get some rest. We have a long day ahead of us.

August 12, 2016

After a thrilling weekend, it was time to continue teaching the kids of Watsankayom School. Through teaching and playing, we developed strong relationships with the students. On Monday afternoon, we went to learn about the culture of pottery and even made some unique handmade pottery ourselves. After school on Tuesday, we spent time preparing for the Cultural Exchange, working hard on perfecting a song and dance truly representative of our culture. Wednesday afternoon we visited and toured the beautiful Wattanothaipayap high school where we got to experience a traditional Thai dance performance done by the students. We also got to see their indoor museum which was full of magnificent artifacts and elegant wax sculptures. In addition, we made merry and formed friendships with the students through creating art together. Afterwards, we went back to the Home Base and began prepping an English Camp for the primary school students. Thursday morning we participated in a ceremony for Mother’s Day and we set up stations to get the Thai kids excited for learning more about the English language. That afternoon, we sadly had to say our goodbyes. Everyone was full of tears and hugs, but we left knowing that we had made an impact as they had on us. That night, we relaxed at the pool and watched a thought-provoking film which left us truly pondering the meaning of life.

On Friday morning, we woke well-rested and ready to shop at the markets of Chiang Mai. In the afternoon, we went to the Art in Paradise museum, which stunned us with its brilliant optical illusions. We had fun and took many pictures. Later, we had traditional Thai massages which really soothed and relaxed us. All in all, the week was riveting.