more photos

These are of pics are of the road outside our school, the pig the students are raising as an economic project, an example of the denseness of the jungle in the camp and the special meal we had for Sister who left. The rice dish is the Karenni traditional food which is pounded rice with fish, garlic and cilantro. Very delicious.

Everything Bamboo

I have decided to post pictures of the camp and the site I am working in ... but I am going to be careful what I say.. the politics and power hierarchies around here are a definite detriment to the people! Today I taught my first English class and we said goodbye to the Sister who has been teaching in the program for 3 years. I wasn't really super keen on teaching English but I have learned that as a western helper it is inevitable and they want the help, so you teach. And of course it was actually fun and I enjoyed myself. I am going to keep teaching English but I am looking forward to also doing more social worky type training in the next month. The camp pictures are of the campus /school where the women in program are studying. The long building with the two doors in the classroom where I am teaching. The squatter hole with the bucket is toilet and the building behind the green pool of water (that will eventually have fish) is the kitchen.

Besides the camp things are pretty slow - it is an 8 day vegetarian festival here in Thailand so there is free veg food for everyone at designated Buddhist sights. I went the other night with my neighbour. Last weekend I found a swimming pool in town. I was so excited! But now I am learning there are more - which makes me really excited! I am going to take advantage of that this weekend. I also found a shop that makes bread - even whole wheat (at least 50%) - also very exciting. Because I am only walking and don't have a motorcycle like everyone else, I feel like it is taking me longer to discover everything.

That's it for now.
xo

First Glimpses of the Camp

This week I finally had the opportunity to visit the camp. After the first day I just didn't have words to describe what I was thinking or feeling. With so much build up over the months leading up to this experience I needed and continue to need time to process my thoughts and feelings of what I am seeing and experiencing. Although I am told that this particular camp is actually not very remote compared to most of the others, the location has been the most awe inspiring thing for me. The road to the camp is a very rough temporary trail simply hacked out of jungle... it really lends to an outsider the feeling of running deep into the jungle to escape fighting and to hide; simply setting up camp and waiting. It is so strange that the settlement can feel so temporary and yet so permanent at the same time. It is that temporary/permanent contradiction that is so interesting to me. The infrastructure of the camp, in terms of services (birthing clinics, shops, schools, volleyball courts) is more established and better equipped that many other communities I have been before. But on the other hand everything is made of bamboo and is made with the idea that it is simply a temporary accommodation - if everyone walked away and the jungle grew over, in 10 years you most likely wouldn't know that there had been a settlement of 18,000 people living there(aside from the plastic garbage - but that will be another blog post).

As well, and as expected, the stories of the people will also take a long time to process ... family members killed, siblings left behind, 5 days of walking amongst the fighting of ethnic and Burmese armies to cross into Thailand, husband and wives separated in resettlement. The strength and resiliency demonstrated by so many people is inspiring and yet hard to comprehend.

I am sure I will have a lot more thoughts, ideas and considerations as the weeks go on. I have met the students I will be working with and look forward to helping out as much as I can.

I only took a few photos so far. A couple are of the peace day celebration that took place in the camp on September 21st for world peace day. The girls dancing are wearing the traditional outfits of the ethnic groups that are represented in the camp - Karenni, long neck Karenni, Karen and Shan. As well as a couple girls sporting new fashion. The other pics are just a couple of shots of houses in the camp.

All in all I am well and counting down the days until James arrives.
xo

Mae Hong Son Photos 2

Mae Hong Son Photos

Just posting some photos of my little town. You can see the "happening" tourist street near the lake - the one that looks abandoned (haha!)Also views overlooking the town, if you look close you can see the lake and the little airstrip. I walked up that hill again today and, I am not joking, looked like I had just stepped out of the shower when I got to the top. Also just how lush the jungle is around this area. Finally just some photos of temples and Buddhist sights around town.

In the meantime ... jazzercise!

I finally got my camp pass but won’t actually visit the camp until Tuesday. This is now becoming a combination of questionable Thai bureaucracy and NGO planning. I have been using my days in the office to, among other random things, learn some Thai and a little Karen ... Ka Pow Mu ... this is the pork dish, featured in the picture which I have been eating everyday for lunch simply because it is delivered to the door by a man who comes around on his motorbike selling it. One day it also had a fried egg which was a nice addition. I am getting pretty tired of it already, but for 30 baht (or $1) I can’t really complain. Or A Knee Tow Lie (how much is this one) a phrase I used to buy this tiny cute little broom for my room (also $1) and in buying the broom, the man at my local neighbourhood store, finally warmed up to me (buying yogurt, beer or juice didn’t cut it). I guess seeing a farang (foreigner) buying a broom is funny and endearing – whatever works. It kinda looks like I should ride around on it – you know fly over the town at night casting spells. Also I decided that I needed to get busy in the evenings so I have joined my local aerobics class. As if I am not sweating enough already – but it is outside and it is FREE! So how could I resist. Even for a long time aerobics maniac like myself, the pace was pretty fast. You remember when you were a kid and you turned the record player to the wrong speed and it got really fast and sounded like chipmunks – that is the pace and sound I am struggling with.

There is not much else to do in Mae Hong Son. The one big thing to do is climb “the hill with the temple on top” which I already did last weekend. Unfortunately I forgot my camera. I am guessing I’ll probably do it about 20 more times before I leave, so I’ll post some nice pics of the town from above, when I have them. I am posting a couple of pics of the lake in town, Nong Jong Kham and the temples Wat Jong Kham and Wat Jon Klan that sit on one side of the lake.

I had to post of picture of the roosters who live next door to me. Needless to say, the racket they make at 5:00 AM in not welcomed and I have resorted to using the trusty backpacker earplugs. I think they are new ones – special for this trip – but I can’t be sure. I remember our friend Anne being disgusted by the fact that James and I used the same earplugs for a year on our last trip. We didn’t even have your plugs and my plugs, just communal ones – you just used whichever ones you got for the night. Ah the joys of travel.

This morning, while enjoying a western breakfast, I was really feeling the contrast between being a traveller versus living in a place. This becomes so evident to me when I go down to the “tourist” restaurant by the lake. There is a fun, exciting energy there with people from all over the world drinking coffee and eating toast, discussing what their activities for the day are going to be. It is also just such a contrast to the reality of life going on behind and around that isolated area. When I get back out to where I live, I am just back in living mode, like everyone else, doing laundry (in a pail in the shower), scrubbing the bathroom, eating noodles at a street stand etc. Since we are/I am most often in the traveling camp, it is weird to straddle both worlds, which is so evident in a town the size of Mae Hong Son.

Learning...

I am starting to learn just how precarious the situation is along the border and the hoops that the NGOs need to go through to provide services within the camps. The Thai government has refused to become a signatory in the 1951 Refugee Convention allowing the United Nations High Commission for Refugees to manage the camps along the Thai/Burma border. The camps continue to be managed by Thai authorities and some, especially the one I will be working in, is very tightly controlled. The work of NGOs is always in question and at risk of being shut down. Because of this, I have decided to eliminate the discussion of my organization and the specific work I will be doing in my blog. Hopefully I can still give a snapshot of my experience without the specifics.

On another note, just when I thought there were no scary dogs running around in Thailand - I found those pesky jerks in Mae Hong Son. I have a feeling that being chased home by a pack of dogs is going to be a regular occurrence. Since I don't have James to scare them away, I am going to have start walking with a big stick or a backpack full of rocks! Sigh :)

Hugs,
Meighan

The Wild Woman Flies

Yeah! I finally made it to Mae Hong Son on this cute little plane that offered amazing views of the lush green hills of Northern Thailand. I felt suspended in the air, as if the plane was just hanging there and we were not even moving. I love the shot with the plane's little tire in it. The next three months starts now. MHS is a tiny cute little town and the staff here seem great. And thankfully it seems less hot than in Chiang Mai. James took that picture of me while we were skyping - believe it or not, that was my "office hair", meaning I intended to go out in public like that. The humidity is doing wonders for the look, not to mention the cold I am fighting. I have been a real sweaty, snotty mess. Hopefully I can get it all under control and appear a little more put together in the coming days.

The best meat is on the street

I made it to Chiang Mai! These last few days have been a bit of a blur but I am definitely in a better state than when James and I arrived in Delhi on our last trip. That was rough! Still, I have been spending a lot of time resting in my room with my lovely ceiling fan. Most of my adventures out have centered around food and let me tell you, tonight's Sunday Walking Street Market did not disappoint - fresh rolls, green papaya salad and a smoothie! The only pics I have taken so far are a record of my street eats - so typical. However, it sure is strange and a lot lonely without my trusty sidekick - I can guarantee there would have been pics of us eating sushi in Tokyo airport and drinking our first Chang beer in Bangkok. It's just not the same trying to take a picture of yourself doing those activities that seem so much less exciting without your husband :) I am really looking forward to his visit in a month!

I am also looking forward to getting started with the organization tomorrow and getting down to business.

If you have skype - give me a ring sometime.

Hugs
Meighan