Happy Endings

Today began with a shower. Wow, what an experience. So you enter into the shower room with a floor of rocks and large cement slabs. The room contains one large, square cement basin and one small urn, both filled with water from the village river. There is a drain on the floor in the corner, which also doubles as a toilet. How multifunctional of them. And that’s about it. So the idea is to take the large cup in the basin, scoop up the water, and dump it over yourself. The water is cold and the process is awkward. But it gets the job done. The roosters also serenade you during shower time. I decided the best way to deal with my unruly hair post shower is to have Stephanie braid it. Seems to be working out ok, and the village girls think it’s so cool. 

After we faced the shower we all piled in the pickup truck and headed to the festival in the city of Mahasarakhan. Basically Mahasarakhan would be like Cleveland, Wapipatum would be like Mentor (a suburb) and Plaboo would be like some country town no one has heard of an hour from Cleveland. Just to give a reference. We learned a lot more about the Farmer Community School  (FCS). Basically, Lam created this idea and curriculum for her own village a few years ago, hoping to give the youth and children of the village additional schooling to help them in English and also to learn more about certain career paths. Some of these careers include Green Business Management, Agriculture, and various other popular professions in Thailand. She also wanted to teach the children certain morals that guided them in the right direction, focusing a lot on avoiding teen pregnancy and prostitution. Since the program began, she has expanded into other villages around the area, spreading this curriculum. She works with local teachers, professors, doctors, village leaders and non-profit organizations to make it all work and to continue improving the program. The program is backed by six different non-profit sponsors, who provide them with funds. Money is tight, however, and Lam can barely afford to pay her small staff that lives in the village. One of our goals while we are here, and also after we leave, is to search for additional funding. The program has grown rapidly, and is improving every day. Lam is extremely motivated and passionate, as is everyone else who works with her. We feel so lucky to be a part of such a unique and effective program.

Anyway, I digress. Back to the festival. FCS had a stage at the festival, where groups from each village and participant in FCS performed an act. Plaboo also had a stand where they sold their tye-dye products, including pants, shirts and bags. They were also cooking fish, sticky rice and this spicy slaw that seems to come with every meal. Before the performances, Lam and a few of the other main players in FCS, including the Plaboo Village leader, spoke. A man translated portions of the conversation for us; they basically spoke about empowering youths and working to bring the assets of each different community together, instead of keeping them independent. Many of the local college students, from Mahasarakham University, attended the presentation, which lasted a couple hours. Towards the end of the speeches, Stephanie and I were pulled away by two of the music teachers at FCS. They brought out khaens, traditional Thai instruments. They gave us a manual, in English, which showed us how to play. We sat with them and learned do, re, mi, fa, so, la, ti, do. They got a big kick out of us and we had a great time learning. I’ll have to get me one of those so I can master it and become a world-class entertainer. 

After the speeches, we ate lunch. This was the first time we got to try the local fish and it was mighty tasty. They coat the fish in a salt crust and then cook it on a grill. When its finished, you crack open the salt crust and peel away the fish. Amazing. Our favorite meal so far. We also tried these deserts that looked like mini tacos with sour cream and cheese. The sour cream was actually marshmallow and the cheese was actually orange. They were not so good. Stephanie gagged on them and I really thought she was going to lose her lunch. Eyes watered and everything. They had a funky flavor; we won’t be trying them again.

We walked around the festival for a while, taking it all in. There were vendors selling just about everything, and everything was so cheap. For example, we found this set of table and chairs that was carved straight from a tree, with all these cool wood colors and knots. Something that would probably cost upwards of $2000 in the states, it was being sold for about $150. Wowsa. Bottles of water were 20 cents and skirts and dresses were about $5. We will definitely be shopping during our time here, but we decided to mostly just look around today. We did, however, purchase a Thai massage. Holy cow. It was just about the most amazing thing ever. It’s more of pushing and stretching motions than kneading. And no, the happy ending referenced in the title of this blog did not occur at this massage! Oh and it was $4 including tip. So great.

Finally, it was time for our girls to perform. They put on a silent play about teen pregnancy and how the youth of today should not follow in the footsteps of so many before them. They painted their faces with these dramatic expressions and looked so great! They did such a good job. The play included guitars, singing, dramatic acting, and so much more. They were a hit. Some of the other acts included choreographed dances, a 10-piece band of little guys from our village (so adorable), breakdancing and singing. 

Throughout the day, people were so interested in Stephanie and me. We were constantly asked where we were from, what we were doing there, and if we could be in a picture. Most of the time, they were asking us in Thai, so Lam was our translator. Thank God for Lam. While we were walking around, everyone looked at us and giggled. Especially when we would do the traditional Thai greeting; placing your hands in a prayer position under your chin and bowing your head over your hands while say Sa Wa Dee Kah. People are so friendly and get really excited when we attempt to speak in Thai. We know a few key phrases including hello, my name is, what’s your name, thank you, beautiful, and goodbye. We only know beautiful because people keep telling us that we are beautiful and they especially love my pale skin. And yes I am going to soak that up for the next two months since we all know the tanner the better in the good ole’ USA. Stephanie is a tad jealous of my new found appeal, however she is letting me enjoy the two months out of my life that this paste is hot. 

On the way home, one of our youth girls (youths are kids in high school) had an allergic reaction to some octopus that she ate so we had to take her to the hospital. Her name is Rung (pronounced Roong with a rolling R). I felt so bad for her, she couldn’t stop coughing and wheezing and she ended up having to stay overnight to receive the correct medicine. She ended up being ok though. It made for a late night.

When we finally got home, we headed straight up to our room. Which is when we received the happiest of endings to our day, a mattress!! Our room is in the loft of the schoolhouse. It was built by the villagers and is open to the outdoors. It’s actually really cool; it reminds me of a log cabin or a gingerbread house. But the first night, we basically slept on the floor with a mosquito net over us. It was rough, but we had accepted it and were going to make the best of it. But then we came home to the mattress! It’s amazing. We are really learning to appreciate the little things on this trip. I will never take hot showers, plumbing, cold drinking water, and my comfortable bed for granted again. Never!