"Together We Can"

Today for church we had some visitors from the church headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah. All of the congregations in Bangkok (I believe there are about 5 congregations) were invited to attend one meeting held at a convention center outside Bangkok. The meeting was inspiring as we mourned over the tragic events that have taken place recently. The speakers reminded us that no matter what our political opinions we are unified through our love for and belief in God. They reminded us of the importance to build strong families who love goodness and peace. I sang in the choir for the meeting and felt strongly a love for this country and its people.

On the way home I was driving with a friend who is new to driving in Thailand. She has a navigation system we call Lee who speaks to us in an Australian accent. We typed in the address of our final destination and Lee gave us step by step directions on how to get home. Unfortunately, there are places where the roads are a bit unclear and the highways resemble a spaghetti bowl and so we missed a turn and Lee had to recalculate and quickly think of a new route to get us home. The new path drove us into the heart of downtown Bangkok where we were able to see the damage the fires and fighting caused. We saw the huge mall that had burnt to ashes as well as the remains of several other buildings. We could see in the road where the tires had been lit on fire. It was quite sad to see the loss and damage.

There were also crowds of people on the street. Many of them standing and, like me, were also grieving the loss but many had trash bags in gloved hands and were assisting with clean up efforts. They were picking up trash, washing soot off of walls, scrubbing the streets and sidewalks. There were large trucks driving into the area which I can only assume would soon be filled with debris and other garbage. Thai citizens were purchasing cold drinks and snacks and taking them to the drivers of these large vehicles in a gesture of gratitude for their service. My heart was full of joy as I watched the people of Bangkok come together to clean up and rebuild. I was caught off guard by the whole thing quite honestly! And I was so pleased to see after the protests filled with so much anger and destruction and violence this demonstration of unity and peace and teamwork.

There was a sign hanging on the side of the road that read "Together We Can". Many of those who were helping in the community cleaning effort were wearing T-shirts that said the same...Together We Can.

This is the Thailand I know. These are the loving, kind Thai people I have encountered. This is how I will remember Thailand. A community of peace-loving people who come together to work hard after tragic events to rebuild.

There is so much we can accomplish when we work together.

Together We Can!

The Ancient City

I wrote up this nice blog yesterday about what was going on and my feelings and experiences with the BKK disturbances but it disappeared (I was obviously not on my Mac). I was too frustrated to rewrite it all. In a nutshell things are getting better here. Today I ventured out of the house and to a nearby park with 2 friends. The park is called the Ancient City. It's in the shape of Thailand and has replicas of significant buildings and ruins throughout Thailand. We rented bicycles and rode through the park visiting the replicas and learning a bit of Thai history and Buddhism. It was very interesting and the buildings were beautiful! The day was hot so we made frequent stops for cold water and ice cream.

It was great to see some of Thailand's most important structures. It was interesting to note that each building was influenced so deeply by religion. The symbolism in each aspect of the buildings, the carvings, the shapes, it all has hindu and/or Buddhist significance. The stupa, for starters...the square on the bottom is a square, like the Buddha folded his robes, in the shape of a square. On top of that is Buddha's bowl, upside down. On top of that is Buddha's staff. And there you have it...a Stupa!

It's so beautiful to see all the symbolism. I really love it.

So, it took us from 8:30 to 5 to see what we saw and we weren't even able to cover the whole park in that time. It was really amazing. And it was nice being outside, on a bike, in the hot sun rather than sitting on my couch, in front of the TV in the AC...well, ok, the AC would have been really nice.

Well, I've decided that I LOVE Thailand and that I can't wait to see the originals of the replicas I saw today. I feel so lucky to be here! Oh, I didn't even mention the purchases I made today. I bought the greatest little rocking elephant and a wooden elephant puppet with strings...so fun! And...a few Christmas gifts I won't mention. :-) Yes, I've already started my Christmas shopping.

Troops Moving In

It's Wednesday morning. I've been off work since Thursday at 3:00. I've been keeping up on the news by watching CNN, reading the Bangkok Post, The Nation and reading other sites online to stay updated on the happenings in an area I used to go to my Thai language classes and enjoy the large park in that area.

Since Thursday things have been heating up. Well, this morning I woke up (I have to admit that it has been nice to sleep in!) and turned on CNN only to see footage of troops rolling into the area of the protests, knocking down barricades and trying to stablize the area of tension. There are gun shots, lots of smoke from the burning tires and bank has caught fire.

It is strange to watch what is going on just couple of miles from me. But do not worry, I am safe. I might go stircrazy but I'm safe.

While I've been sitting here in my apartment I have been afforded the opportunity to chat with many people I haven't had direct contact with since I left the US (or longer). I appreciate these opportunities to hear updates on your lives and I'm so glad to hear that people are actually reading my ramblings! :-)

Well, I guess that is all for now. Time for me to find something else to do.

Oh, I just got a txt from the embassy stating the the security situation is deteriorating in areas closer to my house. Praying for peace.

Protest Update

My heart is heavy today as the protests have turned ugly in Bangkok. We received word on Thursday that the government advised those who work around the protest area should go home early. We let staff go home at 3:00 and told them not to come in on Friday. Unsure of what would happen we had received notices from the US embassy that something was about to happen.

Not wanting to be here when things got ugly I decided to head out of town with a friend to Nong Nooch, a botanical garden she had heard about located about 2 hours from Bangkok. Friday morning we took the drive and found ourselves in such a beautiful area! Not only were there beautiful gardens but tons of elephants, a petting zoo, a butterfly hill and lots to keep us busy.

We had a great time riding elephants, walking through the gardens, watching a cultural performance, an elephant show which included elephants bicycling, playing basketball, soccer, painting, dancing and a host of amazing tricks! It was easy to feel like Bangkok was just a bad dream but we got regular updates that the embassy sends out informing us of shootings in various areas, explosions, road closures and other bad news reminding us that the bad dream was worse than just a nightmare...it was reality.

We spent the night in a little cottage inside the gardens and spent Saturday hanging out with the elephants, feeding the fish and the animals in the petting zoo (we spent way more money on food for animals than food for ourselves!), laughing hysterically, watching the elephant show again and eating ice cream. I made my first purchase of original art. It's a piece painted by an elephant! :-) I couldn't resist! It was a beautiful (very hot!!) day.

All too soon it was time to make our way back to Bangkok. Unsure if we would be able to make it back into the city on our normal roads due to various road closures from the fighting we took our chances and found a smooth drive back. Thank goodness.

I went to church this morning but only a handful of people showed up. The service was very short and then many of us gathered at the home of a family in the congregation to have lunch. From their apartment we could see the area where the unrest is centered. Smoke was billowing into the sky, probably from the burning tires. The family said they were able to hear explosions and gunfire from their location.

After a simple meal of taco salad we discussed the political situation sharing what we'd heard and what had happened. The death toll is now at 24, the government is giving all women and children until 3 pm tomorrow to get out of the protest area and then...well, we're not sure what will happen then. Will the military go in? Things keep changing. It's got to be hard to follow through with plans when so much of the military are red shirts themselves or "watermelons" as they are now referred to (green military uniforms but red shirts underneath). I'm not sure what tomorrow will bring. I just saw on the news that the government has declared Monday and Tuesday as holidays so I've got another 2 days in the house. There isn't much work I can do from home except to cancel all of the refugee interviews both caseworkers and US government officials planned to conduct. So, I'll work on scheduling interviews in other areas in our region hoping they will actually happen.

My house is a couple of miles from the main action and I have no windows looking over the area of unrest so I think I'm safe where I am. But I am near a major street and just about an hour ago heard cars driving down the street shouting and honking horns, headed in the direction of the protests. The skytrains and metros are shut down and rumor has it several stations are under control of the Red Shirts.

I have enough food in the house to last me awhile in case I can't get out but I'll run to the grocery store tomorrow to pick up a few more things. I'm not sure what I'll do with my time the next few days but I have a few movies and books around. :-) Oh, and I learned today that what I though were the effects of a bad sunburn on my leg from last week's beach run is actually jellyfish stings! So, I'll head to the pharmacy to see what they can give me for the itch and to help it heal (how do these things happen to me?).

I'm sad it has come to this and hope peace will be restored. I love Thailand and its people. I pray peace will soon be restored and life will return to normal. Until then, I promise not to do anything stupid as my curiosity often gets me in trouble. I'll do all I can to stay safe.

What My $35 Can Buy

I just returned from the grocery store which I can walk to in about 5 minutes (longer depending on how long it takes to cross traffic which doesn't stop for pedestrians). I took my reusable bags which make carrying my purchases home much easier. I thought I'd take a photo of what $35 can buy. I laid out all my groceries and pulled out my camera which i just put new batteries in just over a week ago and...the batteries are dead!!!! cheap batteries! Anyway, I took a lousy picture with my computer to show you what I can buy.

We have watermelon, yogurt, baking powder, baking soda, brown rice, soy sauce, sweet potato, snow peas, barley, mangoes and sticky rice (to celebrate my sister's birthday today!!) guava, spinach, mushrooms, bean sprouts, apples, tomatoes, carrots, bananas, a pineapple, pumpkin, onions, string beans, parsley and spaghetti sauce (not photographed). Not bad eh? (Hey mom, if you are reading this I hope this answers your question about if I'm eating healthy!!) If I went to the open air street market I could actually actually save myself another $7 or so but the markets are all closed down by the time I get off work.

Actually this is more food than I typically have in my house all at one time but I figured that I'd better have enough food for a little while just in case things in BKK get interesting.

Now, what shall I have for dinner?

Elephants and Gibbons

Friday I got a call from the office saying that due to the 3 grenade explosions the night before the office would be closed. Fine with me! I got online, booked a room for $20, gabbed my "emergency beach bag" packed with everything i need for a beach getaway and I headed out of town. The guide book said the bus ride would take 2.5 hours. Over 4 hours later after stopping at what felt like every intersection along the way, we finally arrived. I dropped my bags at the hotel and headed to the beach to people watching. I love the sound of the water washing ashore. That evening I took a nice long walk and found a street vendor selling one of my favorite dishes, spicy green papaya salad.

Saturday I woke up to the noises of construction outside my window and breakfast dishes on the floor below me. After breakfast I decided to ask about the elephant trekking I had read about in the guide book. It sounded fun so I signed up and decided I was going to need an extra day in Pattaya so I extended my reservation another night. The bus came by to pick me up about 10:00. I wasn’t entirely sure what all this half day adventure would entail but it sounded exciting. Say the word elephant and i'm pretty much there!

Upon arrival we were explained that the first hour would be elephant trekking and we were encouraged to buy bananas for our elephant. Then we would go walking through the jungle and learn more about the jungle and Thai traditions. Perfect! I got my own elephant while the others shared with their partners. I removed my flip flops and felt the elephant’s skin under my feet. I asked the elephant driver the name of my elephant...i don’t remember what he told me but he then asked me if I spoke Thai (since i had asked in Thai). I told him a little bit and then he started spouting off in Thai...i told him I didn’t understand. From that point he and the other drivers mocked me playfully and we had a good time as they tested my knowledge. If they had just asked me where the book is I could have clearly told them that the book is between the table and the chair...not very helpful conversation while riding elephants in the jungle! The elephants walked through the water, through a bit of jungle and through some fields. It was a great way to spend a morning. My elephant would swing his trunk over his head when he wanted a banana. I was happy to indulge him and we were both disappointed when the goods ran out.

Next began the foot trek into the jungle. Despite my bug spray the mosquitos found my sweet blood. The guide was trying to tell us about wild boar and the rolling seed but we were all slapping away the mosquitos. Seeing our discomfort he quickly moved us on. He taught us about the different plants found along our way and their medicinal purposes or uses in Thai foods. Lemongrass is good at relieving gas, jackfuit is helpful for nursing mothers in producing sufficient milk, Siam weed can stop bleeding, and there were others. As we stood around listening someone looked up and spotted a gibbon (monkey like creature) in the tree. Our guide explained that there are 3 gibbons that live in that jungle area, a male, a female and their 5 month old baby. It was the mother and baby we saw. It was fun to watch her swinging and jumping from tree to tree as the baby hung on instinctively. What a beautiful sight!

We continued on to a traditional style stilt wood home where we learned about the process of obtaining the silk from the cocoons, making thread out of it and then weaving it into beautiful fabric. Now I understand why Thai silk is so expensive! As the tour guide spoke the rain began to fall. We stayed under cover until it lightened up then we walked towards the boat. As the boat pulled away slowly from the dock we could see that our gibbon friend had followed us and was spying on us from the tree tops. During our slow boat ride across the small lake food pellets were thrown into the water and large catfish and bass swam to the surface to gobble it up. At one point they were all flapping around and splashed me good with water! A black swan followed us across the lake eating the pellets the fish had left behind.

At the other end of the lake we were given ponchos as the rain had continued to fall, and we walked to where the ox carts were waiting for us. We took an ox cart ride back through the fields and back to our starting point where enjoyed lunch and entertainment. Entertainment consisted of performances of traditional music and dance. One dance by a woman followed by a fighting dance by 2 men using swords. They recruited me into their performance and showed me how to swing the sword back and forth...cling, cling, clash clash. It was fun to watch and participate.

Then it was back to the beach. The water was about as warm as the weather so it was just barely refreshing. It was good enough for me. I let the late afternoon sun dry me off and then watched as the big red sun sunk into the ocean. I went for a walk to enjoy the evening. Indian men tried to steer me into their shops to have a dress made or into their restaurants but it was seafood I was after tonight! I spotted a nice Thai/Italian restaurant that wasn’t too busy, nice music and away from the high energy beach crowd. Browsing the menuI found just what I was after! Seafood in coconut soup (yum!) and seafood cooked in Thai herbs. The price of each was about $5 so I assumed the 2 combined would make a nice size meal. And I added a coconut smoothie to the order to wash it all down. I was quite surprised when they brought out the soup and plate! Both were very large servings! There was no way I was going to be able to eat it all. I felt sad thinking that so much seafood would go to waste but I was determined to eat as much as I could. I started with the soup. HEAVEN! It was perfect. My taste buds were h-a-p-p-y! Shrimp, clams, fish, squid, crab and more, all in one delightful bowl, swimming in coconut milk. Heaven indeed!! Quite full I took a look at the 2nd dish and wondered how I was going to even begin. I decided I would just eat the seafood and leave all the other stuff behind. I didn’t get through it all before I gave up. Good thing I had a nice long walk ahead of me to help it all digest. I walked along the water’s edge in my bare feet as the moon peeked through the clouds lighting the evening.

I took advantage of the free breakfast the next morning and headed to the beach one last time. I sat on the sand watching children playing together in the water and families and friends gathering. The old woman sitting behind me sat in a meditative posture with her eyes closed and hands cupped on her lap. It was wonderful, except for the vendors walking by every 30 seconds selling sunglasses, ice cream, seafood, fruit, henna tattoos, wraps, fried foods...even the children were walking by with bags filled with rolls of toilet paper they were selling...interesting.

Too soon, it was time to find my way back to reality. This was much easier knowing that I’d be back to the beach (a different one) next weekend for a 3 day weekend and that really, the beach is close enough for me to enjoy any time! Big smile! I pack my bags, check out of the hotel and find a ride to the bus station. And, to my utter delight the trip back was a quick 90 minutes. Hmm, i need to learn the bus system better to make sure I alway take the fast one!

Making memories in S. Korea

The week I had off of work due to the celebration of the Thai new year, known as Songkran, seemed like a perfect time to reconnect with my little sister who has been living in South Korea for the last 2 years. It became even more perfect when I realized that she would be turning 30 years old. Now, one of my major flaws is assuming everyone thinks like me...so, naturally I assumed she would LOVE to have someone fly out to see her for her birthday and help her celebrate such a notable year.

I emailed her my idea in February and she agreed to host me for a week. I knew there would be no skydiving as I had so badly wanted to do on my 30th bday but was unable to find anyone to enjoy the experience with. But I hoped we could make some fun memories. Indeed memories were made!

Day 1- After a flight and a bus ride I met up with Ruth and her 3 year old, red headed son Jeremiah and 1 year old and still bald headed, Sarah. Jeremiah was a bit shy at first but Sarah gave me a big smile from her secure location on her mother's back. We said our hellos got in a bus and took the 30 minute ride from Pohang to her nearby town. It was then that I realized, once Jeremiah started talking, and talking, and talking that it was going to be difficult communicating with my sweet nephew who speaks great Korean and not so great English. :-)

Ruth introduced me to their little 2 bedroom apartment on the 4th floor. All doors opened into the small main room/playroom/dining room/computer room/kitchen...a multipurpose room in every sense of the word. This is when my korean lessons began. I got down on the floor to play with Jeremiah who had dumped out his bin of toys onto the floor. The most important word to this young man was the word for "digger" as in the large construction machine with the digger on the end of the arm (pretty sure these are not the true technical terms). Jeremiah is fascinated with diggers. He loves looking for them, he makes up stories and very long songs about them. He has digger toys, digger puzzles...all things digger!

He began talking very fast telling me things and asking me questions, all in a language I didn't understand. I had to keep telling him I didn't understand and he would repeat himself. A patient Ruth began trying to translate for him so I could get the basic gist of what he was saying. By the end of day 1 I had picked up several Korean words.

After playing Ruth and I started baking. We had talked of the internet about making cinnamon rolls, baking a cake and having yummy things to help us celebrate. I discovered that Ruth doesn't have an oven but uses a small convection oven on her counter top which she is now very proficient with, making bread in it every several days. We mixed up the dough and began rolling out cinnamon rolls. Then we baked bread. The afternoon turned into evening and there was still so much to do. The baking had to be halted as dinner (pizza from the dough we made) was fixed and we prepared a lunch to take with us on Saturday's morning adventure. Ruth taught me how to make Kim pop, rice and strands of egg, carrots and I don't remember what else spread out on a sheet of dried seaweed and then rolled up and sliced...just like a cinnamon roll.

Day 2- A friend of the family drove us to nearby Gyongju. Along the drive we enjoyed the beautiful cherry blossoms in full bloom. We took a walk to see a Buddha image. The air was crisp and I was wrapped in layers to keep warm. It felt good to be cool after having sweated for so many months in Bangkok. Next, we went to see the mounds where kings are buried. Like the native americans important people were often buried in hill sized mounds. We walked through a park full of these mounds. We ate the local sweets (some better than others in my opinion) and enjoyed the morning.

Day 3- Sunday was Ruth's birthday! After breakfast I gave her all the gifts I had brought for her. It included Thai curry pastes and spices, coconut milk and other things she requested I bring her. In addition, knowing she has a weakness for chips and salsa I gave her several bags of chips and bottles of salsa. I then showed her a photo book Cynthia, our little sister, was putting together for her and which she would receive by mail in a few weeks. It is a book including family photos of each of our 14 siblings.

We went to church and enjoyed lunch with the church members. Rice with a variety of toppers to choose from: kim chi, sesame leaves, and lots of other yummy side dishes to eat with rice. We shared our cinnamon rolls which were a hit and disappeared quickly. After church we headed home and baked up the birthday cake. That evening we were taken to some friends home where we celebrated Ruth's birthday and one of their friend's who had a birthday earlier in the week. Again there was a beautiful spread of food and lots of rice. It was all very delicious!! After dinner we brought out the 2 layer sponge cake frosted with whipping cream and topped with strawberries (we had to put toothpicks in the layers to keep them from sliding!). We sang happy birthday to the guests of honor and watched them blow out candles. It was a nice celebration...good food, good conversation, good friends.

Day 4- Joshua, Ruth's husband, teaches English at a local primary school. He invited Ruth and I to bring the kids to class and help him teach. We decided we would sing some songs the students knew, teach them some new words by showing them some items in Ruth's backpack and then play "I'm going on a trip to America and I'm taking...". Our presence caused quite an excited atmosphere! The students were so excited to have Jeremiah and Sarah in class. They touched, took pictures, squealed and touched some more. I'm afraid not much learning took place but we did have a good time playing and singing. After helping Joshua with grades 3, 4 and 5 Ruth and I returned home with the kids.

Day 5- Tuesday was a home day. Lots of playing with the kids, more Korean lessons for Elissa and English lessons for Jeremiah. By this time Jeremiah's English had greatly improved and he was trying so hard to figure out how to communicate with me. We had a great time! I had a fun day playing with Sarah and Jeremiah. Then I helped Ruth put some alphabet books together she printed off the internet. She planed to used these to start teaching Jeremiah the alphabet. Knowing the books were for him he was excited about the project.

Day 6- Wednesday was another fun play day and laundry day, and bread baking day and cleaning day. In such a small apartment there is no possiblity of waiting to clean so we are always cleaning as we go, washing dishes, sweeping the floor, picking up toys. A clean house makes the whole family happier!

Wednesday evening I babysat while Ruth and Joshua had some time out on the town, by themselves. The kids and I had a dance party, played on the playground, ate grilled cheese sandwiches and put together puzzles. A very lovely evening indeed. Jeremiah did such a good job of figuring out which english words to use to express himself when I didn't understand his Korean (which I was getting better and better at understanding).

Day 7- Thursday Ruth and I took the kids to nearby Pohang and roamed around the town. We walked up a shopping street and meandered through a large open air market. We ate a variety of local foods and snacks along the way. Ruth bought some nice scarves to spruce up her wardrobe while Jeremiah flirted with all the old women winning over their hearts and coming away with $4 he received as gifts, a bag of fruit and veggies and a number of admirers. That little boy steals hearts wherever he goes. One moment we'd be walking down the street, the next moment some man would sweep him up and hug and kiss him. He'd ask a vendor for a a taste of whatever they were selling (cookies, fruit, veggies, sweets) and he'd get it! Sweet little boy spreading sunshine wherever he walked. He'd always bow and say thank you in a very polite Korean manner.

Well, that's my trip in a nutshell...so much I left out (the delicious meals Ruth cooked up, Sarah's eardrum popping screams...both happy and sad and so much more). But I fear you are bored so I'll leave it there. But I should mention that Ruth is pregnant with #3 which is due just weeks before they move to China for Joshua to begin tackling a master's degree.

How lucky I feel to be part of a tremendous (both in size and in ability) family. And I'm grateful for the many people involved in my siblings' lives who befriend and help them while they are out of arms reach for family.