Paradox

It's Friday afternoon and my introduction week is drawing to a close.  I had nothing less than a hectic week traveling all around central Thailand.  (Still can't believe I'm here sometimes.. wow!)  I saw ancient ruins, spectacular temples, played with monkeys and elephants, made new friends from all over the world and ate amazing Thai food.  I've learned about Thai customs, language, religion and history but I think it would be safe to say that during the past week I have learned the most while traveling to and from the various sites.  Sitting in the back of our truck has given me the opportunity to observe the real undisturbed Thailand.  It's raw, magical, beautiful and at times, sad.  Thailand in a word, is a place of opposites.  Thailand is a place where big box stores sit next to the local market stalls, shinny new cars wiz past a mother and her two children on a single scooter, Buddhist monks talk on cell phones, ornate and colorful temples stand in the middle of the harsh and dirty city.  Thailand is a country in two worlds at once, old and traditional yet at the same time new and modern.  I have so much to learn about this country and it's people, I wish I could give it more than the three months is deserves.  You could spend a lifetime here and not learn it all, but I guess that's true of anyplace.

Heading south to Bangkok for the weekend.  I will be on a tour with three girls from teaching program, Andrea from Australia, Avril from the UK who we are meeting in Bangkok and myself.  I am looking forward to spending some time in Bangkok since I was whisked away so quickly last weekend.  I'm also looking forward to getting to know the girls in my program better since I will be spending lots of time with them in the next couple months. They only have a boat and bike tour planned for us tomorrow so we will have plenty of free time to take in the craziness of Bangkok.

Love from Thailand
-Meg