Today was the first time our team got to travel to the project site (Ban thap laung school). When we arrived, all the school children were in their courtyard dressed in their uniforms equally eager to meet us as we were to meet them. After a quick introduction from the team the students were dismissed back to their classes. They made a grand exit with the eldest students playing drums and melodians. After which, we evaluated the contractor work and figured out which materials we needed. Then it was divide and conquer, one team handled concrete and the other pipes. Each team drove out about an hour while the concrete team was doing calculations with Dr.Ferron and evaluating aggregates, the pipe team was struggling through the intense heat trying to find the perfect materials (shout-out to our local Home Depot’s for having AC)!!! After completing our shopping, the team convened together at the church for some pick up basketball and to eat another delicious dinner. Although we were not able to acquire all the materials we planned for, we were excited to finally meet the project site and the adorable kids that attend the school! Thanks for reading!!
- Pooja
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Hi friends and family!! It has been a long trek, but we are officially blogging live from Bangkok, Thailand. Please bear with me because a lot has happened throughout the past two days and so this post may be slightly longer than usual! The team convened yesterday morning at the Bangkok airport where we were met by our NGO, Khem with big smiles and beautiful Thai garlands. After loading up our luggage, we drove to our hotel where we had just enough time to settle in before leaving to explore the local market right across from our hotel. The market was a new experience for the team, and we were able to experience countless new sights and smells…. Some more pleasant than others(: I think it’s safe to say the fan favorites were definitely the sticky rice and the fresh mango! After eating as much as our stomachs could handle, we decided to really immerse ourselves in Thai culture by getting Thai massages. Overall it was a very relaxing experience that left most of the team feeling rejuvenated and ready to get to work. Later that evening Dr. Ferron arrived, and we finished the night eating at a local fish restaurant. Because the menu was written entirely in Thai, Khem ordered for the table. This meant two things: first, there was enough food to feed a small country, and second, we were able to try ALOT of new food. We stuffed our faces and called it a night relatively early. Day 2 began with a presentation at Mahidol University. We met with the students and professors from the ICT department of Mahidol. They introduced us to the tremendous things the university is doing all over the country! Mahidol’s motto is “wisdom of the land,” this could be seen through all the incredible advances that the university has been making in all fields such as technology, medicine, and engineering! We have the fortune or working with two Mahidol students on site for our project. Their names are Pim and Rin! They’re both first year students and are so excited to be spending the next few weeks with us! We stopped over at Home Pro to gather some materials for our project and some community engagement supplies, such as soccer balls and jump ropes!
We were welcomed at the church by many members of the Don Klang community, including Pastor Mike, Khun Dar, Teacher Jummy, the principal of the school, and a few other teachers! It was great to finally put faces to names! We had a delicious traditional Thai dinner at the church with the community! We feasted on curry, pad thai, fish, chicken wings, cake, and a huge variety of local fruits like mangosteen and rambutan. At the church we have three separate bedrooms: one for the girls, one for the boys, and one for Dr. Ferron. Day 2 has been incredible despite the fact that there are a lot of bugs in Thailand! Thanks for reading! Until tomorrow, Julie and Aleesha |
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