Category: Thailand/Southeast Asia

       Although I was sad to leave Elephant’s World, I knew that we still had two thirds of our trip to go. Our amazing adventures had really just begun. Arriving back in Bangkok and spending more time there revealed the diversity of the city, from abandoned buildings and trash, to pristine gardens and gorgeous skyscrapers. We had some extra time to explore two huge malls in Bangkok. The second mall had an outdoor food market where Ryan and I picked up some tasty local Thai food. It was kind of strange going straight from our rural living at Elephant’s World to a commercial mall in a massive city, but it was fun to see a new side of Thai life. For instance, once we finished our meals, Ryan and I looked around for a trash can. There was not one in sight. So we just held on to our trash and kept walking, hoping to come across one. Finally a man who looked like a janitor came up to us and asked if we were finished. I guess most people just leave their trash somewhere and wait for the clean up crew to find it. This was a major difference I noticed because at home people look down on littering. Walking around the mall we also noticed a lot of differences in food. Dairy Queen offered Green Tea flavored cones, McDonald’s advertised sweet corn as a topping on sundaes, and a grocery we wandered into was stocked with leechi juice.

      The next day was filled with activities, but we started off the day with a trip to Lumpini park. This park was beautiful, and very well maintained. I imagine it is somewhat similar to Central park because of the skyscraper buildings that surrounded it. Throughout the park there was exercise equipment like a normal gym would have except it was made out of the same material as outdoor playgrounds. I tried all the machines because it was fun, but I was also confused because previously I had thought that most foreign cultures don’t put as much emphasis on exercise, they just live healthier lifestyles. All throughout the park there were beautiful shelters styled to reflect asian culture. We even found a field with bushes that were trimmed to look like elephants. Our next stop was JJ’s Market which is a gigantic outdoor marketplace. We had to use the buddy system because all of the shops formed a labyrinth that was virtually impossible to navigate if you got distracted by something that caught your eye. The most shocking difference we noticed here were the prices. Everything was extremely cheap. I picked up two t-shirts that were only two dollars a piece. Thailand cuisine is known world wide, so being able to take a cooking class was really great. We learned how to make traditional pad thai, prawn soup, fresh spring rolls, green curry chicken, and mango sticky rice. Maybe now I can spruce up my regular meals I make at home with recipes from the cookbook we received.

    When we first arrived at Elephant’s World I wasn’t completely sure what we would be doing with the elephants, but by the end of the week I was left with an unbelievable experience that I will never forget. Ever since I was a little kid elephants have always had a special place in my heart as my favorite animal, but I had really only seen them in pictures and from behind fences at the zoo. At Elephant’s World we were literally side by side, up close and personal several times a day. The very first thing we did when we arrived was feed the elephants. I was lucky enough to pick one of the two baby elephant’s fruit baskets. It is funny because each and every one of the elephants has particular eating habits and favorite foods. We all eventually caught onto those preferences as the week progressed. One day when we were feeding them in the open field an elephant named Malee came up to me specifically because she remembered when I fed her a watermelon. Spending so much time with the elephants and working to gather food for them we learned how smart and gentle the elephants can be. It amazed me how trusting they can be even with their abusive pasts at trekking camps before coming to the sanctuary. Throughout the week we also bathed the elephants in the River Kwai with brooms and plastic pans/buckets. Whatever language barrier or disconnect stood between our group and the mahouts disappeared in the river. Everyone was fair game when it came to splashing and getting sprayed by elephants. Our guide at Elephant’s World, Chokdee, came to be a very close friend to our group. His troubled past as a refugee didn’t stop him from smiling and playing tricks on us while he showed us his favorite activities in Kanchanaburi. Dee, as we would call him, showed us just how nice and generous the people of Thailand can be. Going to these countries and actually getting to know individuals and families helps you to understand and enjoy their culture and lifestyle. So naturally when our week long stay was finished, they threw us a party. The mahouts and Dee grilled us some really tasty kabobs and encouraged all of us to celebrate our hard work and sing karaoke with them.

While we were at Elephant’s World we also got to meet several other world travelers. Many of the volunteers who stay at Elephant’s World for the whole summer were from all over. I met people from Spain, Switzerland, Holland, Germany, Canada, Myanmar, and multiple places in Thailand. I was really excited to speak to the people I met from Germany because I was able to practice speaking Deutsch which I spent five years studying in high school.

There are a little over seven billion people in the world. I don’t know about you, but I have a hard time imagining that many people.  Before this trip I never really gave much thought to that number. I just accepted it without any real comprehension. It seems any number involving several places quickly becomes just really big or really small depending on which side of the decimal point the digits fall. But traveling to what seemed like a whole other world opened my eyes to the diversity as well as the sheer size of our planet’s human population. Thailand was a journey within itself. We spent almost a full day hopping between three different flights, and I cannot imagine what it must have been like traversing the country without modern transportation. As I have mentioned before I have never travelled very far from my country, or my home, for that matter. So landing in Asia and seeing Bangkok for the first time was definitely a shock to my perspective. We arrived there at night, so all the buildings and streets were lit up. This was the largest city I had ever visited. There was a sky train for getting people from one part of the city to another. The enormous size just of this one city and the super long plane ride it took to get there made me think about how huge our planet really is. It gives you a whole new perspective and respect for community.

      Having taken Philosophy and Sociology last semester I was able to make a real life connection to the idea of globalization that is impacting our world in so many ways today. At sometime during the trip I remember Dean Ransom pointing out the use of US company names for other foreign business. The owners were hoping that the name recognition would grant them more trusting customers and overall more business. An example we saw was the GM Motel that had a strikingly similar logo to the American car company, General Motors.

    I like to call myself adventurous, mostly because I’m an Eagle Scout and I love the outdoors, but deciding to travel halfway around the world was a huge leap for me. I have a much more reserved and introspective personality than most. When I saw the poster for this Southeast Asian Adventure I instantly snagged a photo to read and think about the opportunity. That photo sat in my phone’s library for a very, very, long time. Ultimately, it was the night before I had to make a decision. Everything seemed to come together. I had no summer employment lined up. I love elephants, and the Dean of William’s Honors College was personally overseeing the trip. But still there was this feeling of uncertainty. After spending way too much time on the phone with my parents, to the point where we were both just sitting there in silence, I finally gave in to living in the moment. “I’m going to Thailand!” I yelled. The feeling of uncertainty and fear of the unknown that I struggled with became the theme of my adventure. Waking up not knowing what the day would bring was exhilarating and frustrating at the same time. Once I learned to embrace the unexpected and serendipitous, I found that my day got exponentially better. Going with the flow was part of the Thai culture.

     Looking back at my decision, I would never change my mind because of the relationships I built, the incredible places I visited, and the amazing experiences I enjoyed. Previously I never could have imagined myself exploring the ruins of an ancient Angkor civilization, bathing refugee elephants in the River Kwai, or sailing the waters through Bangkok.  My advice is not to be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. Don’t let fear prevent you from truly living the day ahead. It’s just like these words I found credited to T. Arigo, “The hardest thing to do is leaving your comfort zone. But you have to let go of the life you’re familiar with and take the risk to live the life you dream about.”

I still can’t believe I actually got to visit Southeast Asia—it’s been my dream for a long time. I’m even more astonished at how different I feel now that I’m home. In some ways, it’s been difficult. It’s not easy to return to your normal routine after almost a month of exploring and learning and moving! I keep myself busy, but few experiences are new. This is partially a complaint, but mostly, I’m grateful that this trip sparked such a craving for new experiences. I used to hide behind the safety of the known, but now I feel brave and capable enough to let myself live.

Traveling, especially somewhere so far and different from home, means pushing boundaries and trying new things. I’ve done so many strange and wonderful things that I couldn’t—and wouldn’t—have done in the US, and with relative success. As a result, my self-efficacy skyrocketed, which greatly impacts my life at home. I now understand that I can handle most tasks and situations—and more importantly, if I do make a mistake, it probably won’t end my reputation, career, or life. I feel pretty confident that if I want to do something, I can do it. It’s the stuff of motivational kid’s shows, but it took a pretty big adventure for the idea to resonate with me.

I find myself saying ‘yes’ to more things, approaching intimidating situations with a sunny outlook, and making fewer to-do lists with time restrictions. These are all gifts from a culture across the world, and I am so grateful.

The lessons I learned can’t be tested, only felt. In the eyes of many, this makes them less relevant, but I disagree. We go to school with a guarantee of learning hard, tangible skills, but are often left on our own to develop soft skills and a sense of personal and cultural awareness—that’s what makes experiences like this one so important.

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.”

-Mark Twain, The Innocents Abroad

 

Our time at Inle Lake was exciting from the very start, as we meandered through the
mountains and stopped briefly at a family-owned paper making shop. They demonstrated how to make paper from tree bark, and decorated it with local flowers. Then, they showed us how the paper is used as the fabric for handmade umbrellas. It was astonishing how quickly one man can create an umbrella from nothing but wood and paper. They also made journals bound with bamboo, fans, and lanterns. Then, we were dropped off at the pier, where we carefully stepped into longboats and sat back for a windy ride to our resort.

Where the river was narrow, the water was brown and murky. Shops and homes lined the riverbank, and people bathed, collected fishnets, and played in the water. As the river widened into a lake, the water became blue and reflective, spotted with waterlilies and floating birds. Longboat fishermen delicately balanced on the tips of their boats, working calmly.

I couldn’t believe the beauty of our resort when we arrived. The whole complex is on stilts directly on the water. Each bungalow has a porch overlooking the lake, as well as windows that let in the view of the lake each morning—an unbelievable sight to wake up to.

Our first night, we walked a long way for dinner, and then relaxed on our own. In such a calm, quiet place, it only seemed appropriate to just sit and be still. The next day, we hired two boats to show us around the lake. Since Myanmar is so newly open to tourism, the boat drivers took us to places that were meant for tourists. The desire to preserve their rich culture from the new influx of tourists is understandable, and there seemed to be a silent agreement among the locals to do just that.

We saw a silk-weaving shop, where they showed us each step of the process and told us how certain designs, textures and shapes are created. Lotus silk is the most valuable fabric, because it is made from the strands inside the stem of a lotus flower. The strands are rolled into a thread, which is then dyed and woven. One scarf takes over 1,200 flowers to create. This form of weaving is unique to Inle Lake, and I was honored to be able to watch the process. Here is a video of a woman extracting and rolling the lotus fiber strands. It’s not my video, but it’s from the same shop.

We also got to see the creation of handmade, pure silver jewelry. They showed us how the metal is melted down, then rolled into logs which are shaved down to wire strands. A man was working meticulously on a silver chain. He hand linked and soldered each tiny link together. I was incredibly impressed, and actually ended up buying some earrings from the store—they’re my favorite purchase from Southeast Asia. The woman who sold them to me was so caring and maternal—she helped me put the earrings on and everything—which gives them even more value.

That evening, we rode back to the resort alongside a stunning sunset. We could see that it was raining up ahead, but it missed us, and instead we witnessed an absurdly picturesque rainbow above the mountains.

Bagan is an archeological zone in the Mandalay region of Myamar, bursting with history and culture, due greatly in part to its thousands of stupas, pagodas and temples in Old Bagan. Our first day, we hired horse-and-buggies to transport us from place to place. This is a more traditional mode of transportation, although motorbikes are becoming rapidly more popular. We visited quite a few pagodas and temples, but the most memorable one was probably the first. We climbed, bent over, up a tiny staircase to the top level of the pagoda. The view was so breathtaking, we sat silently in reverie for what felt like an hour. There were stupas dotting the earth all the way out to the horizon, and surely beyond. Photos couldn’t quite capture the sight, but I did try. I wanted to remember the view, and the feeling it gave me.

We also stopped in to a lovely family-owned lacquer shop, ‘The Golden Cuckoo’, where the owner took us through each step in the process of making a lacquer product. It is an extremely detailed, lengthy process. First, bamboo strips are coiled or woven into the desired shape. Then, layers of lacquer are applied and then sanded. The men in the shop then design the patterns, and the women fill in the more intricate details. Colors are carved and applied one at a time until the piece is finished. Each step takes about 2 weeks to dry completely, which means that some pieces can take eight months, or more! The result is an extremely durable, lightweight work of art.

Our second day in Bagan was much less structured and guided, because we rented e-bikes for the day. This way, we could freely explore the city and stop whenever we saw something interesting—which was quite often. I happen to have a strong aversion to two-wheeled vehicles of any kind, so I compromised with myself by hopping onto the back of a friend’s bike. It was exhilarating to face my fear, and doing so meant I got to see a whole lot more of Old Bagan than I would have on foot. In fact, it ended up being one of my favorite days on the trip! We got to fully surrender to the laid back, unplanned lifestyle of Southeast Asia, and it meant we got to ‘discover’ each temple and stupa with a fresh mind.

It was a good thing the beginning of our day got us adjusted to that laid back attitude, because the second half of the day was full of bike breakdowns as we each ran out of battery on separate occasions. Serendipitously, each breakdown left us in a spot so beautiful, we didn’t mind waiting for  the bike owners to come rescue us. It added even more sights to our long list for the day, but not a single item on the list felt like an obligation. Everything fell into place and each moment was blissful. It’s pretty special when a bike breakdown (or five) feels peaceful.

Wow! Visiting the Temples of Angkor was like standing in a movie, or going back in time. Our first stop of the day was the iconic Angkor Wat, of course. I was surprised to see that the temple looked just as grand as it did in photos I had seen—in fact, it looked far more impressive in real life. Angkor Wat was less ruinous and crumbly than the temples we saw later in the day, which made it difficult to grasp the ancientness of the structure. It’s hard to imagine people building such a humongous, intricate place, stone by stone.

 
Steep stairways made for a dizzying climb to the upper levels of the temple. We had to climb using our hands and feet as if it were a ladder, not a staircase. The steepness of the stairs represents the pathway to heaven and enlightenment—an architectural reminder that getting there is difficult, and must be earned. There were offerings of flowers and incense scattered throughout the temple to honor and thank the Buddha. Many people stopped to pray on colorful mats in front of the larger Buddha statues. I received a red bracelet from a monk in the temple, who tied it in multiple knots while chanting a blessing of good luck.

Exploring Angkor Wat was tiring, especially on one of the hottest days of our time in Southeast Asia. But, using the need to rehydrate as an opportunity to try something new, we bought coconuts and drank the water. I’m a fan of coconut water here in the US, but nothing compares to the cool sweetness of the stuff straight from the source!

After Angkor Wat, we made our way to the Bayon, a temple known for its hundreds of stone carved faces. Historians still dispute the identity of these faces—all 216 depict the same person. Some believe the faces portray King Jayavarman VII, while others think they are images of the bodhisattva of compassion, Avalokitesvara or Lokesyara.

The Bayon amazed me even more than Angkor Wat because it somehow felt more ancient. The preservation of the carvings was still remarkable, but the structure itself was more worn down. I also enjoyed that the temple left plenty of space for open air. There were very few walls that closed you off from the outdoors, evoking a freer feeling than I experienced at Angkor Wat.

The final temple we visited was Ta Prohm (yes, the temple from Tomb Raider). Since the decline of Angkor, nature has slowly reclaimed its dominance, weaving giant trees in and out of the man-made structures. This temple had a more guided, linear progression than the Wat or the Bayon.

Rediscovering my photos, I’m in disbelief that my feet really stood in these ancient places. It doesn’t seem real, and yet the imposing structures of stone could not be more firmly tangible, having withstood thousands of years. If reality is measured in time, then the temples we visited are realer than me, or anyone else who wanders through them.