1. Being served boiled chicken blood at meals. Gross…
2. Spirit houses in all the front yards. Thai people believe that by leaving food and drink offerings in the houses they can appease the spirits of the dead.
[Spirit houses]
3. Singing the first verse of “Joy to the World” at least seven times because we had forgotten the rest of the verses but were expected to continue singing.
4. Seeing “ladyboys” everywhere. On the street, in class and even in the girls bathroom.
5. Squatty potties without toilet paper. Apparently toilet paper is a rare species around here.
6. Receiving a Thai name. It means orchid.
7. Fat dogs. In Central America I hardly ever remember meeting a well-fed dog. In Thailand they are everywhere.
8. Yummy food. I was never really a fan of Thai food in the States, but Thai food is so good. There is rice, noodles, fresh vegetables/fruit, meat, and tea. Some of my the team tried bugs (crickets, spiders, beetles and grubs) but I chose to abstain. Some things should not be consumed. 🙂
9. Cold weather. It’s been cold enough for a jacket and sleeping bags. Sure didn’t see that coming. My team and I were expecting to be hot and sweaty for most of the Asian countries.
[This is Nam. He and his wife Raem, served as our hosts for the month]
10. The Thai word for crazy is ding-dong.
11. Teaching about God in Buddhist schools. At every school we taught at, we were welcomed with open arms and allowed to share about Jesus. At one of the schools, after an afternoon of teaching, my team were presented with beautiful scarfs (pashmina for the girls, plaid for the boys).
[One of our students]
