Hey everyone! Last week was my Launch for the World Race Gap Year, and I decided to make a video about my experiences of the week before I left for Thailand.
I have arrived to where I will be staying in Thailand for the next three months. I am in an outer village in the City of Chiyaphum, which lies in the middle of Thailand. We flew into Bangkok last Friday after a very long 48-hour travel day(s). The food here is just as spicy as you can imagine, and the people and smiling and peaceful. I am in falling in love with this place more and more each and every day.
While we were in Bangkok we learned the do’s and don’ts of the Thai culture, as well as how to navigate around a street market. Everything here is super cheap compared to the United States. For example, a soda is only 14 Baht, or 41 cents in U.S. dollars. Some of the actions that are offensive to the Thai people are showing the bottom of your feet (because the are considered “unclean”) and touching of the head (which is considered to be the holiest part of the body). Also, to say hello to someone, you bow with your arms and say “Sawassdee” followed by a “Ka” if you are female or a “Krap” if you are male.
On Saturday we drove four-and-a-half hours from Bangkok to our hosts, a couple named Raem and Nan, who live in the middle of Thailand. Raem and Nan have five children under the age of ten, and an adopted daughter who is seventeen. So far they have been very gracious to us, and I have taken a lot of photos. If you want to see some of the photos I have taken, go to the side menu and click SEE MY PHOTOS. IT has been down pouring consistently every day, hindering us from doing our soccer ministry at local schools. Instead, we have been going into Chiyaphum to markets and grocery stores, and we also got to work in our hosts Rice Fields.
Today I ate a whole chili pepper and wanted to rip my tongue off it was so spicy. Then a minute after Randy and I had eaten our pepper, Nan ate three of them and looked at us laughing because he was not affected by the heat. I do not understand how these people can stand that level of spice!!! I am in love with Thailand, and look forward to spending three months in it’s borders. Our house we are staying at has wifi, so expect me to be blogging at least once a week.
Below is a video of the car ride to the market my team’s first night in Chiyaphum.
