The Days of Yore

People come to Southeast Asia for many reasons. White beaches, tropical weather, wonderful food, friendly people and also a bit of history. We came to Thailand for different reasons but before leaving we both wanted to check out a little place that we had heard good things about for a chance to experience a bit of what the region was like hundreds of years ago. It is easy to get a bit templed out in Thailand since there are so many new and old ones in nearly every city you visit. We had both found the history and ruins of Ayutthaya interesting but were felt that a few months in between this historical park and that of Sukothai would be a good break and allow us to appreciate it even more. So with just a few days in Thailand left we decided to hit up Sukothai on our way out.

Sukhothai is known as the 'first' kingdom in Siam and was first established in the 1238. The kingdom eventually was absorbed by the Ayutthaya kingdom in the 1438 and lost much of its influence in the region. People continued to live here until the 1800's or so but much of the temples and structures were taken over by the forest and it was not until the early 1900's that the Thai government recognized the importance of the history that this region held. Many of the ancient structures were renovated and the area was eventually declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with two other nearby cities.

Today many tourists, both Thai and foreign alike come to view and wander around the pleasant surroundings that these historical parks offer. It is not as well visited as Ayutthaya since it is farther from Bangkok but in many ways the park makes for a more pleasant visit since the sun is not quite as intense, the area is much more shaded and the structures are just as fantastic. Since the area was also not attacked like Ayutthaya was by the Burmese, many of the structures are also more intact and picturesque. That being said both parks were worth a visit if just for a chance to imagine what live must have been like hundreds of years ago in these ancient kingdoms.

We only had two days to spare in our jam packed schedule and arrived early in Old Sukhothai (the nearby New Sukothai is actually a larger city where many guesthouses are located but we elected to stay closer to the sites). We checked into a room, had a quick breakfast and rented cheap bikes for the day. As we started to ride around we noticed many birds flying overhead and we discovered that this temple sightseeing excursion could also be combined with our birding interests. Since we had entered a new region of Thailand many of the birds were new ones for us so this was indeed a great discovery.

Our hours were whiled away taking in the amazing structures that had been built in a time before we could even imagine. The many different styles of the temples spoke to the different influences that had affected the people here (Khmer from Cambodia as well as Sri Lankan and Burmese influenced architecture). We biked around and enjoyed the park-like setting of Sukhothai where green lawns and lily filled ponds were interspersed with ancient laterite structures (the major stone used in building) and staring Buddha images. We seemed to have the place to ourselves (being the non-tourist season) and this made this spot even more enjoyable.

By the end of the day we had seen enough Buddhas to make our heads spin, the most impressive being a huge reconstructed image at Wat Si Chum which sits at about 12 meters high located within its own little cubicle. As to why many of the Buddhas have their own little cubicle I am not exactly sure but perhaps each Buddha image needs a bit of time to itself. We also visited a nicely put together museum with many artifacts and you guessed it: more Buddha images. I would like to hear how many Buddha images there are in Thailand. The task for that would certainly be a life long occupation for many.

By the end of the day we were pretty pooped but had successfully seen most of the 'significant' sights of Sukhothai and had bagged a number of new life birds as well. Not a bad day at all.

The next day we decided to rent a motorbike and head to another UNESCO World Heritage Site about 60 kilometers away. It too was an ancient city from the Sukhothai kingdom but we had heard that this place was a bit different and worth a look as well. After a bit longer ride than expected we arrived at another ruin strewn landscape. It was certainly different and worth the ride. The ruins were more visually striking in some respects and the whole area was interlaced with forest rather than wide grassy meadows.

We constantly asked ourselves how a place could have been a thriving population center and then abandoned for hundreds of years to be taken over by the forest. It is a bit mind boggling. Many of the structures were 'rediscovered' in the early 1900's and since then the Thai government has done their part to restore and preserve this historical area. In my mind this is quite forward thinking that began quite a long time ago.

Again these ancient ruins offered us with some amazing sights and a bit to ponder. This landscape also offered us another birding opportunity as forest near the temples was being used by thousands of waterbirds for a roosting sight. A huge area was being utilized by a number of species of huge majestic birds and this once again offered us another great diversion from temple viewing.

After our short two days of taking in the ruins we were again on our way. Our next stop would be another national park for you guessed it: more birding. We would enter northeast Thailand, the fabled Isaan, where the cooking is supposed to be fantastically spicy and the landscapes breathtaking.

Another River Trip

Our last few days along the border were filled with some good times. We were given a proper farewell and a bit of closure is always nice. We had two amazing meals: a Burmese soup with chicken and and quail eggs and delicious rice snacks at Laura's organization and one of our favorite dishes in Thailand (their version of sukiyaki or a sizzling hotpot with meat and vegetables). We were showered with unexpected presents as a sign of gratitude for sharing our time with the people here. It certainly was a great way to end our time and we were even given handmade traditional clothing which the ethnic group that we were working with wears. This was a truly heartfelt present and the best that we could think of. Perhaps not so practical to be worn in the USA but a gift which will be treasured.

After our final goodbyes we left on a bus on a rainy day heading south. Our destination was the Salawin River. This is one of the most important rivers in Burma and for now is also the longest undammed river in Southeast Asia. It is one of the most biologically diverse rivers in the region and provides a livelihood for the many people that live along its shores. It will not stay undamned for long however as agreements have been made to dam the river in numerous places in order to supply power to Thailand and for the new capital of Burma. This has been a highly controversial issue and many Karen and other ethnic people inside Burma where the dams are to be placed have been forcibly relocated. The military has come through destroying many villages, raping and pillaging along the way and offering no reinbursement for the relocation. This has caused many villagers to flee to Thailand or live out a miserable nomadic existence in the jungle. All in all a pretty horrible situation.

The Salawin forms the border with Thailand for only about 100 miles but there is a large national park that has been set up here and we wanted to check out the life on the river as well as do a little birding. We had stopped at the park a few weeks ago but unfortunately did not actually visit the river and only had a chance to walk through some of the nearby forest. We had heard about an interesting village that laid on the banks of the river and also a river trip to a nearby town which sounded fun. A Thai doctor on one of our visits to the hospital had told us that the birding on the river was decent as well so we were excited about the prospects.

We arrived in the town of Mae Sariang a bit too late to catch a truck to the river village and the weather was not too great anyway so we decided to bed town in this cute river town (not the Salawin but a much smaller tributary) for the night. We awoke the next morning to relatively clear skies and jumped on the first truck to Mae Sam Lap, the aforementioned Salawin river town. The scenery along the ride started with pleasant rice fields in the valley but soon changed to thick forest in a hilly landscape and unfortunately the change in scenery was accompanied by a change in weather. The hills produced a rain that did not let up for the rest of the day. So much for that seemingly pleasant weather.

As we got closer to the Salawin, small houses along the roadside started to pop up. It was clear that many of the folks in this area were originally from Burma as Burmese seemed to be the ligua de franca of our fellow passangers and the longyis (the traditional Burmese sarong) was the favored clothing of those on the side of the road. We soon came to the bank of the river and noticed that the houses were packed in precariously along the steep slope. It looked as if any second they would tumble down the hillside but what do I know. Even in the rainy weather, this place was striking and memorable. I could only imagine why many of these people had fled their homes in Burma and decided to take up life on the river banks of the Thai side of the Salawin: for more trading options, to flee persecution, or otherwise.

We eventually arrived at our destination on the banks of the river where many boats plied the river to two nearby towns. We were not quite sure of what we wanted to do but we went to check with the local staff of the national park which had an office just outside of the village. At first we thought of staying in the nice bungalows that were offered here to both bird around the river and get a bit more exposure to the life around town. When we told them our interests in birding though, they told us that it would probably be best to head upriver to stay near the town of Ta Tha Fang. So with a bit of the help we looked for a boat heading upriver and waited a few hours as the rain continued to intermittingly drench the village.

While waiting for the boat, many interesting characters came up for a small chat. I am always amazed by the quality of English spoken especially along the border. One young Karen (a large group of indigenous people which lives both in Burma and Thailand) told us that he had learned English in one of the nearby refugee camps. This is interesting since he is not a refugee and was in fact born in Thailand but it seemed like he was putting the skill to good use. A Karen tour guide who was leading two French tourists around the area asked if we wanted to join his tour. When we said that we did not he was unexpectedly not pushy at all and actually helped us quite a bit in giving pertinent information about our own plans. It is so nice to be in places which are a bit less touristed. It always seems that the people are nicer and more helpful.

After about two hours, a boat was finally heading upriver and we jumped on board. Luckily the rain held out for our half hour boat trip on this majestic, muddy river. The banks were lined with sand banks and beautiful rock formations as well a number of birds. We arrived at the national park field office and quickly jumped off the boat and settled into our nice little room. No one else was staying here and it looked as if it had been awhile since anyone had. The facilities at Thai national parks have absolutely amazed me. They are nothing short of phenomenal, especially compared with say the Philippines (where they are virtually non-existent). Some Thai parks do charge a bit exhorbantly for foreigner admission fees but it certainly seems like these fees are being used appropriately.

After settling in, we decided to head into the small nearby village to see if there was anywhere to eat. We had brought our own supply of instant noodles but wondered if there was a bit more on offer in town. Our walk was accompanied by the rain and it was not a very fruitful effort as no food was found. But the little village was cute and the surroundings were eye-pleasing. After a little wandering we found our way down to the banks of the river and the birding here proved to be decent. It was interrupted a few times by the rain but we hung out here for about an hour or so with delight.

Then the afternoon rain set in and we decided to head home. We made the fateful decision to take a different route than we had come by and head along the river. It seemed logical since our accomodation was on the river that we would quickly make our way back. We figured that it could not be too far away. We were wrong though and found that while the path started off very clear and easy to follow, it soon headed into the forest where we got a bit lost just a few times. It turned out that the trek along the river which we thought would be a short jaunt turned into a bit of an afternoon adventure. We were just about to give up and head back the way we came when the national park lodging finally came into sight. We had started to see visions of hiking in the forest at night or even worse but our intuition that if we followed the river we had to come to our lodging was correct. It just took a bit longer of hiking through pouring rain in a muddy forest than expected. But all in all no harm done and just another afternoon adventure in the books.

Upon returning we changed out of our soaking muddy clothes and cooked up our instant noodles as well as a salad with some green mangoes that we had 'foraged' from a nearby plantation. When dusk started to settle in we were ravaged by misquitos and decided to head inside but this proved to be little better even in the closed and screened off room. After dinner we settled in for a restless night filled with some of the most hardcore misquito biting ever experienced.

Unfortunately the weather did not want to cooperate. We got about an hour of decent birding in before the sky opened up and just would not quit. After an hour or so of trying to wait out the storm we decided to call it a day and hit the road. We packed our things and caught the next boat out. It had been a nice park filled with a bit of adventure and some decent birding which could have been much better if the weather had been nicer. But our schedule was tight and the rain had gotten the better of us so we decided to move on. We headed back to Mae Sariang and then to Chiang Mai and eventually to Sukothai. We were on our way back into the heart of Thailand for some more temple adventure.

On The Road Again

Well the time has come once again to say goodbye and get a move on. We have had an amazing three months here in this little pleasant corner of Thailand and it has afforded us some great opportunities. Who knows if our time here will have had much impact on our students or the others that we have come into contact with but it has impacted us for certain.

As I have said before it always seems that you get a hell of a lot more out of volunteering abroad than you are able to give back. Funny how that works. It makes me often think that I am a bit selfish for living life this way: enjoying this way of seeing the world but often disregarding family and friends and connections back home and realizing that I am not having as much impact as I could say working on issues back in the US. But I realize that this way of life makes me happy and it suits me well. So I will continue. Sure you do not make much money, but who needs money anyway?

It is sometimes hard to leave a place that you have come to know as home, even if only for a month or two. A place that tugs on your heartstrings a bit and fills you with delight. A place such as our little corner of Thailand where we had the opportunity to learn a little bit about what life in Burma is like. A place that offered us some peace and calm and offered a chance for serious contemplation and reflection after months of constant traveling. But perhaps we have gotten too used to our nomadic lifestyle for we are both itching to move onto our next adventure.

Or perhaps it is because of our anticipation of new adventures ahead. A chance to continue our journey and learn more but this time inside Burma. The people that we met along the border helped us gain a little glimpse of what life is like but we thirst to know more. So after a bit of contemplation on whether or not to take the plunge and visit, we decided to go ahead. Some may condemn us for this decision as we are 'supporting' the regime by giving a few of our dollars to them but this is a trip for us about learning a bit more about this land. We will try our best to keep our money out of the hands of the government and do our best to take the time to meet the people of Burma. We will tell others about our experiences and what we see and discover in this forgotten place. Our bags are packed and we are ready to go.

Unfortunately we will be unable to post our experiences in Burma on this blog for fear that things may be linked between our time along the border and our time in Burma. We would not want anyone we meet in Burma to be put at risk. We have tried to be as vague as possible with people, places, etc... along the border in case that any of our students should choose to want to go back to Burma at some point. We are perhaps taking extraordinary precautions and the chances of any link being made are small with the chance that anyone from the regime reading our blog also being small but being safer is for the best in this case we think.

So look for future installments on a different blog which will be revealed to friends and family through email. Sorry about this inconvenience. We will still be traveling a bit in Thailand before heading to Burma so look for future posts on this blog. Also we will resume blogging on this site when we enter Cambodia for another volunteer stint in August. So stay tuned and good night.

Life in the Burmese Boondocks

The other day I gave my students the following assignment: write a paragraph about what you like about Burma. I figured that so often people focus on what is wrong with Burma, that they lose sight of what is good. I could tell they were a bit confused at first, so I mentioned "Everyone says they always want to go back to Burma. Why do they say this?" Most of the responses to the assignment may as well have been taken from a tourism brochure. This was not exactly what I had in mind, but what could I do.

One student's story, however, I would like to share with you. She totally dismissed the assigned topic and instead decided to write about how the State Peace and Restoration Council (SPDC) has affected the little farming community where she grew up. I have only fixed some grammar, otherwise every word is her own.

My Village
My village is a pleasant place, which is surrounded by mountains. In our village, people live simple lives and most people are farmers. People don't have extra crops to sell, they only have enough food for their families. When the SPDC started the railway project in Southern Shan State it made the local people have a difficult life. They confiscated people's farms without offering the farmers compensation. Civilians' livelihoods were stolen and it created more unemployment and made it more difficult to survive. Many people couldn't get enough food and the village had more problems. There were more thieves robbing food for survival because most people depended on their farms. Local people not only lost their lands (farms) and they were forced to build the railway without food or salary. Sometimes they had to provide food for soldiers who supervised the work. If people didn't go to work for one day, they have to pay money for two days work, so people weren't absent. In addition, people had no way of earning an income. Therefore, people have insufficient access to food and famine was a part of people's daily existence.

A Day in the Life of Us

Well since most of our posts are about the interesting exploits of travel and adventure, I decided to put one up about our daily life here along the border. We are officialy teachers and so a decent amount of our time is devoted to you guessed it: teaching. We both teach English for about four hours every weekday. Those actually are not bad hours you may say. And you would be correct. They are not bad.

That leaves us the rest of the day to explore other things. It may seem that we have tons of time to ourselves for relaxation but it is amazing how times flies. I seem to wonder everyday where the day has gone. Casey's organization was nice enough to give him his own computer with internet access for the time being so he has henceforth become addicted to it. He frantically checks emails hoping for some sort of communication, joins new networks and online communities, edits pictures and blogs, checks up on the happenings of the world, finds out new birding hotspot, learns about new travel and educational opportunities and numerous other things. He has vowed that he will pull himself away from it numerous times but he just cannot. Damn technology: it is just too interesting. It will actually be good for him to leave this place and once again no longer have instant access to the computer world. But in many ways it has been very nice for both Laura and he to once again become connected to a larger community and learn about some of those things they have missed in the past few years. But three months is enough. We soon be heading to Burma and will re-enter our own little happy world of ignorance and disconnect.

We also have time to enjoy the beautiful environs of own cute little mountain town. It is just gorgeous here and the weather has for the most part been pretty spectacular (save a few weeks with cough inducing and eye burning smoke). It has been fairly dry and the temperature has been splendid. Now we have entered the rainy season but even the weather now is more agreeable than the rainy season that we experienced in the Philippines and elsewhere.

Just about every afternoon Casey drags Laura along for a bit of running in our community through rolling hills and we are met with many smiles along the way. There is a cute little river which runs past our community and this is used by many locals and we have spent a few lazy afternoons here in little huts set up for relaxation. This may even be where Laura got her Staph infection. It is only about a thirty minute walk into town and sometimes we go in for a bit of exploration or an evening meal by lakeside. It certainly is a cute low-key town.

This area has also proven to be an amazing birding spot. Many mornings, especially on the weekends, are spent just walking around looking for our feathered friends. I cannot imagine what our neighbors think as they see the crazy white people wandering around searching in the air with binoculars. Are they trying to look in our houses? Are they some kind of spies? But it seriously has been a joy living in such a birdy place (certainly better than the Philippines). We have made a few ventures further afield, passing by many cute mountain villages along the way and overall I can say that I really enjoy this little corner of Thailand.

There is certainly much to do, but we have also spent a lot of our time relaxing and talking about nothing in particular. It has been a great respite for us and also a time to plan for the future. We both have so many things on our mind and things that we want to do but for now we have been trying our best to enjoy our little hill village haven.

Putterin' About

On our last Sunday before ending our time teaching, we decided to do a little birding (surprise!).

We arose with the sun and set of to a famous cave which is a nice little haven. We had tried birding here before, but our timing was off and we were smoked out. This time, we hoped not to be rained out as we went ahead with our plans with clouds looming overhead.

Our destination was within the boundaries of one of Thailand's many national parks and is a little retreat with a very small cave (as one tourist asked us..."where's the cave, I didn't see it?"), nicely manicured lawns and a short nature walk. The cave itself and the nearby stream is inhabited by many large fish who are feed by weekend visitors and guarded by an interesting Buddhist statue clothed in a leopard skin robe. Strolling around with our binoculars at first we didn't find anything. Just when we thought the day was for naught, we were overtaken by a large bird wave. In about 5 minutes we had identified about 10 species. Joyously, we decided to continue our journey a few kilometers away at the headquarters for the national park.

We had just discovered this place on a large tourist map at the cave and decided to check it out. It was out of the way and obviously not well visited as when we arrived the office staff's first question was did we mean to go to the cave instead. We meandered along a little trodden footpath through thick forest and bamboo stands. We were amazed at the forest in this area as it seemed to be real jungle, something we had not seen around these parts. Soon, the trail disappeared under the bamboo stands and so we headed back the way we came. We were trying to practice our forest birding skills, which are basically non-existent, but the occasional showers and thick forest wasn't too conducive to bird identification.

The clouds continued to threaten us and Lora was tired so we were planning on heading back to our village, but as we came to the road we decided to turn right instead of left. The road to the right looked inviting. It was a wandering length of highway nestled in a narrow valley that held a churning stream. The mountains above were thick with bamboo and the valley was highly cultivated. It was a charming spot and so we pressed on. We had no idea where we were headed, but we had the whole afternoon ahead of us to explore.

We zipped along the little highway past the lychee laden bamboo baskets ready to transport the fruit into town, through the village and under a sign that read "checkpoint for locals" or something to that affect. It was at this point we realized: we must be on a road to Burma! Since no one bothered the stop us, we decided to head straight through the quaint village and up the thickly forested mountains. Awed by the ever-increasing greenery around us we suddenly realized that we were beginning to hear birds chirping once more. This was a little odd since it was the middle of the day, usually not prime time for birding and the weather was wet, also not the best for birds. Yet, there sounds were unmistakable.

We began halting the motorbike often in search of birds in the nearby trees. We became thrilled as we realized what a wonderful place we had discovered and a bit sad that we had not stumbled across it sooner.

Let's just say that we were in heaven gawking at both birds and nature.

The road kept winding up and we with it. I can't tell you just how amazed at the scenery we were. We didn't know forest such as this existed in Mae Hong Son where everywhere else the hills looked dry and overrun by stands of bamboo. But this looked entirely different. It was green and lush and I was beginning to understand how some people could refer to it as a jungle instead of a forest. I began to imagine elephants and tigers inhabiting the steep slopes.

When we reached the top of the mountain, we realized we were not yet in Burma. Not that we thought it would be that simple to jet across the border. We did notice a large signboard on the opposite side of the hill and thought that it just may be the border crossing. We zoomed down the mountain, stopping only for some birds and came across a large sign telling us we were in the soft-zone of Thailand. We wondered what this could mean, but decided to keep going as all the buildings were deserted. Soon we noticed that the road simply led up another hill and although we are keen on adventure, it was getting late. We were just considering heading back when a truck drove by in the opposite direction and subtly motioned we should follow them and continue no further. Perhaps it was because we were a little to close to Burma for I had a feeling that the soft zone meant disputed territory along the Thai-Burma border. So, then perhaps we could say that we made a third trip to the other side :)

What We Do

As our time here along the border winds down, I thought it would be good to reflect on what we have done here. For the past three months we have settled down from our fast paced traveling lifestyle while in SE Asia and actually got a job. Well I guess it is a bit different than a job. We don't actually get paid and only work about 4 hours a day so I am not exactly sure what you would call this. But we are working nonetheless. It is perhaps different and less exciting than our traveling life, but it has been interesting on many other levels and very worthwhile. Some days are slow but this slowness has been a welcome change to the hectic traveling schedule in the rest of Southeast Asia.

Many may wonder what we do in our volunteer job. Both of us teach two English classes a day. The number of students in our classes have fluctuated with time, as folks float in and out of our organizations or as others are invited unknowingly into our classes. This constant fluctuation does not always provide for the easiest teaching experience but such is life. Neither of us have that many students. Right now we are both down to about 6 students scattered in both classes. This provides for lots of individual attention but does make some activities such as games difficult especially with shy students. Certainly one thing which is nice is the undivided attention that most of the students pay us and the respect that we are shown. We basically have no problem with control in the classroom and do not have to worry about reprimanding, as is the case in most Asian nations, where the teachers are much like a God. I like being like a God. Sure it is good to question authority and maybe a bit more free thinking would be welcome in the classrooms in Asia, but I do not think I could handle teaching an out of control class in the United States.

The teaching takes up our mornings and overall it has been a very positive experience. Our students all seem eager to learn at least on the surface which is nice. They have all made progress in the past three months. Certainly some could have worked a bit harder and showed some more initiative but that is the same with most students around the world. It has been easy and enjoyable, and in fact much more so than I had originally pictured. All in all I do not know how much of an impact we have really made and how much we have accomplished as far as the overall goal of our placements here. The purpose of our teaching was intended to build the capacity of the members of the organizations to more effectively communicate in English. Supposedly with better English skills, these organizations could work to better the situation of people both inside Burma and along the border. Theoretically they should be able to get the message out to the international community more effectively about the situation in Burma as well as work with international organizations who assist them with projects in the area. Sometimes we wonder if we have really helped in that purpose much at all. Granted three months is not really a long enough time to have much of an effect but we also sometimes wonder about the effectiveness of the organizations where we work.

As with all organizations, there are the little things that always make you wonder. Laura's organization is composed of mainly young women with newborn babies and they devote much of their time to this (as is necessary) as opposed to providing services to the community. These are young women too (even younger than us) and while they do have some interesting experiences, we are not always sure if they are entirely dedicated or motivated to do NGO work. The fact that they are migrants here and have to deal with all of the Thai policy bullshit of such a status certainly does not help this situation. Casey's organization on the other hand has an old dog who has been here for a long time and who has many connections with international donors and local Thai authorities. The organization are fairly respected in the area and do some decent work but the capabilities of the staff here is also limited. This is compacted by the fact that the leader does not like to really give any power or responsibilities to his staff. He is the boss for sure and recently he kicked the most skilled person with the best ability to communicate with international donors out of his organization due to a percieved power struggle. Ah yes. Life on the border.

That being said, these people are doing the best they can in a situation that is not an easy one. These people are outsiders without a country or a home and many have decided to try to devote at least part of their lives to helping their people. It may not always be done with the vigor or in the most appropriate way but who am I to judge. One of the most poignant things that sticks out for me is something that many of the people we have met here have said, "I want to go home as I love my country, but I will not do so until it is free." Many of the people have chosen to live here in a precarious position and work towards that freedom and that is good enough for me.

Life is never perfect but we hope that we have had at least a small impact on our organizations and helped them a bit. It is hard to do too much in a short time. Once again it has been a time that we have probably gotten much more out of than we have given back. It is interesting how volunteering works out in that way. We have had a number of interesting cultural experiences, tasted some of the best food in Asia (in our estimation), heard some great stories and met some great people. All in all, a big check in our books.