The fifth day of the TLC Pagodas trip began with the screeching roosters as the sun rose above the Chang Dao village. After a breakfast consisting of not so traditional Thai food such as toast, marmalade and milo, we continued building the existing structure of the house. As the day went on, the 30 of us became exhausted and slowly we shifted our focus on playing with the local children.
Despite language barriers, the Pagodas and the village kids were able to play together through universal games and sports such as soccer, thumb wars and tag. It has been observed that the kids of the village are given a lot of freedom due to the safety of the surrounding communities. To our advantage this has allowed us to explore and understand the culture and environment of the Chang Dao region. Seeing how happy the children are despite how little they have has made us realise how lucky we are and made us truly grateful. Simple items such as a ball can bring smiles to the underprivileged kids of the village and fulfil them with excitement for hours on end. Luckily a few of us Pagodas play soccer on the odd occasion and were able to give the locals a challenge.
We began building at 8:30am to get the most out of the day. With a slow start, we gained momentum and powered through the construction. The Pagodas split into 3 “teams” to maximise efficiency – cement mixers, brick layers and go-fers. As the walls gained height, scaffolding was put up so that we could continue to lay bricks to the roof. Although at first it felt like a “Worksafe” ad, the unorthodox work environment proved to be effective and trustworthy. Noticing the progress of the house, and remembering the reason why we were building, gave us the motivation to continue on. Knowing that our efforts would give a family a solid home was truly inspirational. Our two guides, Hung and Mr. Chan, provided valuable experience and advice as we worked together. Certain unexpected individuals went above and beyond on what was expected of them. By the time all the tools had been dropped, it was obvious our efforts had paid off and the sense of achievement was felt heavily amongst the group.
After a filling dinner, we got to witness and immerse ourselves in more of the traditional Thai culture. Whilst wearing their cultural clothing, the local kids and families treated us to performances including music and dancing around the campfire. After their performance, we played a game between the local people and us which resulted in someone of either culture singing a short song. We heard the children sing beautiful Thai songs, and we sang Aussie nursery rhymes, including baa baa black sheep in return.
Now that we have experienced a proper understanding of rural Thai culture, the group has come to appreciate the importance of building a home for the people of the village. We will continue tomorrow to finish our building of the house, and must sleep early, as we heard to chickens can wake us up at a very early time.
Sarah and Heff
