Day 6 Chiang rai and house build
Today the sound of roosters woke us up to our last day of work in the village as we were near finishing the house that we started the two days previous. Everyone worked extremely hard to finish the community project as the group wanted the house to be handed over completely finished so that there was no need for the locals to complete the construction. As we neared the end of the construction, the group came together to show persistence and teamwork in a way we all had never seen before. As we all became tired, we created a human chain to transport concrete for the floor from one side of the workspace to the other. This was great to see as we worked efficiently and hadn’t experienced this co-operation within the group. The family expressed their deep emotion and gratitude towards the group for building their new home for their family. Even though the handing over of the house ceremony was small it was humbling to us and very meaningful to the family. The family was so overwhelmed they didn’t know what to say. They thanked us graciously and we gave our kind regards. The village people were also grateful for the donation of 5 pigs. The group contemplated buying a cow for the village, however the village community would benefit more from pigs and also feel more confident in raising them, as this community farmed corn and pigs.
After the ceremony we left to go to the closest restaurant, which was 40 minutes from the village and ate lunch. We then continued along our trip on a four hour bus ride to Chiang Rai. We arrived at Wangcome hotel and was very thankful for the comfortable beds and warm showers. This allowed the group to understand how grateful and fortunate we are to be living in Australia and to have access to resources such as running water, beds and having a formal education. After refreshing ourselves we headed out to have dinner at the local Chiang Rai night markets. This was very pretty, although much smaller than Chiang Mai. The trees were covered in fairy lights and on the stage there was a silver temple which set a lovely atmosphere and gave us an insight into the small amount of Chiang Rai we get to see while on our journey. This night market also gave people another opportunity to hone our bargaining skills that we created in Chiang Mai. We’re looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow (for the first time yet!) and enjoying a buffet breakfast as well as continuing the trip to Chiang Khong.
-Zara C and Dante S
