Author: chyde

We woke up for our third and final day of the house build. We all put on our working clothes drenched in concrete now dried onto our clothes. We sat down, ate breakfast and played the early morning away with card games and hot chocolate. The first group of builders began the long track to the build site to grab buckets before walking up to the temple to grab 40 buckets worth of sand. The rest of the group met up with each other at the build site and we began to work. 20 buckets of sand, a bag of cement and 25 buckets of pebbles. Before we knew it the first batch of cement was done and half the group began work of the verandah, whilst the other made up the next batch of cement. In only 2 hours we had finished the house that we had only started 2 days before. The feeling of accomplishment was absolutely incredible. The walls we’d built ten layers high, the floor we took all of the previous afternoon to painstakingly lay, smooth and flatten and the verandah with the cement still wet from the morning’s work. 

We had finally finished the house, and now the only thing we had to do was hand the house over to the family. We were all so overjoyed to see the excitement and happiness of the family as we handed over a fully completed house to them. It was one of the most special moments of the trip so far. Seeing the smiles on the grandparents, parents and children warmed our hearts. We also handed over some blankets, mattresses, food, and cooking supplies to the family for their new home. After handing the house over to the new family, we all freshened up and packed up. We were given a quick tour of the village and saw the local school. Our final task was to hand over some gift packages to forty local families. The packages contained; blankets, food, woks, buckets, cleaning supplies and everyday necessities that so many of us take for granted. We then had to say goodbye to the small village of the Plong People. We headed back to the bustling city, Chiang Dao and had a delicious meal of chicken, rice, vegetables and much more. Little did we know that we had a five hour bus ride ahead of us. 

After 6 and a half hours and an axle break we were finally at our hotel in Chiang Rai. We were so relieved to have running water and warm showers that we normally take for granted. After we had finally scrubbed off all of the dirt accumulated from the past three days, we could at last focus on our rumbling stomachs. We walked a block away through the night market and found an open courtyard restaurant, surrounded by the bustling markets, full of vendors and buyers. After satisfying our hunger with ginger chicken, coconut soup and beef stir fry we spilt into groups, and began our search around the market for food, clothes, and bracelets. After wandering around the market we finally re-grouped. After waiting a whole 136 seconds the teachers at last made the decision to come and join us. It was a great opportunity to have the power to fine each of the teachers 20 baht for each minute late, leaving each of them 40 baht shorter. We walked back to the hotel and relaxed when we saw a freshly-made bed and clean sheets. We’ll enjoy a comfortable rest tonight. 

Emma and Josh.R.

 
On the morning of Thursday, Day 5 of TLC Temples’ Big Experience, we were awoken by the sounds of roosters at the crack of dawn. Most of us decided to roll over and go back to sleep, while others had to deal with the sound of someone’s snoring. Eventually it was time for us all to properly awaken and trundle off to breakfast in the early hours. Once we had finished a very lethargic breakfast during which some people mixed up hot chocolate and coffee, it was time to recommence the build. With a short trek up to the build site, we regarded the work we had done so far- which we were proud to admit was quite a lot. We were determined to finish the rest of the walls and the flooring before dark, which we set to with vigour. 

After lots of blood, sweat and tears, we finally managed to place the last of the bricks of the walls. We all breathed a sigh of relief and headed off to lunch. We plonked our exhausted bodies at the table, ready for food. We had a brief lunch of noodles, during which a debate of whether they were spicy or not occurred. The group began to split up into two groups, one of which stayed behind and began to prepare the cement for the floors, while the other went to a football pitch and began a competitive tournament of soccer. After the football matches, though exhausted, we headed off to continue the build. 

For three hours straight we toiled under the hot sun and breathed in cement filled air. But it was worth it, as the group managed to complete the entire floor – no easy feat we must add. With jubilation, we raced off to have showers, washing off the day’s grit and grime in anticipation for dinner, a lovely affair, served with rice and several stir fried dishes. We stayed seated and prepared ourselves for a wonderful performance by the local Plong people to thank us for our hard work. There were many different songs and dances in which they wore their traditional tribal dress, which represented Plong bird people that were captured by humans long ago. During their dance we all joined in. When they finished with their fantastic show, we reciprocated with an impromptu performance of Vance Joy’s “Riptide” with Laura strumming chords on her ukulele. As such a long and exhausting day of hard work finished, we all collapsed into our beds and fell asleep. 

Scott & Steph  

Today was our last day for a delicious buffet breakfast at the Amora Thalea hotel. After eating breakfast, we checked out of the hotel and got on the buses ready for our adventure in the hill tribe region of Chiang Dao. After a quick stop for lunch and a quick shop at the local markets we hopped on to different songtaews (these are Thai-style open taxis that seat about 12 people) . Due to most of us not having much experience in less fortunate villages we were curious and nervous for we didn’t know what to expect.

First turning the corner to the village our eyes were exposed to many unique little huts made out of wood and cement engulfed in the green environment that surrounded. Most of us were surprised at how simplified these people’s lives were compared to our own. It made most of us realise how privileged and fortunate we were back in Melbourne. It’s hard to imagine the conditions these people are living in every day. Imagine having never seen the ocean or the city and imagine not being able to afford the simple things that we take for granted in life. When first entering the village we were welcomed by the village elder and his wife and began to learn what a typical day of someone living in this village was like.

After settling in to the village the real challenge of building a house was met. This was a great opportunity for our group to commit with our teamwork. At first, carrying the heavy equipment to the building site destroyed our arms but it was rewarding once the equipment was in place because we got to begin cementing. Being the first time ever cementing for most of us the work started off slow but once we got the techniques down pat the progress became quicker and more noticeable. Keeping in mind that this house was for a family of 6 in desperate need it kept us motivated and determined to keep on building. After 3 hours of hard work we were relieved to hear that our days work was over and dinner was soon. One of the highlights today was definitely the rice, vegetable and chicken curry. After dinner we were lucky to experience a performance from the elder and his wife and we even got to practise some of our beautiful singing. Hopefully, we get a good night’s sleep without being eaten by mosquitoes so we are ready for a big day to tomorrow.

Alex L and Jack

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A long and winding bus ride with magical views of the lush green hills of northern Thailand has ended at our hotel in Chiang Rai. We have had an amazing few days in the village and will tell you more about it in the following posts.

We have arrived safely at a remote Plong village in Mae Jeon near Chiang Dao. Our gloves are out and we are ready to build a house!

The wifi is really poor so we won’t be posting until we get back to Chiang Rai in a couple of days.

Everyone is happy, healthy, safe and looking forward to the next few days!

It was nice to have a bit more of a sleep in this morning before visiting an eco-village with several different ethnic groups. After a quick breakfast, we had a not-so-quick bus ride to the mountains north of Chiang Mai. The village is home to a range of hill tribes who found asylum in Thailand, after fleeing prosecution in a range of countries, including Tibet, China, and Myanmar (Burma). These groups were given a place to call home by the king on the condition that they were not to leave the valley of their new home and were educated in Thai culture. 

We hopped back on the bus for lunch at a beautiful orchid farm. Full of delicious food, we ventured further into the mountains to see the sacred Doi Su Thep hill. This temple is home to some of the remains of the Buddha in a magnificent golden pagoda. According to legend, the location was chosen when a chosen elephant left to roam came to its final resting place atop a hill. We climbed over one hundred steps up the magnificent dragon staircase to reach the temple, and were bedazzled by the vast array of intricately carved Buddha statues and the beautiful facades. A monk blessed us with holy water and bracelets of white twine. Buddhists believe that the twine calls back wandering thoughts, and keeps us protected from illness. 

Another bus ride through the lush, rolling hills brought us back to the city for dinner. We were wowed by the scale of the open-air venue with a unique, self-serve, self-cooked, smoky buffet barbecue. Here, we had the privilege of a wide array of meats and veggies to choose from, which we then cooked ourselves on charcoal hot plates. Although a culture shock, it was certainly a “big experience” filled with laughter and top notch cooking by our modest (and wonderful) selves. After filling our bellies, we made our way back to the hotel to pack for our next three days building a house in a village in Chiang Dao. 

Liam S and Emily D. 

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