URBAN DOMAIN 2024

This morning, most of us were woken up at 6:30 by the lovely chorus of roosters. To begin the morning, we were all given a delicious Thai breakfast (French toast and pineapple), although, all we could think about was finishing off the house (and having showers). The last few hours and final touches of finishing the house was hard for us all; however, the exhaustion was completely overpowered by the positive atmosphere and the determination to finish. We only had a little bit of the floor and the concrete border around the house left to do.

After we had finished building, it was time for hand-over ceremony. Seeing how grateful and thankful the family was made us so proud of what we had managed to achieve for them and it was an emotional time for all of us involved. We came into the village with the mindset of only building a house, and left knowing that we had built a house for a family that would immediately change their lives and support many generations to come. For us, that the hours of raising money, planning, laying bricks and making batch after batch of concrete was all completely worth it.

After the terrible rains over the last day or so, the roads were really muddy and we had to talk out of the village to meet the trucks. We finally left the village behind but we left with a new appreciation for what we have and many memories. We then ate a long lunch in Chiang Dao, before beginning our 5 hour bus trip to Chiang Rai. Half way in, we stopped at a 7/11 and treated ourselves with salt and sugar (maybe some of us went overboard). Sitting back on the bus and looking out at the beautiful Thai scenery gave us time to reflect on what we had just accomplished and how all of it went so quickly. It also gave us a chance to get some much needed rest!

At last we arrived in Chiang Rai and got squeaky clean (making the hotel towels dirty) and went out for pizza! After filling up on some yummy Western cuisine, we looked around the market and finished the day with some bargains!!

Overall, the experience was amazing and created memories that will last a life time. We were so happy we got to know some of the children and elders in the village and even rabbits! Most of all we were amazed at the impact a small group of 15 year old students could make in just over 2 days. We are truly grateful for the opportunity to help that family and we would definitely do it all again.

By Taylah and Hunter

The day started early in the village, as we were woken up by the early morning calls of the chickens and roosters. For breakfast we had pineapple, boiled eggs and toast as well as our first milos since we left home. After breakfast, we quickly got back on task in our work clothes that were still damp from yesterday. Yesterday’s heavy rains continued through to the morning. The villagers said that this was the worst rains they have ever had!! 

Despite the poor weather, we kept high spirits and persisted with our building. It was difficult to begin with but we were all spurred on knowing that our hard-work meant so much for a underprivileged family. A couple of students were assigned the “unique” job of clearing the street leading into the village, as the heavy rain had washed large quantities of mud and broken trees onto it. It was a amusing to see how they all came back with “fake tans” (muddy from top to bottom.) The family was watching us build, which kept our efforts up, as we all had heard their tragic story which made life especially difficult for this family. A couple of years ago the father died while collecting honeycomb and the mother was left raising both of the children on her own. 

When it was time for lunch, the weather had cleared and it began to gradually warm up. For lunch the villagers had prepared a delicious, authentic Thai noodle dish. After lunch we were given an opportunity to further explore the village which allowed us connect and play with the many young children. It was really inspirational to see how happy and playful all the children were despite the poor conditions which they are forced to endure on a daily basis. This experience taught us a valuable lesson as we at home often complain about insignificant issues whereas the kids here have basically nothing but always a smile on their face and a nice word for each other. 

Our highlight of the day was a little boy with a future career as a Thai kick boxer, which he was enthusiastically practising for, picking “fights” with all the boys in the group. As we got back into the building, the house was truly beginning to take shape and we were starting to be able to visualise the finished product. As the day continued and the walls ascended, we faced some minor struggles including placing the bricks to keep the wall straight. In the end everyone was extremely proud of what was achieved. We felt very tired and a bit grotty and gross; however, the mood across the group remained positive. The house is almost finished and we have put lots of blood, sweat and tears into it. 

The work done required lots of effort but we were rewarded with yet another delicious dinner. After dinner, we were given a talk about the many customs and traditions followed by the people of the village including the medicine man who uses a herbal serum to cure illness, or the village elder who is like a judge to the village, and decides about punishment and reward over the struggles. We also learned what the different parts of the traditional dress the girls wear symbolise, like a black belt to signify that they are married. Then we were shown four traditional dances and songs around a fire. It was a beautiful moment when we were all invited to join in with their festivities and dance around the fireplace. 

– Luise and Sam 

After another beautiful buffet breakfast, we needed to check out of the hotel for our trip to the region of Chiang Dao. On the bus, our tour guide, Chai, talked to us about what to expect in the village and we discussed some of the traditions, customs and history of the people of the village we were to build a house for. After around two hours on the bus, we stopped at a local market to purchase some snacks or other supplies we might need for the upcoming days in the village. Once we had reached the final point that the big bus could take us, we had lunch at a restaurant and ate some authentic Thai dishes that we all enjoyed. When we had finished our lunch, we all got on a Thong Soi which is a Thai style taxi with no door on the back that seats ~10 people. The Thong Soi allowed us to travel along the bumpy road to the hill tribe and take in the beautiful scenic views. At this point we all felt a bit tired and run down, but very excited to meet the villagers and begin the long awaited house build.

While the village is located in Chiang Dao, Thailand, the villagers are actually Burmese from the Karen Palong tribe. In the late 1980s, hundreds of poor Burmese people decided to illegally migrate to Thailand as the believed they would be safer and happier there than in Burma, where they were poorly treated and facing problems within the government. As they arrived on the Thai border, they asked the King to grant them access into Thailand and he agreed on one condition: that the villagers would not be granted ID cards and therefore could not leave the valley that they live in and would not have the same rights as the Thai people – such as voting or driving. They agreed as it was a better option than living in Burma and they have been living here for more than 30 years. Unfortunately, due to a lack of ability to move around the country freely, they are unable to build wealth for their families and remain impoverished.

One of the Community components of the Big Experience is to build a house for a family in the Karen Palong tribe, so we were all excited and nervous to see the village and work out exactly what we had to do. The village is larger than we anticipated and surprisingly more comfortable. We found out that we would be building a 2 room, 10×5 metre house, consisting of mainly concrete bricks. The house will be given to a widow with two daughters.

We split up the jobs, some people began lifting the bricks and stacking them near the walls, while others lay them with cement. The work was hard in the heat and humidity but we were all motivated to get as much done as possible. The group worked well together, with everyone pitching in and helping out; not one person stood back, everyone took on a role and tried their best.

We continued for 4 hours, laying layer after layer of bricks, working in teams of 2 or 3. By the end, all the walls were at least 6 layers high. Spirits were high as we returned to the long houses where we would be sleeping. Everyone felt as if they accomplished as much as they could have. 

The next challenge was to get 33 people showered and ready for dinner using only two “showers” (aka. a hose). Luckily, the rain started and it rained torrentially for the remainder of the evening. Shower problem solved!

We remained in the long houses throughout the evening, as it was raining too heavily to do anything else. Dinner was nice and filling, cooked by Chai and the some villagers. We settled in for the evening, reading and talking with rain pouring steadily on the roof above our heads.

By Dax and Mia