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A
Homestay Update From Camillo Beretta (Italy)
Greetings from Huai Thap Than, Si Saket Province!
I’m volunteering in Thailand’s poorest
province, which is located near the Cambodian
border. After a major culture shock the first
week, I'm actually doing quite well here. It's
a lot different than I had expected, but I guess
that was the whole point of the experience (‘expect
the unexpected’, as Michael likes to say...)
At first I was just too overwhelmed with everything
to enjoy it, and I didn't have time to adjust
because they wanted to show me everything and
everyone on the very first day. And with the teaching
and all the new impressions I was exhausted every
day and thought I might go crazy. But now I'm
getting used to it. I have plenty of time to myself
and am getting good at teaching. The students
are great, quite enthusiastic and most of them
are very lovely. Teaching is going well, and even
the teachers now occasionally venture to say something
to me, though at first they were too shy to speak
English with a foreigner. The family I'm staying
with is also very nice even though only one (of
6) speaks any English. But they're very good to
me and the house and my room are great. We put
on a successful English Camp here last weekend,
and I was really happy to have Elizabeth and the
other new volunteers around for a few days to
talk to! But after this first month I feel like
I'm only just getting started, so I’m going
to stay a few weeks longer. I would recommend
a homestay to anyone who wants to see real Thai
people and culture, not just the touristy parts.
It’s not always easy, but definitely worth
it!
Camillo Beretta, Italy |
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I’m
still sniffling from dinner. The street vendor
asked "ao phet mai?" (Do you want it
spicy?) and I confidently responded "chawp
phet mak." (I love spicy food!). So my tom
yam was tasty and hot, as any good Thai meal should
be.
I left my homestay on a bus this morning with
feelings that always seem to melt together after
a great experience: a bit sad to say goodbye,
feeling fortunate to have met incredible people,
and excited for a new adventure. I now have 20
or more little white strings tied around my wrists--
a traditional northeastern Thai way of sending
someone off, of wishing good luck and safe travels.
Teachers, villagers, and students tied the strings
on me while singing and saying "chok dii"
(good luck) this morning. Very beautiful.
Over the past month I have been teaching English
in a little village in Issan (northeastern Thailand)
called Salanongkhon. It was one of the most rewarding
volunteer stints I’ve ever done (I really
felt I learned as much as I taught). Although
I don't know how much formal learning took place,
the school has definitely mastered the art of
organized "sanuk" (the quintessential
Thai concept of having fun) and I devoured every
morsel of it. I participated in Sports Day, which
was like a mini-Olympics among 4 schools; acted
as a trainer at an "English Camp"; helped
during Children's Day as students danced, sang
and performed skits; went camping twice with hundreds
of students from 5 different schools.... I too
got to sharpen my skills at "sanuk,"
and appreciated all the informal learning/teaching
that took place (oftentimes much more valuable
than a classroom experience).
And what a wonderful community! Every bike ride
I took was a lesson in language and culture, and
an offering of food (“kin khao! kin khao!”
"Sit down and eat with us!"). Cutting
down sugarcane to send by the truckload to the
local factory, learning how to make charcoal from
scavenged wood, attending a traditional Thai wedding
and ceremonies to honor the dead, giving monks
food, helping my host sister to cook.... I’m
not sure how I fell into such a perfect situation,
but somehow I did. Thanks Michael and Ae!!!
My host family truly treated me like family and
became my close friends. I wish all of my friends
and family were fortunate enough to meet them.
They love to cook and constantly wanted to learn
new dishes, so I got to use my skills in baking
and taught the art of the chocolate cake (not
that they need help in the cooking department).
It was only fair to cook "American"
food at least once, so I whipped up french fries,
pasta, and mashed potatoes...so boring compared
to Thai food, but they loved it! Ah, the joys
of cross-cultural exchange.
And so ends the tale of Salanongkon. I plan on
heading up to Laos for a month, circling into
northern Thailand, and coming back to visit my
homestay village again. So it wasn't goodbye for
good today, at least not yet.
Liz Lichtman, America |
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During
our homestay, our neighbor was a primary school teacher
and he asked us if we would teach at his school for
an hour....so we did! The school had 114 kids, some
so poor they couldn’t afford good clothes, let
alone a uniform. None had ever seen farang (foreigners)
before and they were so excited, it was crazy! I’ll
never forget that morning, as we rode away on our bikes,
looking back at 100 kids running behind us, waving and
yelling "bye bye!"
Jane Abercrombie, Scotland |
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We
settled into our rural homestay fine. Our hosts didn’t
speak much English, so we learned Thai very quickly.
They were very sweet and often took us swimming at the
local waterfall. Teaching in the classroom was as easy
as ‘neung song sahm’ (one, two, three).
Sometimes we planned ahead and sometimes we just talked
to the kids. I learned a few stock jokes and the time
passed too quickly. As we write this, there are 8 Thai
boys and one Thai girl right behind us, and 11 more
looking through the window of the internet shop. They
don’t see too many farang out here…
Jacob Jones, Canada |
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I
started with Volunthai in March of ’03 and continued
for three months. Such a brilliant, challenging, and
fun experience I could never forget. So many great friends
made at the house, such a comfy environment, and the
English Camps were truly enchanting. The students’
energy, creativity, and enthusiasm are quite overwhelming!
The highlight for me was my month-long homestay. I lived
in a very rural town with a lovely Thai teacher. I couldn’t
have been better looked after (I even lost weight with
three flights of stairs at the school and aerobics in
town every evening!) Teaching kids in a classroom was
never something I thought I could do, but that’s
what’s great about Volunthai: I surprised myself
constantly. It’s one of those rare opportunities
in travel where you are immersed with the locals, no
tourists around.
Sandy Boyd, Australia |
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Volunthai volunteers meeting with Mrs. Kathleen Johnson,
wife of American Ambassador Darryl Johnson. |
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