Bangkok, Thailand

Yesterday I took the late and slow bus from my home in Sangkhla to Bangkok. We don't get much news up in the jungle, so I didn't know much about the flooding situation here. As you can see by the video, it is quite bad. Bangkok seems to have been spared, as they built a wall around the river to prevent it from over flowing. Even so, many shops have boarded up and placed cement blocks and sand bags in front to prevent water from coming inside. The hostel that I am staying at has lost 90% of it's reservations for this week because of the floods. It was very sad driving through the river that used to be a highway and seeing all of the stores and homes that had been flooded. But, the Thai people, who never cease to amaze me with their perseverance, have set up little food stands along the highway, albeit half submerged in water, to sell food to those who are stranded. And I swear to you, I saw more people laughing and joking than crying and wallowing. Just one of the many, many reasons I have fallen in love with this country.

I am about as prepared as I am ever going to be to go home tomorrow. A huge part of me wants to stay here, where I now feel safe, and does not want to face the guilt and responsibility that going home brings. But another part of me wants desperately to be around the people who know and love me best, and I am so grateful that I get to see nearly everyone on this trip.

It has also turned out to be a little business trip as I was recruited by the local Sangkhla nurse to try and find a model of a female pelvis to help educate the jungle midwives on proper and safe delivery of a baby. I have contacted several manufacturers as well as my former boss at Planned Parenthood at Rose Hospital in Denver. I am hoping she can give me more ideas on how to find donors and sponsors as well as link me up to more education materials.

My new goal for the next 3 months: Learn Burmese. In talking with the local nurse I was informed that while my assistance is greatly needed, it is nearly impossible to help if I don't speak the language. So if I were to volunteer I would need a translator thus taking away an essential person from duties that might be more important. So, now equipped with my "Burmese for Beginners" book, I am on my way. I already know how to say, "good morning", "thank you", "are you coughing?", "are you passing stool?" and "how are you today?" along with counting to ten. Oh and I can say "eyes, nose, back and mouth". Which is not at all useful, but at least a step in the right direction.

The relief run we went on on Saturday was amazing. The 17 bags of rice arrived at 10:30 Saturday morning from Kanchanaburi, and the children immediately set to work in separating the rice 5kg bags. It took a good 2 hours, but it was mostly finished and by noon we were able to load up the truck with the 49 bags needed to serve the 18 or so families that day. Each family gets 3 bags, or 15kg of rice and 1kg of beans. We first went to the village Songkalia, and then headed into Burma to the refugee camp called Japanese Well. Strange thing that camp is... I guess the land is technically in Burma, and you have to cross the border and everything, and drive on the other side of the road, but a Thai family owns the land so he lets these people live there to take care of the land. And slowly it turned into a little village, complete with a hospital and a clinic, a temple and several pagodas, and even 3 schools.

Saw took me on a tour of the clinic, which is the one I have been trying to go work at for several weeks now. He talked to one of the managers who readily handed over the keys to the clinic (which has been closed for 2 weeks since the Australian midwives left and there is no one to run it), and in we went. Oh it is so nice! Private foundations are definitely the place to be if you get sick. I think they even had an ultra sound machine! The Burmese woman called up another manager who spoke very good English and we talked for a while about what I could do to help out. She said she would pass my phone number and email address on to headquarters and so hopefully I will hear something soon. She also said to go visit her at home, as she lives in Sangkhla, close to me. Unfortunately, with me being sick and then having to leave, I was unable to see her before I left. But it is one of the first things I will do when I return.

Anyway, back on the road back to Sangkhla we stopped at the home of one of our newest refugees. She is a 78 year old woman, completely blind, living out of a bamboo hut that is inaccessible by anything but foot. She has 3 children, one who lives in Burma, one in Bangkok who she hasn't spoken to in 13 years, and a daughter who died. Her husband is also dead. She has no one but her neighbors to take care of her, and yet here she is, strong and healthy, and fighting like hell. And this is just one woman we help. Many other families have little to nothing. No means to buy food, some don't even have roofs over their heads. One family we saw had two little boys, both outside playing happily in the mud/sewage filled yard. The baby didn't have pants, so he played naked.

I can't even begin to describe my feelings when I see these people and know that I am actually making a difference. I, Ani, raised $855 to buy the rice to feed these people for at least a month. It couldn't have been done without the help from my AMAZING family and friends. I am humbled, and honored, to have such people in my life.

Well, on that note, it is time for me to head off to the dentist. I have a cavity that needs to be filled and yes, because my real home, the United States, refuses to give me health insurance, it is cheaper to come to Bangkok for such procedures as a filling. It will probably cost me about $30. I will also see a doctor either today or tomorrow, because that too is cheaper than the thousands of US dollars I would have to pay were I to get sick at home.

Adios my friends. See you all soon!