In Thailand, We’re Off to Build Houses After Building Friendships

Sawatdee Kah from Thailand!!! Our new crew have landed safe and sound in the bustling city of Bangkok!

Adjusting to the heavy heat that greeted us at out first steps off the airplane, we have been relaxing just blocks away from the chaotic markets of the infamous Backpackers Mecca of Koh San Road. Everything from tailored suits, wooden frogs, fake IDs, traditional hats, fish massages, fisherman pants, McDonalds and 7-Elevens can be found in the bizarre world of west meets east.

The madness of Koh San Road

The group trickled in over our first day together as Steve and I made numerous trips to the airport to pick up our jet lagged comrades. Our first day together as a new family began with banana pancakes and fruit shakes followed by an orientation in the park. After filling in the blanks on cultural do’s and don’ts, our upcoming projects, partners and expected scams to avoid, we are now ready for anything!

We wandered down to the river, jumping on to one of the local river taxis, and made our way to Wat Pho. A beautiful Buddhist temple with a giant reclining Buddha relaxing in its depths. Paintings of lotus flowers and Buddhist myths cover the colossal walls of the temple, while Nagas, the five headed snake like creatures, stand guard at each entrance. We took a stroll back through local markets that were selling lucky gems and Buddha necklaces until we found ourselves back in familiar neighborhood. After a delicious meal of fresh Thai food, half of the group called it a night trying to shake off the remainder of their jet lag, while the others scoped out the night life.

The Great Bangkok Scavenger Hunt filled the next day! Sending the teams off to tackle the city on their own, they were forced to try new flavors and make new friends in this foreign land. Boats, subways, buses and trains carried the teams around the city, while they tried their best to navigate through this massive city! Yar!

A carb heavy feast was had before we enter the world of rice with the hill tribe villages! Delicious sandwiches were had by all!! A bucket or two were had in the pandemonium of the night scene on Koh San, until we decided there were one too many tourists kicking around and headed for a more local scene. Jamming at the Blues Bar with the kings and queens of Blues music, we danced the night away to Thai jams and the old bluesy classics. A fantastic night! Amazing talent!

With much restraint, the group held off on their shopping sprees until we hit the shoppers paradise of JJ Market. Clothes, clothes and more clothes!! The girls and boys of OG are now decked out in light weight colorful attires of Thailand!

In less than half an hour we are headed for some Thai massages before our long overnight bus ride up to Chiang Rai in northern Thailand where we will be meeting with our first partner! The Mirror Foundation works with local hill tribes people helping them maintain their traditional ways of life while adjusting to the challenges of modern day society.  We will be re-building bamboo houses and roofs that were lost in a recent storm, the biggest one the tribe has seen in 50 years.

The Lahu village is pretty remote, so we will not have internet access for about a week.

If you need to get a hold of us during our stay in Thailand, feel free to call u at these numbers:Steve +66-840-018-134 or Amanda +66-820-186-902

Or please contact OG headquarters who can always find us no matter how remote.1-888-422-0164 (toll-free)

Talk to you in a week!OG Southeast Asia Animal Conservation

Photo credit: escapetravelinc.net

Photo credit:

escapetravelinc.net