King's Birthday

A Birthday Fit For A Queen

At the end of each month BTNC has a combined birthday party for all the children who have had birthdays that month. Different food and drinks are  served and some home grown entertainment put on

In November the party date was on 29 November which coincided with Sue's birthday. We provided some funding and the children designed the menu and helped with the cooking of what was mainly delicious kai moana. Aroi.  Dee mahk mahk!

Somewhat embarrasingly but also touchingly the evening turned into a party and tribute for Sue who received some lovely gifts. Hope the others with birthdays didn't mind too much.

The cake was popular too!

There Has Been an Error in Your Favour, Proceed to Go and Collect 2000 Bamboo Plants

Things appear to move at different paces in this part of the world.  On the roads there is a lot of slow and  very slow traffic. Interspersed  with this are people in vehicles who are in a real hurry. The combination is not always a good one.

Similarly some projects appear to crawl whilst others sprint. Roading and drainage can seemingly  inch along towards completion whilst some  houses are built in weeks.

When the light is green things can move quickly.  Early on  in our stay we learnt of a resurvey taking place on the rubber plantation. Apparently BTNC had more land than originally thought but it was taking some time for the resurvey to be agreed and signed off by officials. Once this was done project bamboo was away. Approval for funding was obtained from Hands Across the Water and earthworks undertaken. One week we were erecting a shade house, the next unloading 2000 bamboo plants to be grown for their edible shoots.

We were given the honour of planting the first two plants. The planting continues in the weekends.

Do these people eat roots, shoots and leaves?

Burma Shave

aaah Tom Waits. And time waits for noone on a finite entry visa. On November 18 we had our own close shave with the country formerly known as Burma. We did the "Ranong Run" ,  not in a Mustang, but 230 kms (return)  in a Toyota van. Similar passing manouevres to those in the song though.

An hour and  half ranks up there with the shortest time I have spent in a country. We were expecting on re-entry into Thailand to be given another month's visa but got two instead. Too late the flight home is already booked.

On the way home we stopped near Ranong to get spring water with reputed healing properties. We also soaked our feet (healed our heels?)  for while in the very hot water.

A Day in the Life

Weekdays the truck leaves on the school run at 7:15am. Activity starts in the kitchen (adjacent to our bedroom window) sometime between 4 and 5:30am. By 7:15 am everyone is fed, clothed, has everything they need for the day, completed duties if they have them and are on the truck....usually.

The dek dek (children) go to different schools depending on their age, where they were originally enrolled and sponsorship. Of a morning the truck will stop at five or so schools and is back around 8:30am. It leaves again around 3pm and most of the children are home by 4 to 4:30pm. Depending on their ages some will get home earlier, and some have had a sleep in the middle of the day.

There are supervised homework sessions after school and freetime before dinner around 7pm. After dinner there is more freetime except for those on cleaning up, then around 8:30pm there is often a communal get together, with discussions, activities eg singing and prayers before bedtime which is usually around 9:30 -10pm.

Weekends are less structured though meals are at the same times except for breakfast which is around 8am. Sometimes there will be a communal activity such as a trip up to the rubber plantation.

A Woman of Many Talents

Rotjana as well as being the Director of the good ship BTNC and mother and mentor to all that sail in her, can and does turn her hand to many other things. Cooking, cleaning the toilets, singing , dancing, doctoring, horticulture and fortune telling are just some of her many talents.

She also cuts hair.

To the Gardeners the Spoils

We had the pleasure of the company of Richard Leathers (pictured) from Noosa for a week. Richard is  landscape gardener and was here designing some gardens adjacent to the new soccer field. These are to be funded by a Hands Across the Water charity auction in Queensland. Richard also lent his helping  hands to our gardening efforts.

Generally we eat the same or similar food to the staff and children and that food is very good. Sometimes we get treated (" because you work hard") to something special.....

Big Day Out

November 8 was Le Meridien Hotel Day. For the second time(with the sponsorship of Sue's Aunty Kay) the hotel hosted BTNC for a day of games, swimming, food and fun. Sanuk mahk mahk - lots of fun!

Turned Turtle

More  garden wildlife. We found this turtle very unexpectedly in a dry part of the garden whilst weeding. Apparently it is lucky to find a turtle. After applying talcum powder to its shell,  to avoid it becoming  soup we took it to a local temple and released it into one their ponds.

Loi Krathong

This festival takes place on the night of the full moon in the eleventh lunar month. This year that was 2 November. Boats made of banana leaves with incense and candles are floated on rivers and lakes to ask forgiveness from the river spirits. The children spent several hours making elaborately decorated (and watertight) boats. Fortunately for us there were 2  boats spare, to which we added, as is customary, a piece of our hair and a piece of fingernail, and as is not customary, NZ flags.

As well as floating our boats, there  were a lot of  candle lanterns lit and floated into the sky, and  all of the normal fun of the fair;  bouncy castles, sideshows, sticky food,  sweet drinks, transgender cabaret and boxing on a slippery pole over the river. Hope the river spirits didn't mind all that as well.

Howmuchroominabottle?

Mushroom growing Thai Style. You find these ones in soups often. On the free afternoon at the wedding in Trang one of the guests was very keen for us to visit a vegetarian farm and retreat run by a breakaway Buddhist order. So we did. Apparently cancer patients go there for strict vegetarian regimens. One of the monks showed us around. Because they are at odds with mainstream orders the monks wear brown robes not orange. We bought some ginger tea in the shop. Then we went back to the motel and had a rest and a cuppa.

Two Thai Ladies

Prateep and Sue.

Thaiing the Knots in Trang

Two of the BTNC staff (Gop the bride, and "A" the groom, brother of Rotjana) got married in Trang at Gop's family home. We were lucky enough to be invited.

Trang is  South of Krabi and a 4 - 5 hour drive from Takua Pa. It is a commercial port city and relatively untouristed. What we saw of it looked pleasant. It reportedly has quite good beaches with few people on them.

We arrived the day before the wedding with a contingent of BTNC children (those not away for the school break) and adults.

The wedding house had been freshly painted and various other preparatory works were underway. There was not much for us to do amongst a cast of thousands, but we helped where we could, including a trip to the forest to cut ferns for the flower arrangements.

Prateep (Unsongtham Hata) the founder of Duang Prateep Foundation was there overseeing the marriage of two of her employees. She was very kind to us, taking us under her wing. This included a quick shopping trip to town, to buy Sue a traditional outfit to wear to the wedding the next day. We also tagged along later that night on a trip to a festival/special occasions shop to buy various items and gifts necessary for the wedding ceremony.

Wedding day itself began with a 6:30am start. We have found that where Buddhist monks are to say prayers or give a blessing, ceremonies are often in the morning so that food can be provided to them to eat before 12 noon. The monks fast after that time.

After a light breakfast  careful preparations proceeded until it was time for the procession of the groom and best man  and family and friends to the bride's family house. This began a few doors down the road and took a circular route, aided by a policeman directing traffic.  We were invited to join. Everyone including us carried a gift or offering for the bride's family. Drums were beaten, cymbals clanged and firecrackers exploded. The procession halted whilst the bride's family briefly protested at the loss of their daughter and sister. After an explanation of the gifts and money to be presented the groom and best man were allowed to enter  followed by the gift bearers.

The wedding itself was in three  main parts; the first which appeared civil/traditional and  included the presentation of the dowry and the tying of strings,  the second Buddhist part which took place in another room and included blessings and the saying/chanting of prayers, followed by more civil ceremony, including guests pouring water onto the bride's and groom's hands. Then photos and then a nosh up. Good kai.

With the monks duly fed it was all over by 11:30 am and the afternoon was free until the evening meal and dance at a nearby school hall - a bit like the old style format for NZ weddings in days gone by. By the evening the bride and bridesmaid  had their hair  redone, and the bride and groom were in completely new outfits, this time more western, including the full white bridal gown. It was not a late night but there were mountains of food, cultural items from the children,  speeches from Prateep and the local mayor,  karaoke and dancing.

Later we adjourned back to the bride's family home where to much laughter Sue and I were given the honour ("for luck") of lying on the wedding bed decorated with flower petals and then leading the bride and groom onto the bed. Hope it worked/works!