The Land of Smiles

I'm alive! 3 long flights across the US, Pacific Ocean & the eastern coast of Asia and I groggily made my way out of the airport and into the city that will be my home until mid-November. It's exactly like everyone told me it would be. Hot. Humid. Traffic. But it's different, too. I expected to feel oddly out of place and far from home and it honestly just feels like any other big city I've ever been in. My mind can't really grasp the idea that I'm on the complete opposite side of the world right now. Granted I'm with a group of Americans...maybe that will change when they leave and it sinks in just how long I'm going to be staying here. 

This morning we had orientation and discussed our schedule for the next ten days as well as important cultural differences between us and the Thai. Here's some tips to remember for those of you who plan to come visit: 

1) Never touch the head of a Thai person. It's considered sacred. 

2) Do not show the bottom of your foot at anytime, step over anyone on the ground or step on money. Rude. 

3) Just smile and nod. 

After our orientation meeting we went to the craziest over-stimulating 7-story zoo/mall place called the MBK. I wish there were words to explain this place. It's like a giant collection of vendors that are a step up from flea-market status and they sell everything from silk scarves to surge protectors to size XXXXXL jorts (jean shorts). I got a few pretty gifts for the fam and some lights to decorate my room here at the BSC and make it feel a little bit more like home. 

The evening was spent participating in the weekly "Friday Night Life" event at the BSC. It's an open event that Thai people come to - there's an English lesson, a Bible lesson and we sing a few songs. It's a neat opportunity to invite the Thai to come to other events at the BSC such as Conversation Corner, which we will be participating in on Tuesday and Wednesday night. 

I can already tell that 3 months here is going to be over too quickly.