Emmy in the Rice Paddy

Thanksgiving weekend in Bangkok was one of the best weekends of my life. As much as I love my rural life where no one speaks English and everyone stares at me like I have 5 heads, it was great to be back in the city where I started my journey in Thailand. Hearing what the other Fulbrights had to say about their experiences thus far- the things we all find hilarious and the challenges we all are having, was very comforting.

Out of our five day trip, the first full day was spent in a panel-like setting, where each Fulbright shared what their living situation was like, their school, their teaching schedule etc. We are all having very different experiences. The next two days were spent volunteering at two different Bangkok Flood Relief Centers. The first flood relief center was at a wat run by monks, and the other was a much more systematic, Western-style center at Chulalongkorn University. It was really interesting to have the experience of volunteering at two very different flood relief centers, as the monks at the wat were very laid back, and Chulalongkorn was very tense and fast-paced. Both sites packed between 20,000 and 40,000 meals everyday- entirely supported by donations. Volunteering begins at 3am everyday, because the trucks carrying the meals need to leave to deliver the food starting at 10am. We didn’t arrive there at 3am, but we arrived at 6am both days and worked until the afternoon. The first day, I was in charge of packing sticky rice- with my bare hands- for 7 hours. I have never eaten sticky rice in the US, but I eat it almost everyday here. Now I know that when it is fresh, it is steaming hot, extremely sticky, and fun to play with. It was a very gooey experience. While packing the rice, I talked with a Thai woman who said that if volunteers didn’t help everyday, flood victims would starve because the government isn’t being responsive.

The next day, at Chulalongkorn University, there was a director yelling into a megaphone every five minutes. I was assigned to rubber-banding bags of already packed rice. The woman rubber-banding next to me was a flood victim herself. She had not been in her home for two months, yet she was here helping at the flood relief center. I also met some people who came to volunteer at 6 or 7am every morning before they had to go to work. A very inspiring way to spend Thanksgiving, if I do say so myself.

On Thursday night, all of the Fulbrights were invited to a traditional Thanksgiving dinner (yes!) at one of the US Ambassador’s homes. It was heaven. There was an open bar, pumpkin pie, and lots of really interesting people. I ate dinner outside, overlooking a spectacular view of Bangkok.

I spent my final two days in Bangkok exploring with my friend, Mark, from Cornell, and then, well, partying.

Dinner at one of the US Ambassador's homes

Perk of being a politician: Really cool apartments for entertaining

Bangkok at night

Important people :)

Traditional Thanksgiving dinner, including mashed potatoes. Yes.

Eating dinner on the balcony overlooking Bangkok with both Thai and Laos Fulbright Scholars. A very memorable Thanksgiving!

Red Cross nurses. Their outfits (hats) remind me of Halloween costumes/ American nurse outfits from the 1950s.

Water and supplies for Bangkok flood victims; Chulalongkorn University

Rubber-banding rice. So much rice.

Doesn't matter if you're young or old, everyone helps.

Fulbright catered McDonalds for us?! They know me so well!

I love going to McDonald's in other countries because they usually have slight menu variations: check out the pineapple pie!

Thai and Laos Fulbright Scholars (both ETAs and Researchers)

Oops, another McDonalds pic.

I wish that I was able to take a picture of everything hilarious that I've seen strapped on the back of motorbikes. If you think it can't be transported...it can. Yesterday I saw a man driving on the side of the road with three 15 foot carpets. Don't ask.

Outside Mark's apartment. Enjoying Thailand's "winter" :)

We took a river taxi down the flooded Chao Phraya River. The sunlight was unbelievable for photographs.

Wat Arun basking in the afternoon sunlight

There is a very famous bridge behind me

Fort Sumen

Crazy small world story: I thought that I recognized this man from last week at the Elephant Fair. I have never met him. I stopped him and asked if he was in Surin last week at the elephant fair...and he was!!! We took a photo to remember random coincidences.

Party. With. Strangers.

(Cool girls I met from Spain)

Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok: Not a sign you would see in America.

Second from the bottom: "Muslim Prayer Room/ Waiting Room for Monks"

This past weekend one of my host teachers, P’Noon, invited me to travel with her and her family to Surin Province for the famed annual “Elephant Fair.” Only 65 kilometers from Cambodia, Surin is known for a group of its local villagers who have mastered capturing and training wild elephants.

We left Ubon Ratchathani for Surin, about a 3 hour drive, on a Friday evening. P’Noon’s family has a two room cottage in the countryside— the country was so serene and beautiful! When I was walking to the outhouse before bed, I couldn’t believe how many stars were in the sky. I felt like I was on another planet! I have never, ever seen so many stars, and I could see both Northern and Southern hemisphere constellations (so cool). We woke up very early the next morning to the sound of the roosters cockadoodle doodling, and we all went to have a fresh, home-cooked breakfast with P’Noon’s mother-in-law, who lived in the most wonderful open-walled wooden house right across the street. Being so close to Cambodia, everyone in the village speaks Cambodian.

After breakfast, P’Noon, her 11 year old son, 12 year old daughter, husband, and 12 year old nephew (who lives in the village and joined us for the day), drove to the elephant fair. I felt like I was part of their family, it was really nice. However, as soon as I stepped out of the car I was stared at from every direction. “Farang! Farang!” (Western foreigner) I heard people whisper. I couldn’t walk 10 yards without a different group of Thais stopping me to ask if they could take a photo with me. Every once in a while I would see another farang posing in a photo- arms wrapped around a gaggle of Thais. Like I said, I pretty much felt like a rockstar.

P’Noon finally dragged me to our seats. During the show, over 250 elephants performed. They performed tricks such as hula hooping with their trunks, kicking balls into goals, and throwing darts to pop balloons. I felt a bit uncomfortable being there, because I don’t support “circus-y” acts that would not naturally happen in the wild. Although, the elephants did seem loved by their handlers. My favorite part of the fair was when a group of New Yorkers on a guided tour to Surin volunteered to play “tug of war” against an elephant. Thousands of Thai spectators watched 20 New Yorkers pull as hard as they could on a rope tied to a single elephant, and fall flat on their faces. It was priceless. After the show, P’Noon, her son, and I all went for our first-ever elephant ride together. To get on the elephant, the three of us climbed onto a pickup truck, and then the elephant handler (sitting on our elephant) put his bare foot out for us to use it as a “step” to climb up. I felt so high in the air, and it was crazy to see hundreds of elephants carrying people—sometimes moms or dads holding on tight to their little babies!

As we left the fair grounds, we passed a baby elephant that I was allowed to feed potato sticks to. The elephant sniped the entire bag from me in one fell swoop with its trunk, so sneaky! If you’ve ever fed an elephant before, you know that their trunks are extremely slobbery. (Not the best day to forget my hand sanitizer). The highlight of my day was watching a man stupidly try and feed an elephant some meatballs he had just bought. The elephant eagerly took the meatballs with its trunk, at first. Then, the elephant threw the meatballs back at the man.

After the fair, we all went out to lunch at the coolest restaurant—the restaurant was basically a cluster of individual bungalows right over the water. As you waited for your food to be served, you could buy fish food and feed the fish swimming around your bungalow! In the evening we went to a “Light and Sound Show” at a Cambodian castle’s ruins. The castle, called Prasat Sukhoraphum, was absolutely beautiful. The next day, however, P’Noon took me back to the castle so that we could actually explore inside. The castle is Cambodian, not Thai, because this part of Surin Province used to be Cambodia (Khmer).

Before we left Surin to drive back to Ubon, I helped P’Noon’s nephew with his English homework. In Thai there is a letter for the sound “Bp.” When showing P’Noon’s nephew how to spell his Thai nickname, “Boo”—meaning “crab” in English, he insisted that it was actually spelled with a “P,” or “Poo.” That was a tough one to explain. In Thailand, everyone has their real, extremely long, formal name, and then their “choolen,” or short nickname that they are more commonly called. Thai nicknames are hilarious, as they are generally animals or colors. Some of my favorite nicknames are “Nok” (Bird), “Som” (Orange), and now “Poo” (Crab). Family and friends: When I come back to the states I would like you to call me “Purple.”

P’Noon and her family were so generous that they would not let me pay for anything all weekend. On top of that, P’Noon’s husband is a talented musician. When I mentioned that I played the violin and had always wanted to learn how to play the Thai string instrument called “saw-u,” they surprised me and gave me an old saw-u to keep!!! I am now the proud owner of a coconut-shell fiddle, which I have every intention of learning how to play.

Traditional Surin breakfast with duck eggs, omelette souffle, pork, and rice.

(Notice that everyone eats on the floor, family style)

Kitty's all over the world love to rub up on people when they're busy

Harvested rice being dried on the road. Now I know where the rocks in my rice come from! (I have almost cracked a tooth, several times)

Normal in Thailand.

First group of girls who asked to take a picture with me

Being interviewed...because I am a never-before-seen white woman. And because I am a rockstar.

Man selling eggs and nuts at the elephant fair

Elephant butts (even their behinds are still cute)

Elephant show spectators. Many women carry umbrellas so that they won't become dark (Crazy, right?!)

Riding an elephant

19 day old elephant. For each new baby elephant born in Thailand, the government gives its owners 10,000 baht, or about $300.

More celeb photos with strangers

Feeding the elephant

Elephant stole my potato sticks!

Grilling bananas

Not your everyday sighting from your car

Elephant eating a whole tree branch. This gives new meaning to the "I'm as hungry as an elephant!" saying

Elephant family crossing the road

Jigsaw, P'Noon, Baw, and Boo (aka Poo)

Cool bungalow restaurant and adorable baby feeding the fish below

I felt like I was part of their family for the weekend!

Feast for Emily.

WHY don't they make this dress in my size. If you look closely, the label even says "Emily"(!)

Riding in the back of the pickup truck. Fun fun fun.

Sukhoraphum Castle: Sound & Light Show

Sunrise

These people volunteered to have an elephant walk over them without stepping on them. In Thai we call people like this "kon bababababaah!" Or, "crazy person." I wonder if they know that there is no such thing as liability in Thailand?

20 New Yorkers vs. one elephant, the ultimate tug of war

People and elephants reenacting a battle between Burma and Thailand. Significantly, Thailand used elephants in battles before Burma.

Elephants take the field at the end of the show

Elephant Fair

Even monks like to take pictures with elephants!

The most people I've seen on a motorbike, including babies, is 6 people. Can't wait to try and get a photo!

Back near P'Noon's country cottage, I went for a walk alone and stumbled upon this old, forgotten wat. When I peeked inside there was a layer of dust over everything!

Flowers around the old wat- reminds me of "The Secret Garden"

On my walk I also met this man and his very lovely chicken. I asked him if he was getting ready to eat it for dinner. It turns out that this is his prized fighting cock! Oopsydaisy!