It has now been a month and a half since I departed on a long, exciting, and tiresome journey from Vancouver to Thailand. May 16th was the day of departure, May 18th the day of arrival. After months of preparing, overthinking, and checking every box to make sure the trip ran smoothly, the moment had arrived. I was so nervous about what lay ahead. The biggest adventure of my life was beginning, and I was feeling all the feelings that came with that. I probably unzipped my backpack to check that my passport hadn’t magically disappeared over 50 times between leaving my parents home on the Sunshine Coast and arriving in Thailand. I felt nervous, I felt stressed, but above all I felt very lucky. Somehow, I had found this incredible opportunity and it was becoming my reality. I was leaving to teach English at the Karenni Social Development Center for 6 months. Only 4 months prior to this moment, I was making sandwiches at my part time job and being bored to death in my lecture halls, all while oblivious that an opportunity like this even existed. It was at that part time job that I heard about the existence of CAPI. I was chatting with Karunia Fila, a coworker and (little to my knowledge at the time) a past intern at KSDC. She told me about CAPI and the amazing placements within the program. She must have sensed my immense excitement because she wrote down details about the program on a piece of receipt paper and gave it to me to take home. I went home from work and couldn’t stop thinking about it. Without that little moment, I would not be here in Thailand. Thankfully, I had the courage to go for it right when I heard about it. I hurriedly applied for the program and was interviewed just weeks later. I was given the opportunity to teach at KSDC by Robyn Fila, to whom I am incredibly grateful, and I haven’t looked back since.
One personal stress on my mind before takeoff was that I have never been able to sleep on an airplane before. This was only ever a minor inconvenience in the past, having taken shorter flights with limited impacts on sleep patterns. The 30 hour trip from YVR, through Delhi, to Bangkok proved to be another challenge entirely. As I sat at the airport gate, I remarked to my travelling companion, Karunia, that there were so many cute babies on the flight with us. It was strange, it seemed like all the passengers on this flight were families with small children. She gave me the look of a seasoned traveller and told me that those babies weren’t going to be cute when we were stuck on a long red eye flight with them. She was right. After 30 long hours, 2 international flights, 1 hectic layover in Delhi, and 0 consecutive hours of sleep, we arrived in Bangkok. The travel may have been loud, unpleasant, and exhausting but the important thing was that nothing had gone terribly wrong. No missing luggage, no forgotten necessities, just one very tired traveller. Adding a bit of humour to my state of fatigue, Karunia slept for about 18 of the 30 hours on our journey. Enough rest for the both of us I suppose. Seriously, I have never seen someone sleep so blissfully in a tiny airplane chair.
It was early in local time when we arrived, impossibly late in my internal body clock. We took a taxi from the airport right into the heart of Bangkok’s Chinatown. I remember getting out of the cab and being hit with a blaze of heat, smell, and light. We had plunged straight into a cultural hub. The streets took on a new and intense smell with every 10 steps. Some were pleasant, sweet, and delicious, others were a ripe stench. Smells that I had not experienced in Victoria or Vancouver. The humidity in the air added to either the sweetness or foulness of every scent. It was a feast for the senses and I felt very alive. The perfect greeting from a country as dynamic and full of life as Thailand. We ate our faces off in Bangkok, and proceeded to do the same everywhere we visited in the country. Fifty year old soup in BKK, Crabs fresh out of the barrel on the island of Koh Samet, and Khao Soi in Chiang Mai. In Thailand, I feel like all of my senses have been indulged, above all has been taste. During my time in Chiang Mai I met up with my co-intern Jannae and visited CMU intern Malcolm, adding more fun memories to a long list. The first two weeks in the country were admittedly closer to a 5-star vacation than a challenging integration. I would be a liar to say otherwise. It was a great introduction to southeast Asia, and still, I was ready for my time at KSDC to begin.
Years from now, when my time here at KSDC becomes just a story to share, the 2 week trip across Thailand can be considered its introduction. On June 1st we arrived at the school and the first chapter of the internship really began. The drive from Mae Hong Son to Ban Nai Soi was and always will be a breathtaking experience, lush forests, sunlight that reflects off the rice fields, and a road towards my new home. The bridge from Nai Soi to KSDC sometimes overflows with water and we get to skim across the top on our motorbike. It’s a drive that can never gets old. It was the hottest day in Thailand that I can remember when we first entered the school. Having no A.C. was definitely going to be a regular inconvenience. We were welcomed by principal Myar Reh, teacher/house manager Bu Reh, and program manager Matt Green. Matt is from California and helped as our initial North American to Karenni translator. Not only to translate words but to help us match the pace and cadence of Karenni people in conversation. This was an important lesson because in Canada we can easily slip into asking rapid fire questions or motormouthing our way through conversations. Here at KSDC I am constantly setting the intention to slow myself down, breathe deeply, and move at a pace of speech that can be easily followed. It’s been a great practice for conversation and self-talk.
We were told in our first meeting that there would be no classes on the first monday. A Thai, Myanmar, or Karenni holiday that I can’t recall was taking place. Tuesday, June 3rd was KSDC’s opening ceremony. We walked into the downstairs classroom to find 32 students dressed in Karenni shirts and Karenni skirts, ready to welcome us to the school. They had seats ready in the front row for myself, Jannae, and Karunia. The students performed songs, traditional dances, and speeches. They handed me the microphone and I was almost paralyzed by nerves. I got up and said a few things about how happy I was to be there, probably used some overcomplicated English phrase or idiom, then sat back down. Addressing 32 students as their new English teacher was definitely daunting at first. I’ve never been the best with crowds or new people, but the nerves of public speaking have slowly gone down each day. Now those nerves are mostly replaced by the excitement of going to teach a new class. The opening ceremony concluded with a big feast for students and staff, it remains one of my highlights of being here.
On one of my first days I noticed several boys lacing up their cleats and going to play football. I was keen to play with them but also still nervous around new people. After some encouragement from Karunia and Jannae, I laced up my white runners and walked up to the field. When I got there I saw not just KSDC students, but men from all over the village ready to play some footy. They waved me in to play right when they saw me and my nerves quickly faded away. That was the day I learned that Karenni people are really good at football. They were making quick passes, scanning the pitch with excellent vision, and sharing the ball with fluid chemistry. It was an unselfish playstyle that I love. Most of the time every player touched the ball before it ended up in the goal. The field was rocky, covered in mud, and slightly uneven, but the quality of football played on it was very high. Playing football has been the best way for me to connect with people here, not as their teacher but as their teammate. There is no language barrier involved when we play, just a group of people sharing a game and a good time together. Football is a universal language and the people who play here can speak it beautifully. It’s become a treasured part of my routine playing with them and the words “teacher, football?” coming from one of my students, are always music to my ears.
It’s now July 2nd, it has been a month since we arrived at KSDC. I find myself alone with a moment to reflect. It’s a difficult task to capture the feelings, challenges, and excitement that I’ve experienced here. One word that could accurately describe the experience is “community”. It’s a community of students that are excited to learn. A community of people, willing to pitch in with cooking, playing games, humour, and work. A community of CAPI interns, sharing different but special journeys across Southeast Asia. I am lucky to be a part of all these communities. Every day here has been a mix of fun, laughter, occasional discomfort, and responsibility. Each of these feelings have been enhanced by the community of people who share them with you. The most fun I have had has been playing football with the students, a great way to loosen up, get in on their fun, and not worry about the language barrier. The times that I’ve laughed the most have come from gossiping over a game of cards with Karunia and Jannae. The discomfort has come from adjusting to a new diet, taking squating bucket showers, or constantly being hot, sticky, and itchy. Yet even the discomfort seems less of a problem when it’s not experienced alone. We all eat the same food, we all take the same showers, and we all live in the same climate. I’m fortunate enough to be given my own room at the school, there are just 3 bedrooms shared by the girls at KSDC and 2 shared by the boys. It’s an adjustment period from life in Canada for sure, but i’m not adjusting alone. I’ve been well looked after by the students who show generosity through their actions every day. Lastly, the responsibility of work has been more rewarding because it’s work that’s shared with my students and fellow teachers. It’s a blessing to be surrounded by people who are passionate to learn and better themselves. Although I appreciate my moments alone to pause and reflect. I know that in the near future, I will be sharing food with people, making my lesson plan, teaching, or playing a game of football. Having more good times as part of the KSDC community. It’s a great feeling to be a part of something bigger than yourself.
I’m here, I’m not alone, I’m having a human experience
~ Rowan Moore
