Day 24 (Monday 17 March 2014) by Kara

We had been told the day before that we had to wake up for 5 A.M. boot camp. Ben and I were talking and thinking maybe it was a joke.  At 5 in the morning we heard whistles and made the decision that it was not a joke.  We opened our tent only to see that it was still dark outside.  Not knowing what to expect we gathered around all the other students.  They had us form lines.  We weren't exactly sure what they were saying because they were speaking Karen. We then were given orders to turn right and left and march.  Before we knew it we were jogging in lines as a unit.  We were wondering when we joined the military in Thailand.  We ran down the road outside the camp for a while.  A couple more whistles and some Karen talk and we turned around and jogged back to the camp.  At the camp we did some stretches.

It was still dark when we finished the stretches so we took a short nap until breakfast.  For breakfast we had jok.  It’s a rice porridge.  After breakfast, we cleaned the dishes in the river. Ok, Wijit and Tan did it while we watched. Next on the agenda was cleaning the base camp and wetting down the dirt so when we moved around it didn't get dusty.  While we were doing this we saw a huge colorful bird fly by.  It was a peacock! We spent the better part of half an hour following it around trying to get pictures.

We then started our activity for the day.  On Monday we (Payap Christian Zone) were responsible for the activities. We had 6 groups that talked about different countries and traveling.  The students rotated to different stations to learn about the different countries.  This activity is important because many of these refugee students will move to other countries in the future.  We had representation from China, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Australia.  Each station had fun activities.   We also had a flight delay station that taught about passports and currency exchange. The students visited two countries before lunch and four after.

After stations it was time to cool off.   The boys did cannonballs into the lake from the platform. The water was nice and refreshing.  Some of the students built a raft out of bamboo and we had fun paddling on it.

Next it was time for dinner.  Geng’s mom was so sweet to make us dinner at her village and bring it to us.  We ate on the beautiful deck overlooking the river.  We had a fun time eating and learning how to do the Thai chicken dance.

We then headed up to the pavilion to watch a documentary about refugees in Uganda.  After the movie we were hungry again so it was Mama (instant noodles) time. We sat in the tent of some of the refugee students and ate Mama noodle and talked until it was curfew and we had to go to our tents and mentally prepare ourselves for another 5 A.M. wake up call.

Day 23 (Sunday 9 March 2014) by Robert

Being in MaeSaPe Village was a fantastic experience. Geng’s family members and relatives made us feel so welcome. They kept us in their houses and fed us well. Is was so thrilling to see all the members of the church wear their traditional Karen outfits to church on Sunday. 

Little Bai Fern was crazy about Ben (and Kara.) Isn’t Bai Fern just a little doll. Her dad’s on the left side of the picture in the tan shirt.

Balloon and Wijit leading a song in front of the church.

Introducing ourselves to the church.

I, Robert, preached on how this world didn’t happen by accident, but was perfectly created by our Loving Father.

Geng singing a song during the morning worship in her village. She looked so cute in her traditional dress.

Showing off our Karen outfits after worship. (Geng, Robert, Tan, Ben and Wijit.)

Enjoying a meal together after the Sunday worship. The sauce was sooooo spicy!

Precious girls after setting up the tents at the Leadership Camp for refugee students.

Then we went to Jenny’s restaurant at Ban Farang and had some wonderful Khao Soi and amazing banana spring rolls.

Alizar, one of my students in the refugee camp, in front of the home-made tent the students constructed.

Wijit relaxes in the hammock while soaking up the beautiful natural surroundings. 

A beautiful setting for dinner on the pier on the lake at the camp. Wonderful fellowship with awesome friends.

I was so happy for Jan to meet Alizar and Da Da Poe, two of my students in the refugee camp.

Amazing lake scene at the Leadership Camp.

Here’s a good panoramic picture of the camp. 

Day 22 (Saturday 8 March 2014) by Vinod

This Saturday was very different from the others. We decided to head out to Kenk's village(one of the thai student that Shuen taught English to) in Mae Sape, it is in the mountains near Khun Yuam. We left Payap at 7 am. It was a long 6 hours drive. On our way to the village we stopped at this beautiful waterfall, Wachirathan Waterfall. We took some pics and admired God's beautiful creation a little while and were back on our road trip to the village. We stopped at a few gas stations along the way. The road to the village was really narrow and windy. Wijit, Tan and I got car sick. We stopped at a gas station nearby to pump gas and to give a wheelchair to this really sweet boy. When he was born his oxygen got cut off so he hasn't been able to walk since.

After spending some time with them we continued our journey. Wijit, Tan and I felt a whole lot better. The next stop was Naa's village in Maeming. Her parents were so generous. They served us fried egg and rice for lunch. It was so good. We thanked them for their generosity and had a prayer. It took us two to three hours from there to get to Kenk's village. Once we were there, we were welcomed with open arms by Kenk's family. They had such a nice place. The best part was they had a pet monkey named Brown. It didn't take too long for Balloon, Ben and I to befriend that little guy. We had about 3 hours to rest and headed to Kenk's house where were we had our dinner. This was an exciting moment as we had to catch, kill and cook the chicken ourselves. Balloon was in charge of the killing and Wijit and Tan was in charge of cooking. It was a special day because not only it was a new experience for most of us, it was also the day where the guys cooked and the ladies went out and enjoyed themselves. I helped Wijit, Tan and Balloon to clean the chicken and start the fire because they used firewood to cook instead of a gas stove. It was a wonderful and new experience for me and I had  whole lot of fun.

We then had dinner together as one big family. As it got dark and our bellies were full I was looking forward to sleeping as we had a long day travelling and I was feeling tired but to my surprise the day was just about to begin. Robert had planned for us to meet up with all children in the village. We were to head to the village church. Balloon was in charge for all the games and Wijit was in charge of songs with the kids that night. I was a little worried at first because I was tired and had no intention of playing with the kids but all that changed as soon as I saw their faces. They were so excited to meet us and they all had such a wonderful smile on each of their faces that I forgot how tired I was and just jumped in to have fun with them. I could really feel God's presence there and then. The kids were really sweet and fun to be with. They loved balloon because he was so funny and fun. We sang songs and played games with them for about 2 hours.

Once we were done, Kenk's dad invited us to go shrimping. We all went because none of us has ever been shrimping before. It was an incredible experience. Kenk, her younger brother, her dad and Balloon were so good at shrimping. I on the other hand couldn't catch a thing. haha. It was embarrassing. Wi and Melody were really good too but they caught fishes and tadpoles instead. We then headed back to the village around 10.30 pm. It was an awesome day for all of us. Making new friends, strengthening the ones that already exists. Admiring God's great creations and so much more.

A group picture with the sweet young boy.

Th waterfall!!

Meet brown!!!

It's chicken time!

Balloon being Balloon.

Ben chopping firewood.

The church in Kenk's village.

Swimming in the river nearby.

Kenk's giving her little sister a bath.

Makaaaaan!!!! ( Let's eat)

Some delicious stuff.

Having fun with the kids.

Shrimping time!!

Day 21 (Friday 7 March 2014) by Shuen

On Friday morning we had our last equipping session, focussing on the spiritual discipline of Celebration. I have loved our morning equipping sessions. I have learnt so much from the times we've spent sharing, reading and discussing things around our dining table. I'll treasure these moments for a long time to come.

After that we headed to the house boats to celebrate together. It was so much fun! It took us around an hour to drive to the dock. When we arrived, it was about a 15 minute boat ride to get to the house boats.

The scenery surrounding us was beautiful! 

It was so much fun jumping in and swimming with everyone 

This is the hut we relaxed in after our swim

Lunch time!

After lunch, we relaxed and some of us took a nap. Later on most people jumped in again and had more fun in the water. 

4 pm came too soon and our boat arrived to take us back to shore. On the way over we rode in two boats, but on the way back we all squeezed into one. The boat was long, loud and went pretty fast. We all had such a great day!

When we got back to the Zone, we watched Wijit smash open his piggy bank and then counted the coins. 2100 Baht! Wijit said that he is always receiving from others so now he wants to use what he has to give to others. Thank you for your big, kind and generous heart. We used that money to buy snacks for the Leadership camp for the refugee students.

This is what we bought at Big C! Needless to say, I had a really fun time shopping for all of these snacks! 

After shopping, Robert, Art, Wi and I went to get a Thai Massage! It was my last one before leaving Chiang Mai. Over the past month, I've had a total of 5 and a half hours of Thai Massages :) 

We made a quick stop to get some things for our weekend trip to Geng's village and the refugee leadership camp. After that we had dinner at a really good Pad Thai place. I love cheap and good food! That night three of us stayed at the Reagan's house. The end!

Day 20 (Thursday 6 March 2014) by Robert

The internship is going by too quickly. It’s always hard when I begin to realize the interns will leave Chiang Mai soon. When we spend so much time together learning, growing and serving, it’s hard to even think about parting ways in about a week’s time. 

Today was a major preparation day for the upcoming Leadership Camp with the refugee student in Maehongson. We finished writing and printing and laminating all the teaching materials and books that we will give to the 66 students who attend the camp. So, we worked while we did the equipping lesson on the Discipline of Seeking Spiritual Guidance. Here is a page explaining what we'll be doing teaching to the refugee students. 

Vern cooked amazing Indian food for cell group and Melody cooked flatbread to go with it. 

We had more than 30 people show up for the meal and cell group.

 I think Pui was really tired after a long day at work.

 Gift, Jan, Shuen and Ying - 4 beautiful Christians.

 Crazy young girls - Wi, Na and Geng.

 Durian head Balloon and Ben.

 Becky and Un chilling after cell group.

 Mama Zone always has a beautiful smile.

We celebrated Joy Weeden's birthday after cell group. I think it's really cool that Karen (right) loves Joy so much.