Monday, June 29, 2009

Bangkok and Muay Thai

Sawatdee Kah! We have only been in Thailand for six days, but we have had many great adventures so far with the wonderful Mahidol students that have helped us adjust to life here. We are having a great time here learning about Thai language and culture and getting involved on campus in various activities with Mahidol students. After class on Friday, a small group of us and a student we met here at Mahidol decided to take up some Muay Thai (Thai boxing) training at a gym near campus. We were very intimidated when we first arrived because there were really good boxers training in a real boxing ring. But there were incredible trainers there that helped us out a lot and taught us the basic moves.


On Saturday, we embarked on our first trip to Bangkok by splitting into three groups led by Mahidol students. My group went to Ko Kret, a small, beautiful island near Bangkok known for its hand-crafted pottery. We spent most of the day on the island exploring and admiring the pottery, but we also learned a lot about the transportation in Bangkok by taking trains, boats, taxis and buses to reach our destinations. At the end of the day, all of the groups met at Siam Paragon which is one of the largest shopping malls in Southeast Asia.





After an all-day excursion in busy Bangkok on Saturday, we had a shorter and more relaxed trip on Sunday to the Mahasawat canal. We rode a small boat along the canal, visited a lotus farm and bought locally made snacks, such as rice cakes with pork floss and dried jackfruit. We ate lunch at the Don Wai Riverside Market, which allowed us to experience a typical busy food market in Thailand. All of the food I have had in Thailand has been delicious and the wide variety of fresh produce available amazed me because there is always something new and exciting to try here.

Today, we had classes and had a picnic at Buddhamonthon park, one of the largest sacred places of Buddhism in Thailand with a huge Buddha statue in the center. Tomorrow, we have another exciting day because we are visiting the Thailand Burma Border Consortium to learn about refugees in Thailand, an issue we will be discussing in our class with Dr. Steiner.



There are so many friendly dogs wandering around freely in Thailand!

- Laura

Friday, June 26, 2009

Sawatdee ka!



We arrived in Thailand two days ago, and it is so different from the air conditioned nation of Singapore! Departing Singapore was both sad and exciting, as I knew Thailand would be both culturally and developmentally different from Singapore, and could not wait to experience Thailand for myself. As the airplane started to descend, we could see the clear blue water of the Thailand shores. Thailand is hotter than Singapore, probably because it lacks the constant air conditioning, and hasn’t been structured to be as shaded by giant trees as Singapore has been. The ride through Bangkok to the university was marked by various images lined by flowers of the royal family which were placed on overpasses of the roads.

The students here at Mahidol University are so friendly, as is our Thailand coordinator, Nita. On the first night of our arrival, we got to taste Thai food at our welcome dinner, which was both spicy and coconutty. We were given leis made with real flowers to welcome us, and watched a demonstration of Thai boxing. Mahidol’s hip hop team also performed for us, and it was fun to see how our culture of hip hop music and dance has travelled and is enjoyed worldwide. After the boxing and hip hop demonstrations, we were initiated as students of the university by walking through a path of candles and then kneeling down. As we knelt, Mahidol students tied white strings around our wrists with hot candle wax to stand for the pain and hardships we may have to encounter during our academic careers, and they wished us good luck in Thailand.


Our second day in Thailand, we were introduced to the Thai language and culture. I thought I would be at least a little prepared to learn Thai since Chinese, one of my majors, is also a tonal language, but Thai is quite different! Firstly, Thai has more tones than Chinese, and they sound a bit different as well. We were not taught how to read Thai, but we were taught how to pronounce certain words. The Thai lesson was really interesting, and we learned some survival phrases, which we were able to use later in the evening.

When dinner rolled around, it was definitely a new experience. We walked alongside various restaurants and food stalls, finding one which looked both safe and tasty. Looking around, I saw rows of food stalls all side by side offering various dishes, locals wai-ing each other, dogs laying on the street... quite a different view from Singapore, although a bit more like Malaysia. We finally decided on a stall in which the cooks were making fresh food outside on the spot. We could not read the menu, as it was in Thai. When the time came to order, we had to put our new and limited Thai skills to the test. We managed to convey that we wanted chicken fried rice, but since Nicole is vegetarian, and we did not have to vocabulary to convey that, it posed to be a bit of a problem. After many hand gestures, pointing to ingredients in the stall, and making use of a Thai language guidebook, we managed to order our meals. Although we hadn’t quite managed to convey what we had wanted…everyone BUT Nicole ended up with vegetarian fried rice, and she was served squid fried rice… It was still empowering to know that even though there is a language barrier, and we do not know much Thai, we will be able to learn a bit of Thai and are capable of getting food and such in a foreign country on our own. We even managed to get a bit of the Singapore food culture we had experienced here in Thailand, and found that the stall next door sold the Indian pulled tea, which was delicious!

I am very excited for the many activities which have been planned for us, as well as getting to explore some on my own! Tomorrow I am going to old Bangkok, and can’t wait to see what I will find.


~Andrea :)

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

“What we call the beginning is often the end"


What we call the beginning is often the end
And to make an end is to make a beginning.
The end is where we start from.

-T.S Eliot “Little Gidding”



Tonight, we, an odd mess of college students, bid farewell to the city that has housed us, entertained us, educated us, and for all intents and purposes, been our home for the past month. Singapore, the [mer]lion city, which welcomed us in as wide-eyed strangers, extended its hospitality through our final days, sending us away as friends.

And sending us away with friends. These last few days have been packed, as we made our lists and tried to squeeze in a museum here, a ride on the flyer there, that last unexplored food, our final papers (oh my!), and spend time with the people we met here. In class, we have been discussing what exactly is it that binds us to a place—is it the ideologies, the food, the very clean streets, or the language everyone speaks. Of course, it’s none and all of these things. Whatever causes us to love, to miss, to mourn a place is impossible to name or quantify without being made aware of one’s woefully inadequate control of language. Facing this problem, I asked a Singaporean what he wanted the world to know, if they could only know one thing about Singapore. His answer: “Singapore, like every other place in the world, is not about rules or government or gum (though perhaps those are the things you may hear about it), but about the people.” And as I reflected on my time in Singapore, I realized that the absolute best parts of the trip were the times spent with the people we met here.

When we ambled curiously through Little India, the History Museums, and the hawker centers, we were walking the routes that Singaporeans walk every day. When we ate stingray and chicken rice and durian we were tasting the foods that Singaporeans identify as childhood favorites. That is the joy of traveling, that you are stepping into someone else’s world (and at the same time broadening your own!).



And how many people have shown us Singapore through their eyes! From Dr. Quek who patiently introduced us to the idiosyncrasies of Singapore by sharing with us its short but rich history, to Dr. Emmanuel, who took us out to neighboring Malaysia and back again, showing us the differences and similarities between the two. Both of whom made a huge effort to teach us outside of class as well, answering our questions well after class had ended, showing us the best hawker stands, and even feeding us from time to time!




Our field research gave us the excuse to talk to local domestic workers and restaurant owners, Singaporean citizens and non-citizens alike, who gave us a variety of perspectives on daily life in Singapore-- sometimes joyful and sometimes sobering. Through them we were reminded of the diversity of life and living in every culture, in every nation.

Then, of course, there is Nadiah and Yong Min, our official and unofficial guides to a student’s life in Singapore. Nadiah not only ferried us through many a governmental agency and educational field trip, she was also there to take us shopping, tell us where to eat and what to see. She spent her free time teaching us Singlish (unsuccessfully) and taking us to movies or to ride the flyer, introducing us to Kaya toast (a gift from God) and Chendol (a somewhat less delightful treat). She even invited us into her home to eat a meal with her family.

Yong, who came to UNC for one semester before we even were there, showed up on the first day to greet us at the airport, and never disappeared after that. He miraculously appeared to help navigate the buses and city at night, showing us where the locals eat and which places are open late for the student’s late night cravings. On our last day, many of us went to the City Planning Museum to see the future of Singapore that Yong will have a stake in creating, as one of Singapore’s newest city planners. There, we saw both the future of the city we had grown to love, and the future of the person we had grown to love more.

“And to make an end is to make a beginning.” We have left Singapore. We know not if we shall return, but we do know that the end of our time here was just the beginning of our friendships here. We know that however intangible our feelings for Singapore may be, our feelings for the Singaporeans are very real. And secure in the knowledge, we embrace the new beginning awaiting us in Thailand.

-Sarah
“We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.”



Monday, June 22, 2009

A Step Back in Time

Our time in Singapore has flown by, as it seems just yesterday that we arrived here not knowing what to expect. Throughout our time here, we have become accustomed to the rapid pace of life and high level of modernization that Singapore offers. However, this weekend we experienced a new side of Singapore that one does not see on a day to day basis.

Early Saturday morning we left for the island of Pulau Ubin, a short boat ride away from the main island of Singapore. As I stepped off the boat it felt like I was in a different country, with so much green and no skyscrapers or government housing blocks in sight. Pulau Ubin is apparently what Singapore was like in the 1960s, filled with kampongs, or villages, and not very industrialized. Although the area has been turned into an place primarily for tourist recreational activities, it was quite interesting to see the few shops and homes that remained. The whole group went bike riding around the island for the day, as we are all now very skilled at cycling after our journey through the jungles of Malaysia. The island was actually somewhat similar to Malaysia, with coconut palms, rubber plantations, and mangroves. It was definitely a very relaxing atmosphere, and I can understand why the locals come here when they want to get out of the busy city.


Hannah, Mary, Me, and Emily on the Boat to Pulau Ubin

After spending a peaceful day at Pulau Ubin, Mary and I wanted to see if any Kampong life still existed on mainland Singapore. Before coming to Singapore, we had both researched a village called, Kampong Lorong Buangkok. The articles we read stated that this was the last real village (nothing touristy about it) in Singapore and local families had owned the small homes for generations. The government wanted to demolish the homes to make space for more government housing units, as the land the kampong is on is very valuable due to Singapore’s small size. The Kampong was petitioning to keep their homes, but as of March, we did not know if the government had started to move in or not.



Sunday morning after one bus ride, traveling nearly a whole line on the subway, switching to the light rail, walking through HDB Flats, and taking a short cab ride, we finally found Kampong Lorong Buangkok. It really is a well hidden secret, which I guess is why all of the Singaporeans I asked about it did not know what I was talking about. It was a truly fascinating sight to see this small village right near hundreds of apartments and a row of wealthy private houses. We entered the Kampong and briefly spoke with a man sitting on his porch. He welcomed us to look around and when we asked him about the current construction situation, he said they were still unsure of what was going to happen. However, in the nearby areas around village we witnessed construction projects and machinery, demonstrating that this Kampong is probably next.


Pictures of in front of the Kampong



Afterward, Mary and I discussed how interesting it was that the government wants to demolish this small village in the name of progress and development. With Singapore wanting to nearly double its population in the future, I understand that space is very valuable and government housing does provide the opportunity for nearly every Singaporean to own a home. Nonetheless, it is sad that this unique heritage of Singapore many no longer last.

As we move onto Thailand in just a few days, I think it will be interesting to see the differences in preserving culture and heritage and its effect on Thai society, as I expect it to be very diverse from Singapore.

-Lucy

Saying Goodbye

Tomorrow is our last day here in Singapore, and we are all experiencing mixed emotions about leaving for Thailand. We’ve only been here four weeks, but in this short time Singapore has become like a second home to us. We have made some great friends here, like Nadiah and Yong, and it’s hard to believe that we may never see them again. We’ve also had an amazing time and made memories that we will certainly treasure forever.


Nadiah has been a great friend and has provided us with valuable insights into Singaporean life


Reflecting on the last four weeks, I realize how much we’ve learned about Singapore in the short time we’ve been here. Singapore is known for being a sterile, efficient metropolis, and as a result many travelers dismiss it as an uninteresting destination. This perception, we quickly realized, is completely inaccurate. Our program’s unique combination of intensive classes, structured tours, and free time made it easy for us to see beneath the city’s tranquil surface into the heart of Singapore.


Singapore is a city defined by its diversity. It is made up of people from a variety of ethnic groups, most notably Chinese, Malays, and Indians. Singapore also has tremendous religious diversity, with large numbers of Buddhists, Christians, Muslims, Taoists, and Hindus, among other religions. All of these people live together in harmony on the island, despite their tremendous religious and cultural differences. This makes Singapore a fascinating place to visit, and also provides a model for how diverse states can foster harmony between citizens.



Candles and incense being burned inside a Buddhist temple



A woman in Little India sells flowers, which are commonly used in Hindu ceremonies



The Sultan Mosque on Arab Street serves Singapore's Islamic population, which is made up of Muslims from around the world


Now, however, it is time for us to travel from diverse and cosmopolitan Singapore to another fascinating destination: Thailand. The last month of our lives has been incredibly eye-opening and has given us a greater understanding of the world and our role in it. Thailand will provide us with an even greater challenge and will further facilitate our personal development and the cultural awareness we hope to gain by spending the summer here in Southeast Asia.



Aja cries as she and Hanna say goodbye to Singapore.

Parting is such sweet sorrow.


-Steven