Let the waters rise... or not...

So, life around here has been crazy. I took some time not blogging because life became very routine, as I'm sure it does everywhere. Most my time is filled with homework, which is the last thing I want to do while in such an amazing country. We finally got to start our own English class, which was amazing and super fun.
On another note... flooding. The most talked about topic in Thailand at present. Thai news is filled with it. We were in Bangkok and kept getting told over and over it wouldn't effect us. Bangkok is surrounded by a dike system to protect the metropolitan area, in which we live. We thought we were okay, and then began to notice the lack of water and bread in store shelves. Soon, even eggs were gone. So, even though we were reassured of our facilities not flooding, we began to worry about food and water. You can't drink tap water in Thailand, especially not with all the flooding. So, just when we though we had made it through, we were then informed of this large puddle (a gross understatement I assure you...) capable of flooding up to the third floor in some places was headed towards Bangkok. If the dikes could hold, we'd have no troubles. We began to notice that all the roads out of Bangkok were closed except for one. No one was sure that the dikes could hold. Furthermore, Ayuttya (I think that's how it's spelled) is where all the big food factories are. It is also under a massive amount of water. So, there's a lack of food because of the factories not being able to operate and the factories that do operate cannot get food in and out of Bangkok because of there only being one road in and out. Suddenly, everything began to feel more panicky. There was so much tension, we'd all crack morbid jokes just to feel better. We fought about some of the stupidest things. It was super stressful.
One beautiful night, one of my teammates and I got on a bus to go downtown to teach English. Halfway there we noticed a little bit of rain, but nothing to worry about. By the time we got off the bus, it looked like there was a hurricane over our heads. We hopped in a taxi to take us about 10 blocks to the church. Got a call halfway there saying that our class was cancelled and we needed to get home ASAP. We were hoping we could pick up our other two team members and convince the guy to take us all the way home. He refused because the streets were starting to flood. No one would even take us to the train station which was at the end of the road and most of them were headed in that direction anyhow. So, our only hope was to walk for a mile in the flooding to get to the train station. This started out okay with a few laughs and joking. The rain in Bangkok is super polluted so that was especially not fun. It became especially not fun when there was ankle deep puddle which you suddenly realized were not just water. The sewage systems are above ground, so with the flooding even sewage ends up in the streets. There were pipes draining on to the street, even, that you knew were raw sewage. If you know me at all, I'm super obsessive compulsive and terrified of germs. I even avoid public bathrooms as absolutely much as possible. If I go into one I will wash my hands and then use hand sanitizer after I leave the bathroom. My whole world crashed stepping into those puddles. What made it worse was that my anxiety took a hold of me and I started to become a hypochondriac and worried that I had broken skin on my feet that would get infected and I'd end up with like Hepatitis or something. We made it and I got on the train and we were soaked and so many people were on the train that people were literally falling out when the doors open. I got home and showered, including washing my feet with tons of antibacterial soap. I then just cried. It was awful because there was nothing I could do, and my feet were covered with germs that I was not only terrified of, but others I never thought I would have had to encounter. The one thing I need to remember is that God is bigger than a germ. I had to remind myself over and over.
So, we had arranged road trips in order to renew our visas, which involves crossing the border and coming back in. Those were just as chaotic to plan, because the flooding had an impact on our travel plans. My team ended up flying instead of taking a bus (a blessing I assure you). So far down here has been amazing. It almost feels like I'm in Thailand for the first time. Bangkok is Thailand, but it's huge and very westernized, I feel. Down here is more traditional and beautiful. There's mountains. :) It's super hot though. I don't like the heat.
Going into Burma was super amazing. The country is definitely different than Thailand. It's gorgeous. It was frustrating though to go into a country where I don't speak the language... again. I don't know a lot of Thai, but I can get places and I can't do that in Burma. We've been teaching in Burmese schools in Thailand, which has been super fun. The kids are amazing. The Burmese seem to be a lot louder than the Thai, so it's different. The culture is different. After church on Sunday, we walked into the jungle (wearing flats and a skirt...) to meet some Burmese people living here. There was one lady who only had use of one of her hands. She either is mostly paralyzed or she's paralyzed down half her body, but I don't know for sure. I wish I could say she was healed right there in front of us, but she wasn't, but I definitely think God did something inside of her that day. We also prayed for her next door neighbors who said that their kids could go to church. Unfortunately, they needed a ride, but there is no one to give them rides. It would be super cool for there to be more ministries to the Burmese here.
It's crazy, but life has still been good. It's been super stressful, but still amazing. God is good.

Emotions are overrated...

So, this week was filled with more fun adventures. Wednesday we ate dinner in a Thai home. Super fun and super nice people. Good food too. My favorite Thai food has to be Som Tom. It's a type of spicy papaya salad. I hate actual papaya though :P.
Friday I had an interesting adventure to the dentist. I've been having problems in my mouth since I got here so I figured I'd go see the dentist cuz it's way cheaper here than it is at home. She was very nice and spoke pretty good English. She was able to understand me when I told her what was wrong. She was a little shocked when I told her that America's healthcare system wasn't good. Then I had to go on to explain that the healthcare itself is great but for those of us without insurance it's impossible to pay. She then proceeded to giving me the most painful cleaning I've ever had. Never again. lol. I'll stick with gentle American dentists from now on.
Saturday we plaid soccer with slum children. Those kids are so good! I was awful. lol. But we had so much fun playing anyways. The kids are super cool even though we don't speak the same language. They try hard to communicate even though it isn't verbal. We APSAI students have a new favorite song called "Too much. So much. Very much." It's mostly in Thai with just a few English words but we jam to it all the time. We had an epic time jamming with the Thai kids to the song in the van on the way home from the soccer game. They thought it was fun too! It's heartbreaking to look at the teenagers who were in their place just a few years ago. I pray these kids don't grow up to make the same mistakes, but instead will do better and make something of their lives. I hope they escape that black hole.
Also, this Sunday was our church's first week in their new building! Oh my goodness it looked amazing! We've had the opportunity to help a little bit but last time we were there it was still a mess. God has blessed that church and is alive and well within it.
Random emotions of the week, well and the week before, I just never got the chance to talk about... Being 3 weeks in now a lot of the luster and newness is wearing off. It's becoming increasingly frustrating that I can't speak the language and even the little bits I learned in class I'm still messing up. The people aren't like Americans. Americans think that English is like an uber language and either you should speak it or leave the country and if you don't speak it then they just won't speak to you or they'll treat you like you're stupid. Here, though, the Thai people are very kind. They try with all their might to speak English. In fact, sometimes random Thai people in places like McDonalds will sometimes practice their English with you. Still though. Most don't speak much English and if they do, it's very choppy. It's so frustrating. I want to make friends and stuff but I dont even know how because I can't even communicate with them.
A new fear has crept over me. Like a week ago I was followed back to my dorm. It was super scary. Some guy shouting "Darling, you can have me." Or "Darling can you help me?" Either way, creepy. Then while out with one of my other friends, we got full on creeper status checked out by some guy. And then the whole way home there were people staring at us. I know we're white in a non-white country but still. The looks they were giving us were creepy as all get up.
Also, homesickness is beginning to set in just a little. I miss my friends and family back home. I love the people who are here but still. It's hard to hear about all the things I always thought I'd be a part of that I can't be because I'm here. It's hard not to be able to find things like cheese for less than 10$ a brick. I want Mexican food. They have it here but it's more expensive and far from where I live. I miss not having to have someone translate for me. It's all bittersweet. Like we're still having tons of fun, but its hard. The sad part about it is that this week I bought a package of pasta and it pretty much made my week. When I went to read the instructions on the back, the whole back was in Spanish. They just placed a little Thai sticker over part of it so the Thais knew what they were buying. It threw me off guard because I could read it. lol. I miss hearing Spanish. Spanish is easy to understand. Thai is filled with tones and words that all sound the same to me. It's kind of frustrating to have to go shop in "big people stores" because the people here are like 1/4 my size at their fattest. It's also not so easy on the self-esteem. It's frustrating not to be able to get a hold of my family or friends any time I want. It's hard not to be able to just text someone when I need them. Communicating with my professors back home is equally frustrating. I send them an email and have to wait at least 12 hours for a reply. Some teachers I have to wait more like 4 days for and by then the assignment that I had questions on is way past due and I no longer have time to do them. And, since that guy followed me, I'm too scared to go anywhere by myself which I hate.
On the reverse side of this, I have a great family here. All of the APSAI students get along great! We have family nights Saturday and Tammy makes real American food for us. It takes the edge off of homesickness. And all the fun we have together, all the laughs and love that I feel between us and the missionaries and even just between us is amazing. So even though I feel homesick, it definitely helps to have so many great people around.
Furthermore, God is good and he has a purpose for bringing me here. I'm going to push through this homesickness and get back to loving it here. :)

Another week in this crazy place...

I should add, another AMAZING week in this place. :)
It's been crazy. I can't believe I've been here for two weeks already. It feels like I've been here longer, yet not as long all at the same time. Its also weird how the longer I'm here, the more I feel like I notice about the place. Let us see, where to start talking about this week?
I suppose I'll talk about classes first. They're now completely in full gear both her and at Evangel. It makes for an a very busy week. My professors back home have been super awesome about working with me while I'm here. I'm taking 2 classes here too. One is with Dr. Alan Johnson who is like a super genius and also really entertaining. He has a lot of good things that I feel like are important for us to know. Of course, we also have guest teachers really really often in that class, seeing as Alan has other things to do too. I also am taking Thai with Khruu Sasipa. She's so much fun and with our group of kids the class is nothing but smiles, laughter, and, of course, learning. Our Thai is better than it was when we started. Our nights are filled with games and movies up in our commons area. Sometimes we walk to the mall or other places near by. It's really great and the group we have is so much fun.
Let's see... what else? I go to a Thai church. It's amazing. The people are super nice. We're currently working on moving to a new building so that's pretty sweet. I got to go help them clean up the new building just a little bit the other day. Our pastor is hilarious. There's a wooden cross on the wall behind the stage, as there is in many churches. In the sound booth there's a switch that makes the cross light up. Our pastor went and turned it on and then came back and points to it and in his broken English goes "Look. I make miracle. Give me money." I could not stop laughing. The construction workers laughed at us too. Apparently, they're not used to white people doing physical labor. That was a great experience though. I can't wait to get to know everyone in our church better.
Also this week, I got to go on a cultural excursion. It's pretty much the greatest thing ever. Today, we went to the floating market. Somehow it reminded me of New Orleans the way the buildings were built and stuff. You take this boat and it just drives through the market and that's how you get to stores and stuff. You can barter with shop keepers, which I am terrible at. I wanted to buy this thing and she said it was 250 baht (~8.40$), which for what it was was pricey. I also know that if I were Thai she would give it to me cheaper. I didn't aim too low, 150 baht (~5$). She wanted me to go up to 200, but we evened out at 170. Still more than I should have spent, but I almost gave in haha. Glad I didn't. We also went to this zoo place. They had terrible food. :P I ate this green candy looking thing that had like a hard exterior and a goopy interior. I don't know how to describe it. It was like trying to eat flavored snot. I know that's gross but that is the only thing I can think of to compare it to. We also got to ride elephants! It was incredible. We had the coolest driver and he was super nice. He learned English just from being around tourists. He said he's lived all over the Asia Pacific. It was super cool. It's like riding a really really big horse haha. Only we were on seats. They also had an epic show with fire and everything. The elephants played soccer too! Its so cool! Elephants are my new favorite animal. :D
The only thing about it I didn't like was how they treated the animals. Not that it was bad, but they really pushed them hard. Idk. I spose its whatevs, but yeah.
So yeah. I get to learn by riding elephants. How do you get to learn? In a classroom? So cliche :)

Wow. Really? A week and a half already?

So we've now been here for over a week. Wow. Right? Sorry for my followers that I haven't posted all week. It has been crazy. We started classes this week and everything else. Monday, I think it was Monday... we went to Platinum which is a huge mall downtown. We took the Airtran which was fun. Platinum was HUGE. There's like a million malls here in Bangkok. They seem like a less organized version of American malls sort of. They have small local shops everywhere except in the really fancy stores. The mall closest to us has a grocery store in it and a water park lol. I haven't been yet but I will. :) Classes started and everything kicked into full gear. So with all the business not a lot of super exciting stuff has happened. Other than just the fact that I'm in Thailand lol.

Thai class is interesting lol. Its really hard to get the tones down. Our teacher is very patient and loves to laugh with us. It makes it so much fun, even though we suck at it lol. The language itself is way more simple than English. The tones however are so hard. Oh well. One class at a time :)
Saturday, my team had an English camp to teach at. The kids were so much fun and so cute! My station was shopping. We had a bunch of random objects and the kids had to ask how much stuff costs and we would tell them and ask them questions and stuff. Some of them liked to ask what objects were. We had trouble explaining the word "barrette" until we realized it was a French word and gave up and called it a "hair clip" instead. lol Even native English speakers get confused. haha. They kept feeding us weird food. Ok and food is one thing here. It's delicious and amazing. Usually. lol. The stuff we ate at the school, not so much. lol. But we were considered special guests so it was important to eat it. The first thing we ate  was this weird stuff made of coconut milk. it was served on a folded leaf and also had these weird little ball things that looked like fish eggs but tasted like tapioca. The second thing we ate was like a roll with something else made also of coconut milk. Both were green by the way. For lunch we had green curry. Not really my favorite thing. It was cool to see some of the Thai games they play. They play hacky sack but their hacky is like little wooden round things with feathers on top. I didn't get a close look at it but yeah. Same game. Except they don't mind using their hands lol. We then went and walked around a Muslim community. It was small and rather adorable, but the smell was not so good. There and downtown I've noticed it. The smell makes me so sick and you can't breath from your mouth either because then it burns your throat. I guess it's the bad sewage here. Not just in poor areas either. That smell, I will never get used to. It made me so sick after we went downtown Monday. Anyways, the people there were super nice though.
Today we just got up and went to church. Our church is amazing. Definitely Pentacostal lol. And God moves in that place a lot. We came back I got a small break and then went walking around the mall. We ate McDonalds for dinner. Its different here. I kinda like it better. You can get ice cream cones for .30$ there. Its cool. The market was fun. They have an outdoor market right outside the mall. Its kind of sad. Thais are so skinny. So people who are like normal American sized have to shop at "big people" stores. Like an XXL here is the size of a medium in America. Yeah. Unite States. You're fat. Just saying. lol.
Well, I think that's all the update for now. So, until next time. :)

Bugs and slums...

Today was amazing. I got to know some of my team better which was good. I'm so glad I did!
We went to a Thai church this morning. It was very Western style but all in Thai language. It was a little frustrating to not understand even a single word. I got awfully lost during the sermon, even though we had a translator. :( But it was super cool because in a country that has rejected God, you could see his every move in that place. He was so present. They also served a delicious lunch and we went and got coffee.
We then went to Deanna's which was fun to just chill. And then we did slum ministry. The sad thing about the slum is it lies right next to the police station and is right behind a wall of wealth. Our goal was to help them learn English. The hope is that the English that they learn will help them to leave that place. It really broke my heart to listen to Deanna talk about it because she loves them so much and it hasn't seemed to work yet. But, I believe that God is going to boom that ministry, even though the fruit hasn't bloomed yet. But you could tell in her that it broke her heart that the kids were growing up and not getting out. I definitely will be praying for them. The kids also made us all eat bugs. haha. Some of us ate crickets (which is what I ate) while others ate silk worms. :P lol. All in all, an amazing day. Filled with Jesus and so exciting. I love what we're doing here!

My first couple days...

Hello beautiful people. So I realized I haven't blogged since I got here and decided to make a little time to do so.
So Wednesday-Thursday was the longest flight EVER. Just saying...
Friday was our first day here and we got a little chance to chill out and relax and get accustomed to our jet lag. Pretty much we ended up sitting in a circle staring at each other because we were all half asleep haha. But we did get to know each other and I'm very excited to get to work with all the others here! They are so amazing. We had lunch that day at one of the local places. I ate cashew chicken, but it is far different from American style founded in good ol' Springfield. It was so good though. And for dinner we went to the huge mall. The mall kinda sort of led to a state of culture shock. Everyone went to the food court but three of us decided to try to find somewhere else to eat. We went looking for a pizza place which led to us wandering around a little lost. When we tried to talk to some of the people who worked there we had a lot of trouble communicating. Of course the only Thai we know is how to say hi and thank you. They didn't speak any English either. It was a little confusing and super frustrating. Eventually we just decided to go to McDonalds. Of course, their Mcyd's is different than ours, but it was good and helped ease off the shock. We went to the grocery store and around an open market thing, kind of like our flea markets, or open air markets maybe.
Yesterday, we had our orientation. That was long and a bit draining especially since jet lag was still prevalent in most of us. Plus it was a ton of information all at once. But it was very comforting and left me feeling cared about and even more excited for the semester ahead. I'm so certain this is where God wants me and that he has awesome plans for me here. I can't wait to see how the story unfolds and all the awesome things he's going to do.
As for food yesterday, it was pretty American. Pizza for lunch and some Cajun like rice that Tammy made for dinner. We had our first "family dinner" which was so fun. We played a really intense game and then also played Settlers, which I failed epically at haha. And then to bed, to crash, because jet lag still isn't fully out of my system haha.
Well, this is all for now.
Love, peace, chicken grease. :)

Preparing for the big day

So, I decided not to go to sleep tonight. That's going to make airports interesting tomorrow. Haha. I'll sleep when I'm dead!
Further more, its my last few hours in Colorado and, even more, my last few hours in the States. Everything is packed, I hope. I looked all over and checked every list and cant seem to find anything I might be missing.
Honestly, though, I don't feel like it's really gonna happen. I feel like I'm going to go to bed and get up tomorrow and go run around town like usual. When I actually think about the fact that I'm leaving the country I get a million mixed emotions. I'm sad, because I'm leaving my friends and loved ones. I'm anxious, because I really don't know what to expect. But mostly, I'm excited. I have this cool feeling like God has something huge in store and he's anxiously waiting to show me what it is. Maybe it's just my own projection of God, but I feel like he's more excited about this than I am. I am excited. It's a new adventure, which I need haha. And I honestly believe that it is God's will for me. I hate saying goodbye and I don't like leaving my friends. Yet, somehow, I know it's going to be okay. God is going to take care of me and I'll see them in 3 and a half months. Thailand beckons and school will be starting and I really think I'm going to enjoy it. God and I are gonna do this together. He's never failed me before!
So, yeah. I guess this is all my random thoughts at almost 4AM when I hafta leave for the airport in like an hour and a half.