Geo: 18.8, 98.98 April 13-15 is Songkran, the Thai New Year. It is now year 2555, the number of years since the Buddha's death. Songkran is celebrated for at least three days, up to nine in some places in Thailand, and, since it occurs during the very hottest part of the year, it is a water festival. This can be a blessing, as long as people are prepared to get thoroughly soaked by other people either pouring buckets of water on them, or shooting huge water guns at them; either way bystanders --and participants-- do get relief from the heat, by getting very wet. Songkran is all in good fun. Employees at various establishments don't get soaked, as their work is respected, but everyone else is fair game, especially farang, we who are foreigners. I was ... read more

Geo: 18.8, 98.98 I have finally gotten to Chiang Mai! I wanted to come here from the very beginning of this adventure, but things just worked out differently until now. But here I am, finally! And after only one day I already love this city. It looks like Denver, nestled in the mountains (although the number of temples belies that), and feels a bit like Cambridge, Mass, the old Cambridge of the 1970s, when I lived in Harvard Square; it has that energy about it, although the people are quite different. To get to Chiang Mai most people either fly, or take the train from Bangkok. I had read so much about the train that I decided to take a sleeper on one of the overnight trains. It takes about 14 hours to get to Chiang ... read more

Geo: 12.6475, 101.636 Since February 20 I have taught preschool at the Thailand English Academy in Laem Mae Phim. It is an international Kindergarten class, housed in a pretty little school that just started up last fall, teaching English classes to Thais and some Scandinavians; the Kindergarten is its newest offering to this mostly Swedish community. I live about two miles from the school, and bicycle to work each morning. It is a wonderful way to start each day! The title of this blog is actually incorrect, as I saw the herd of water buffalo on my way home from school, but it sounded better than "Water Buffalo on the Way Home From School." It was the same experience. I often see birds, squirrels, dogs; I always see dogs, one who snarls as I pass by ... read more

Geo: 11.5588, 104.917 Early every morning in Thailand, around 6 or 6:30AM, barefoot monks go walking through the streets, the markets, past stores, stopping at every doorway, carrying their silver pots in front of them, pausing to collect the foods they will eat that day. Whatever offerings they receive are eaten only before noon; monks in Thailand do not eat after 12PM. And this is what I have seen, and heard from reliable sources: every day, at various times, monks in Cambodia walk through the streets, wearing flipflops or sandals, sometimes talking on cell phones, carrying their silver pots in front of them, stopping to collect the foods offered to them. This is partly what they will eat that day, at least until their snacks come out during the afternoon. How can monkhood vary so much ... read more

Geo: 11.6724, 105.425 At Wat Opot I have a room to myself now, but quickly found out that I am not alone in it. Because we live in such a warm/hot climate here in Cambodia, there are many other beings (who far outnumber us) who like to live here too. The potential conflict is that they don't respect a human's desire for doors or boundaries. When another volunteer left, I was offered her room for more privacy, so I moved in. Two frogs were the first things I saw that I thought should be moved; I really didn't want them nesting or pooping in my clothing. One was nestling on the inside of the window; the other was hiding in plain sight, right on top of the electrical outlet. I didn't even try to move him. ... read more