Going to Mae Sot

Going to Mae Sot on PhotoPeach

Having just arrived in Mae Sot, my first impressions are very different to how I imagined...it is much more built up, with a VERY busy road system that seems really chaotic despite being one way. The air is filled with a mix of exotic spices, fumes and the ever present aroma of open drains.....We received a very warm welcome from Say Hey and her son, Ku Paw, Myoe Nuant and Kiki which made the bus journey from Chiang Mai a distant memory.

Ms Laing is coping very well with the numerous changes since last year's visit; not only did she have to stay in a new hotel in Chiang Mai...the Orchid did not impress, although the pool was glorious, but we have been 'upgraded' to the brand new plush 'executive wing' of the DK.....we have a fridge...but no balcony...let's see what changes tomorrow brings when we all meet the school staff at CDC. Miss Lendrum

It was lovely to arrive in Mae Sot, as it always is.  We do love it.  Then to be met by Say Hei and her son, Ku Paw, Myoe Nyunt and the Mae Tao Cinic car.  Then off to the DK, hoping we wouldn't be on the top floor!   

All the teachers who have been here with us before will be amazed when we show you the new DK annexe. It's a lovely house with new furnishings, cotton sheets (hurray!), a fridge to keep Geoff happy, free wifi, soft towels, tall toilet and a shower that looks good.  Oh yes and it's on the ground floor, no more hikes up those steep stairs because we forgot our bike key!.  Thank you Teacher Kiki for booking these rooms for us.  We're well chuffed.  

We went to eat at  Canadian Dave's tonight. Even Dave's changed.  He's expanded to the shop next door and was very very busy.  It was lovely to be back.  I even ate cashew and pineapple fried rice to confound those of you who think I'm not adventurous!  See, like the Campie kids, I CAN DO CHANGE!  

Miss Lendrum is nervous about tomorrow. We're having a lazy morning, then off to rent our bikes that Bobo had arranged for us in the morning. At lunchtime, we go to CDC and will pop into all the classes to say hi before meeting the primary school teachers after school to discuss this year's project. The work begins.  Ms Laing

PS Photopeach slideshow seems to have knocked our header off.... a job for SuperGeoff.... tomorrow!

Today we go to Mae Sot

It's 9am and we're up for breakfast, which Miss Macnaughton and Miss Lendrum slept right through yesterday. They didn't wake up until 1pm. We thought they'd gone sightseeing but they were snoring in their beds. Today however, Miss Lendrum is back to normal. Many of you know that means she's at the gym at the crack of dawn before school. There is a gym here but it's a bit creepy so here is Miss Lendrum, on lap 121 of the hotel swimming pool, while the rest of us drag ourselves out of bed. It's another hot and sunny day here in Chiang Mai. We leave at 1.10pm on the Green Bus, arriving at Mae Sot at 6.40pm. It's time to leave those western toilets behind and start squatting. Joy!

Chiang Mai Chill Out

Well Miss Lendrum and Miss Macnaughton missed the first part of day catching up on some much needed sleep before refreshing ourselves in the swimming pool with a few laps!

Sheila and Geoff found this safe looking child's seat on a Saungtaw! Interesting - think braking would result a child being catapulted into next year.
We then went to meet Stuart Simpson and Murray Forgie for a coffee to catch up on the life and times of Chiang Mai. Lovely to see the guys as always.

Off to snooze - lets hope we don't do another 14 hour stint or we'll miss the bus to Mae Sot.

p.s.

Miss Lendrum's first impression is that Chiang Mai is very western.

Safely arrived in Thailand

Ms Laing and Geoff arrived in Bangkok at noon and got to our hotel at 4.45pm. We had a great journey. We booked really early with Air France. It only cost £650 from Edinburgh to Bangkok and was the best flight we've taken over the 5 years we've been coming. I phoned Say Hei at CDC and Myoe Nyunt. They're excited to see us on Wednesday when we go by but to Mae Sot. Tomorrow is a day for swimming, sleeping and resting to get over a short but torrid term. We're also going to see Murray and Stewart who started us off on the partnerships 6 years ago. That'll be lovely. The weather here today was sunny and hot, which was a wee bonus as we've been told it's raining hard in Mae Sot.

Tonight at 10.20pm, Miss Macnaughton and Miss Lendrum finally made it into Chiang Mai after a very long and hard journey. Miss Macnaughton woke up to a tummy upset on Sunday and only made it here thanks to the wonderdrug Imodium. We don't usually use them till we get to Mae Sot. Let's hope it's not a sign of what's to come. They travelled from Edinburgh to London to Delhi to Bangkok to Chiang Mai. Ugh.... too many flight changes but I guess they have youth on their side. Our Thai driver said, "They are teachers? They are too young!" I did enlighten them that actually they're quite old!

Booking in before crashing into a bed. How good is a bed after flying all night? Breakfast at 9.30am and a lazy day tomorrow before travelling to Mae Sot. It's great to be back in Thailand.

IF YOU WANT TO LEAVE A COMMENT, CHOOSE ANONYMOUS FROM THE DROP DOWN MENU, WRITE YOUR COMMENT THEN PRESS PUBLISH (probably) TWICE. That seems to work. Thanks for telling us that in your comment Alicia. Not had that wee babby yet then?

En Paris

Nous sommes en Paris and there's only 2 cafes in Charles De Gaulle airport. How weird is that. We've had a 5hr wait here but at least we're well. Poor MissMacnaughton was ill last night and today and she's still coming. She should be in London now and Miss Lendrum is flying to London as we speak. They meet there then fly to somewhere in India where they change for Bangkok. Our 12 hour flight is from Paris to Bangkok. CDC seems a long way away..... Ms L

Two Sleeps!

Well school is over and the time has nearly come for another trip to Mae Sot. Keep watching the blog over the next few weeks to keep updated on our adventures. If the blog tickles your fancy for a bit more of Burma I would recommend Little Daughter by Zoya Phan (which I've not had the time to finish yet - 1/2 to go and only this afternoon to read it - before I return to the library). It is an easy read - considering - and from what I have read so far is a typical (ish) Karen life story. Also Lisa Houston is mentioned in the acknowledgements - I can only assume it's our Lisa from Mae Tao clinic. Happy summer! Miss Macnaughton

Preparing To Go

Campie's Ultimate Questions on PhotoPeach

Miss Macnaughton and Miss Lendrum started to prepare for their visit to CDC, Mae Sot. We leave next Sunday - so much to do and so little time.
The main learning during the visit will be around Ultimate Questions. We spent time this morning in a few classes preparing work to take to CDC to use with the children there. Each class we went to spent time discussing their answers to an Ultimate Question to create a poster
.
P1/2 looked at Is anger wrong?
P2 looked at Why should I care for others?
P5a discussed Who should be in charge of my life?
P5b discussed Do animals matter as much as people?
P5c discussed Should we test cosmetics on animals?

The answers and the reasons behind them were brilliant - noone was right or wrong - all answers were accepted.
A huge thanks to the children and the teachers for letting us visit today - you were amazing!
P.S. Once the posters have been returned to us we will post some of their answers