On Saturday we took an amazing riverboat ride from Taton up to Chiang Mai on the Kok River. We had a blast and the view was beautiful! The ride took about 4 hours, including some stops along the way. We got to go to a very hot hot spring. The sign said it was about 130 degrees F, and some parts of the pool were boiling up. After that we stopped at a place that lets you hold large snakes and other reptiles, as well as sells souvenirs.
Once we made it to Chiang Rai we went to the famous white temple. The architecture and design here is incredible. This temple was designed/built 18 years ago by an artist and it is a functioning Buddhist temple, but apparently is also considered a museum of sorts. Really cool!
These hands were placed outside the temple and represent Hell. Once you pass the hands you cross a bridge and then enter the temple which symbolizes Heaven.
After we toured the white temple we went on a serious thrill ride.
And once was plenty.
Church in Chiang Rai was wonderful! This church is held in a rented space and has such a warm, welcoming feel. The lessons and testimonies were inspiring, and then afterwards we all ate together, watched Meet the Mormons, and had a baptism. Seriously a perfect day!
This week we made some major headway on the Lahu playground. We finished painting the tires in a rainbow scheme and there's just a few finishing touches that we'll make tomorrow!
The murals in the community room will hopefully be finished tomorrow as well. We have the following painted on the walls: David and Goliath, Moses parting the Red Sea, Mermaids/underwater scene, Daniel and the Lion's Den, and Jonah and the Whale. I'm way impressed by everyone that drew these murals. All I have done is fill them in with paint. I worked mostly on Jonah and the Whale. Lot's of fun! Mae (the lady who requested the murals, and who is the wife of the village elder) really likes them!
This week we also had swimming lessons. Lots of improvement is happening there and the kids just love it! Aerobics class is going strong, as well!
I got to start my hearing screenings this week, too! In the public health classes Janna focused on first aid for major wounds (broken bones, large cuts, and burns) and we paired that with basic check-ups. I did hearing screenings, Courtney and others did eye exams, and Madison checked blood pressure. It's so fun to apply what I've learned in school to real life situations. It makes me excited for grad school and my future career! Anyway, we're just getting started on that, so hopefully we'll got a lot more people tested next week! I'm not sure how accurate the hearing screenings are just because there is not a quiet place to be found in the village, so I'm also working on finding a more secluded place to go.
In the Akha village we finished up a little painting and the garden for the daycare. The little kids are anywhere from toddler to about five years old and they were all so excited to plant their seeds! I'm excited for their plants to start growing, they're going to love taking care of their little gardens!
We got to work the first half of today planting corn with some of the Akha villagers. It was somewhat tiring work, but we were lucky to have plenty of clouds, some light rain, and a gorgeous view! The villagers plant many vegetables and fruits and seem fairly self-sufficient in that regard. Today we just planted corn seeds in the ground and in about 3-4 months it should be fully grown. We got to work side by side with about 7 or 8 villagers. At first I think we were throwing off their groove, but then we all got into a rhythm and it went fast! We got A LOT of corn planted today! After a few hours of planting we had a delicious lunch of vegetables and meat cooked by the village leader, Arun, who was out working in the field with us. He is such a wonderful man and does so much for his community. Because of his efforts this Akha village is nearly 100% drug free, which is a huge deal in these parts. They are a tight-knit community with a lot of order and stability. Anyway, it was really nice to spend some time talking all together over lunch. Then we headed back to work planting before calling it a day in the fields.
It's been such a great few days!
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