Day 14 + 15 – The Final Post

Having left La Salle school on the Friday morning and making the long trip back to Bangkok, we awoke on Saturday with mixed emotions. Feeling somewhat tired, sad, and proud of our achievements all at the same time.

We realised we were no longer in the peaceful Sangklaburi pretty quickly – in fact when we ventured outside the gates of La Salle school Bangkok to the crazy busy roads, where road rules seem optional at best, reality set in.

Having divided the group into 4 – 1 teacher and 3 boys to each taxi, the challenge was on to get a ride to Bearing station. Having navigating this first hurdle relatively smoothly we made our way on to the train (which was thankfully air-conditioned) and travelled through Siam central station (something like Flinders Street station) and continued on to Mo Chit – the suburb where the Chatachuk market is found. Some in the group found the market in Sangklaburi  large, Chatachuk market has over 16,000 stalls, a massive seething mass of humanity all looking for a bargain. Supreme brand items were popular amongst our group, as well as fake Nike Air Max runners and Converse skate shoes. There was even a fake Police vest bought – a great item for the next Fancy dress party.

Moving on from the market after several hours, we headed back to Siam to MBK centre – think Chadstone Shopping Centre on steroids and you have some idea of what MBK is like. The boys were on a roll, bartering became like an innate skill, with the boys challenging Mel as the most proficient at crunching the best price. Mel still holds the title  – she is a dynamo. The day finished with dinner at the Pizza Company before making our way back on the train to Bearing and taxi to La Salle college.

Our final day in Bangkok started slowly – everyone appreciating a sleep in and late breakfast. Leaving late morning for the Royal Palace. An opulence of the palace was in stark contrast to the simple homes and surrounds of Sangklaburi – an eye-opening revelation for us all. It was rather hot (about 35 degrees) with 200% humidity (well it felt like it anyway), we had to wear long pants while in the Grand Palace grounds. It was a welcome relief to remove our long pants (Pants-Off Sunday) once we left the Palace grounds. We had lunch at a cafe nearby, where everyone ate up well and then purchased the shops’ whole supply of choc chip biscuits. The manager was one happy fellow when we all departed. His grin said it all.

The final part of this final instalment of the blog are some words from the boys regarding their experience. Thanks for following our trip. Our challenge now is to remain motivated and to motivate our fellow Beda mates to continue to support our brothers and sisters in Thailand, India, Australia and many other places through our efforts here at home.

Lis

 

This has really been the hardest journey I have ever been a part of. I never actually expected to become so close to the girls and to the school, but in the end I could hardly bring myself to leave them behind. There is only one word that can be used to describe this adventure; emotional. Nick

I came into this experience open to change and accompanying me were 11 boys and 24 girls. By the end I had 11 brothers and 24 sisters. This journey has opened my eyes to many aspects and it has motivated me and resinated within me to open myself to new adventures. Ben

I always knew that this experience would have an effect on me, but I never could have imagined how large this impact could be. The bonds that were formed have made us all, both SBC boys and Blue Sky Home girls, one big family. One which I hope to return to soon. Rhys

This trip opened my eyes to the true people of the world in need, not just thinking about myself all the time. It showed me how to find extraordinary amounts of happiness and fun in situations where there was little to be found. Finn

My eyes have honestly been opened and I have a new perspective on life because of the hospitality of the Sangklaburi community. Interacting and forming special bonds with the humble and grateful Blue Sky Home children for 2 weeks really had a profound impact on my personal life. I’m just glad to know I had the same impact on their lives. I cannot thank them or the amazing people I shared this journey with enough for this incredible experience. Ronan

I don’t think words can describe this experience. My emotions have been all over the place as the days carried on. It would just touch my heart when the kids were all smiling and filled with so much joy and excitement knowing that we were present. This is truly an adventure I will never forget, and I would do anything to go back.  Zac

This trip has been the most amazing, most extraordinary experience. The last 2 weeks have been the best weeks of my life. The special bonds we’ve created with the students of La Salle Sangklaburi and especially the Blue Sky Home girls are unforgettable and I believe have changed each others lives. Declan

An amazing experience, with amazing people. Truly life changing and has had a significant impact on who I will be from this day forward. Seb

Changed my whole perspective on the world. These girls work as hard as anyone I know and always help each other despite the age difference. Thank you to our whole group of students and teachers who have all made this trip better. Lachie

Sanklaburi was the happiest and most loving place I have been to. The trip made me a grateful person with a much happier and appreciative outlook on life. Jimmy

It was evident that we went over there to change their lives, but it was actually them who changed our lives. It’s fair to say that the 12 students and 4 staff accomplished much more than just a physical project, typifying the Beda spirit. The relationships and interactions we had with each of the girls and students at the school was truly special and will stay with us forever. Each and everyone of the girls are so special and unique, with a willingness to learn and an openness to welcoming us into their lives. Jon C

A life changing experience. The trip humbles you beyond belief and makes you really appreciate everything you have. The MAD day donations that are made every year really do make a difference to these kids and its incredible to have taken part in something like this. John G aka Greeno

Day 13

T’was going to be another emotional day, with this being the last time we would see the students of the La Salle School and all the Blue Sky Home girls. To make the most of the little time we had left, most of the boys made sure to set their alarms earlier, to spend extra time with the girls that we had bonded so closely to. Although we would be seeing them again for a formal farewell from the school, this was where our goodbyes were said. After we had breakfast, we returned to our rooms for the inevitable packing of our gear. With the weather reflecting our emotions, we all came to wonder how we could ever bid farewell to a place like La Salle Sangkhla Buri and to all who resided there. With the bags packed, we were welcomed by some Blue Sky girls holding umbrellas, who would then lead us onto the school stage in front of the whole student body and staff. With an address made by Br. Matthew, the whole school then went on to farewell us individually. As students came up, they thanked us one by one with mixed emotions being felt by both the St. Bede’s volunteers and the La Salle Sangkhla Buri community. Although some formed special relationships with the students, a mutual feeling of gratitude and respect was felt among all. Handshakes, high fives and hugs were exchanged with all students, along with many teary eyes and paper hearts. As each student passed by, our hearts were weighed down with more and more emotion. This was especially the case as girls from the Blue Sky home, whom we had formed unbreakable bonds with, bid their final farewell. Words simply cannot describe the lasting impact that these girls in particular have had on us, which will stay with us for years to come. This emotion was carried with us as we boarded the buses, with all of us in complete silence for the majority of the bus trip.

For the remainder of the day, the staff and students undertook various tourist attractions which included visiting:

• Hellfire Pass: Where WW2 POW’s were forced to dig out large masses of earth and stone, to build a railway which would connect Burma and Thailand for the Japanese war advancement.
• Erewan Waterfall: Where the boys were able to have a swim in a natural spring and have their feet nibbled at by fish.
• Bridge Over the River Kwai: Built by Australian POW’s to help the Japanese War Effort
• Shopping Centre to have dinner which mainly consisted of KFC and western cultured food.
• La Salle College, Bangkok late at night to the relief of all where we would spend the next couple of nights.

Despite the day being incredibly busy with not much down time and a long bus trip, it was never about any of this. It was truly about saying goodbye to such a friendly, open and strongly-knit school community which is un-paralleled to anything any of us have experienced. Although we came to change their lives, they changed ours.

The Thailand Outreach Team.

Day 12

On our last day at Sangkhlaburi Finn and Seb were called upon to attend the last morning bus run. A wild Deng was spotted upon his ‘Dengmobile’ once again as he rode into work. Today was a sad last day on the worksite as we all had to say goodbye to our beloved Thai tradies, most notably Deng. Deng however threw us straight into work ignoring our sentimental approach to the day. What cheered him up however was the slab of beer gifted to him by Watto on behalf of the group and the many photos we forced him to be a part of.

Our sadness was quickly gone as talk of an Australia vs Thailand sports competition that involved a volleyball and soccer match against students, teachers and brothers of the school. Through a mix of emotions in which the afternoon’s proceedings were called off due to rain and slippery pitches and later announced to be continuing, the games began. First up was volleyball. The boys embraced the true Australian spirit and pulled off an amazing entrance led by Greeno (John Green) and his UE Megaboom playing ‘Stand By Me’, The Australian National Anthem and pump up tune ‘Zombie Nation.’ The match was won by Australia after a hard fought 2 sets to 1 victory in which the likes of Ando, Ronan and an enthusiastic Lucas Carlson led the team to unrivalled success as we crushed the Thai nation.

A similar entrance led the team to the soccer pitch where a group of fierce Thai students awaited us. Half time left us trailing 3-1 thanks to a world class solo goal by Seb who got us on the scoresheet. An MCG equivalent crowd of Thai students and their teachers cheered passionately as the home side led going into the second half. After a delay involving a snake on the pitch the second half was underway. This half the group faced a new side of brothers and teachers from the school who brought a false sense of security. An impact sub of Manager Anderson led to an outstanding goal and even more outstanding celebration (ripping his singlet) which added to the goals of Jona, Watto and Seb (2). Unfortunately the goal tally was matched by the very skilful brothers who finished the game winning 7-5. See the link below for second half highlights:

https://vimeo.com/278458473

As the day drew to a close we joined the girls and the brothers for one last farewell dinner together. The evening became with a surprise cake for the birthday boy Peasy, as the entire group lead by Br. Matthews sang Happy Birthday! The brothers then threw a curve ball and presented us with an eating challenge directly after dinner. Declan fought valiantly in this challenge but fell short to Doremon representing the Blue sky home and then proceeded to throw up in the garden much to the amusement of the boys and girls. The laughter and enjoyment soon took a more serious turn as the boys and girls joined each other in prayer under candlelight. The boys accompanied by their Blue Sky Home buddies lined up to light a candle each. We then exchanged gifts with the girls, them giving us bracelets and patterned scarves, and us giving them new school uniforms and shoes. The boys went out with a bang displaying our masterpiece that we’ve been rehearsing for a week, a dance routine to a mash up of ‘The Macarena’ ‘Land Down Under’ ‘Greased Lightning’ and ‘YMCA’. The girls then joined us for a group dance to the much loved song ‘Despacito’ where the boys and girls showed off more of their great moves.

After our emotional farewell dinner, we met for a short reflection to express our thoughts and feelings about the trip. Sad feelings were shared by all as well as the amazing memories that were made today. The day has been by far the best day of our trip due to the fun filled activities and emotions unable to be put in words. These girls have taught our minds, touched our hearts and transformed our lives and we hope we have done the same for them.

Finn, Seb and Dec

Day 11

T’was yet again another work day, meaning that an early morning song was on the cards. Lucas woke us up earlier than usual which left some unhappy while the usual suspects continued to sleep in. This was despite the explosive ‘TNT’ by ACDC being blared at full volume.  Bus runs continued as per usual, while the rest marched on down to the worksite, being greeted by an ‘enthusiastic’ Deng. However they continued to laugh at and correct our poor craftsmanship and inability to understand their simple Thai phrases.

Following on from yesterday afternoon the group continued to do the usual work such as mixing cement, carrying sand and stone, ‘hoeing’ and looking busy. New work included painting window frames with a black liquid that barely qualified as paint, whilst consciously avoiding being lit on fire by the bloke welding the windows (It’s fair to say that safety isn’t priority for Deng and the boys). Whilst all of this was transpiring the other site began to build more walls, making it more and more unstable as more bricks were laid. Even the eagle eye of Ando could tell that walls were sketchy, while the tradies just nodded and agreed, sometimes without even looking at the wall.

Everything was progressing well until Ando decided to create another game involving a peg, with the objective to place it on another person without them realising for 4 seconds. The deal was that if you were unable to stick someone with the peg for half an hour you would have to shout everyone a drink. The tension was instantly visible and paranoia prevailed as everyone kept within a three meter radius of each other out of fear of being the next victim of THE PEG. Friendships were tested and no one could be trusted, as most had to constantly look over their shoulder fearful of who would strike next. Although rule changes were constant and some dodgy exchanges took place, the game continued into the afternoon.

After lunch, the majority of the group went back into the classrooms, to the excitement and joy of the students. While a few of us actually participated in educational activities with some of the student, others proceeded to teach a year four class ‘We Will Rock You’ by Queen. The school as well as the whole of Sangkalahburi could probably hear the rhythmic thumping of the desks that amounted to that of a magnitude 7 earthquake…literally.

The height of the walls began to rise and all were pretty much sick of work at this point in time. Yet again all were worried of the peg but thankfully Ms Burn called it an early day so that we could get a few photos of the group. We made sure to get our main man Deng in the photo even though he had no idea what was going on.

The afternoon bus run was slightly more chaotic than usual as there was some fly kicking going at 110km/h on a sketchy Thai road.

We returned to a volleyball game between the Blue Sky Home Girls and the St. Bede’s boys, but this time with an actual net. It was a convincing win by the boys and gave them a taste of victory which has been hard to come by this trip. After the game and dinner we went down to help the Blue Sky Home Girls with their homework and other activities.

When in Sanghlakburi we stocked up on our final ‘necessities’, and for the last time went through the shopping strip and markets. We had a few funny encounters, the first being meeting a tradie from the worksite who stopped to say hello to us. Minutes after, local police officers stopped right outside where our group was loitering. Thinking the worst, we said our prayers as one of the officers pulled out what we believed to be a baton. Upon closer inspection, the officer had attached a phone to the end and to our relief the ‘baton’ was actually a selfie stick which he intended to use with us. We obeyed his orders when he told us to get in the photo and got a mad photo with the two officer and wished them well as they departed on their motorbike. An eventful day to be sure and one to remember too.

Ronan and Jona

Day 10

Today was yet again another working day but for us the day started with an early morning bus run. The kids loaded up the bus as normal but we were surprised after a thorough head count by Declan and Ando counting an extraordinary 115 students crammed into a space barely 10 metres in length.

As we arrived back at the school we spotted the great man himself Deng with his golden aviators on his 24 karat gold bike dubbed by Seb as the ‘Dengmobile’ a.k.a the ‘Dengatron 3000’. We then returned to our accommodation and were ushered into work almost immediately making for a very tired morning from us. The morning work consisted of rendering the walls of one of the worksites. It was very messy work with most boys ending up covered in spots of cement as the rendering involved slapping the wall with bunches of thin bamboo reeds cut from a broom with a circular saw. Whilst this was occurring some of the boys including Watto and Finn were lugging cement bags weighing a huge 50 kilograms from the other worksite all the way up the top of the hill. Greeno took a sip of an energy drink supplied by Deng and Song (everyone’s favourite Thai tradies) which gave him and us the energy to finish the morning.

Lunch was prepared by the lovely lunch lady who barks at us when we don’t take one of the dishes of food. Thankfully the food was aroi (delicious) with chicken drumsticks and rice (yet again) on offer to the group.

After lunch a handful of boys including Jona, Rhys, Ben, Squiz, Finn, Seb and Dec ventured into a year six classroom to spend some time with the older kids at the school. The lesson consisted of the kids writing on the board ‘Australian’ animals, places and slang terms. The example given to the kids was kangaroo but some didn’t quite understand and came up with words such as hotel, snow and wind.  We do have plenty of these in Australia but they aren’t really Aussie icons. The boys being experts at this came up with some terms like bogan and the great suburb of Frankston.

The afternoon of work was more laid back than previous afternoons as we were tasked with some bricklaying at the top worksite. Song was very cheerful and happy, so much so he attempted some small talk with the boys but no one could understand each other. It got to the point that someone would smile and Song would just start laughing.

Dinner was once again cooked by the truly lovely Nandaley who has made our stay feel like a five star hotel in terms of food. Tonight she cooked up an Aussie favourite of snags and rice (again, wow).

The boys then set up a movie night for the girls at the blue sky home. The movie chosen was the classic Monsters Inc. with countless moments of laughter and enjoyment by all, despite the movie being in English. All the while the teachers were bathing in luxury at the exclusive dinner party at the brother’s restaurant (residence).

We’re not only making a difference to the girls but they are also making a difference to us and the way we live our lives. They have changed us to become better and stronger people and taught us that the hardships we face at home are not worth our worry.

Finn and Dec

Day 9

The customary wake up song as supplied by Lucas was The Knacks classic tune ‘My Sharona’. The bus run continued, which meant that it would be back to school for the kids and back on the worksite for the rest of us. This was met with feelings of disappointment and sadness after two eye-opening days with the ‘Blue Sky Home’ girls over the weekend. Nevertheless both the boys and staff hit the worksite where they left off previously.

Our job for the day included more concreting and Ando’s iconic production lines. We are now more familiar with Thai phrases such as hin (stone), thray (sand) and na (water). Despite all this, we are more commonly responding to Deng’s (everyone’s favourite Thai tradie) commands of “you” and his general pointing and hand gestures. As resources such as stone and water came hard to come by, the majority of the concreting surrounding the Volunteer’s Home was almost completed. This was possible through everyone’s hard work in sweltering conditions, especially Greeno’s continual mixing of concrete in the “Kitchen”. As work came to an eventual close the word of ‘calamari for lunch’ had everyone licking their lips and hoping that the rumours were true.

With the promise of calamari confirmed, half of the group ventured to the classroom to teach English to grade 4 students, while the rest of the boys accompanied Lucas and Ando on the second worksite. Whilst in the classroom the boys were challenging the students ability to list 5 words that started with each letter. Despite not finishing every letter, everyone was impressed with pronunciation, spelling and handwriting, which would even rival the ability of some of us. As the lesson came to a close, we finished with a game of heads, shoulders, knees and toes, which included laughter, enjoyment and throwbacks to childhood memories. The groups then swapped roles and a similar lesson followed. All the while, torrential rain began making it incredibly difficult underfoot adding to the already mud filled worksite.

Ironically as the rain continued to pour down and there was not a glimmer of sunshine, almost all took their t-shirts off and continued labouring. This led to the painting of smiley faces and 6-packs on the bodies of Nick, Greeno, Zac and Ronan, amongst others. Mel was least impressed after a group hug resulted in her being smeared by mud and dirt. Hearing of an early finish was the second best thing experienced today, behind a Deng fall.

After work everyone freshened up after having almost no part of their body clean, we proceeded to mass with the Blue Sky Girls, the Brothers and an American teacher named Scott. Most arrived promptly in order to secure a seat rather than sitting on the ground. Regardless of the seating, it still couldn’t stop the likes of Jonathan, Declan and others from drifting in and out of sleep as an hour long Thai Mass was the last thing needed. Following this, dinner consisted of fried chicken, macaroni and fresh pineapple straight from the priest’s plantation.

As become the norm, all the boys proceeding to the Blue Sky Home to participate in activities such as homework, colouring, balloons and singing. The singing of “Flashlight” was bravely led by Jimmy and Watto, despite criticism and mockery from the girls.

As we near the end of our trip, we’re beginning to wonder how we could possibly say goodbye to these girls.

Ben and Jona

Day 8

T’was a glorious start to the morning with Journey’s classic ‘Anyway You Want It’ blaring from Lucas and Ando’s wake up soundtrack. Ms Lyon’s sleep report was positive this morning and toast was the dish of choice at breaky, having a break from rice. Everyone was up and about for a day that promised so much and delivered in spades. The morning bus departed La Salle school for Mon Lake at 9.00 and again we had the privilege of spending the day accompanied by the Blue Sky Home girls. Smiles aplenty and some Thai music for the bus ride was a nice change from Greeno’s head banging tunes.

We arrived at Mon Lake and walked down to the ‘Marina’ questionably named by Mrs Burn. Our house boat for the day was open layout not too dissimilar to what you would find floating the Murray River. What was different to your traditional house boat was that it was towed along by a small boat with an outboard motor at a surprisingly quick rate. During the 45 minute trip out to the sunken temple, the boys split up amongst the Blue Sky girls and enjoyed numerous games and activities including Uno, fidget spinners and Rock Paper Scissors. As the games intensified the sound of the motor was drowned out by the sound of laughter and jovial banter.

The tourist destination of the day, the Sunken Temple, was more of a ruin than a temple but it certainly bought a sense of history and significance to a beautiful lake. Being early in the rain season the water was not quite to the level of the temple, but a short walk from the boat in knee deep water got us there. We then boarded the house boat again and were towed out to the middle of the lake where everyone chucked on their togs and hit the water. The Beda boys led the way, but it wasn’t long before the more cautious girls of Blue Sky Home hit the water, decked out in their adult size life jackets! Mitch A.KA The Hoff (Lucas), Brodie (Ando), CJ (Lis) and Summer (Mel) were on lifeguard duty while the Brothers accompanying us took a nap. Lunch was provided again by our Blue Sky Mum/chief/teacher Nandalay. This lady can do it all.

A few of the boys found a way to check to the footy scores from back home and it’s safe to say this put a dampener on Ando’s afternoon. The food once again did not disappoint and refuelled the boys for what was to be an action packed afternoon. The first in a series of adrenaline fuelled activities was a group synchronised backflip which was surprisingly executed quite well. From there the boys decided it would be a good idea to take run ups and spear each other off the ends of the boat. It wasn’t long before the girls joined in and took a few of the boys down to the rapturous applause of everyone. The common theme across the afternoon was that if you were standing anyway around the edge of the boat, it was only a matter of time before someone pushed you in and you got wet. No one seemed to mind through because the water was so warm and inviting. The Beda boys and Blue Sky girls shared an amazing experience together on the boat, acting like brothers and sisters to each other, embodying the St Bede’s Spirit.

Lis shouted ice-creams all round from 7 Eleven for all the boys and girls on the way home, which was the perfect way to conclude our action packed day trip! A quiet, restful evening followed with both parties very placid around the dinner table. Group reflection later in the evening featured many laughs, precise projectile water bottle throws at numerous insects around, and individual insights which all concluded to the same contention that the trip isn’t about themselves, but about what they can do for others. Their thoughtful and mature contributions to the conversation thoroughly impressed the teachers. Everyone at home should be extremely proud of these twelve fine, young men for their impact, effort and involvement on this trip so far.

Ando and Lucas

Day 7 – Saturday: Day of Rest

After 4 solid days labouring on the worksite, today was the first of 2 rest days where we get to spend time with the girls in the Blue Sky Home.

The day began at the usual time of 7.30am with breaky, and yes you guessed it, rice was on the menu, fried rice, but rice nevertheless!!!!

8.30am we were off on the bus (truck) with all the girls to visit Yesang’s (a former BSH member) home village where his parents and family live. After a 30 min bus ride, we then set off on a 50min hike into the jungle – and jungle it was!!

Due to recent heavy rain, the track was particularly sloppy, so it was a good call to all wear our tradie boots – which are looking very tradie like after the 4 days on the worksite. The girls, on the other hand, were in thongs and bare feet.

The hike took us through thick rainforest and included several water crossings, the last being over a very rudimentary version of a suspension bridge. We finally emerged from the hike at Yesang’s village. We had the honour of meeting his family and a number of other villagers. As a gesture of thanks for allowing us to spend time with them in their homes, they gratefully accepted our gifts of a dozen rice bags.

They are a remarkably resilient people, they have no power or sanitation, they are subsistence farmers that lead very simple lives. Many dogs and cats roamed the village and to our horror, Lucas even cuddled one of the kittens – cute and all as it was. Mel was reminded on a regular basis not to touch the dogs, and even she didn’t cuddle the kitten.

We returned to the river and set up for a picnic lunch on the bank. The girls carried in large pots of noodles for our lunch (a nice change from rice). The boys were super keen to jump in for a swim and the girls soon followed suit. Many squeals of delight (mainly from the girls) were heard from the river as kids all played games together.

After the cooling swim in the river, it was lunchtime. Nicko (Adonis) Anderson stretched out on the tarp for a sunbake. Apparently, he wants to have a better tan than Stromie when he returns to Oz.

After a couple of lazy hours swimming, eating and lazing about, the boots went back on and it was time to hike back out. The sun was beating down making the walk back through the jungle somewhat sweaty.

No sooner had we all made it out and onto the bus when the heavens opened up and a monsoonal downpour hit. A very wet ride home followed, particularly for Watto, Greeno, Ando, Johno and Sebo, who were riding on the back.

A couple of hours of downtime followed, where the boys played down ball, and even tried to teach some of the girls the non-existent rules of the game. Meanwhile, Lis and Mel hit the shops for some retail therapy with Nandalay and Br Benilde to buy the girls some new school shoes, using some of our fundraising money.

Dinner was followed by another puzzle challenge in the computer lab, which the girls won again.

Another great day full of incredible experiences and strengthening the friendships with each other and the girls.

Mel and Lis

Day 6

Seb, Zac and teacher Lucas were on bus run duty today. On a foggy Friday morning is apparently the best time to be at the Myanmar boarder we found as we rolled into a special market that was buzzing! While there were some different items on sale for purchase, the biggest export of the market was meat; but not like the meats found at your local butcher at home. In markets saw we some baby chicks (some dyed different colours), pig heads, cooked rats and a cow’s heart. Lucas is now vegetarian. Zac also got ripped off while buying a plastic dog tag.

Upon the work site, the boys looked lost and disappointed without a hole to dig, so they got stuck into cementing. This entailed some more of the same, with plenty of miscommunication with the Thai tradies regarding how many buckets of sand and stone to bring down the “Hill of Death” as rightfully named by Ando.

Lunch as per usual lunch consisted of the standard serve of steamed rice with which a love hate relationship is brewing. However, the green curry packed a punch most were not expecting, make lunch a little more interesting.

After lunch a quick visit down to the kindergarten followed in which the boys were yet again quickly tired out by the swarm of smiling faces. Next was to the classrooms, where after a struggle to find whiteboard markers, the legacy of Zac and Seb was continued as some questionable activities commenced in the classrooms, including heads, shoulders, knees and toes and the surprisingly good maths skills of the students were tested.

Then it was back to the worksite where the heat picked up and the true leaders of men stood out, as Jona became a valuable asset on the hill of death, and Greeno continued to hone in on his cement mixing skills. As we finished up cementing the rooms, the initials of all were engraved into the flooring, and much to the dislike of Mel, Zac’s initials took up the most room. Seb, Zac, and Lucas jumped back onto the bus run for the return trip, and picked up a back scratcher for the groups newly adopted dogs, Peaches, Butch and Chop.

With the workday concluding there was a sudden turn around for the group as we travelled to back to 7-Eleven and surrounding marketplace, only thing was that we had to stack up on supplies (chips, drinks, necessities, etc) in about 20 mins because we weren’t returning for a couple of days, which lead to everyone frantically running to get their “necessities”. No man/woman was left behind, leading to a late dinner arrival as we kept the Blue Sky children waiting.

After another delicious dinner a few boys quickly showered (didn’t have time after working) and the group joined the Blue Sky Home girls for a not so friendly competition of jigsaw puzzle solving in the computer lab. Only rule was that the puzzle must be broken into 100 pieces. Following the performances of volleyball and soccer the boys were unable to redeem themselves and suffered a humiliating defeat over the girls with the times of completion for the  girls close to 10 minutes whereas our lowest time being Greeno of 15 minutes.

Therefore, a sad walk back to the volunteer house followed, where a late night game of poker began, in which as of now Declan seems to have won the most coloured balloons (aka poker chips) and is the envy of the house.

Day 5

Another early 6AM wakeup for two more boys, this time it was Nick, Jimmy and Melly. The morning bus run was quite entertaining and was an extraordinary experience for all of us. At the border, Mel was convinced that we got ripped off when buying biscuits for the kids. 4 large packs cost 100 Baht, which is only about $4 but we still weren’t happy. While waiting for the kids we all shed a tear for the stray dogs that were roaming around, it was truly sad to see them, especially as dog lovers. We rode back with the kids and enjoyed a great breakfast of, you guessed it, more rice. After breakfast we went back to work at our 2 worksites. My group (Nick) continued building a drainage trench around our structure. Meanwhile, the other group was moving about 500 bricks, carrying bamboo from the other side of the school and moving stones into piles to be distributed. We broke for lunch, to which some of us witnessed one boy rolling some kid’s rice. It was a fairly normal lunch of, yet again, more rice. Where we also witnessed me (Nick) saying “it hasn’t rained while we’ve been working yet.” (Remember that for later.) At the lunch break, Jimmy was tasked to download his music for the bus run but instead had a snooze.
We soon went back out to work where the immortal Lucas Carlson said “Has anyone slipped over yet?” before proceeding to slip over on his very next step. On the other side of the site, a mishap of someone knocking over a wall of bricks saw Mel being quick to act to put it back together like it didn’t happen. Also, Jimmy was amazed that he had not knocked anything over yet, considering he is quite a clumsy human being. Five minutes later, the majority of the drink bottles were in the mud. While all this was happening, the sun had come out and the temperature was sweltering. At 3:30, the 3 of us left the worksite to get ready for the bus run home. But as we were leaving, the torrential downpour came, while the others were still working (remember from before). The ride back to the border was interesting to say the least. The best way to describe it is imagining the whole of primary school, but on steroids; or like the Dingley bus, as Mel put it. As Jimmy and Mel were observing, while trying to avoid getting drenched, the havoc on the truck. It wasn’t all that rosy, with all the kids punching, poking, hitting and shoving each other around. And once again, Jimmy had no music to contain this anarchy. The boy who rolled the kids rice earlier in the day was under attack by an angry girl who maybe just wanted to get home, I guess karma does exist.
Once we got back, Rhys was still in the shower, but we went down for the usual dinner of more rice. Once again, Jimmy was late. Having dinner with the girls from the Blue Sky Home truly feels special. After dinner we all gathered around the dinner tables and gave out all of our gifts and had an all round great time with all the girls. Greeno was attacked by a girl with stamps and stickers. Rhys learnt some more Thai, Nick coloured in a Pokemon drawing book with one of the girls and the rest of the boys were playing Uno and conversing with all the girls. We left the girls and came back to our ‘house’ for some reflection and bed time. (And some poker as we’re writing this blog.) Looking back at today, were really proud of all the boys and how hard we’ve all worked. We are ahead of schedule, despite some setbacks, and all the boys are keeping up the good attitude and high morale.
Jimmy and Dimitri (Nick)