First Three Weeks in Chiang Mai

Greetings from Chiang Mai    

Day off from visiting with people spent at the zoo

   Our return to Chiang Mai for a 3 month stay this time instead of last year's 2 week visit has given us a new lens through which we are observing our surroundings. Everything was new and exciting last year and much of the time we ventured about like the typical tourist interested in observing how people lived in a different culture, eating their cuisine and traveling around seeing many of the sites. Although we still exhibit quite a bit of that tourist-like excitement, we are also viewing things trying to understand and learn best how to do life in this culture for an extended period of time.
    We have certainly been confirmed in our thinking that learning to converse in the Thai language is necessary if we ever want to relate to most of the people we see on a day to day basis. Of course there are English speakers here, but we limit our abilities to really meet new people if we can not understand one another.












This is obvious, but there are many Westerners living here who have not taken the time to learn Thai and live more or less in an expat bubble. Our hope is to be better equipped to engage the Thai on a day to day basis.
                      

God's call to the people of Chiang Mai- Turn to my Son and live!

Orchids pretty much a dime a dozen and so beautiful

 Therefore, much of our time and energy for the remaining weeks we have left here until we return in mid-April will be to start learning the language.
    Struggling to learn a new language will not necessarily be exciting news to write home about, however, our long term goal of reaching many Thai with the gospel should keep us motivated to plug along with the aid of your prayers. Our hope is that through Jesus Christ we can do this for His glory in our life as we live among the Buddhists here who need to know the Lord.

Not very difficult to find beautiful flower arrangements

    We have been in our two bedroom apartment now for almost 2 weeks and have been making acquaintances with the front desk people, several neighbors and restaurant workers who speak English. Living close to Chiang Mai University is like most college areas with a lot of activity, traffic and noise. There are several night clubs that play loud music every night until the wee hours, which are just a block away. The whirring sound from our ceiling fans sort of drowns out the music except for the beating of the percussion. We're beginning to adjust to it without wearing ear plugs like the last residents used when they lived here.
    Most of our days thus far have been visiting with other missionaries and learning about their ministries and then having the opportunity to pray with them. We have also had the opportunity to visit with a few non-Christians who, like so many of the Thai people, are some of the most pleasant and kind people we have ever met.

Korean BBQ dinner with Scott and Jenny at their home (Missionaries to Thailand, China and Burma)

Paul from Cadence International with whom Gary will travel with to Cambodia in March

    Traveling around the city without a car or motorcycle requires us to use the little red truck taxis called songthaews. Short distances cost 20 Baht per person with 32 Baht to the US dollar. Distance across the city can run up to 50-60 Baht per person, still very inexpensive as are many things here including food. Except for breakfast eaten in our apartment, we usually spend from about $1.00 to $4.00 per entree per person for the other meals. The food is unbelievably delicious just about where ever we go, however, we have already selected a few favorites within an easy walk from our place. Our apartment is clean, bright and cheerful with A/C, however since it cools down to the around 60 at night we haven't used it much yet. Our rent is $490/month plus utilities and a maintenance fee, so the total may be around $650/month total. Being close to the university drives up the price a bit, but we needed to be in the city without having a personal means of transportation.

    We've included some more pictures with captions to give you an idea of a few of the people and things we have seen so far. We again thank you for your continued prayers and trust that God will be using us for His glory even as we begin our Thai language classes.
 

Negotiating for fare to ride a songthaew and trying to explain where we want to go

Entrance to Chiang Mai University Suan Sak Campus- approx. 25,000 students

Need to get one of these next time for fast and cheap transportation 

Breakfast at a market restaurant after getting tired of oatmeal at home

Beauty and the Beast- Notice dragon heads on a flower float seen at annual Flower Festival 

Exceptional work by street market artist- so talented and gifted by a God he does not know

Sunday night street market about 1 mile long attracts tourists from all over the world

Enjoying a leisurely breakfast before moving into our apartment

Flowers for daily decorating the shrines, temples and private spirit houses

Toilets for just about everyone

Buying fresh fruit for home snacks-mangosteen a favorite for all of us

Ever seen or tasted such delicious watermelon? Nope! It's the greatest.

Rose bowl parade flower float imitation yet still impressive

Banyan tree with colorful cloth wrapping evidence of combining Hindu and Buddhist beliefs

Local laundromat- 20 to 40 Baht per load

Typical breakfast (fried rice with fresh coconut and omelet) while staying in our hotel for a week

Yes, more than Thai food is available here. How about some delicious Middle Eastern.

Bottles with beetles kept for good luck at currency exchange shop

A little artistic touch with our coffee latte and mocha at Ristr8to's

A favorite located nearby, Christian owned- a little over $1.00 per entree (why cook at home?)

Lunch inside the Blessed Food Restaurant- we feel blessed to be here in Chiang Mai

Renewed acquaintance with Toon who I had met last year at Monk Chat

Typical Thai lunch with a fried egg on rice, stir fried minced pork and soup broth

 Thai iced tea served in a bag of ice from street vendor

Sipping fresh lychee and passion fruit drinks at a favorite salad restaurant with Westerners

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Dinner with former residents of our apartment- total bill $6.00 (let's eat out more often)

Dr. Nik, a pediatric dentist with his wife and associate in his dental clinic

   

Sunday worship at "The Gathering" in one of the Lotus Hotel's ballrooms

View from our table at our favorite vegetarian restaurant in our neighborhood

 Purple anchan lemonade made from sweet pea flower (?)

Organic vegetarian yellow curry with tempeh and red chili stir fried rice
(extremely flavorful and extra ordinarily healthy)

Restaurant on the front right, another favorite on our soi (street)

May the beauty of Christ be known among the millions of people here in Thailand.

Final Days at Santisuk

From our first day at Santisuk

To our last day, we've enjoyed sharing our trip with you

 Only now after having finished with our second and final two weeks of teaching at Santisuk are we able to take the time to make a new entry to our blog. The time at the school and the outside classroom activities with the students and staff kept us very busy, but has left us with fond memories that should remain in our minds for a long time to come. We again offer to you our viewers a taste through pictures of what we experienced in Thailand from February 2nd through March 7th.

Our hotel- the Mall Inn

Canal "flowing" near our hotel 

Bus taken from our hotel to Santisuk school- about 25 cents

Bus ride back to hotel on hot days (translated meaning- every day)

At our hotel Moriah discovered a nail art studio that offered to teach her some techniques in exchange for some English lessons. While attending the class she also had the opportunity to meet with the runner-up to the title of Miss Thailand, who unfortunately could not speak English.

Moriah and Nail Art Studio instructor

A sample of the nail art done for Moriah

Moriah with Miss Thailand Runner-up

Our hope and prayer is that our time with these students will not only have been helpful for increasing their ability and confidence to speak English, but to also have helped foster a desire to learn more about Jesus whom we often spoke about each teaching session. Prior to telling the story of the good Samaritan Gary had an incident which he then was able to use as a personal illustration of what Jesus was attempting to teach with this particular parable. After stepping on a wire that went through his sandal and painfully stuck into his foot, Gary pulled the object out and blood began to flow from the wound onto the sidewalk. As he hobbled past a storefront the owner noticed his plight and came out to administer first aid by washing his foot and squeezing the foot to purge the puncture site of anything that could later cause an infection. Then the man went to secure a clean bath towel from which he tore a portion off to wrap the wound and stop the bleeding, after which he applied a large bandage. Next he offered to find a way to get us back to our hotel. Yes, this Thai stranger clearly demonstrated what Jesus meant when he asked who it was who had proved to be a neighbor to the injured man.

God provided a personal illustration of the Good Samaritan parable  (note the wire) 

The Lord's message of true love we trust we were able to leave behind with our students

If anyone ever asks us the highlight of our time at Santisuk if would have to be getting to meet such wonderful students and developing relationships with them and members of the Santisuk staff. Everyone was so sweet and kind to us, which made saying goodbye difficult.

Lyndell's early morning class

Delicious breakfast with students after 7:00 am class

Visiting Ancient City of Bangkok with students

Time for a little recreation between classes (the teacher became the student)

Some members of the wonderful teaching and support staff at Santisuk

Farewell picture with 7:00 am class

Farewell picture with 10:00 am class

Meal preparation for Friday evening Thai language worship service

Santisuk parking lot and site of Friday evening meal before service

Gary giving his testimony at Sunday evening English service

Moriah playing for offertory at evening service

Gary's favorite local coffee stand

Coffee always specially brewed to order

Gary's favorite dish- Shrimp Pad Thai

Lyndell's favorite dish (not)- duck feet! A little too rubbery texture.

Street stand outside hotel for pre-breakfast snack

Typical pre-breakfast snack for Moriah before class (fried chicken with sticky rice and bananas)

More early morning vendors on the way to bus stop

A second delicacy we avoided

One delicacy we skipped

How many forms of transportation did we experience? Can you find 6 here?

A faster, yet more odoriferous way to get around the city- water taxi (no dealing with traffic)

The palace did not permit exposure of bare legs, men or women. This was our only option.

Our team from Minneapolis

Last view from hotel room before leaving Bangkok 

Man-made modeling clay flower arrangements 

God's authentic stunningly beautiful floral arrangements


Even though the attractive clay flower arrangements we discovered in the market resembled the authentic real life varieties, they did not emit any desirable fragrance. Upon closer examination we also observed a wax-like coating that gave further evidence that they were artificial though beautiful in appearance. We might suggest that there is an analogy here in regards to the land of Thailand so-called the "Land of Smiles". This designation has come about because visitors not only love its natural beauty and historical riches, but also the country's friendly people and fascinating culture.

Yet, we discovered that there is really no fragrance of life the way God has intended for it to be. There is a desire within the hearts of those we got to know, to be good people and help to contribute to peace in the world. However, there is a disconnect from their desires and how to attain them. God has implanted in the heart of each individual a longing to be what we were created to be. In the beginning when God created man in His image He looked upon this unique creation and said it was very good. However, after man rebelled against God that condition of being good was lost. The poet Milton termed it "Paradise Lost" and man has been searching for a return to that precious ethereal real estate ever since. 

In reality, according to the Bible, there is really no hope to regain this desired goodness and peace outside of acknowledging and accepting the work of Jesus Christ as sufficient for ones's personal acceptance and forgiveness by God. All other attempts by man will fall way short of what a Holy God must and does require, perfection. A facade of peace and contentment can be constructed to imitate the authentic, but deeper down the heartfelt state of worry, fear, despair, unrest, doubt and hopelessness will be found.  Smiles on a person's face can often mask the true inner heart condition. Without Christ, the Bible says we are dead in our trespasses and sins until by God's grace He makes us alive together with Christ through faith. Thereafter, the Bible says we become the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. 

Thailand has an appearance of goodness and peace, but until the fragrance of Christ is emanating from this land there is work to do for those who claim to be His followers. Our prayer should be that eventually the "Land of Smiles" will be known as such because of the abundant life the people have found in knowing Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Then their search for goodness and peace will have found its end.

The real deal

We hope that those of you who have visited our Thailand blog have enjoyed the stories and pictures. We again want to thank those of you who kept us in prayer. Perhaps some of you may have been encouraged to also serve at Santisuk in the future. Please contact us if you would like more information.