World YMCA Change Agent Global Gathering 2 - Day 5 & 6

I left you on Friday evening anticipating what my ‘community service’ trip would entail over the weekend. That evening, as planned a group of us managed to squeeze in a trip to the bar after a long hard week of programme. I decided upon having a Thai cocktail which was delicious. Perhaps the photo shared on Facebook of me slurping it up isn’t the best representation of my time here – so it’s a good job that you’re reading my blogs!

I’ve just come back from my “community service” group weekend. Over a hundred Change Agents were split in to five groups and each travelled outside of the city to work with the community. And work it was. I’ve heard of other teams building schools and even making beds and dinner for their hosts! I haven’t long got back so any really juicy stories I’ll include in the next blog.

Day five.

My specific group was titled “Natural Resources Preservation towards Sustainable Community Development” and was based at Pa Sak Ngam village some 100 kilometres to the North of our YMCA hotel where we are based. The village consists of 102 households and a population of just 347 people – they did however have one bar and it is this first Welsh flag I have seen on Thai soil… in the middle of nowhere but I suppose that just added to my bewilderment!

The visit started by listening to presentations from two professors at Chiang Mai University, basically about what we would be doing over the next 30 hours. I had a great night sleep and an hour on the bus but I found it difficult to keep attention at a high level with over-defined information and the humid atmosphere. This didn’t mean it wasn’t interesting though by any means and it was obvious to see how important “check dams” are to villages in Thailand. Dams hold the water in a specific place so it can be stored for community use, when otherwise it would simply run all of the

way down in to cities.

After the presentation and lunch we made our way to another part of the village with the university staff and before we knew it many of us were knee-deep in a river trying to net insects that we could barely see. The purpose of this activity it quite important, as the University – by listing and scoring whatever is caught – can judge how clean the water is. This particular part was deemed a 5.15 out of ten, so would be used for agricultural use but not good enough for feeding pets or washing dishes. Drinking water in the village is always sourced from the City which thankfully means built up areas are not too far away. 

By the time 3pm came we were just about to start the Pa Sak Ngam nature trail before the heavens opened. It never rains it pours couldn’t be more correct. After 100 meters we turned back to the vans which was the point things went from optimistic to me really not enjoying the experience.

We had to ditch our luxury minibuses at the side of the road as three pick-up trucks collected us and took us to the hotel. I doubt there was a risk assessment done for the journey but we got to our accommodation safe, albeit soaked through, agitated and already longing for the hotel. Dinner followed suit being especially bland and as 8pm came I was the first one to turn in to our cabin – a florescent pink mosquito net covering the bed offering the slightest glimpse of positivity. By the time I had the full-time Newport County score texted through by the Mother at midnight I drifted off to sleep thinking of all the other Change Agents having a great time in their home stay locations (which didn’t quite turn out to be true for everyone, in hindsight a peaceful cabin in the middle of a beautiful forest competed well). 

Day Six.

Considering I spent 11 hours on a 2 inch mattress with air-con, I had a really good sleep, albeit despondent that where I was staying wasn’t just a dream. Rice and tasteless chicken was kept down at breakfast and we were led away for a morning’s hard labour. 

This is where things started to look up (you didn’t really expect me to moan for too long?) as we joined members of the community to set up two dams in the village river, one made of bamboo filled in with soil and another made with rock and cement.

The first task was to transport 200 boulders from the roadside some 50 yards down the hill to the stream bed. I felt a great sense of team work as we aligned up and passed the muddy-spider-ridden rocks at great pace. Of interest, the line consisted of people from Thailand, Wales, Australia, Philippines, Trinidad & Tobago, Hong Kong, Niger, Liberia, Ghana and Denmark. I’m sure this makes up for the usual “A Welshman (add other countries) walk in to a bar…” joke I usually make.

A continuous conveyor belt of rocks, cement and water were passed down over the next two hours and the dedication resulted in us finishing at lunch time, two hours ahead of schedule. Muscles on us! Without wanting to make another point of food; lunch on the back of a pick-up truck was the best meal yet. We were treated to a huge fried chicken leg, sticky rice and REALLY chilli paste, all served in pockets made from banana tree leaves.

Just as I was thinking to myself how happy I was compared to earlier Mother Nature decided that my clothes were getting a little too dry and within seconds we were soaked through. Rather collapse in defeat we moved on to the next part of the project which was to plant a tree – no charitable visit to a forest is complete without it! No photos of this sorry as I’d be ordering a new phone by now.

As we started to make our way back to Chiang Mai we were fortunate to visit two attractions on the way. Firstly, we stopped at a viewpoint on the outskirts of the village over-looking tens of thousands of teak trees. Having learned the importance of maintaining tree levels it was comforting to see them as far as the eye could see. Our final stop was along route 1001 to visit the Bua Tong waterfall in the Mae Taeng National Forest Reserve. The spring water contains a high amount of calcium carbonate. As the spring water cascades down the falls, the calcium is deposited on the rocks. The calcium carbonate then adds a non-slip surface to the rocks. Believe it or not, the rocks look slick but it is very easy to walk up the face of the falls without slipping.

So with a risk assessment nowhere to be seen, just two of our 30 strong party made the climb and apart from a little slip right at the top (which was a million times scarier than it sounds!) we made it with ease, perhaps because I’m a terrific athlete (citation needed) or because it really was similar to walking up steps.

Our group was the third of out the five to arrive back and at first glance everyone had a similar dirty, sweaty experience. Like many others my first venture was to have a shower and although the hot water was completely extinguished half way through I finally felt clean enough to go back in to civilisation.

Succeeding dinner I respectfully passed on the devotions session to start the blog and found my place in the room before the final session of the day started which looked back on our experiences, still at the forefront of our mind.

What did we learn that we didn’t know beforehand? Obviously I learnt a lot about dams and water flow which maybe isn’t the most practical of learning but others were taught how to cook and even mix and lay concrete which I thought was quite cool, and it’ll save you a few quid the next time you get the driveway upgraded!

We then took a more sentimental approach of our experience and were told of people’s home stays and experience of working in small communities. The weird and wonderful took place in several houses that night, including a group of three English girls having to go shopping, cook dinner for the host and be sent to bed at 8:30pm. In comparison Amely from the Dominican Republic was taken elephant riding so maybe the brief wasn’t translated very well by some accommodation providers!

On a serious note every single one of us had something to take back from the experience. One group building a mushroom house commented that the head teacher was in a suit one day to greet the Change Agents, and the next morning was in his labouring attire getting stuck in to help the community. My personal reflection was on how welcomed we felt. 30 strangers/foreigners turning up at their village of under 350 people. In so many places throughout the world outsiders are not welcome and I hope that my experience – albeit it on a minuscule scale – can show this.

It’s now Monday morning and sadly it’s likely I’ve come down with a bit of a flu. I have no idea if it’s the sun, the air, the lack of water or lack of sleep catching up with me but having missed the first session waiting for the pills to kick in I’ll be re-joining the sessions after break. Two girls have had to be taken to the hospital because of influenza so I'm being cautious (don't worry, Mum!)

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For my final blog on FRIDAY I’m hoping to use this as a way of raising funds that can go towards the next time young people have an opportunity like I've been lucky enough to. For a very small price you can read about the final 5 days, guaranteed travel shenanigans, 19 hours in Helsinki, my top photographs and how it felt to say goodbye for the final time to so many friends.

Thanks for reading!

Chris