2010, A Northern Christmas in Thailand

Well, another Thai Christmas come and gone!

Last year's Xmas Ladyboy Cabaret Show was pretty memorable, but this year I was really looking forward to some quiet time with my best friends and family P'Dee and P'May.

I've been traveling so much these past couple months, I decided to spend my one weekend off this season staying close to home in Chiang Mai. I'm crashing at May's apartment for now and enjoying access to a private bathroom and a warm shower while I can!

Saturday, Christmas Day, we went on a short drive to the nearby mountains of Mae Rim and picked strawberries for the better part of the morning.

We took our picnic to a scenic viewpoint called Mon Cham, and enjoyed the perfect weather, the cool mountain top breeze, and good conversation (talking about everything BUT work for the first time in a long time.) This was a much needed, stress-free Saturday all 3 of us were in desperate need of!

After the fresh mountain air, we drove back to the city and booked ourselves a 2 hour full body massage each. Abused and bruised from the massage lady trying to dig out every knot and strain in my back and shoulders, I crawled into bed at 10 pm and had a solid night's rest for the first time in weeks.

Maybe I'm starting to get old, but this has been the best holiday I've had in a long time! Usually this time of year is the hardest for me, since I have come to appreciate that holidays don't mean anything without family to share them...but here, with my friends, well things are looking up. Thailand is feeling more like home every day, and maybe this time next year I'll have an apartment of my own, with a Christmas tree and a roast in the oven somewhere!

Happy Holidays!

...just because the scenery was too beautiful, I had to catch it on video!

Baan Unrak Hip Hop Boys Take the Stage!

The Baan Unrak Hip Hop boys are at it again! New dance, new members, new choreography and a new look! [Click here if you missed my last post introducing Taji and Chocolate and their mission to dance to a better future...]

These boys are remarkable and despite their losses (loss of family, loss of home, loss of country) they really stay strong and determined to create something new for themselves.

Enjoy the video!

The Karen minority group invited us to their Christmas celebrations last weekend, timed to celebrate the full moon. There were Christmas songs sung in Thai and Karen dialect, snow cones and frozen juice Popsicles, a bouncing castle for the kids (which we foreigners were denied entrance to due to our 'size'), prayers bestowed by the village leaders, and snacks and presents delivered to the kids by a Karen Santa Clause (chewing beetle nut tobacco and carrying a small machete in his back pocket for extra 'local' charm.)

...Watching them on stage takes me back to the days when I was a competitive dancer. Now almost 8 years since I wore my last pair of ballet slippers. That part of me feels like a past life, rather than the recent history that it is. I almost miss the rehearsals, the nerves and excitement, the costume changes and the pressure of an audience...ALMOST!

Baan Unrak Hip Hop Boys And Their Dreams For A Better Life

The boys at Baan Unrak do regular Hip-Hop shows in and around Sangklaburi and Bangkok (Thailand) to promote the children's home, raise awareness about the issues surrounding children and families living along the Thai/Burmese border and to fund raise every chance they can.

Inspired by the American Hip-Hop group Jabbawockeez, they created their own routine and rehearse themselves every spare moment to get the moves just right! Chocolate, Somchai and Taji all love to dance and have taken to hip hop style and fashion like fiends. (Taji, the smallest one at 13 years old admits he only recently started dancing, less than 1 year ago if you can believe it!)

Chocolate, 14 years old, and the main driving force behind this dance team says he dreams of the day he gets to meet the Jabba boys in person, and even better the day he can perform for them. Talking to Chocolate, I can see the dedication in his eyes and I know he's dreaming of going all the way. Here, keeping the kids inspired for a better life is the most important mission, and to see him stand out and inspire the other children who look up to him is...indescribable.

I'm doing what I can now to help him achieve this dream...at their request they'll be released into the You Tube world soon enough, with polished performances and a number of new dances they're choreographing right now. Maybe someday they will get the fame and attention they're working hard to achieve!

Home Sweet Baan Unrak: Sangkla, Thailand

It’s been two weeks and already it feels like I’ve been back here forever. I’m back at the Baan Unrak Burmese orphanage in the Thai border town of Sangklaburi. You’ve seen the videos and the photos from this region, so you already know the scenery is breathtaking…and soon I'll post videos showing the very best of laughing children, inspiring women and dedicated volunteers who run this home.

I’ve had 10 volunteers under my care these past couple weeks and today is our last day together. Tomorrow morning we have a killer 5 am wake up call and a 7 hour drive through winding mountains to the Bangkok airport where we will say our final goodbyes, and where I pick up my next group. Looking back at our accomplishments we have done some amazing work together! We planted nearly 1000 tomato plants and ladyfinger herbs, we created a paddock for planting 25x35 meters, we spent days repairing the fence work around the home (after we found a hole kids were sneaking out of at night!) and we've cleaned and painted the front of the entire orphanage home, making the face of Baan Unrak brighter and more uplifting for everyone living here.

This place...words are hard to find to describe what this place does to me. Don't get me wrong, it's not all that easy being here. The work is hard: physical hard labor in a burning sun all day; pink eye, stomach bugs and chest infections tend to spread like wildfire; waking up to scorpions in your pillow and poisonous man eating-centipedes on your doorstep is not uncommon; and living for months on end with no meat, no electricity, no hot water, and absolutely no privacy does strange things to your body and soul.

And yet...I swear I have never been happier in my life than the times I have spent here. Maybe the only experience that comes close is when my big brother's first baby born came into this world. So tiny and frail, Cooper looked up at me with eyes full of trust and need...and that is something I continue to see every day from the children here.

When traveling, we realize that it takes time to fall in love. Visiting somewhere once, twice, even three times is not enough to really take it in through the skin. Making connections, understanding your surroundings, and reveling in the rhythm of a place can take years. I've been working with this orphanage for over a year now, but it feels like only recently have I been 'seeing' with a new set of eyes. The day I came back for the first time in many months since being away, I felt my heart swell. My chest physically expanded and I found myself releasing a long slow breath I didn't know I was holding.

Didi, the spiritual leader who runs this home, said the children were waiting for me. As soon as I stepped out of the taxi, I had Zola and Taji in my arms again. The last time I saw Taji was in January, and he was swimming after me as my boat was driving away. He was shouting my name, and trying to keep a strong smile on his face. The day he was finally back in my arms, Taji looked up at me with the biggest grin I've ever seen from him, and said he always knew I would come back. Yeah, I knew it too.

Every morning we start with meditation on the hill at 5 am. We watch the sunrise and chant a mantra the children study every day: Baba Nam Kevalam, which roughly translates to 'love is all around us.' After working hard in the field all day, we break at 3:30pm waiting for the children to come back from school and proceed to play for hours: tug of war, skipping ropes, soccer, and dancing classes (even the big boys want me to teach them ballet!) Evenings we share meals and stories together, and put the little ones to bed before doing a nighttime yoga session. Wake up tomorrow, and do it all again. Weekends are spent doing relief work and bringing medical supplies to the nearby refugee villages, and taking group trips to the local river spot to teach the kids how to swim. No alcohol, no smoking, no meat, no romantic relationships. It's the ultimate detox for life: cleaning your body, cleaning your soul, and filling your day to day life with laughter, happiness and most importantly hope for the future.

Now I'm back, and I'm staying put for at least another 3 months...After that, I don't know. Somehow I'll have to tear myself away. But until then bring on the love, the games, the physical labor and relief work for Burmese women and children who struggle every day in the jungles between Thailand and Burma.

Loi Kratong Day 2: Festival of FIREWORKS!

Well, Loi Kratong festival seems to be the festival that never ends! 3 days straight now of partying, fireworks and floating boats down the canals and Ping River here in Chiang Mai.

Enjoy this video, and appreciate the MADNESS that is Chiang Mai city during this special time. Driving my motorbike I got hit in the thigh about 3 times from explosive fireworks, and my friend May almost had her hair lit on fire from a sparkler dripping lantern in the sky!

Music, bombs, and fires everywhere...it's like a festive D-Day invasion!

So this video has been appropriately named 'Loi Kratong Day 2: Festival of FIREWORKS!'

If you missed the last post, click here for an explanation about the festival, the lanterns and why we float the boats down the river...

Loi Kratong 'Festival of Lights', Thailand

If you're ever in Thailand during the month of November, stick around for the Loi Kratong Festival of Lights! The city of Chiang Mai is known to be the best place to celebrate this festival since the locals go above and beyond.

This festival marks the end of the rainy season and it is by far the most beautiful of all Thai festivals. 'Loy' means 'to float,' while 'kratong' refers to the lotus-shaped boats which float on the water. The kratong is made of banana leaves or the layers of the trunk of a banana tree or a spider lily plant, and it is a practiced process to fold and make these beautiful boats. The more beautiful, elegant and elaborate your boat is, the more good luck! A kratong contains food, betel nuts, flowers, joss sticks, candles and coins.

Today and tomorrow, thousands of people will gather beside the canals and rivers. They will prepare their kratong with candles and coins, silently make a wish, and carefully place their kratongs in the water and release them to the current, hoping that the candle will not go out. Its flame is said to signify longevity, fulfillment of wishes and release from past sins.

It is also an expression of gratitude to the goddess of water 'Phra Mae Kongka' for having extensively used the water from the rivers and canals and for her bounty in providing water for the livelihood of the people. The goodies placed in the boat are offerings for her.

Lanterns are also released into the air as part of the celebration. The idea is, when releasing the lantern you're physically letting go of all your negative energy and 'floating away' all of your past troubles. It marks new beginnings and wishes for good luck in the future, so lanterns are used for many Thai festivals (including Loi Kratong.)

It was a beautiful night, and I had a great after party with some great friends. Life is awesome!

Sangklaburi, Life Along The Thai/Burmese Border

...Right now the situation in Burma remains dire…thousands of people are suffering along the Thai/Burmese border with nowhere to go. Organizations, NGO and Government alike have come together to do as much as they can for the refugees, but the camps are barely able to cope with the numbers of Burmese coming in every day, and supplies are limited.

Yet, despite what’s going on across the Thai/Burmese border 20 kms away Sangklaburi remains to be the quiet, charming, sleepy little town I have always loved it for. Children still go to school, monks study quietly in the temples and women barter and sell their home cooked foods at the market…life carries on.

Feeling inspired, I took a camera around the town looking for smiles. There are so many sad stories every day, but the people here are resilient and determined to carry on. I went to the local temple for some peace and understanding and came across a gang of ‘mini monks’ who instantly brightened my mood. I also spent the afternoon visiting the Burmese Mon and Karen resettlement villages, lending a hand where I could and learning more about the needs of those living day to day along the border.

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....Sangklaburi and The Longest Wooden Bridge in Thailand...

I'm starting to grow roots here in Sangklaburi again. I'll be staying here for the next 3 months with children rescued from the border, and I can honestly say there is nowhere else in the world I would rather be right now.

It's 4 pm now, so the children walk lazily in the heat and stiffness of their school uniforms and chase the chickens down the street as they make their own way home. Motorcycle taxi drivers toot and tease me as they zoom by, and I'm thinking it's time for me to cough up the 1$ it would cost to jump on the back of a bike and escape the humidity! Construction workers lay down their tools and join in a locals' game of football that seems to be a daily occurrence in front of the temple grounds. And all around smiles and polite nods greet me as the locals seem to recognize the 'white girl' that keeps coming back again, and again, and again.

Life surrounds Khao Laem Lake here. This was once the site where 3 rivers joined together, until the 1970's when the Thai government decided to dam the water for better resource management programs in the surrounding villages and provinces. So now, the lake has flooded the lowland valley and the people have adapted their culture to life along a lake---floating village culture.

Villagers meet their needs by fishing in the lake off one-manned motor boats, and building bridges to cross from one side to the other...in fact, the longest wooden bridge in Thailand is found here.

The bridge links the Thai villages to the Mon villages across the lake. The Mon is an ethnic minority group that was once part of a powerful empire in Siam's history. Today, this Mon village is known more as a protective hub for Burmese refugees. This village has been here for years and is now home to several human rights groups caring for the refugees and creating a resistance movement against the military junta across the border. Life on the Mon side is where Burmese culture reigns: the locals still rub their faces with yellow 'tanaka' root to keep away the burning sun, the men don checkered sarongs tied high up on the waist, and chewing beetle nut is more than a past time here...it's a cultural stamp.

Today I chose to visit some of the local sites I haven't seen in a while: the wooden bridge, the streets of the Mon village and the sacred temples and pagodas for the Mon Buddhist population.

**This video was created when I was playing around with my Picasa application...my first attempt ever, so be kind!

News from Thai/Burmese Borders, Nov.2010

***Thanks for my friends working diligently with human rights organizations in Mae Sot and Sangklaburi for sharing this information and fighting for the cause.***

I'm not sure what news if any has been shared over there about the Burmese election this past week, so I want to give you an update since it's been a really intense time felt all throughout the Thai/Burmese borders. About to get even more intense, since for the first time in a year the Burmese democratic activist Aung San Suu Kyi has been released from her house arrest by the military government---the same woman who has been under house arrest for 15 of the past 21 years.

SHAM ELECTIONS...

The elections have been recognized internationally as a fraud, to say the least. There have been reports of bullying and threats of violence towards civilians and democratic politicians throughout the country. People were forced to vote for the junta or risk being shot. Dead names loaded the voter registry and people feared mortar and bomb attacks at the polling stations, so most of the countrymen stayed at home and didn't vote. Only a few voting stations were open, making it impossible for citizens from the remote countryside to place a vote. I've been told the citizens were visited by the military guards days before the elections and had their names put on a list; they were then told they didn't need to vote the next day since their vote was automatically counted for.

Little information is coming out of Burma since they haven't had internet or phone lines for weeks and journalists have been prohibited from entering this month. Since border control has tightened so much, activists have been unable to smuggle much information out through their usual channels. And yet, an overwhelming win for the military government has been counted---surprise, surprise. The military now control 25% of the parliament, and the civilian wing that holds the rest of the seats are ex-military officers who retired from the service just days before the election actually took place. Basically, a puppet regime for the military has been installed.

FIGHTING BREAKS OUT ALONG THE BORDERS...The big news lately has been about the Myawaddy region, along the Thai border. The DKBA (Democratic Karen Buddhist Army) is a breakaway faction of the military who has been fighting in resistance to the junta for years now on behalf of the Buddhist Karen population in Burma. In Myawaddy, they took control of a strategic polling station, shooting and launching grenades and bombs against the Burmese military. There are verified reports that bullets and grenades landed on the Thai side too; counting 4 injuries and 1 death of innocent Thai civilians caught in the overspill. It is unknown how many Burmese people are dying behind those closed borders.

REFUGEES STORM THE THAI BORDERS...There has been a mass exodus of Burmese crashing into the Thai borders all along the central region seeking refuge. The numbers jumped from 5,000 to 15,000 refugees in one day, just hours after the elections. All of the borders have been shut down, and all traffic is being heavily monitored on the Thai side. My friends in Mae Sot (Thai side opposite Myawaddy) are working non stop, loading trucks from the International Organization for Migration carrying Burmese people away from the border. They are loaded with beds going to hospitals, schools, emergency shelters and even military complexes trying to help these people. Thai police have been stressed to the max trying to restore order and control the influx of refugees and supply trucks. There's been news traveling by word of mouth mostly, and a heads up has been given that the DKBA are warning the Burmese civilians to get out, preparing for an intense counter-attack against the military government. The refugees were also provided temporary shelter by the Thai military. The Thai Red Cross, UNHCR, international non‐governmental agencies and local community‐based organizations were providing emergency food, water, sanitation, shelters and health care. As of 9 November, Thai military authorities began organizing the refugees in groups and preparing for their return to Burma despite the war zone that's still active there...

ETHNIC RESISTANCE GROUPS UNITING FOR A FIGHT...The DKBA are one of the strongest resistance groups in Burma and their guerrilla warfare tactics are known to be particularly nasty. They also have massive support from Buddhists and Karen alike throughout the country, so their areas of control are readily growing these days. There's talk now that militias all along the borders are inspired and seeking alliances in an attempt to overthrow the Burmese military control. A lot of the ethnic minority militias (like the DKBA) had cease-fire agreements with the Burmese government, which expired September of this year. Where I am now, in Sangklaburi, the Mon people are rumored to be gearing up for a fight: they've been stockpiling weapons, training and recruiting soldiers, preparing for the time when the government will surely turn its attention to them again.

WHERE I AM NOW...Just outside of our town is 3 Pagodas Pass, a known high level war zone in Burma. Fighting broke out on the Burmese side on the 9th of November, and since then the DKBA influence has gained control. From the 3 Pagodas land mark you can clearly hear gunfire and explosions in the jungle. In just one night 10,000 refugees came across our border and overwhelmed the handful of refugee camps available in this area. Some of them walked for miles to get here, and fear they will only be turned back.There have been victims of shootings, raids, landmines and all sorts of tragedies coming in search of aid. Today, the 14th November was a particularly bad day on the Burmese side, since fresh waves of fighting broke out and after a few days of calm it seems the violence is escalating again.

Please tell people about what's going on here....people need to know since little to no information ever gets out of Burma.

I will do my best to continue updating...

Are you in this area too? If there are any more news or stories to share, please post them here.

Sunday Night Walking Streets, Chiang Mai

The month of November in Northern Thailand is nothing less than *magical*. The rainy season is starting to clear away, the mountains are getting noticeably cooler, the humidity mercifully eases, and across the country celebrations are under way.

Last weekend I stayed at Kristi's Guesthouse in the center of the old city quarters. This guest house is a personal favorite of mine, and I'm coming to terms with the fact that it's no longer the hidden gem it used to be a few years back. It's located on a charming 'soi' lined with cobbled streets, modest and shy guest houses, a temple, a cafe or two and several Thai cooking schools.

I woke up at an ungodly hour on Sunday morning to the BANG! of fireworks and gongs going off in the temple outside my balcony window. It's official, the Buddhists are in full-force celebration mode now...monks are filing out of the temples with their precious few belongings to go home for the first time in months.

In the later years of Buddha (~540 B.C.) villagers complained about his monks traveling through their rice paddy fields. The rainy season is the most important season for growing rice, and the monks were accidentally damaging crops as they traveled the countryside spreading his message. He ordained that the rainy season months should be a time for monks to stay inside the temple walls, perfecting their meditation and focusing on their teachings...this tradition has carried on nearly 1,500 years later.

To this day, young men are traditionally ordained as monks at the beginning of the rainy season, and remain inside the temple walls for 3 months straight, the duration of the season. So today, on a clear, bright and sunny day, a small migration of monks set foot outside the temple doors and started their journeys back home. Music and messages of good luck were blasted from megaphones and fireworks shot off in celebration. Some of the monks had suit cases in hand, others had duffel bags, Ipods and cell phones already tuned in as they exited the gates.

Today also happens to be the most special of market days in Chiang Mai, the Sunday Night Walking Street. It's a cultural market that takes place every Sunday. The city street traffic is shut down and artists from in and around the province come together to sell their artwork: handicrafts, jewelry, hand made clothing, paintings, sculpture, woodwork...any possible trinket you could want. Music, massage parlors and street food vendors add the appropriate ambiance, and every once in a while I battle the crowds to treat myself to some quality shopping and local treats!

*This video was shot from the front gates of a temple, where the festivities mix in celebration of the end of the rainy season and the ambiance of the Sunday night walking street markets.*

*Moo Ping! Grilled pork with sticky rice and dipped in a spicy green chili sauce.*

*A little mood music, a little soft lighting, and even you can fall asleep in a massage chair!*

*Of course, a quick stop to visit my friends (Nim and Ning) at Parasol Inn and to steal some of their food!---this is also when I unknowingly ate a dish loaded with 30 chilis...*

What IS Buddhism?...Teachings & Meditation Tips

A request for Buddhist insight... My brother Chris emailed me recently with what seemed like the simplest of requests. He wanted me to pass along some Buddhist insight: quotes, links, resources, whatever I could get my hands on to introduce him to the Buddhist faith. Turns out, it's not that easy. You can't Google search Buddhism, and get a one liner explanation for how to improve your life.

I've been stumped for days trying to figure out what I wanted to say and how to say it! Where would I even start? With the story of Buddha himself, or how about the cultural variations that have evolved across Asia? There are just so many arms and legs to the faith that web and tangle together: realms of heaven and hell, reincarnation, demons and angels, mythical creatures, ceremonies, rituals, karma and dharma, monk hood, meditation, precepts and scriptures in many, many dead languages...I myself am no expert (I'm still relatively new to the faith), but what I do know has taken me years to study and absorb.

So...I sat down, and really concentrated. You could say, I meditated on this blog entry. What would my family understand coming from the opposite side of the world, where we have learned a different set of values and religious traditions? I think they would understand suffering.

A Proverb...For me, the power of Buddhism lies in the simplicity of its message. There's a proverb a monk once told me:

He said that one day a king went into the forest in search of truth. He wanted to know what the most important Buddhist teaching was. He asked a hermit (a wise man) his question, to which he answered "Do no evil, do only good, and purify your heart." The king was surprised since he expected a more complex answer. He told the hermit "even a 5 year old knows that already!" and the hermit said "yes, but even an 80 year old man cannot do it."

Buddhism is not just a religion, it's a way to live your life. It's not just a code of conduct, with the end goal of peace on earth and heaven or hell. It's the idea that everything around us is part of an infinite cycle (including time), living things are all sentient and connected, and more importantly life as we know it is an illusion our individual senses have created. True happiness can only be achieved within us, and only after we shun away materials, wealth, greed, jealousy, and all forms of physical and emotional suffering. It's a guide, showing you the techniques for meditation, calmness of the mind and body which in turn will help us focus to end our suffering.

If I had to sum up Buddhism it would be this: suffering exists and it is felt by every living thing, but it can be overcome if you understand its source and how it manifests itself.

The 4 Noble Truths and the 8 Fold Path offer explanations to the world's injustices and inequalities, and together provide the core of Buddha's teachings. For a faith well over 2,500 years old, it's embraced by 300 million people worldwide because it still gives us answers to many of the problems we face in our modern material-driven societies.

4 Noble Truths:

1.) Life is suffering: life includes pain, ageing, disease and ultimately death. We also suffer emotionally: frustration, loneliness, jealousy, hatred, fear, embarrassment, anger, being apart from those we love and disappointment. Suffering touches every living thing.

Another proverb...

A woman once approached Buddha with the body of her dead child in her arms, begging him to bring her son back to life. The Buddha told her that if she could fetch mustard seeds he would bring life again, but the seeds had to come from a household that did not know death. She searched everywhere in her village, but could not find one home where loved ones were not lost. She returned to Buddha that evening and said "there is death in every family, everyone knows death. I understand your teaching." Buddha then replied "things are not always the way we want them to be, but we can learn to understand them. Like medicine, once you know the cause of your illness you can find the cure."

2.) Suffering is caused by cravings and desires: we suffer when other people don't meet OUR expectations, OUR needs. We suffer when people don't like us, or when they don't give us something we want. We only suffer, as long as we continue to want things. If we can stop the craving, stop the wants, all the disappointments and pain will no longer hurt us.

3.) Suffering can be overcome: true happiness can be achieved if we give up our useless cravings and learn to live one day at a time, not dwelling on the past or worrying about an imagined future. This is the first step to shedding your mind of negative thought and energy.

4.) The 8 Fold Path is the guide to end suffering: practice these 8 things every day, and you will find happiness. It takes a lot of energy and a lot of practice to constantly be mindful and aware of our thoughts and actions, but that's the point...nothing worth having is ever easy to acquire.

The 8 Fold Path:

1. Right view: try to see everything around you with compassion. Wrong views occur when we impose our expectations on our surroundings, we only see things for how they should be or how we fear them to be. We must abandon fear and hope to see things for what they really are.
2. Right thought: try to control your thoughts, and get rid of any negativity. We are what we think. So if we think clearly with kindness, that's exactly who we will become.
3. Right speech: after right thought, right speech can come naturally. Be kind and respectful when speaking to others...for this is how you gain respect and trust, and also limit suffering for others.
4. Right conduct: treat others as you would like to be treated yourself. Practice renunciation, get rid of the complications we cloud our relationships with.
5. Right livelihood: "Do not earn your living by harming others. Do not seek happiness by making others unhappy"- Buddha. Find happiness in even the smallest details of your work, for as long as you are not harming others you are doing good.
6. Right effort: sometimes we consider discipline on par with struggle, like training our bodies in rigorous workouts. This should not be the case with your spiritual discipline. Don't fight yourself, don't struggle unnecessarily. See things for what they are, and gently work with everything in your life.
7. Right mindfulness: always be aware of your thoughts, actions, words...be mindful of the tiniest detail in every experience whether it's performing your job duties, or loving your children.
8. Right concentration: this is meditation...Through meditation, we can see clearly if we are following all of the 7 points mentioned above...this is also your outlet, a space and gap in time, to find peace by completely ridding your mind of noise and traffic.

The concepts are so simple, but again so much energy is involved in keeping your focus. I'm an emotional person, I tend to react first then think. This is something I have to work on every day, controlling my impulsive reactions. So every evening, I try to take 20 minutes to sit in silence and meditate. First I meditate on my efforts for that day (am I following the 8 fold path?) then I try to think about nothing. I just empty my mind of all thoughts good or bad or worrisome and I practice sitting in silence...believe me, it's harder than it looks, but I do sleep better at night for it.

So what's the goal? The goal is to end suffering by realizing that we create our own suffering, and that the solutions to our problems are within ourselves, not outside. This is called nirvana, and the beautiful part about Buddhism is that anyone can become a Buddha. Buddha was not a god nor was he endowed with any special powers, he was a man...for Buddha simply translates to ' awakened one.'

Tips to help with meditation:

• sit in a comfy position with your back straight
• place hands in your lap with your left hand on the bottom
• keep eyes closed
• and concentrate on the tip of your nose...concentrate on your breaths since they are like a bridge between your body and your mind
• sit in the same place at the same time every day, and increase your sitting time little by little

If you would like to read more about Buddhism online I recommend using BuddhaNet as a great resource. I also recommend reading the Dalai Lama's Art of Happiness: through conversations with the Tibetan exiled Dalai Lama, the author explores Buddhist teachings in a modern world context.

Why do you think Buddhism has become so popular in Western culture in recent years?

Burmese Elections Just Days Away

November is officially upon us. The nights here in Chiang Mai are starting to get cool, the rain has stopped and Thais everywhere are gearing up for the 'Loy Kratong Festival of Lights' about to take place in a couple weeks. This is a magical time of year. Festivities will be held in all the local temples, paper lanterns will be released into the night air for good luck, and 'kratong' banana leaf boats will be artfully decorated with flowers and incense and released into the currents of the Ping River as a gesture of making merit and giving thanks to the river goddess for giving life and prosperity this year.

Across the border, it's a whole other story right now. November 7th is the expected date for the first elections in 20 years by the Burmese military government. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will remain under house arrest until the elections are over, and no one's really sure what's going to happen once the election gets under way.
My friends working on the border right now in Mae Sot and Sangklaburi are worried: tensions are running high, violence is expected, and there's talk of minority groups gearing up and banding together for war again.

I myself will be heading to the border again soon, staying with a Burmese orphanage just days after the elections take place, and I'm a little bit nervous about what waits for me there these next few months.

Watch More Videos about the Burmese Military Gov't, Nov.2010

"Burma's 2010 election to be held this November is political theater designed to legitimize the military regime that has violently held power in Burma since 1962. 'This is NOT Democracy' examines the true reasons and historical context for the current election and why the regime's so-called "Roadmap to Democracy" is only a smoke screen to mask the regime's continued human rights abuses and refusal to relinquish leadership of the country to the people's chosen representatives." (17 min. Produced by Burma Partnership and Kestrel Media)

This Is NOT Democracy Part 1, youtube.video

This is NOT Democracy, Part 2

You Can Save The World

Feeling Powerless To Save Our World?

I came across an interesting blogger today, a woman attempting to live her life entirely plastic-free. Beth at "Fake Plastic Fish" worries (rightly so) about plastics filling our oceans, environments being permanently destroyed by toxic chemicals and waste, as well as the personal health effects from our own daily use.

I read her "Plastic- Free Living Guide" and couldn't help but scoff the first time I saw her suggestions. Some of them are outrageous and seemingly impossible, especially where I am in Asia today. And then, I caught myself...I was being pessimistic, negative, accepting powerlessness and giving up before I even tried to give her ideas a chance.

Powerlessness is a tricky word. It often is confused with fatalism "what will be will be." But in fact, powerlessness is defined as a state of being in which we feel we lack personal control over certain situations or events that NEGATIVELY affect our lives, our lifestyles and our goals.

It is this feeling of powerlessness as individuals that limits our efforts and contributions towards creating a better world; sometimes we feel we don't have enough money, not enough time, or not enough of a voice to really make changes.

Problems in the world today are dire, never ending, that make us all feel helpless: war, world hunger, human trafficking, violence, poverty, animal abuse, discrimination, loss of environment and natural resources...we all know that we need to consume less, donate time and energy to others in need, but most of us lack 'the push' to action. This is feeling powerless as an individual.

Our apathy forces government and agencies to think for us and to provide solutions managed and distributed on a large scale; sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't. And yet, we forget that revolutions and memorable moments of change in human history are from stories of individuals, not always governments or mobs. Heroes were people, just like you and me, who one day decide to start a fight.

OK, I'm not saying Beth is a hero. I am saying, I've looked twice at her blog now and I feel inspired. She's just trying to start a revolution, to drastically resist the norms of today...she's fighting against Plastic, a fight that seems impossible to overcome and yet there she goes. I for one, admire it.

Powerlessness from a Buddhist perspective:

Last year, as a last ditch effort to protect the forests in Northern Thailand, I set out with a group of 15 volunteers to tie sacred Buddhist scarves around the trunks of Teak trees. The scarves were essentially a scare tactic: if you cut down a tree that's been blessed by a monk, you'll be unlucky in this life and the ones after.

This, the simplest of solutions obviously works since all throughout Thailand green forests reflect oranges, reds and deep browns from forest walking monks protecting nature where and when they can.

This got me thinking about Buddhism and conservation actually. In Buddhism, powerlessness doesn't really translate. The only kind of power that truly exists is power over ourselves. We can not control those around us, nor can we change the course of nature, we can only control the way we view ourselves within it.

Buddha said "All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think we become." Our thoughts are the source of our happiness, pain, desires and eventually habits. Thoughts become words, words become actions, then actions become habits (for better or worse.) This is what I thought of when I caught myself being pessimistic. My own thoughts are the only things I can completely control, and I should better spend the energy to choose to think positively.

The point is, positive thinking. Control your thoughts and don't let pessimism and negativity force you into inaction. I alone act. I alone use less plastic. I alone use less water. I alone treat all sentient beings with love.

'I' can quickly become 'we', as individuals unknowingly become part of a community. Somewhere out there 'you' are using less water, 'you' use less plastic too. Even if we feel alone, acting as an individual, somewhere out there someone is trying to do exactly the same thing. Have faith that even if you act alone, you may not be.

While I may not be able to use a stainless steel ice cube tray, or make my own condiments, or seek out sanitary pads made from organic cotton in Asia, I will take some suggestions to heart and know that you will too. Individuals, be inspired, and you may find yourself unknowingly saving the world.

"Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared."- Buddha

--Thanks to my friend Madeleine for sharing this documentary with me: "No Impact Man" is about Colin Beavan, one man trying to live 1 year completely 'green' giving new meaning to the idea Practice What You Preach.

...Check out his blog here...

Mental Patients Sent To Backpacker Hostels

A couple months ago I wrote about backpacking through hostels in Australia, Hostel Life: Tips for making the most of your hostel experience...

The inspiration for this article came from my own personal hellish experience in St. Kilda, Melbourne.

Mere weeks after publishing that blog entry, I heard on the radio there was an investigation the Australian media was looking into; mental patients were being sent to tourist backpacker accommodations. I had a little giggle, and forgot about it since I never heard of it again...until I came across this article today: turns out, it was confirmed!

In Canberra, ACT Australia homeless people recovering from mental illnesses are being sent to backpacker accommodations as a sort of 'remedial housing.'

The government claims they're better off in hostels, rather than in-patient hospital facilities where space is limited.

How is that possible?! Let's think security and stability...I would think that a recovering mental patient would require both, and none of these are really available in hostels. Loud noises, disruptive behavior, thieves, fighting, crowds...I'm talking about the backpackers here, not the patients!

I honestly think that hostels are like college dorms, and 20 year old backpackers on a drinking binge are a major threat to any kind of patient's recovery. And on the other hand, if I was unknowingly sharing a facility with mental patients I would have been outraged! Would this not pose a threat to us, the tourists?

My last roommate was a sleepwalker who had a tendency to leave the gas stove on all night...that was dangerous enough.

There's a larger issue at hand here, the lack of adequate housing and care for mental patients. They seem to be marginalized from society worldwide, and while hospital treatment may not be the best for long-term care, more needs to be done to create proper facilities and homes supplied with trained staff to provide care and safety. This whole mess just seems irresponsible on behalf of the Government and Australian Health Services.

Read the full article here: ABC News, Mentally ill homeless sent to backpackers.

Have you ever heard of anything like this before? Do you agree, or disagree?

Sleeping With Elephants: Chiang Mai, Thailand

Overnight trip to Elephant Nature Park

...sleeping with giants, cycling through rice paddies, and planting trees with the local children = the perfect weekend.

I once said I had a love affair with Thailand. Elephant Nature Park is a big part of that love affair... maybe obsession is the word I'm looking for.

The sanctuary is home to 32 elephants, all of them rescued from an abusive tourism industry. They roam free everyday, unchained and happy to spend their days bathing in the river, grazing, toppling fruit trees and chasing the dogs around the park. They don't perform tricks, they don't paint, they don't dance, they don't beg for money in the streets of Bangkok or Chiang Mai, and they don't carry tourists on their backs anymore...they just simply exist as nature intended, as gentle giants.

The State of Asian Elephants Today...

Asian Elephants are struggling to survive. No one knows exactly how many are left in the wild, but here in Thailand the numbers are in the low hundreds. People say that in 30 years or so, they'll be wiped out from the wild completely because of loss of habitat, cities expanding, poaching and the black market ivory trade that still persists throughout Asia.

Let's put one thing in perspective. The number of wild elephants in Thailand are in the low hundreds. The number of domesticated elephants working in the tourism industry are in the thousands.

Thai people revere elephants. Elephants are the vehicles of kings, they were tanks in times of war during the ancient kingdoms of Siam, they're spiritual guides, they're demi-gods and symbols of luck and grace so important to the foundation of Thai history and culture. You can't go a city block anywhere without coming across an elephant in one form or another, and even worse it's harder to go one night in Chiang Mai or Bangkok and not come across baby elephants begging in the city streets for food and money.

How did this happen? As most atrocities do...lack of education and awareness.

Asian Elephants have a tradition of being domesticated. This has existed for nearly 2,000 years already. They were used in battles, they were used in royal ceremonies, more recently used as loggers in the money making Teak industry, then finally today used as entertainment. When the government banned logging in the 1980's, thousands of elephants and their owners were out of work and dying in the jungles. So the idea of elephant tourism was embraced to initially help them...until now, it's just spiraled out of control.

Tourists come to Thailand with the big idea of riding on the back of an elephant in a green jungle. What they don't realize is everything that happens behind the scenes. The process of training an elephant happens at a very young age. Around 3 or 4 years, babies are separated from their mothers and placed in violent crushes: sleep deprivation, torture, cutting, bashing, and gouging from metal hooks are common place in a training process that can last months.

The theory is barbaric: break your elephant at the youngest age possible and teach him to fear man. It is the fear and constant reminder of the trauma from this training process that allows tourists to ride elephants today.

The more elaborate the tricks an elephant is taught, like circus performance, the longer the training process and the more violence involved.

What's happening now in Thailand, is that every year more and more tourists demand elephant entertainment. More efforts are being put into building this elephant tourism industry, and less energy focused on restoring the dying wild populations. The cycle of suffering needs to stop. Tourists need to make educated choices, people relying on elephants for work and livelihood need to be given access to a new set of skills and work, and elephants need to stay off the city streets and remain in the forest where they belong.

What Elephant Nature Park represents, is a new hope for the future generations of Asian elephants. Domestic elephants who have been rescued from abusive owners and street begging are brought here to the sanctuary to live out their lives in peace. The only interaction with tourists allowed are feeding times and bathing times. Tourists directly bring joy to elephants, and not the other way around. The point, is to spend a day or a week in the presence of elephants acting as they would naturally in the wild.

Elephant Nature Park is my heaven on earth. It's a wildlife rescue project, a community development arm and a source of inspiration for all of us around it. The founder, Lek, has her hands in everything: working with elephants, stray dogs and wildlife rescued from illegal trafficking; reaching out and hiring from within Burmese refugee camps; tree planting and forestry development to restore the jungle; creating jobs for local farmers since 32 elephants demand a lot of food sources; sending volunteers into local communities to help with funding and construction of every day needs like water tanks, temples, bridges, and roads...she can do anything. One day at her park and you'll be overwhelmed with the amount of good work being done, I guarantee it.

Overnight at the Park....

One of the first things I did when I got back to Thailand this month, was visit the park. For anyone with a couple days to kill in Chiang Mai, I highly recommend staying overnight. Day visits are great too, but overnight allows you to see a lot more of what rural life in Thailand is really all about.

The park highlights include washing and bathing with the elephants twice a day, as well as up close encounters with feeding every day. There are babies that are constantly playing and getting into trouble, so keep your cameras loaded for some awesome photography.

The accommodations are nice, and the food is mind-blowing. Your night's stay will be more than comfortable. An extra full day at the park will allow you the time for a bicycle tour of the area if you're game.

Ride through the forest, across the Mae Taeng river, through fields of rice paddies and flowering tress, and hike the steps up to the local forest temple with a guide from the park more than happy to teach you the basics of Buddhism and temple history.

And there's always something going on at the park that needs a few extra hands. When I was there it was my dear friend Lek's (the founder) birthday. In honor of her, the local community and children worked hand in hand with volunteers to plant 500 trees in and around the park as her yearly "Green Forest Day" program.

If you have a couple days, stay overnight. If you're limited, the one day visit will be just as awesome. Prices and booking information can be found at the Elephant Nature Foundation website here....

If you have more time, consider volunteering for the week. Read about my experiences volunteering here...(Prices and booking for volunteering is also available at the Elephant Nature Foundation website.)

Asian Elephants are not the only ones suffering: gibbons, monkeys, bears, tigers...so many animals need your help in Asia...volunteer your time and energy into making a difference next time you travel.

Video: Moon Bears in Laos & Vietnam need help too!

more info here...Animals Asia.org

For a list of volunteer organizations I've worked with here in Thailand, scroll to the end of my post here 'Thailand: Paradise or Not?'...

If you have shared similar experiences with wildlife conservation or community development projects around the world, please share them and let us know where we can lend a hand next!

Zipline Adventure Chiang Mai

Jungle Flight Zipline company is based in Chiang Mai and offers an amazing adventure package nearby Doi Saket mountains. It's a couple hours' drive out of the city to get to the forest, but once you're there the jungle takes over. Up close enounter with nature and a low impact adventure activity makes the heart sing!

This company was fun, professional, with great safety standards and highly recommended for a 'get away' day from the city of Chiang Mai. (One recommendation: bring your own water bottle with a carabiner clip, this will cut down on the plastic bottles wasted on tour.)

May and I inspected the company together and had 5 hours of perfect weather, dizzying heights, and laughs all around...especially when May got stuck on the 300 meter zip and had to get rescued!

One day in Chiang Mai with Queen & Stef

A Driving Tour of Chiang Mai: One day in the life of Queen & Stef...

Last night the girls (me, Queen and May) did a bar hopping welcome back tour of Chiang Mai: bourbon & cokes at the Thai rock joint Warm Up; tequila shots with the hip hop d.j. at Zoe in Yellow; a quick beer watching the lady boy show at Spicy; then whiskey & sodas jamming with the live band at Discovery...

It was a great night out, but moving around the next day was a bit painful...so join us, on a typical 'day off' in Chiang Mai city.

We cruise through the old city running errands, passing by beautiful temples Wat Chedi Luang and Wat Phra Singh. We grab lunch off a local noodle shop, before stopping in at the ISV office in Nimmenhamin to catch up on work and emails.