Welcome to Thailand

I wish I could say coming into each country we visit that we arrive knowing exactly what to expect. The truth is, as it happens with most things in life, with each new country, and with each new experience, we always find ourselves with the unexpected.

Research on Thailand will reveal its famous beaches, its spicy cuisine, and its ancient temples. What it won't tell you is the fact that if a Thai tells you its only a little bit spicy, its still probably too spicy for our sensitive North American pallets. We find ourselves daily saying for restaurants to make the food "Mai ped, Mai ped" (Not spicy, not spicy). However, really and truly it is near impossible to find a dish that does not leave your mouth feeling at least a little warm. It also doesn't tell you about the millions of mosquitoes that prey on foreign blood, biting you when you sleep, when you walk, and even in the bathroom doing your "business". You won't find out until a few days into your stay that its not just the foreigners that have trouble with Thai names, just about everyone, including locals take more than one try to get someone's name right "Bing?" no, no "Ding"..."Jing?" no, no, "D-I-N-G".

Despite these small hiccups, Thailand is really and truly a beautiful place. A few days into Bangkok, and it was already stealing a peace of our hearts. Its easy to get comfortable here with a produce and food a market just an easy five minutes away walk. Meals for a dollar, fruit shakes for fifty cents, and delicious desserts made fresh from the Roti man on his cart., you really can't go wrong.

Like Manila, we came into Thailand not knowing what doors God would open for us. Since arriving at the Ywam base where we would be staying, it has been truly amazing seeing how day after day we continue to witness God's faithfulness to us. Two days into our stay, with no plan and absolutely no connections in the city, we were invited to a bimonthly missions meeting. Through this meeting, we were able to make connection after connection taking us to the slums, to the red light district, to the local university, and to Pattaya- one of the largest sex tourist destinations in the world. While some of these are things we've seen before in Manila, the stories we hear and the people we meet continue to break our hearts the way I hope, it will continue to break yours.

Stay tuned for more.