It has been way too long since I’ve posted to this blog! Amber and I moved to Mae Sot last weekend, so here’s a day-by-day summary of what we’ve been up to since then.

Sunday, October 3 – We said farewell to Chiang Mai and our friends at Duangkamon Place.  Our friends from CM Lanna Tour drove Amber and I (as well as our ever-expanding pile of luggage, souvenirs, small kitchen appliances, etc) in a private van down to Mae Sot.  We unloaded everything and officially moved into our new home at Ban Pruk Sa Guesthouse. We have a beautiful room with a large bed, air-con, new refrigerator, satellite TV, wi-fi, hot water, laundry service, etc – everything we need to be comfortable.

Monday, October 4 – Today was our first day of orientation with Burma Volunteer Program, or BVP. Amber and I will both be teaching English throughout the community of Mae Sot, as well as helping in other ways as needed. BVP will place us with organizations that can benefit from our skills and that need our assistance, and we will volunteer without pay for at least 90 days. For the safety and security of everyone involved, we are not able to say exactly which organizations we help, where we work, or what we do.

Tuesday, October 5 – BVP led us on a bike-riding tour around Mae Sot. As part of the tour, we visited the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners of Burma, or AAPPB. This organization works to create public awareness of the nearly 2,200 political prisoners serving very long or lifetime prison sentences in Burmese jails for demonstrating for democracy. Please visit the AAPPB website and read about their cause. Visiting their office was a very sobering and heart-breaking experience.

Wednesday, October 6 – Our third day of BVP orientation. Nothing noteworthy to report.

Thursday, October 7 – Happy Four-Year Wedding Anniversary to us! We had a few more hours of BVP orientation during the day.  In the evening, we went to Borderline Shop, which sells hand-crafted clothing, handbags, etc and donates the money to ethnic minority women’s organizations in Burma and in Mae Sot. On the second floor of the shop, there is an art gallery. At the gallery, we went to an opening exhibition of an exiled Burmese artist’s paintings. Afterwards, we celebrated our anniversary at Khao Mao Khao Fang, one of the most beautiful restaurants we’ve ever seen.

Friday, October 8 – The annual Thai Vegetarian Festival began today. Thai people of Chinese descent celebrate the festival each year (known in China as the Chinese Nine Emperor Gods Festival) by eating strictly vegetarian food for nine days, doing good works within the community, etc. The idea is that the annual festival “cleanses” the body, mind, and spirit. The local Chinese temple in Mae Sot will host free vegetarian lunches and dinners each day, so I am going to participate by eating vegetarian until the festival ends on October 16.

In other parts of Thailand, such as Phuket, the Vegetarian Festival has become a bizarre freak show. Along with eating vegetarian food, some people parade through the streets and pierce their bodies with knives, swords, and more. They walk on broken glass or hot coals, run through exploding fireworks, etc. None of that will happen here in Mae Sot, but if you’re intrigued and not squeamish about blood or self-mutilation, search Google Images for “Phuket Vegetarian Festival”. What you will find is shocking and disturbing. You have been warned!

Saturday, October 9 – Amber and I did a Burmese cooking class at Borderline Shop along with a woman from Belgium. Our Burmese hosts took us to the local market to buy fresh produce and spices. We had tea and breakfast at a Burmese tea shop, then we returned to Borderline Shop’s kitchen to prepare pumpkin curry, Mandalay noodle salad, and potato samosas.

Sunday, October 10 – Happy 10/10/10! Chances are, you will only see a quirky date like this twice more in your lifetime – November 11, 2011 (11/11/11) and December 12, 2012 (12/12/12).  After that, it’s a long stretch of almost ninety years until January 1, 2101 (01/01/01), so hopefully you made the most of Sunday!

In the morning, we went with our friend (Sofia, another BVP volunteer from Portugal) to the Muslim part of Mae Sot for breakfast, which consisted of tea, more potato samosas, and yellow curried vegetables. Amber and Sofia shopped for exotic Indian and Middle Eastern clothing at the Muslim shops. Most of the Muslims in Mae Sot are also from Burma, which we never really thought about before. Obviously the main religion in Burma is Buddhism, and the Burmese military actively oppresses and persecutes the country’s Muslim minority just as it does with Christians and ethnic minorities, so Muslims are forced to flee Burma like everybody else.

Monday, October 11 – We visited the Burmese food and clothing market this morning. We had a vegetarian lunch at the Chinese temple with the owner of Borderline Shop and her young son. Since Amber is scheduled to begin teaching at an organization tomorrow, we visited the Curriculum Project.  CP designs and prints educational materials for English teachers working in the area.

Tags: Mae Sot