Thursday, August 13, 2009
Seoul, Korea: August 8, 2009
On the way home, I had a 13 hour layover in Seoul, South Korea. Although I was physically exhausted from the rush of the last two weeks, I wanted to get as much “tourist activity” in as possible. When would I ever be back in South Korea!?! A friend from high school, Brooks is teaching over in Seoul and literally the day before I left, he had told me he was there and he would meet me. SO we kept in touch via facebook and e-mail and when I landed in Seoul I was
to call him and meet him and he was going to show me around the city. WELL…. Turns out his phone wasn’t working or was off when I landed. I tried calling for about thirty minutes before I gave up and decided… “Hell, I only live once!” So, I decided to tour around own my own. 
I got a bus ticket from the airport and my first stop was to Gyeongbokgung Palace. It was in an amazing setting with luscious trees and mountains in the background. The palace is surrounded by five-meter high walls with only four gates each symbolizing different seasons and the yin and yang theory of the five elements… spring and wood, summer and fire, autumn and metal, and winter and water. I was so lucky, when I was there, it was about 80 degrees so wondering around the palace wasn’t a problem, as it is all outdoors. You are not allowed to step into the actual buildings.
My next stop was to the Insa-dong market and shopping mall. This was something that was in walking distance and a way for me to see an authentic market place without going to far away. It was very expensive compared to Thailand and the items they were selling seemed more “junky.” The actual mall was nice, it was five stories, all outdoors!From there, I headed to the World Cup stadium where their soccer team plays. I couldn’t stay much longer because I had been out for about five hours and needed to head back to the airport early since I was an international flight. Plus they had a free place to wash up, shower, relax, and get massages! :) On the bus ride back to the airport…. I could hardly keep my eyes open – at that point, I was ready to go home and sleep in my own bed and relax! Going around South Korea, I had to take all my stuff since I wasn't quite sure I wanted to leave it all with Ben, (more of a pain for him!)
House Dedication: August 6, 2009
It is an interesting day to try to sum up. It was very emotional for most of the group – it was so touching to get to the jobsite and see how far we have come. We had gotten our house done, start to finish; minus the windows and the plastering which the skilled workers needed to complete. Sak was so incredibly happy and he had a permanent smile. Not only Sak, but all of the skilled workers really opened up to us… finally! We had such a good time with them.
Today was the final day of “work”. We got to the site and found out that we didn’t have work to do, just decorating for the final dedication. Anne told us that Sak and his family would be able to move in sometime next week!!! SO COOL! In total, we finished the house in two weeks… Anne also told us that what we accomplished would normally have taken a group of skilled workers about two or three months to complete. Personally, and as a team, I know we were so honored to help Sak move in sooner and begin his life in his new home.
For lunch, we prepared our own fried lunch… it was fun because we got to eat with Sak and the other skilled workers that were there throughout, oh and Harley and Puoy!! We all had a great time talking and laughing and I think this really brought us together - I wish we could’ve eaten with them everyday!
After lunch, we had the formal dedication. We each were presented with an award for our help in building with Habitat for Humanity in Thailand. We took pictures and then were able to present Sak with a large key to his new home. This is where things got emotional for people. He is so humble and shy, he didn’t even know what to say and how to express all of the thanks he was feeling. We told him how we were so happy to help and honored that we had the chance to be a part of something this special. We also gave him a group picture of all of us that he could put in his home. We hung out and talked a little longer and then it was time to be on our way. On the way home, it was sad to think that we wouldn’t be back… even though Sak said anytime we were in Thailand… we had a home to stay in! :)
It was such a heartwarming day. We left a little bit earlier so it gave us a chance to relax…. From three-six p.m. I literally was pampered with a manicure, pedicure, and massage! Then it was our last dinner in Khao Lak, Phang Nga….. it was a hillside, ocean view restaurant. A great way to celebrate our two weeks of hard work!
Today was the final day of “work”. We got to the site and found out that we didn’t have work to do, just decorating for the final dedication. Anne told us that Sak and his family would be able to move in sometime next week!!! SO COOL! In total, we finished the house in two weeks… Anne also told us that what we accomplished would normally have taken a group of skilled workers about two or three months to complete. Personally, and as a team, I know we were so honored to help Sak move in sooner and begin his life in his new home.
For lunch, we prepared our own fried lunch… it was fun because we got to eat with Sak and the other skilled workers that were there throughout, oh and Harley and Puoy!! We all had a great time talking and laughing and I think this really brought us together - I wish we could’ve eaten with them everyday!
After lunch, we had the formal dedication. We each were presented with an award for our help in building with Habitat for Humanity in Thailand. We took pictures and then were able to present Sak with a large key to his new home. This is where things got emotional for people. He is so humble and shy, he didn’t even know what to say and how to express all of the thanks he was feeling. We told him how we were so happy to help and honored that we had the chance to be a part of something this special. We also gave him a group picture of all of us that he could put in his home. We hung out and talked a little longer and then it was time to be on our way. On the way home, it was sad to think that we wouldn’t be back… even though Sak said anytime we were in Thailand… we had a home to stay in! :)
It was such a heartwarming day. We left a little bit earlier so it gave us a chance to relax…. From three-six p.m. I literally was pampered with a manicure, pedicure, and massage! Then it was our last dinner in Khao Lak, Phang Nga….. it was a hillside, ocean view restaurant. A great way to celebrate our two weeks of hard work!
Monday, August 10, 2009
Putting on a Good Face (Or the front of the house!): August 5, 2009
Pretty relaxing day on the job site as we could only do so much at one time. I had a busy day, I was one of the ones that got to plaster the front of the house! It was a much faster process mixing the mortar and then sliding it on to the front of the house. It looks a lot easier than it actually is!! There definitely is a technique and the skilled workers had to show us a couple of times how to do it or adjust what we were doing to make the plaster stick better. Doing this, you also had to make sure it was leveling out the brick walls they may have been off before as well. Mard helped me and Ashley do the front of the house. We were pretty much perfectionists when it came to this making it as smooth as possible the first time around. There were a couple of girls doing a different inside wall that would just slab it on. When the skilled workers went around to level it, they had to smooth it down again with another layer.
I found the first scorpion of the trip…hiding out under the concrete blocks, it was pretty big for a baby (I was told by Tom). Harley, our taxi driver stepped right over and picked it up with a piece of wood to move him where more people could see him. So I never really did find out his real name… but I started calling him Harley because he always wore Harley Davidson T’s! By the second day of me calling him Harley, he responded to it and everyone began calling him that!! He thought it was so funny everytime!
I found the first scorpion of the trip…hiding out under the concrete blocks, it was pretty big for a baby (I was told by Tom). Harley, our taxi driver stepped right over and picked it up with a piece of wood to move him where more people could see him. So I never really did find out his real name… but I started calling him Harley because he always wore Harley Davidson T’s! By the second day of me calling him Harley, he responded to it and everyone began calling him that!! He thought it was so funny everytime!
It is crazy to think that tomorrow is our last day of working here! We will have accomplished pretty much all of our work schedule that we can do. The remainder needs to be done by skilled workers and the family (such as the interior decorating).
Thai BBQ!: August 4, 2009
Break time... learning how to play marbles!!
I LOVE THESE CHILDREN...... They are our future! xoxo
MORE WALLS! Today we went all of the way to the top of the house with the bricks. The skilled workers had touched up what we had done the day before and had added up a few more window frames for us. It was a very slow day going day because once we had our walls up, there wasn’t much more we could do on the inside until that very top on the outside was done. This consisted of slicing the bricks diagonally and really needed to be done by the guys because they were taller and could get up on the scaffolding and reach!
We met a woman named Kelly, who was originally from Montana. She had been down to Thailand for a Habitat trip herself when she met a Thai man who she is now engaged too. She works for a several non-profit organizations around the area and trying to put together another organization to help clean up the grounds. For lunch she took us down to the local orphanage called, Home and Life. They have a little bakery to help raise money for their work and the children that stay there. They have about 15 kids that stay there, more girls than boys, and they range in ages from five-fifteen years old. Unfortunately, it was a school day when we went, so we didn’t get to see them! The children were there for various reasons, some affected by the tsunami, some parents couldn’t afford to take care of them, and some parents had passed away and they didn’t have any other family.
After lunch, we continued with the exterior walls – luckily the clouds were present which took a bit of the intense heat away…. But still very warm and muggy!
For dinner, we went to a Thai BBQ buffet. It was 99 Baht for all you can eat. If you left any food on your plate, you paid more – so it was incentive to take a little at a time to not waste any food! They put out little boilers and grills in front of us, four people per. We got to choose what we wanted to grill up and make! It was pretty fun!
We met a woman named Kelly, who was originally from Montana. She had been down to Thailand for a Habitat trip herself when she met a Thai man who she is now engaged too. She works for a several non-profit organizations around the area and trying to put together another organization to help clean up the grounds. For lunch she took us down to the local orphanage called, Home and Life. They have a little bakery to help raise money for their work and the children that stay there. They have about 15 kids that stay there, more girls than boys, and they range in ages from five-fifteen years old. Unfortunately, it was a school day when we went, so we didn’t get to see them! The children were there for various reasons, some affected by the tsunami, some parents couldn’t afford to take care of them, and some parents had passed away and they didn’t have any other family.
After lunch, we continued with the exterior walls – luckily the clouds were present which took a bit of the intense heat away…. But still very warm and muggy!
For dinner, we went to a Thai BBQ buffet. It was 99 Baht for all you can eat. If you left any food on your plate, you paid more – so it was incentive to take a little at a time to not waste any food! They put out little boilers and grills in front of us, four people per. We got to choose what we wanted to grill up and make! It was pretty fun!
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Walls, Walls, and More Walls!: August 3, 2009
Our first day back on the job site after a relaxing weekend! It was time to continue adding on to our walls. We had done about four layers around the entire house on Friday. Today, we were to get as far as possible. We literally put up walls for six hours. It actually went by very fast, but in six hours, we only added about eight layers. We also had a lot of clean up around the bottom of our walls that drops off as we go. The good part of this is our home, is really starting to look like a home! After today we have a new appreciation for those bricklayers; it is hard, tedious work to make sure that it all gets done correctly!
Through today, we have reached the point where we are now p on the scaffolding and we only have a limited access to that – so sharing is a necessity which means that we can only do so much at one time. Should be interesting to see how tomorrow goes!
At this point, our team has really seen the first big point in which we have touched “Sak” the homeowner…. He has been smiling all day and saying that it looks beautiful, or “Suay”. He has been saving up for so long to do this and it is great to see how this is all unfolding for him!
Through today, we have reached the point where we are now p on the scaffolding and we only have a limited access to that – so sharing is a necessity which means that we can only do so much at one time. Should be interesting to see how tomorrow goes!
At this point, our team has really seen the first big point in which we have touched “Sak” the homeowner…. He has been smiling all day and saying that it looks beautiful, or “Suay”. He has been saving up for so long to do this and it is great to see how this is all unfolding for him!
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