In late September I had the opportunity to reconnect with other AFS students living in the Northeast region of Thailand. I live in Buriram, but I traveled by bus to Nakhon Ratchasima for a 4 day Cultural Orientation Camp (COC).
The first day was spent on introductions and informational sessions, and I met some really cool people that I didn't get a chance to talk to at the arrival orientation. The second day was the busiest, and it started with a trip to a local school for some cultural activities. I learned how to make a Krathong, which is a floating floral arrangement used during the Loy Krathong Festival. We also learned some traditional Thai dances, and concluded our session with a dance battle. The official results would tell you that it was a tie between the two teams, but I still maintain the (admittedly biased) opinion that my team was the real winner. Our final activity at the school was making a Thai dessert called Luk Chup, which are small candies made from mung beans and molded to look like fruits and vegetables. We molded the bean paste, painted them with edible oils, sealed the color by dipping them in clear gelatin, and, after attempting to eat the finished product, swallowed as quickly as possible while reaching for some water to wash the lingering bean taste down with. Appearances can be deceiving, because these colorful candies pack a surprisingly strong aftertaste. I made sure to conveniently forget mine in the hotel fridge on checkout day.
After eating lunch at the school, we headed off to a training gym, where we got a group Muay Thai lesson from some local champions. I don’t anticipate becoming a Muay Thai champ anytime soon, but I got to mess around in a real boxing gym for a couple of hours while narrowly avoiding donning the traditional boxing shorts. A successful outing, I would say.
We ended the night with a visit to the Korat Night Market, and this was my favorite part of the trip. We had 2 hours to roam around, and I broke off into a small group with 2 German friends. We started by wandering through the food stalls, scoping out the dishes and accumulating a variety of snacks. It was dark by the time we sat down and arranged our spread, which included pad thai, grilled corn, spring rolls, and fresh fruit. When we were finished eating, we headed to the shops, and there were seemingly endless rows of vendors selling everything from pajamas to houseplants. You could pop into one stall for a manicure, the next for a piercing, and end up in a sock stall without walking more than 100 feet. I walked away with a pair of striped pants, but I’m sure I could’ve done much more damage if I had more time and money. This was my first night market experience, and it set the bar pretty high.
The rest of the weekend was spent in the hotel, and although most of our time was spent attending mandatory sessions, I grew very close with many people in such a short amount of time. I won’t see most of these people again until February, with the exception of 2 Italian girls who live in Surin, a nearby province. I’ll be heading to Surin later this week for the province’s annual elephant festival, and after my return on the 20th, my friend Chloe is coming to stay with me for 2 weeks. My first 4 months in Thailand have been pretty uneventful, and I often find myself very bored, but I have a lot to look forward to in these coming weeks, so things are looking up. It may be a few weeks until I can write about these things, but I look forward to sharing more about my time here with you guys. Thanks for reading!
