All of my flights went well with no problems and I got a decent amount of sleep. I had fun on my layover in Zurich. The weather was beautiful for the first 3 hours and I walked around a ton and took pictures. Most stuff was closed on Sundays, so that was a bummer, but it was still fun to see a new city.
I got through immigration and got my luggage with no problems. I found my driver right away and he drove me to Pattaya. He spoke a good amount of English and I practiced my Thai with him a little bit. I definitely feel like what I learned last year is coming back to me, and I"ll be able to speak just as well and hopefully better than I did last year.
I arrived at the center, and Aom, one of the jewelry artisans who is now on staff with PSM, greet me with a big hug and said she missed me. My good friend, Pin, who also is on staff at PSM, came soon and took me to my guesthouse. I unpacked a little bit, and then went to dinner with Pin and Jacie, the other American volunteer who is here for the summer. She's in college and studying to be a teacher. She is also staying at the guesthouse I am staying at. For dinner, I had some delicious, spicy papaya salad. Then, I went grocery shopping. For those of you who know me, you know that I love to grocery shop, and this is no different in Thailand. I brought a rice cooker from home, and was excited to find brown rice, oatmeal, and dried black beans, all my home favorites. I also got rambutans, which are one of my favorite Thai fruits, half of a yellow watermelon for 50 cents and half of a little regular watermelon for 30 cents. I ate one after dinner and another for breakfast. Life is good. =)
I did not sleep well on my first night in Thailand, so I'm hoping I'll get into a sleep routine soon. I slept from about 10:30pm to 1am on the first night and from 8:30 to 2 on the second night.
On my way to the PSM center on Tuesday morning, I ran into two of my favorite girls from last summer, Bel and Bo. I talked to them for a little bit, and they remembered me and gave me hugs. That was fun. I'm excited to spend more time with these girls.
On Tuesday afternoon, we went to one of the slums. When we first got there, I walked around with Pin and Jiap (two of the PSM staff) and they talked with the adults about any needs they had. Then, we started the kids' program, including singing songs, playing games, and listening to a Bible story. Pin taught the kids about the plagues in Exodus. I remembered a few kids from last year and I had fun with them.
Today, we went to a prayer meeting with the different ministries in Pattaya that is held every Wednesday. We sang for a while and then people from different ministries shared what God has been doing in Pattaya. It was a really refreshing time. Later today, we'll go to another slum. I'm excited to go see more kids!
I am feeling excited about being in Pattaya. I just feels familiar and that's a good feeling. I am looking forward to what God will do in me and through me in Thailand.
Here are a few prayers and praises:
-Praise that I have been feeling excited to be here and see people who I met last year
-Praise that I've been able to speak Thai quite a bit already
-Pray that I would get on a normal sleep schedule
-Pray that I would know how to best be a part of PSM while I am here
-Pray that the people in the slums of Pattaya would know Christ's love in new ways.
Khwap kun ka (Thank you!)
No comments:
Post a Comment