Sawatdee kha! (Thai for “hello”) After week one in Colorado for briefing and week two in Chiang Mai, we finally made it to Chiang Rai. We spent weeks three and four getting settled in our new home. Since we are the first team to come to Chiang Rai, we’ve had to start everything from scratch, including buying a kitchen sink! The first month was also a period of time adjustment (Thailand is 12 hrs ahead of the U.S.) and culture adjustment. Air conditioning is considered a luxury in Thailand, hence the reason we do not have it. American toilets are something that I will never take for granted again! They are less common here. Instead, we use “squatties”. I’ll let you use your imagination. The food has also been an adjustment, but a good one! Most meals consist of some combination of chicken, pork, fish, rice, egg, noodles, or vegetables. Eating outside or on the floor is a common occurrence. Driving has been another culture difference here. Thai drivers sit on the right side of the car and drive on the left side of the street. There are speed limits and such, however the police don’t really enforce them, which makes for some interesting traffic patterns! As much as Dr Pepper is a new absence in my life, lizards are a new presence. We found three in our house within the first week, one of them making it’s way into my bed!Since getting settled in, we’ve been able to begin building relationships and sharing our faith in a variety of ways. On our street every Tuesday night is a market. We took advantage of this our first week here by hanging out with the Thai staff, playing guitar, and singing on the street. It was great! As we are waiting to start ministry on the Mae Fah Luang campus, we have spent
some time at Rajabaht University talking with many students. In addition, we’ve
been able to spend a couple of days on Mae Fah Luang campus, praying for students, scoping out meeting places, and making contacts within the school.