About 5 per cent of our volunteers decide to stay on in Thailand or return here after a short time at home.
Many decide they want to teach here as paid English teachers. Others find employment in the tourism industry.
If this intrigues you, go to thaivisa.com and find out the immigration issues that apply. There are hundreds of thousands of ex-pats living in Thailand. You could be one of them.
Posted March 2010
We are constantly reminded that in Thailand there is a casualness about living and dying.
One of our former volunteers came to be friends with the family of one of his 8 year old students. Her name is Phon, the Thai word for rain. The volunteer, Damien returned to his home in the U.K. but kept in touch with Phon and her family by email.
Two weeks ago Phon all of her family, including her grandmother, were killed in an automobile crash near their home in Kanchanaburi.
For Buddhists death is a passage to another form of existence. That may or may not be a factor in how they look upon being careful when they drive or ride motor bikes. In any event, Thailand has the sixth worst road accident record in the world.
Thailand is a paradise for visitors. But for travellers and volunteers, it is a land where caution on the road is always a good idea.
Posted December 26, 2009
Christmas Chickens
Turkey is the bird of choice around traditional Christmas time. But for our latest volunteer, Christmas means chickens.
Paul is a master carpenter who has just started a two week placement at one of our newest network schools. He'll be busy building chicken coops for the school as part of their most recent community project. The chickens will supply eggs for the school. The surplus eggs will be sold in the local market to provide revenue for other school projects.
"I've never taught school in my life," says Paul. "But I guess I could give it a try. But why not help the school by donating my real talent which is building things."
Inevitably the children at the school will want to see how things are done and as they do Paul plans to teach them the vocabulary that a carpenter might use. And when he's done he'll have given the children a Christmas present that keeps on giving. When he's back home, he'll have something to think about every time Christmas rolls around.
Posted December 11, 2009
Volunteer at a big time international golf event
If you're in Thailand January 8-10, you can volunteer at a major international golfing event: the Royal Trophy. Marquee participants include 2010 European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie and rising teenage star Ryo Ishikawa from Japan.
We help out with volunteers for the event and we'd love to see you out there.
And for you golfers out there. If you've never seen a top golf professional up-close and live, you don't know how magical a well struck ball can be. When we hit iron shots, it sounds like we're hitting ice cubes. When they hit it. The balls sound like marshmallows. And the trajectory. Shots with their long irons and drivers look like they're going to burn up on re-entry to the earth's atmosphere. Television doesn't do them justice. So come out and watch. Try to keep your jaw from dropping or someone might call a paramedic for you But come out and watch. It'll change the way you think about the game you love.
Posted: December 10, 2009
Stay tuned: A volunteer teacher compares Africa with Thailand
A 20 year old, round the world traveler, may have some insights about volunteer teaching in Thailand. Diane has just joined our program here in Thailand and is on her way to a placement in Chiang Rai at the northernmost tip of the Kingdom. Her next stops? Australia. Then Hawaii. Guatemala and then home to Europe.
“The students I taught in Ghana were amazing,” she says. “They’d laugh and smile and carry my things to school,” she said. “I’ve heard the children of Thailand are also very friendly. So it will be interesting to compare the two experiences.”
When Diana sends her first written report, we will be sure to carry it here on this webpage.
But we have to admit that we’ve cheated just a little bit towards getting a favorable report. She already knows that she won’t have to shower using a bucket of cold water as she did in Ghana.
