Christmas Comes to Chiang Mai

There’s a fancy, Western mall down the street from my house where I get my Starbucks fix. They decorated for Christmas!



And they had a beautiful 4-story tall tree. Not quite Rockefeller Center but still made me happy/homesick when I saw it.



I, however, will not be spending Christmas in Chiang Mai. This afternoon, I’m leaving for Pang Maphaa in Mae Hong Son, which is where my project is located. (This makes me realize that I’ve never said anything about the main project I work with on my blog. It’s called The Life Skills Quality Education Enhancement Project and you can read more about it here.) My PiA friend Mara and my coworker Ive are coming too. On Christmas Eve, Mara and I will be leading some of the local teachers in an active learning lesson on hygiene and hand washing. Then on Christmas day and for a couple of days afterward, we’ll be building a playground and painting classrooms at one of the schools the project works with.

Then we head to Ko Chang (tropical island paradise 6 hours from Bangkok) for a week to celebrate the New Year. So I will be out of contact for a little while but know that I am thinking of all of you and wishing you a Merry Christmas!