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Hi there,Well so much has happened in the past week that im not too sure where to begin. Well, probably where I left off is the best place. I left Kuraburi, destined for a little village called Ban Taale Nok, what I was'nt quite aware was that I was literally the only white person or 'farang' as I was referred too, for the whole week I was there. I was taken in by a family who had 2 girls and I think 2 boys (but they seemed to just appear in the evening for their meal and disappear again!) They were so nice to me the whole time - they could'nt speak a word of English but were so sweet none the less. Thankfully, I had an English speaking Thai as a guide by my side to help ease things along.The village I went to had been struck by the tsunami. Around 48 locals had been killed, 22 houses knocked down as waves engulfed the village taking everything with it. The local school right next to the beach was totally destroyed and 2 teachers and 2 children killed. The wave was 8-9metres high and the villagers knew something was about to happen as the tide went out by a mile before it struck. This local fishing village was so badly damaged that nothing apart from a few tree stumps and remaining bits of rubbish lies on the area where the wave came. So much so, that the village of Ban Taale Nok has been relocated 2km away from the beach in fear of it happening again.My activities during the week were to teach the local children a few words in English. This was my first activity and was thrown right in the deep end within an hour of arriving into the village and given most of the whole village children an English lesson. So just stuck to the basics - animals! They loved it - well I hope they did. In the evenings I would go over some of the basic stiff and by the end of the week, they managed to say quite a few things which I was very proud of!Other activities included helping with building a tsunami house. They are still building houses in the community, one by one so I gave a helping hand by loading bricks in the sweltering heat I must add, and then helped laying them. It was hard work, but I would say that after almost 2 months off work now, but at least im giving something back to the community! Then in the afternoon I helped replant mangrove trees. Its quite unbelievable how many trees were knocked over by the surge of the wave. We were inland by about 2-3km and were replanting the mangrove trees in a river which leads to the sea. It was really swampy but rewarding.The following day was working in the Gibbon rehab centre. That was fun! An early start to feed the hungry cheeky monkeys but that didn't matter. They were a variety of different reasons why they were there, some had been wild and had been cast out of they're groups so were left to defend on they're own, so had been taken in. Or ex- lab monkeys that cant be realsed for fear of what they may be carrying and some had been taken off the streets. But, all of them could be dangerous and had a tendency to go wild and shake the cages when they saw 'farang'. Weird and scary - but also, food for thought!Then Batik making, just up my street, painting and drawing - I loved it! And soap making. All of which are projects which help the locals make some money to help develop and support the rebuild of the community which was so badly affected during the tsunami.I did ask one of the guides I had with me with the help of Tony (the English speaking guide) his stories and all he said was that when it happened it was at home with his family ad had to swim out of the house. There used to be five houses next to his house, but now there are none.Well, all in all, I had a truly wonderful time experiencing the real Thailand. Eating fresh fish every meal and living in the home of a Thai family. I really recommend to anyone who wants to help those in need to do it. These families are still in need of help, so any is greatly received.It certainly made me realize how lucky I am to live in the country I do. But they are still so smiley and happy.Well, im in Krabi now and off to Ko Lanta tomorrow for a well deserved break and a lie on the beach. I need to work on the tan and chill out for a few days.Take care,Adele x
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