Kuraburi to Koh Pra Thong: Markets, Monks, Rain and Tie-Dye

Rain has been the theme of the preceding 24 hours so any gap - however small - in the weather has been appreciated by us all.

An early start (7.30am) ensued and we headed from the Greenview Resort into Kuraburi to attend the morning market for breakfast. The Andaman Discoveries team introduced us to a range of local delicacies including rice soup, some delicious coconut cream buns, iced red tea, rambutan and mangosteen. During a wander around the market we purchased alms for the Forest Monks and spied a wide range of local foods for sale - much less sanitised than Tesco flat packs!!

A brief stop at 7-11 for western snacks then it was up to the forest where the monks were taking alms. There was a solemn ceremony where we all gave our offerings to the monks and were blessed by them in return. We then wandered around the temple grounds viewing where they taught community lessons to local youth groups, and saw some endangered water lilies. These may be monks but they are no stranger to the modern world. One is known as the internet monk and has a comprehensive website teaching others to care about and protect their local community and environment.

From the monks we headed to the Burmese community where we were fortunate to see the school. These children are getting an education between the ages of 4-12 - after which the brightest will enter the Thai education system and the rest will work with their families, mainly on commercial fishing boats. The smiles were broad but the conditions they work in are poor - it had just rained and they were flooded out before we arrived. They are keen for volunteers to work with the children to improve the children's English language skills - those who speak good English are more likely to get work in the tourist resorts (as they are cheaper to employ than their Thai counterparts), and to improve the school's environment - renovating the buildings. One of the projects that our funds will contribute to is to offer the students one meal a day. At the moment they rely on their parents preparing something for them, and many are just given high-sugar snacks; not good for the concentration or their teeth. By preparing a meal for the children, they will get to learn about the food they are eating - its origins and natural state to the final prepared form and hopefully the importance of nutrition.

After the school we headed onto the boats for the 1-hour trip to Koh Pra Thong. With one boat having engine trouble and hammering rain it took us longer than that in the end, and we all arrived bedraggled and damp. But our spirits were lifted by the welcoming party who came to the pier to greet us - our home-stay "mums" as well as representatives from the volunteer programmes on the island. Olivia, Michael and I were introduced to Anh at whose house we were to stay and we all walked as a group for our first glimpse of the village.

We quickly settled into our new homes then met at the community centre (conveniently direct opposite our home) for an introduction to some of the key people in the village and for a spot of tie-dying. It's been a very long time since I've done "arts & crafts" but I thoroughly enjoyed learning from the ladies how to reproduce the designs they had onto our sarongs. The tie-dye process requires a 2 hour steeping in the dye to allow it to penetrate, then the fixing process is afterwards. Whilst this was happening we headed back to Anh's house for dinner, which we "helped" her to prepare. With the translation kindly provided by Por, we learned about the chilli paste and wandered around Anh's garden to see what was growing and what we were eating. We had steamed conch for dinner - small snail like sea creatures which you ate with a toothpick and where a certain degree of skill was required to extract them from their shell! At dinner, Anh's husband, Zak had returned from work at the Golden Buddha Beach Resort - his English is excellent, so we were able to have long conversations about their life on the island.

We then headed back to the community centre for a meeting with the home-stay group, the tie-dye group and the local guides so that they could understand more about STA and Planeterra, and our relationship together and how it could impact them, and for us to learn from them about their expectations and fears of bringing "farang" into their life. It was a very interesting process for all involved.

After that it was time for a glass of beer with Zak and his friend Amphong before the generator turned off at 10.30 and it was time for bed. Needless to say the rain did not stop at all during the course of the day!