Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
Day one of our one week trip visiting selected Green Lion projects in amazing Thailand and Cambodia! We meet in Bangkok and travel from there by car to Singburi. We arrive at the Lemon House - Green Lions centre and HQ in Singburi in the evening. There are three houses for the participants to stay in Singburi; the Lemon House, the Brown House and the Twin House.
All are in lovely green surroundings and the accommodation is simple but nice standard with to option of single occupancy. The common areas are for dining and some entertainment (tv and a few games are available). There are around 10-15 rooms at each house so all in all it is very social. BF, lunch and dinner is all provided for at the houses and every week the staff will bring the participants to town for shopping, dinner or going out.
In the Singburi area there are several options for work projects and activities through GL:
-Orphanage: We visited one of the orphanages. This is in fact also boarding school for children of poor families. There are about 200 kids aged from six to 18, girls and boys. The participants work both with teaching as well as improving theis surroundings; this could include laying new floors, tiling, painting etc. The project is quite popular and there couldbe as many as 20 participants working here at the same time.
-Kick Boxing: Joining GL you can also opt for an activity week while in Singburi - alternatively you can do the activity for one day only - the traditional Thai Kick Boxing is one of the alternatives where there is hard core training together with local heroes and an experianced trainer.
-Culture Week: Another option is the culture week - you will learn about Thai traditions, culture, language , food and religion. It is a recommended start to your stay if you have not travelled in Thailand much before.
-Home Stay: The very best wayof learning ang getting to know the Thai culture and way of life; live with a family. The families are chosen carefully and are closely knit with GL. Usually you can enjoy a home stay together with other participants which is very social.
-Teaching: English teaching at one of the local schools.
We visit the orphanage and meet a few participants from the Netherlands, Sweden and Canada. All are between 18 and 22 and express joy over having found this meaningful way of travelling and staying in Thailand. As Anna from Sweden said; 'I am just not the type to lay on the beach for weeks, this is perfect for me, and I know I am helping out too'
We spend some time talking with the participants and playing with the children while looking around the premises and seeing what has been done before and the yet needed helpfor renovation and equipment. It is clear that there is a need for professinals also; elctricians and carpenters to improve some of the bigger and skill-needed tasks. An example is the floor and bearing in the boys dorm; it sinks as we walk on it and the toilets are in a bad state; the room sleeps 100 boysand it is dire straits. For its improvement GL tries to raise money.
You are in the country… Everything is low key here - as things usually are in Thailand - so get used to things not happening sp fast, be patient and adapt to the surroundings; you will not change the world; but you can make a difference and you will have unforgettable experience!
- comments