Hello everyone,
I am sorry I haven't been able to write more... My life is busy, and I do not get very many chances to use the internet.
Life in Thailand has been great! I've done a lot of different ministries with the homeless, children in the slums, just hanging out, making friends, and eating dinner with them in their homes in the slums, campus ministry etc.
I have gotten to know many of the people here at Baan Jai Diaow, including a lot of Ram 2 student who are dorming here as well.
I have also established relationships with some of the young men working in Boy's Town, at Bunny Massage. This past Saturday was the last time I got to see them, since I will be busy until I leave Bangkok on Monday. :( It was hard to say goodbye, but I was able to pass on contact information to my friend Kashmera, who actually lives near the neighborhood and has been called to outreach to the boys selling their bodies in Bangkok. It is very encouraging to know that they will not be forgotten. :) They are sweethearts, and I love them very much...
As Christmas approaches, Baan Jai Diaow (our dormitory) becomes more and more lively and decorated. Apart from our fake christmas tree and christmas lights, we went to the slums today to chop down a bunch of bamboo reeds to line the poles, and flowers and vines to create a beautiful indoor Christmas jungle.It's even more special because Thailand doesn't really celebrate Christmas, it is basically only the Christians who do.
This morning we had a "white elephant" gift exchange with all of our Thai friends. It was really fun! I got a Hello Kitty alarm clock, which was perfect, since I have been needing a new one.
We have been shopping and decorating all day for our official Baan Jai Diaow Christmas party this evening. We have invited many of our friends from the slums, on campus, and I even invited some of the guys from Bunny Massage, but I'm not sure if they can get off work... :(
On Christmas, our DTS will be performing at an elementary school. I am very excited because we will be able to share the real story of Christmas to a bunch of Thai children who may have never heard it! (But Santa will also be there!)
From there we will be saying goodbye to our friends at Baan Jai Diaow (tear...), and heading out to a fancy team dinner (and gifts!), and then to a hotel for three days to debrief before leaving Thailand and going elsewhere.
The Christmas seasons hasn't been nearly as hard as I thought it would being away from home. I do miss the snow, all the decorations, family and traditions, but I really consider where I am home, and who I am with my family. This is such a special time of year, and I am very excited to be able to spend it here, in the beautiful land of Thailand.
This is probably my last time I will be able to be on the internet until I return to San Francisco in late january. I will not have access to the internet for the next month. Please keep me and my team in your prayers. God is doing great things!
Have a very happy Christmas, and an incredibly beautiful New Year!
Hannah Elizabeth
1 John
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Bangkok: "If it's not nice, it doesn't exist."
United Nations estimates that 60% of all males arriving at the Bangkok airport are here for the "sex industry".
Thai culture says, "if it's not nice, it doesn't exist." Therefore, prostitution doesn't exist. Therfore the government does not supply protection against sexually transmitted deseases. Therefore women (and men) don't protect themselves, because if a nice girl were caught with a condom in her purse, she would be a bad girl.
Because prostitution doesn't exist.
Prostitution is considered "a man's right" in Thailand. Women don't marry because Thai men are lazy, and violent. they are also unfaithful to their wives because of a very popular Thai saying: "What happens under the mosquito net, stays under the mosquito net." Meaning, a man NEVER shows his wife affection unless they are in their bed, under the mosquito net. And he would NEVER bring another woman under their mosquito net....
The flip side of that, however, is that a man can be with any woman outside of their mosquito net and not be unfaithful to his wife...
thair women are expected to provide "sexual favors" to their boss or important businessmen who are visiting the company. A woman's job depends on what she is willing to do.
"Drive-In Sex" via taxi is also very popular in Thailand. If someone (preferably a man) were to get in a taxi, the first the the driver says to him is, "Sex?" If he answer "yes", he will have a girl in the car within two minutes, then he will go to a place, sort of like a garage, and park the taxi, the man will pay the curtain boy to close the curtain on the garage, the man will then get what he wants, pay the girl, pay the taxi driver a standing fee, then pay the meter. The girl will get out, the man will go on his way, and then you whistle down the same taxi, get in and go to the airport.
It all happens under the curtain.
One prostitue, when asked if she feared for her life, responded with:
I long to die. If I was killed and went to Hell, it would be better than this."
You can't judge these girls. None of them want to be there. They were either tricked, trafficked, or their families demanded them to go work in the bars, in order to send money home to support their parents. A lot of these girls were abandoned by their husbands who decided that they were too old and had too many kids. He wanted someone younger. These girls have no where to go, and there is a family loyalty that is slightly disturbing... When it gets to the point of self-abuse to please your mother...
I'm not sure what you may do with this information, as I am not sure what I am going to do with it. I've visited some of these places, and also gone to some boy bars, and lady-boy bars, to talk to the men there... But PLEASE, pray for the nation of thailand!
"Don't violate your daughter by making her a whore—the whole country would soon become a brothel, filled with sordid sex. -Leviticus 19:29
Thai culture says, "if it's not nice, it doesn't exist." Therefore, prostitution doesn't exist. Therfore the government does not supply protection against sexually transmitted deseases. Therefore women (and men) don't protect themselves, because if a nice girl were caught with a condom in her purse, she would be a bad girl.
Because prostitution doesn't exist.
Prostitution is considered "a man's right" in Thailand. Women don't marry because Thai men are lazy, and violent. they are also unfaithful to their wives because of a very popular Thai saying: "What happens under the mosquito net, stays under the mosquito net." Meaning, a man NEVER shows his wife affection unless they are in their bed, under the mosquito net. And he would NEVER bring another woman under their mosquito net....
The flip side of that, however, is that a man can be with any woman outside of their mosquito net and not be unfaithful to his wife...
thair women are expected to provide "sexual favors" to their boss or important businessmen who are visiting the company. A woman's job depends on what she is willing to do.
"Drive-In Sex" via taxi is also very popular in Thailand. If someone (preferably a man) were to get in a taxi, the first the the driver says to him is, "Sex?" If he answer "yes", he will have a girl in the car within two minutes, then he will go to a place, sort of like a garage, and park the taxi, the man will pay the curtain boy to close the curtain on the garage, the man will then get what he wants, pay the girl, pay the taxi driver a standing fee, then pay the meter. The girl will get out, the man will go on his way, and then you whistle down the same taxi, get in and go to the airport.
It all happens under the curtain.
One prostitue, when asked if she feared for her life, responded with:
I long to die. If I was killed and went to Hell, it would be better than this."
You can't judge these girls. None of them want to be there. They were either tricked, trafficked, or their families demanded them to go work in the bars, in order to send money home to support their parents. A lot of these girls were abandoned by their husbands who decided that they were too old and had too many kids. He wanted someone younger. These girls have no where to go, and there is a family loyalty that is slightly disturbing... When it gets to the point of self-abuse to please your mother...
I'm not sure what you may do with this information, as I am not sure what I am going to do with it. I've visited some of these places, and also gone to some boy bars, and lady-boy bars, to talk to the men there... But PLEASE, pray for the nation of thailand!
"Don't violate your daughter by making her a whore—the whole country would soon become a brothel, filled with sordid sex. -Leviticus 19:29
Saturday, December 6, 2008
The Thailand Sun and Breeze
As I exited the plane at the military airport in Utapau (due to the riots, were flew in to a naval base), I could immediately feel the stares from all the Thai people. We were white. We were from America. We were special.
Baggage claim was dirty and busy; so many people who had to change flight plans. We waited for quite some time before retrieving all our luggage. We walked outside, and I immediately felt like I was on the red carpet. A long walkway to the bus that would take us to the base. People on either side, needing a flight home, selling something, attacking us with, "Taxi! Taxi!", or people just there to stare. We shuffled through the crowd, and found three Thai guys who were driving us back to the Baan Jai Diaow (House of One Heart) base in three seperate vans.
As I finally took in more of my surroundings, I immediately thought of Ukraine, and was heart-sick for it. It smelt of petting zoo outside, in the thick, humid air. The grass was brown, and crunched beneath my feet. There were unique-looking tress all around. I'm not sure how else to describe Thailand, or what I saw of it that first night. It's very unique. Unique people. Unique cars. Unique buildings. If I tried to describe it to you, something entirely different would appear in your mind.
The next day, as I sat in the Thailand sun and breeze, sitting on the grass next to a pond on the university campus, I could not get Ukraine off my mind... So many things about this place reminds me of Ukraine. the tall, old, rustic buildings. The stone and cement walls lining the long, flat roads. the smells. the air. The old cars... These things make me heart-sick for Ukraine. I long to go back SO badly...
Yet at the same time, these similarities make me feel at home. At peace. I feel like I could sit by that pond and write forever in my loose-fitted shirt and flowing skirt, my hair loose and curling from the heat, bouncing around my shoulders and kissing my face with the help of the breeze.
I may not know exactly what is to become of my life, but this place is so easly to love, and it has made at least one thing certain to me:
I am unconditionally and irrevocably in love with Ukraine.
Baggage claim was dirty and busy; so many people who had to change flight plans. We waited for quite some time before retrieving all our luggage. We walked outside, and I immediately felt like I was on the red carpet. A long walkway to the bus that would take us to the base. People on either side, needing a flight home, selling something, attacking us with, "Taxi! Taxi!", or people just there to stare. We shuffled through the crowd, and found three Thai guys who were driving us back to the Baan Jai Diaow (House of One Heart) base in three seperate vans.
As I finally took in more of my surroundings, I immediately thought of Ukraine, and was heart-sick for it. It smelt of petting zoo outside, in the thick, humid air. The grass was brown, and crunched beneath my feet. There were unique-looking tress all around. I'm not sure how else to describe Thailand, or what I saw of it that first night. It's very unique. Unique people. Unique cars. Unique buildings. If I tried to describe it to you, something entirely different would appear in your mind.
The next day, as I sat in the Thailand sun and breeze, sitting on the grass next to a pond on the university campus, I could not get Ukraine off my mind... So many things about this place reminds me of Ukraine. the tall, old, rustic buildings. The stone and cement walls lining the long, flat roads. the smells. the air. The old cars... These things make me heart-sick for Ukraine. I long to go back SO badly...
Yet at the same time, these similarities make me feel at home. At peace. I feel like I could sit by that pond and write forever in my loose-fitted shirt and flowing skirt, my hair loose and curling from the heat, bouncing around my shoulders and kissing my face with the help of the breeze.
I may not know exactly what is to become of my life, but this place is so easly to love, and it has made at least one thing certain to me:
I am unconditionally and irrevocably in love with Ukraine.
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