Visit to Baan Unrak www.baanunrak.org

Tuesday, 5 November 2013

Main Office cum Girls' Hostel

The main purpose of my visit to Sangkhlaburi (SKB) is check out if there are volunteering opportunities in www.baanunrak.org. Their homepage mentioned some English teaching opportunities in local government school where BaanUnrak children attended. Although I arrived last Friday, the visit could not happen as I did not want to inconvenient the staff during the weekends.

Newly completed canteen

Today will be my last opportunity to visit BaanUnrak as I will be flying back to KL on Thursday to attend a friend's daughter wedding. I will have to travel from SKB to Bangkok on Wednesday.

general purpose field  for performance & sport

Didi Devamala received me even I did not have prior appointment. I guess she is used to the local culture of visiting without prior appointment. I am impressed by her memory as she is able to recall me as one of the donors and child sponsor from Malaysia. I do not need to mention much my past engagement with the BaanUnrak.  I mentioned to her my intention, experience, limitations and family commitments so that she can find a good fit for my involvements. Although I have retired, I will also need to spend some times with the family.

Weaving centre 

BaanUnrak Children will be performing in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday to one of company convention and will travel on this Friday. As they will be going to Bangkok tomorrow, 6 November 2013, I will join them in the van to Bangkok doubling as backup driver. I will discuss with Didi in the van on my involvements.

Food for thoughts

Practicing Yoga for performance in Kuala Lumpur

Believing and identify oneself to a social or religious cause and commit one’s life to this cause is really a selfless and heroic adventure. You see a lot of people here in SKB. And to stick to this cause with unwavering resolve and to continue with untiring effort and perseverance is amazing. Didi Devamala is one example of unnamed mother Teresa’. We need a lot more such people in this dangerous world.

As donors, we pale in comparison to the life  commitment of the Didis.

Partial list of children hosted

Visit to Wat Sao Rot Ton (Mynmar)

Monday, 4 November 2013

Entrance to Wat Sao Rot Ton 

The temple is supported by 100 teak wood poles

There is a religious celebration in the 100-pole temple located just across Three Pagoda Pass in the Mon Controlled Burma. To gain access to the temple, one can either officially enter Burma via the Three Pagoda Pass Immigration Check point paying USD10 to the officer or via the dusty gravel road/path that I took 2 days ago to the Women and Children Safe home.  We chartered a songteow for 600 Bahts and use the illegal path. We were about 300 meters away from the Three Pagoda Immigration Office where we join back the main road entering Burma. Apparently the Immigration Officers are aware of some Mon and Thai people are entering via the backdoor but kept silence so as NOT to rock the boat and affect the livings of the locals.

Main Altar

There were music, dance and noises accompanying the entering of convoy of donations van/ lorry. Real currency notes of 1000, 100 or 50 Bahts are stapled onto plastics envelops and attached to pole resembling tree trunks. I am NOT sure if banana tree were used before but now the trend is using plastic materials. The money trees were brought into upper halls where prayers were carried out.

Free Food

There were free foods provided in several tents nearby, something similar in Malaysia where Malay wedding feast was held. The foods were basic fish, chicken, vegetable curry and water melon fruit as desert. A common bowl of soup is provided in the centre of dining table, but most people don’t touch the soup.

Other than free food, you can also find vendors selling cheap toys and accessories for young ladies. Under the hot sun, ice cream vendors are doing fine business.

I now reserve my respect for monks in this part of Burma. Besides smoking openly in open fields in front of children, they also smoke in the temple and the cigarette ashes drop unto the floor where children and adults are sitting. Some were using phones and smart devices. I wonder if they are checking emails and reading social media. It will be hard to learn the displayed moral examples. 

 Under the hot sun, the gold plated ornamental figurines and roof glitters. The people may be poor but the temple continues to be shrine and glitter. This is the reality that occurs in Thailand too.

More chatting instead of paying attention to peachings

We missed our return schedule by about 2 hours because Grandma has to wait for her turn when her contribution is mentioned or blessing administered. Because of the delays, the planned visit to nun temple nearby was skipped. However, we pass by the Women and Children Safe house to pick up Fa’s sister who were working on a project there.

 p.s. This blog was written while I was still in Thailand.

Mon Wat Wang Wiwekaram

Sunday, 3 November 2013

Temple Complex or Plaza

This will be my second visit to Mon village in Sangkhlaburi (SKB), the first visit was a touristy and guided one was about 6 years ago. This time, I will have more time as I am alone and need not worried accommodating other friends who may NOT be interested in temples.

Part of the wooden Mon Bridge is not passable to motorbikes. I have to use another main bridge which makes the trip further than using the Mon Bridge.

InsideTemple

The old SKB Mon village was demolished and a new town was created on higher grounds when the hydroelectric Vajiralongkorn Dam completed in 1984. The remains of a 400-year old pagoda close to the impressive new Mon temple Wat Wang Wiwekaram is still visible. 

Stalls besides temple\

This is the period for merit making where devotees donate money for the temple funds. I came just in time to see the procession. As I did not come with my Mon-speaking friend, I do not have the privilege of asking questions when in doubt about the proceeding. Nevertheless, I will let the picture does the talking

 

Visit to www.baandada.org

Saturday, 2 November 2013

I am indeed lucky to have met Dada Ramakrishna on Friday 1 November morning in Sangklaburi (SKB) market for breakfast. I have visited www.baanDada.org Children;s home website many times but have not written to them before. This meeting makes my trip even more fruitful. 

Signboard to BaanDada

BaanDada is also a project under the neo-humanist organization. Baan means “house” in Thai and Dada means “brother” in Sanskrit. BaanDada currently supports 61 disadvantaged children, of which 50 live in Baandada and 11 live away from home to attend university. 

Dada Ramakrishnan (his real name is Ricardo) came from the Philippines and has settled in Baan Dada for many years now. Dada brought with him many experiences especially in music (Filipinos are very good at) and vocational training. This explains why the Baan is very orientated to vocational and musical training. Baan Dada is located in Huay Ma Lai, another town some 20+ KM from SKB, 

Dada explained his big plans for the organization as he took me and sister Fa through his facilities. His facilities are even more basic than www.BaanUnrak.org located in SKB.  However, besides the required facilities like library, canteen, basketball court, dwellings for boys and girls, volunteers, there are music room and workshop.

Canteen

To supplement the cost of operations, Dada needs to ensure the extra land is able to provide part of the food required and also generate some income. The land has to be reasonably fertile with easy access to water, the two elements are lacking around his land. The home practices organic farming and rely on hired farmers to assist in farming. The boys only help as additional farm hands.

Besides attending regular school, the children are given training so that they can help to generate some pocket money when they study out the home. Currently, there are students studying in University in Nakhon  Pathom  

Music room

Like many voluntary organization, finding donors and fundraising have always been a problem especially during the current economic difficulties. As the children gets older and more entering University, the problems of finding sufficient fund to finance their studies is becoming a nightmare. As schools and universities reopen after the break, Dada was in SKB town yesterday to do the banking. I noticed that the Christian children home have better facilities than BaanDada. I commented to Dada that the city church goers on Sunday can provide part of the operating cost as the donation boxes are passed around. For Neo-humanist organization, the incomes are quite irregular and depend on the irregular donations and fund raisings.  

Hostel Mural

Trails to farmland

Vegetable farm

Dada RamaKrishna and me

Volunteer dwellings

I wish BaanDada all the best as we bid goodbye to Dada Ramakrishna.

 

Visit to Women and Children Safe House in Mon controlled Myanmar

Friday, 1 November 2013

I am crossing into Burma with Fa’s sister and Malies. Malies is a www.BaanUnrak.org volunteer from Belgium who will help to provide Physiotherapy treatments to 2 kids in the Children and Women Safe House. Fa’s sister works for this informal organization.  Malies just completed her PhD from Edinburgh University and is helping out while looking for jobs.

This will be my second crossing into Burma informally or illegally. The first was from Daluo （打洛in China Yunnan XiShuangBanna 西双版纳 (SipSongPaNa inThai). DaLuo was a crossing for locals using border passes and NOT an international immigration crossing then (not sure if it is now) and our friends paid to get into Burma to take a look and return. 

The hired SongTeow (I believe the word comes from TeowChew Dialect meaning 双条 (double rows) where the passengers are sat in 2 rows) pickup costing THB400 took national road 323 towards Three Pagoda Pass International Immigration Crossing Checkpoint (Myanmar Government has recently open up 3 International Border Crossings). Before the Immigration Checkpoint, we steer left into a mud road and drive into a Mon village that is under the control of Mon Military. There were no army checkpoints along the mud road although there is a physical barrier.

The Safe House houses mothers and children who were neglected by or lost their husbands / fathers due to poverty or otherwise or were the victims of human trafficking. Most mothers are teenagers. The safe is not a permanent place to stay but a half way house to rehabitate the mothers so that she can fence for herself and children after gaining some basic trainings and living skills. There is a process to accept, orientate, train and discharge the mothers.

The house sits on a piece of land owned by a Buddhist temple that is situated on hilltop about 1 KM away. No matter how poor a village or its people, the temple always look good. The house is very basic and no furniture and we have to sit on floor and mates. There is entertainment like TV to keep the inhabitant occupied since the intention is not to allow them for long stay.

Fa’s sister had meetings and discussions with the staff and occupants while Malies could not do help as the problem kids were NOT around due to some miscommunications. Thai True Mobile still cover this area with 3G data. I played with the kids. I will share some photos of the kids here. To protect the mothers' privacy, I was told not to expose their faces in social media. There is a social stigma against neglected women. 

Malies the Physiotherapist

 

We left at around 4:30PM using the same transport that was waiting throughout. 

Food for thoughts:

Future is bleak for the people here as there are little economic opportunities. Agriculture is the mainstay. Although we the city folks mostly think that education is the way up the social ladders but without economic investment and activities, development will not happen.

My friend Kenny put it rightly, it is NOT how smart you are but where you are born that matters most.

Civilized Society

Friday, 1November 2013

It is heartening to witness Thailand is moving towards a modern civilized society from my visits over the past 20 years.  I don’t mean that the Thais were not civilized, in fact, Siam history and civilization were more developed than that of Malaya and the northern part of Peninsula Malaya once paid tributes and homage to the Kingdom of Siam. What I am trying to say is that Thailand used to be less developed infrastructure-wise  than Malaysia. Even now, the less-informed Malaysian still think one-up on Thais.

I observe on my recent trips to Thailand that the Thais are more civic conscious compared to Malaysian. Some examples are: 

1.  Almost all their public telephone works and those not working are mainly due to maintenance such as the coin containers are full rather than due to vandalism
2. The Thais never lose their steel or iron drain covers like in Malaysia. Malaysian authority have to replace them with cement ones to prevent theft.
3. Public or religious monuments seldom get vandalized. There are many open temples with statutes displayed in the courtyard. In most Thai city parks, you will be able to find their patron founder monuments or statues that are worshiped by its citizen. Many religious items are left in the open.   
   

Some of the photos here confirm what I just said. If these were in Malaysia,

1. The umbrella plastic covers will end up in somebody's home or shops
2. Water dispenser will disappear overnights.
3. The solar power sign post in Sangkhalaburi will disappear over night.

Umbrella Plastic Cover Metro Station, Bangkok

Water dispenser in a street in Bangkok

Solar-powered warning sign post(Front)

Solar-powered warning sign post(Back)

  
I also noted that the traffic camera along Sadao to Hatyai road (close to the famous Chicken rice shops) were only 3 feet high. Any school kids would have vandalized them if they want.

In Malaysia, even traffic barriers to enforce double line were also destroyed. One barrier preventing traffic coming from Sungai Besi Airport to turn 3 o'clock to Jalan Lok Yew were repeatedly destroyed. First the authority put up the plastic orange-white posts. They were destroyed and some bigger black posts were  installed. They too were destroyed or push down and sold. The last I saw was that the posts are gone. Can't we put some policemen and issue summons for those who insist to turn into Jalan Pasar, or Jalan Lok Yew? 

Kajang Stadium turning into Jalan Cheras (Polic station side) is not allowed. The blockage or barriers are systematically and repeatedly destroyed, right in the eyes of Kajang police station.  

Thinking aloud if thinking is allowed

Were the Malaysian problems due to foreigners? We are too quick to put the blames on others. Sangkhaburi has a lot of workers, legal or otherwise, from Burmese. So please don’t blame them. How about other migrant workers and illegal migrants that we love to hate? Or the law enforcements are to be blamed for the state of affairs?

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