Back to Yaowawit

I'm back in Kapong at Yaowawit. Yesterday Uncle Jew picked me up at our designated meeting spot in Phuket. I had a little trouble getting there from Karon Beach because of the vegetarian festival parade and traffic jam.

One of the traditions of the festival is for individuals to inflict pain upon themselves. They do this by spearing metal objects through their face and ears and swinging axes and knives onto their back. They walk from the sea to the Chinese Buddhist temple in Old Town Phuket (I think this is 2-3 km?). To add pressure to the pain in their face they will add weight to the objects - some even hang a bicycle frame from their cheeks. I didn't see this so I don't know how they do it. I crossed the parade in between groups and saw a few... I post the pics later. They aren't the best because I didn't get very close. Part of this process is to purge themselves from either pain or acknowledging it. I'm not clear on in - I had the information but forgot it. They will also set off numerous firecrackers to rid themselves of bad spirits.

Uncle Jew is quite humorous and likes to kid me. He had attended the parade last year so I thought he meant he walked in it. So I asked him if he pierced his head and hit himself with sharp objects... he told me "yes, he had and that it was very painful." I looked at his cheeks and I said "but you don't have any scars?" And he laughed and said "he walked very far..." I eventually got it. He was pulling my leg. He's a riot! Half the time Uncle Jew has me in stitches! Until of course he decides he's hell bent for getting home and drives like a mad man! He's good - I think he'd be fabulous on a race course with the way he smooths out the curves with little change of the wheel and all but... in an old Mazda (the odometer is busted) and the clutches is burning out... he'll scare the living shit out of you and still do a safe job maneuvering traffic. (Although at times you can touch the bumper in front). I only experienced this on the last hour of our trip home last night. For the most part he drives normal and he keeps us out of trouble. (I feel pretty safe riding with him... you just have to let go of the control thing and not think).

Yesterday was a bit rough. A couple of the cooks, Than and Wit (her boyfriend) and Pepsi (Sri's new nick name), two high school girls and the housekeeping woman, Pawn, Kru Noi (teacher and my friend) and Kru Kung (the office woman) came to Phuket. Kru Kung had an accounting class for the day, Kru Noi was working and interviewing some of the children's families, and the rest came to shop and "Big C." Big C is from France, Tesco is from England and Mesccra? is from Sweden. The one from Sweden is like Costco in that you need a card to get in and out and they have wholesale prices.

Anyways, I'm not into shopping and I wanted to meet the families and see the homes of some of the children. This was very discouraging. Kru Noi interviews the parent or "guardian," and I video tape the interview. Kru Noi also takes pictures of the home for the children's history that we keep on file (as well as for sponsors).

Nong "Nit"
Nong Nit is about 10 years old. She's a very smart and talented girl (kind of a diva among her peers at Yaowawit - she seems to be able to get them to do her laundry for her too!). She's one of our best dancers and her English and ability to speak on stage is excellent. Nit lives in Patong Beach with her mother and brother when not living at Yaowawit. Her mother works in a bar in Patong which literally means she is in the sex trade. Right now she has not been able to get work as tourism is in the low season. She is about to be evicted from their place and has about 50 baht left to live on. What would have cost her 20 baht for fruit now costs 40 baht because Nit is there.

Nit's mother rents a one room "apartment" for 5000 baht per month (expensive for a Thai person). It is in a nicer part of Patong Beach near the bar where she works (about 2 km from the beach). The place is relatively clean but they live in a room about 10-12 ft x 12 ft. There is a private bathroom off of the room. There is no kitchen but there was a rice cooker and some other cooking stuff - I think they go outside to cook. By standards I came to see later yesterday, this was a very nice place. There is a double bed, a futon type of bed (wedged next to the bed and the wall), a shelf, an armoire, and a table with a lot of stuff on it. The floor is simple but nice white tile. There were pictures on the wall. Outside is an outdoor covered hallway and there are other rooms off of this. The hallway opens to the street via a short flight of stairs and is stationed next to a restaurant/bar. This is off of one of the main roads into Patong.

Nit and her brother were asleep when we arrived about 11 am (?) - Patong was very hot yesterday. Just getting there required several calls to her mother to figure out the location of their home and driving around in the little Mazda and reversing and trying again. Eventually Nit's mom flagged us down.

Nong Lek and Nuang
These two boys live with their grandmother in a very run down building. Lek is 14 years old and Nuang I think is 8 or 10? You go down a dirt street, around a corner and into an area that the tenants use for cooking. It's very dirty and a little intimidating. To get to their room you go up wooden stairs and their room is the first door on a dark hallway (the end opens to the street - no glass for windows). The room itself is about 10 x 13' and has a bed, a folded up mattress, a tv, a fridge and ants. The linoleum is pieced together and the floor uneven. The walls are written on. There is no toilet or shower in the room. The cost is 1200 baht. The grandmother works in the evenings and does Thai Massage but gets home late. It is difficult for her to care for the two boys.

Nong Lek does not want to be back in Patong Beach. He wants to be back at Yaowawit. They can watch tv in the room or go outside but do not like it. At Yaowawit it is clean and they can shower and have meals and it's safe. I think this place may be safe for them but it was very dirty and run down.

Nong Bush
Bush lives with his mother in an apartment that I think is 2-3000 baht. He is 5-6 years old (he's one of the kindergarten children I teach). He's very smart. Bush's mother is Thai and his father was a foreigner who left. Bush's mother works in a Thai massage place at night so Bush is left home alone in the evenings. He gets much love and attention from his mother.

Nong Let
I think I have Let's name wrong... he's about 10 years old. He lives with his mother and brother in a small run down room. They pay either 1200-2000 baht for their place. There is no bathroom. The place is probably 10x10' with a bed, tv and fridge. I don't know what Let's mother does for a living... I forgot to ask. Let plays video games a lot or watches tv. The video games are 20 baht an hour. I don't know the entire story here.


Each of these was discouraging but left me wondering what poverty looks like in the slums of the US. I imagine that they are not places I would like to visit either and are probably just as dirty with the same dismal stories... just a little different.


After we left Patong Beach, Uncle Jew and Kru Noi and I drove around a bit running errands. It was terribly hot and after walking around in Patong city trying to find where the children lived and then riding in the hot car we were exhausted. We finally ended up back at the Big C and Kru Noi and I were able to hit a bathroom and freshen up. I soaked my head in water to help. Yes, I'm sure the locals think that I look ridiculous (and most of the time I do... dressed in my travel clothes and having horrible hair that WILL NOT cooperate in this climate). Anyways, were had about an hour to kill so Kru Noi and I had KFC - yes you heard right... Kentucky Fried Chicken! and Icecream and did a little shopping.

Afterwards we picked up Kru Kung from her accounting class and Uncle Jew took us to see the Big Buddha. This is a 35 meter statue overlooking the city of Phuket. From the top you have a view east of the city as well as a view west of Kata and Karon beach (there are some trees in the way to the west but it's absolutely gorgeous). You ring the big bell 9 times, walk around Buddha 3 times. I loved this and the detour had me humming. It's a lovely drive 6 km up from the road that goes from Phuket to Kata/Karon. The sun had set so we left in the dark.

We stopped at the night market for 20 minutes and then it was off to drop off one of the students at her home on the north side of Phuket island. The drive back was about 1.5 hours and we stopped and dropped off the teachers/staff and the last student. We finally made it home by about 9:00 or 9:30 pm.

I missed Yaowawit and the people so it was lovely spending the day with some of them and really nice to be back.