Day 14
Lisa Cawley ’01
Brooklyn Center, MN

My new favorite mode of transportation on this trip is the train, replacing the tuk-tuk. Waking up on the top bunk of the train was quite an experience this morning, but fortunately, the train had straps to prevent me from falling out of my bed.

As we rode into Bangkok, I saw hundreds of houses precariously built on stilts or made from tin. I can’t believe the standard of living here in Thailand. There is nothing comparable to what I have seen here in the U.S. Perhaps the projects in Chicago that I have seen comes closest to this, but even so, here there doesn’t seem to be any end to what we would call the projects. Also, garbage was everywhere from the tracks to right outside the front doors of the houses we passed. I don’t think it helped that the toilets on the train emptied right onto the tracks. Seeing how polluted and dirty everything is, especially in Bangkok, makes me wonder if environmentalism is reserved only for those countries that can afford it, because poorer countries are just trying to survive. I’m going to have to ask Bridget what she thinks about this and how she would go about trying to improve conditions here. Being in Thailand has exposed me to so many things that I take for granted in the U.S. like being able to drink tap water.

When we arrived in Bangkok we were greeted with the wonderful smell of Bangkok, which consists of a mixture of pollution, dirt, exhaust, food, and heat. Although I’m glad that I spent time in Bangkok, I was much happier that we were going directly to Pattaya.

Upon arrival in Pattaya, we quickly put on our swimsuits and rushed to the pool. The pool in itself was worth a whole day of traveling. It had several nooks and crannies to swim in as well as a waterfall, slide, and swim-up bar. I floated around in the pool with my drink that was served in a pineapple. Prior to coming to Pattaya, the trip had been more educational (but still absolutely wonderful) than relaxing. It’s hard to believe that I spent all afternoon lounging around the pool when only two days ago I was in the village. Mike did a great job in planning this as the last part of the trip, because now I can relax and reflect on the experiences I have had in the past two and a half weeks.

Well, I guess I shouldn’t say that Pattaya wasn’t educational at all, because tonight we were exposed to more Thai culture. We went to a cabaret show at Tiffany’s, which probably is comparable to the shows in Las Vegas, except that the men and women dancers at Tiffany’s were really all men. I thought the show was one of the most hilarious things that I had ever seen, but I don’t think that all of the parents would agree. Both Larry Tompkins and Jim Seegers were singled out for special attention during the show, with Jim dancing on stage and receiving a kiss on the cheek from one of the dancers.

I sat next to Tammy, who was a little worried, because the show was more risqué than either she or Mike expected. I was told that this entry might have to be censored, so I’ll just say that there were a couple of dances that I couldn’t stop staring because I was wondering about the realness of some of the dancers genitalia and where they put everything. Mike had the comment of the night when during the Italian opera piece he asked, "Don’t you think it’s a little weird that they’re singing Italian?"

After the show, I got a picture taken with one of the dancers. He was a very beautiful woman and was so convincing as a woman that I was thrown off by his deep masculine voice despite knowing that he was a man.

Today was another excellent day and I look forward to tomorrow when I get to go parasailing for the first time!