Day 6
Sara Tompkins
Senior, Women's Hoops

We played our first hoops game vs. Chiang Mai University, it was possibly the best experience we have had so far b/c it was our first interaction with students and Thai kids our age. It was a beautiful thing that we live halfway across the world and have only our humanity in common, yet they were abundantly welcoming. After the game the CMU team and other students joined us for dinner. I was amazed at how well they spoke English, and EVERY ONE of them knew some. How great would it be if a Thai team came to visit Carleton and they sat down with us, and we were all able to communicate with them in Thai as they were able to with us in English? Americans seem to be either too self-involved, or perhaps too busy to take the time to learn other languages or at the very least take the time to read about other cultures. Here, everyone knows and studies English, and love the U.S., whereas in the U.S. few people know about and can speak any foreign language, or have abundant interests in another culture.

This very topic led Bridget, Renee, Cassie and I into a heated discussion about prejudice, ignorance, education, and regulation. We all agreed on the problems, differed on how to solve them, but nothing to fear, we figured it all out, I think.

After dinner some of us went out to a cute, trendy little pub in a plaza that was very Westernized, looking across the street I thought I was in Santa Barbara, CA or Miami, FL! It was weird. However, being with the CMU students made the experience authentic and I forgot about the Pizza Hut and KFC across the street, after all, it's the people who make up the country, not the buildings. This is why I am so glad that I came with Mike, b/c we are interacting with the people of Thailand, and doing cultural things. If the average American were coming to Thailand, they more than likely would experience something very similar to any major city or area in the U.S. and never interact and "do as the Thais do," which is the best part!

In talking to the students we found out three major things, 1. Women don't play any sports (except hoops) b/c they wear skirts to school and it would be improper to be kicking, running, and jumping in one. 2. Only men play volleyball, and a vast majority (95%) are homosexual. 3. Prostitutes themselves are looked down upon, but the men who use them are not frowned upon at all! I struggled with this double standard, it is so frustrating b/c without the demand, there is no supply! Not things you will read in the tourist books!

June 17: We went to some interesting lectures about the hilltribe people this morning, and finished the day at Payap University. We played our second game, and won, it was very fun, one of their players made two three's from about 6 ft. behind the line, it was amazing (partly b/c she weighed about 70 pounds!) After the game we took a tour of the campus with a few students and Renee and I became quite good friends with one, we exchanged email addresses and everything, it was great. They then included us in their closing ceremonies for their new students with a traditional Northern Thai dinner and ceremony. We were all singing and dancing and having a ball, they included us so openly, it was great. Even though we are separated by 8011 miles (from Northfield) humanity, laughter, and music are all commonalities. The perfect ending to the perfect day came when I looked out the top of the pavillion and saw a bright, yellow, full moon. No matter where you are on earth, or how far away from people you love or home, you can be comforted with the thought that we are all looking at the same moon and it will look equally as beautiful. Similarly, all people on earth, no matter the differences, or distances are all the same on the inside and equally beautiful, perhaps in different ways.