Saturday, August 15, 2015

On to Thailand

For the last week we have been in Thailand. In so many ways it is the same as Vietnam, yet so different. Thailand is much richer than Vietnam, yet you can still see people living in very poor conditions all over the place. I think it would be easy to hide yourself from the poverty if you stayed in the right parts of cities, but we have chosen to ride trains through the country. The poverty is prevelant along the railroad tracks. Just as it is prevelant along the rivers in Vietnam.

The people of Thailand seem less friendly than Vietnamese even though Thailand is considered the land of smiles. This has surprised us. 

As expected Buddhism is visually obvious here as it was in Vietnam, too. You can find a Buddhist temple in every neighborhood and statues are proudly displayed throughout the country. To be Thai is to be Buddhist just like to be Southern is to be Christian, but just like in America I feel like it is just the thing to say. It means nothing to so many.

We have traveled to three cities here by train. Elijah of course loved that experience. We were even able to visit a zoo in one city, Korat. The boys enjoyed the change of pace and getting to see some fun animals. The animal feeding times were quite entertaining because they make their animals work for their food.

Thailand has also been a time plagued with sickness. Elijah, Isaiah and I have all battled congestion and Elijah has been sick to his stomach. This has caused us to have a few days of just staying in the hotel while Mitchell went exploring. Hopefully we are on the mend.

We are back in Bangkok now for the rest of our stay. We will have a chance to visit a Thai church with a missionary couple here tomorrow and have a few days of rest before heading home.

Elijah is excited about the train ride.

The boys at the zoo.