So this whole trip feels like one long day, so it's so strange thinking it's already Tuesday here when I just left Saturday morning. The flights from Tallahassee to Philadelphia were uneventful and smooth although we did have to circle Philadelphia for 40 minutes because of snow. Snow is so bizarre! When it rains there's a downpour, it finishes and is gone after a bit. But snow sticks forever and just stays on the ground. I keep looking at it thinking, "when are you going to go away? Why are you still here?" And it's really cold. These all seem like such obvious things, and they are mentally, but somehow the knowledge of things never quite prepares you for the experience of them. That's how it was for my entire mission and I know it will be the same for the next two years in Peace Corps. People say it will be so hard but until I experience it for myself "hard" will just be another word as abstract and nebulous as "market" or "spoon" is. It's just a word until you feel it for yourself. But I am looking forward to the challenge and feel hopeful for what lays ahead.
Saturday I registered with the rest of the 66 in my group going to Thailand. It seems like a big group, but apparently the Ukraine has the largest number of PC Volunteers with the last group having 170. I know that countries invite the US Peace Corps to serve there, so I wonder how it works to receive more or fewer volunteers. I've also wondered lately about the sustainability of what Peace Corps does. I know that in these countries there is a need for educated and trained man power, but I wonder if it's not much like the welfare system where we provide hand outs but aren't helping people sustain themselves. I really want to do good in Thailand in the community where I'll be staying, so I hope that I can see that I'm really helping people and not just giving them something for a time that will leave with me when I leave.
The flight from the JFK airport to Tokyo was delayed which in turn caused us to miss our flight from Tokyo to Bangkok. Therefore we're waiting out our layover in a very nice hotel here in Nokita (?) just outside of the airport in Tokyo. It's kinda neat traveling and being in so many different places around so many different people doing so many different things. I met a man this morning when I went down for breakfast at 6:30 (I couldn't sleep so finally just got up to eat). We talked for about 45 minutes and found out he works for the FBI (his passport is red, Dad) and lives in New York City and is married and has a 3 month old daughter. He does work with drug trafficking and was heading to the Philippines to meet with government officials there. It was such an interesting conversation and I think it's so exciting to meet people and open your mind to the possibilities that the world has to offer.
I've been trying to learn Thai for the past two months, but as some of you have seen, my efforts have been marginal and feeble. I pulled out my notebook and started reviewing some stuff that I'd written a while ago and realized how much there is to learn and how lost I'm about to be when trying to say anything. I hope I can be patient and not worry too much about the fact that I will be a lot stupider in Thai than I know I am in English. I always felt when speaking Italian that I must sound like an idiot and when I would talk to natives I would often think, "I'm really much more intelligent in English, I promise!" I guess moving to a foreign place and trying to communicate in a different language is like drinking a cup of insta-humble. It's like God's saying to me, "you think you're pretty good, well now try this!" It helps me learn who I am and where I stand. Ultimately I'm just really excited to learn and can't wait to see what happens and what the Lord has in store for me.
