and the adventure begins...

February 11th I'll be embarking on a cultural journey that will take me through various regions of South East Asia. I will start my adventure with a bang in the city that has it all; Bangkok. After a five day romp I will be heading to Hat Yai in southern Thailand which is a twin city to Songkhla. Here I will be working with Dalaa an NGO that works with locals and volunteer to create long lasting social development. Here is a link to their webpage
http://www.dalaa-thailand.com/wordpress/ 

Here is a background of the location of my project:

Kuan Mai Bong is a Buddhist village located in Cha-uat district of Nakorn Sri Tammarat province, Southern Thailand. The population of the village consists of approx. 720 people (212 homes). Most villagers make a living on their property such as rubber plantation and fruit orchard. Some others are temporary workers earning wages from occasional hire. 

In 2005, Kuan Mai Bong villagers began to be aware of their forestry resources. Losses in natural abundance in the past made them concerned on how man and nature can live in balance. Serious forestry preservation and rehabilitation took place. They gathered to explore their forest, paid more attention to natural resources management concerning protection of flash flood and soil problem. They came up with activities such as building a natural dike, making a wildfire-defending range and building a boundary mark between villagers’ land and preserved forest, for example.

For my project I will be working on the Roywan Pan Pba Alternative school, which has been created to help deter locals from leaving their villages to compete in the larger metropolisis for work. By creating a sustainable school and garden, villagers and volunteers can work together to produce food and knowledge that can help maintain this villages vitality, and a higher quality of life as well. 

I will be in the Southern Region (purple) in the 3rd district.

I will be spending 2 months here, and after that I plan on heading south through Malaysia and into Indonesia. Although, travel seems to flow like the wind with a mind and pattern of its own. So who knows where I may end up. 

List of desired countries

• Thailand
• Malaysia
• Indonesia
• Brunei
• Borneo
• Vietnam
• Cambodia
• Laos
• Myanmar
• Bhutan
• Nepal