tomintucson
Recycles dryer sheets
I'm wondering if anyone has any experiences or feedback relating to a trip I'll be taking in May. I'll be in Burma (Myanmar) and northwestern Thailand for over two months. My travels are for pleasure, and also for volunteer work. I've made some trips to the region in the past. Sometimes I've taught English on a random basis, for example holding daily classes for restaurant or hotel staff. It's a great way to interact with the locals. This trip will probably be a little more structured than ones I've taken in the past.
As background, in my hometown of Tucson I've been volunteering for a number of years with refugees. For the past year and a half I've worked extensively (typically 25 to 30 hours a week) with about a dozen families, Burmese refugees resettled from camps just inside the Thai/Burma border. They are Karen and Chin tribal people. They've spent their lives coping with Burmese soldiers burning their villages, shooting at them, the worst kind of stories that you read or hear about of life under nasty regimes such as that which currently governs Burma.
I help as I can with things like finding jobs, teaching English, dealing with bureaucracies, problem solving in general. "Cultural orientation" is what it's called in the resettlement business. I just sort of fell into this. My background is small business ownership. I retired in March 2007 at the age of 48. Never married, no kids, so I have all the freedom in the world to go overseas with some frequency for pleasure or service work. The work I do here is extremely rewarding. Many of the refugees have become good friends, in spite of often comical language barriers, and I'm an honorary member of a number of extended families.
So I'm wondering about the experiences of others who have done overseas service or aid work, or who perhaps work with refugees in America. Also, any travelers out there with Burma or the border area under their belts? I did read Billy Kaderli's account of a trip to the border town of Mae Hong Son in Thailand. For those who know the area, I'm tentatively planning to travel to Mae Sot, Umphang, Mae Hong Son, Mae Salong, Mae Sai (the Golden Triangle). I'll do volunteer work where I find it, although I have good contacts in the camps, which are off-limits to travelers, through my Burmese friends here in Tucson. I'm assured that I can pass through the Thai checkpoints with locals, friends of my friends here in America. I'll be crossing into Burma at Tachilek on a two-week permit (not quite a visa) which will allow land travel only to the cities of Kentung and Mongla, at the Chinese border. The country is a bit of a locked-down military dictatorship, so as an American, about 50% of Burma is absolutely off-limits. Land crossings are tricky; most fly in and out of Rangoon (Yangon). Surprisingly, travel in Burma will be extremely safe, as it generally is in all of Southeast Asia. It's the Burmese who are at risk. Foreigners like myself are hands-off. Crime is almost non-existent.
Who's been? Who dreams of going? I'd love to hear from fellow travelers and volunteers. Thanks.
Tom
As background, in my hometown of Tucson I've been volunteering for a number of years with refugees. For the past year and a half I've worked extensively (typically 25 to 30 hours a week) with about a dozen families, Burmese refugees resettled from camps just inside the Thai/Burma border. They are Karen and Chin tribal people. They've spent their lives coping with Burmese soldiers burning their villages, shooting at them, the worst kind of stories that you read or hear about of life under nasty regimes such as that which currently governs Burma.
I help as I can with things like finding jobs, teaching English, dealing with bureaucracies, problem solving in general. "Cultural orientation" is what it's called in the resettlement business. I just sort of fell into this. My background is small business ownership. I retired in March 2007 at the age of 48. Never married, no kids, so I have all the freedom in the world to go overseas with some frequency for pleasure or service work. The work I do here is extremely rewarding. Many of the refugees have become good friends, in spite of often comical language barriers, and I'm an honorary member of a number of extended families.
So I'm wondering about the experiences of others who have done overseas service or aid work, or who perhaps work with refugees in America. Also, any travelers out there with Burma or the border area under their belts? I did read Billy Kaderli's account of a trip to the border town of Mae Hong Son in Thailand. For those who know the area, I'm tentatively planning to travel to Mae Sot, Umphang, Mae Hong Son, Mae Salong, Mae Sai (the Golden Triangle). I'll do volunteer work where I find it, although I have good contacts in the camps, which are off-limits to travelers, through my Burmese friends here in Tucson. I'm assured that I can pass through the Thai checkpoints with locals, friends of my friends here in America. I'll be crossing into Burma at Tachilek on a two-week permit (not quite a visa) which will allow land travel only to the cities of Kentung and Mongla, at the Chinese border. The country is a bit of a locked-down military dictatorship, so as an American, about 50% of Burma is absolutely off-limits. Land crossings are tricky; most fly in and out of Rangoon (Yangon). Surprisingly, travel in Burma will be extremely safe, as it generally is in all of Southeast Asia. It's the Burmese who are at risk. Foreigners like myself are hands-off. Crime is almost non-existent.
Who's been? Who dreams of going? I'd love to hear from fellow travelers and volunteers. Thanks.
Tom
