Today is my last day here and it makes me sad. To be honest, I’m not very sentimental, but I found myself all choked up. I can’t remember the last time I cried, but tears rolled down my cheek…got emotional. You see everytime we pull up to the New Blood School the kids come running out excited and happy to see us, so leaving them is very sad. I feel terrible I can’t help them more right now. When I get home, Help is on the way for Haiti, help is on the way for Africa, but most Americans don’t know Burma is a country. I ask people all the time and they don't know what Burma is. The one’s who’ve heard of it, tell me it’s in Africa. One nitwit told me South America, so continued support is imperative. There’s no doubt we’re making a difference here, and we need all the help we can get. Even though it’s Sunday our workers were still out there finishing the foundation and continued digging the post holes for the support posts on the school as part of the renovation and improvement. Tomorrow they will start leveling the floor, first with dirt that they will compact, and later a 6 inch layer of concrete for the floor. Very productive first week overall! In 2 hours I get picked up to start the 7 hour drive back to Bangkok to catch the 21 hour flight back home.

Hard to believe that I leave tomorrow night to go back to the States. So since it’s my second to last day here in Maesot, Thailand, I spent most of today on site at the New Blood School to make sure everything is in full swing. I had to emphasize full court press is needed and things are definitely moving along. The girls dormitory is taking shape as you can see from the picture. They set up the entire iron rebar structure to support the walls of the dormitory and began to pour the cement for the perimeter beams of the dorm. We bought more cement and construction is going faster than expected which is a good thing! It’s music to my ears. Simultaneously the boys worked on the floorboards of the school putting the boards closer together to close the big gaps that were in the floor. On another note, I fed the stray dogs, especially one that is in terrible shape that I’ve gotten attached to. There’s a lot of stray dogs here. If you’re a dog lover, it’s heart breaking, because some of these dogs are in real bad shape. There’s no veterinarian in Maesot. If you want to help the dawgs you have to take a picture of it, email it to a veterinarian in Chiang Mai and he/she then emails you back the diagnosis, then you have to go buy the medication and administer it yourself which I’m hoping to do. I can’t help it. The more I get to know people, the better I like animals.

Another productive day in paradise. Started off at the New Blood School, as usual, where we finished pouring the cement columns for the foundation of the girls dormitory, cut and molded the rebar, and the metal structures. Also, began work on renovating the school by digging the holes to reinforce the existing pillars to hold the school up. Then went to the store and bought the wood pillars and transported them to the site in a pickup truck that was almost dragging on the ground. Then Annie picked me up and drove me to the computer store where I tried to make the owner an offer she couldn’t refuse, but she offered a minuscule discount, so tomorrow I’ll go to another computer store to see if they’ll toss us a bigger bone, not a measly crumb. Then we went to a garage, looked like a junkyard, where we met the owner who purchases solar panels in Bangkok, and installs them for refugee camps that have no electricity here in Maesot. A lot of work needs to be done here, people.

I’m one exhausted humanitarian relief worker. After starting the day at the New Blood School watching the boys install the steel beams and pouring in the cement, Annie from the Mae Tao Clinic boarding house working group drove me around to four other Karen (Burmese ethnic group) refugee camps that are in immediate need of everything from shelter, electricity, food, computers, brick walls…it’s overwhelming. First stop was the Children Development Training Center in Hway Ka Loke village. The kids need computers and a brick wall to prevent the rain from getting in. Next stop was Naung Bo Deng school that asked for a solar panel, two computers and a new thatch roof to replace the one that has holes in it. Then onto the village of Pyan Taung where Rocky Mountain 2 school headmaster is seeking solar panels, computers and a new dormitory. Last stop was at the Ray Kaw Htoo school in the village of Wa Ta Kin that needs a kitchen asap.

Construction Site at Maesot

Hi there. Another loooong day. The other supplies were delivered, i.e. iron rebar, anticorrosive paint, steel trestles and beams, got the cement poured on the foundation, digging the channels and started cutting rebar to make the molds for the foundation. Good start, guys work until 7 at night.. While our workers were doing that, I went to pay my respects to Dr. Aye Kyaw, (Vice-Chairperson of National League of Democracy-Liberated Area) from Aung San Suu Kyi’s political party to see if he needs anything else. Last time I was here, at beginning of March, we bought two computers for them, and upgraded their internet service which was painfully slow. Slower than dial-up. Just got back to the Irawadee and waiting for our muy caliente construction engineer to pick me up to go over tomorrow’s game plan. Going to talk to her about time management and task management. This important. Got to wrap this job up!

Construction Site and Supplies

Couldn’t sleep at all last night. I don’t know if it’s a bad case of jet lag or what? Was at the New Blood School at 8am. Before building it’s a ritual of Thailand’s people to recite verses to the local God asking to bless the area and the construction site for the projects we’re working on. It’s for good luck. After the ceremony, we then started preparing the ground before we lay in the concrete foundation for the structures we’re building. Went back into town to open a bank account here in Maesot, then back to the child compound to pay the land owner for the sand, gravel and cement he dropped off. Have to finish renovating the school before the kids come back from summer break in June. We then went to Thaiwattana (Thailand’s Home Depot) to place a big order for the many other supplies we need to make this all happen. A special shout out to Burma Relief sponsor Mr. Sabba. You are appreciated.

Woke up at the crack of dawn (early bird gets the worm), had an American style breakfast, then rallied the troops because it’s showtime. Our construction engineer, Mertxe met me at the Irawadee resort here in Maesot on the Thai/Burma border, and then we went to the New Blood School with our contractor Myiint Oo to start taking the measurements so we can break ground tomorrow morning for the school we’re renovating, and the boarding house for 70 girls we’re building. We met with Salinee (a solar panel expert) to see what it’s going to take to power this child compound with solar energy. We then met with the land owner to order the building materials needed. After a long day we finally got the chance to eat, so we went to Casa Mia (excellent Thai food) for dinner. I’m calling it a night even though it’s only 11pm, because we have to get up early to start work at 8am.

Mertxe, Myint Oo at the Maesot Construction Site

After a 23 hour flight I finally arrived at Bangkok airport at 1:30am. After waiting for five and a half hours, I boarded a plane to Chaing Mai. Since it’s Sunday and work doesn’t start until tomorrow, I went to the Tiger kingdom where I spent time with three 350lb big cats for an hour, wow, what a experience. A gorgeous, beautiful animal. Then off to the gun range where I shot a .22 caliber, 9mm Glock and a .45 magnum. Talk about starting off the trip with a bang. Then a 5 hour drive to Maesot where I had dinner at Casa Mia, the best green curry chicken I’ve ever tasted. It melts in your mouth. I then checked into the Irawadee resort which has awesome rooms with A/C and now I’m calling it a night. I love Thailand. Tomorrow we’ll step up our game and start hustling for Burmese refugee kids.