Day 14: Calm Before the Storm?

EDIT: Aahh! So sorry I didn't post this sooner- I'd saved it as a draft and forgot to send it up before I left for the Hill Tribe Tour! (which I will be posting ASAP) Whoops!

Started today off by talking with an Australian Monk! Joel (I believe that was his name) had a really interesting perspective on eastern culture as he was born in raised in western society. He said a lot of little things that I wrote down and want to think over later, but one of the most thought-provoking things he said, at least to me, was, "Before you can practice Buddhism, or do anything really, you have to be comfortable. You must find an environment where you're happy to be in. You must be around people who you work well with- people that challenge you to be better and uplift you. You don't want to be around those who are heavy." I'm not entirely sure why this resonated with me so much, but I think I just like the idea of finding my little comfort place and growing from there. Since coming to college, I feel like I've done a lot of self-assessment and have done a good job of finding people who help uplift me. It's good to know that I have my friends and family at home that provide a foundation for me, but knowing that I'm always finding new people (especially here) who challenge me and make me want to better myself is really satisfying and good for me for  finding my happy-comfort-place.

photo by Paul Tidman

After the monk chat and regularly scheduled class, Emma and I went for a walk and ended up in The Chalatte in one of the cafeterias for fruit-milk tea. (which, btw, has the CUTEST logo ever). Whilst in there, we ran into a bunch of girls who had just arrived in Thailand to do mission work. They were bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and kind of in a place where we were when we arrived so long ago (feels like forever!) We taught them temple etiquette and how to say a few phrases and made plans to hang out before they left. It was kind of odd seeing them because it almost reaffirmed my suspicions that we weren't really tourists anymore and that we've grown a LOT since we first arrived.

Decided to try this place for Nidhi! Thought you'd like it!

After some green tea milk, Emma and I decided to check out the on-campus temple.

From there, we ran back to Uniserv and IT WAS CLEANING DAY! To understand the CAPSLOCK OF EXCITEMENT, you need to first know that CLEANING DAY! only happens three times a month. That means that we only get new towels, are able to have our trash cans emptied, and get new sheets three times a month. So when I arrived at Uniserv and I saw that I had a new towel, I was EXCITED! I just laid on my bed for several minutes so that I could revel in the newness of the sheets.

After the joy of cleanliness, I got myself together and walked to campus with Tou and Emma so that I could audit their cooking class! They always tell us how much food they have left over, so it was fun to show up, learn to cook, and get a free meal out of it! I "learned how to make spring rolls" but mostly I just acted as sous chef and chopped veggies and helped roll the spring rolls. 

50s Housewife Status

After I helped in the kitchen for a bit, I hung out in the dining area with some USAC people and ran into Man and Tan there. I helped Tan with his English homework and had a lot of fun helping him fill in the blanks with his grammatical tenses. That sounds incredibly nerdy when I write it out, but the awesome thing about CMU is that all of the students I've met so far have been incredibly enthusiastic and eager to improve their English, which is awesome for me for making friends. I really did have a fun time helping him with his homework and learning about how his classes were conducted and what he thought of them. Soon thereafter, all of the cooking students brought out their dishes and we feasted! Some dishes were more appreciated than others, but everyone made a good effort and got a good meal out of it.

After dinner, I headed to the market by the front gate with Summer, Paige, and Lauren to get some things that we would need for the Hill Tribe Trip. We walked about the market for a bit and quested for water bottles and generally had a good time doing so. 

Front Gate with Offerings

My view on the walk home- so crazy, right?!

We're headed out to the Hill Tribes bright and early tomorrow! I'll be posting all of my adventures either sunday night or monday sometime!

-Haley