Sharing is Caring

Location: BangkokSharing is caring

Author: Mary-Elizabeth T. Location: Bangkok

Sharing is caring… This is a sentence we all lived by today. Today was the last day of the cultural exchange weekend with some of the Thai teenagers from the Klong Toei community. To start the day, we participated in some fun games and activities that made the links and trust we had even stronger. Afterward, we settled down to talk and share the teenage problems we encounter in our countries. The main issues that came up in both the Thai and Western part of the group were: the pressure revolving around the school which is forced upon us both by our families and ourselves and bullying that sometimes starts when some of us do not follow the image that is expected by everyone else and think outside the box. This activity showed us that even though we were from two different cultures, we had a lot of similarities than differences. We then concluded this morning by realizing that despite the language barrier the Thai teenagers welcomed us with open arms and warm smiles. We were able to connect on a personal level we thought was not possible given the short amount of time we had and saw some new friendships come to life. We then got on the bus and after a long ride said our goodbyes. We had a lot of fun volunteering and making friends in Thailand. It’s sad to think that our Thailand service trip is finally over.