Extract from student's diary of his trip to Thailand
I set off from Glasgow Airport to meet the party of 25 fellow Gordonstoun students and our project leader for our flight to Thailand. Our mission was to install a water supply to a remote hill tribe known as the Karen.
Our first weekend was one of acclimatisation and we sampled our first taste of authentic Thai food and met the team of people that we would be working with over the next 2 weeks. At the time they seemed like complete strangers but very soon they were to become the best of friends - people you felt you could trust despite not speaking any English. I was to stay in a hut with a young family who were very friendly and welcomed us into their home but we felt quite awkward to begin with not being able to speak their language. It was not long before all this changed and language was no barrier to happy and rewarding communication.
Reporting for our first full day's work, the boys were handed bags of cement, sand or gravel and the girls carried the blue pipes. One of the villagers lead the way on our trek to find the water. We climbed uphill for about 700 metres before our first stop from where we could see our village down below. And so began the digging of the trench. We worked in a line digging with hoes to a depth of 10 inches; with three villagers at the front making a clearing down through the jungle towards the village. By the end of the third day in the village, two days ahead of schedule we had water in the village but our work was far from complete.
The remainder of our project was to complete the water collection tanks. These had to be constructed from large steel moulds which were filled with cement. We also took turns to go into the jungle to cut down trees and bring back the wood.
Each evening we would gather and listen to traditions and stories about the Karen people. The Karen are a very oppressed ethnic minority and across the border in Burma there is actually a genocide of the Karen happening right now. However the western world doesn't want to know and doesn't seem to care because there is no oil in these parts of the world. Jim was quite emotional as he sat and talked to us and said that we really did have the power to change things in the world for the better.
Our final day in the village saw the official opening of the tanks and there was a definite buzz in the air. We felt so proud when our village 'mother' presented us with Karen shirts hand-crafted by the women of the village.
And so although it wasn't what we set out to do, we had saved the livelihood of the women in 26 villages including our own. The trip to Thailand was the most amazing three weeks of my life. I made new friends, met extraordinary people and saw completely new things. Most importantly though I had the opportunity to help a community and make a difference to their life. We worked as a team, picked up the challenge and feel a deep sense of satisfaction in what we have achieved. I look forward to my return one day.
Ed, Year 13
Round Square Project to India
I was incredibly lucky when I was selected to go on a project to a country which I will never forget. It is this country which I keep dreaming of, this country which taught me how to appreciate every single thing I have. The country which taught me to help, to share, to understand - to live for the day.
Due to the monsoon rains happening a week before our arrival in India we had to rearrange plans. Initially we were supposed to help rebuild a school which had been washed away in the Tsunami but instead we were lucky enough to experience a variety of the amazing Indian culture. After a few days of tourism in Chennai, 21 pupils from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, England and Germany plus three leaders headed off on a train to Nagpur, 1000 km to the west of Chennai, a 22-hour train journey!
A bus brought us from the train station to a place called Anandwan where we finally met the missing Indian members of the group. We all worked in this non-government community founded for Leprosy-effected, deaf, blind and mute people as well as people who are persecuted for other reasons. All these people have one thing in common: they are not accepted by the Indian culture. However, in this community they get medical treatment, food as well as a home and a job.
Our job was to help those people with their work in order to save them some time plus having an experience of a special kind. For a while we shifted, moved and made bricks - a very tiring but rewarding job as we knew that we saved the leprosy affected workers a couple of days work. On other days we helped in the nursery, worked in the blind and the deaf school or played cricket with the people from the orchestra. All those people are incredibly strong and great characters, just accepting their disabilities and living their life with an unbelievably grateful smile on their faces.
After about eight days we spent another week at a part of the community which was in the middle of the jungle about two hours further west. There we worked mainly on fields and in the kitchen. Our Christmas Eve was spent in Nagpur in a hotel having a great dinner, singing carols and doing Indian dancing. An eight-hour delay and another 22-hour train journey filled our Christmas Day and Boxing Day was the big day to say goodbye to all the new close friends we had made within the 26 days. I want to thank all the people who made this project a truly unforgettable experience.
Lisaweta