Final Building Day and Changes To Team Itinerary

Hola Senor Blog-heads

Lots to report on in a busy 24 hours.

Last night we gave our Habitat hosts the night off and made our way to "The Irish Clock," which is... yes you guessed it... an Irish style pub in the middle of Udon Thani. Many of us Farang (the Thai word for westerners) were craving some Farang-style eats after a very yummy but seemingly endless procession of Thai dishes with rice.

The Irish Clock was, sadly, out of Guiness beer, but given that it was Sunday several of us got to enjoy their Sunday Roast Pork with Potatoes and Yorkshire Pudding. Others devoured Fish and Chips, Cheeseburgers, and Steaks. Get in my belly!

Dinner was so good that the group called an audible for breakfast and had our Thai hosts take us back to the Irish Clock for breakfast (a proper English breakfast of eggs, baked beans, sausage and toast). We then made our way out to our house for one final time...

We had relatively little work left to do on the house (lay the cement for one last room) and we were finished before 11am. Then we started to experience the REAL Songkran festival. A massive water fight broke out. Kids poured out from the entire neighborhood... like 10 times the number that we had previously seen during our time building the house. And they delighted in nothing more than running up to you with a water pistol or bucket... hitting you with the water... then screaming and taking off as you chased them. You would think this would get old fast, but trust me it doesn't.

Then we had one final delicious worksite lunch before the dedication ceremony. The mother of the homeowner and some other local elders tied string around our wrists and gave us blessings which is a huge sign of respect (normally people would be giving blessings to elders, not vice versa).

Next we proceeded to the front of the house where we exchanged messages of thanks with the homeowners and presented them with a handmade card and a framed picture of the team after a hard day of work. Finally the homeowner with several team members cut a ribbon in front of the door at which point the house offically became theirs!

NOTE ABOUT OUR ITINERARY:

After much thought, research and team discussion we have made the decision NOT to return to downtown Bangkok as originally planned. While in the past 24 hours the situation in Bangkok has quieted some (thankfully there has been no further violence) we are not sure what the coming days will hold. With this uncertainty we have decided to fly back to Bangkok on Wednesday but then proceed directly from the airport to Pattaya, a beach resort town about 2 hours east of the city. We will hang out here for Wednesday and Thursday and then head back to Bangkok on Friday afternoon where we will stay in a hotel out by the airport (and avoid heading into the downtown areas where protests have been occurring). Then Saturday everyone will fly to their respective destinations.