And So It Is Done
I dove headfirst into the New Year, got sucked into an unexpected whirlpool of exhilarating changes and am only just surfacing for my first breath of air. But first, the second part of our tsunami campaign.
PP and I only rose after midday on Dec 30 and were faced with two choices - we either get our brown butts moving right that instant or spend New Year's Eve trawling and toiling in makeshift shelters. It was a split-second decision and we were hailing a boat to Krabi less than 30 minutes later.
Another Thai friend, Poon, had suggested we visit tsunami villagers in Krabi. He scribbled down our intentions in Thai and told us to show it to any policeman who would be able to point us in the right direction. When we docked in Ao Nang, we booked ourselves a minivan and showed the guy at the counter our little note.
No need to travel to Krabi, his boss said. There's a tsunami village right here. Only about fifteen minutes away. Many orphans.
Perfect.
We reached the village and our driver delivered a snappy summary of purpose of our visit to the inhabitants lolling around. PP and I exchanged uncertain glances. There was something not quite right with the place. We asked if there was anything the children needed. School books? School bag? Uniform? One of the men shook his head.
But their parents need money, he said. They have no jobs.
We nodded politely and asked if we could take a look inside the shacks. The man pointed to one with an open window. We peeked in and reeled. If being jobless in Thailand meant a shack with a colour TV, DVD player and a washing machine, then I'm ready to change citizenship. No, we absolutely could not do any form of contribution here!
The next village wasn't any different and we were feeling more dejected by the minute. Then I remembered a Thai guy, La, whom I had gotten in touch with before we left. He's a member of HiPhiPhi, a relief organisation comprising young travellers, that had single-handedly helped Phi Phi get back on its feet. In fact, Time magazine had lauded its efforts, calling it one of Asia's Heroes. I punched in his phone number and muttered a silent prayer.
This time Lady Luck decided to beam on us. He happened to be just twenty minutes away from where we were and had a window in his frenetic schedule. We sped over.
We poured out our story and he assured us that if we were looking for scenes like that in Sri Lanka, we weren't going to find any. Yes, there were people who still needed help but they were all over the country. Before our faces could fall any further, he said the magic word - BUT! There was a tsunami orphanage that needed funds for the children's monthly allowance. He ran the orphanage and personally checked out each child's background to ensure they qualified. He had documents, pictures and most of all, very honest eyes. We handed him the money, filled up the relevant forms and made it back to our island minutes before an impending storm whipped the sea into a frenzy.
And so it was finally done. That night we toasted each other and marvelled at how things had worked out so well. And we both agreed that although it gave us a wonderful high, it would be a long time before we summoned up the energy to do it again.
PP and I only rose after midday on Dec 30 and were faced with two choices - we either get our brown butts moving right that instant or spend New Year's Eve trawling and toiling in makeshift shelters. It was a split-second decision and we were hailing a boat to Krabi less than 30 minutes later.
Another Thai friend, Poon, had suggested we visit tsunami villagers in Krabi. He scribbled down our intentions in Thai and told us to show it to any policeman who would be able to point us in the right direction. When we docked in Ao Nang, we booked ourselves a minivan and showed the guy at the counter our little note.
No need to travel to Krabi, his boss said. There's a tsunami village right here. Only about fifteen minutes away. Many orphans.
Perfect.
We reached the village and our driver delivered a snappy summary of purpose of our visit to the inhabitants lolling around. PP and I exchanged uncertain glances. There was something not quite right with the place. We asked if there was anything the children needed. School books? School bag? Uniform? One of the men shook his head.
But their parents need money, he said. They have no jobs.
We nodded politely and asked if we could take a look inside the shacks. The man pointed to one with an open window. We peeked in and reeled. If being jobless in Thailand meant a shack with a colour TV, DVD player and a washing machine, then I'm ready to change citizenship. No, we absolutely could not do any form of contribution here!
The next village wasn't any different and we were feeling more dejected by the minute. Then I remembered a Thai guy, La, whom I had gotten in touch with before we left. He's a member of HiPhiPhi, a relief organisation comprising young travellers, that had single-handedly helped Phi Phi get back on its feet. In fact, Time magazine had lauded its efforts, calling it one of Asia's Heroes. I punched in his phone number and muttered a silent prayer.
This time Lady Luck decided to beam on us. He happened to be just twenty minutes away from where we were and had a window in his frenetic schedule. We sped over.
We poured out our story and he assured us that if we were looking for scenes like that in Sri Lanka, we weren't going to find any. Yes, there were people who still needed help but they were all over the country. Before our faces could fall any further, he said the magic word - BUT! There was a tsunami orphanage that needed funds for the children's monthly allowance. He ran the orphanage and personally checked out each child's background to ensure they qualified. He had documents, pictures and most of all, very honest eyes. We handed him the money, filled up the relevant forms and made it back to our island minutes before an impending storm whipped the sea into a frenzy.
And so it was finally done. That night we toasted each other and marvelled at how things had worked out so well. And we both agreed that although it gave us a wonderful high, it would be a long time before we summoned up the energy to do it again.
posted by starlight at 3:11 AM
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