Retreat Weekend!

This weekend we had a really, really great weekend retreat in the mountains. After meeting at ISDSI Friday morning, we first headed to a lake outside of Chiang Mai for our swim test: a 300m open water swim followed by 15 minutes of treading water. Because the oceans course, especially, has so many water elements including sea kayaking, snorkeling, and skin diving, they have to make sure we are all proficient enough in the water. I wasn’t too worried and did pass, but if students did not pass this weekend and do not pass a re-test later in the semester, they have to wear a life jacket any time we are on or near water. But luckily most of us did just fine!

After lunch at the lake, we headed up to the national park and Mok Fah waterfall where we would be spending the weekend. Of course it was not a completely free weekend, and we did have several seminars on various topics….most of which were about staying healthy in the tropics. We went over the various animals, plants, and elements that could be potentially dangerous/harmful, and how to remain healthy while we are in the field. We also went over basic first aid, how to assess a patient and situation if we find ourselves in an emergency situation, and how to carry an injured person. It is highly unlikely that we would ever need these skills as we will always be with other students, local guides, and our field instructors who are WFRs, but it is good to know just in case.

Aside from the academics, this weekend was really just a chance to spend unstructured free time together as one large group. We see each other everyday but it certainly is not enough time, especially with over 30 students in the program, to really meet and talk with everyone. Yesterday afternoon, us students made the short trek to the Mok Fah waterfall…pretty amazing and hard to believe this is how I get to spend my semester! Besides the exploring, it was really nice to play games, have a campfire, talk, and stay up way past our 9pm bedtimes (we live pretty crazy lives in our home stays!) listening to the live guitar/uke/banjo music and singing! It was also really great to get to know our Pi’s a little better, since we haven’t had much of a chance yet (Pi is like an older brother/sister, and it is what we call our field instructors. It’s a polite term and is a step down from our teachers, who we call Ajaan).

In addition to all these wonderful activities, we also had some American food! The highlight, for everyone I think, was peanut butter and jelly/nutella toast with coffee in the morning. It’s the little things you miss when you eat rice with every meal!

Even though we still have the entire semester, coming back was a little bittersweet. It was awesome being together as a big group and everyone is really looking forward to the apartments, so it’s hard going back to our individual host families knowing we still have a couple more weeks (actually 2, where did time go?). But it makes me all the more excited to go into the field!

Not real life!

In other news, my host mom has been teaching me how to “cook” Thai food, and this evening she taught me how to make a meatball soup and fried rice. This really consists of me watching, occasionally stirring, and trying to write down ingredients, half of which I either have no idea of the English name or have no clue about whether or not I’ll be able to find it in the states. I’m building my repertoire of dishes I theoretically know how to make, so maybe I will be able to make something decently well when I return. But either way, I think my host mom enjoys showing me how she cooks since it is something she really enjoys.