AAVE Trip BLOG » Thailand
July 29, 2008
Thailand #2 - An Amazing Start!
Posted by Chris in : General AAVE Trip BLOG, Thailand , add a comment
- Hi, I’m Nicolette’s mother and would like to share with you an email we received yesterday.
Hi everyone! Hope all is well back in the U.S. Thailand is AMAZING, even though it’s only the first day. We went on a boat ride this morning, through all the little canals. They consider Bangkok the western Venice. Then we went to the Grand Palace and saw the most amazing temples and buildings. We came back to the hotel exhausted but decided to go swimming. Then we went to the MBK mall, it’s supposedly the “teen scene mall”. It was 7 stories with the most intricate canals and hallways woven through it that contained 1000’s of stalls where you could buy everything from La Mer creme, to cell phones, to fake purses, to furniture. There was even a bowling alley on the 7th floor. It was so amazing! Finally, we just got back from dinner. We ate on top of the tallest building in Bangkok. Tomorrow we pack up and head to a River boat where we actually get to spend the night on the boat. Expect postcards in the mail, although I don’t know how long they’ll take to get there.
Talk to you all soon.
Love,
Nikki
July 14, 2008
Thailand #1 - Great Group
Posted by AAVE Leader in : Thailand , add a comment
July 7, 2008
TI1 - Greetings from Thailand!
Posted by AAVE Leader in : Thailand , 1 comment so far
WOW! Everything is going great!!! Everyone is tight, bonded and enjoying every minute of this Jam packed amazing trip and we fall asleep instantly each night exhausted.
We are doing everything - all the time!; overnight trains, swimming in waterfalls, touring the temples, learning about Buddhism and loving the shopping and haggling for stuff. Did I mention this group loves to shop? The best day ever was rock climbing!. Miya Selina Tung who never climbed before was a “rock star”. We love our Thai leader Nan with her beautiful smile and so much knowledge. We had a great birthday celebration for Reuben Gottlieb.
We will try to send out more blogs,
Cory and the Thailand crew
July 2, 2008
TI1 - Wai to you
Posted by AAVE Camper in : Thailand , add a comment
Wai is the word used when in greeting with people here in Thailand. The people are known as Tai - not Thai (something we learned while here already). We all arrived safely and met our leaders Cory and Nan - they are so great! We’re enjoying a relaxing exploration through Bangkok and getting to know one another. It is so great to meet people all the way across the world who also came from all the way across the world! Can’t wait to try all the food possible - the smells are amazing! The architecture is breathtaking - how did they build like this?
Tomorrow we get to travel on a bamboo boat can’t wait to share more later. Hopefully we’ll have some pictures to offer too!
Check back with us and we’ll talk to you soon!
February 2, 2008
Teen Adventures in Thailand
Posted by AAVE Parent in : General AAVE Trip BLOG, Thailand , add a comment
Kailey got to experience a different culture and meet some new people. I think this was a very successful program.-Karen Raymond, parent, TI
Adam loved the whole trip, the country, the kids and the leaders!-Jodi Raphael, parent, TI
The kids were great- the group leaders were awesome and we had a good time!-Adam Raphael, camper, TI
Oliva, who is already pretty confident and appreciative, came home an even more confident, appreciative and worldly person. She was the youngest person in the group and enjoyed their more mature concerns and sense of responsibility which gave them more freedom. She loved Thailand and the full range of experiences she was able to have on this trip including the leeches and the storm at sea. The children at the orphanage and the Tribe Trek village made a big impression on her. She also enjoyed learning how to cook the traditional Thai dishes and we have been treated to her Green Curry Chicken which was great. We were impressed! The islands were her favorite part though. The most important aspect of her travels with you is that she is allowed to feel independent while experiencing another cultures on the other side of the world and this affords a great sense of strength, humility toward appreciating how other people live, seeing the beauty in the country and the faces of the people and knowing that she can live in this world and know what is inherently good in people. It requires trust and team work to live a life worth living. She is more able to see what is good and what needs changing in her own culture now. We’re very happy for her and proud of her for wanting these experiences. The world is shrinking and we all need to be making friends with and understanding each other.-Sandra Michaels, parent, TI
I thought that my trip was very successful. I saw the best parts of an amazing country and I loved it all.-Tracy Feldman, camper, TI
In our opinion the Thailand trip was an unqualified success! The communication from Shaun was excellent. He kept us up to date and well informed. He seemed to really enjoy the kids and their adventures. Alison had a wonderful time and still mentions something memorable about her trip on almost a daily basis. She had some wonderful new friends that she keeps in touch with. They are trying to plan a get together over one of the school breaks. I know that the bonds that were made and the memories will last long after this summer is over. Your organization is is top notch and we have, and will continue to recommend you to our children’s friends and their families. We our thankful that we found AAVE.-Barbara Molnar, parent, TI
Overall the trip was a success. The itinerary is great and it really gave a great overview of the country. I loved how we had city time, beach time, and jungle time. It was nice to have free time some of the afternoons. Some of my highlights were the rafthouse, the elephant ride, and going down to the island. I really liked camping on the island. Generally, it was fun to spend three weeks with a group and really bond with them. Some days we had a lot of traveling to do which got a little boring but I guess it had to be done. The accommodations were great! I loved Bill’s resort on the island. Going to the orphanage on the last day was really fun! You guys should definitely add that in for next year.-Caitlin Oriel, camper, TI
I was very pleased that Shaun kept us informed. This took alot of worry off our minds. I also liked that they had access to email every now and then. Caitlin came back more mature and self assured and I felt it was a very good experience for her and thank you for providing that opportunity, I also felt it was a safe trip as far as water, food, travel and lodging etc and appreciated that part very much.-Bonnie Oriel, parent, TI
We have heard a lot about the trip from Scott, and it sounds like they had a good time. We enjoy having our son do AAVE trips and look forward to working with you guys more.-Susanne Lucas, parent, TI
Shawn had an absolutely awesome time on his trip to Thailand! The trip was planned perfectly, the leaders were fantastic and all of the kids got along great! He had only great things to tell us about his experiences there— and will definetly be back next summer with AAVE on another adventure!-Tracy Franklin, parent, TI
January 24, 2008
THAILAND TRIP CHANGED MY LIFE!
Posted by AAVE Camper in : General AAVE Trip BLOG, Thailand , add a comment
I want to thank you for an amazing time. This was my first experience with AAVE and I loved it. I have many fabulous memories from the Thailand trip and I’ve made 12 new friends.
This next bit is going to sound cheesy but it’s true: I’ve had a chance to think about life and how this trip changed me. I came into the trip as the quiet one and I was quiet most of the trip. But being around people I never knew before the trip and who lead totally different lifestyles back home compared to mine, I realized that I need to change a little. At home during the school year I am always studying and am really worried about school. The other kids on the trip were much more relaxed and outgoing. This trip showed me that I need to enjoy life a little more. I am not going to slack off in school, but I’m going to try and enjoy things a little more, go out with friends more, and be more outgoing. I can tell that I have a new confidence in me and I am more outgoing already (I think it was the crazy Canadians on the trip that did it to me : )
Again, thanks sooo much for an amazing experience.
CO 
August 6, 2007
Thailand #2A - Non Stop Action!
Posted by Jenny at AAVE in : General AAVE Trip BLOG, Thailand , add a comment
Hello All From Mae Hong Son,
Well the kids made it through cooking class with no injuries and a few new cooking tips up their sleeves. That evening we went and had some Mexican food (which was quite good) to change up the flavors a little bit and then we headed to watch Thai boxing. It was INTENSE!! The kids all sat right in front of the ring and loved every second of it. Non stop action!
The next day we headed to the Elephant conservation center to see how the elephants are trained to be useful in logging. We also enjoyed a ride around the park on an elephant’s back. Though bumpy, everyone really enjoyed it. That evening we suited up in our Thai fisherman’s pants and headed to a traditional Thai dinner. The kids had fun sitting at these tables that are on the ground, but have a pit under them in case you don’t want to sit cross-legged. We rushed off after that to the night market to fulfill the kids urges to buy all of the cool handicrafts along the way. The night market is a huge street teeming with booths that have anything and everything you could ever want in Thailand. With bags in hand we headed home on tuk-tuks, three wheeled motorcycles.
The next day we buckled down for a 6 hour car ride up to the jungles of Thailand. It’s a long ride, but well worth the pay off in the end. The cave lodge where we stay is really great with a huge porch, fire pit, bungalows and plenty of wild life to be seen and heard. That night we readied ourselves for the 3 day hill tribe trek. We set off the next morning on 6 hours of hiking through leachy (yes, I said leaches), muddy, slippery trails to arrive at our first tribe. It was great when the kids started wearing the leach bites like a badge of honor…. those who didn’t get them just weren’t as cool
We slept that night in a bamboo hut on the bamboo floor which isn’t the most comfortable but we roughed it. The local villagers cooked our dinner over an open fire and off to bed fairly early because I warned them that the roosters would be waking us around 4am. It came true, unfortunately.
The next day was 3 more hours of hiking to the next village. That village is a little more advanced and some of us enjoyed a quick swim in the creek and an intense game of soccer with the local kids. They beat us. It was expected given that there were fifty of them and 11 of us. The following day we hiked one more hour to meet up with some bamboo rafts to take us down the river back to the cave lodge. The rafts are piloted by two guys standing on either end with a bamboo stick (picture Venice but with alot of wilderness).
We arrived back to the lodge, cleaned up and then headed to a hand-made silver jewelry store and a cave. The kids had fun riding rafts through the cave and checking out the different formations. We awoke this morning to get back in the cars and head another two hours down winding roads to Mae Hong Son. We checked out a temple high on a hill above the town where we could see everything. Our guest house, the airport we fly out of tomorrow, everything.
The kids are enjoying some free time to e-mail and what not and hopefully they have taken the time to write each of you. This should get you up to date until now and tomorrow we get on our plane to fly down to the islands…. the kids are stoked (as am I)! The beaches are amazing and hopefully they will write to make you all jealous. I will try to write once more before the end of the trip and will be in touch from the airport via phone to let you know they made it on their planes home ok (so expect a phone call at an odd hour). Hope this finds all of you well and we’ll talk soon. If you have any questions, please write.
~Shaun Jackson~
shauncjackson@gmail.com
July 31, 2007
Thailand #2A - Sa Wa Dee Krab!
Posted by Jenny at AAVE in : General AAVE Trip BLOG, Thailand , add a comment
Hello all from Chiang Mai,
As I write this, the kids are in Thai cooking classes learning five different dishes that I encourage you to get them to make for you back home. They will all be given the recipes in a nice cook book so they will have no excuses.
Our day and night raft house trip was so much fun: swimming, relaxing, visiting temples, enjoying the Thai scenery and a disco party at night (most of them were too shy to dance, but Caroline and Julie definitely enjoyed it). I know Jared was sure happy to be back in the water for a little bit.
After getting off of the raft house in the morning, we immediately got on a songthaew, which is standard transportation, basically it is a large pick-up truck with bench seats and a cover in the back, and headed to Erawan falls. The falls have 7 different pools to swim in, complete with a rock slide and some rocks to jump from tucked up in the jungles of Thailand. We loved every minute of it! That afternoon we showered up and everyone enjoyed a couple of hours of down time to use the internet, get a massage or just relax around the guest house.
The next morning we loaded up the truck for a ride to Ayuthaya, home to a bunch of Thai ruins from the 14th century. We toured around the ruins with our tour guide (Mr. Kat), swam in the pool, and some of us visited a local market. At one of the temples we had a chance to try and catch some fish. Ella, Adam, Kailey and Jared were in the water up to their knees trying to get ahold of them. It was fun to watch. That evening we headed to the train station to await our overnight train here to Chiang Mai.
The train was a ton of fun with some epic games of ERS (a card game) and UNO. Be sure to ask Shawn, Caitlin and Kailey about thier games of ERS with Nok and I. A lot of fun. Some of the others on the train fell victim to the ones who couldn’t sleep, you can ask Kendra and McCall about it later!
After arriving in Chiang Mai, our home stay mom, Mrs. Aoy was there to pick us up. She took us back to her house outside of the city where we immediately got on some bikes and went biking around her village. We stopped at a recycled clothing factory (Olivia won for the most stuff purchased), a mushroom farm, and a temple that was built only 12 years ago. In the afternoon, the kids enjoyed a game of soccer with the local kids and had a blast breaking language barriers with children that didn’t speak a lick of English. Last night we had a traditonal Thai band play for us and they also performed some traditional dances for us.
This morning we headed back to Chiang Mai where the kids are currently in cooking class. I’ve attached a picture of us at the ruins in Ayuthaya. I hope this e-mail finds everyone well and I will be writing again soon. As always, if you have any questions or comments don’t hesitate to write. Sa Wa Dee Krab (as they say in Thailand).
Great group, great times, amazing adventures!
~Shaun Jackson from Thailand~
January 18, 2007
The Best Summer Ever!
Posted by Annemarie in : General AAVE Trip BLOG, Thailand , add a comment
“Thank you very much for the opportunity to go to Peru this summer of 2007! I had the most fun possible in Thailand. You guys are great! If you ever need a reference, I can be of assistance. Keep it up. My friends all want to go on a trip this summer!”
Thank you!
-Sara Sebastian,
Summer Adventure in Thailand
Posted by Annemarie in : General AAVE Trip BLOG, Thailand , add a comment
“Just a quick note to tell you that Dan had an awesome summer in Thailand. I will wholeheartedly recommend your organization to anyone that asks. The fact it was so different than anything else, made it a great experience. Now I only wish you did adult tours. Dan really enjoyed the group and I am so glad it went as well as it did for him.”
-Mitch Ratner, parent of camper, Thailand 2006