culture shock..........

totally awesome day (starting to sound like the preppies now.)
visited one of the volunteer placements today a school for the disabled run by the Thai government. kids are either autistic, downes, deaf, blind or physically disabled, we met some of them. totally sweet, happy, friendly kids......it moved me.
we then visited a Buddhist temple and had the pleasure of being blessed by a monk.... on to the local library to find out more of the history of trang. its a pretty interesting place where many cultures and religions seem to be able to co-exist happily together.
in the afternoon we drove to the coast taking in on the way some Thai Moslem men crafting knives for latex harvesting.
we then hopped aboard a longboat and went along the coast a short way to a deserted beach covered in golden, soft (im mean really, really soft) sand backed by breathtaking vegetation covered limestone cliffs rising 300+ ft.... went swimming in warm (i mean really, really warm) water with soft, soft sand (have i said that?).... paradise or as near as damn it - all it needed was a few cold ones and sky sports and bobs your uncle.
on the way back we raced with the other longboat (bit like wacky races it was) before stopping off at a mangrove swamp to plant (well throw shoots into the mud like darts) new trees as part of government initiative (not for tourists benefit but there's probably money there) to help stop the erosion of the shoreline.
ate at the restaurant on the beach. im not a king prawn fan but these babies cooked up with a spicy lime sauce were sound as a pound... also had chicken with cashews, soup and spicy thai mushrooms. magic.
long but very rewarding day. tomorrow is first day at placement im nervous.
laters.