Make sure u take a look a the photos too!

Well we've just finished two lots of 2 weeker projects & i cant believe the progress we managed on the community hall (a huge project the village have been needing for a long time) & i also cant believe the effect, both that we had on the village, & the village on us! As we've been doing projects in this village since november, the villagers have become closer and closer to the volunteers that have come to help. Not only do they just open their homes & community to us (everything & anything they have or can do is ours to share without question) but they open their hearts too. Caring when we were sick, cheering us up if we were down, hugging us whenever a hug was needed, laughing with us every day & being everything a family could be. There were many tears shed at the thought of leaving this bond behind, but many future visits planned & promises never to forget!

Anyway, enough gushing, back to what we actually did during the project! There was a lot of cement mixing to do in order to finish the floors (it's a two storey building), then it was up to us to build all the walls. So it was brick laying for Farang (foreigner) while the incredibly dexterous Akha carpenterhopped around the roof structure securing roof panals we passed him. It was also pineapple harvesting season while we were there, so on some days we went to the fields with our families to help pick the pineapples or tend to the weeding. Not as exoticly gentle as it sounds, those pineapple plants are pretty damn spikey, so it was hard to return after a hot sweaty insecty day without scratches all over our arms & legs (n.b must listen to akha advice & wear long sleaves despite the heat, I guess they do know best!!) Nothing a cold beer & freshly cut pineapple couldn't help though, and it was great to have a taste of what these strong people do every day, all day without complaint (in fact while smiling broadly!) Its tough work for someone not used to it, but going to work every day to perch on a hillside, in the mist of nature at its fullest, gazing across bursting green valleys, with only the sounds of the trickling river, birds singing, bees buzzing, & the rhythm of distant Akha chanting, I'd much rather suffer a few scratches & aches than be stuck in an office any day!!

It happened to be school holidays this month, so we couldn't teach in the school, but we had the added pleasure of having the village kids around all day instead. So, any spare moment was filled with playing football, cards, colouring in, yoyos (a very kind Donna from New Zealand donated, along with numerous supplies for the village elders & school alike), face painting & general banter with the adorable children. Singing & dancing was also on the curriculum, so no day went by without the colourful vibrance of happy children & smiling faces all round!

Eating time was always a busy affair, with all families pitching in to help cook for us, & sharing in the giggles & surprises as we tried new foods & convinced them to try some of our farang style food! On the last day our dad bought all the ingredients to make spring rolls, so we all sat in along line & rolled our own mountains of spring rolls, which, along with the local rice whiskey, followed by lots more hugging & Akha dancing, twas a rather jolly evening indeed!

So, to all that were present, thankyou again for your big hearts & for everything you helped accomplish. And to those yet to experience this, cant wait to meet u, u wont regret it! Take good care & see u soon ! Jessiexxx