For our International placement we decided to go to Surin, which is in the North East of Thailand. Surin is a rural area, where not many tourists visit, therefore the Thai community are pleasantly surprised when white English people visit Surin.
We first arrived in Bangkok on the Friday where we went to the popular Koh San Road which is the main strip for the tourists in Bangkok, where Starfish provided us with a hotel. The hotel was basic but very clean and safe just off of the main strip where all the partying happens. In the morning the hotel provided us with an all you can eat breakfast then we headed to the main reception for an orientation where they told us everything we was going to be doing whilst on placement as well as giving us basic information on the culture and taught us some basic Thai words. Following this we went on a tour around Bangkok where we went on a long tail boat trip to the floating market, a Ferry trip to different Monk Temples, and a tour around Bangkok site seeing. After the tour we went for dinner with the other volunteers and a night off on Koh San Road before catching a train in the morning to Surin where we would be starting our placement. The placement is in a Childcare centre catering for children under 5, which could be compared to a play group or pre-school in the UK as the days are not structured by lessons.
The Childcare centre is located in a temple therefore the centre is run by monks. When you are on placement you should always respect the monk’s culture and beliefs by covering your shoulders and knees and ensuring you respect the surroundings of the buildings due to it being owned by the monks. The monks are all really friendly and at the end of our placement the head monk blessed us and gave us a monk bracelet for good luck in the future.
We spent two weeks with the children where we was able to form a strong bond with them and it was very sad to leave them. The staff are all really friendly however only one of them can speak fluent English so the language barrier can sometimes be a problem, however the teacher that speaks fluent English can translate.
Whilst on placement you get the weekends to yourself so we was able to visit the Elephant Village which is also a volunteering program run by Starfish volunteers where we were able to bath and sit on the Elephants in the river, then ride them out of the water and walk them back to their homes, again this was an experience of a lifetime and only costs around £16 for a full day trip.
Whilst on placement we was expected to teach the children an hour of English every day so I would recommend taking some materials to help you teach, however the company do have some basic English teaching materials that have been left by other volunteers over the years. The children really enjoyed singing and dancing so prepare yourself to be singing nursery rhymes with actions. The rest of the day is free play where you can interact with the children playing different games with them and exercising outside. We took in bubbles and made paper aeroplanes with the children and they really enjoyed themselves. Also in the afternoons we helped to renovate the centre and make it better for the children whilst we were there we pained the playground equipment, painted their chairs, made folders and boxes for the stationary and planted trees.
Throughout placement our accommodation was in the Big C House, you will share this house with any other volunteers. Big C house is next to another volunteer house also ran by starfish volunteers which other volunteers who may be doing another programme will stay in.
The house is very basic but kept clean by Lek who comes every morning. It has 5 bedrooms, 3 upstairs with a shared bathroom and 2 downstairs with a shared bathroom, a kitchen where you can prepare your own meals if you don’t fancy eating out, and a communal area outside where there are wooden beds on which we sunbathed and chilled out!
We also did our washing in a bucket outside, so would recommend taking travel wash! If you don’t fancy this, Lek offers a service where she charges 100 baht (£1.85) per large load of washing. There is no air con provided in the house but there are plenty of fans provided. At first this was hard to get used to, as it did get humid throughout the day but it was fine and manageable after the first couple of days.
There is Wi-Fi, although this is a little temperamental and if both Big C houses are busy with volunteers, we noticed it only lets a certain amount of people on at a time. So if you are wanting to talk to someone a lot throughout your stay there, I do recommend getting either a Thai Sim card or getting a dongle, although we did manage with the Wi-Fi (Tip: The Wi-Fi is much better in the communal area of the 1st Big C House as this is where the actual router is J )
The house is located just outside the town of Surin. There are many restaurants within short walking distance of the house! These include English and Thai restaurants, as well as many Thai street food places. There is a large supermarket within walking distance from the house, called Big C. This is great to buy your food if you don’t fancy eating out, your toiletries and other necessities as the house is on a self-catering basis. There is also a 7/11 shop which is little convenience store perfect for getting nibbles and drinks! (Tip: They DO NOT provide toilet roll as the toilet system in Thailand isn’t as advanced as ours in the UK so they don’t use it, so we recommend you do get toilet roll at the big C or the 7/11 when you get there J )
If you fancy going for a swim at the weekend there are two hotels nearby where you can use their swimming pool for the day for 100 baht (£1.85) which both have Wi-Fi and provide you with a towel.
The transport in Thailand can be very daunting to start with. When in Surin we got to placement by travelling on the back of a 4x4 truck, there’s hardly anything to hold on, but they are extremely safe – be prepared, seatbelts aren’t used in Thailand. If you feel uncomfortable however the staff are more than happy to let you travel in the front of the car.
Another way of travelling around in most areas of Thailand is by Tuk Tuk- these are little moped like things with a carriage on the back of them, they can fit up to five people in at a time (at a squeeze) and are your cheapest form of transport. Beware these are very fast and the drivers tend to brake very sharply so hold on tight! These can appear scary at first however it becomes part of your daily routine so you get used to them as well as enjoy them. In Surin Tuk Tuks are normally 100 baht (£2) wherever you want to go.
Taxi’s are also used in Thailand, just like you would see in the UK these are a lot safer however they are more expensive. If you use a taxi make sure they say they are charging by the metre otherwise they will overcharge you. The roads in Thailand are mainly four lane roads so as you can imagine Thai driving is pretty crazy! Taxi scooters are also used in Thailand where you can get on the back of someone’s moped and you tell them a price you would like to pay, however be very careful on these as they can be dangerous and it can be very scary. We would recommend to get either a Tuk Tuk or a taxi as they are much safer.
Surin isn’t a tourist location so you get a real insight of the Thai culture. There isn’t much nightlife in Surin like strips of bars and clubs but there is always something to do. There are some night markets (we didn’t actually go, but others living in the Big C house did), we were told they were really good and a perfect place to buy gifts to take home. There are a large selection of restaurants, we went to the same restaurant most night, a place called P Koi, a variety of Thai and a few Western food dishes – great food and the lady who ran it is lovely! We also ate in a restaurant called Starbeam, all Western Food and recommended on trip advisor. Food in Surin can be found very cheap, costing roughly from 50baht (£1), Western Food is a little more expensive than Thai food, but still a lot cheaper than in England. One of the Starfish Team (Nikki) owns a bar in Surin which we visited some nights, he sells a variety of drinks including cocktails out of jam jars. You have to get a Tuk Tuk there costing roughly 100baht each way (£2). We had some lovely evenings there meeting locals, they’re really lovely people. It may seem scary to start with, everyone staring at you, but they’re only looking because they rarely see white people. You will get a lot of attention, they are extremely friendly and will just want a photo with you.
Once your placement is over we would recommend spending some more time travelling the islands, Thailand is a beautiful country and there is much more to do and see. We spent an extra 2 weeks in Thailand, travelling the islands and seeing many different things.
When travelling we went to Bangkok (Koh San Road), Phuket, Phi Phi and Koh Phangan. We had nights out at each one, they are more tourist areas so you won’t be looked at like an alien. Bangkok has a strip called Koh San Road, it has your typical bars, clubs and restaurants. When we were there we were with the Starfish Team, they showed us the good places to go. We tried Scorpions from the street sellers – they taste a little bit like ready salted crisps. Phuket is very similar with a strip called Bangla Road. Phi Phi has a strip to clubs along the beach, there was a fire show in each club before everything got started, it was really good and one of us ended up being involved. Koh Phangan was the last place we went too, we came here for the Half Moon Party (there wasn’t a full moon when we were there, but a half moon was just as good).
When in Bangkok, we also went to the Sky Tower where the Hangover was filmed - 64 floors high and the view is amazing!
Things to do, things not to do
- I would definitely recommend that you visit the elephant village on your weekend off in Surin, we only paid 800 baht which is around £16 and we were able to walk the elephants to the river and bath them and sit on them in the water. Its an amazing experience and something I will never forget!
- The children's centre is run by the temple and donations and so the monks were very grateful for our time and what we did for the children, they bought us ice cream to say thank you and also blessed us and gave us religious bracelets for protection and good luck. However because of this it is really important to make sure that you keep covered up and are respectful of their beliefs.
- Although we felt safe in Thailand and everyone is very friendly, it is important to stay together and to make sure you don't go anywhere by yourself unless it is totally necessary and if you do go somewhere by yourself make sure others know where you are and what time you should be back.
- Thai culture is very different to English and so it would be good to learn some of their culture before you go, for example it is not allowed at all to make negative comments about the Thai royal family, also it is disrespectful to use your feet to point at someone or to step over someone.
- The children are all between the ages of 2 and 3 and so don't speak a word of English, also the locals in Surin speak very little English and so it would be recommended to learn basic Thai before you go, such as 1-10, hello, thank you.
- Make sure you enjoy your time with the children, they are very loving and are fun to be around and time seems to go so fast while you are there so make sure to make the most of your time. P.S they love selfies!
-Make sure you get all of you vaccinations in plenty of time as for some of them there are minimum times to have them, also there is a charge for hep B which is £30 per vaccination and you will need 3.
- Book your flights well in advance as they are normally cheaper, we flew with southern air china as it was the best price and we would recommend them as we had no problems with our flights.
- If you get the chance travel down to the south as there are amazing beaches and also loads more to do as it is much more touristy.
Tiger Kingdom, Phuket A boat trip around Phi Phi Maya bay, Phi Phi The flying Hanuman, Phuket
- Make sure you let your bank know that you are going away and are planning to use your card as sometime banks will stop your card from working in a foreign country and you will be left with no money!
- Nam the Surin coordinator: 0819008759
- The British embassy in Bangkok: +6623058333
- The UK royal Thai embassy: 02075892944
- Ambulance: 1554
- Tourist police: 1155
-Fire 199
Before you set off for your journey in Thailand you should ensure that:
1. You learn some basic Thai language such as Hello, Goodbye, Thank you, 1-10 in numbers, and How much?. This will not only benefit you whilst on placement (as the children do not know any English) but when you order food in restaurants, buy items in shops and just generally speak to the Thai community.
2. Make sure you have appropriate clothing for placement as it is located in the monk temple therefore you must respect them by covering from your shoulders to your knees. (Harem trousers are good as they are lightweight and you will be hot, and a basic t-shirt, preferably baggy as again you will be very hot.)
3. Read the starter back and guide from Starfish Volunteers before you come so you know where you are meeting your guide and when, also it gives you information for if you are lost, need help, or your flight is delayed. ( I would print this off to be safe as you probably won't be able to reach your email in the Thai airport due to being no wifi)
4. Make sure you book the doctors in advance to ensure you get all the correct vaccinations.
5. If you want to bring over gifts for the children the centre are low on stationary however contact the team before bringing things over for the children.
6. Take a bum bag with you as they are so handy to keep money, phones and valuables in especially your passport as you have to carry that with you 24/7 in Thailand.
Comments (0)
You don't have permission to comment on this page.