quick hi from bkk!

Well, hi, I made it! It's great to be able to wear my flip flops again. :)

I got in yesterday afternoon, found my way to my hotel, and killed a couple hours walking around the Sukhumvit area where we're staying, got myself some food, and fell asleep at 8pm. Apparently I had caught up on sleep by the time the rest of the group arrived at 2am, because I didn't go back to sleep after that! I'm only 5 hours off from Athens, so jet lag shouldn't be too bad.

First impression: there are SO MANY single male travelers. White, middle-aged, alone. It took approximately 5 minutes on the street yesterday to notice that they were filling the bars and restaurants, some sitting with young thai women, to be completely disgusted. Today, too, as we took a tour around this area (the hub of the red light district, where all the bars, etc. are), I really struggled with these feelings of disgust. Hearing a 60 year old American guy with a fanny pack go up to a woman and say eagerly, "So I hear this is the best salon in town!" makes me want to vomit. Preferably on him. Or in his fanny pack. Really struggling with this. I know they are "enslaved" too, and I have done a better job having compassion for these men before, but never has it been so in-my-face and I want them to feel ashamed and know they are disgusting. I guess you could pray for my attitude; I am.

Charity's parents are here, as they are an integral part of Night Light Bangkok, and her dad said that he hates traveling here alone, because he knows what that looks like. Pity the innocent business man that has to come here alone - everyone knows why they are "really" here.

There are certain districts where only Thai women work, and others where you find women who are trafficked from mostly Eastern Europe. In other areas there are throngs of beggars, who are also often in some sort of debt bondage, exploiting their mutilated limbs, leprosy, or drugged babies for a few Thai Baht.

The group is amazing; I really like the girl I'm sharing a room with, and we have some amazing things planned this week. We'll do outreach in the bars a few nights, volunteer in the Night Light offices where the women are employed making jewelry, and visit Pattaya, a beach city known for its sex industry, and visit a few other ministries working with these women. We also get to see most of the sites around the city - they want us to experience the "good" of the city too - and take a Thai cooking class! Yum. Should be fun. Tonight we are going downtown to see the movie "Soi Cowboy," which is about the sex industry here.

I'll try to get some pictures posted sometime if possible (when I actually have pictures to post - can't take pictures with a lot of what I do!).

All for now~