my lucky charm

A MORAL LESSON: THE BOY WHO TRIED TO ESCAPE DEATH

2011-09-12T03:20:00.000-07:00

The Boy who tried to escape Death

Chapter 1
Aug 10th, 2007
By Ahmed.
Ahmad was a teenage boy at 16 years of age. He had two older brothers and one younger sister. His parents were ones of excellent religious character who tried their best to raise their children to the standards of Islam. It was religion first then education second. They hated when other Muslim friends or family asked their children about their education without first being asked about their religious duty to Allah being performed.
Sadly Ahmad attached himself to the so-called glitter of life. He would not pray while running off to the cinema with his friends while spending time hours and hours a day talking about girls. When his parents realized of what Ahmad was doing they sat him down one evening for a very important Islamic talk.
“Ahmad, my dear son. You know I love you from the bottom of my heart. I am your father who wants best for you all as you are all my children, my flesh and blood.” His father said to him in a saddened tone.
“I know.” Ahmad answered without emotion.
“Ahmad. By Allah, if you don’t like school you can come and work with me as long as you turn back to Allah.” His father said.
“Dad! It’s OK! I am 16! I have a long life ahead of me! I promise I will be good in the future!”
“My child. Did you control the timing of your own birth? Did you decide your own bodily features?” His father asked.
“No!” Ahmad answered.
“Then can He who brought you to this Earth without your consent at that exact time, take your soul at an exact time without your consent?” His father answered.
“Yes. But dad I know, I feel in my heart I will not die now!”
“My Son, before your birth you did not know that you will be born and on what time, therefore you do not know when you will be taken back to Him and at what time.” His dad again answered.
“I love Allah and that is enough for Him to forgive me!” Ahmad answered.
His mother began to cry and joined in the discussion.
“By beloved son, can a parent be satisfied with a disobedient son though the son declares their love for them?” His mother asked.
“No!” Ahmad answered.
“Then the One who created the whole Universe, the supreme, the irresistible cannot be content with His slave upon creation who disobeys Him despite such a slave saying that he loves his Lord.” His mother answered.
“You show your love for Allah by obeying Him and his messenger (salla Allaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam).” His mother continued.
“Mother! Why is life like this? Why must I do this and do that! I don’t want to live my life in boredom trying to avoid almost everything!” Ahmad yelled out.
“Ahmad! She is your mother! Show respect! Not only that, but show respect to your creator who gave you life and gave you a wonderful mother who loves you! There are ways to have fun in Islam!” His father said sternly.
“How is Allah merciful when He sends people to Hell?” Ahmad yelled.
“Are you still alive?” His father asked.
“Yes!” Ahmad answered rudely.
“Then is that not an example of Allah’s Mercy keeping you alive after you insulting The Most Gracious?” His father replied.
Ahmad was lost for words. He got up and stormed up to his room.
“You are all so boring! Why can’t we be like other religions who say enjoy life to the max? I am ashamed to be who I am!” Ahmad yelled as he stormed up to his room.
Poor Ahmad, little did he know that the final countdown of the last 10 days of his life had just begun…

Chapter 2
Ahmad lay in his bed fast asleep. The time approached Salatul-Thuhur. Suddenly Ahmad woke up from the sudden shaking of his blankets.
“Ahmad! Wake up!” His father called as he shook him awake.
“For God Sake! Why? It’s only 1:00pm in the afternoon!” Ahmad called out as he stretched around to stare at his alarm clock.
“It’s only 1:00pm?! Are you insane? Almost the whole population is out of bed, and you are acting as it is 6:00am!” His father answered in a shocked tone.
“Why are you waking me up?” Ahmad moaned.
“Because you are coming to the Mosque with me today for prayer. I want you to experience just one Prayer in your life!” His father sternly called.
Ahmad moaned as he struggled to sit up.
“Now, I will be up in two minutes with a cup of cold water to throw over you if you are not out of bed!” His father said as he left Ahmad’s room.
Ahmad stormed off to the bathroom to prepare himself in a fit of rage.
20 minutes later Ahmad and his father were off walking towards the Mosque.
“Ahmad, I cannot believe you are so angry with the thought of standing before Allah!” His father said as they walked together.
“I could be at home playing my computer; instead I am tiring myself out by having to stand for 10 hours in boring prayer!” Ahmad moaned.
“Are you crazy? No Prayer lasts that long, not even half of that time! Now pull yourself together because the way you are storming down this road seems to me you are suffering from constipation!”
“Dad! Those people must have heard! Yet again you embarrass me!” Ahmad yelled.
“Embarrass you? The way you are composing yourself on this street is humiliating me, your father…Right here we are, now behave yourself for once!”
Ahmad and his father entered the Masjid. His father carefully observed Ahmad as he performed Wudu while trying to teach him the proper steps of performing it.
Ahmad finished the Wudu with the sudden expression on his face seeming as if he had been working all day hard labour!
They both entered the Prayer hall and found a place in the front row. The Muadhdhin called out ‘Iqamah and everyone rose to stand in Prayer before their Lord. They all begun the Salat together with the Imam, and Ahmad stood before his Lord for the first time in his life…
During the Prayer his father heard sounds of sobbing to the left of him! It was his son! A small smile appeared on the fathers face while a sensation passed through his body with pure intentions of happiness that father and son stood side by side before their Lord in humbleness.
After the Prayer Ahamd’s Father looked towards his son and smiled.
“Mashah’Allah my beloved son! You see? Is there anything more beautiful than Prayer? You even cried to Allah!”
“No, no, no! I cried because I just realized that I left my mobile at home and I promised to call Mo.”
“WHAT! You ignorant little…” His father held his composure.
“You are telling me you cried because you let your friend down, while feeling NOTHING every time you let your Lord down? Let me tell you something! Allah has no need of you or any of us, so you better start acting like you need Him, because one day you WILL need Him!” His father quietly yelled.
Ahmad’s father got up and stormed outside and stood beneath a large green beautiful tree. He stared towards the ground and cried. The tears rolled down his cheeks and dropped to the floor out of fear and love towards his son.
That day neither father nor son spoke to one another.
Another day gone, another day closer to Ahmad’s death. Nine days remain…

Chapter 3

Ahmad’s Father, Muhammad, sat at the breakfast table staring down, watching the steam from his hot tea rise up into the air. Ahmad’s mother, ‘Aliya, approached Muhammad and sat next to him.
“My beloved husband, what makes you sad?”
“It is Ahmad. I weep for him. I have had a hard life and never had the life of a proper child. I was brought up in sin and I wasted so many years of my life in which I could have spent my timing worshipping Allah. All I ever wanted is to bring up a son worshipping Allah so that I can replace what I have lost and look towards my Lord Allah on The Day of Judgment with my son in my hand and smile towards Allah showing Him, Most High, my pious son whom I have brought into this World with the permission of Allah. Look what we have done! We have only turned towards Allah now in our lives and our son is lagging behind! What if he died now and goes to Hell? How can I live with that guilt…My son, my son!” Ahmad’s father suddenly burst into tears. Ahmad’s mother could not herself hold back the tears and both husband and wife comforted each other.
Two more days have already passed and Ahmad has only seven days to live.
Ahmad lay on his bed, ear phones in his ears listening to music, magazine in his hand, eyes and mind focusing on sinful star signs.
Hours pass. The sun begins to set. Ahmad jumps off the bed and prepares himself for the night out with his friends. He runs downstairs and is immediately confronted by his mother who is blocking the front door.
“Mum! What are you doing?!”
“I am stopping you from leaving the house! It is almost 9:00PM and we are about to eat dinner together!”
“What! I made a promise to Mo that I will meet up with him tonight!” Ahmad screamed.
“It is late and we need to eat dinner. Why is it your brothers and sister are so obedient and not you?”
“Because I have a life and they don’t!”
“How dare you? They worship Allah; they are doing well in their life…Look at you Ahmad! Cant you see what you are doing to yourself?!”
“Move!” Ahmad screamed as he moved forward towards his mother.
With his elbow, he knocked into his mother pushing her over. She fell to the side knocking her shoulder against the wall.
“Ya Allah forgive my son, forgive me son!” ‘Aliya burst into tears holding her shoulder. Ahmad’s father ran towards the front door to comfort his wife. Before he could say anything to Ahmad, he had already run down the street towards his friends. Ahmad’s father sat down holding his wife in his arms, who had already collapsed from the pain and sadness of what her own son had done to her.
‘Aliya stared straight into Muhammad’s eyes, tears rolling down her cheeks, eyes red with pain.
“Why? Why? I will die to save my son for the sake of Allah. He is a part of me and a son whom I love. What he has done to me is like removing my heart from me. I love him Ya Allah! Guide him and protect him…” ‘Aliya again burst into tears.
Ahmad’s father could not listen to those words without feeling his heart break into two.
Little did Ahmad know that in Islam whoever harms their mother, Allah sends punishment straight away upon them…

Chapter 4
Ahmad ran down the road towards his friend Mo.
“Yo Ahmad! Where were you?!” Mo called out as Ahmad ran towards him.
“Ah! It’s my parents again! They filled my ears again with all that religious rubbish.”
“Ha-ha! Don’t they have a life? I mean, Allah says He is forgiving, so as long as we believe in Him we will all go to Paradise as long as we don’t harm other people!” Mo spoke without knowledge.
Mo and Ahmad continued down the road towards the local nightclub they usually attend…
Little did they know that a police chase was actually taking place just a few minutes drive away from where Mo and Ahmad were!
Five police cars continued to pursue a stolen car that headed directly towards the road Mo and Ahmad were heading. As Mo and Ahmad joked along the road they heard the sound of several sirens heading towards them.
One hundred meters away from the two, the stolen car traveling at 40mph lost control and smashed into a parked car, skidded to the other side of the road towards Mo and Ahmad…
Mo screamed as he jumped out of the way while Ahmad hesitated. The car kept on skidding towards the two and only managed to knock Ahmad with its side, thumping him with enough force a couple of yards down the road. The side of Ahmad’s body collided with a brick ball and he lay motionless on the ground. Mo screamed as he ran towards his best friend.
“Oh my God! Don’t die on me!” Mo screamed in panic as he tried shaking his body.
Police officers ran towards Mo and pulled him away afraid of him causing more harm on the motionless body of Ahmad.
A few Police officers attended Ahmad while a few others arrested and restrained the criminal.
Mo ran towards Ahmad’s house in a panic. He ran up to the house and frantically hammered on the front door.
Ahmad’s father opened the door in confusion.
“Mo? What happened?!” Ahmad’s father said in a worry.
“It’s Ahmad! He’s had an accident!” Mo screamed out, almost out of breath.
“Bring me to him quick!” Ahmad’s father said as he quickly put his shoes on. Ahmad’s mother quickly followed.
Ahmad’s father and Mo approached Ahmad, and this time he was surrounded by a couple of paramedics.
“Is he going to be alright?!” Ahmad’s father asked one paramedic.
“He is unconscious at the moment and is suffering from a dislocated shoulder. We need to get him quickly as possible to the hospital to give him an urgent brain scan to see for any damage or clots to the brain.”
Tears rolled down Ahmad’s fathers cheeks.
Ahmad’s father and mother approached the ambulance in which Ahmad’s unconsciousness body on a stretcher was in.
“I want to come!” Mo called out to Ahmad’s father.
“No. Just go home and ponder on what has happened tonight and think to yourself why this has happened!” He answered.
The ambulance doors were shut by one of the paramedics, and the ambulance then proceeded to head quickly towards the hospital transporting Ahmad and his worried parents.
All was quiet as Mo stood there, listening to the sirens fade away in the distance, watching police detectives investigate the scene of the accident.
Mo turned around and headed not towards his home, but to the nightclub where he and Ahmad were planning to go all along.
“…Why should I bore myself at home? No one is going to stop me from enjoying this night I already planned with poor Ahmad…” Mo thought to himself as he headed towards the nightclub…

Chapter 5
Both Ahmad’s parents sat around his hospital bed as he lay there unconscious.
Suddenly Ahmad’s eyes began to flutter, and then after a minute his eyes slightly opened.
“AllahuAkbar! My son! How are you feeling?!” Ahmad’s mother asked as she bent over holding her son’s hands with hers. Tears began to roll down her cheeks.
“…When I saw that car coming towards me…I thought that was it…I was going to die…” Ahmad quietly said.
“How long were you waiting here?” Ahmad asked.
“About 11 hours. We made Salat in this room.” Ahmad’s father calmly said.
“…My parents stayed up for me all those hours and continued their worship too Allah. I can’t even sit down with my parents for a minute without having to do something that Allah hates…” Ahmad thought to himself.
Suddenly tears poured from his eyes. Ahmad’s father cuddled him and asked, “What makes you cry Ahmad?”
“Em…Not sure…Just happy to be alive?” Ahmad answered rather confused embarrassed to tell his parents how he was feeling.
After two days in the hospital, Ahmad was released. His left arm was supported in a sling so the shoulder could recover after the dislocation it suffered. That night while Ahmad lay in bed resting, his friend mo called him up.
“Ah Ahmad! I heard that you are safe back at home, that’s why I decided to call you up.” Mo said on the phone.
“That’s nice.” Ahmad answered.
“Listen Ahmad. Since that night was messed up and you could not go to the nightclub, do you want to come down tonight? I was so angry when you had that accident! You should have seen the girls I chatted up at the club when you were brought to hospital!”
“Mo. To be honest, I really don’t want to go. Say if this is a warning from Allah?”
“Warning?! Are you mad?! Don’t tell me you are becoming an extremist! You know they have the most boring of lives!”
“They may have a boring life now, but they sure have everything when they die!” Ahmad answered.
“Come on Ahmad! We are Muslims! We will go to Heaven. Ok, we might be punished in Hell for a little while, but we will all eventually go to Paradise, so what is there to worry about? Besides, Allah is merciful! He said if you believe, He will forgive you!” Poor Mo spoke without knowledge.
“Hmm. I don’t know. Let me think about it. Surely not tonight as my arm is still in a lot of pain, but tomorrow I will give you the answer.”
“Ok. Don’t forget to call me tomorrow! I have to now sit down in this boring house and listen to my father reading Qur’an. Man! They have such a boring life; I don’t even know how they can smile!”
After the phone call Ahmad sat down on his bed in shock. This is the first time for Ahmad to let down an offer out of fear of what Allah can do to him! Ahmad tried holding back his tears.
“…How can Allah ever love me? Look what I have done. I have never committed a minute of my patience and time for Allah. I have physically hurt my mother and yet she still loves me. How can Allah ever forgive me…?” Ahmad thought to himself.
Another night has passed, and only 4 days until the appointed time of his death.
The next day Ahmad’s arm was still in a lot of pain. Ahmad rejected Mo’s offer in going to the local nightclub that night. Ahmad spent the whole day thinking about life…
Days pass and now we enter the final day of Ahmad’s life…
Nobody knows, not even the angels of death.
The day is Thursday. Ahmad wakes up early after having a bad dream. Fortunately his arm is out of the sling.
Ahmad slowly goes down the stairs and sits at the kitchen table. No-body seems to be at home. He finds his father’s work on the table. He picks up his work to move it to the desk. As he is carrying his fathers work a small diary accidentally falls on the floor. After his father’s papers had been put back carefully, Ahmad curiously opens up his father’s small diary, and there written on the front page are the words of Allah from Qur’an:
“”Oh my servants who have transgressed against themselves (by committing evil deeds and sins)! Despair not of the mercy of Allah. Truly, He is the Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.” (39:53)”
Ahmad suddenly burst into tears. His hands begin to shake and his vision becomes blurred. He flicks through a few pages and reads the following:
“…I was away from Allah. I sinned against my soul. Far away was I from Allah. I turned to Allah and then fell into sin again when my two sons were born…” Ahmad flicks through more pages and what he reads shocks him even more…
“…My little Ahmad, my third son. He is five years old now. It is him who turned me back to Allah. He saw me once watching TV and asked, “If a Sheik came into the room and saw you, what would you do?” I answered, “I would quickly turn off the TV”. My son answered me back, “But baba! Allah is watching you all the time and He is more pure than all the Sheiks in the World!” My mouth dropped. I felt disgraced with myself. I turned back to Allah, vowing to keep my duty to Allah. My wife ‘Aliya also made the vow…” Ahmad continued to read on…
“…My Ahmad has mixed in with the wrong crowd. I see him moving away from his religion. I have failed. My son changed me by the will of Allah. How can I change him? What of my actions will make my son turn back to Allah?”
Ahmad closed the diary, tears rolling down his face. Ahmad got hold of a pen and paper and wrote down the following:
“My Father. I have read your diary. I changed you when I was a child through my questioning by the will of Allah. Your words of your diary have turned me back to Allah by His will and Command.” Ahmad slipped the page into his father’s diary on the last page he had read.
Ahmad got up and for the first time on his own he performed Wudu. Ahmad put his clothes and shoes on and walked towards the masjid.
Unfortunately little did Ahmad know that Mo, his friend, was going to take the same road as him! Will Mo influence him back to the road to Hell? Can Ahmad influence Mo to the road towards Paradise? Will Ahmad continue on the road he is on?

TO BE CONTINUED.....

RAMADAN is here once again! Alhamdulillah.......

2011-07-29T04:57:00.000-07:00

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Muslim Calendar which lasts for usually 29 to 30 days. It is a period when Muslims are expected to fast from morning (dawn) to evening (sunset) with sincere intention (for the sake of Allah). Alhamdulillah! What a blessing to be alive. I am very fortunate and thankful to the Almighty Allah for giving me the strength and faith to fulfil all the conditions of fasting. The importance of fasting cannot be over emphasized.

First of all, Ramadan is the fourth pillar of Islam. It helps strengthening ones' Imaan (faith). It prevents one from committing sins. It maintains ones health. It is an opportunity for man to get closer to his Creator (Allah SWT). The reward one gets from it is countless. Allah accepts the prayer of the one who is fasting sincerely. Therefore, Muslims should perform night prayers (tahajjud) which will increase their faith, make them humble and gain them extra reward. They should enjoin good and abstain from bad deeds. This will make them true believers (mu'min). They should stop listening to music because music is a satanic act and it nullifies fasting. They should abstain from backbiting and slandering and fornication. They should increase the recitation and listening of the holy Quran. They should make good use of their time through Da’wah (preaching), reading authentic hadiths and translations of the holy Quran in order to have better understanding of the Deen.
My Brothers and sisters let us not compromise our Akhira (afterlife) for this worldly life (temptations). This Life is a test and is just for a short period of time, so let’s get ready to face it with Sabr (patience), perseverance, Taqwa (fear of Allah) and sincerity. I believe Allah will surely see us through. Insha’Allah!

Finally, I pray that we witness many Ramadan to come in good health, strong faith, wisdom and prosperity. I pray to Allah to shower His mercy and blessings on the entire Muslim Ummah. Let peace and harmony prevail in our little universe. He alone knows what is best for His servants. I pray that He continues to provide for us and guide us on the right path (Siraatal Mustaqeem). 'He alone we worship and He alone we ask for help. Guide us on the straight path, the path of those whom you have favoured. Not the path of those who earn your anger not of those who go astray.' (Quran- chapter 1; verse 4-7.)

Assalamu alaikum wa Rahmatoullah wa barakaatuh

its my birthday once again....

2009-12-29T09:45:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, Monday the 28th marks my 22nd birthday. Birthdays are very important days in our lives. I'm so lucky this time around because this birthday was my real birthday. I felt happy and grateful that i lived to witness it. Unlike my other birthdays, I received many birthday wishes from my family, friends, well wishers and loved ones. It makes me felt so loved and cared for. I appreciate all the warm wishes from everyone. I pray and hope to celebrate many more years to come with good health, happy family, strong faith and prosperity.

Its Ramadan Once Again....

2009-08-27T08:43:00.000-07:00

i'm very grateful to Allah for granting me another Ramadan.
I am feeling so excited that I've witness yet another blessed Ramadan. Ramadan is a period of fast where every practicing Muslim is expected to keep fast during this holy month. last year i observed it in Thailand. It was quite different because there i was with myself all alone- no family gathering when its time to break the fast. I really thank Allah that this time around I'm with my family and well wishers- all observing it together. Ramadan is one of the most peaceful month in the Islamic lunar calender. One is expected to fulfil all its obligation, abstain from committing bad deeds, spend ampule time asking for God's forgiveness. We should also remember to supplicate to God at all times in order to be a better person. I just pray that we witness many more years to come with good health, strong faith and prosperity.

Till i come your way next time, enjoy my posts. Until then i remained

yours
tuti

tuk tuk!!!!!! in the gambia....

2009-01-22T04:59:00.001-08:00

country wide tour( the Gambia)

2008-12-29T04:14:00.000-08:00

the university administration building

After my completion of a semester at Payap University, Thailand, I returned to my homeland and participated in a country wide tour as a student of the University of the Gambia (UTG) together with my colleagues headed by a senior lecturer at UTG; Dr. Saja Taal which was proudly sponsored by a leading GSM operator in the Gambia called Africell. Forty-one people took part in the tour including a senior lecturer and two drivers. Students from the faculty of economics and management, social science, arts and humanities, medicine and allied health science, and science and technology of UTG initiated the trip geared towards seeing the various regions in the Gambia and to assess the level of development in terms of agriculture, infrastructure, education, health and so on. The slogan of the trip was Basse before Babylon; it simply means that before traveling abroad as a citizen of the Gambia, it’s our responsibility to know the country beyond the theoretical aspect. For instance, I was confronted with series of questions about my country during my stay in Thailand, some of which I don’t have answers to because of the little knowledge I had but now, I’m very confident that I can give positive respond to all the questions asked before. stone circles at wassu

On my part, the trip served as an eye opener in the sense that I only learnt about these places in text books, I didn’t have the chance to see most of it but that’s not the case now. Before leaving for Thailand, I gave little importance to traveling and exploring. The trips conducted during my stay in Thailand were very interesting and educative. Our visits to the different locations revealed to me the standard of living of its people, the level of development, challenges each faced and the intercultural differences that exist. I’m very confident to tell anyone about my country now that I’ve seen the north bank region, central river region, upper river region, lower river region and western region. I live in the kombo St Mary’s region. The Gambia having the river as its main transport artery consists of tributaries (Bolong __local name) such as the Bintang Bolong, Bao Bolong, Sofaniama Bolong, Miniminiang Bolong, and Sandugu Bolong. There are islands called the Macarthy Island, James Island, Baboon Island, Elephant Island and Dog Island. I saw important and interesting places in the history of the Gambia; namely stone circles at Wassu, slave house in Janjanburey(McCarthy island) and the nature reserve park in Kanilai( the president’s park). The nature park has lions, hyenas, crocodile pool, ostrich, snakes, giraffes, wild dogs and so on. I was so excited to see some of these creatures.

Each region is governed by governors who gave us a warmth welcome and brief us about the regional activities, the threats and challenges they faced in terms of the key factors of development. Accommodation was fully provided by the regional education office. We spent nights in different regions and each department was asked to give a brief presentation of their departments in order to inspire and motivate the high school students to apply to the UTG upon their completion. We were greatly respected anywhere we went as the highest tertiary institution in the Gambia.

that's the river gambia behind us...

The trip was successful, educative, interesting and worthwhile that I hope to take part in many of its kind in the future. It was so wonderful and impressive. I never imagined that I could find all the important and beautiful places I came across in the Gambia. I want to thank all those that made the trip a success, beginning with Dr. Saja Taal who is a man of high intellectual and a father figure, the cooks, the drivers and my colleagues.

thats me at the nature reserve park

Sad To Say Goodbye!!!!!

2008-12-12T18:28:00.000-08:00

Spending this last four months in Thailand was like a part of my dream come true. I had the most wonderful experience that i would not have had else where. I'll call it my second home sweet home. The Thai Studies program is one in a million. Everything about the program is amazing.The staffs and the students. Oh my God, I'll miss them so much. At the beginning, i see myself as a stranger but that's not the case now. I live in the dorm where everyone is like brothers, sisters, uncles and aunts. The house is truly international because there lives Thai, American, Japanese, Korean, Taiwanese,Barbadian,Chinese,Indians, Pakistanis,British, french and Gambian. so we have people all over different continents such as Europe, Asia, Africa and America. As for me, I'm so privilege to be the only one from my country and the continent at large. I know that opportunities like this comes but once in a life time.

During my stay, I became very close to all my friends that it was very difficult for me to say goodbye at the end of the program. It is true that we all have to go our separate ways but the memories we shared together was too much of a happiness for me. I miss my family back home, yes, but I think I've spent half of my life with them and am going back to spend the rest of it but when will i see the family i made in Thailand, my sisters, brothers, aunts and uncles.That i don't know. Only God has an answer to that. Only thing i can do is to pray to Him to see them one fine day. When I'm with my friends and well wishers, I hardly miss my family back home. May be that is because i had everything that my family gave me such as love, happiness, care, respect, hope and above all family. I didn't lack anything. Anytime I'm not feeling well, they will come to me and comfort me. I really want to remember all those moments when we go to the working street in the song taew, making fun, singing and dancing. They taught me a lot of things such as

songs and games. One of which is "make new friends but keep the old, one is silver and the other's gold. A circle is round it has no end that's how long i want to be your friend". A game called the zib zab zob, I learnt that from Ajan Jessica. Am so lucky, God gave me all these happiness and good companies.

I want to remember joy( my Barbadian brownie), Katie(my american princess), Andrea(my mexican princess), Kato, Rooney, Asa, Emily,Kelsy, Sarah, Hannah, Andrea R, Daniel, Nick, Peter, Miriam, Angela, Junko and Danaan all are Thai studies student. Not forgetting the President of Payap and staffs Ajan Adam, Jessica, Pi Noi, Marcus, Pi Neung, Ajan Paul, Ajan Boy, Ajan Ray, Pi Gai, Dr Jenjit and Ajan Ho. We all know that we've been the best group so far. Thank you all, I learnt a lot from you and I'll make sure that i make good use out of it. Everything organised including the trips, lunches, dinners, anniversaries were so awesome. We are always happy and smiling every time we gathered together. It makes me felt like home. I believe that "no one is born happy... But all of us are born with the ability to create happiness... So today, make others happy, flash your sweetest smiles...Have a life full of smiles. Happiness always looks small when you hold it in your hands. But when you learn to share it you will realize how big and precious it is".... I'm wishing you all a great and happy life. Have Sanook at all times. It wasn't easy letting them go but i have to at the end.....i was given no choice. I'll love and cherish the precious moments we shared. My special friendly sisters. Love you. I wish in life we were given options to choose. Then i'll choose to be with my friendly sisters and brothers. But life goes on with either ways. I'll pray for you all to be happy where ever you are.

I'll always remember the residents of Paradornparp International House(PIH), the students and staffs including the care takers and cooks. They are so hospitable. They kept the house so clean that people living there are comfortable and healthy. Thank you for contributing to my hygenic needs.

Before coming, i know nothing about Southeast Asia but now i appreciate that i can tell someone about Southeast Asia. Am so grateful to Payap Thai studies program, university of the Gambia and st Mary's college Maryland for believing in me and giving me this opportunity to broaden my horizon and maximise my experience by coming for an exchange in Thailand. It was the best thing that could ever happen to me.

Let me practice the little thai i know with some ending phrases. Thanks to Ajan Boy for that challenging short period of learning Pasathai.

Thai studies group at the farewell lunch.

Chan Rak Tuk Kon.... Chan Kittin Tuk Kon.... Chan ja mai leum tuk Kon. Pob Can Mai....kha......

P.S. I want to say a big thank you to Ajan Jessica for introducing me to blog posting and writing journal. Now i know the beauty of it i'll continue to keep journals. I love you all sooooo much.

Now i can't wait to see my family back home. They've waited so long for my return. Now is the time for them to come pick up at the airport saying to themselves, our daughter has changed so much. she has gained more wait...more beautiful and so on... The only comfort i'll need as it is in my dream is my mother's hug. Her love and care i missed for four months. I've longed for them. I'll go for it the moment i see her. Ask for her blessing. She's the most important person in my life. She's is my treasure and I'll pray to Allah that i reach home safely so that i can fulfil my post dreams. Inshallah(by the grace of God). Amin

This is my last and final blog for ICU. Hope you enjoyed reading them. Bye for now till i come your way next time.

My Luckiest Day in Thailand

2008-12-03T07:04:00.000-08:00

International Day at Payap University turned out to be a very happy and lucky day for me. It was the sixth(6th) international day. I won a 5000 baht at the raffle draw. I submitted a passport having stamps of different countries. Actually it was supposed to be 10 stamps but i had more than that. It was the criteria to be qualified for the draw. When i had 10 stamps in my passport i took it to the table and i won a t-shirt. Then i went for the second time and i won a Thai music CD. The final draw earned me a 5000baht. I was so happy because i told my friends that i wanted to win the money and God really answered my prayers. I'm so grateful to Him.

We the thai studies group sang the Thai Royal Anthem(King's song) at the beginning of the program. We've been learning the song for 2weeks and we finally made it. It was truly an International Day beacuse many booths were set up by different nationals such as Turkish, American, Thai, Burmese, Vietnamese, Canadian, Japanese, Korean and so forth. Most of them sold food, snacks, while others play games, dunk, american slang, perfomances such as dancing and singing.

that's me holding my cash prize

It was so awesome. I had a great time going around, saying hello to everyone. Seeing people in thier cultural costumes was so beautiful. I also dressed in my attire an i felt so wonderful.

Thanks Giving Day!!!!! Turkey Day.....

2008-11-27T05:18:00.000-08:00

thanks giving dinner @ PIH

Thanks Giving day, the last Thursday of November. I've never celebrated this day because is an American culture. The Paradornparp International House hosted a Thanks Giving dinner and almost everyone at Payap University was invited. My friends told me that it was all about eating turkey, cinnamon rolls, pumkin pie, apple pie and so forth after which you thank God for what you're grateful for. I made sure that i tasted everything on the menu. And it left me no other choice than to get overloaded. It was really happy Thanks Giving that i wish we had everyday a thanks giving day when we have to eat so much and all our dreams will come true.....

Happy Thanks Giving

Homestay in an Ethnic Minority Village

2008-11-20T04:05:00.000-08:00

the thai studies group at Lisu village with the lisu people

Last week, Thai stuidies group made their final trip to the upland holistic development project(UHDP) and Lisu village, an ethnic minority village . A village made up of a hundred families, spirit house, a Buddhist temple and a church. Women were not allowed in the spirit house because they're not pure till they reach menopause.It was a four nights and five days trip. We were asked to bring along sweaters because it was going to be very cold up on the mountains. We spent two days in UHDP and did activities like getting food from the forest which was prepared for dinner. In the morning , they slaughtered a pig infront of my very eyes, oh my gush, it was the most terrible thing i have ever seen. Actually, it was my first time to watch a pig been killed and mercilessly for that matter.It's quite different from the way islam does. As a muslim is forbidden to eat pig products, so this experience was an eye opening for me. It was my first and it will be my last. Anyways, we helped them prepare the poor animal for lucnh and dinner. Some of my friends who like pigs neither watched nor ate the pig. It was very sad. I prayed for its innocent soul to rest in the kingdom of God.

We went to the village which was a 2 1/2 hours from UHDP. It was high on top of the mountains and I saw the city of Chiang Rai from there. The villagers welcomed us nicely, each of us stayed with a family. I stayed in a 3months old mud hut with two other student. I had two sweaters, a blanket and a sleeping bag because it was very cold in the mud hut. The communication was poor because they use a different dialect. We could speak little Thai, so i had a barrier in communicating with some of them. Some can speak Thai. They show their hospitality by offering strong liquor to any visitor that visit the village.They forced liquor on some of my friends which led them to a very bad state, i mean drunkun state. If something is offered to you in that village, you can't refused it because is considered not right to do so. They would ask you to try little. As for me that was not the case. I don't drink alcohol nor pork, so i was so fortunate they understand my religion.In the village, many young people have migrated to the city inserach for better opportunities leaving behind their parents to take care of their children.

i stayed in this mud hut

I saw the cabbage and coffee filed.Harvest some coffee seeds which my host mother normally sells in the village and neighbouring villages. she mentioned something like 25 baht per kilo. It is cheap because many people are engage in coffee growing. The trip was so interesting and amazing. It was the last trip for the thai studies program this semester and now am looking forward to my last 3 weeks in thailand. Hoping to make the best out of it and realize my goals, which i've been working on since my arrival in thailand. I'm glad to say that not all have been fulfilled but i won't give up because there is still time even if it's a second.I know i can make something really good out of it.

cheers

Teaching kon Thai Pasa-Angrik.....

2008-11-10T07:56:00.000-08:00

This time around katie and i taught two staffs at pih. During the first lesson, we had to teach only one person but we were glad we had two people, may be their will be more to come in the future. Both were so excited to have us taught them english language or pasa-angrik as they called it. We had the lesson inside the kitchen store which was an extraodinary experience for me.
They learnt how express ones feeling like happy, excited, sad and so forth, body parts and random verbs. We also learnt from them some thai phrases. They did preety well this time in English pronounciation but i mispronounced some thai words. Anytime i pronounce a thai word wrongly, they would laugh then rectify me. I enjoyed the whole process and wish i could stay longer to be able to speak and understand more Pasa-Thai. Looking forward to another lesson....
chan dee jai :)

Baan Sanook...:)

2008-11-08T07:38:00.000-08:00

Baan Sanook means Fun House. It is a foundation for the mentally challenged people. My friend, katie volunteers there. The first day i visited The Healing Foundation(actual name), i became a beauty/ princess. It was their 3rd anniversary and we the thai studies group did some performances. I played the part of a beauty , who brought back a dead dragon to life using her magic charms. Even though it was my first time to perform on stage, it was fun and i really had a great time. I am so grateful to my friend for giving me the opportunity to expand my experiences in thailand. I would never forget the fun memories....
Chan Rak Khun, katie!!!

To be an Ajan for an hour... fun!!!!

2008-11-03T04:37:00.000-08:00

10 minutes ago, Katie and I taught a staff at the pih, actually it supposed to be staffs but the attendance turn out to be one. Her name is Paa(aunt) Lang and she is a cook at the PIH canteen. She speaks English nid noi and we speak Thai nid noi, but she can read english nid noi and write thai so that makes our work easier. It was interactive because she taught us some Thai words. At the end of it all we learnt something new in Thai.

We taught her so many things which she already knew but the pronounciation was her weakness, especially when it come to 'v' and 'l' sounds. She prounounces 'v' as 'w', 'l' as 'r' , i know thats the Thai accent because i heard many Thai prounounced the same way.We taught her what Ajan Boy taught us and it was awesome. She learnt the days of the weeks and colors for each day. That's the thai culture, each day has its own color. She also learnt how to say the different types of tastes, fruits and questions to ask when taking orders.

She was so excited and requested that she want to know more, then we agreed to teach her tomorrow again, same time same place. I ask her to call me Ajan tuti(teacher) and she is my nang suk saa(student). Am glad she want to know more English..... am ready to share the little i know any time.....

kob khun kha....

Kon Thai Nid Noi

2008-10-29T07:50:00.000-07:00

Thai language class is one of the classes i get so excited when the time comes. For the last weeks , we've been having homeworks and midterm test in class which involves writing, listening and speaking. When am in class, i answer most questions ajan boy asked and i understand as well, but when am outside class, like talking with the staffs at pih and thai friends, i get confuse and just pretend that i understand. Sometimes i do understand when they speak slowly " puut chaa chaa".

Yesterday, we had the listening and speaking test. Ajan Boy invited two other Ajans to test our ability to speak and listen in thai by first introducing ourself and answer the questions they asked. We went in turn. At the beginning of the conversation, i knew i was doing well but there was this question they asked which i didn't get right. It goes like this " kun pen kon thai chai mai" meaning "are you thai"? my response was "chai" meaning "yes". They all bust out with laughter, then i realised that i said something wrong, but i laughed along with them.I said to Ajan Boy, i did not really understand the question, then he interpreted to me. After getting it,I said "mai chai" meaning 'no, am not thai".

On my way walking home, i thought of an appropriate answer for the question which was "chan pen kon thai nid noi" meaning "am thai a little bit". I can be a thai nid noi because i like and appreciate the thai people and their culture. So, i can be a thai person illegally.
I love the language, some of the words i know so far sounds like my local language which makes it very easy to remember. There are some words that are highly respected here but when interpreted in my own languge, they have very funny meanings. Some i just laugh within myself not to upset the kon thai.

Remember!! am now kon thai nid noi....LOL

Diversed Cultures!!! one-on-one

2008-10-29T06:20:00.001-07:00

I had an interview with Ajan Ray, a full time lecturer for 8yrs at Payap University, Chiang Mai. She went to St Mary's College, Maryland as a visiting professor at the beginning of this year for a semester(4months). She was the first lecturer to benefit from this program, as a result she saw herself as an ambassador for her University, Province and Nation at large.She practice christianity as her faith and she developed no faith for superstitious beliefs which was supposed to be the theme of our interview.Then i decided to have a discussion with her based on her experience in Maryland, America. Being her first time to travel out of her country and a foriegner in a developed country like america, what were some of the challenges she faced and the diversity found in both culture based on her own experience.

She said her first challenge was the languauge barrier. Having a little knowledge in English, she encounter difficulty in understanding the American slang, and had this feeling that if she speaks, she might end up saying something wrong. So she speaks little and lesson attentively to interprete the meaning of the words before replying. She spent most of her time alone because nobody have time for anybody, the people only have time for themselves. This was so hard for her, because in thailand, people are so friendly and have this feeling of kreng jai. When she was there she hardly found anyone to talk to.
She went further to talk about the lifestyle of the student. She said it was totally different. The Thai student love fun while the student at st mary's are always working towards academics. For instance, the former likes going to clubs, singing karaoke allocating less time for learning while the latter likes reading, visiting libraries, working to pay for school fees, having feeling of self determination in life.But some student there are not bothered about class attendence which is not the case with the thais. When she was there, she felt more free because of less work and the high quality of learning. At Payap, she works eight hours a day for five days a week but at St Mary's that was not the case, two hours a day for three days a week. This was an opprtunity for her to go around the city and experience more. The time she felt like a foreigner was when she has nobody to speak thai with. If she had stayed longer, she would've been integrated into the western culture because by the time she returned, her family and friends noticed little changes in her which were quite different from her own culture.
It has made some positive changes in her life, one of which is having the confidence to speak english anytime and anywhere, not fearing what people are going to think or say. The visit has also made her to love her country more and more because she beleives that there is no place like her country "land of smiles".

Indirectness

2008-10-27T01:18:00.000-07:00

If you've been following my blogs, you might have came across this story am about to narrate. It seems to me its the only experience that is linked with my culture so far during my stay in Thailand. It was all about a group of thai friends who invited a third party to talk to me about the perfumes i wear all the time. She told me that they don't like the scent of my perfume not because it smell bad but because they are allergic to the strong scent of it. From that day, i stopped wearing that perfume, went to carrefour and bought a colonge. Thats all, nothing more , nothing less.

From what i learnt from my ICU instructor, the thai people believe that the indirect communication is the best way to respect the integrity of others and to allow them to save face and also maintains the harmony of the community. I was not surprised about the whole idea at all, because thats the same approach we use in my home country.

We should be KRENG JAI(thai phrase meaning , to consider people's feelings; to be human and so forth)

My Favorite Painting

2008-10-25T21:05:00.000-07:00

Last week saturday, i joined the art group on a field trip to haripunchai/lamphur . We visited many art galleries and museum one of which was the La Luna gallery.In this gallery i found this painting of a girl on a beach.Am not an artist neither do i know how to paint, but i like this picture among all the others. The paint portrays the feeling of loneliness, sadness, happiness and above all, peace of mind. But most of the things i like people don't like them, may be I like things based on my own perspective. Anytime i look at this picture in my camera it seems real to me.

Sukhothai "Dawn of happiness" trip

2008-10-25T20:57:00.000-07:00

At wat saphun hin temple

It has been a long time since i last post due to my busy schedule during the midterm. Anyways am back on track now and this time around am going to tell you about the great and wonderful moments i had during the last 4days.

It was my second to last trip for the program and again with the thai studies group, I spent 3nights and 4days in the old city of Thailand, Sukhothai meaning 'Dawn of Happiness'. We lodge into Orchid Hibiscus guest house and I was roommate with Andrea, Joy and Katie(two beds upsatirs and two downstairs).The guest house has a swimming pool, flowers, trees, hamocs and lots of birds. We had some time to rest from the long journey and had dinner later in the evening at a nearby restaurant. The next day, breakfast was served at the guest house after which a lecture on sukhothai was given by Ajan Ram(history professor from Naresuan university).We tour Sukhothai Historical Park where i saw many Buddha statue, mondop, pagorda, chedi and so forth. There were many temples in Sukhothai such as the wat mahathat, wat si sawai, wat tra phang ngeon, wat sa si and so on.The park is a tourist attraction but locals organise picnics and excursions. I also saw some monks in a van and i told my friends that the monks came to have picnic, which was so funny.We had the tour in a shaddle and there was this tour guide who gave us a brief lecture on the historical park.

From there, a visit to the historical park museum but we were not allowed to take pictures. Anyways, the museum tour ended, and we were given two options which were either to bike around the city or go to another temple up the mountains. I chose the latter because i was very exhausted from the tour and to thaught of biking in that heat (over a 100 degrees) was not a good idea at that time. I rode in the air conditioner van which took us to the wat saphan hin , situated on a mound 200m high, an ascent of 300m from the foot of the mound to the temple is paved with stone and this is how the temple got its name. Along the paved way there is a small lotus bud chedi. It has a large standing buddha image which i knew from Ajan Ram's lecture was mentioned in the stone inscription no.1. It was not an easy task to climb up to the top but at the end of it all, it was worth it. The temple has a wonderful view which the whole of the city can be seen. We returned back to the guest house, and it was free time , no activity for that evening. So i had a cold shower and rested for a while before dinner. My friends and i took some crazy pictures which was fun because we get along preety well.

The following day, we left for Phitsanulok an hour drive from Sukhothai, visited another temple called wat phra si ratana(wat yai) where i saw many golden buddha statues and the national museum phra Buddha chinnaraj. The temple was a busy one, with both locals and tourists. From there, we went to a restaurant to have lunch and later check into a hotel but this time around two people in a room, so i was matched with Andrea.In the evening we had dinner and activities with students from Naresuan University at a hotel.We exchange gifts with them, dance performances and talent show. In a table was three Payap students and the rest Naresuan students. I sat with Rachel, Andrea Richardson,Tae, Nu, the two Aon's and Beer( the last four are thai nick names). Our table was so entertaining, the students were so friendly and they got wonderful gifts for us. I was so glad i got a beautiful bag as my gift from Aiw, so i took some pictures with all of them and we exchange mail adresses inorder to get intouch. My gift was a hand made cruiser i brought from home and i was so happy my friend Tae liked it. The party was so awesome, everybody danced and some student went further to the club to have more fun. I didn't go because i don't go to clubs.

We and the Naresuan students at the dinner

It was on sarturday, the last day of the trip, we had breakfast at the Naresuan university cafetaria.It was weekend but i was surprised when i saw the students at the cafetaria. Then i asked Pi Noy who told me that they were high school students and had to write a common entrance examination. We then visit Sgt.Maj. Thawee Buddha casting foundry and folk museum. Its a place where Buddha statue are made.From there, we start the journey back home and stopped to grab lunch at Lampang.

The trip was so great, terrific and fantastic. The only thing that made me uncomfortble was the hot weather, but i survived it anyways. I had a wonderful experience and would loved to go back. Even though we had lots of activities that went on, some of which i can't remember, i was glad that i met with the naresuan university students.

I would like to acknowledge these people ajan adam, dr paul and pi noy all of Payap for their time and invaluable support they rendered to us during the trip. Taking us to all those historical places, museum and so on, making sure that we all are well cared for.

Thai studies group picture at Naresuan university

kob kun kha(thank you)..... chan rak tuk kon

(i love you all)

Death!!!! Inevitable....

2008-10-12T02:12:00.000-07:00

It is He(Allah), Who has created you(Adam) from dust, then from a Nuftah[mixed semen drops of male and female sexual discharge(i.e. Adam's offspring] then from a clot (a piece of coagulated blood), then brings you forth as an infant, then (makes you grow) to reach the age of full strength, and afterwards to be old(men and women) - though some among you die before,- and that you reach an appointed term in order that you may understand. (Qur'an V.40:67)

Andrew is a housemate, brother and a friend who lost his life in a motorbike accident on the 10th october 2008. I don't really know him that much but his friendly and kind hearted nature towards everyone said it all. My first meeting with him was at the PIH canteen. It was my first week in Thailand, so i wasn't familiar with the system. I walked down to the canteen to have my breakfast, sat alone at a table. Andrew was with his other two friends( naomi and .....), Then he said to me; hello, are you alone, you can come join us, we have enough space. I joined them and he went further to introduce himself and his friends, and i did likewise. They all had finshed eating their breakfast, he insisted on waiting for me to finished mine because he invited me over, and that he would felt bad to leave when am not done eating . I asked him to go otherwise he would be late for class, that i don't mind eating alone. From that day, anytime i see him, we exchange greetings.

The evening before he died, my friend told me that he was involved in a fatal accident and that he was in a coma after having a sugery. I felt very sad..... i remember he survived one 2 weeks back and eversince then some of us that knew about it , asked him to be very careful when riding a motorbike.Friday the 10th, i came down as usual to have my breakfast, and heard the news that he didn't make it. He passed away. Andrew is dead, his image kept coming on my mind. My mind refresh on our first meeting and i just talked to him a day before. At that moment, i don't know how i felt but i remember the words of the qur'an V 40:68 ; 'it is He(Allah) Who gives life and causes death. And when He decides upon a thing He says to it only: "Be!" - and it is'.

At the night of his death , Payap International College held a memorial service for him at the church. Many people were present, as for me it was my first time to be in a church. I've never thought that in my life i would enter a church till then.....

"O my people! Truly , this life of the world is nothing but a (quick passing) enjoyment, and verily, the hereafter that is the home that will remain forever". qur'an (V 40: 39)

Andrew's time was up, and our own time will come......

Whosoever does an evil deed, will not be requited except the like thereof; and whoesoever does a righteous deed, whether male or female and is a true believer( in the Oneness of Allah), such will enter paradise,where they will be provided therein(with all things in abundance) without limit. qur'an (V40: 40)

I pray that Andrew's soul find eternal rest in Allah's(God) kingdom....

In the memory of Andrew (RIP)

A Field Trip To The Golden Triangle, Chiang Rai....

2008-10-06T00:30:00.000-07:00

Wat Rong Khun temple

This time around the Thai studies group spent the weekend in Chiang Rai to visit the Golden Triangle and many other important places . I had breakfast at the PIH canteen, start the journey at 9:30, but before we left each student was given a stipend of 500 baht for the meals. We had lunch in Chiang Rai in a restaurant called Cabbage and Condoms, then went to Kuomintang(KMT) Museum in Mae Salong.Mae Salong is a beautiful Thai town in the mountains with Chinese inhabitants and an expansive tea growing community.Shop owners offered us the local tea and fried worms, i did not eat the worms because back home they are meant to be on the land not in the stomach, so i can't imagine myself eating land habitats. We visited General Duan's shrine and drank a lot of Mae Salong Tea for free.We spent the night at the Mae Salong Villa restaurant and i had a Chinese food for the fisrt time, it was so good.

The next day, breakfast was served at the restaurant. We drove to Terd Thai(Cherish Thai) to see Khun Sa's former headquarters.He was a notorious drug kingpin known as the Lord of the Golden Triangle.He died in October 2007. We checked into Chiang Saen River hotel, had lunch at the Golden Triangle where Ajan Paul and the other Sir gave us a brief lecture on the Golden Triangle and the Hall of Opium respectively.The term Golden Triangle refers to an area where the borders Laos, Myanmar and Thailand converge and the point where the Sop Ruak Tributary flows into the mighty Mekong River. It is one of the areas of the world where Opium is grown, processed into herione and smuggled out..

From there , we visited the hall of opium, watch the opium wars and saw pictures of people (old and young) that lost their lives due to opium. Some of them were famous movie stars, singers, and students. We went to the market and i bought the Golden Triangle T-shirt for my Dad and brothers because i realised that we have only 10 weeks to the end of the program. . We were supposed to have dinner along the mekong river, i was so excited , thinking that it was going to be a Riverside modern thai restaurant, but it turned out to be a "Sit On The Floor Thai Restaurant" . I walked with my friends from end to end but didn't see any menu that would be appealing to the tongue and the stomach, then we decided to eat at a modern thai restaurant infront of the "sit on the floor" restaurant. It was asa's 21st birthday and we can't expect him to have his birthday dinner on the floor which would've been a wonderful experince for him to write about , so some of us went to karaoke but i didn't go because i was very tired from the long journey.

We had breakfast at the hotel, later visited one of the ancient temple in Chiang Saen, the second most wonderful temples in the world,Wat Rong Khun is unlike any buddhist temple in the world. Is my favorite temple so far.We also pay a visit to the Chiang Saen National Museum. We had lunch at Mae Suay and then start our journey back to Chiang Mai.

HAPPY FACES

The Golden Triangle trip was quite different from the Mae Chaem homestay in some ways. The former is a City having modern values, a tourist attraction area, and a hotel stay while the latter is a small Village homestay having traditional and cultural values and a non tourists attraction area. During the Mae Chaem stay , i experienced the true meaning of Thai hospitality which was not the case for the Golden Triangle trip. The Golden Triangle has many and beautiful temples.

I would like to thank all the staff that went with us on this trip and made it so wonderful and awesome, such as Ajan Paul, Jessica, Pi Noy, Ajan Win Min and everyone that was part of it including myself.

Am looking forward to the next trip in late october, The Sukhothai trip........

Festival Of Breaking Fast (Eid ul-fitr)

2008-09-30T07:43:00.000-07:00

Ramadan is a period of fasting in Islam which every practicing muslim should observe. It takes 29days and ends with celebration and feasts. Is meant to teach us patience, sacrifice and humilty. During the period we ask for frogiveness for past sins, pray for guidance and help in refraining from everyday evils and try to purify ourselves through self-restraint and good deeds.

Eid ul-fitr means the festival of breaking fast; a special celebration is made. Back home, food is donated to the poor, everyone puts on their best, usually new clothes and communal prayers are held in the early morning followed by feasting and visiting relatives and friends.

This is my first ramadan away from my family and friends back home. I was so excited as usual, woke up early in the morning, had a bath and prayed to God for giving me the opportunity to witness yet another ramadan in good health. I have some Turkish friends at the university who invited me over to their house to have the Eid breakfast . I had a wonderful time with them, everyone looks so beautiful and i took some pictures as a rememberance to show my people in my home country.

In the evening of the celebration is my favorite moment because i usually hangout with my friends and have fun. This time around , my sisterly friendly friends living in the dormitry took me to swensen's (an ice cream shop) at carrefour, oh my God , it is the best thing that could ever happen to me in Thailand so far. I had a great,great, great moment with these angels that God sent me specially to make my Eid a memorable one. Angela, Kathie, Andrea, Joy,Rachel, Kato, Kelsie, Esther and Anika, you girls are so awesome and i appreciate the time we spent together on this special day. Thanks girls i'll be very glad to share your happy moments anytime as you did with me.

I enjoyed my feast and hope to have many of its kind.....

Kob Khun Kha.....Chan Rak Khun (I love you)

An Extraordinary Weekend

2008-09-28T22:53:00.000-07:00

It was on a friday night Katie, Angela, Andrea, Joy and I were sitted at the PIH lobby when Pek came with a ticket in his hand and asked us to go see a Thai drama with him at the Faculty of music near Mc cormick hospital. At first I wasn't interested but i also thought for a moment that it was an opportunity for me to see a thai play for the first time and that it might be interesting as he sounded . Something tempted me to go with them even though i hadn't enough money because i was having only 200baht as my capital for the weekend, i had to spend it wisely as i await my brother to send my allowance which was to be received the next day. Had to buy ticket for 99 baht and pay transport to and fro.

I went with them and only to realised that we were 20 mins late, which was very frustrating , then we were showed our sits and the first things that welcomed and entertained me were the mosquitoes. They flapped their tiny wings as they flew around me . I really don't have a clue of what the play was about because it was in thai and i didn't see the beginning. Pek was sitted at the far end so i didnt have the chance to ask him what the play was about. With the little time i spent there , i did figure out some of the scenes which turned out to be interesting.

On Saturday , i went to carrefour to receive the money my brother had sent through western union. I didn't have enough money to pay a song taew which was very expensive , so i decided to walk, is like 30mins from my dorm. My friend Sarah offered to lend me her bicycle and i was very excited because i haven't biked for years , which i wasn't sure I could do, but went ahead to bike all the way to carrefour. At first, my hands trembled as i get on the bike, sarah laughed at me and said , oh tuti don't worry is safe to ride on a bike , the cars are not many on the roads and you'll enjoy it ..... Then she showed me how to lock and unlock the chains of the bike. I make sure that i rode beside the roads , gave way to cars and motorbikes. When i was in the mall, i received phone calls from kelsie and joy, they asked me whether i would like to go to the cinema with some of them at the airport plaza... I was like yes, yes, yes, am in , i wanna go , what time , wait for me i'll be there some minutes , am just done with the shopping.......

I can't describe my feelings at that moment, but i rode back as fast as i could like one in a marathon race. They were all set waiting for me , so i had to go upstairs to my room and drop my things. Then came down after some seconds and off we go to the cinema. It was my first time to ever watched a movie in a cinema , to tell the truth, it was amazing , i loved it and i was like, cinema here i come . The movie we saw was the Eagle Eye, a very interseting action movie..... Before the movie starts, we went round the mall and i bought a shoe and two long skirts which were very expensive, but i had to buy them because i knew it wasn't easy to find one.....

On Sunday, i sat all day infront of the television, watched movies and later in the evening went to the computer lab to chat with my people back home.....

I had a very wonderful experience during the weekend which i would never forget. Hope to have many weekends like it......

Kob khun khaa.....

3 Kings Monument; Chiang Mai

2008-09-26T22:56:00.000-07:00

We went for an excursion at the three kings monument. We all were sitted at the graduate international building of Payap waiting for the clock to struck 10:30. Pi Nung the instructor for the trip came an said, hello everybody, am your guide for the fieldtrip and am very rich today so lunch will be on me, then he gave fifty baht to each of us. We thanked him for his generosity and we all were happy to have him as our guide because we admire him a lot, especially angela, is his number one fan. I was fortunate i had an extra fifty baht credited to my capital because i didn't have lunch that day due to my faith.

We all left the building but our song taew had to go pick up the other students at the PIH who were late for some genuine reasons. When we reached the monument, Pi Nung and others were already at the reception waiting for us to buy some tickets. The guide at the monument took us to the video viewing room where we watched a 10mins movie on the history of the monument.

In the movie, I learnt that the monument was a tribute to the three kings who helped designed and lay out the city of Chiang Mai centuries ago, namely king Mengrai, the founder of Chiang Mai, king Ramkanhaeng of Sukhothai, and king Ngam Muang of Payao. The statue shows the kings standing together in friendship. The other name for Chiang Mai was Nop Buri Sri Nakorn Ping Chiang Mai. The monument was owned by king Kawilorot Suriyanwong the sixth ruler of Chiang Mai and it stand infront of the Chiang City Hall, which is currently occupied by the Chiang Mai City Hall of Arts and Cultures in 1997.

Inside the monument has various compartments namely; Constructing the city; The past hundred years room( in it was the century of chiang mai and the best of chiang mai); The Dynasty rulers( ancestors of chao chet ton family); Wisdom and Knowledge room; Agricultural life; Life along the Mae Ping river; Life in the city; Pra Pok Klao room; Life on the Hills; Lanna library; Souvenir shop and a construction area.

It was lunch time and we all went to different restaurants near the monument. Even though I wasn't going to eat, I went after my friends Andrea, Katie, Angela and Rachel. As i walked inside the restaurant the chief waitress asked me what i wanted to order and I told her that I don't want anything that i am with them, i pointed at my friends, then she smiled. I sat beside them and watched as they ate thier food, I counted the number of goals each of them scored as the food went down their throat. I asked them aroy mai( is it delicious); they replied aroy mak mak( its very very delicious). The restaurant was so busy and noisy, there were more than ten workers including waiters and waitresses. I couldn't read the name of the restaurant which was written in thai.

From there, we worked down a little to the ice cream shop called Icy Ann, there we caught up with some friends. Ice cream my favorite, I had to forgo that afternoon, it was very hard for me but I was brave enough to console my stomach as it longed for the ice cream and snacks by making funny sounds. The owner of the shop gave me a free glass of water, I didn't want to say no to the hospitality, I just took the glass and pass it on to Andrea who drank all of it, because all my friends knew that am not supposed to eat or drink during sunrise.

That was an interesting field trip i had.......

Love For All Hatred For None

2008-09-24T01:10:00.000-07:00

None of you truly believes until he wishes for thy neighbour what he whishes for himself: Qur'an

I never thought for a moment that perfumes would be an allergy for the people in my host country. I only realised it the day i rode with a friend to carrefour( shopping mall). She said that some thai students living in the PIH came to her to complain about the perfumes I put on, which they don't like , that it has a strong scent . I was so shock about it, I didn't know what to say to her, the only thing i did was to nod as she adviced me to use cologne.

When I was alone in my room , I had a thorough thinking about what she told me earlier the day. It spoilt my day not because I was angry rather it was something I never expected during my stay. Then I said to myself, all this while I have sined against this poor, innocent people unknowingly and they didn't even for a moment make me feel uncomfortable. Of course, it is a big sin to cause discomfort, harm to the people around you. They lack the courage to tell me themselves, instead invited a third party, which was so because they don't want to cause an embarrassment or it may be for the respect they had for me and above all, a culture.

I hope they will forgive me, for it wasn't my intentions. I felt so bad about it, I don't want to cause harm to anybody not to mention my neighbours. I remember asking my roommate if it was okay with her to light an incensce after cleaning the room, she said no because it makes her sick. Then from that day , I stopped the lighting of incensce in our room. I didn't know that the samething applies to the perfumes. Eversince my friend told me about it, I stop using my natural african spray and the perfume my mum gave me before coming. Then, I have four different kinds of perfumes I spray on myself after having shower but now I depend on the cologne and am beginning to scent like them which am comfortable with . All I ever wanted was to smell good, it doesn't matter which one I use, either cologne or perfume, I can do with any fragrance..... now am sure everyone is happy and comfrotable with each other.

As a practicing Muslim, I have been nurtured to treat my neighbours in a kind and gentle manner, share their happiness and sorrow and be tolerant. I don't want to do anything that will sabotage all of that. In my home country, using perfume is part of our belief and culture. Now that I realised that the reverse is the case in my host country, I'll make sure I abide by it for the rest of my stay.

With the help of Allah, l will reciprocate all the love, care, respect, tolerance, kindness etc in any way I could before or even after the program ends.

Prophet Muhammad( pbuh) said "when you restrain yourself from harming others, your actions constitute an act of benefaction that is credited to you".

cleanliness is next to godliness

2008-09-20T06:29:00.000-07:00

A clean environment is one that has the absence of dirt such as dust, garbage, bad smell and stains. People living in a clean vicinty are known to be healty, beautiful, active, respected and happy at all times.

Some feel that it's a personal matter and should be of no concern to anyone else. Which i think is not a way to feel because cleaning is a way of keeping physically fit, a state of bringing comfort to the mind and a sense of responsibilty. Some are clean only by appearance while others are generally clean. I belong to the latter. I hope you do.

As part of the extracurricular activities of the PIH, it organises an open house day which was aimed at selecting the cleanest and dirtiest room of the house . Isn't that interesting. Three weeks ago, at our welcome ceremony in the canteen, all the students in the PIH were given a secret a buddy which was all about buying gifts and caring for your buddy before the open house day when it shall be reveal . On the day, the judges inspected the rooms to choose the best one and we were given the chance to make our choice by voting. Different prizes were available for the various category of winners.

My room got chosen by the judges with the title 'party room'.... When i heard my room number been called, i was not surprised because my room is kept clean all the time..... "Party room" i still wonder why they give me that title because i had never host a party in my room..... Is it because my room is spacious, simple, and satisfactory in every sense.I also had a picture of my family on the wall and the most important picture in my life pasted on my wooden bed. Should i tell whose picture it was, my mother, the irreplaceable and the best mum on the planet earth .........

I was so glad i received two pink( my favorite colour) piggy banks, the other one for my roommate . The view from my room is very pleasing to the eyes and the mind, anytime i look out of my window, i see lights on the mountain, the beautiful trees in rows infront of the house and the dark blue cloudy sky when it's about to rain .

I love the idea of open house because it led to many students keeping their room tidy all the time for many reasons such as the prize , others for the fear that their friends' rooms will be cleaner and others can't stand the embarrassment of getting a prize for the dirtiest room.

That night as i got into the rooms of the other students, i was so surprised to see positive changes in both sexes room. I hope that from now , the open house will be a culture of the PIH.

In my home country,the president on the 15 october, 2004 launched an operation called; 'the operation clean the nation' a continuous parmanent operation. The essence of the operation is to get rid of malaria and other unavoidable diseases caused by unsanitary environments and to give people a sense of responsibilty in keeping the environment clean. Is conducted on the first saturday of every month. The Civil Service, NGO's, Schools, Private institutions, young associations and non citizens partcipate in the act. Nobody travels during the cleaning hours because to drive is to risk a government fine. As a result, we had happy people living in a healty and peaceful environment.

homestay in mae chaem , northern thai village ......

2008-09-19T02:32:00.000-07:00

At the village temple. from left; Joy, Angela,Tuti,Katie and Rachel.

Mae Chaem a rural district in Chiang Mai city, located on Doi Inthanon ( the highest mountain in Thailand), a three hour drive from the city, has 10 sub districts made up of 34 villages. It is a northern Thai village inhabited by the khon muang.

The Thai studies group consisting of the students, Thai buddies and staffs of Payap University stayed in Baan Yang Luang. A village made up of a hundred and forty families, two small shops, market, school, temple, house of Puyaibaan( village head) and house of a member of TAO( tambon(sub district) association organisation).

We left for the village from PIH on wednesday , 10th september at 9:30 am . The villagers gave us a warmth welcome with lunch provided at the village temple (so called, heart of the village). Each host family was given two students and a thai buddy. The thai buddies being English majors at Payap served as medium of communication between the host families and the Thai studies students.

My host mother, mea Ponsii lived alone in a stilt house because my host father, por Taan is a soldier and my only host brother, nong chai Tae studies in the city and visit during holiday. I was so eager to live in a stilt house because my home country don't have one , to tell the truth, it was lot of fun climbing up and down the wooden stairs, standing on the verandah and the natural breeze blowing from all directions.... My rommates were Miriam and Off (thai buddy). Miriam is quiet and reserve so I spent most of my time conversing with Off and mea( mother). I gained a lot from the conversations i had with them because i learnt lots of thai expressions.The first sentence Off taught me was ' hong naam uteenai kha' which means 'where is the toilet please'......

On the second day, we went for a village tour, visited many places such as the village market, temples and the town market. At the village market, we interviewed an oldman in his eighties whose proffession is to make traditional thai hairpins, repair guns, and many other handicrafts. He won many national awards as the best traditional thai hairpin maker. I was surprised when the oldman handed me a paper world map to indicate my country and to my realisation, my country and many others were already circled in ink.Which implies that he kept record of every foriegn visitor. The temples visited were Watbuddha-en and Yamamoto taizo chiba kennarahino.

In the evening, some of us in the globalization class had dinner with Dr Ho( lecturer from SMCM) at the village restaurant inorder to make up for the class. I ate so much that night and had great time being with them, laughing and singing karaoke .On behalf of all his student, I would like to say thank you to Ajan Ho who's like a father to us . On our way home, we stop by to witness a beetle fight.... to tell the truth, it was interesting and weird at the same time because back home i have never seen beetles fighting. The beetle owners gets money from the act. That is called gambling.

The next day, we all went to a ceremony of Arts and Crafts day at Pa Daet school in the village. It was aimed at the village elders teaching the children about Thai arts such as weaving, basketry, music , making of flowers etc. I watched the children performed the Thai dance(ram) and some Thai women were selling handicraft. I bought a beautiful wooven scarf and a bag at very cheap prices. I also had the chance to use some of my Thai expressions, like bargaining with the traders and giving compliments. In the evening, dinner was served at the temple along with some performances by the villagers(traditional thai dance), thai buddies (a drama in thai) and the thai studies students( a song). The ceremony was like an exchange of culture because the villagers taught us how to do their dance and vice versa.

Now to my favorite part ......... the waterfalls, i mean i visited two waterfalls in a day. Let me tell you something, this visit was not part of the program schedule , the mastermind of it was Andrea Richardson( thai studies students) and i loved her so much for that. I was so excited about it because i have never seen one before until then. The first one we saw was Huay Saai Loung Fall, spent like 30mins, then to the highest waterfall in chiang mai, Namtok(waterfall) Mae Pan cascades down a cliff of more than a 100m high. It wasn't easy to walk up there , it was very funny to see some of us fell as we go down. The waterfalls were so beautiful and freezing and we all had a wonderful time. In the evening, marcus took some of us to a local thai massage and sauna .I didn't have a single experience at that time , so i had only a massage for 120 baht per hour. It involved stretching and deep massage which helps me to attain flexibilty and quieting of my mind. I really had a good time and hoping to have series of massage from time to time before the program ends.

There was a ceremony( tan kuay salak) at the temple . It was a buddhist holiday and as a result no activity for the day. It was Pi Gai's( thai language instructor during the village stay) 48th birthday. We had the last dinner at a restaurant in the village and a surprise party for pi gai. We all sang him a birthday song as he cuts his cake.

The next day was the end of our stay in the village , we had farewell with our host families and exchange some gifts. We all bought gifts for our host families and some of the families gave gifts like wooven scarfs, bags and hats to their host children. At 12 pm we began our journey back to the city.......

The village has too many beautiful features such as the tall cloudy mountains, paddy rice fields, natural forests, waterfalls and the hosplitality of its people. The trip was very interesting and educative. We had seminars on mae chaem by a member of the raks thai foundation in the village. I got the chance to experience the northern thai culture in practice which is quite similar to mine. At the end of the stay, I had this basic understanding and appreciation for the diversity found in northern Thailand .

I want to take this opprtunity to thank the people who made this trip a success; Ajan Marcus, Dr Paul Chambers, Ajan Ray, Pi Gai, Dr Ho, and Pi Nung all of payap university, for their invaluable contributions in one way or the other during our stay.

KOB KHUN KHA (thank you)

Life away from Home Sweet Home; The Gambia

2008-09-09T08:08:00.000-07:00

Map of The Gambia, The Smiling Coast of Africa.

The gambian flag

First of all, i thank the Almighty Allah for giving me this opportunity to witness this wonderful moments in my precious life....... I am very proud to be an undergraduate student from the university of the gambia majoring economics and minoring finance , looking forward to my graduation in 2010......

The actual fact is that, i have been given a scholarship by my university, to represent them and my country( the smiling coast of africa) at large, as an exchange student in payap university, chaing mai, thailand( land of smiles)...... I want to say that God has always been good to me , taking me from the smiling coast to the land of smiles, am i not lucky?, of course i am..... hope you are ........

I was so excited and sad at the same time because on one hand, i am going to be in a different continent, be exposed to a different culture, leave with different people, learn diffferent languages, show my hidden talents & abilities and get to experience what it means, to be truly independent...... on the other hand, am sad because am leaving my love ones for the first time , my family , friends ,relatives, well wishers and my home sweet home. I failed to realise the fact that am a grown up girl, and if not now, someday i must surely leave my family, either by death( unavoidable) or by getting married to make a new generation....... I believe that its every woman's endless dream; 'get married and make a family'.....

When i reached my host country, I saw it written "land of smiles", then i got this ease of mind, something telling me ' hey don't worry this would prove to be a second home for sure....... For the first week , i longed for the company of my love ones, then i cried like a baby who's in need of her mother's tender love and care. I cried all the time i felt loneliness, until one day, my roommate and her friends caught me drowned in my own tears, but fortunately for me, they understood what i was experiencing and called it 'home sick', which they too had to experinced......

payap unversity library

The exchange program turns out to be very interesting and educative in different aspects such as language, culture, politics, globalization, economics etc.....

I visited many important places in chaing mai, such as the sunday market, khum khantoke, carrefour(shopping mall), doi suthep( temple), wararot market(central market), night bazaar( tourist market), restaurants (korean and mexican) and many other places to go before the programs ends......

FRIENDSHIP improves happiness and abates misery, by the doubling of our joy and the dividing of our grieve......friendship is the biggest ship in the world, so come on everybody lets sail in it forever.......

thai and southeast asian studies program students on the 27/08/08: all set to go for dinner at khum kantoke in our uniforms............

An early morning visit to the central market, Chaing Mai.....

2008-09-08T06:41:00.000-07:00

It was at nine in the morning when my classmates and i and two other lecturers of Payap University went to the central market of Chaing Mai for an observation excercise as part of the intercultural understanding course in the thai studies program.....

This is one of the biggest market in Chaing Mai, centrally located and lying close to the ping river called . Almost everything is available, from fresh fruits, snacks, sea foods, vegetables, and spicies to gold and silver jewelries, clothes, flowers, electronics gadgets, and of course, hill- tribe products.

Unlike the nearby tourist night bazzar, where most stalls are only open at night, warorot is open during the day and the evening, visited more by local thais than by tourist.

The market was so noisy and busy with cars driving by and different kinds of people, both old and young , normal and abnormal, traders arranging thier food stuff to commence sale, others keeping record of the daily stock, both thai women unloading merchandise from the trucks, beggars sitting at corners waiting for good samaritans to pass by, song taews (taxis) drivers parked at the road side waiting for passengers to come by.

Public sits are constructed infront of the market where ordinary people are sitted but i don't know what they were waiting for because i didn't see the bus stop sign.....

The market has nice smells, good food and strong smells of fruits( durian, kapi, bananas, oranges , pineapples, grapes etc) , sea foods ( shrimps, crabs, dried & wet fishs, oysters), meat, chicken, pork, herbs and many other fermentations.........

I also observed that it has cheap clothings and tribal embroideries, cloth by the yard ,red chinese gold and herbal shops ....... I realised that most of the petty traders are women, and i said to my self, where are the men? Unlike my country where both men and women take part in petty trading......Below is a red chinese gold shop, i've seen three to four of its kind in the market ........

The market has a temple but i was not sure whether it's a thai or chinese temple, there was nobody in there the time i was passing, i thought may be the early morning prayer might have been over, inside the temple was the statue of the buddha, different colours of flowers and chinese writings ..........

Traders conversing among themselves and laughing out loudly, smiling at customers ........
On the side walks infront of the market were trashes in black plastic bags leaned against a tree and used old CD's dumped beside it.......

These were some of the things i took note of and some related pictures...... There are lots of interesting things to see, eat, hear, and know....... If you want to experience more than what i've , do not hesitate to come because invitation are open to everyone anywhere,you are highly welcome in chaing mai, thailand ( land of smiles) ........

Below is the cloth yard shop and there are a lot of its kind in my home country but they are rather imported not home made ......

Right, is the woman unloading the goods from the truck, i had never witness something like it in my country( The Gambia) , it is only men that do this kind of job that involve lots of energy........

I saw a woman driving a song teaw and that i had not seen in my home country........

goals and expectations in tinyland

2008-09-01T03:51:00.000-07:00

At first, i was expecting a different kind of culture like the western one but to my surprise the thai culture is very similar to the african culture. Secondly, to have a basic understanding of thailand's political, economical and sociocultural issues . The last but not the least, i was also expecting it to be like a second home filled with smilling faces and a peaceful environment, and that i acquire in the paradornparp house......
My goals are to share my culture with the people around me and make my country known to the people in different ways. Also, to make lots and lots of friends regardless of their nationality and keep them forever close to my heart because i believe in friendship which is the biggest ship in the world. Most importantly, extract value from what am doing which i'll use to develop my little country and transform it into a newly industrialised country..............