Rainy Monday at Say Ta Nar

Rainy Monday

You guessed it! The rain poured down again on Monday but we were well accustomed to heavy downfalls by now and we had our breakfast at `Canadian Daves` . It was lovely to see Murray, who joined us from Chiang Mai and Fiona who teaches at Forthview with Louise joining her parents Sheila and Geoff .They had arrived after a very long journey involving missed connections and delays but managed to look remarkably fresh ! Calum had a tummy bug which is a common occurence over here and Alan stayed at the hotel to look after him . Lewis and I enjoyed another day at school. We helped grades 6 and 7 who were beginning to write letters responding to their friends at Pirniehall and they put such a lot of work into them. I have the completed letters to hand out. Pho Cho taught an impressive lesson on the rights of the child making good use of the United Nation book `For Every Child A better World` Children were engaged in animated discussion , art work and writing and came up with most of the key areas that are each child`s human entitlement - food, water, home, education, peace. This felt such an important area for these children to be learning about.

Pho Cho teaching about Children`s Rights

As usual we were treated to a lovely home cooked lunch along with the children. Just enjoy the lunch time video clip. The hospitality is so generous. Lewis and Calum bought all of the children an ice-cream from the local vendor which Calum captured on video and includes the industrious washing up process which you can see for yourself , just click on at bottom of page.The children took the cameras we brought for them home today , to replicate our community art project and take photographs of their life in Mae Sot. We had just finished doing this at the end of June with children and parents at Pirniehall. Lewis reminded everyone how to work the cameras and I was able to show them our completed work in poster form and on a CD and leave copies with them. They know we will produce the same posters using their photographs and send them back for them to display in Say Ta Nar. They were very excited about the cameras and were snapping away to their hearts content before they left school. I`ll be interested to see the developed work.

Camera happy!

Pho Cho is so interested in learning about ways to improve the curriculum for his children and hearing all the details about how we do things in Scotland. We talked at length about so many important areas which included involving parents, assessment and a differentiated curiculum. He has good but limited English and so I was constantly reviewing how to answer. I know we were communicating but I`m not sure how much of the detail he understood. I saw a glazed eye look at one point which was my cue to stop talking. I have learnt so much from him about the life of Burmese families, the crucial role of the school and dedication to children and education way beyond anything I have ever experienced.

Lunch at school- different to Pirniehall- so quiet!

Some of the parents had kindly handed in sweet cakes and delicacies for us to enjoy with coffee at the end of the day. A parent who lived in the refugee camp arrived with her son who had heart problems and who needed to be operated on. He had previously spent time at school but they obviously felt welcome and stayed to chat and drink tea. As usual we waved children off in their minibus to the loud cries of `see you tomorrow teacher` which is what they always shout to us at the end of the day. It will ring in my ears for a lifetime!

We went home through the day market in Mae Sot where many of our children and their families work as sellers and it is an amazing sight. It is hectic and vibrant and everything imaginable is on sale.The smells and noises, the variety of people, the animals, the cyclists (including us!), the garbage carts are all part of an amazing tapestry. Not to be missed!

Lovely fresh fruit and vegetables

A fellow Celtic supporer in Mae Sot and Lewis found him

Babies travel in the basket on bike!

The refuse collectors recycle everything out of necessity

Exotic fruits - the boys are still enjoying some of them


Colourful stalls everywhere you look

Bhuddist monks and temples are to be seen everywhere

Back at hotel-survived cycle through market and the rain is off

Click here to see how quietly the children eat lunch

A Busy Weekend

Families fishing

Although it was the weekend for us , Pho Cho and his wife take no holidays and would be happily caring for some children at school , as their parents have to work . They really have an extended family of 109 children. We decided that the boys had worked hard since they arrived and we would take them swimming for an afternoon. We tracked down a local Tuk Tuk and headed for the Mae Sot Hill Resort where we used the swimming pool but it seemed such a decadent thing to be doing , considering the struggles of our families at Say Ta Nar . On the return journey we decided to meander through the local Mae Sot countryside.We passed the local fire station, then a group of men chopping down trees by the roadside and further along came across what looked like a large cattle barn ,but as we passed we heard the sound of machines and what seemed like hundreds of voices all talking at the same time. The door was slightly ajar and when we moved forward to investigate , a small child standing by the door was instructed to shut it. As we turned we could see two men on motorbikes quietly ensuring we moved on , following us to the river a few hundred yards away. We assumed we had come across an illegal factory and we couldn`t help worrying about the age group of the workers inside.

The factory

We had our best meal so far in a traditional Burmese restaurant , where we were all adventurous and had a selection of quite spicy curries, noodles and stir fry meals. We met a lady called Diane who has lived here for five years and has opened a small orphanage , is also supporting a Burmese migrant school (there are now fifty schools in total) as well as finding ways to rescue children from child prostitution. It is remarkable and humbling to come across so many selfless people like this who are committed to improving the lives of others. She has just opened an internet cafe to try and fund her work.

On Sunday heavy rain came down from early morning throughout the day and we were forced to buy big raincoats with a difference. We decided to make our way to the Friendship Bridge where you can cross over to Myawaddy in Burma but the only transport that we could find was a small , slow Tuk Tuk which laboured with our great weight on board.People were almost passing us on foot!

No need for suntan lotion, just big raincoats

We went to the market there and bought the school a CD player to play some of the Fischy music we had brought over to teach the children.

Friendship Bridge to Burma

The sights that met us at the Border were harrowing to say the least and words could not describe the abject poverty and misery we saw in what some refer to as `no mans land`. Families with small babies living in squalor surrounded by filthy rubbish , people trying to sell us anything they could get their hands on, shouting up to us and in the distance many more people who looked like they were struggling to survive. This is just a snapshot of the plight of Burmese families and helps us understand why they want to flee to Thailand by any means possible to make a better life for their children. Even although in Thailand they have no status and are always going to be illegal unless there is much more world wide political pressure which brings much needed change .They have to take some of the worst and poorest paid jobs here to help them exist. This is part of the Burmese story that has to be told and shouted from the rooftops because millions of Burmese families who have escaped a ruthless regime are now stateless and their amazing children have a future full of uncertainty.This visit has been about building a strong friendship with Say Ta Nar, one of the migrant schools that provide them with dignity, education, and a reason to stay strong and hopeful.

Here are some pictures that hopefully tell their own story:

Next day at Say Ta Nar

We needed to find transport to travel to school each day so the boys hunted for bikes to rent for our week here. This was an easy option for three of the Gillespies who love cycling , but I have never been much of a cyclist. However I had to jump in at the deep end or be left walking miles and miles every day. We have already been in the hectic Mae Sot traffic negotiating cars, pick up trucks , motorbikes and tuk-tuk`s during the day and at night. Trying to remember all the little roads and streets off the beaten track was another challenge , but Alan has a great sense of direction and we arrived safely at school to the loud cheers of the children.


They were already hard at work, chanting their lessons in the kindergarten classes and there were Maths and English lessons going on upstairs. During English they burst into song again and clearly love making music. In the Maths class, children were encouraged to look at different strategies to help understand number within 100, not unlike our own approaches and were taught by Pho Cho`s wife, often while holding her baby. She is an amazing woman who gets up at 5.00am each morning to prepare food for all the children for lunch, sets up the school, teaches classes and looks after her own young children. She cooked us a wonderful Burmese lunch of fish, chicken , beef, vegetable and rice dishes.


Kindergarten enjoying lunchtime

The heat is at times intense in the school and the fan is rarely on but the children hardly seem to notice. Equally, torrential rain came down hitting noisily off the tin roof and at times it was difficult to hear but they continued oblivious to everything.


Children enjoy stickers for working hard

We went around sharing in their tasks and giving out well done stickers which we brought with us , to praise their accurate work and effort. They loved them! Just like our own children. We plan to give them out daily now. Alan has done a power of filming over the last two days so we will have lots of memories to look back on.



Everyone helps with the clearing up after lunch

The children`s lunchtime was an experience as all the children helped clear the rooms, set up the benches and then sat crossed legged in complete silence for about 15 minutes until food was served. An older teacher was delivering some words of wisdom and the children sat motionless. We were in another small room at the time but had to look in and check that the children hadn`t left the school ! They ate with gusto when the egg noodle dish arrived, eating with only their right hand. They were able to go back for extras and did. After eating , different groups helped wash the dishes and pots in the well outside, handing them to another group who dried and polished them. A local vendor turned up selling ice cream and those lucky enough to have 5 Baht (1.25 pence Lewis tells me) lined up and bought their treat.


Children line up to buy ice cream

After lunch the middle grades were taught Thai language by a visiting teacher and the older children stood up and individually told their own personal story of why they were in Mae Sot. There were some harrowing stories but mainly their desperate families had to leave because there had no jobs and no money to feed or educate their children. Because they are illegal and have no papers or rights in Thailand some of their parents can and have been rounded up by the police and deported back to Burma and they have been left on their own. The school steps in to support these children.They are all so incredibly upbeat and resilient considering the uncertainty they live with and each child has ambitions to achieve good jobs in the future including being teachers, doctors, football players. Sharing a powerpoint presentation of Pirniehall and the surrounding community seemed a surreal thing to be doing after this but they were interested to hear about the school and Scotland and they asked interesting questions. They were obviously amazed by the amount of classrooms, teachers, playground space and the older children who are High School age , listened wide eyed to Lewis talk about the size of his school, the amount of subjects he studied and the number of teachers he had. Quite a humbling experience to realise the quality of educaton and resources our Scottish children can take for granted in a country where they can generally feel safe.





The presentation


As the children were leaving at the end of another day , we were introduced to two visitors who had arrived from the organisation `Help Without Frontiers` and they had produced identity cards for each child stating they were supporting all children in the school. This felt important because it showed that a well known organisation is involved with these children and Say Ta Nar school . Although they are still illegal they have some visibility in the world. We waved the children off and went into the weekend feeling we had been involved in the school for longer than two days. We had a lot to reflect on.

Click below and listen to the children singing during their English lesson

Some extra photos to share

Here are some additional photographs of our first day in school:


Children hand over their art work as a gift


Posing as Calum takes their photograph



Showing Calum & Lewis the peace sign



Playing games at the end of the day.



Lewis taught them to play heads down, thumbs up.




This is the maximum head room underneath the school

Children leave at the end of a long day...still smiling!

Our first day at Say Ta Nar

Children are dropped off safely for 9:00 start


Shoes are always left outside the school

This was a very special day! We met the 109 children and 3 teachers who make up the Say Ta Nar community with Pho Cho and his wife Neisha who also live in the school with their two children. The school is a house on stilts with Kindergarten 1 and 2 taught underneath the house and grades 1 to 7 on top. It is a very busy school with little space to manouevre but it is an impressive learning environment. Children are taught many subjects and we saw the children learning English, Maths, Social studies, Thai, Music and Art. There are volunteers who come in to teach a lot of these subjects. The children were incredibly well behaved and industrious showing an eagerness to learn. They made an impression on all four of us and we couldn`t stop commenting in awe that ,with so little , they were achieving so much.

Kindergarten taught underneath house

Children are happy to be at school


We went on to share some information about Pirniehall handing out the letters and photographs from our children from P1 to P7 and they are keen to write back . The volunteer English teacher will help support this. We handed out the Pirniehall pens to greatly excited children and then put Pho Cho`s tartan tie on for him, to the hilarity of the school and staff.We have great video footage of all of this to share with Pirniehall. The children had prepared a selection of English songs for us and it was simply a joy to be there and hear their enthusiastic singing. We have again captured it all on video...they ended with Auld Lang Syne! Almost as good as Pirniehall children at a Friday Get -together.

The children are bemused by their new Scottish teacher

Live from Mae Sot

Its all been worth it as we have finally arrived safely , if totally exhausted , at Mae Sot. Our early 6.ooam start from Edinburgh to London was straightforward and then we negotiated our way round terminal 5 to reach our Thai airways connection to Bangkok. After a 13 hour flight we touched down at Bangkok at 6.00am Wednesday morning and then had to find our way to the central bus station located downtown. It took us an hour and we booked tickets for the first bus which left at 9.00am. In the waiting room everyone got to their feet at 8.00am as we sat bleary eyed and watchful until we realised we should stand too as it was the national anthem...a daily ritual! When we asked how long we would be on the bus , the driver held up his hand to say 5. We interpreted this as 5 hours and felt quite relieved but in reality he meant 5 pm arrival which meant 8 hours on the bus. I give you this level of detail to illustrate our incredibly long journey. The TV blared throughout and I felt we might disembark speaking fluent Thai...I was so tired that I believed I could understand the conversations! On our way to Mae Sot there were 3 different police checks and one of them involved taking pictures inside and outside of the bus. Mr Pho Cho and his family met us at the bus station at 5 pm and had a big tuk-tuk ready and waiting, he must have heard that the Gillespies don't travel light!






This is the bus we travelled in for 8 hours









Calum hands over the kilted teddy bear


We arrived at our hotel and handed over a Scottish teddy bear to a delighted Nisha-le Cho, Pho Cho's daughter and were greeted by Sheila and Geoff , here visiting Hlee Bee with their friend and interpreter. We enjoyed our first meal at a local restaurant and took in some of the sights and smells, arriving home just in time before the skies opened up and we watched the rain pour down in sheets from the comfort of our balcony. A first reminder that it was the rainy season in Thailand, but at least it was really warm outside.We tried to post this blog but there was no connection in our room so we collapsed into bed ready for the next day when we are looking forward to meeting the children and staff at Say Ta Nar school.

Final preparations

School holidays have finally arrived and our children have excitedly handed over letters , drawings and photographs to be given out to their friends in Mae Sot. Some of our parents and their families have been working together with an experienced photographer on a great school/community art project and we have samples of their lovely photography to share , as well as powerpoints put together to give a snapshot of the life of Pirniehall and of our local area. The impressive photographic banners from the project will be on permanent display in Pirniehall in the new session.







Friendship banner




The Gillespies will be armed with cameras and video recorder to capture all those great experiences we hope to share and we have plans to involve our friends in Say Ta Nar. We will have to wait and see what is possible , taking account of language barriers and resources in the area. We have small presents for everyone (Pirniehall engraved pens for each child and a great tartan tie for the Headteacher) but we are now having to keep an eye on the weight of our luggage (all eyes are on my case!).




The British Council belatedly agreed to support Pirniehall and Say Ta Nar in a reciprocal exchange and we are now officially part of the DFID Global School Partnerships. This will allow a Burmese teacher to visit Pirniehall and both schools can work together developing curriculum projects to link our communities.


As school ends we have had our vaccinations, applied for work permits and insurance, organised our four flights and different hotel accomodations not to mention trying to figure out how best to travel from Bangkok to Mae Sot...looks like the six hour bus journey is the best option as there are no longer any flights there ! So we will be travelling from 6.00am on Tuesday arriving 1.00pm on Wednesday at Mae Sot. Quite a marathon ! Lewis has just returned last night from Switzerland where he spent a week at international camp with the scouts and in total , the whole journey was 60 hours on the coach...so he is a veteran at this.


The taxi is booked to pick us up early tomorrow morning and all cases are firmly closed. With family and friends wishing us well we are ready to travel and with any luck the next time we blog we will be in Thailand. Watch this space!