April 11th

Hi hi everyone. With the Teach For America temp job, I finally worked 2 consecutive days. Even more than that actually. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, 1/2 day Friday, back on Monday, all the way through Thursday. The position was supposed to go through the 12th but we seemed to finish everything on Thursday and I never got a call with a new schedule. I was pretty disappointed because I really liked working there. I did really boring work but the atmosphere was nice and the people were interesting. Some people didn't dig it so much, but maybe they hadn't worked at Bank of America first. I don't know. I called the temp coordinator Monday morning to confirm that the position was over because I wanted to reschedule my Professionals for Non-Profits interview, but not if I could still work at TFA. I waited for him to call back all day. He didn't. At 5pm, I went ahead and made another appointment with Professionals for Non-Profits. About an hour after that I get a call, not from the temp coordinator, but from one of the people who I was actually working for at TFA asking if I could come in on Wednesday. It was the first time I smiled all day I think. Not working makes me really depressed I realized. So I'll go back on Wednesday which is exciting, even if it's only for one more day.

Thailand in America stuff - I finished with my Thai class. It's not over, but they moved the last class from the 15th to the 22nd, and I'll be in Madison then, so it's over for me. I didn't become super tight with my classmates and I had of hoped but I did learn how to read and write simple Thai words which is pretty cool. And I learned the whole alphabet (44 consonants, 32 vowels) so I'm right on par with a Thai 5 year old. Not bad for a 22 year old American.

Moving to Thailand stuff - I think I'll actually leave early July. There's a language school called AUA which is known for being a good place for beginning teachers. They have centers all over the country, transfering is easy, they have seven 6 week terms a year which is good because they hire a couple weeks before each term, have time to give you AUA specific training, and each term is followed by a one week break so there's time for traveling. Most impressively, they seem to honor their contracts and pay on time which seem to be practically unheard of in the world of TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language). The reason that they're a good place for beginning teachers is that they don't pay very well and people usually stay there for some time and then move on to a better place with more money. I think to get higher pay you can sign a one year contract and you can transfer to different places within that one year so maybe I would just stay with them. I don't know. I guess I'll see.

I decided I have to stop sitting at home and reading these message boards cause people on message boards are not usually happy people. It's usually the disgruntled. And the infomation that I'm basing all of this on might be terribly biased (against most other schools, they've never been pro-AUA, just seemed to have fewer problems with it than most places).

It seems to be people who've been teaching in Thailand for a couple of years and are pissed when a school doesn't honor their contract but then they say it's happened 20 times before so I don't understand how they can still be surprised (or pissed). I'm pretty sure that there are schools that people like working at and it's just that those people aren't the ones writing on message boards all day. From what I've picked up from the message boards, "Thai administration always has drama with the Farang (foreigner) teachers, every school, public or private, is corrupt, contracts (bonuses, hours, visa and work permit assistance) are never honored, materials are never supplied and therefore you have to personally pay for the copies you make for your class of 50 plus unmotivated, distracted students, if you go through an agency you're getting scammed, and the pay is too low to be worth it." Except that the people who are writing this have been there for like 5 or 6 years. And if I were a 50 year old British dude who has been teaching English in Thailand for 6 years I'd probably be upset too if I were still making less than $1000 a month. (My guess is I'll make around $750 a month.) It just doesn't seem like a field where there's much place for advancement. Or maybe just not for cranky people on message boards.

Elephants! - I've received two emails from Elephant Nature Park about getting funding for a riverwall to be constructed. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE READ AND DONATE IF YOU CAN.

Dear Friends of Elephant Nature Park,

The animals of Elephant Nature Park desperately need your help. The 2005 rainy season brought devastating typhoons to Northern Thailand, causing the worst flooding in over 100 years.

Like every other year, Lek and park staff prepared for the seasonal floods with sand bags, over 30,000 of them, as well as some cement columns. But when they took the elephants down for their bath and the river had gone up 2 feet in one day, Lek knew something was wrong. This year was different.

The floods struck at night, sometime around 2AM. Rains were so heavy that a dam burst farther up in the mountains. This unleashed a wall of silt and water on the park, which filled nearly the entire piece of land.

Lek called for action, and all the elephants, dogs, cats, and people were moved to relative safety at the uphill end of the park. Huddled there near the road, they waited out the floods. All the land from the volunteer hut right to the beach had become a part of the river.

All the houses, all the shelters, and the main hut were flooded out. Trees were ripped from the ground and taken away in the current. Mahouts were seen risking their lives to swim across and recover visitors belongings.

Thank you to all the volunteers with us during that stressful time, to those here in person and also to those who sent aid from abroad. In such times, it is truly the support from all of YOU who keep Lek going and keep the spirit of the park alive.

We are now calling on you, our supporters, to donate to the riverwall project. Please invest in the sustainable future of the Elephant Nature Park.


The Park was severely affected by the typhoon of 2005, with floodwaters endangering our precious animals and causing an evacuation.

When the waters receded, we were lucky to count NO lost or injured. However, with the floods came massive erosion. The river swept away 14% of our land!

If you look at the map here, you can see just how severe the erosion was. The green area is the park as it now stands. Blue is the river. The red zone represents land lost to the waters of 2005. In total, over 5 acres have disappeared!

If erosion of the same magnitude were repeated, the main hut would be swept away! This is an unacceptable risk to the park, and to the animals we support within it.

NEXT TIME WE WILL BE READY


A river-wall construction and reclamation project has been underway since November 2005.

The winning design involves massive rock bricks encased in a wire mesh, the same sort you may see along any developed waterfront. These will repel the mud and debris carried by the rushing river.



Below is an Engineering sketch of what our river-wall will look like. The sand and rock fill replaces the land which was lost. Just last week they finished laying down the clay wall, which acts as a safety net, supporting the wall of rock and wire.

This wall will stretch 300m along the northern bend of the river, ending just beyond the main hut. Don't worry: the same sandy beach will still be there for our favorite place to bathe the elephants!!

With these measures in place, we can all rest assured that Elephant Nature Park is safe from erosion and dangerous flooding for years and years to come. However, ensuring the absolute safety of our beloved animals does come at a cost.

Lek herself has found a good source of clay, securing over 320,000 cubic feet (9,000 cubic meters) for only $33,000 USD. Each of these rock gabions will cost $25 USD, and the wall will reach over 300m long by 6 m tall. Thats almost 2,000 gabions!


The grand total cost for this project will be 4.3 million Baht, or approximately $110,000 USD.

If fund raising targets are met, construction will be competed in May ..BEFORE the rainy season returns!!

To raise the funds necessary to save Elephant Nature Park from future floods WE NEED YOUR HELP.

Lek has personally pledged
$25,680 USD

EleAid charity has donated
$2,635 USD

Bill Jordan Foundation has donated
$4,890 USD

Elephant Nature Park is kindly asking you to help raise the remaining funds - that is $76,795 USD

This is no small goal, but we believe it is achievable. Every donation however small will help. Our project has and always will be volunteer driven. Now is a time when your participation really counts.

Please help us to help the elephants.

Click the link to the charity appropriate for you, and donate to the river-wall project, via Elephant Kingdom (our UK charity) or via Serengeti Foundation (our US fiscal agent).

100% of funds donated will be forwarded to the riverwall project.

Thank you all for your kindness to the elephants, and for helping us to keep the park safe.
~ Sangduen - Lek - Chailert

UPDATE -

Dear Friends of Elephant Nature Park,

We are happy to send out a HUGE THANKS to all of you who have pitched in to help with the River-wall Project. The work continues, and due to encouraging support from your donations we have been able to move on with the next phase of construction.

As we mentioned last week, this project is absolutely nessesary to stop dangerous erosion from taking place during the rainy season. This erosion may otherwise threaten the animals of the park, as well as destroying the local environment while washing away healthy soil. Once completed, the River-Wall will provide a permanent solution.

After 10 days, we are PROUD to report that YOU, our supporters, have raised the following funds:

via Elephant Kingdom UK:-------US $950.00
via Serengeti Foundation USA:--US $3,000.00 + US $3,000.00 (matching funds)
TOTAL------------------------------US $3,950.00 US $6,950.00

We have some GREAT news! Serengeti Foundation has pledged to match funds for all donations sent through their site for this project. In the words of Bert von Roemer, Serengeti Foundation President:

"To all who support Lek in this drive, and donate on our PayPal site, Serengeti Foundation will fully 100% match your donation! Call it 'double the progress'!"

With these matching funds factored in, the total rises to US $6,950.00. So, 10 days into our fundraising drive, we have generated nearly 10% of the funds needed. This is a good start, but we still have much farther to go.

Please help Elephant Nature Park to provide a sustainable solution to this dangerous flooding and erosion. We still have over US $69,000 left to raise. If you've been waiting to send your donation now is the time, with Serengeti doubling your efforts. Lets all do our best to help Lek raise these urgent funds gefore the bill comes!

Please help us to help the elephants.

Click the link to the charity appropriate for you, and donate to the river-wall project, via Elephant Kingdom (our UK charity) or via Serengeti Foundation (our US fiscal agent).

100% of funds donated will be forwarded to the riverwall project.

Thank you all for your kindness to the elephants, and for helping us to keep the park safe.
~ Sangduen - Lek - Chailert