After missing my ferry off the island of Ko Pha Ngan five days ago, I should have known I was in for an adventure. . .

I then had to pay (again) for the next ferry off the island of Ko Phan Ngan. After a long boat ride to the mainland, and upon announcing to the travelagents standing by the dock that I was traveling to Had Yai, I was quickly escorted to black car with tinted windows. This was not the normal van with travel agency logos that normally picked you up from the ferry, and looked a bit shaddy to me. To my relief they did not mug me, and I arrived at my "bus" safely. However, when I say bus I mean small van with no air and no leg room. This was only 250 bhat though (six dollars), and I arrived safely, if not a bit cramped, and a bit scared after turning down. . . well, I don't speak Thai, but I can only guess, from my bus driver. I then wandered down a dark alley with only this bus driver's word on where I was going, and, surprisingly, I made it to my guesthouse in one piece!

The next day I was supposed to meet the other volunteers and Greenway leaders in front of the railway police office, which would become my mantra for the day. I arrived, being the punctual and very organized individual that I am (cough cough), an hour early for my meeting time. After a couple laps around the entire Hat Yai Train Station, I soon came to find out that there was no railway police office to be found. The closest I could find was security, so I planted myself in front of this office, and made friends with an aussie sitting next to me.

This aussie, Christian, was actually on the last leg of his two year round the world trip, and was heading home next. He was talking about how he was scared to go home after being away for so long. Funny I thought, I am (yes I'll admit it) maybe perhaps a little bit scared of going so far after being home for so long. After trading advise and traveling tips, my meeting time rolled around. No one looking remotely Greenway-esque (whatever that may be) appeared. I asked a police officer (they were everywhere) where I could find the ,railway police office and he told me to ask information. I asked (ornery) Information and she told me to ask a police officer. Hmmm. I wandered the other way down the tracks and asked a different police officer where the railway police office was, and he sent me back to information. I seemed to be going in circles. After a few trips back and forth, and after passing Christian a couple times and having him laugh either with me or at me (not quite sure), I decided to stand firmly in the entrance to the railway station. Surely I could not miss them now. The time passed. A half hour more passed. I began to fear I would be spending the rest of my life in the Hat Yai Train Station. I began asking any police officer I found where the railway police office was, and finally one lit up after I said those words. Finally! I thought. He quickly rushed me over to a taxi and directed him to take me somewhere. Hmmm I thought, could the railway police office be somewhere other than in the Train Station? The (motorbike) taxi took me across the bridge over to the Had Yai Police Office. This didn't seem right. After one look, these police officers directed me over to the building next door, where I found many ragged and tired looking people with lots of sacks and luggage. I looked around and finally found something in English. Immigration. This was not going well. I made my way back to the Police Office, and found my saviour, a little Thai receptionist. She understood my broken and poor attempts at Thai mixed with English, and bless her little heart, called Greenway for me, and explained everything, in Thai of course. She was probably saying this poor white girl who's completely clueless desparately needs some help, come pick her up. Either way, soon the Greenway truck arrived, and the rest as they say is history.

Since then my work here at Greenway has been going well. There are five foreign volunteers and two Thai volunteers. There is a German girl Inga, myself, and three South Koreans! Hye Gin, Te Hee, and Sil are all from Korea and coincidentally didn't come together! It's great fun to watch them teach English to Thai kids with a in a Korean accent! All these Thai kids are going to be running around speaking English with a Korean accent! But I can't even imagine coming to another country to teach a language other than my native one. It'd be like me going to France to teach Greek! It wouldn't be good! This past week we taught fourth through sixth graders at the Bannam krachai school, and next week we will be teaching at another school out here in the Songkhla province. The kids are great- they are so much fun! I hope they are getting as much out of this as I am.