Nam Whan in America

Rotary Club of Bangkok South International Youth Project


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Nam whan and Uttaradit

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Background

Surreporn Inmeuang, who goes by the nickname Nam Whan, is sixteen. Her home is in Pah Leurat, a small rice farming village in Uttaradit, Thailand. For the month of April, 2007, Nam Whan is visiting Santa Barbara, California, where she will spend a week at each of four different schools while living with four different host families.

This program is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Bangkok South and is managed in Thailand by Tom Banker and Rui Belo. The coordinator in Santa Barbara is Mac Bakewell, who is the author of this blog and also director of the cultural exchange program, Inside Thailand.

 
Whan with Benyapa and Coconut

With Benyapa and Coco

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LAX & Spring Break with Benyapa

WEDNESDAY, March 28

Nam Whan is here! After she landed, and before she could get out of customs to where she could see us, she had to wait three hours for her bag. Apparently they are remodeling the carrousels at LAX so things there are working even less efficiently than usual. We finally got her home at 1:00 AM and are all very tired, but she is really HERE! Amazing.

THURSDAY, March 29

Benyapa, Nam Whan, Sophie, and Danielle spent the day out on their own. Their agenda began with crepes by Boosaba and a quick trip to the beach, then a walk on Stearn's Wharf followed by lunch at the zoo. After a matinee movie on State Street they came home for dinner with Boosaba and Mac and Rachel Ko, the young woman whose scholarship program, Thai Circle, has enabled Nam Whan to attend high school.

That dinner was a celebration, both of Nam Whan's arrival and of this culmination of years of effort: without Inside Thailand there would be no Thai Circle, and without Thai Circle Nam Whan would not have English skills sufficient to qualify for this Rotary program.

FRIDAY, March 30

Recovery day. Nam Whan slept late and took it easy until after lunch when we went to the office of the Santa Barbara Daily Sound for a photo. That photo should run with an article in the paper early next week. Then we went to Muddy Waters, the coffee house on Haley Street where Benyapa worked for her own school's career studies week.

Muddy Waters is a popular hangout for artists and social activists, and during our visit Nam Whan was invited to write an article for a youth-oriented quarterly, and also to attend a Caesar Chavez Day celebration that evening.

After dinner we attended the Caesar Chavez celebration at la Casa de la Raza. There Nam Whan met Santa Barbara's mayor, Marty Blum, and our district's congresswoman, Lois Capps. Both women greeted Nam Whan with genuine warmth and interest and her eyes grew very large. I think she was as impressed by their gender as by their titles.

SATURDAY, March 31

Saturday began with a trip to Farmers Market followed by Nam Whan's first pizza at lunch with Benyapa's grandmother. Tonight we shared dinner at our home with Jazmin, one of the editors of the youth-oriented quarterly, Shape of Voice.

SUNDAY, April 1

Lazy Sunday at home with Benny. Tried to go bowling with Sophie but wires were crossed and Sophie didn't show so we'll try again some other time. Mac, Benny, and Nam Whan had dinner at Genaro's Palapa restaurant, where Nam Whan enjoyed her first burrito.

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Pierces

With the Pierces

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Cate School

MONDAY, April 2

Nam Whan moved in with her first fully American host family, Sandi and Gary Pierce and their two kids at Cate School. The Pierces are celebrating Passover with a Seder for twenty tonight. Nam Whan immediately felt so at home that she wants to stay with the Pierces all week.

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Whan & Ray

With Ray at SBHS

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Santa Barbara High School

SUNDAY, April 8 - SUNDAY, April 15

For those of you who read Thai, here are some of Nam Whan's impressions from her week at Santa Barbara High School.

When she returned to Thailand, Nam Whan compiled a detailed report of her experience and then translated much of that into English. To read her complete report, in either Thai or English, please follow the links at the bottom of this page.

เมื่อสัปดาห์ที่แล้ว ที่น้ำหวานไปที่ Santa Barbara High School ที่นั่นแตกต่างจากที่ Cate School มากๆ เพราว่าที่ Cate มีนักเรียนน้อยกว่าที่ SBHS และการเรียนการสอนของที่นี่ก็แตกต่าง เช่นเดียวกัน คือที่ Cate เค้าจะมีนักเรียนน้อยมาก ประมาณ 200 กว่าคน แต่ว่า ที่ SBHS เค้าจะไม่ค่อยเคร่งครัดเท่าไร สบายๆ แต่ว่ามีนักเรียนมาก ทำให้ึครูที่สอน ดูแลไม่ค่อยทั่วถึง และ นักเรียนที่ SBHS เค้าไม่ค่อยจะเคร่งครัดมากเท่าไร

น้ำหวานช๊อกมาก เมื่อมีคนที่ท้องหรือมีลูก สามารถเรียนได้ เค้าไม่ว่าอะไร มีสถานที่ฝากเลี้ยงลูก แล้วเด็กที่ SBHS เค้าจะมีแฟนกัน แล้วเลาที่รักกัน ก็จะแสดงออกอย่างเปิดเผย ไม่อายใคร แต่ว่าโรงเรียนที่นี่ก็ดี เพราะว่ามีนักดรียนหลายชาติ เราจะได้เรียนรู้วัฒนธรรมที่แตกต่างกันออกไป

โฮสแฟมมิลี่ ที่น้ำหวานไปแยู่ด้วย เค้าก็ดีมากๆ เช่นกัน ลูกของเค้าชื่อเรย์เป็นคนไทย แต่ว่ามาเรียนที่นี่ ได้กินอาหารไทยทุกวันเลยค่ะ

เมื่อวันเสาร์ที่ผ่านมา น้ำหวานไปเที่ยวในดมืองกับเรย์มาค่ะ สนุกมากๆและเรย์ก็เป็นคนที่นิสัยดี ก็เลยเข้ากันได้ค่ะ

เมื่อวันอาทิตย์ น้ำหวานไปวัดมาค่ะ เนื่องในวันสงกรานต์ มำให้คิืดถึงบ้านนิดหน่อยค่ะ แต่ว่าอาืทิตย์นี้สนุกมากๆเลยค่ะ

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Muffins with Rozy

With Rozy Boswell

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Anacapa School

SUNDAY, April 15 - SUNDAY, April 22

Nam Whan spent this past week at Anacapa School. Yesterday we went to Disneyland.

When she returned to Thailand, Nam Whan compiled a detailed report of her experience and then translated much of that into English. To read her complete report, in either Thai or English, please follow the links at the bottom of this page.

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Benyapa, Nam whan, John SB

With John SB

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Santa Barbara Middle School

SUNDAY, April 22 - MONDAY, April 30

For her final week in Santa Barbara Nam Whan is attending Santa Barbara Middle School where Benyapa is in 8th grade.

When she returned to Thailand, Nam Whan compiled a detailed report of her experience and then translated much of that into English. To read her complete report, in either Thai or English, please follow the links at the bottom of this page.

 

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PDF Nam Whan's report (illustrated in English - PDF) | PDF Nam Whan's report (text-only in Thai - PDF)


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