Field Reports

February 2014 Thailand Trip
This Thailand Report covers the third and final leg of my February 2014 SE Asia trip. In the event you might have missed the earlier reports, you can see the Cambodia segment by clicking here, and you can see the Myanmar segment by clicking here. Leaving Myanmar, I headed straight for Pattaya, Thailand where I had meetings at the Fountain

February 2014 Myanmar Trip
Here’s a report on the Myanmar segment of my most recent trip Just getting to Myanmar is a bit more of a hassle than traveling to other countries in SE Asia. Myanmar requires a Visa – in advance. That involved downloading the proper forms, sending them along with my passport and a $20 money order to the Myanmar consulate in

February 2014 Cambodia Trip
This most recent trip to SE Asia was a particularly long and busy one. So, I’ll report on it in three separate sections — one for Cambodia, one for Myanmar, and one for Thailand. Here’s the Cambodian segment. In Siem Reap I connected with my good friend Jana Stanfield and joined in with a group of good-hearted people from Atlanta

My November 2013 Thailand Trip
This most recent trip to SE Asia was a very busy and productive one, with the full three weeks spent in various locations in Thailand. I was particularly pleased to be joined for the first week of the trip by a long-time friend and colleague, Peter Scontrino. Together, we began working with the Fountain of Life Women’s Center and the

Sangkhalaburi & Myanmar
Here’s the final episode in what has been a long, busy trip to SE Asia this time. Returning from Cambodia, I was met at the Bangkok airport my my good friend and colleague living in Thailand and Myanmar, Treasure Shine, Thailand Project Manager for Partners Asia, a US non-profit headquartered in Seattle and San Francisco. Off we went, first by

Fourth of July … and Cambodia
My Fourth of July was amazing. Along with a couple of my American colleagues and dear friends (Scott Friedman and Jana Stanfield) here in Siem Reap we concentrated on being the best of Americans and demonstrating what caring, compassionate Americans have to offer to the less advantaged people in the world. Jana, Bill, Scott We began the day with a

Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai
Still catching up on my recent travels — this time about my visits in Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai. Entrance First stop in CR was to visit the Good Shepherd Sisters Girls Home an hour south, in the town of Phan. Sister Lena is still in charge there, but otherwise there has been turnover in the Sisters assigned to that

Two Days in Bangkok
Entrance Upon returning to BKK from Nong Khai, (which is in the north east of Thailand, not the north west, as one of my astute readers pointed out to me) I was met at the airport by Sister Louise who escorted me to her facility in central Bangkok. This a very large facility that I had visited on a prior

Two and a Half Days in Nong Khai
Nong Khai is an important town located right alongside the Mekong River in the northwestern part of Thailand, known as Isan, a mostly agricultural region. Vientiane, the capital of Laos, is right across the Freedom Bridge. People here speak their own dialect of Thai. And, they face the many challenges of a rural life, impacted by the vagaries of nature,

Three Days in Bali
Hi All, Busy time in Bali to begin this trip. Three-day off-site meeting. 30 people. No opportunity for an advance design. It was all on the fly. Arrived Sunday afternoon. Met with Nengah and Yati right after that to plan the first 1/2 day. Began the meetings first thing Monday morning (no time for jet-lag recovery) and designed and led

Safety for Girls – Koenawin Monk School
As a long-time advocate for educating girls, it is gratifying to visit the various Monk and Nun schools to see first-hand their fine work being done in this regard. Up

Visit to a Lashio Nun & Monk Schools
Today was a busy day in Lashio. In the afternoon we visited the Nayar Thiri Nun School. There, in the interest of safety, 40 girls from the local villages become

A Day With The Kwan Hlar Village Youth Group
Today was a delightful day in the Mon village Kwan Hlar. I was invited there because their youth group (a few of whom I had met while working in the

A Visit to Poon Mon Village
Yesterday we visited the Lahu village of Poon Mon, located about 14 miles north of Lashio, Myanmar – up close to the China border. These people were relocated here in

Pain Sar Village Visit
Today we visited Pain Sar, a Lahu village located 26 miles north of Lashio, Myanmar. Highly agricultural, this village of 52 households and 320 people is struggling mightily to improve

Khone Suu Village Visit
Today we visited Khone Suu Village, in the dry zone south of Magwe, Myanmar. Getting there was quite an adventure. I’ve driven on some pretty bad roads in my time

Visit With Life and Hope Association
I had a most interesting conversation with the Venerable Lorm Loeurm, Executive Director of the Life and Hope Association in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Located on the grounds of the Wat

A Visit to Kwan Hlar Village
A couple of days ago we visited Kwan Hlar village, the home of our friend, Nyen Shwe, a very dedicated and hard working young Mon man living and working in

A New School for Lakhana Village
When I visited Lakhana Village last summer I met with the village Women’s Group. They were absolutely determined to have a “post-primary” (junior high) school so their children could continue

A Visit to Nath Maw Village – Myanmar
Nath Maw Village is a small place on Giant Island, located in the Thawlwin River. Nath Maw is accessible only by a ferryboat across this very large river. The current