R&R - Refresh and Renew

The Tet holiday is over, our students are back on campus and my 2nd semester schedule begins on March 8th. But before I charge off to start tackling the 7 flights of stairs at the school, here's a look back at the highlight of our break, the Asia Teachers' Conference (ATC).

Chiang Mai, Thailand is the site for this annual gathering. Teachers came from China, Mongolia, Tibet, Laos, Cambodia, and of course, Vietnam!  The staff from USA were also there coordinating workshops and handling so many administrative details...kudos to all of them! It made for a wonderful time of refreshing and fellowship. We were excited to see so many of the friends we made last July, when we started on this journey.

Chiang Mai is like no place else! A rich Thai culture infused with enough Western influence to make us feel almost at home. Riding all over town in tuk-tuks, small motorized taxi-buggies, or in the little red taxi trucks that resemble paddy wagons.

Eating at  Burger King, McDonald's, Starbucks, Dunkin' Donuts, Sizzler Steak House...it was like entering the Promised Land for 300 teachers and their families who have been eating noodles and rice for 6 months! Susan and I ate BBQ ribs, salmon filets, Aussie steaks, and even dined on real English fish & chips at the Red Lion, a pub style cafe owned by a man from Liverpool (my father's birthplace).
                      

The main activity of the day in Chiang Mai is shopping! Bazaars are everywhere. Nightly street markets offer all sorts of clothing, jewelry, artwork, watches, luggage, anything you want - they'll get it! Treasures and trinkets - exquisite to trashy. And bargaining with the street vendors is truly an art form, one that Susan handled with Italian savvy!

Back at our hotel, we attended daily devotional times that felt like a warm bath to our souls. Workshops were held to help us perfect our teaching craft. Country reports informed us about happenings throughout Asia. Breakfast and lunch usually meant gathering with other teachers to chat and laugh, and pray. We serve over here with some truly awesome people!

Chiang Mai was a place where we stopped to take a deep breath. A time to refocus and renew. A time and place to get away from ourselves and talk with Him...the One who holds us in the palm of His hand. Look through our pictures; we hope you enjoy them. You'll mostly see what tourists usually see. But look more closely and perhaps you'll catch a glimpse of why we're here.