I love to travel, always have. I married a man cut from the same cloth. Having kids changed our ability to travel effortlessly but it hasn’t stopped us.
Our first child was born in the UK, so he was a traveler from birth. The paternal grandparents live in Moscow, which is the kids’ home away from home. When baby #2 was one, we moved to Asia for a year. Now plans are in the works for a year in Nicaragua.
In these countries, I have volunteered using yoga and bodywork with trauma survivors and HIV+ women. Currently, I am working for Empowerment International which supports children and families in Granada, Nicaragua. I also teach yoga at The Fitness Haven in New Haven and Eco Yoga in Durham, CT.
Read on for tales of travel, parenting, yoga and NGO work. Thanks for reading!
I’m glad I found your site. I am looking to shift to Mae Sot to work with the Burmese community. I have a 5 year old daughter. What are your recommendations for schooling and getting adjusted? She was in Pakistan until almost 2, but of course she doesn’t remember any of that. Any advice or thoughts are greatly appreciated.
I loved living with the kids there. The school thing was tough for us but our time was short there — 6 months. There were some western children going to Thai school and was also a Chinese school. Not sure how much English in either. My 4 year old had a tough time with the preschool because no one spoke English. I would not repeat that experience, especially not for a short time. We lived in Mae Sot Villas, a development of nicer homes several kms from Mae Tao Clinic, where I worked. Several NGOs are located in Mae Sot Villas. It’s a safe place to live with a beautiful pool in the community. We had a small yard and set up swings. There is a playground near MS Villas at a school that is good quality. Overall, it was nice and other expats live there, if a bit removed (15mn by bike) from the center of MS. My concern throughout was dengue and malaria — both of which are present and dengue flared just after we left. Overall we had a great, fun time. Let me know if you have any specific questions.
Thank you so much for taking the time to reply! I’m still trying to gauge how bit MS is. I’m planning on working with the refugees near the border, I’m not sure if that means the area you are referring to is close enough to commute to and from, what do you think. I did hear about a “private” school, but made up mostly of Thai children so the English is weak. I was also throwing the idea around of letting school be where she learns Thai and other cultural relevant issues and me working with her on other lessons, she’s a smart kid and I think we could pull it off. I’m surprised there isn’t a school there, are the expats for the most part just w/o children so there’s really no need? I’m familiar with Dengue from Pakistan, although thankfully it hadn’t shown up while we were there. If I wanted to hire someone to care for her at home what do you think the issues would be finding someone…..safety? Language of course I assume. I’m sure I’ll have more questions as things progress THANKS
More questions welcome. MS is not huge but the border is far from Mae Sot Villas. Are you planning on working in the camps (very far) or at an organization in MS? I lived at one end of MS and worked about 10min drive from the actual border. I’d say it’s 15-20 minutes drive from one end to the other. We didn’t have a car but motorcycles are easily rented/bought. Most expats are without kids but there were a handful. And I know that some went to local schools but my kids were younger, so not too sure about how much English. BTW We are planning another year-long trip to Laos/Nicaragua and I am planning to do just what you said: socialize in the local language school, real academics at home.
I don’t know yet where I’ll be placed, I’m still in the beginning stages. My former colleagues are over in MS and it was one of them who initially emailed me knowing my interest in getting into the field. I personally would have done the whole sell it all strap on a backpack, but having my daughter I felt it wise to look into that aspect. My daughter is a smart cookie and I have no doubt she’ll learn just fine at home. Matter of fact I found another blog of a family who lived over there and that was pretty much their experience. So far you’re the only two I’ve found, but I know there are some over there now.
I’ve heard of the “motorcycles” and the motorcycles. I drove a 70cc while living in Pakistan and loved every second of it, so I’m actually looking forward to that, even if I just get a little hybrid like my friends have. My daughter will love it too. As I get more information I’m sure I’ll have more questions (seems backwards doesn’t it). Are you familiar with BVP?