Getting off the train from Delhi to Dehradun was much like a skydiving experience. If you have never tried it before, stepping off of a somewhat familiar mode of transportation into absolutely unparalleled surroundings can be the best or worst decision of your life. The smells were heavy and moist– a mixture of sweat wafting from the crowded station and the stench of sewage draining from the train’s plumbing. Along the way out towards the chaotic maze termed ‘street’, the dense, humid air greets me with the new and unfamiliar scent of rice, caged foul, and emissions from the darting mopeds and motorbikes. There was more honking than New Year’s Eve in New York City. Rickshaws, taxis, bikes, and pedestrians were all participating in the most uncoordinated yet functional traffic dance, weaving in and out of the five sleepless and culture shocked students. It was the beginning of the adventure of a lifetime; one that I hope emboldens others to step out into the confusing and chaotic street of life with a bit more clarity to seize their dreams.
We arrived on that day from all over the globe, with a common interest of gaining an understanding in cross cultural competency and integrative medicine. This was not the best place for contemplation, but there I stood in the crowded street, hungry for the knowledge that would best prepare me for a professional career as Nurse Practitioner—diagnosing patients who may be receiving a combination of modern and traditional treatments. And what better place to study Traditional Medicine systems than where they originated over 5000 years ago? This desire had been growing in me from a young age, watered by every experience up until that present moment, and somehow I had made it here. It was my first day in India.
Personal challenges growing up had progressively cultivated my drive to make a difference in health care. The homeschooled years lasting until the seventh grade were filled with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge, ranking me in the 99th academic percentile of the national homeschooled population. Perhaps this was to distract from the dismal, isolated home life my mother, brother, and I experienced. My father demanded that my mother stay home to teach my brother Austin and I, and that we were only to leave the house out of pure necessity—for fear that someone would suspect his abuse. It was this same fear that kept him from taking seven year-old Austin to the emergency room following a baseball accident that rendered him nearly lifeless. This pivotal event immediately influenced my decision to pursue a career in health care after experiencing the compassion provided by one nurse practitioner—from the time she informed my mother and I that Austin may not make it, to later when she shared in our joyous relief that he miraculously was going to be okay! My mother and I have since labored to defer the weight of those medical expenses. Consequently, due to limited access to health care all of these years, she nearly passed away from complications surrounding a twelve-pound tumor, recently found to have been growing for over four years. In retrospect, I am left with a profound conviction of the importance of access to primary care. Moving forward, the purpose in fulfilling my academic and professional goals to become an Adult Nurse Practitioner and Scientist becomes more clear: that I may afford the necessary follow up care for my mom while providing integrative primary care that will interrupt the development of similar preventable conditions in the underserved global community.
The compassion and hope I so strongly desire to share with others was fostered on a mission trip myself and eight other students undertook, providing hygienic supplies to an isolated mountain village in the Dominican Republic with no transportation or advanced health care. A small girl’s grateful smile as I passed her a toothbrush still highlights my memory of that trip, and I often reminisce the undeniable fulfillment felt in that moment from meeting a child’s need. There, I made it my mission to continue making a global impact, after being exposed to this society lacking basic resources (such as a toothbrush) so often taken for granted yet necessary to prevent future untreatable complications.
So why share such tremendously personal experiences? From this seed of desire planted by the nurse practitioner and the limited access to health care through the years, grew my overwhelming interest in affordable, preventative modalities that drew me to India. Ayurveda, Naturopathy, Homeopathy, Reiki are utilized by 80% of underserved populations living in developing countries (Agarwal, Fatima, & Singh, 1996). What better modality to study if I plan on making an impact in this community, where there are approximately 100,000 individuals per physician, and what better place to study traditional medicine than where it originated?
References
Agarwal, P., Fatima, A., & Singh, P. (1996). Herbal Medicine Scenario in India and European Countries. Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry, 1(4). Retrieved from http://www.phytojournal.com/vol1Issue4/Issue_nov_2012/12.1.pdf
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Over Thanksgiving break, I surprised Maksim with a week long Euro road trip for his bday spanning Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands- and the entire adventure for two cost <$1,500!!! This is the detailed itinerary to use as a template:7 day EuroTrip for two <$1,500
1. Book flight 5 months pre-trip
3. Hit the road with a sweet rental!
4. Have your own navigation (or know German)
The spots
2. Schangnau, Switzerland $31 a night
3. From here we input “Zermatt, Matterhorn Talstation” to google maps and probably kept our Jaw to the ground the entire way.
4. Next destination: Amsterdam and everything in between!
How to Travel Broke: The Best Part of ThailandRides with strangers
Some friends from India (who had taken the students into their home and embraced us with unsurpassed hospitality) just so happen to be coming to Phuket for the week! I rushed down to the reception area to see about getting a taxi to their place. An older gentleman, with what appeared to be Parkinson's, overhead my conversation about 600 Baht being too costly. He asked where I was headed and offered to give me a ride on his scooter since he was going in that direction for a dental appointment.
Given his fragile condition in regards to my safety, I gladly accepted the kindness of this stranger who just so happened to be from Cocoa Beach (it is interesting to note that I ended up living here for several months after arriving back to the states). He had been living in Australia the past 4 years while producing world-renowned research that encompassed the very aspects of traditional medicine I had come India to study! I could hardly believe this divine connection and felt so deeply moved at such compassion and generosity- such good hearts giving and open to receiving in this now seemingly small universe!
Chiang Mai
The Mae Sa waterfalls were set in a labyrinth of sensual trees, reaching and twisting their way up the climb. At the very top of the waterfall, an abandoned tree walkway beckoned to be used as a jungle gym. There were yellow butterflies nestled along the river rock and, as if orchestrated, would joyfully lilt up into the mist and the sweet mountain air. This was paradise.
Boy blue's bar in the town was the loveliest, eclectic collection of individuals I have ever had the opportunity of enjoying. The owner, Blue, is a beaming middle age Thai Jimmy Hendricks with the frizziest hair and a playful smile. His presence was so energetic, leaning into the crowd to make eye contact whenever playing a guitar solo. My favorite to watch was an elegant woman in her mid fifties. Eyes rimmed with edgy square frames, she sat so confidently- not poised, but mouth wide open, smiling, accepting and sipping in each moment. She reminded me of my grandmother who raised me, and what she would have been like had she come on this present adventure at my age. Somehow she inspired me just by sitting across that rooftop bar as the torrential downpour erased everything except the soulful melodies radiating.
The next day, I tried some Pad Ke Mow from a terrific little organic place, then treated myself to a Thai iced tea and sweet honey toast at local cafe. Chiang Mai is an affordable student central marked by trendy little cafés, coffee shops, and an abundance of street food averaging one dollar a meal! I spent the majority of my time here writing a research article on natural treatment approaches to Osteoporosis, eating, and people watching to my heart’s content. As the week was drawing to a close, my senses ached for change with a joyful expectancy of what Mae Na Chon had to offer.
Ha Fuen Fu "Far away from home" school
The mountain drive up through Doi Inthanon National Park to the Karen Hill Tribe in Mae Na Chon excited my spirit more than any other experience in my life for several reasons. Foremost, Mae Na Chon had been at the apex of my anticipation (as well as the apex of Southeast Asia at an elevation of 8415 feet) since the day I booked my flight to Thailand. A friend in Chiang Mai had invited me to join seventeen other volunteers in setting up an eye clinic for the hill tribe’s orphanage and school for three days. A biker and drummer from Nottingham who happened to ride through the village several years back and stopped for a drink, organized the entire effort. He observed that the orphans had only one tattered outfit, sleeping on the floor with rats. Overwhelmed with compassion for these children, unprecedented in their joy and manner, he has been working with several organizations to get basic necessities donated.
Aside from the soul purpose of this journey, the trek itself was equally stimulating. The bumpy cliff side escalation through corn crops, Lanna teak style bungalows, and into the cleaner, cooler air was enough to revitalize the weariest of travelers. All of the hungry volunteers arrived to the village at sunset, just in time to get settled into our jungle abodes and devour the most vivacious green curry I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing. The next morning we would set up clinic bright and early.
In collaboration with Amigo Vision Thailand, the volunteers had been trained by Dr. Bouma to conduct eye exams and give out glasses to improve learning conditions while diagnosing and halting degenerative eye conditions. The children filed into the small schoolroom for their evaluations, surrounded by strangers directing them in a foreign language and strange looking equipment. It was all too much for one young girl, who began to cry and hyperventilate.
The doctor was concerned about some abnormal looking blood vessels in her eye and elevated blood pressure. He was trying to ask one of the teachers where the nearest hospital was and this began to draw a crowd around the child- compounding her condition. What happened next forever remains imprinted in my memory- I picked the girl up and set her on my lap, using basic Thai phrases and drawing with her to distract her. I think my attempt at a giraffe was rather obscure and we shared a laugh. It was working, her heart rate began to settle and later re-assessed her blood pressure to find it was perfectly normal!
Laying in bed that night, listening to the chorus of crickets, I noticed a feeling, and the more I paid attention to it the more it concrete and definable it became. An unprecedented amount of joy flooded my existence: to think where I was in the universe, on this planet, so far from my birthplace and then it blew my mind how I had actually made it here. How fortunate I was to experience the power of love in action- that frequency that literally brought balance and quantitative healing to a scared little girl’s physical condition. My heart is warmed by so many beautiful individuals seeing a need and coming together to meet it, I will never forget the gratitude shown on the faces of the Burmese descendants, expressed by the teacher who gave me a bunch of small bananas since she observed how much I enjoyed them during lunch! Today was the most rewarding day of my life yet.
Air transit
"Don't you miss home?" so many have inquired since the end of July, but the reality is that I have been home all along. Home was in Phuket, gazing out the foggy window towards mountains and in the smile of my Thai momma who saw to it that I recover and came to check my fever armed with a machete and a bag of coconuts.
Or the scientist who gave me a scooter ride in the rain when I did not have enough for a taxi- then tried to give me money to make my way back! Home is the Karen hill tribe orphanage filled with so much love and the many stories and secrets that connected new friends under the stars as vast constellations ourselves. As I travel back to the sunshine state I realize this is not the end of the journey. No, each day and every person is the adventure!
For the holidays this week I plan to take a social media detox and relax with family! We're going to start a show together and I thought you may enjoy this link for a free HBO trial as well!Thailand Adventure: Arrival in Phuket
I can't get over the scent of the soft ocean air-sweet and salty, it gently brushes my skin as if to say "You have arrived." After a sleepless overnight flight, it was a struggle to stay awake on the mini bus ride to Karon Cliff Villas- but I am so glad that I did. There were many travelers on their own from all over the globe, exploring the same piece of Thai land. A 20-year old girl from Australia, here in a hostel just for one more night, reassured me that the past few weeks she had never felt unsafe. The gentlemen next to me from Hong Kong immediately began to exude his passion for life in stories of being a firefighter captain, trekking 50 kilometer on Asia's highest mount to watch the sunrise, Osaka culture, and sailing.
At that moment I realized that I had made the best decision of my life, and that traveling alone is the least lonely adventure you could ever embark on. Everywhere, in every moment, something, someone, someplace is magnetically drawing your attention in order to expand your mind through some sort of new experience.
Wheeling my luggage up to the hotel, my body ached for rest. I couldn't helped but feel frustrated that the room had no internet connection- the one premise on which I justified coming to Thailand was to work on an article and volunteer in an eye clinic. I felt so silly allowing this to steal from the magnitude of beauty surrounding me. Then, a knock at the door- Apple (a lively young woman who works in many aspects of the hotel) excitedly informed me that the manager had upgraded my room and we ran over to the my new home, an incredible villa with a real shower, dining area, and a bit of sluggish wifi in the corner! How could I ever fret? For ten dollars a night I have been immersed in paradise, with free breakfast surrounded by staff that that feel closer than most of my own immediate family. My new friend from Hong Kong called on WhatsApp to tell me a story of how in England, a kind man drove him everywhere while he was in need. He wanted to extend the same kindness to me by booking a night at Club Med so that I would be able to join the yoga class that I mentioned earlier that day!
I am home. Adventure
My friend picked me up on Wednesday for a scooter ride with an extra pink helmet. The weather was perfect with a breeze as cool as the bright blue sky and jewel-toned turquoise sea stretched out beneath. We stopped at a cliff side cafe in Kata beach for some Tom Yum Gai and lemon iced tea. A slinky, content cat appeared and stretched out next to our feet. She was so pleased with the simple life here in Thailand, it was impossible not to share in her delight.
By the time we reached the top of the mountain, the sun was setting and the serenity in the air was made tangible by the tinkling of bells all around the temple. Pastel pink and orange clouds leisurely floated from the east, where Phuket town and the harbor were nestled, to the west where the terraced mountainside crops and tropical trees boast lush, vivid, emerald green abundance.
Coconut Elixir
The past two days were spent in bed, quite ill from a bag of rotten pistachios. To my relief, my Thai momma (the lovely woman who works at Karon Cliff) came to my door- bearing a bag filled with fresh young Thai coconuts, a machete, and some pork rinds. Without hesitation, she stepped in to crack open the most refreshing and timely elixir my lips have ever tasted- touching my face to check my temperature followed by a warm embrace.
Everywhere I turn, blessings are overturning any challenge I have faced along this journey. Why should I feel anything but the ultimate form of security when here, by myself nearly 10,000 miles away from Tampa, unfamiliar family pops up at precisely the moment of need. I am so grateful to feel so much love.
Check back next week to read about the best part of my Thailand trip, Ma Na Chon- the highest point in Southeast Asia!
How to Travel Broke: Thailand Embarkation
It's a sweltering August night and nearing the end of the Traditional Medicine program in India. I remember that moment just like it just passed, the sound of the fan whirling around the tepid air that snuck through the windows, adorned by worn floral sheets in my host families home. The bleached walls served as a reminder that this was a much less humid night than most, and as I observed the patterns where mold had once been a strange euphoria came over me, which I dissected into several feelings. The first was gloom that arose from the thought that this incredible experience (shared under India adventures) was approaching its end while I was in no form ready to return to my mother’s own crowded, moldy apartment. Another, from the realization that after having finished my bachelor’s in nursing and needing to sit for the boards, I could take this work and studying remotely abroad to much more affordable lands.
Earlier that evening, while flipping through my roommate’s magazine, I stumbled upon an article on Thailand that struck me with wanderlust. Euphoria began to brew into a steadily increasing excitement sparking active curiosity as I researched flights and living arrangements in Phuket. I don’t know a word for the amount of spontaneous joy experienced when I found that I could actually save money by staying there instead of back in Florida. Immediately, I emailed my great uncle upon discovering a villa for ten dollars a night (some more methods for cheap travel I will disclose at the end of this series) right on Kata Bay! “Lauren…There is no time like the present…If you can afford to extend your stay over there, you’ll have a lifetime of memories (pictures I hope too) that can never be recaptured…DO IT…Enjoy sweetheart…stay in touch if you can, otherwise I really do understand...” and within seconds of booking a surreal sense of gravity overcame my body, I was going to Phuket alone!
Embarkation
Today is the day. When the light slipped through the narrow space of curtain and old Delhi cement, I arose with my spirits gladdened- just as I had hoped for in my despair last night. All of the of students were back home by now in separate corners of the globe and I spent the past two days waiting for this flight like only person on earth waiting for the apocalypse to end. Perhaps it wasn’t so bad- the host in this tiny flat where I had barely enough to pay for the stay (which was supposed include to breakfast and dinner) would not allow me to save my leftovers for lunch and preferred that I stay in my room. It had been storming and desperate to escape my concrete prison, I trudged a mile through streets flooded with inches of cow sewage and rain in order to make it to the nearest internet café. An email confirmed there would be a shuttle available to pick me up from the airport tomorrow.
A gnawing sense of doubt arose: "Will I be safe alone in Thailand? Will I have enough? Am I capable of this with only several hundred dollars?" In order to relinquish all fear I will embrace this uncertainty as the very medium that causes faith to grow!
If you enjoyed some of my journal entries from Thailand check back next week for the continued adventure in Phuket!
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Lauren Christa Wright, APRNand a little bit of my heart. How to Travel Broke Series:
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