The last post...
Bangkok Day 3
While it was still technically a free day, I appreciated that most of the group found ways to spend the last day together, whether it was in a large group or smaller groups.
After breakfast, Han and I took most of the students to the Chatuchak weekend market, the world's largest weekend market. If you can dream it, you can buy it at this market. From the website:
Field Marshal Plaek Pibunsongkhram was the third Prime Minister of Thailand who first came into office in December 1938. During his tenure, he decided that every town must have a flea market of their own to make it easier for locals to trade and boost the local economy. Bangkok was high on his agenda, so it was declared that a flea market would open up in Sanam Luang, which would become the city’s first market in 1942. In 1982, the market was moved as a permanent feature to Chatuchak. Five years later, the iconic Clocktower was built to celebrate King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s 60th birthday and the market was finally renamed, Chatuchak Market. The popularity of the market has grown substantially since its relocation from Sanam Luang. The market regularly accommodates 200,000 tourists each weekend and has over 15,000 stalls making it the World’s largest weekend market.
Naturally, I forgot to take any pictures of the market itself. We did buy a beautiful sculpture for our mantle (the one on the far left) so that I will get to remember this experience daily.
sculptures by JC Ganning
Bangkok has a free butterfly garden and insectarium that was a short walking distance from the market, so a group of students and I took a nice walk through Wachirabenchathat Park to tour the grounds. As it turns out, butterflies are quite fast and difficult to capture on photo unless they land, so I didn't get great photos, but trust me, there were many beautiful butterflies and they weren't all brown!
Students walking through the park on our quest for butterflies
Look at that camouflage!
Wish I could tell you what type of butterfly this was
See above.
We returned to the market for another hour after the butterfly garden and came home with my absolute new favorite piece of carry-on luggage: the "North Face 30L Fuse Box." I have this in quotes because it's a replica, but I'll be damned if it isn't the most well-constructed replica bag I have ever seen. We saw the actual bag retail for anywhere between $100 and $150 at the airport. We got it for...much less :)
We came home from the market and I put in several hours' worth :) of admin work (scanning journals, updating our trip report, etc) before reconnecting with the group for dinner and farewell karaoke. The group was too big to host in a single room, so we split the group in 2 so that one group could eat dinner while the other was karaoke-ing and then we switched. Good, clean fun, even if the group did choose to sing "Defying Gravity" and it is still stuck in my head to this very day.
How many Westminnies can you fit in an elevator?
Our group decided to do collective singing and dancing rather than having anyone feel like they needed to be put on the spot as a solo performer--it was a ton of fun!
After the second karaoke session, the groups reunited for a final get together/farewell before parting ways. It was a nice evening that felt very celebratory. And a little sad. Hard to say goodbye to the group and to Thailand. About half of the group stayed after to visit other countries, meet up with family and friends, or head to Ko Samet for a few days of beach time. I flew home with about 6 students on the 15th and am happy to report that we had no travel issues.
Given my role and responsibilities on campus, it is unclear whether or not I'll have an opportunity to participate in this program again--I certainly hope I do. While the year-to-year itinerary may have similarities, every program and every group is very different, and they are all special in their own unique way. This group had tremendous creativity, silliness, and thoughtfulness. This group demonstrated independence and curiosity. They really leaned into forming relationships with our Thai hosts and collaborators, and they consistently demonstrated gratitude. While this group and program weren't without some challenges, on-the-whole, this was a tremendously positive experience for me personally and I am so fortunate to have gotten to know and strengthen relationships with the folks on this program. Thank you for being a part of it.
To Han, I know this trip looked different than previous years, but I have complete trust in you and our ability to manage challenges as a team. Thank you for what you do to support students and this program. I appreciate you.
With that, I'm signing off--next planned experience is a return to the Camino de Santiago in Summer 2026, but who knows what spontaneous opportunities may crop up before then.
To the folks that took time out of their busy lives to read some or all of this blog, thank you. If you are a member of a students's support network (partner, parent, family member, roommate, etc.), thank you for sharing your person with us.
Source: ChatGPT
With that final robot-overlord-dressed-like-Willy-Wonka-holding-a-banded-krait, I'm signing off.
And remember, when life gets tough, keep clipping.
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