Update from Thailand

Yesterday was another long day of travel.  We were at the bus station early in the morning where we rode about 4 hours to the Thai border.  Crossing the border was a long, hot, overall miserable ordeal, but we finally made it through only to get in a very crowded van and drive another 3 hours.  We arrived in Pattaya, a resort town on the beach, known for its nightlife.

After a team briefing and dinner, we headed downtown where we walked around and took it all in.  Pattaya is estimated to have 20,000 brothels.  Nope, that’s not a typo.  Twenty thousand.  I know that number seems overwhelming and maybe even impossible, but after walking through the streets last night I have no problem believing that it’s true.  Never have I seen such raw evil.  I am simply too drained to write about it in detail here, although I plan to at some point.    Right now I am processing and unraveling all that I saw last night and trying to figure out what to do with it all.

We got back to our hotel last night around 11:oo, then were up at 3:15 this morning to catch an early flight to Chang Rai.  Right now I am at an internet cafe, enjoying some quiet time and the much cooler weather.

These posts are probably sounding completely depressing, and in many ways this trip has been difficult for me.  But I want to let you know that I am having a lot of fun too.  The team that I’m traveling with is a riot.  We have laughed together a lot. . .the good kind of laughter where you can hardly catch your breath.  I am learning a lot from this team and I’m thankful for the way God put us together.

The rest of our time will be spent in this city.  We’re all happy to be in one place for awhile.  We traveled so much through Cambodia, which I loved, but now I’m ready to stay put for a few days.

Thanks once again for your prayers.  They are appreciated more than I can say.