More on what I'm doing...

It is difficult not to be vague in a title because not much has been going on. I am basically doing the clerical work behind a community group's survey of gender issues and reproductive health in various Burmese communities, specifically migrant, refugee and internally displaced persons (ie still in Burma). While my position isn't terribly glamorous, I like that I am a resource to the local people. They know the communities and what they need. In general the foreigners here seem to provide a support layer for local efforts. It was frustrating when some people came to the clinic a few days ago and implied that the clinic staff must be excited to have westerners here to help them. The clinic staff really does quite well on its own.

Without digressing further, I tend to go to the office every day around nine, read reports, try to organize the survey and get in a good format for review by the community leaders, and organize meetings. I come home anywhere between 2 and 6, then head back out on the town for dinner and maybe further entertainment. People here seem to work 6 if not 7 days/week, but they don't work very hard. It might average out to 40 hour weeks. I'm trying to go with the flow. I eat most meals out, but it's hard not to when I can get great food, lunch and dinner, for around 4 dollars total. Mae Sot actually has a small driving range, and one night some friends and I stopped by to drink beer and hit golf balls. There's not much to do, so it takes some creativity.

I am not nor do I feel as compelled to delve into the communities as I did in Venezuela. If I could speak some Burmese, I might have the option, but I don't. Still I am starting to understand more about the situation. Many people I have seen are in Thailand illegally, but since they have left Burma, they will be marked if they go back in. So they are stuck. There are no signs outside the buildings of the organizations I work with. I've been told that groups working on health and education are usually overlooked by the Thai authorities, but those with pro-democracy links in Burma really need to keep their heads down.

Mae Sot is an interesting community. The city is supposedly around 40k, but there are many illegals and also large refugee camps (50k?) within a few miles. And the city is very compressed. There is a large down-town area, basically two one-way streets with an assortment of shops scattered along maybe 3/4 of a mile. I am a block or two to the side of that area. Within walking distance I can buy anything I might need, from grocery stores, an open market, computer and cell phone stores and more. It's really quite nice.

I do feel very much like I'm on the edge of the civilized world. There is a lot of crazy stuff going on not far away, but thankfully there is a national border between me and the conflict. There is a flow of people coming here from the conflict areas though, and I hear news from them, as well as from the ex-pat people I work and hang out with. It's an odd window into a situation that much of the world knows nothing about, and won't know anything about. It's a strange place to be.