I had a wonderful time at the Wat Temple meeting everyone and getting exposed to the Thai culture.  I learned right away that it wasn’t the look of a temple that I had expected.  I need to be more open minded that not assume what things are going to be like based off of social media and the Thai lakorns that I’ve watched in the past. My experience at the Wat Temple helped me to understand the respect that people have for Monks.  We must be cautious of our space and not point our feet towards the monk.  It was nice knowing that there are still people who follow the old tradition even though they are in America where people tend to shift culture.

During the trip in Thailand, I hope to emerge myself in Thai culture and step back away from my judgments.  I want to learn about the Thai culture and traditions of how it differs from culture in America.  I am excited and I believe that this will be a wonderful experience.

Nina Thao
May 2, 2016