Chaing Mai

The images that are presented in the Bangkok post daily are powerful. I walked past a wall of missing people, with pleas of help from their families to help find them. A huge donation box sat at the end of the wall with cut out images and an article from the newspaper. Bloated bodies face down in the water and faces of utter sorrow. Before I left Bangkok for Chaing mai I got into a couple conversations with some local Thai women about the disaster. I don't consider myself an emotional person, but it was hard not to be emotional about the images and the thought of so much tragedy. Every time I even think about this, goose bumps rise on my arms, and I twist in my seat.
The local friends I made for the day in Bangkok, Bah and Yod explained that from what their friends and family down south said, Thai people were giving as much as they could to help the foreigners out. That there were images though, of the foreigners not helping the other foreigners out but hoarding supplies that Thais so graciously gave them.. what sad western ideas we have.
I had already bought my ticket up here for Chang Mai, but would in a flash turn around and head south to help in any way that I could for the relief effort. The day I got here to the beauty that is Chang Mai, I would have turned around and gone south were it not for this group of people I met that showed me a bulletin explaining what kinds of help was needed down south. They don't want foreigners helping to catch more disease, or get in the way if they have no experience in relief work.

here are some sites to go to if you want to help: https://www.redcross.org/donate/donation-form.asp
www.bethechange.org www.tsunamipage.com also www.khoasanroad.com has some ideas.

just a few..