This week marks 3 months in Thailand, so it was time to switch host families! My new family has lots of people, including 2 young daughters, 2 dogs, and the sweetest grandma. I’m so excited for this change of pace, and opportunity to experience the culture of another Thai family.

School started back up this week. I haven’t gotten my personalized schedule yet, so I’ve just been tagging along with my friends all week. Some new classes include: Thai Literature, Website/Portfolio building, and Thai art history and crafts. My host sister is a competitive swimmer, so I’ve gotten to start swimming again! I swam 1 kilometer in 30 minutes. It felt amazing to get back in the water again!

I’ve gotten to try homemade Northern Thai food that is only found in the home kitchens of Phrae– restaurants don’t serve these dishes. I also got to try my favorite northern foods, but at new restaurants. These included Khao soi, khanom sen, and Tub Tim Grob. My new favorite thai dessert is Thai crepes! This one had a crispy crepe shell filled with bananas and Nutella. I’ve also learned that I like matcha lattes now haha. We visited a historic home in Phrae that has been turned into a museum and wedding/party venue.

On Saturday, we visited a temple, as they were having a festival for charity. I got to see a real Thai party and try lots of Thai food. My favorite was deep fried bananas. They were DELICIOUS. My host family makes them at home, with their homegrown bananas, so I will hopefully learn how to make them soon! In the afternoon, I performed in a play about the founding of a Burmese temple in Phrae. They needed a farang (thai term for foreigner), and my rotary counselor said I would be perfect for it haha. I didn’t have to say anything, just look pretty 😆.

On Sunday, I cooked Fettuccine Chicken Alfredo and garlic bread for my host family! My host sisters love pasta, so they were excited to try one of my favorite foods from America.

It still feels unreal that a third of my exchange has already passed. It hasn’t always been easy, but every challenge has been part of the adventure. I’ve learned to advocate for myself, fallen in love with food all over again, and started to become trilingual. I’ve discovered new interests like writing and added new layers to old ones, like Thai crafts. It sounds cliché, but there’s no denying how much I’ve grown in just three months. Time has really flown by, it still feels like yesterday that I was getting dropped off at IAH. If the first three months have been this full of change and adventure, I can only imagine what the next six will hold. I’m excited to keep learning, exploring, and seeing where the rest of this year takes me.

If the next six months are anything like this one, I’ll need more sunscreen and definitely more fried bananas 🍌

Emma Kate