This past summer I was blessed with the opportunity to live and work amongst a great group of people and stay at a place called Thai Elephant home, where I got to care for a specific elephant for two weeks. It was an incredible experience that was more magical than anything I could’ve ever expected. I learned more than I could’ve ever imagined about Thai culture, elephants, and a lot about Americans too.

Just a day or two into when we arrived in Chiang Mai, one of the rules conveyed to us was not to under any circumstances attempt to bring a statue of Buddha home. Whether it was a figurine or a full on bust, we were not permitted to purchase and bring it home. I found that really interesting because it showed how important Buddha is in their culture, as well as how wide-spread that ideology is. Thailand is hands-down the most beautiful place I’ve ever been, but the stark differences between the values of Thai and the values of Americans was startling.

Our culture is surrounded around popularity, there is nothing, truly nothing that our country completely agrees on and respects.Whether it’s politics, sports, workforce, or really anything of the sort, there’s absolutely nothing that we universally respect. Understandably, we are a melting pot of hundreds of different cultures, religions, and backgrounds, but traveling to a place where the diversity is spare, it was eye-opening.

Walking through the markets was one of the most memorable experiences. Elephant paintings, figurines, jewelry, etc. lined the streets; Thai people worshipped and protected the elephant as sacred, for they truly are majestic creatures who deserve the utmost respect. Buddha statues and paintings were all over as well, and beautiful, enormous, intricate temples could be found at every street corner as a normal commodity. My volunteer group got the opportunity to visit a Christian school and interact with the students; this was one of the greatest experiences and really showed me how Thai children and people my age lived. They put on a traditional dance for us, they fawned over our light skin and “American look” and were beyond ecstatic for our arrival.

Americans I feel have lost that sense of appreciation and excitement, at least my generation and the people I interact with. Nothing surprises me anymore, I love the feeling of excitement, but with new technology and futuristic gadgets arising every month, nothing surprises me anymore. The dance they put on for us was amazing and delicate, when I thought about what my school would do if a group of Thai students visited, I drew a blank.

Thai culture is very traditional, old-fashioned, and respectful; I also recognized the simple happy lives of the Thai people, which impressed me and intrigued me to no extent. Their simple happy lives with motorcycles and huts to live in sufficed. I strive to get to a point in my life where being happy is simple and living simply makes me happy.

Going to Thailand opened my eyes to true values.