Papaya Pages?

Purpose

I'll be using this page to document my experience as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Thailand with service starting in January 2018. Although writing this blog and sharing my personal thoughts and experiences publicly is mildly terrifying, it serves two very important purposes. Papaya Pages allows me to update the folks back home on how I'm doing and continue to share my journey with you. Secondly, the accountability factor of keeping a blog encourages me meditate on the experiences of each day. It will assist me in identifying moments of joy, struggle, personal growth, and empowerment.

I am excited about chronicling this journey, I hope you'll join me! Expect a new post monthly.

Papaya?

Papaya Salad, or Som Tom, is a very popular dish in Thailand. Over half of our Thai language teaches called it their favorite dish. I would have to concur. Som Tam is made with tomatoes, garlic, lime, green beans, chili peppers, fish sauce, bean sprouts, peanuts, and of course, a ton of shredded papaya.

Fresh Som Tam - While preparing this blog post I was mildly upset when I realized I hadn't actually taken a picture of any of the Som Tam I've eaten in Thailand! I was bitterly scrolling through Som Tam pictures on google images when my host mom cam home with Som Tam for lunch. Perfect timing, and oh-so delicious!

In an effort to bond with my host family when I moved in, and having a limited Thai vocabulary, I told them that I really like to eat som tam (de-chan chop gin som tam ka). I said this often. Maybe too much...

A few days into the home stay, my host family is having difficulty pronouncing and remembering my name. Believe it or not, Morgan is not a common Thai name. Everyone, and seemingly everything, in Thailand has a nick-name, and my host family decided that I need one too: Melacone, which means papaya.

Note

The contents of this blog are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. Government or the Peace Corps.