Patience is a virtue

We spent a lot of time on VSO training talking about the importance of being patient; we were warned that the beginning of the placement would be difficult, with logistical challenges and unclear work expectations. Despite all this, I am starting to feel a little frustrated that, having finally arrived in Mae Sot after all the preparation and training, I still feel in a state of limbo.

I was met at the airport by another VSO volunteer, Alice, who has been here for several years, and she has been doing a fantastic job of looking after me in the first few days, helping me with opening a bank account, looking for houses and generally showing me around. VSO had booked me into a guest house for one week, with the expectation that I would find somewhere to live in that time. However, the house hunting has so far proved unsuccessful, and with a long weekend now I'm not going to have somewhere by Wednesday. I have been offered the possibility of sub-letting from someone who is returning to the UK for several months. This sounds like a good option, as the house is near where I will be working, and it would give me the chance to get to know the area a bit and look for something without feeling under time pressure. However, I will not be able to move in for a couple of weeks, which means I will have to extend my stay at the guest house. The guest house is perfectly clean and comfortable, but I'm really feeling the need to be in a place of my own. I think another thing that is frustrating me is that I am so dependent on others at the moment to help me with this sort of thing.

Today Alice took me to the office where I will be working and I met some of the people there. They all seem very friendly. The key people in the organisation are away at the moment, though, so there was no-one to introduce me to what I will be doing. I will turn up on Tuesday morning, but I am prepared for the possibility that there will be nothing clearly defined for me to do - this seems to be a common experience of VSO volunteers when they start their placement. In some ways this can be a positive thing, as it means you can carve out your own role, but at the start it all adds to the challenge and the feelings of uncertainty. Schools are closed at the moment, so my job proper won't really get going until mid-May.

I keep telling myself I should make the most of this "soft start" to my placement. Things I could usefully be doing: practising my Thai; exploring Mae Sot; investigating possible social activities. One thing that is sapping my enthusiasm for such proactive activity is the heat. April is the killer month and it really is very uncomfortable to be out and about during the day. VSO keep a bicycle at the guest house, so that is a great way for me to start to find my way around before I get my motorbike. It's sweaty work, though, and apparently the dogs think it's great entertainment to give chase to hapless cyclists, though that has not happened to me yet.

For the first time since leaving the UK I have started to have some feelings of missing home and wondering what I'm doing here. All a perfectly natural part of the process according to VSO and, I am sure, only temporary. Patience!