While some spent the summer relaxing by the pool, senior Alex Bollington (AB) decided to journey to the other side of the world on an international service trip.
Madison Dodger Online: What was the purpose of your trip?
Alex Bollington: Over the summer I traveled to Thailand and Laos for 31 days to do community service. The program was supported by the teen travel company, Rustic Pathways, and my specific program was called Come With Nothing. The reason it was called Come With Nothing was because you were only allowed to bring five things with you for the entire trip. On the first day we were given 100 dollars to buy the rest of our clothes for the duration of our stay. I spent a week in Thailand staying in a village where we were the first white people they had ever seen. We built a vacation home for returning monks. We then crossed the border after spending a couple of days boating down the gorgeous Mekong Rivers and made our way to Laos. We spent the rest of the trip in two villages in Laos. In both villages we built community bathrooms, as well as a school-house and a community center.
MDO: What made you pick this program?
AB: I decided to go on this trip after going on a similar volunteer trip to Costa Rica last summer with Rustic Pathways. I loved the idea of Come With Nothing and wanted to immerse myself into a culture that was so different from the society we live in. I chose to return to Asia because I fell in love with the culture while living in Hong Kong during 4th grade. I decided this was the perfect trip for me. In addition, I wanted to challenge myself and live like a villager for a month. I wanted to get away from the technological society we are so obsessed with and instead live more with nature.
MDO: Were there any particular experiences that stand out to you?
AB: One experience that stands out to me would be in the second village in Laos. My host family invited me to have dinner with them. Technically it was against the rules because I was supposed to be eating with my counselors and the other kids in the program but they let me stay with my family. Words cannot express how amazing that dinner was. I taught the family some English words and showed them pictures of my family back home. I felt a real connection despite the severe language barrier. It was one of the best experiences I have ever had. They were so happy to have me and I felt as though I were their son. I’ve never felt so happy in my life before and I finally felt as though I had achieved my goal of connecting with the villagers and getting a dose of what their life is like.
MDO: What did you find most surprising while traveling?
AB: The thing I found most surprising while traveling was seeing kids driving around motorcycles by themselves. It was amazing to see no driving laws enforced and I could never imagine learning to navigate the roads. Shout out to the bus driver who was “the bae” and got us from village to village.
MDO: What is one of the biggest lessons you took away from the trip?
AB: Out of all of the amazing things I learned while on the trip, the most notable was learning to live in the now, or as we called it “live in the Lao,” (bad pun, judge me). We spent each day living in the now and it opened my eyes to so many new things. I appreciated my surroundings and environment much more than before and instead of worrying about other things I was able to fully immerse myself into a new culture.
MDO: Would you give any advice to someone thinking of doing a similar trip?
AB: The only advice I would give to someone considering this trip would be to leave all of your worries at the door. I was so scared to spend a month in a foreign country without any technology but I ended up having the best four weeks of my entire life. Be prepared to test your limits but take it all in stride and live in the moment.