This mission trip was such an amazing experience and I will be forever thankful for the opportunity to be a part of this. I have learnt so much from everyone I've worked with and I'm sad to leave this wonderful team.
Pauline， Dr. Nina and the team extended a warm welcome to us since we met them at Bangkok airport. We quickly became friends with Wendy and Angela who were really friendly and took the time to speak to us and wanted to find out more about us. Wendy was our dentist in charge and I could tell from the start that she was extremely passionate about dentistry and felt really safe and was excited to be learning from her.
I'd never been to ChangRai before this trip and was excited to see the city. We were greeted at the airport by some representatives from Overbrook Hospital who welcomed us warmly to their city. As we stepped out of the airport a breeze of chilly air greeted is， a cooling respite from the Bangkok heat. I thought to myself - I'm loving this place already! We were then whisked away quickly to dinner in a beautiful restaurant a short drive from the airport. We dined alfresco by the river under the warm glow of fairy lights. We were treated to a spread of local delights and a particularly tasty spicy peanut fish dish that I loved. We got to interact with the other doctors over dinner and it was nice to find out more about what they did and they were keen to know more about London， about Singapore and Mauritius. My mandarin and English translating skills were put to the test as I tried to converse with everyone but I slowly remembered more mandarin and could convey more Information. That evening we checked in to Wiang Inn hotel which was in ChaingRai’s city centre. Having been living on a student budget， this place was such a treat for us! The accommodation was more than comfortable and there were many shops and even a night market right outside from which we could explore and purchase souvenirs.
After a good night’s rest， we got up early the next morning for a 730am departure. Breakfast at the hotel provided an impressive buffet spread of fruit， noodles， congee and even a live omelet station! Having eaten our fill we set off punctually at 730 to our first mobile clinic which was an hour’s drive north east of the city centre. Many of the doctors who had attended a mobile clinic before were very surprised by the larger scale of this year’s event. We quickly found out that there was another Hospital involved this year making it collaboration between Hospitals. Located in a compound of a local church， there were many local vendors who had come to set up shop in the tents that surrounded the compound， selling food and some works of art， there was even a mobile library! The toilets however were less than desired as there wasn't as supply of running water and were mud caked， I found it a challenge to use. Dental services were set up in a large room on the ground floor and by the time we arrived there was already a team of dentists and nurses from a government Hospital seeing patients. We also met a group of the most helpful Thai nurses who also acted as our translators for the first time on Wednesday. They are some of the kindest， friendliest and most hardworking people I've met and we wouldn't have been able to do anything without them! We spent most of the first day figuring out how things work and starting to see how dentistry works in a mobile clinic where we did not have access to radiographs or special tests. Even though we did not see many patients on the first day but it was such an amazing learning experience I felt fulfilled! Lunch was catered and we were again treated to a spread of Thai delights that were so authentic it felt home cooked. Due to the lack of patients in the afternoon， we went to help the Chinese medicine team with removing the acupuncture needles after they've placed them for 15 minutes. It was such an interesting and rare opportunity to be able to help with this. At the end of the day we even got to try acupuncture! Angela placed 6 needles in me and it was a surprisingly pain free experience， we learnt more about the art of acupuncture and how it works which was very interesting and reminded me that western medicine although widely used is not the only form of treatment.
That evening we went to a local shopping mall (Central Plaza) for a wholesome bowl of ramen. We also got to walk around the mall for a while which reminded me a lot of the shopping centres we used to go to in Singapore. That evening I also went to enjoy a session of foot reflexology which was a soothing relaxing， albeit sometimes painful， end to the day.
The second mobile clinic in was a shorter 45 minute drive south west of ChiangRai. This mobile clinic was located in a small local medical centre which saw simple outpatients during the rest of the week. We were more aware of the operations this time and the day ran more smoothly. We were located on the second floor of a local medical centre and so we had a good supply of electricity and water which made operations much more efficient.. We also had more patients which meant that we had more chances to do some treatment and learn from Wendy which was such an amazing learning experience as we got a private tuition session from a dentist. We were all done relatively early in the afternoon and managed to get back to ChiangRai in time to try the famous Bua Loi dessert for the night market. It was a warm coconut based dessert with some glutinous rice balls served with half a salted egg yolk in the hulled out husk of a coconut. It was throughly enjoyable and I really loved the mixture of textures and the balance of salty and sweet coconut! We then went for a quick walk around the night market before heading to the mall again for dinner. We had a really generous meal of Japanese bento， which was really tasty and such a treat of fresh seafood!
The third mobile clinic session was located in a local church， a very bumpy hour long ride west of ChiangRai. We also met the Overbrook’s dentist Dr Ten who shared his experiences of working for Overbrook and about dentistry in Thailand. He has a special interest in oral surgery and I learnt a different technique for extracting teeth from him. He was also quick to share his tips and past mistakes with me teaching me along the way. Lunch was once again amazing – this was my favourite lunch meal. It was simple but so authentically home cooked with some fish， broccoli and a slow cooked fragrant Chinese five spice flavoured pork soup that was delicious. After lunch I managed to do a few fillings on a very well behaved pediatric patient. We had a early finish in the afternoon again but we managed to join in a little bit of the dance session lead by Pauline for the children of a local primary school. After clinic， we all went to a coconut wholesale centre in the city centre and enjoyed some fresh coconut juice! Dr Lin also very generously treated us to some coconut milk and jelly to take away. All of which were so amazing and tasty - I've never had coconut so fresh!! That evening we went to another mall for some hot pot which was very tasty and they were very generous with seafood and meats! I also tried a traditional tub Tim Krob which I later found out was water chestnut chunks coated in glutinous rice flour and boiler briefly， served with coconut milk on ice. It was my favourite dessert I've had in Thailand. That evening we went to the night market near the hotel for some retail therapy. We also ate some more street food that was very unique and tasty. We also saw some very traditional hand woven/loom scarves and traditional Thai wear.
On Saturday we went on a tour of Overbrook Hospital and saw some of their wards. I was very impressed by how advanced and modern the facilities were. We also met some of our nurses in their uniform and in their normal work environment. It was so lovely meeting them again! After the tour we went to the Thawan Duchanee which was a museum by an artist and collector who had a special interest in all things weird and wonderful. He had many skins of alligators， bears and snakes just to name a few. He also kept some very large snakes， an owl and birds. I was rather disturbed by his collection but admired the architecture and environment. Our next stop was the white temple in Ban Lao， the carving work was so intricate and I really enjoyed the zen atmosphere of the surrounding buildings despite the large number of tourists there. For lunch we had some local chicken rice， pad Thai and Thai milk tea. I loved every one of them and the authentic flavour of local food! Our last stop was the tea fields where we managed to take some very entertaining photos or remember this trip by! The air up there was so fresh and the neat rows of hedges were just mesmerizing. That evening we joined Overbrook Hospital’s annual Christmas party which was such a fantastic experience!! There was a spit roast of 2 pigs， buffet style dishes， a dessert table， noodle soup stand and so much more! There was so much good food and great entertainment from the staff of Overbrook Hospital! We also showcased the Christmas dance we've practiced hard for. We also got presented a gift from the CEO. It was definitely a night to remember!!
On Sunday we went to the Mae Fah Luang Garden which was a botanical garden in ChiangRai that also happened to be holding a flower festival at that time. We had a nice stroll around the park and enjoyed all the lovely colourful flowers in really amazing weather! It was my idea of a perfect day out. That evening we had dinner with the CEO in a very fancy restaurant in Dusit Island， a high end resort hotel in ChiangRai. It was a feast of Chinese delights as we interacted with the Thai staff we've had the chance to meet in the past 3 days.
On Monday we got back to work! It's our final day of mobile clinic and unfortunately we leave tomorrow. We met another Thai dentist and she was so patient， lovely and demure. She patiently taught me to elevate fractured roots from sockets， and I felt so much achievement from finally being able to do that. I cannot be more thankful for her guidance and patience! We saw 21 patients in the morning and because we got used to working with each other we ran so smoothly! We also bought some chocolates and cards for the nursing staff and they in turn very kindly gave us some key chains and hair clips in return. I had so much fun working with them and would love to be able to stay for longer!! After morning clinic， we went for a foot soak in a hot spring followed by an elephant ride through the river! It was a fantastic experience and so necessary for a wholesome Thailand experience!!
This trip had been more than amazing for me and I will have many stories to tell! I wish I could come back again and work with this team! I got to know the team better over the days and really loved the dynamics of the team. I've been so lucky to get to work with Wendy and the Thai dentists from whom I've learn more than I have ever learnt in a week in dental school. This is such a rare and memorable experience!!! Thank you Changhua Christian Hospital， Dr. Nina and Pauline， Wendy and the rest of the team for such an amazing time! I'll miss you guys loads!