Day 4 / 7th January

Today was the day that we visited the university where Mohn studies at, Chiang Mai University! Before heading to the Faculty of Political Science, we visited the Department of Family Medicine where we conducted interviews with the doctors. What took me by surprise were the doctors’ fluent English speaking skills, they managed to communicate effectively to us their observations and opinions on the current situation of nutritional labels in Chiang Mai in English. This was because they actually pursued and furthered their studies overseas, which allowed them to effectively pick up the language. The interviews proceeded smoothly without any hiccups as the understanding went both ways without a translator.

The doctors input to the situation provided us with more details on the current problems of nutritional labeling in Chiang Mai, which was exactly what we were lacking at that point of time. It was comforting as the doctors’ replies matched the direction our group was heading towards with our report. However, the doctor emphasized on an aspect that our group has unfortunately neglected during the trip, that is, the attitude of the people. Even with good nutritional literacy, the nutritional labels will have no impact on one’s diet if he or she is not concerned with his or her health. The attitude of the locals, the reluctance to change due to their own culture, traditions and beliefs, makes it harder for them to adopt healthier ways of living and that is, adding reading nutritional labels as a habit to their daily life. It was like a slap in the face and I felt stressed out knowing that our group has left out on such an important aspect. It was fortunate that our interviewees did reveal some aspects of their lifestyles, indirectly speaking out on their attitudes towards healthier living and the labels. At this point of time, what was more important was how we were going to rectify this situation. We knew it was best if we were to include related questions for the focus group discussion later on.

A group photo with the doctors

With Mohn’s help, we managed to get together a group of his English-speaking friends for us to conduct a focus group discussion. They were able to share more about the programs that the school has to educate them on healthy living, including having a proper diet from the different food groups and exercising. The people in Chiang Mai are taught using the Thai Nutrition Flag, which is similar to the Food Pyramid in Singapore. However, both Singapore and Chiang Mai do not educate their students specifically on reading the nutritional labels, which I believe to be a main reason for the poor nutritional literacy in both countries. As the students who kindly volunteered to assist us with the focus group discussion were of a similar age to us, the discussion somehow progressed into a chit-chatting session. They shared with us what they, as students, would do as a past-time, and the places they frequent during their breaks. This included visiting the cafes or bars that lined the streets nearby the university. Knowing this, I felt that it corresponded with my pre-trip reflection where I discussed how Chiang Mai was integrating modern elements into its city. Based on the experiences I had for the past few days, Chiang Mai indeed has the right to boast of it’s exciting night life and has lived up to its name of a ‘Creative City’.

Today, I woke up feeling a sharp yet constant pain in my stomach. However, I did not think much of it and dismissed it as a regular stomachache. Heading down for breakfast, I ate a small portion of food as I felt horribly bloated and had no appetite at all. Little did I know that this was just the start of my horrible stomach flu experience. When it reached lunch time, the sickly feeling I had did not cease. My stomach still hurt and my appetite did not improve. I ended up throwing up in the CMU toilet.

At evening time after our focus group discussions, we dropped by the Reservoir located near the University which was well-known for its mesmerizing scenery. Such sights are rare in Singapore, where high-rise buildings form the only scenery we have.

Falling sick reminded me of the importance of my health, especially since it happened in a foreign land. I was determined to not return to the hotel even after throwing up at the University as I have received ‘intel’ that the student market nearby the University had many items available at cheap prices! I dragged myself to the night market despite the surging pain in my stomach, which was a choice I regret. I was already feeling horribly nauseous as I toured the market with Dion and Sylvia and the smell of oily, fried street food that filled the air was the trigger, resulting in another session of vomiting. Up until now, I still remember how Dion, whom was my shopping companion, chased after me with an empty plastic bag when I was rushing to the toilet after throwing up in my hands.  Imagining the scene in my mind now makes me laugh a little inside, the passersby must have felt that the scene was funny. Even though I was mentally persistent on shopping, I guess my body was resisting. The night ended on an even worst note when Dion lost her wallet. We had no idea when it happened, but her wallet was no longer in her hands when she wanted to make payment. Thank goodness that there was only Thai Baht in her wallet, and not her identification card, that would have been serious.

Even though it was a horrible day for me, I was glad to have my new-found friends by my side. They were constantly checking on my condition and even sought hard for bland food for me at the night market. Furthermore, once the Profs were alerted on my condition, they brought me down to a nearby pharmacy for some medicine the moment I reached the hotel. Thinking back, it was very heartwarming to receive so much love and concern from everyone around me. It was nice to know that even when I am overseas, I still have my friends, seniors and Profs by my side to provide me with the support I need.