Day 19: Alexander McKay

Hello Everyone,

My name is Alexander McKay and I am a junior at Massachusetts Maritime Academy. I am from Marshfield, Massachusetts and I am a 2022 graduate at Marshfield High School. I have been in the IMB program since the beginning of my sophomore year.

First thing this morning I woke up at 8:15 to get ready and go down for breakfast because we had to be down at the lobby by 9:00 to head to the vans and get on the road.

Our first location was a wholesale fruit and vegetable market called Talaad Thai. We toured the market and it was very interesting to see its operations. Thailand is a major fruit exporter. I also tried actual coconut water for the first time and it was pretty good. It’s always good to try new things while you’re in a different culture, especially a country like Thailand. We tried some other amazing fruit at the market. At one of the markets they import fruit and we checked the containers that they had. It was something I’ve never seen before in my life. What is also interesting about this market is that there isn’t just fruit there. There was also a seafood market l. Another interesting fact is that it is open 24 hours a day.

Then we took a coffee break at around 10:30 and I got an Iced Latte. After coffee we went back to AIT for a couple of hours for lunch before we headed off to the museum of the National Bank of Thailand.

We got to check out the history of their currency. It was very interesting because their currency has changed a lot over time. Their coins were in a different shapes than it is now which I thought was really cool. Visiting the National Bank of Thailand Museum and learning about money was really fun and interesting! The museum showed how money in Thailand has changed over time, from a long, long time ago to today.

The tour helped me understand how important Thailand’s currency is for the country’s past and future. The museum showed how money has changed over time in Thailand, helping me see how it connects to the country’s history and how people live. It made me realize how money helps everything grow and change, from old times to now.

Finally in the evening we went to a beautiful river boat cruise with everybody and got dinner on the boat. The cruise was called White Orchid River Cruise. This was definitely my favorite part of the whole day because of the views and seeing the whole city of Bangkok from the Chao Phraya river.

We also got to go on stage and showed everybody our dance moves and singing. I discovered new talents that my classmates had!!

I had a great day in Thailand today. I have had the best time in this country. I would just like to thank Dr. Ghosh and Mr. Nobrega for this opportunity to experience a beautiful country like Thailand.