TBM - Trang

Hello again, This week I'd like to share with you our train trip to the South of Thailand to visit Trang Province.  We had business there, but we also had a lot of fun - Pday included. At our hotel there was a UNESCO presentation on bringing sustainable educational and vocational resources to Thailand to help the people help themselves.  We met the Governor of Trang Province and the Mayor of Trang City.  Unfortunately, they were so busy taking our pictures for the newspaper, that we don't have a picture of them! There is only one faithful member of the Church in Trang who has lived there with almost no contact other than church magazines and an occasional visit for the past 17 years.  She joined the Church in the North, but had to move back to her hometown to care for her aged mother.  The nearest Church members are 5 hours away by bus.  Her name is Yindee and she is seated next to Sister Lindorf  in  the picture: Her friend is not a member (yet) but runs a Nursing College in Trang.   We arranged to teach English to her students one of the days we were there.  It was a lot of fun and the girls were eager to learn. We also did a little sightseeing in the vicinity.  Have you ever been to a rubber plantation?  Did you know the stuff they make tires out of is white, not black when it comes out of the trees? Here is a rubber tree oozing latex.  It is collected in a tiny cup hanging from each tree and gathered every morning. After some minor processing, the raw material is rolled into sheets and sold to rubber producers to make a variety of goods. Have you ever seen how Cashews grow?  It's no wonder they're expensive.  The Cashew nut is inside the brown shell growing at the top of the blossom.  Only ONE nut per apple sized  fruit. Although this is the 'rainy season' we had some beautiful beaches to visit. Notice the unusual patterns in the sand.  These are made by some kind of crab.  Here's a closer look: I've been to a lot of beaches all over the world and I've never seen anything like this! These beaches are on the Indian Ocean and were hit by the tsunami of 2004.  There are signs now to warn people to head to higher ground.   There is dense jungle nearby with a suspension canopy.  This is not for the faint hearted! Blue Fern We were able to hold church services with Yindee on Sunday and she was extremely grateful.  It was a good experience for us all.   Everyone we met in Trang was extremely friendly and open.  It would be a great place to serve a Senior Mission if we just had a few more Senior Missionaries! In Myanmar, and Laos (also in our Mission) Senior LDS Charities Missionaries have organized branches of the church with over 100 members each in countries where we are not even allowed to proselyte.  All of this interest has been initiated through the English teaching program.    We are having such an amazing experience here.  I know I've told you that about every week - but it's TRUE!   We are so happy to be here.  Whoever said "Service is its own reward" was correct.  It's the BEST! All our best to you, Elder & Sister Lindorf