Thailand Mission and Cultural Trip 2014 - Journal 15

Tedi had a sore throat and wasn’t feeling well, so she stayed back and rested. It was Scout’s day at the Public school, beginning with a parade followed by community service. That ate into the time when our ladies would be teaching the 9^th graders for the final time. But they got to go over to the clinic across the road where the students were doing community service, and check their blood pressure and weight. Susan and Tiffany

have been receiving little gifts from the students. Those kids are so awesome! And we had to take some more photos of the Kindergarten kids brushing their teeth!

On the farm we started to weed the field of what we call in Jamaica, “susumber”. It is a wild eggplant. When I was a boy, they use to graft eggplant into the stock of the susumber plant; that’s how I knew they are related. It is also

found wild in Puerto Rico. The popular name according to Wikipedia is “Turkey berry;” and is known here in Thailand as “Pea eggplant.” I find it a lot in green curry dishes.

When we returned to the farm after lunch I saw Nang with banana leaves and wrapping something in them. And, yes, as I suspected, she was making, what we call in Jamaica “Blue draws” (also known as “tie leaf” and “Duckunoo”). When we were completed our work, she had it ready for us. But the Thai version had sticky rice and ripe banana. It was very tasty.