YOUNG and OLD

One of the big celebrations in Mongolia is Children's Day.  It is sometimes called MOTHER'S and CHILDREN'S Day.  It is always on June 1.  Children get new clothes and gifts and go out with their families to have fun.  It was amazing to see all the families, fathers, mothers and kids,  and grandparents, enjoying the beautiful day by going to the children's park, gathering on Sukhbaatar Square, taking pictures or having a picnic.  Fathers were very visible and appear to really play a role in their children's lives.  It seems that the family emphasis in the Church is a big drawing point for investigators here.

  The crowds were unbelievable, spilling out of the big square and filling the roads on both sides which were blocked off to traffic.

Yes, there is a man under there!

An unexpected surprise happened when the "Peking to Paris" Road Rally rolled into the Chinggis Khaan Hotel, right across the street from us!  It was exciting (even if we know nothing about old cars!) to see all the different vehicles.  This is the fifth running, the first being in 1907!!  We talked to people from New Zealand, Australia, Germany, Austria, Miami, Japan, etc.  We read that there are 97 cars from 26 different countries.  Each has a navigator and a driver. The total distance is 12247 km. over 33 days.

When they arrived they were all just covered in dust from the stretch across the Gobi Desert - hard to imagine that they could even keep them running through those bumpy, dusty areas.  Saturday was a rest day for them so they were all tuning up their motors, cleaning brakes (and everything else), and generally restocking.  Lots of people were around to show off their cars and visit.  These pictures are the morning they headed out on the next leg.

It was hard to choose just a few - I saw a blog about the preparation for the VW #55 - quite an undertaking!!

We get new missionaries today - back from their MTC stay in the Philippines - it is always exciting to see their enthusiasm and commitment to do what is right!!  We really try to keep them healthy and safe!

Life is Good and All is well.