Talbot Testimony: Trip to Calama

Dear family

We went to Calama this past week and your father did his Evidences of the Book of Mormon fireside (he sent a photo earlier from that), also went to Valley of the Moon, the largest Copper Mine in the world, to San Pedro de Atacoma, the Geysers. See the BLOG photos for the captions and many photos. You will enjoy seeing them, so I will not go into details. But we won't be able to write captions, and send photos untill later today or tomorrow as we have a SERVICE project this morning, dropping off Halloween treats to some of our families, and meeting EDWARD to see his Rugby Game and (plus) meeting CLAUDIO (another investigator) who is coming to sit by us at the game, We never have a real PDay as we do missionary work all day every Saturday. We get the laundry and house clean up work (washing all of the floors etc) work done on Friday early in the morning or Thur PM (generally but not on Thur this week) so our Saturdays can be open. We went to the Origines Ward HALLOWEEN party last night --- it said it would start at 7:30. We went at 8 and helped with final room prep, then waited until 9:30 before the people started coming and we were the PHOTOGRAPHERS for the photos of which we will send some, but we had to leave at 10:30 PM when more started coming. Chilean time is different then in the States. Another pair of missionaries told us they invited investigators to a Ward Function and the investigators came and no ward members showed up and after waiting a half hour they left. Our investigator who said she would come did not come and we were glad as no one else had arrived at 8 pm. They have great parties, but people come from 1 hour to 2 hours later after the start time, and I am sure the party went to well after MIDNiGHT!

Hope the grandchildren all have a fun Halloween trick or treating or Treating others as what most of you do,

Love AND Prayers for all of you, Mom and Dad

I now have two tomato plants in my garden. The other ones are beginning to show as well.

Just so you get a better idea about the dogs of antofagasta.

Margaret standing in front of a very unusual tree Very interesting.

Raul and Jennifer Merino moved to a new home. They are the cake mix contacts at Liders. We helped them some with he move. He posed to tell us goodbye.

Elder Goff (tall) and Elder McComb in front of our office. Elder Goff was going home for health reasons. He just arrived, but hopes to come back.

A Street scene in Calama

We rode from Antofagasta to Calama on this bus. We were in the very front top.

Posing by a huge rock filled with copper from the Chuquicamata mine near Calama.

Mom and I are getting ready to board the bus to the Chuquicamata Open pit copper mine.

Getting ready to board the bus to the Chuquicamata open pit Copper mine. By far, the largest one in the world. Doug and Nancy Lawson with us - the only other senior couple in the mission.

The city of Chuquicamata, which has totally been abandoned because of the health hazard coming from the mine.

Another picture of the city of Chuquicatama. Mine tailings from the mine are behind.

An abandoned playground in the city of Chuquicamata.

An abandoned church in the city of Chuquicamata.

The bus that took us to the mine.

These trucks are huge and hold 90 ton. One tire costs $40,000 lasts nine months and is taller than most of us. Notice the size now and how little they appear down in the mine.