“My name is Chomphunut and in Thai it is some type of pink flower. The primary religion in Thailand is Buddhist so when I was born, one of the local Buddhists named me. I traveled to Thailand for the month of July to visit my mother’s side of the family. I didn’t visit the famous city of Bangkok but instead my mother’s family lives in a rural area in Thailand called Udon Thani. In Udon Thani there is a tremendous amount of open land used for agricultural purposes such as growing rice, which is very important because it’s consumed for all three meals of the day. The most memorable experience of my summer was when I traveled to Phuket, Thailand. Phuket is a major tourist attraction and I’ve always wanted to visit, but it was such a long distance from Udon Thani, therefore my family and I never traveled there before. While I was there I got to experience the famous beaches, see the monumental mountains, and experience the busy city life that took place there. I could most definitely see and understand why Phuket is one of Thailand’s most famous tourist attractions. Not only did the trip to Phuket help me grow, but the trip to Thailand in general helped me grow as a person. It made me realize how much better the quality of life is in the U.S. and it gave me a real appreciation for how hard the people in Thailand have to work in order to make a living. Although I’ve traveled to Thailand multiple times before, the older I get and the more I travel there, I appreciate all that I have in America and all of the opportunities that I have.”