Week #12 - Cartagena

How´s it going!? This week was pretty good and kinda bad, but overall good. We had about 2 days where all the lessons fell through and no one wanted to talk to us when we were knocking doors, so those days were a little frustrating, but we had other days when the lessons were awesome.  

Although whenever we´re trying to teach and there´s a tv on in the house, it´s game over and I can never focus.  One thing that I´ve been missing alot is music, all of it sounds the same here and it´s getting kind of annoying. But whenever we´re walking and I hear an American song it´s amazing! Also in the house to have my ipod is great so thank you Clint for giving me the music.

We´ve been teaching this couple and they´ve been really receptive, but need to get married and last night they said they wanted to! So hopefully when December 8th roles around, it will happen!

Spanish is getting a little better, getting more confident. I think that I´ve just become comfortable with not understanding everything that people say because I don´t understand alot, but I´m fine with it. It´s frustrating though when people ask a question and I didn´t understand so they say it again but the exact same speed so I still don´t get it. I also hate the words ´exacto´ and ´claro´ because people say that all the time to us when we´re teaching a lesson and I just want to say ´no, it´s not claro because it if was, you´d be reading the scriptures and coming to church´.

The weather has been good this week, nice and cloudy. Also my companion had to go to the dentist for a filling. It took like 10 minutes. We just walked in, sat down, and the dude started going to work. Then we´ve had two elders go to the doctor for ingrown toenails and one of them had the entire nail taken because it was so bad, now he can´t walk for about 7 days. I really don´t want anything to happen to me.

The whole mail system is pretty reliable here if you send stuff, but it costs a pantload to send stuff back so I won´t be sending things back. I also got a haircut today for 4 mil, which is about 2 bucks....it´s really short. Basically buzzed.

Dad to answer your questions: Living in the apartment are 3 companionships then right next door (like a foot) is another three. There are 4 other americans then the rest are from other parts of southamercia. The name of my ward, neighborhood, area is Alpes. Feeling good about the mission, keep thinking ´this would never happen in america!!´ but it´s great!  For breakfast we just eat cereal bread and juice. Sometimes hotdogs. Lunch we usually have with members so that´s better. We haven´t had dinner yet so we just eat when we get back to the apartment so around 9:30. Clothing and shoes are doing well. Typical day. wake up at 6, exercise, eat/shower, study from 8 to 9, comp study 9 to 10, language 10 to 12, lunch from 12 to 2, lessons from 2 to 9, planning at 9 to 9:30, then chill, shower, write in journals, and eat some food.

{Map of area where Cartagena Los Alpes Stake Center is located}

Love you all! Till next week! Abrazos y besos!

Week 11 - Cartagena

Well this week was better than last week, I´m understanding more and feel more confident speaking. Everyday it a little better than the last, but it´s really hard in lessons when we ask a question, then the person rambles and talks really fast, I have no idea what they are saying, then my companion looks to me and I just stare back blankly. Other than that, the language is great! 

The weather is still killer. Everyday I just hope and pray for clouds to be in the sky and everyday it seems like they are everywhere but our area.  There was a lightning storm last week and it looked like God had put a strobe light in the sky and was pounding on tribal drums through the night. 

We also had a power outaged around 9, then it came back on, then went out again in the middle of the night. I woke up sweating and thought I was going to die because I didn´t have a fan. I resorted to using envelopes to fan myself for 40 minutes until the power finally came back on. 

We still walk a ton during the day so I sweat a ton, but I´m getting a little more used to the humidity, not much. But I´m starting to figure out where we are actually walking so I know where we are going and where things are.  

Saturday and Sunday we spent pretty much the entire day inside a chapel watching conference. Saturday we watched it in Spanish and I didn´t get a whole lot of spiritual enlightenment out of it. The songs were in English so that was my favorite part. And the first few seconds when the speaker starts talking and the translator voice hasn´t kicked in yet. But! Sunday we got to watch it in English!!! In a seperate room on a tiny little tv, but it was marvelous! 

This week was kinda uneventful, some people had my read some intructions in English for them, but nothing huge just doing misisonary work! 

Love you all! Abrazos y besos!

Cartagena - Los Alpes! First Week in The Field

Well It´s been a long almost two weeks. In Bogota we went out proselyting again, packed our bags, and said our last farwells to the CCM at 3 a.m. At the airport we just handed the people our bags and they threw them onto the convey belt, which was good because I know both my bags were overweight. 

Just a llama on the side of the street

The flight to Barranquilla was about an hour and a half, but right when we stepped off the plane I felt like I was being hugged by a warm damp blanket. The Mission President greeted us then we piled onto a bus to go to a chapel. Once we got to the chapel we had a small lunch that consisted of chocolate bread, an oat smootie, and an apple. 

Then we slept on the church pews to catch up on sleep, but it just felt gross laying where everyone´s butts go. After had a quick interview with the President, and since I don´t know a lot of Spanish, it was pretty quick. They then shipped us out to some elders house where we paired up and headed out with another missionary already in the field for the rest of the day. 

Me and Elder Neff were together and the entire time people were just saying that we were gringos and couldn´t speak spanish and were sweaty. All of wich were true, but I just wanted to cry that day, I´ll be honest, that was the suckiest day. And to top that day off they made us put 7 matresses on the floor that had been festering in rat poop and then 8 elders had to share the 7 matresses and 2 fans. 

The next day (Wednesday) we went back to the chapel and got our new companions. My companions name is Elder De Los Santos from the Dominican Republic! He´s awesome, hard worker, and very nice so everyone likes him. He also lets me talk in the lessons so I´m loving that. 

After we got our companions, we loaded into another bus and headed to Cartagena where I am currently at. My area is called Los Alpes. The apartment has 5 other elders in it and I´m pretty sure undiscovered bacteria live here. Going proselyting is great, alot of walking, alot of not understanding, and a lot of sweating. 

I didn´t think it was possible to sweat this much. Just sitting in a chair I´ll be sweating. If there isn´t a fan near by, I´m sweating. Fans are like gold here because it´s eternally hot and humid and having a fan blow on your body is like christmas for your body. 

The people here are way nicer than the people in Bogota which makes talking easier. So far, I´ve been a witness for a wedding and 6 baptisms. So off to a pretty good start! 

Other randoms things: The only temperature on the shower is cold so I´m stuck with that for 22 more months, but since it´s always hot, it´s not a huge deal. Since today has been the first time we have gone to the store, my diet has been pretty much just bread and juice. The water here is like poisen. I think I drank some a few days ago because something destoyed my insides and I´m back to normal now. 

There are 3 other northamericans in the apartment and two latinos, my companion included. The fashion here is quite different from the states, for guys, swim suit bottoms are a must and a shirt is optional. For women, skin tight clothing is a necessity, no matter the age. Even old grandmas. And bras are also optional... It´s no bueno at times. 

It rains here like no one´s business, floods streets, and the sound of thunder sounds like the sky is about to shatter. I kinda almost got robbed too on my first day. We were walking and this guy walks up to me and asks for a cell phone, which I didn´t have, and reaches into my pockets, pats me down a bit then figured I was telling him the truth when I said I didn´t have a phone. 

Each day a learn a little more Spanish and am able to understand better. Although I still can never figure out where we are when we are walking. The streets are nuts, no signs, and crossing streets is like human frogger. I also ate some liver the other day. Didn´t taste too bad, but definately strange. Also we have ants evrywhere in our apartment. Oh and also if alot of this is spelt wrong it´s because there is no autocorrect and every word is this email is underlined red since the default language is Spanish. 

Well that´s it for me! Pretty exciting week! Love you all and thanks for the support! 

Abrazos y besos!  

Week #9 - No News from Nathan

Well - we didn't get a letter last week, which is what Nathan told us may happen.  He thought that his new P-day was going to be on Monday & since he was shipping out on Tuesday morning from Bogotá to Barranquilla, he might now be able to be in touch until today.

So today, we got some awesome pictures emailed to us, but we still don't know where he is, who his companion is, or how he's doing!  We're a little anxious, but I'm sure Nathan is taking it all in stride & hopefully having a great time.

Bogotá MTC Pictures

Here's some of the pictures that he sent:

Week #8 - Last one in the Bogotá MTC

So I´m on  my last week in the CCM and it´s kinda freaking me out, but I want to leave this place really really really bad. I feel like I´ve lived here my whole life. I´m super excited to get out into the field, even though I´m not going to know Spanish I just want to get out.

{Barranquilla is on the Northern coast of Colombia}

Things are going good with the native roommates, they always ask new phrases in English and help with Spanish. English is very dificult to teach with all the different sounds with letters and phrases. No me gusta.

This Saturday we´re going out proselyting again and my companion is going to be Elder De Horta and Elder Adair again! Super pumped for that, and it´s the same area so hopefully I can get some more empanadas. I´m not nervous this time though. 

American´s still dominate in sports, it gets a little boring, but we´re making it through. I´ll probably get schooled in soccer once I get out into the field anyway so I´m trying to savor the wins.

Today we went to the temple again so now I´ve gone through more times in Spanish than in English.
Really like last week nothing much has happened. We sit in class for a dumb amount of hours each day. We try to get our teachers to buy us Taco Bell or McDonalds. I´ve tried bribing them with gum from America but it never works. Getting pumped to leave, this place is kinda feeling like prison compared to Provo.

I think out in the field that my p-days are on Monday´s but i´m not completely sure so it may be a little while before the next email! Love you all! Abrazos y besos!

Week #7 - Same as It Ever Was (Talking Heads)

Well to be completely honest, this week has been very boring. Everyday we have class, teach lessons, learn Spanish, and watch some Mormon messages. Only two more weeks till I´m out of here!!!! Excited for that! 

 We have 4 other natives in our room so at night they teach us some new words and we try to teach them English phrases. Hearing them try to speak English makes me worried that I sound that bad in Spanish. There is one elder from Venezuela that I can never understand, but the Dominican (Who is supposed to have the worst Spanish) I can understand the best.  I still have a long way to go with the language, but it´s getting better and better with each week. 

This new group of misisonaries that came last week are a little better at sports, but Americans still dominate. We mostly play volleyball because the net is about 6 feet tall so we can spike like no ones business. 

I´m over halfway through reading the Libro De Mormon, it takes a long time to try to sound out everyword right and know the meaning, but it´s good. 

I really can´t think of anything else that happened. The meals over the past few days haven´t been fantastic so we are all just hoping for fish or burritos soon. Anyways that´s all for this week, hopefully next week will be a little more eventful! 

Abrazos y besos!  

Some History on the Bogotá MTC:

History

The Colombia MTC was dedicated in February 1992 by Elder Julio Dávila of the Seventy, at that time a counselor in the South America North Area Presidency. Since its dedication, 11 MTC presidents have presided at the MTC and approximately 13,000 missionaries from all over Central and South America have received their training here. In 2012, missionaries from North America assigned to serve in Colombia also began attending the Colombia MTC. 

Among the privileges enjoyed by missionaries at the MTC have been the visits of President Gordon B. Hinckley, many members of the Quorum of the Twelve, and members of the Quorums of the Seventy. These visits have helped establish the feelings of reverence and purpose that accompany the Lord’s authorized servants throughout their training here. 

It is hoped that the Colombia MTC will continue to grow as more and more of the youth of the Church make the decision to serve the Lord and devote two years or eighteen months to invite others to come unto Him. 

Weather

Although it lies just north of the Equator, the city of Bogotá enjoys cool temperatures because of its high elevation (8,660 ft. [2,640 meters] above sea level), with an average temperature of 57°F (14°C). Cloudy days are common, with rain falling about 220 days of the year for a total of 40 inches of precipitation annually.

Week #6 - Lovin' Bogotá MTC!

This week has been awesome! Class has been normal and a little boring, but Saturday we went out proselyting!! I was paired with a native from the MTC, Elder Villacorta, then we were driven out to a church building to meet with a missionary already out in the field. And he was from Mountain View! Elder Coltin Adair, it was crazy! 

{Below is a picture of the Bogotá MTC}

We went to their apartment and planned lessons, ate lunch then set out to go knock some doors. We walked up the street then Elder Adair told me to pick right or left. The left hill looked greener so we went left. It took a while to walk up the hills to get to the area we needed to be, then had to go up just ridiculously steep hills and stairs to get to the top. The entire way there dogs are everywhere, there is poop everywhere, and alot of kids playing soccer. 

When we started knocking doors, Adair took the first two, Villacorta took the third and I took the fourth. I started with the intro that we were misisonaries and had a message about Jesus Christ. She said ´no´, I said ´gracias´ and she closed the door. The next door that I knocked on I did the intro again then she just started going on about how so many bad things had happened to her in her life and how she prays to God to send help or guidance and then we showed up at the door. It was a crazy awesome experience! 

{Below is a picture of the Bogotá Temple}

After we had a two lessons with investigators, both went good. It was a really good learning experience for me, and a definate testimony builder. 

Yesterday all the other missionaries left to go to thier missions, so it was just me and seven other Americans for the entire day. We got to the temple around 9 then our drivier, Juan Carlos, told us he would pick us up at 12:30, we got out of the temple at 12, walked around took some pictures, then waited. For an hour. In the rain. He apparently went to help another driver take stuff to the airport and got stuck there. So we hurried back to the MTC, ate lunch, changed clothes, grabbed money and headed off to the currency exchange place and museum. 

The exchange rate is about 1800 peso for 1 dollar so I feel really rich right now.  The museum we went to was a gold museum and had the history of gold in the country/south america. It was really cool and interesting. 

When we were done, we walked outside and tried to call Juan Carlos on the phone he had given us. It had no reception. We walked around vendors, tried calling the number on other cell phone stands, got hit on by a prostitute, bought a watch and suckers for over 30 minutes then finally got ahold of him. Juan Carlos is not my favorite person. 

After we loaded back into the car, and headed off to a cathedral (Monserrate). This cathedral is on top of a huge hill, we had to take a huge gondola to get up there, and it's overlooking all of Bogota! We got up there as the sun was setting so got some cool pictures of that then, also with the whole city lit up in the dark. I´ll try to get send some pictures in the next few weeks. 

{Below are some pictures of Monserrate}

When we got back in the car to leave and Juan had some American music playing, we think he was trying to say sorry for ditching us twice. When we got back to the MTC we all had to change rooms so no Americans are together now and we´re getting 4 new Native roommates. After we got all changed we watched 17 miracles with President Hall. I had never seen it and it was sooo good!! 

{Picture of President & Sister Hall}  More on Bogotá MTC

Yesterday was definately one of the best days here! Can´t wait to meet new people and learn more Spanish, I´m getting more comfortrable with the language, but still have a ways to go. got some letters this week! Bummer the mail system is so slow, but I guess it's more reliable than people say! Love you all!! 

 Abrazos y besos!