Dearest Family,
How are things back at home? Well, I pray. Right now I'm just reviewing the past 2 letters (one from July 12 and 18 [one was in the package, which, btw, was SUCH a joyous occasion! Reese's, Beef Jerky, face wash, what more can I ask for?]) BTW, it only took like a week for the package to get to Venezuela but for every package we have to wait till Zone Conference (once a month) to pick them up. But thank you so much! I didn't realize just how much time I have in the mission until the letter. It still feels like I only have barely two months in the mission as a whole. The days go by like weeks and the weeks go by like days. Anyway here I see that that lady I met at the airport mentioned cockroaches and ants and disgusting food. In our apt. we barely have any cockroaches, but they are big around here - the size that I drew above and ants; barely. The other night I spotted a gecko climbing along the ceiling, so hopefully he's eating all the bad guys. And all I eat here is rice, beans, chicken, platanos, soups, and arrepas. Not bad at all, but it gets a little old. Now I'll tell you guys about Elder Reed and our experience with the airport. That Elder in the pix from Sis. Bluhm is Elder Reed. He's a really shy guy from UT who waited in Las Vegas for about 3 weeks for his visa. I met up with him and Hermana Russell in Miami, and we flew into Venezuela together. There was a bit of confusion with the flight and although it left on time we had to make a quick sto in Caracas before heading to Valencia. So short a stop it was we didn't even get off the plane,and the ride from there to Valencia was great- only us 3 missionaries and like 2 other people way in the back of this big plane. We stretched out, joked around about the Bingo in spanish that they played between Miami and Caracas, etc. So we show up in Valencia and step out of the plane and see like 4 soldiers with guns out standing on the tarmac. A little disturbing, yes :P. So we make it to the airport, get our passports stamped, and get scared to death while waiting like 13 minutes for our luggage - we thought it'd been lost or stolen. But it all showed up, everything intact, check through customs, and wait in the big room in front. After like 15 mins. of waiting we started getting a little antsy, and to make the story shorter I was able to call the office at 9:30 (a stay in the airport that lasted from 12 midnight to 9:30 a.m.) and got them to pick us up. What happened here is this: We were supposed to meet up with a huge group of about 11 other Elders at Miami I believe,but their flight got cancelled for like 1-1/2 days. So the Church called the Mission Office here in Ven telling them that the "group's" plans got postponed, so not to pick up anyone. Well, the Church's "group" included us 3 too - the ones with the different flight plans, which didn't get changed. So there's the story.
Why did the long term get cut short? where'd they go? Who went? Elder Barlow's from Bountiful, UT; Elder Hunt from Boise, ID; and Elder Penrod from Atlantic City (Little Egg Harbor). Que mas? Ok, now my turn :)
Things, as always, have been really busy. What with Elder Penrod days from home, it's been hard for me to keep my mind on the work. I can say now that I hate killing missionaries (you "kill" someone when you're their last comp; you sent them home)! Even though Elder Penrod's probably the least trunky (always thinking of home, not working as hard, etc. - a frequent symptom of old missionaries) missionary, it is really hard to have your eye single to the Glory of God - this work. He's been a fantastic comp who's taught me many many things (even though at some times he got really annoying because he talks somuch :P), and it's going to be really hard to see him go. This'll be the firsttime that I'llhave to show someone around,introduce him to everyone else, etc. I'm a bit scared (a LOT scared) but it's not like I'm going to DIE or anything, so it's cool. I hope my comp is a native, so I can learn so much more. Right now, we're testing out the different types of Malta -Polar, Regional, Brahma, or Caracas - of which one is better. Malta is SOOO good! Tonight also we're going to feast on apple crisp made from one of the sisters for the party we had today for Elder Penrod and Hermana Jensen (Huntington Beach, CA). Last week we hiked up to some AWESOME waterfalls and water pools as a zone, then afterwards we cooked and ate some GOOD steak, American style. Gotta go, late.
Nick
P.S. Regional wins, w/Caracas a close 2d..
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