Well, it's hot here. Like REALLY hot. But seriously it looks like a scene from Lost - so beautiful. I'm now in Consolacion - Lacion for short. Our apartment is very nice. We even have a shower! All the water here is only one temperature, though. Like...not cold by Utah standards, but it's not warm either. I thought I was gonna die at first, but now it's amazing.
There are like mosquitos EVERYWHERE! My legs and feet are seriously turning into the Duggar family of mosquito bites...24 bites and counting...Oh they're so itchy, but Pinoy's put this menthol stuff on them and it feels so good :D
Driving is like the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland - SO scary sometimes! I don't think there are any rules except half of the street is one direction and the other half is the opposite direction. There aren't any crosswalks either, and Sister Yap and I have to cross the National Highway every day. It's seriously scary - you just kind of look both ways and then go and hope that you don't get hit!
Every day we take tricycles and sometimes we take jeepneys and habal-habal. The habal-habals are my favorite, but the most expensive. And trying to straddle those things in a skirt is not the most lady-like thing I've ever done ;) but it's super fun! And jeepneys are a great way to talk to people since you pack in like sardines. Opportunities! Tricycles are what we take most often cuz it's cheaper than a habal-habal and the jeepneys don't go where we're going. Tricycles are okay...definitely not my favorite mode of transportation, but hey, it gets us where we're going!
My trainer is Sister Yap - she's super cool. She's from Ozamis City here in the Philippines. So Visaya is her native language. She's so helpful and she's so bold when she approaches people. It's amazing!
Haha. The language. Well, let's just say that when my MTC teachers said that on Cebu they shortcut things, I should have listened! Seriously they remove like as much of the word as they can - very shortcut! And they're huge on the eyebrows here. You can have like almost an entire conversation in just eyebrows. It's actually pretty hilarious. And if you don't want to talk, you don't have to. Just use you're eyebrows. Yeah all the short-cutting was difficult at first, but I definitely understand a lot more now than when I first arrived :D
I got two mailed letters from you and one from the 4th Ward Laurels. I got one dearelder from you! Thank you very much :D I love mail. Hermana Mora wasn't kidding when she said that Hermano Mora still loves getting mail. It's awesome.
Speaking of the Spanish Branch - I'm so jealous that Carla will be in the MTC for Christmas! That is so awesome. Tell her she's lucky and I'm jealous, please!
There's this family - the Escorial family - they are AMAZING! All of the kids who are old enough to have served missions have served, and they're all like Ward Missionaries and they're always working with us. I love them so much! And like all the members here and the people in general are just ridiculously nice. I think half of it is cuz I'm a foreigner...if I'm ever feeling bad about myself, seriously all I have to do is walk down the street.
I got a "sexy" on day one! Just like Sister Stringam said, with the hand motions and all. SUPER funny! I was trying so hard not to laugh! But yeah. This place is so awesome. The people are amazing. And I'm so privileged to be serving here.
It's so interesting. We go to these homes, and it's like a shack, and they won't have a mattress to sleep on - just like wood or metal or something, but they'll have like this crazy sound system with nice speakers and usually a karaoke machine. It's very interesting. But even though most of them have nothing, they are SO happy. They understand how important family is. They seriously remind me a lot of home in the Branch. So kind and so family oriented. This place truly is the Mexico of Asia :D
Oh the food here...it's SO lami (yummy)! There's this stuff called Halo-Halo and it's seriously like icy heaven in a cup. I don't think there's anything like it in the U.S....or at least that I've ever had. I don't even know like WHAT it is exactly except that it has jello and ice cream and beans and ice and some sort of milk stuff...it's so good.
Sunday night at the Escorial's house, I tried balut! Two 16 day eggs. It was...well it tasted like eggs and chicken, but the texture was more like...well the yolk was like normal boiled yolk, but the little bird was like...a boiled tomato? If that makes any since. All signs of pescatarianism are gone!
Also, the other day while we were waiting for an investigator, I felt itchy on my feet and legs and I looked down to find that I was standing on a red ant hill! AHHHHHHH! You know how I feel about ants....Luckily, after a brief moment of freaking out, I got them all off of me, out of my socks and shoes and skirt. I'm okay now.
Well, outta time, but I love you all and miss you lots!
Kinasingkasing,
Sister Warner
Beautiful! Love you Jayme!! Love carla
ReplyDelete