Week 5

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Buenos Dias mi familia y amigos! Ok, sorry, but this probably will be a pretty short email. We’ve been having lots of computer problems today and so my time is limited, so I'll hop right in.

The highlight of this week was undoubtedly getting to go to el mercado on our P day. As we drove there on our bus, we got a nice tour of the city. I'm definitely not in the United Sates any more. I took a bunch of pictures, but alas, these computers don't have a card reader so I'll have to wait until I'm in the field to send them. And yes, I'll be in the field in less than a week, which is absolutely insane. The time went by so fast. Still, I’m eager to leave. The CCM was nice, but the mission field is the reason I’m down here after all. Because I've got 6 days left in the CCM, it's time to start sending DearElder and other letters to my mission home (hopefully my mom can post the address). 

Thanks once again for all the letters! Aunt Chris, sorry, but yet again I wasn't able to get that attachment. I refuse to give up hope though and am hoping once I get in the field the computers will allow it. And Gavin, congratulations on making the team that doesn't have to play on Sunday! That was definitely a blessing from Heavenly Father. Ok, one of the elders in my district just asked me a question about the Heisenberg uncertainty principle as he was typing his email, which just makes me feel that my email is inadequate and not nearly as cool. Ha-ha, sorry about that (yes Seth, I just did that).

Ok, after that lengthy digression I will return to the subject at hand. After our tour of the city we visited one of the major attractions in Guatemala City, an acre sized topical relief map made out of concrete of Guatemala (Mom, maybe you could include a few pictures of it off the internet). I was incredibly impressed. Apparently it was made 150 years ago and is 99% accurate, despite the fact that the surveyors were using very primitive techniques. From looking at the map I was able to see that half of my mission is flat coast and the other half is incredibly high and rugged mountains, including two massive volcanoes, the Volcan de Fuego and the Volcan de Agua. Our MTC president also explained how most scholars believe the Book of Mormon geography fits into the geography of Guatemala and Southern Mexico. Apparently Guatemala City may have been the City of Nephi and my mission includes the Waters of Mormon, the territory of the people of Limhi, and Lamanite lands.

Ah! I've only got another minute or two. After that we went to the market. It was basically a three story parking garage that was crammed full of shops. It never would have passed a fire safety inspection in the US. I loved seeing all the bright colors and interesting patterns. Right before I go back home I'll have to buy a few of the super cool machetes that they have. My favorite part was the first floor, which was devoted to food. There were tons of fresh fruits and vegetables, many of which I didn't recognize.  There were also several people selling marijuana from big bags. We weren't allowed to buy anything there though for reasons we quickly discovered. Apparently, food sanitation is almost unheard of. In the back they had tons of raw meat that was sitting uncovered and un-refrigerated and completely covered with flies. There were huge cow livers (apparently you could just slice some off), raw and fired whole fish, and plenty of plucked chickens. I didn't have much of a desire to eat anything after I saw that. It made me feel very, very grateful for Albertsons. I'm sure I'll see a lot more poverty when I'm in the field.

Anyway, I've loved the CCM and will be sad to leave, but I’m excited to go into the field. I might not have a chance to email next week, so adios!