First I’ll start with the plane ride here! It was a long flight, we left Monday and got here Tuesday about mid day. On the flights I met Amarie Stoudamire and Justin Derulo, if you don’t know them, look them up they are very popular people ha also on the plane rides I took part in giving away two Books of Mormon and that was my first real missionary experience on my mission!
The first day here was just getting to know the area a little bit, knowing the rules, and meeting members. One cool thing we have is a cocinera which is someone who cooks for us! We eat there twice a day and the members feed us the third meal in that day. It’s awesome, I don’t have to cook haha. We also have someone that washes our laundry and irons for us. We have money in our monthly budget for them to do this so we pay them. My favorite foods are papoosas, rice and beans. People eat papoosas here like it’s their job. Our cocinera owns a papoosaria and makes them for breakfast for us every morning.
One really cool thing I am blessed with is knowing English. I learned that in companionship study (which is an hour) I teach my comp English and he teaches me Spanish. My comp is from Costa Rica and totally looks like he is American but I’ll get to that later. Well anyways, most people, if they are lucky will make $100 a week. That’s hard especially if you have a big family so not many people get by. The reason we teach them Spanish is so when they go home they can work at a call center and make a minimum of $700 a month which is a huge improvement. I feel so blessed with the education that I have. I really want to baptize on my mission, but another goal is to do a good job teaching my comps English. That in and of itself is worth two years for me.
There are so many things I am not allowed to eat! I can’t have water from the tap, at all! I can only have bottled or bagged water. I had never heard of bagged water until I got here, ya its odd. I can’t have any fish, anything from a pig (no bacon...it stinks...get ready dad for me to have a lot of bacon when I get home) I can’t have cabbage, Darn it, I love cabbage so much. I can’t have any vegetables unless they are cooked in bleach, same with fruits. I think there’s more but I can’t remember all of them. The chance is that I’ll get a worm, all Americans here do so ill be sick here in the future haha. All these food rules make Americans sound like wimps!
The other day I gave my first baptism invitation to a girl that is 14 and her family is already members. The cool thing is that she accepted! So we have a baptismal date for her is the 17 of this month. I’m not sure who she wants to do it but I hope it’s me! The people here are humble, very humble. They all pretty much have nothing. The houses are so small, old and gross. It really makes me so very thankful to my father in heaven and as well as my father on the earth that has worked so hard to provide for my family We have never had to do without things that we need and I thank God every day for what I have. There are so many people here it’s crazy! Mom you prolly wont like this but the drivers are crazy here. I almost get hit by busses everyday...:) The only place to walk is the side of the road, there is nowhere else to walk so cars are going 60 plus right by you and we just do our best to not get hit. While we’re paying attention to the cars going by, we were not paying attention to where we’re walking and about every step there is two piles of dog poop. There are so many stray dogs here it amazes me still. Some of them are so cute but I don’t dare touch them haha and some others would look like the dogs that, well I won’t mention his name, iI’l just say he was into dog fights and is in the NFL...The dogs look like they were in dog fights. If you can get past all the trash and gross things around here it really is a beautiful country. It’s so green here and I love it and the people already.
My bishop is a gangster. He is 27 and is amazing. He is such a great guy and he speaks clearly enough that I can understand every word he says. Some people that speak to me I can understand every word but the others I don’t understand a word because they speak sooooooooooooo fast and mumble, way worse than Brent did! But I am used to the Spanish now, now I’m just learning to understand it. I have to pick out key words and try to piece them together, it’s so hard. But I like to say un poco mas cada dia or I understand a little more every day, which is true. I know I have someone’s help with Spanish, there is no way I could do this by my myself!
I have had different foods every meal pretty much besides beans, papoosas and rice. It’s difficult for me to say what it was because to be honest half the time I have never seen it before. For instance the people here really like this drink that is made out of corn, it’s interesting. It’s a thick white drink and it’s decent and I’m used to it now but it was different at first. This might surprise my family a little bit, they all ´think´ that I’m a picky eater but I’m really not. Everything that has been put in front of me I've eaten and I’ve actually liked. I haven’t had one thing to eat that I haven’t liked.
My comp is amazing and I was really blessed with him. he is a good teacher, he knows some English which is helpful and he is very patient with me. Usually presidents of the mission put the best missionaries as zone leaders but not ours. he puts the best as trainers. right before I got here my comp was a ZL and president took him out of that to be a trainer, our president doesn’t mess around. My comp is amazing and couldn’t have asked for better.
It amazes me how Americanized El Salvador is. There are so many American stores here and restaurants. The food there is all imported so it’s safe to eat. Oh ya we’re not supposed to eat at restaurants other than American ones, or drink soda because they make it from the water here. We went to Walmart today and it made me feel like I was home and it made me miss it a little bit but I know I have work to do here.
There are a lot of drunks here and I mean a lot. Every time we see one they all look at me and say the same sentence...I don’t speak English...ya right. We’re not allowed to have our cameras with us because people get jumped all the time so I don’t want my camera stolen so I keep it in our apartment. that’s why the pictures aren’t that great, they are just around our complex. the other day one of the guys in our ward that speaks a little English asked me the difference between naked and nude..I get a lot of odd questions like that all the time haha
Oh, the people here don’t have the same standards as us. When a woman is breastfeeding, they don’t cover themselves at all. In church people will just take it out and start doing it and they will come and greet you while they are breastfeeding. This is when you really have to stare at their faces and not wander haha good times
I can’t think of anything else right now but this last week was a good one. I really like being here and can’t wait to have more baptismal dates. The work is good and almost everyone is willing to listen. I miss you all lots and am thankful for your support. I look forward to next Monday, my P-day so I can write again. I love you all! Elder Herman.
El Salvadorian AC
Elder Herman and his companion
View from the apartment
Apartment sink before Elder Herman got to it
Apartment sink AFTER!
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