HOOOLLLLAAAA everyone! Today is officially my first Pday here in Nicaragua and has been a great one, but before I talk about that I´ll just start from the beginning!
Last monday morning my district and I woke up bright and early at about 1:30 in the morning to finish getting ready and get to our bus to the airport by 3. Our first two flights (from Salt Lake to Dallas, and Dallas to Miami) went by really fast. On our second flight me and another elder in the district, Elder Flemming, sat on both ends of a girl named Kelly Headrick who was heading to Miami from Dallas for a work convention. We started talking to her and had a 2.5 hour discussion on the airplane. She had all sorts of questions and throughout the course of the flight we pretty much taught her about the restoration, plan of salvation, and gospel of Jesus Christ! It was crazy, but great practice. We shared spiritual experiences and she did the same. Although she wasn´t completely sure if she believed it all, she said she could feel that we were going to be great representatives of our church. She said she was grateful for the chance she had to meet us and is interested in learning more. She sent us both emails today saying how much she appreciated our messages and spirit and how we were loving as we shared our messages. It was awesome to be able to teach someone before we even got to Nicaragua and to get good feedback from her!
The flight from Miami to Nicaragua was a little long because I couldn´t understand what any of the people around me were saying so I had no one to talk to! As soon as we walked off the airplane is was like walking into a sauna. The humidity was crazy and it was about 730 at night! We met the assistant to the president and his companion and also the mission president, President Monestel, and his family. I bet you´ll never guess what our first meal was in Nicaragua? McDonalds. Yep. I was a little bummed but little did I know in that moment that I´d be wishing for a salty cheesburger and fries later in the week! We left to the mission home and all 8 from the Provo MTC, and 8 from the Guatemala MTC stayed there that night. Tuesday we had a training meeting with the mission president and a few other elders serving in the Managua area. We learned the goal of the mission: find, teach, baptize, and retain FAMILIES
to prepare Nicaragua for a temple. We went on splits that night with elders and so we all had a chance to go walk through the streets of Nicaragua and practice a little bit! Nicaragua is absolutely gorgeous. I love the smell and sight of all the fruit trees. That night was when I realized that I don´t know spanish as well as I thought I did. I couldn´t understand a word they were saying. The people here talk ridiculously fast and don´t say their S´s at the end of their words. For example when they say, "Nos vemos" or "Adios" it sounds more like no vemo and adio. That night we visited 3 families. The first family was a part member family, and right during the middle of talking with them their dog peed on my shoe! My temporary companion started laughing hysterically and so did I. The second family we taught told me I was pretty and looked like my face was made out of porcelain. I awkwardly told them, thank you. The third family we visited had a teenage girl who was probably about 16. She pulled out her phone and showed me a picture of Edward from Twilight and told me I looked like him...? I didn´t know what to think about that. After the 3 families we went back to the mission home. After Tuesday night my eyes were probably as big as baseballs because I think I started to realize exactly what I was getting myself into!
to prepare Nicaragua for a temple. We went on splits that night with elders and so we all had a chance to go walk through the streets of Nicaragua and practice a little bit! Nicaragua is absolutely gorgeous. I love the smell and sight of all the fruit trees. That night was when I realized that I don´t know spanish as well as I thought I did. I couldn´t understand a word they were saying. The people here talk ridiculously fast and don´t say their S´s at the end of their words. For example when they say, "Nos vemos" or "Adios" it sounds more like no vemo and adio. That night we visited 3 families. The first family was a part member family, and right during the middle of talking with them their dog peed on my shoe! My temporary companion started laughing hysterically and so did I. The second family we taught told me I was pretty and looked like my face was made out of porcelain. I awkwardly told them, thank you. The third family we visited had a teenage girl who was probably about 16. She pulled out her phone and showed me a picture of Edward from Twilight and told me I looked like him...? I didn´t know what to think about that. After the 3 families we went back to the mission home. After Tuesday night my eyes were probably as big as baseballs because I think I started to realize exactly what I was getting myself into!Wednesday we had a big meeting with almost all the mission where they did all the transfers and companion changes. All the new missionaries got to share their testimonies and then we were assigned our areas and companions. 
My companion is named Elder Real. He is from Guatemala. (Most of the missionaries in the mission are either from the U.S. or Guatemala). At first I didn´t really know what to think of him because I couldn´t understand him! But after the day was over I had already come to the realization of how great a missionary he is. He´s been here about 20 months so he has a lot of experience. He´s about up to my shoulders in height, really outgoing and talkative, and friendly. I´m amazed at how well he is able to teach and show everyone his love for them. I´m trying to do the same but I guess that will come with time!
My companion is named Elder Real. He is from Guatemala. (Most of the missionaries in the mission are either from the U.S. or Guatemala). At first I didn´t really know what to think of him because I couldn´t understand him! But after the day was over I had already come to the realization of how great a missionary he is. He´s been here about 20 months so he has a lot of experience. He´s about up to my shoulders in height, really outgoing and talkative, and friendly. I´m amazed at how well he is able to teach and show everyone his love for them. I´m trying to do the same but I guess that will come with time! 
Our area is called "La Concepción" but everyone here just calls it "La Concha." The city is split up into two halves by a big long street that runs through the middle of it. Elder Real and I have one half of the city, the (East side) and two sisters have the other half. It´s been so sad to see the poverty that these people live in. They work so hard and have basically nothing. Some of the luckier people have brick houses but a lot of them are made out of wood with tin roofs. It´s a little odd however, that the people have basically nothing, but even most of the extremely poor people have TVs and cell phones! That night we got to our area which is about 1.5 hours away from Managua if I remember right, and we started the work right away. We had a few appointments that night. Elder Real taught and I just tried to understand what in the heck was going on. Even though these people have almost nothing, they are some of the nicest people i´ve ever met! Even if the people want absolutely nothing to do with the church they still invite us in and love to talk to us about religion. I´m definitely learning the definition of the word humility here. These people are so humble because they are aware of what truly matters most: family and their faith. The rest of the week was just filled with me trying to improve my spanish every day and slowly teaching bits of the lessons. Right now we´re to the point where we alternate teaching certain points. I usually teach something and then they´ll say something back and I have to turn to my companion for help! Although I can talk okay, I still can´t understand very well! I´d have to say that´s the hardest thing so far is just trying to understand the accents. Thank goodness I have a companion to help me out. We had another interesting teaching experience the other day. We were teaching a less active member and she just lifted up her shirt and started breast feeding her baby right in the middle of our lesson! For me it was a little awkward because I´m just not acustomed to that sort of thing...but here it´s totally acceptable! 
Today for Pday we went as a zone to a town called Jinotepe. Just outside Jinotepe there are some mountains and jungle. We had a tour guide take us throught the mountains and trees and everything to see some ancient carvings on big walls of rock a few miles into the mountains. It was awesome!
We live on a little dirt road on the west side of La Concha in a house that´s actually a lot bigger than I expected it to be. I actually don´t see why we need a house this big! We have a main room, our bedroom, and a study room. Sometimes we have water for the sink, toilet, and shower, and sometimes we don´t. I asked Elder Real why we don´t have water sometimes and he said, "Eh...no sé. ¡Estamos en Nicaragua!" That seems to be the answer for just about everything haha. The way they do things here is a hundred percent different than home. Luckily we have a big 50 gallon water drum in our back yard filled with water for when we have emergencies. 
Speaking of how everything is different here, one of the biggest differences here is the lack of sanitation and cleanliness! Parents just let their kids run around in the streets naked and roll around in the dirt. The water is a little dangerous to drink but i´ve been using my filtered water bottle and using hand sanitizer as much as possible! Luckily I haven´t gotten sick yet. YET being the key word there! I like the food so far. It´s pretty much rice, beans, bananas and sometimes chicken or meat. none of it is very flavorful to be honest but it´s not bad!
Speaking of how everything is different here, one of the biggest differences here is the lack of sanitation and cleanliness! Parents just let their kids run around in the streets naked and roll around in the dirt. The water is a little dangerous to drink but i´ve been using my filtered water bottle and using hand sanitizer as much as possible! Luckily I haven´t gotten sick yet. YET being the key word there! I like the food so far. It´s pretty much rice, beans, bananas and sometimes chicken or meat. none of it is very flavorful to be honest but it´s not bad! Whenever I tell ward members where I´m from they laugh and say, "¡La fabrica!" (The factory. Meaning:the factory of mormons!) Some people might not find that very funny but I think it´s hilarious haha.
This week has definitely been an adventure! I am absolutely loving it here. The people, the work, everything. It´s definitely a change, and although I can´t really understand very well right now, I know the Lord will guide me and help me to learn!
I love you all!
