Week 20 in El Salvador

As for my companion, things have gotten better. I’ve had to adjust the way I do things a little, and now he is more involved. I was told he didn’t talk with his last companion that much either, but we’ve found common ground on a couple things, and I’m working with that. He is still way better than my first companion, and he doesn’t hate me, and is not racist, so life is good. I figured out how big our area is and its limits, which is about 2 colonies, when my last area had about 30, so I’m planning on knocking every door in the area, and re-knocking the ones that don’t answer, starting at street one house one. The people are different here in the city, and more people want to preach to us or argue with us, and less want to listen. There is a church in the area, called the church of Toby. Toby is an ex-missionary from the LDS church, and now he has broken off and formed his own. The members have tons of anti-doctrine, and their church is run more or less on the same organization as the LDS, so it’s weird.

My sickness has been steady for the most part. Every once in a while I’ll still get the stomach pains and headaches I used to get. We have a multi-zone this week, so I’m going to talk to the mission nurse.

Week 19 in El Salvador

April 19, 2010

Hey,

No the capital is not scary, just big, and its really actually more calm than my last area. I’m doing good, and we got our shirts washed in a washing machine, instead of the river, so my shirts have turned white again. I don’t think I’ll wear out my shoes much this change, but yes I can get new ones here, if I need to. One thing I’ll miss is the old cook for us; she had a Papusaria, and made awesome food. Now we get one meal a day, because my companion doesn’t want to help me pay more for a Cocinara, so I’m buying lots of food, and learning how to cook better. I hope you haven’t sent the box yet: send me easy recipes in the box you are about to send, also if you can, send me a Leatherman. I have no clue where mine is, and I don’t want you looking through every box. It’s no hurry if you already sent the box.

I’ll try to get pictures of some of the awesome graffiti. We have some in the area. I love it, but all the people living there hate it.

My Spanish is going to get better this change, so I’m looking forward to being able to speak normal.

How is the family doing? How are my friends doing? Are they all leaving, or are some staying here? I’ve only heard from Maddy and Kendra, and some people in the ward. Tell them all thanks.

So, I’ll have to describe my new companion for you... He’s from Honduras, in the capital, and he feels right at home here. He’s about 6 foot 2 and maybe a hundred pounds. Doesn’t talk a word to anybody, or to me, unless I ask him something. He was trained the last change by a gringo, and now I’m his second companion, or “stepfather”... All the member families say that he never talks either, so I’ve ended up playing the roles of two companions, so I’m extremely tired. Elder Dennis said he liked this area because his zone was cool, but now all of them have moved.

The temperature has changed from this area...its only like 80 degrees, and in the nights, I have to sleep with a blanket.

As for the city, I’m still completely lost. They just opened up a new chapel, and it has two stories, enormous. Its has enough room for a third or fourth basketball court, but there are a lot of rooms. Everyone here has a car, and a house, and extra...and a lot of them have travelled to different parts of the world, just for fun. There is a huge gap in wealth from Zacatecoluca to here, and I think I like the poor people more. I like the attitude of the simpler life.

You should send me photos whenever you can, even of things that seem way normal would be awesome. Still pictures explain more to me than anything else.

Tell Kendra and Maddy thanks for writing me. I don’t think I will have time to do anything this change. I do most of the housework too, while my companion reads, or plays his plastic flute. I asked him if he liked sports, and he replied that he likes chess. I don’t know if I’m going to get time to write them, but tell them thanks. I love hearing from them. I almost forgot all about the Easter bunny, until Maddy told me a story. I think it’s too hot for him to visit here, and the hyena-dogs might eat him. Tell the Easter bunny that I miss him.

That’s probably a good thing that Kendra’s moving back in. Does she still have that baseball bat?

That’s good that Alyssa is still alive and playing in the mud.

Tell Rose that I’ll have to send her a hammock when I get moved to another poor area. The people here use beds and pillows. Sorry she might have to wait.

I’m gonna send this before it deletes on me, chow,

Corey

Week 18 in El Salvador

Hey,

I can’t write much this week. I just got transferred to Ilopongo, in the capital. I’m basically training this kid, it’s his second transfer, and I have no clue what I’m doing. I hate transfers...like I was almost crying leaving my other area. Everyone is so cool. I have tons of stories from my other area, so I’ll try to keep track of them, and the people. By the way, I think you should check my yahoo email if you haven’t, and make sure the Latinos aren’t writing me yet.

My health was getting better, but now I have to adjust to a new culture again.

Something is wrong with my computer site, so it loaded for an hour, and I have no time now. Try not to send pictures through the computer.

I don’t know what’s wrong, but I’ll try to figure this all out again.

It rained last week. There were rivers of water in the street up to my knees. Everything got flushed out. I don’t think the other areas got rain, because I went to San Vicente that same day, and it was dry, a good 100 degrees.

Ok, so we are leaving now. I’ll try to write more next week. This week has been super busy, super chaos, and in the end I figure out I’m leaving to the capital. I’ll try to figure out my computer too.

Chow,

Corey

Me and Elder Lindsey

My Zone

I’m on the far right. We all bought jerseys of the Chelsey soccer team...my name....Parasito...my number...3.

Street Art

They made it with colored salt, and then it the night, the parade walks all over all of them, and there is nothing left in the morning.

Street Art

They made it with colored salt, and then it the night, the parade walks all over all of them, and there is nothing left in the morning.

Week 17 in El Salvador

Hey,

Ok, so as for my health, I am still very exhausted. I’m going to buy iron pills today, and see if that makes a difference. It might just be the sun, ‘cause these two months are suppose to be the hottest of the year, and I’m sweating so hard that people keep commenting that I’ve been going swimming. It’s all good though, ‘cause the rainy season starts soon.

We were up in the woods, near the volcano this week, and there is an insect that I wish you could’ve heard. We were outside with this one family, and this bug started hissing. At first I thought it was a fire alarm going off in the house---extremely loud, so I turned to look. The family said it was this bug called a ciggara. I asked if that meant cicada, the bug that sounded similar in Missouri, and they said cicada has the same name in Spanish, and also a less intense sound. After the first bug sounded off, the whole forest lit up with sound. I’m not kidding when I say that these little bugs could make a person deaf. They start off with a clicking sound---CLICK Click Click click, getting higher pitch, and then they like scream, which is when its super loud.

This week was the Catholics Holy Week. It’s been crazy. These people are nuts, but I’ve got some cool photos, and I’ll see if I can send them. There were huge parades, and a parade of what I call the purple-KKK. They all carry crosses, and dress up, with their preachers screaming at everyone. I got some pictures of the street artwork, but not the parade, because it was too crazy.

It rained yesterday, pretty hard, but the Latinos say its just beginning. The water soaked through the holes in the bottoms of my shoes, so I decided to bust out the boots.

I’m gonna see if I can send photos on this new website, but for now, chow

-Corey