Giant Easter egg with a surprise inside!

April 17, 2017

So this week was actually pretty interesting, we had a visit from one for the senior couples to come check on our apartment and since our apartment is also the church, I mean it has to be clean so,  non fa niente, We just have to fix our doors (a past missionary broke them) we'll figure it out. 

We had an opportunity to help out an old Scotsman in our ward with his compagnia (garden but bigger) and we put in some work with him and he told his stories of being in Saudi Arabia for years and almost being killed the classic,  Scotsman living in Italy,  life. He taught us how to play backgammon (so epic would recommend) and we ate lasagna with his neighbor (the German) who spoke great English and he brought non-alcoholic beer, so you know never drinking that again, it was so bad. But he was pretty curious and now has a Das Buch Mormon so we hope he reads it. 

And then there was Easter, so after church which slowly dwindled from high singles to low singles since half our ward was gone and others couldn't stay for various reasons. 

But afterwards we ate waaaay too much Romanian food with a bunch of members it was a cool and it was really good food and they made more than we as 8 people couldn't finish it. It was a broth with small meat ball things in it and egg roll type things soaked in something and filled with rice and meats. They also had super good mashed potatoes and breaded chicken I think. All of this paired with the Italian standard drink that isn't frizzante water, Coca-Cola. 

really cool views in Ascoli

Oh and we bought a giant 8kg chocolate egg for 9 people you'll see that next week. (oh and there is apparently a giant surprise inside!?

April 10, 2017

April 10, 2017 Chocolate Salami on a stick!?

OK so not much happened for like half of the week but the last half was literally filled to the brim! 

We had zone conference this week, and because of scheduling problems we had to do both West and East Rome zones at the same time (along with the 4 Malta anziani) which was super cool to see about 50 missionaries all at once. I met a lot of cool people I didn't know before, so that'll be cool to see what happens soon. We got to watch the video of the Moroni statue being put on the temple, that was cool! We had a good destramento about the Book of Mormon and the importance there of along with the power by which the spirit can testify of its teachings. 

Also in Rome we did a scambio and we were able to, meet like 7 College students and had a picnic with them eating bread, pork, chocolate salami(a chocolate stick with cookie in it that only looks like salami) deliciousness, and they offered us some Sicilian wine (apparently its really good) but we politely declined and spent quite a while with them and if we see them again we will definitely be friends. 

We also saw another car show this Sunday just parked in the middle of centro so we did a little gyro contacted some people then on the way back took a bunch of pictures of the cool ones. 

We also found a cave in a bridge and took awesome pictures and threw rocks in a river and got stabbed several thousand times by weeds. 

A piece of the chocolate egg that originally was as big as my head with a treat inside!

What came first the chicken or the chocolate egg?

So this week was just packed with a bunch of stuff, in Ascoli everything is much closer together than in Pescara so I feel like we were able to get a ton of things gs done this week including finding this awesome guy, Matteo the works a couple bars here and after talking with him and two slightly drunk people we were able to come by and see him again and he said he was really interested in our message so we gave him a Libro di Mormon and a few days later he had read the testimonies and the introduction and a couple chapters we had asked him to read. We will be meeting his family for dinner tomorrow over some sheep, so we will see how that goes. 

We also met a lady that works at a government building where a different investagator works and we went looking for him found here and now we can go there and talk to either of them, so that'll be fun. 

Then that weekend we had Conferenza Generale and since we have a small group here that is technically part of a larger ward in Pescara we have church in our house, but most people watched it at their houses so it was us and a new convert sitting on our couch watching the conference in Italian... I understood quite a bit and feel really bad for the greenies that just got here but I will be watching them again in English later. It is really taxing to translate in your head for hours at a time, like getting smacked with an Italian cricket bat, hopefully I get better and that doesn't happen later. 

Also in between two of the sessions we went to a car show that was up here so there will be a lot of pictures of Italian rally cars and a couple formula 1 cars and other random stuff. 

Also they sell chocolate eggs here that are bigger than your head (400g) for ten euro with a little prize in them. We bought one and it was cool and it was a lot of chocolate and a little ascoli piceno soccer symbol thing so it was worth it over all.  

me and a section of the egg (what came first the chicken or the chocolate egg) 

What does a chicken say in Italian!

March 27, 2017

OK transfer calls came in and I have been transfered to Ascoli with Anz. Parkinson! For those of you not in the mission that probably sounds super cool, but it is literally the least distance I could have been transfered. I have nothing against Ascoli it will probably actually be a really cool city and it is super old and has some pretty cool stuff, but since Ascoli is not a big ward yet, it is technically a part of the Pescara ward which is were I was before so that's fun. 

Before actual transfers we got to visit with some of our investigators and to say good bye and when we were with Michele and Lucrezia Delle Foglie after a great lesson and after we bore our testimonies they were just crying and there was a lot of emotion in those last few moments with them. This 80 year old couple and us had just gotten so close through the sharing of the gospel I just hope to be able to see them again and since I am only in Ascoli I might be able to see them during a Scambio, ma vediamo. 

  Then during actual transfers on Thursday Anz. Bohn and I went down to Ascoli to be with Anz. Parkinson while his old comp left stayed there for two hours and went to L'aquila to see off Anzi. Daniels and Bohn. So that Anz. Whited wouldn't be alone and after that we came back to Ascoli for 6 hours then went up to Pescara for a ward conference the next day and stayed there for Pday and we are now heading back. All this means that since I was transfered to Ascoli on Thursday I have been there for less than 9 hours in 5 days so yah. 

It was actually really cool to do an awesome Giro and see everyone before they ship off and then to meet all the new anziani e sorelle 

I also got to say goodbye to some of the cool members in Pescara and got to help out Carlos,  the coolest Italian blind guy I have ever met,  one more time. 

That Sunday night we did a gesso with the sorelle since the anziani of Pescara had to teach a lesson. It was really cool we asked people what they did for Easter (Italians don't really do much is what we found) but we met some cool people the have some potential I think.  We also met this super super fancy guy with a blue suit and a red flower and a red tie and pocket square and gold bracelets and a Rolex and this ring the was just covered in diamonds and a big jewelry I the center. It would have been cool but he totally just flirted hard with one of the sisters and asked if he could have a kiss and all this random stuff and the sister obviously said no and then he eventually just went away. To make all of this even better this guy is like 80 so we were all just laughing as he was talking. (also imagine all of this but in Italian, it just makes it better) 

Then for Pday we went to the beach for the last time (since we can't go to the beach between April and October conferences as a general rule) and we played some cool games and tried to have a picnic but we forgot a blanket so we ate over the sand and the wind just blew it into all the food so we all had sand covered sandwiches and juice. Also all morning Anz Parkinson and I had on roller skates from the Pescara house and rolled everywhere. It was not only more fun and we never fell down but it was also a great finding tool we got a couple of cool conversations out of it. 

That was all I can really remember from my week  I hope you all have an excellent week and remember that the light of Christ is in all of us and all we have to do is be good people and follow Christ and we can be the light to lead others out of challenges