Ethan's Ten Percent in Argentina: Tons of Traveling in Expensive Arroyito!

I've been in my new area for a week now, so now I can tell you a little more about it. So. Arroyito is a little town out in the middle of nowhere, centered around this huge factory of the company "Arcor". What they did was built this factory out in the country, and then just brought in a bunch of people from other cities to work there, and eventually the town was built up around it. So basically everyone in the town works in the factory. But this town is actually really different from any other part of Argentina that I've seen. Since everybody has a job, its actually pretty nice, a lot of the houses look American and there isn't a lot of poverty like there was in La Rioja. But the bad thing is, since everybody here has money, the store owners have raised the prices on everything. So its all pretty expensive here, but we still get the same amount of money as all the other areas in the mission. So that's kind of rough.

Another thing weird about this Area is that in our district there are only 4 missionaries, us 2 and 2 sisters. We have district meetings every Wednesday, and like I said we are out in the middle of nowhere. So we have to take 4 hours of buses to get to where they are. Thats 4 hours each way, and we also have to go there at random times during the week for baptismal interviews, stuff like that. The bus schedule is also really unpredictable, and we have no way of knowing without going to the terminal and asking. So sometimes we end up taking buses really, really late. We have to sit in the bus terminal a lot. For example, our bus left at 12:30 Am last Wednesday...we got back to our apartment at 3 Am. That is something I never would've expected to do in the mission. So with all the traveling, this area is really unique in the mission. We only end up getting about 4 working days in our area during the week because we have to travel so much. its interesting.

It is also really really cold here, and it has been raining for the past 3 days. The rain feels like ice, but we have to travel on bikes always because our area is so big. Walking would just be a huge waste of time. The bikes make it soo much colder though. I never wanted to know what it felt like to ride a bike in the rain during winter at 3 AM, but I found out hahah.

We have a couple of investigators named "belen". 4 of them, they are all girls, and they are sisters actually. Their parents just really liked the name Belen they said. So they go by their middle names, except the oldest one, her name is Belen Belen. There are some really weird parents in Argentina! But yeah they were supposed to come to church with us on Sunday, and we had promised them breakfast. we bought it the night before and then showed up at their house at 7:30 Am in the rain, but they didn't come out of their house. So we shared a breakfast for 6 people between us 2 haha.

The ward here is bigger than in La Rioja, but it is just as strange. The bishop is a big red head (he looks like a viking, because he has a beard. Such apostasy!) and he is one of the only red heads I've seen in argentina. They do good with helping us out though with lunches and coming with us to lessons if we ask.

I must share a nightmare experience from sunday afternoon. We travelled to the city of san fransico (2 hrs in bus) to give a baptismal interview to a lady to be baptized that night, by her husband. They are a pretty old couple. First of all, the baptism was planned for 5 pm. The couple had a bus ticket back home, leaving at 7. (another 2 hr ride, Everything is super far away here.) But the baptism was delayed almost two hours because there was no hot water...they were heating water in pots and pans with the stove, and then pouring it into the font. It was ridiculous, it would've taken a whole day to fill it that way. It was such a joke. So eventually they just used cold water to fill it because they were gonna miss their bus, but by the time they started doing that they didn't have time to fill it all the way. So they proceeded to the baptism with it barely half filled, and the poor old guy trying to baptize his wife had a really hard time doing it. The first 3 attempts she didn't go all the way under, and then he messed up the prayer another 3 times. Eventually a big tongan elder got in the water to help him out. Remember that the water is cold, and it was freezing cold in the church as well. So the lady is already suffering enough, but then this annoying little kid was nice enough to shout out really loud that her clothes where basically see through. So that was really uncomfortable.

It couldn't have gotten worse right? wrong. They missed their bus...the last one of the night. Thankfully a member from san francisco offered to drive them all the way home. So we were all very relieved. But that was not the end...we found out that he EX boss called her and told her that she could not leave the city of san francisco because she has a misdemeanor in the city. So she basically got arrested. I don't think it was the wonderful day she was expecting, we are just hoping she doesn't go straight inactive.

My new comp elder Lyman is really cool. He's from Dallas, and he is really easy to get along with. We might be speaking a little too much english but its okay haha. He has clippers to cut hair, and haircuts cost $100 pesos here. In my last area it cost 30. So I cut my own hair for the first time last night, it was interesting but I think it turned out alright? hahah I never thought i would try that. There are these wild peppers growing on plants here...my comp enjoys picking them off and feeding them to people who aren't expecting it (me

) and also the dogs in the streets to see their reactions. Haha its kinda mean i guess because the peppers are super super hot but its kinda funny too.

We gave a blessing to a super disabled girl last week...she wasn't a member nor her parents, but some one told us to go to her house and bless her so we did. She couldn't talk or anything but she was smiling a lot after the blessing. I can't describe it very well with words but it was a really nice moment.

Another thing, right now there is massive heartbreak in Argentina...they lost the finals of the Copa America to hated Rivals Chile, and if that wasn't already bad enough messi announced his retirement from the national team. Everyone is sad even me. Its not a good time to be an Argentine!

The last thing Ill talk about this week is Mate...I think I've talked about it before but not in detail. My new comp got me into it, but its basically a bunch of leaves and sticks and herbs mixed up with all natural stuff. The kind I have has mint in it. So you put it in a little container and add hot water and sugar if you want, and then sip it out of this metal straw thing. Haha its weird explaining it in english because they don't have the words to translate the names of the container and straw thing. But yeah its really weird at first, the first time I saw people drinking mate when I got to Argentina i thought they were getting themselves high off of some crazy south american herbs. It its actually really healthy according to our mission president. I attached a picture of some mate.

Thats about all I have to say this week. I hope it was long enough, but don't get used to it haha! I don't always think of this much stuff to say.

I love and miss everyone!

Elder Christensen

(see if you can find Ethan!....click on it to enlarge)