Random, awesome, and weird...take your pick!

On Saturday, I was riding a bus out to our third or fourth time, and I started talking to the girl next to me on the bus. I told her how my sister in America was getting married. She was shocked I wasnt there, ha. That's sick Kaesi is married now. Tanner told me that Kneaders catered the luncheon... what the heck.. that sounds amazing.

That's sick Britt is headed back out to the Pinas. I didnt even know about that. As far as Mothers day Skype. Bates and I are gonna do a split and do the call on the 13th. So we will plan on that for now.

We haven't moved yet, it will be soon though I think. I still haven't seen the house yet. The office people found one before we did, we didn't have much time to look.

Anyway, weird week. We were on our way out to work when this huge guy yells at us to come over. He's one of those guys who yells no matter what he says, and doesn't even realize he is. Their whole family is Muslim. His name is Ali and his brother is Mohamed. There are a few girls who live there too. Way cool family. They are from Diego, the Northern tip of Mada. Most of the time, Muslims dont go very far into lessons, but they seem to learn well. They love to feed us.

We have been having a weird go, we keep running into famous singers in our area. Keep in mind that being famous in Mada is like being a very modestly popular local band in Orem/Provo, but it's still cool. 

The first guy we met is named Jackie, he is a singer and works with all the way famous singers on videos and stuff. The other is a guy who is friends with the Muslim family. His name is Angelo, I am attaching a link to one of his videos. It may be cheesy, but its way good quality for Malagasy standards. He has sick hair. 

The other guy is Elder Ramahafadrohanas Dad. People always ask if he is related to the singer. We teach him too, he is the weirdest guy ever. So funny. I am attaching one of his too. He is the old guy on the left. Apparently he is in tons of big movies too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olM645ZyRMA Angelo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZorSqeyC5PE&playnext=1&list=PL3E9FC52E0B9E0645 Ramahafadrohana

Anyway, Lalaina is getting his patriarchal blessing and the Priesthood soon. I am so stoked for him. He is only a few weeks baptized, and just tearing it up. Hasn't missed a week since he started learning in February.

Yesterday at church was good. The whole sacrament meeting was an Easter program  (a little late?) and it was all in English. So funny, a whole choir of Gasies trying to sing in English accents. They did good, it was just really funny.

We have a baptism set for the 18th of May. Just one so far. It's the fiance of this guy that we have been teaching for about a month and a half. He is there for every lesson. It's kind of an easy shoe in baptism. He is doing everything, we just show up and teach the lessons. Her name is Mampionona. They are getting married the week after the baptism.

And... yeah. Thats all for right now. A ton of other stuff happened, but my desire to type it all is being crushed by my desire to deal with this French keyboard.

Taylor

PS- More pics to check out:

One of our investigators builds things.

Transfers!! ... Same companion, same area, new house, and livin' with a Malagasy!!

Transfer news came last night. Worthen and I will be together two more months. But Smith is leaving to Toamasina, and we are getting a Malagasy in the house, I'm stoked. Also, we were told that we are getting a new house, and we get to chose it. House shopping this week. I'm so happy, we live in a birdcage right now.

I went on splits again this week. In Manakambahiny, with Elder Bates. It's pretty sick having a Zone Leader comp. We get to visit every area in the zone, it's cool.

Rainy season is pretty much over now. It hasn't rained in like a month. It's still hot though, I am always tired from how warm it is in people's houses and out walking. I cant wait for the cold.

We got to watch conference this week finally, too. We all met at the office on Saturday morning and watched the Saturday sessions, then went out to work, and watched the sunday sessions at the church on Sunday. It was a good conference. It's crazy how many members there are back home. That center is so huge. I'm pretty sure all the members in this country wouldn't even fill that room. We're definitely a minority here.

To be honest, not much happened this week. I won't drone on with boring stuff, but I did find a computer that uploads pictures, so you can check all those out. 

Sorry I sound kind of rushed, but we have to leave soon.  Talk to you soon! Love you!

Taylor

Those random pics Taylor promised you...

Hot, sweaty, African-style soccer in the dirt!

Hangin' with the Gasy's

And...the random life of a Mada missionary...

Sick Alligator tie!

Oh Mada!!

Well, I finally recovered from that awful sunburn a few weeks ago.. and I scored a new one this week. On Saturday, our ward and the 67th ward missionaries met up in the morning and drove way out to the middle of nowhere to play soccer.

The field was definitely a Malagasy field. No grass, just straight dirt. It was so rough, freaking hot African sun beating down on us, slipping all over the place. And of course all of the Malagasies were pro as ever. It was a way fun game though, after the game we all hauled huge bags of bread and bananas into the shade and got to relax.

Splits again this week, too. I stayed in Ampefiloha, and Elder Ramahafadrohana came out with me. He is from Analamahitsy, he is 25. We had so much fun, I love my Malagasies. We ate a ton of rice, and he taught me an outrageous amount of slang. I got him to come work out with me at the gym, too. I taught him how to use a treadmill, too. He was so weirded out. But he got the hang of it.

I have found a new love for bargaining here, too. I love it, people always try to rip us off because we are white. There is a huge outdoor market that sells a ton of sick stuff, and its so easy to get people to drop prices.

Hey, your'e my friend, I'll give you this watch for 32 thou.

Make it 5

Are you kidding me? My boss will kill me.

I dont need it.

20 thou

This watch was 15

10

5

8

5

Fine.

Thats just one example. I love it, I have so much stuff I dont even need just because its so easy to get stuff for nothing.

Time.. its a strange thing for a mission. They tell it to you the day you enter the MTC, days go by slow, weeks go by fast. Its been pretty spot on in this area. Marsh hits his year mark this Thursday, then my group is next up. Way sick, crazy too.

The new converts are doing good. Lalaina is going to find out in a few weeks if he is getting his green card. He is planning on moving to America. I talked with him for like an hour about it. It would be so sick. I told him that if he goes, they have to visit my home. He would do work in America. I am praying for him and his family to be able to go. 

Anyway, it's a short one this week. Transfer news is this next Sunday, so next week I will let you know of any changes.

Thanks for everything!

Taylor

Mada Adventures...some more!

It was a really weird week, to say the least. And sorry ahead of time if there are misspellings in this, I got a crazy keyboard again. 

Anyway, Easter afternoon was fun. After we emailed last week, we bought pizza and took it to the park, and ate it in the poo covered grass. Not exactly an Orem park, but not too bad. 

After, we went out to this giant memorial statue in the middle of the lake. It's a memorial for all the Malagasies who died fighting for the French, I guess. TONS of people were swarming it for the holiday.

Anyway, Bates and I found a secret passageway that went inside the statue. It smelled like death on the inside, but we found a ladder that went up this little chute up to the top of the inside of the statue. We had some Gasy homies climb it with us, we looked like we had been working in a coal mine all day when we finished. So dirty.

Luckily, we are white, which is usually a downside here, but security didn't stop us from walking into the nice hotel to wash off in the bathroom. Sick afternoon.

On Tuesday I went on splits with Elder Seifert, a guy from Provo. I stayed in their place in Ampitatafika, Mitchell's area. But I worked in Itaosy. I got to spend the night at Mitchell's though, it was way fun. On splits? I ran into a little kid with no leg, not too weird, but he chased me down and started kicking me in the shins with his plastic leg, stinking hurt.

Back in my area, I was visiting the family from Toliary, and they said that Worthen told them that I died, and that's why I was gone on Tuesday. They told me that they were all crying and didn't eat that night, haha I was laughing so hard when they told me. They believe it so easily. I was on splits with Mitchell on Thursday, and I told a family that Worthen died, and they got so sad. When he got back, we told them he got resurrected and they were so amazed. It's too easy to trick people here... dont worry, they eventually find out that we are kidding.

Oh, and now mine and Worthen's voices are going to be sounding in English classes all over now. This girl who teaches English recorded us reading this horribly written English script for all the people she teaches so they can practice our accents haha.

Lastly.. we got to make a fun late night hospital trip the other day. Smith split his lip pretty much in half, so we all went to the hospital, didn't get home til way late. He is fine now, plus Bates and I got to watch an hour and a half of WWE while we waited. The Rock won.

Conference will be in English. Saturday sessions in English, then Sunday in Malagasy at the church. Only outside of Tana (the Capital) is it always in Malagasy only. But we will get to see it in a few weeks.

Anyway, that's all for now. Love you, thanks for everything.

Taylor

A couple random pics for ya...

Easter...and Baptisms!

The city is a ghost town, except for the main roads. Everyone and their dogs are catching buses out to the middle of nowhere to go on hikes and have picnics, it's a Monday-after-Easter tradition they have here. Good for us, because the internet is fast for once, but bad for us, because everyone who didn't go to the countryside is laying around with a hangover.

Baptisms in this country will never go according to plan. I called it before we left, "Something will go wrong, I promise". It did.

All 3 investigators showed up, so that was good. Things took a turn for the worse when the adult clothing closet was locked. Worthen and I had to pry it open with our bare hands and pull out what we could, but it wasn't much. So everyone got kids clothes ha. It wasn't too bad, because Glady and Claude are 15 and 12, but Lalaina is 34. So he got to sport white capris for the baptism. Then we found out we didn't have towels, so we got to dry off using spare bap clothes and hand dryers.

Prying open the clothing closet.

Awkward, ha!

All that aside, the baptism was awesome. We got to give them the Holy Ghost in Sacrament meeting as well, dope. I am so excited for the new converts. They all have tons of friends, and Lalaina is tearing it up at church. He'll be the bishop someday.

Anyway, other news.. I went on splits again this week, with Smithson, I went to their area, Ambohipo. Cool area, but they're white washing, aka, no program. They live in a house with 10 Elders, it's insane. We had to help move a fridge up two stories, using tow ropes.

Splits with Smithson

The stairwell was too small for the fridge.

Sketchy man made fridge elevator.

What else.. not much other craziness to go over. There always is.. but my real struggle is writing it all down. But I got pictures to work! I can only get a few up now, but I'll try to get more next week. Talk to you all soon.

Taylor

P.S. I did get Mindy's letter, but I dont have an email or anything, so I can't answer. But tell her thanks for writing!

I'll pray for Grandma for sure, that's pretty crazy, hopefully they can help her get better soon.

My stomach is doing alright. Every morning, we get bread off the street, make lunch at home, and we never really eat dinner unless someone gives us rice or noodles. The rest of the time we just eat baked stuff off the street. Epiceries are the eastiest way to keep fed all day.

P.S. Can you send me Krusteaz easy bake muffins and stuff? Worthen got some and I about died, they were amazing. Just easy bake breakfast stuff that I don't need anything too special to make. Thanks!

Time to enjoy a few random pics:

A first edition Malagasy BOM. Huge.

Tan line.

The hilarious warnings on the cigarette boxes.