I am writing this letter from Portugal! Its so crazy!!!
We left the MTC on Tuesday at 1:00 p.m. and then got to Lisbon on Wednesday at like 2:00 p.m. I think. After all day of traveling we walked out of the airpot to find a huge group waiting for us it was SO cool!!
Then to get to the mission home all of the sisters got in the Mission Presidents car, and I was in the middle. The problem was there was no seatbelt that we could find and they speak literally no English so we couldnt even ask and the President started driving and it was SOOOO scary. Literally thought I was going to die. People are CRAZY drivers here!
But we made it to the mission home and it is beautiful!!! You could see the bay from their backyard with a bridge that looks exactly like the Golden Gate bridge!! That night we had an interview with the Mission President. It was so hard because I could not understand one word he was saying hahaha but they are SOOOO nice!! The mission president is really nice and the first day he had the APs translate for him which was really good because I understood nothing. Yes Elder Haws (a nephew of the Isakson's) is SO nice!! He was with us all day on Wednesday! Super fun. In the meeting the Mission President told us our companions and our areas...
My companion is Sister Santos from BRAZIL meaning that she literally speaks no English. I am serving in Mafra. It is SO pretty here!!
That night I was so scared that when I couldnt sleep I would just form sentences I could say to her the next day hahaha.
So Thursday Morning we had a meeting and our companions came and picked us up. SIster Santos has a heart of gold and is absolutely the sweetest girl ever, the only problem is I only understand like 30% of what she says. I love my trainer but it is so hard because we dont speak the same language. SO communication is so hard. People say I will learn really fast but I don't feel like I have learned anything so far so its really hard. Its gotten easier to understand her, but she also has spoken slower which is really nice.
Thursday was such a struggle because I wasn't used to any of the accents here and I had no idea what anyone was saying and no one could translate for me. It was SOOO hard!!
Literally everyday Sister Santos just teaches and then is like Sister Jones do you want to share your testimony? So yea I am pretty good at sharing my testimony.
I am getting better at understanding Sister Santos and so now when we walk around we can actually talk to each other about things at home and stuff which is good. It is just so hard because she has always kown Portuguese so she has no idea what it is like to learn a language. Everyone says I will learn really quick and I really hope so because it is SOOO hard not understanding anything!! I keep thinking I wish i was speaking english, but I know thats a terrible attitude to have. One day I will be glad I am speaking another language.
Yesterday at church there was like 10 people there, and they said that was pretty normal. They are literally the sweetest people ever and I love them so much even if I dont understand anything they say. One person speaks English so they are my new best friend!
The people here are all so nice and friendly but just dont want to keep commitments. They all invite us in and make us food, but won't go to church and read the Book of Mormon. There is a LOT of Catholics and they are just not interested. Also half of the ward is inactive so we meet with menos activos a lot. One of them named Isabel came to church yesterday and then made us Buckalho after. Its cod fish and it was actually really good! But I also made sure to eat a small breakfast so I would be hungry.
SO yes this week had been a struggle and I have literally used all of the Portuguese words I know, and then have made up some too. It's also so hard trying to adjust to a foreign country when you don't have anyone to tell you how to do something and things like that. So it has been really hard and I feel really alone a lot but I know I am doing the right thing and I just need to be patient and the language will come.
The weather here is super nice though! Its like California cold in the morning and nice but hot during the day. The only bummer is it gets windy and thats a bummer with dresses.
SO yes thats been my excitement. I dont really know whats going on like 80% of the time so I can't really tell you anything else!!
Love you all!!
Sister Jones
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| The view from the Mission Home. Can you see the "Golden Gate Bridge" in the background? |
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| Sister Santos and Sister Jones |
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