Last Week in the MTC

First time for us at the Mission Home

Leaving the MTC next week and entering the mission field!

Last week in the MTC! Time has flown by but it's amazing and I'm actually surprised at how much Tagalog I can speak. The conversational Tagalog is hardest because we don't practice that as much, but teaching and understanding is a whole lot easier for me!! 

Our district always opens class with a hymn and our teacher said we sound really good! (Oh course not me haha). So she went and got the MTC president and he loved it so we are singing Nearer My God to Thee this Sunday at church for everyone! In Tagalog of course.

The language is different because English is very Nasally, but Tagalog is all in the back of the mouth and it comes more from the throat. So my teacher has been working with me so I will be able to sound native. It's come a long way!! 

Our tracking experience this week was a lot different. We went to the Quezon City mission. It was nicer for sure. Less dogs haha. We rode around on the Jeepnies which was crazy. Most the time there are 3 lanes in the road but about 5 lanes of cars haha. Every time I would lift my head to talk to somebody on the Jeepnies I would wack my head on the top bar haha. I'm heads taller than everyone here! As we walked down the streets we saw lots of fruit stands with ancient people looking dead on a chair haha. LOTS of kids with flip flops and basketballs running around, and yelling, "Hey Joe". They also love to come around and give us hi fives. So some of the Polynesians in my district have brought me their ripped pants and ask me to sew them up haha. They say pants have a hard time holding in their poly thighs haha. But I'm really glad I can sew them up!! Filipinos are really dramatic. We have "investigators" we teach here are they are volunteers from Manila. They have a lot of really cheesy drama shows here or something but they really go all out, and they are just dramatic people in general haha. I love the Filipinos and the Philippines!! It feels so right that I'm here and I really connect with the people. I know that Jesus Christ is the Savior, and wants us to get to know Him as well as He knows us. I love being a missionary and am so grateful to be the Lord's representative. So I had fried squid on wednesday haha. weird but good. Fried banana is my favorite treat here though so far! Expect another letter on Monday. We get another random P-day right before we get to go to the field. Today is just soooo hot. soooo hot. I'm so glad the fam is doing well!!! Love you so much! Thanks for all your support and prayers :)

This is a video that a Senior couple serving in Elder Robert's mission filmed.  They filmed while driving one day, trying to get to apartments in the Tondo area. She didn't start filming soon enough to really show the congestion of the nice, wide street that is made almost impassable by the little markets plunked on the sides. No missionaries in this, and you can hear them talking and see their map reflected in the window, but I added this to give you a little taste of Manila. The man on top of the jeepney was working on an electric line.