Hello! I hope everyone isdoing well! I have a feeling that a lotof my words willbe combined because the space bar doesn´t worktoo well on this keyboard! Sorry this is getting to you all a little late.A lot has happened and I didn´t have my pday yesterday, so I had permission to writeyou all today! We had changes last tuesday. I gotthe call that I was staying in Solanda and getting a new comp, hna Padilla,and Thelin was going to Ibarra,which is up north. We were pretty sad toleave each other, but that is the life of the mission, you just have to move on. So Hna Padilla was fun, a hard worker,and we got a lotof work done together. Everywhere we went though, people would say, oh, where is Hna Thelin, or where isthe other gringa. EVERYONE! Even the guy who does our copies forus.So I got over it.
Then came yesterday. IT was pday and me and Padilla wereleaving to play vball with our zone. Then we got a call from the assistants to the presidente and they were asking Padilla how well she knew the sector,ifshe could located the church and the investigators houses, etc. Solanda is very confusing, I had gotten the hang of it after 3 months, she didn´t havea clue. Then htey told us that we had an e-change, which is emergency change,and that I was leavingto Otavalo and she was staying in solanda. There were a setof sisters in otavalo who were having some difficulties. Hna Mereira said she had medical problems andthat she hatedthe dogs in otavalo and she just couldn´tstand being there any longer. She also refused to work there.Everyone usually loves Otavalo, so who knows hwat her dealwas! So, I had to pack everything and say goodbye to people in 3 hours. Igot to the offices, picked up my new comp, Hna Tax, and headedto Otavalo.Because of therain, a 15minute carride to the station took 2 1-2 hours! I was dying! And fromthere 3 hours in bus to Otavalo and here I am! I was understanding everything in my ward becauseI have the hang of Spanish, but now the ward here is indigenous, which means the meetings will be in Quichua. We are taking classes every Wednesday and Saturday to learn the language. Most people can speak both spanish and quichua,but we still needto learn and make the effort to teach in quichua. Sothat should be fun. Lots of people heredress traditionally and everything, which isfunny because they willhave their old traditional clothes, and then be talking on a cell phone,so a weird mix!
Ecua Fact: Ithought I wouldtellyou about some of the food. They eat a ton of rice! Thelin would keep a plastic bag in her backpack and scoop someinto it. My favorite is empanadas and humitas. Empanadas arehuge fried bread things filledwith different things, I like them fillediwth beef. Humitas are a lotlike tomales, but without meat or anything, just a cornand cheese mixture. Then they use all stages of bananna. With Verde, thye double fry itand make patacones or fry it once and cut it thinner to make chifle. With a normal bananna,you make maduro. IT is all good.
Well,I loveyou alland think of you often. Thanks foryour emails of support. Just to let you know, I have anew pday, Saturday, insteadof Monday. Love you!
Hna Kaylee Sorensen
