Family & Friends...
I AM IN TAIWAN!! After 9 weeks of thinking the day would never come, I am actually here and it is indescribable. I love everything. And I cannot stop smiling as I am biking in 100 degree weather, 100 % humidity, or pouring rain. The people here are incredible. The food is the best I have had in my life (besides mom's cooking of course). The city is sooo beautiful and the streets are unlike anything I have ever seen. AHHH everything here is so much more amazing than I will ever be able to describe!!
A brief rundown: We landed after a really smooth 13 hour flight and were greeted by our Mission President, Jace B. Jergensen and his angel wife Sister Jennifer Jergensen - they are amazing people. Then we spent the night at the mission home and I woke up the next morning at 4:00 thanks to jet lag :') oh also I blacked out again and hit my face on the bunk bed and then the closet and when I regained consciousness I was already crying. SO yeah hahah this was an important part of my week. (m & d I am totally fine I promise hehe)
So that morning we went to a dedicatory prayer sight and had a cool little introduction to the mission. Then we met up with all the trainers and got assigned our new companions. My companion/trainer is..... SISTER BRADLEY! She is one of the sweetest people I have ever met. I am so blessed with companions. We will be together for 2 transfers/12 weeks! LET'S GO. We spent our first evening together meeting people on the streets. We talked for awhile with a man who by the time we were ready to leave asked if we would pray with him. He said that he had not prayed before but he prayed one of the greatest prayers I have ever heard. SO COOL!!
The next day we biked- and YES I survived my first time biking in Taiwan!!! It was really something else... I cannot tell you how qíguài (strange) the traffic system is here. There are lights on every street that count down either 90, 60, or 25 seconds and nobody crosses or turns until their light is green. Also there is a box for bikes at the front of the lanes at every light. SO you gotta weave your way through all the cars and get to the box. Then when there is like 2 seconds left, you start revving up (aka awkwardly pedaling forward with your foot and getting honked at for being uncoordinated) and then everyone is off! There's just me and my comp, two little wàiguó rén (foreigners) on our foot bikes while all the cars, buses, and motorcycles zoom by. It's a beautiful thing how well the system works tbh.
Our Zhǔjiào (bishop) invited us and the Elders over for lunch and made us some tomato egg drop soup. (Dad you would have died for this!!) But when they found out I was veg (side note: Taiwan is probably the easiest place in the WORLD to be vegetarian) because I didn't eat the duck, his wife went back into the kitchen and came out with a plate of vegetable fried rice....the Taiwanese are seriously the kindest people in the world!! I definitely felt bad but once they knew I was vegetarian it was a done deal. The people here :'))))
Here are some more highlights/random things:
1. The fruit here is the most flavorful I have ever tasted.
2. We met a woman named Gloria (her English name) on the street and she was so excited to talk to us. She ended up setting up another appointment to meet with us and is super interested in baptism!
3. In every park here (so many parks!) there are tons of fitness groups. They do dancing, Tai chi, meditation, running and circuits. What's the big deal? Everyone in them is OVER 85 YEARS OLD. I will take a video. Words don't do them justice. Let's just say I got lapped by a 90 year old.
4. A giant plate of curry here costs 80 kuài....THAT'S $2.45!?!
5. The Chinese is coming so much easier being here and immersed in it! I can understand the gist of what most people are saying!! I really, really love the language. OH also I was asked to share a brief testimony yesterday in church in front of about 40 people...in Chinese hahah! I shared how Tiānfù (Heavenly Father) gives us strength to get through trials we couldn't get through ourselves. That is one of the greatest things I have come to know on my mission. Try it out- say a lil dǎogào (prayer) and see what happens! Yǒu xìnxīn yǒu bànfǎ!
There is so much to say but so much that I could never describe through words. I loooooovvvvvveeee Taiwan and I love being a missionary. This is one of the greatest experiences in my life. Most of the time I am just in awe that this is my real life!!
I love you al! Write me and tell me how the life is in Měiguó (USA)!
xoxox
mo jie mei
PICTURES
1. a super cute girl who thinks my hair is fake
2. me and my comp sis bradley and our sick bike gear
3. a view from our apartment in my first area, ZhongHe -- a district in Taipei
4. the dedicatory site (also another picture of this with our group is @ taiwantaipeimission.com)
5. view from our bishops apartment
6. a chocolate pancake fish
