Wednesday, November 2, 2011

November 2, 2011







Hola Mamá,

Well, I wasn´t transferred so the old address is still valid so yeah! I knew I felt like someone was watching me when I walked out of my home, haha!! [Mom told him she was “creeping on his neighborhood” via Google Earth.]  Our apartments are called pisos here. I´ll see if I can send you pictures of my piso so that you can see what it looks like. As for my Spanish, Elder Gallego thinks that it sounds pretty good!! He´s a little jealous that I can speak both Spanish and English well. I´m sort of trying to teach him English, but he´s got a way to go, haha!!! He´s got a thick accent when he speaks English so yeah, it´s funny to me! As for the Plaza with the park, I´ve already seen it a lot. We walk by there pretty much every day. In fact, I´ve got some pictures so I´ll attach them here so you can see them!! The first picture is of a building near there that I thought looked cool [called Casa Mantilla]. The second is of a fountain there [fuente de cristal in the Plaza de Zorrilla], the third is of another cool building [Academia de Caballería], the fourth is of the park entrance [the park is called Campo Grande], and the fifth is of a picture thing I found there right outside the park. The park isn´t as crazy and full as the one in New York, but it’s got some ducks, swans, and peacocks!! Weird I know, but yeah it´s fun!! Funny that you mention New York too because there are ads everywhere of going on a trip to New York for € 857 and spending 5 days there.

Well, as far as everything else here is concerned, not much new happened. We got 20 lessons this week though so that was an accomplishment!! We´ve been walking around a lot too so my legs are super tired!! We walked to Ana´s house (an investigator) and made brownies on Sunday and that was fun!! They were pretty chocolatey, but that makes them better!! Then yesterday we walked over to her house, but she didn´t let us in because it was too late for her parents. By the way, her house is super far from our house. I was super tired when I got home last night. My hip joints still hurt from that, but it´s okay. My shoes are super bad too. Back by the heel they are pretty worn out and my left shoe is worse because back in Salt Lake on our bikes, while pedaling fast, my shoe near the toes hit the ground, and the sole broke [see pictures below for before and after on my shoes - the before pictures are a pair of shoes purchased at the same time, but not yet used]. At least I can say that I´m a missionary with hol[e]y shoes, hahahahahahaha....or should I say....jajajajajajajaja, que chistoso!! Well, that´s about it. Oh another thing about this week is that this weekend and Monday and Tuesday was a holiday so the streets were pretty much dead during the day. Not a soul was out except for some few people. Contacts didn´t go well so far. But anyway, how are things at home? Anything else that´s fun going on? Take care and I´ll talk to you soon!! Love you all!!!

Elder Bauer




Dad,

Well, lots of questions to answer. I´ll answer them:

1. Question: 
So have you noticed the difference in the Spanish between Mexican Spanish and Castellano?  Both in pronunciation and vocabulary there is a difference.  Have you noticed that difference?
    Answer:  I´ve noticed a difference in the way they say their J´s. It´s got a bit of a "phlegm" sound to it, kind of like German, except German is all over the place. Sometimes they drop the "S" sound at the end of the words like Elder Gallego does.

2. Question:  Have you begun to change your Spanish to Castellano?
    Answer:  I´m trying not to, but sometimes I catch myself saying the J´s how they do. Pretty embarrassing, haha.

3. Question:  Is there a strange idiom you have heard in Spain, you have never heard before from your mom or her family?
    Answer:  Yes, but at the moment I don´t really remember.

4. Question: 
Where do you email? Do you go to a library, or do you e-mail us at a member's house?
    Answer:  We go to a place called a Locultorio, but you have to pay to use the computers. We can´t use a member´s computer because we aren´t allowed to.

5.  Question: 
And then what else do you do on your P-day?  Do you have to do your laundry?  Do you go grocery shopping?  Do you act like a tourist?
    Answer:  Yes I sometimes do laundry, yes we shop, and we act like tourists. It´s fun!!

6.  Question: 
Have you seen Columbus's house (I mean from the outside)?
    Answer:  I´m not sure. I need to know where it is to be able to say yes or no. Tell me the street or where it´s close to so that I can go see it!

7. Question:  Are there customs or norms that you have observed in Spain that you wish were norms or customs in the US?
    Answer:  Medio-dia. I like that a lot!! Everything closes for that and everyone takes a nap!! I wish that was in the US!

8. Question:  What is the thing you never thought that much about when at home, but miss now that you are in Spain?
    Answer:  Walmart, the milk, the cars, the roads and signs of the roads and that´s all that I can think of right now.

9. Question: 
Sister Abeling told us a few weeks ago that her seminary class was planning to write to you as part of what they do on Friday.  Have they ever done so?
    Answer:  Yes they have, and I´ve been meaning to send them a reply, but I haven´t done so because of the lack of money and lack of stamps. If you could apologize for me to her, that would be great!

10. Question:  I was just looking at the weather report for Valladolid.  It looks both cool (to cold if you are out late enough - or early enough), and wet!  People have been whining about the weather here, but tomorrow's forecast looks better here than there!  It is expected to hit 61 degrees F there (with showers) and 67 here and mostly sunny.  I will take our weather to yours!  So have you been cold?  Have you gotten wet?

   Answer:  Yes and yes to your questions, but my handy dandy umbrella ella ella has been handy!! Today it looks like it´s going to rain!! It has already, but during the night! Crazy the weather here. One day it was down to 3º C [37º F] and in the evening it got up to 21º C [70º F]. Super weird...haa!



Oh, one last thing, mom, could you send me more peanut butter as well as the rest of the stuff I asked for? Gracias!!! Take care and I love you all!!!

Elder Bauer

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