Hello, All -- sorry for the hiatus with the blog.  We are back to full health now, and though we haven't had any unusual adventures in the last week or two, here are a few random pictures of places and "events" . . .

On May 5th, we had our combined Latin/North American Missionary Family Home Evening (we do this every first Monday).  We always have departing missionaries bear their testimonies, so this first picture is of Elder Chalmers doing so.  I realize you're looking at the back of everyone's head, but I'll tell you who they are anyway.  L/R, back row, President and Sister Jensen and the Delgados (from Arica, Chile).  Middle row L/R, you can barely see the back of Sister Chalmers' head, then President and Sister Dyer of the Cochabamba Mission, the Westovers (from Coeur d/Alene, Idaho), and Sister Lara (from Mendoza, Argentina).  Next (2nd row from front), L/R, the Paredes (from El Alto, Bolivia) and the Otondos (from Tarifa, Bolivia).  Directly in front of the speaker, the Benitez from Pleasant Grove, Utah (though she is originally from Bolivia and he from Ecuador).  Out of sight on the right are Sister Lara's companion, Sister Monroy from Colorado (whom you can see in the picture below this) and Farron.

President Dyer was our speaker and his presentation was WONDERFUL.

He told us about the growth of the church in the remote village of Quiriza, Bolivia.

He served there as a 19-year-old missionary, back in the 60s.

The missionaries and the members BUILT the chapel there, from scratch, 

with only $2,000 worth of materials.  (See picture below.)

It is still in use and is a beautiful building,

the only LDS chapel in South America with a bell tower and a bell!

This picture of the chapel and the members was taken in 1968, but it looks the same today.

Now to other miscellany . . . this is primarily for my family (our children especially) who know that I have a "black thumb" where plants are concerned and it is really "planticide" to give me a living plant of any kind.

HOWEVER, this is proof that under extraordinary conditions (i.e., here), even I can keep a plant alive.

This is a picture of the plant the Hursts gave me when they left on May 4th (almost a month and I haven't killed it yet.)

Furthermore, it has put out a new shoot (or leaf, or whatever you call it).

See it there in the center? I call that downright amazing.

I don't expect this good fortune to last when we return to California,

but for now I am actually enjoying have a live plant in our apartment.

A week ago we were walking the mile or so down to the grocery store and this street crew were getting ready to start their day.  They didn't look very happy when I took this picture, so I waited until we got past them to take the other two.  Notice that almost ALL the workers are women!  (I haven't figured out why or I'd tell you.)

 Also notice the very primitive tools they are using.  Talk about hard labor!

A block further down we passed this parked truck,

and Farron wanted to show you a picture of it 

because that is a natural gas cylinder underneath it.

Almost all of the vehicles here have dual-power, if that's the right word.

They are made to run on both natural gas and regular gasoline.

Not yesterday but the previous Sunday we rode home from church in the ugliest taxi I've yet seen.  I wasn't quite rude enough to take a picture of the outside (with the driver watching me), but I took these two pictures of the inside (this is looking back at the hatchback space) while we were driving.

This is the inside of the back seat.

Not all taxis are this bad; we have ridden in some very nice ones, actually.

But many of them range from beat-up to downright scroungy, which is what I would call this one.

I seriously wondered if it was going to get us home because the engine sounded as bad as the inside looked!

Next some pictures of my FAVORITE tree here in Bolivia.  I thought maybe it was the national tree, but they don't have one (according to Google).  I did find out the tree is called the "African Tulip Tree" and is considered an invasive species - how about that?  Apparently once it takes root it is exceedingly difficult to get rid of.  (I wish I could figure out how to get one home to our backyard.)  Anyway, to me there is nothing more beautiful than one of these trees in full bloom.  Unfortunately, whenever I see one covered in flowers, I am seeing it from a taxi and can't get a good picture.  This is the best I could do on the way home from church a week or so ago.

This one is right on our way as we walk down to the grocery store.

Unfortunately it has been trimmed lopsided because of the power lines on the right.

And here's a closeup of the flowers.

Aren't they gorgeous?

I really want one of these trees!!

On May 30, we had a huge group of young people come by bus to the temple from Santa Cruz.

That's a 12-hour trip.  It was their Stake Youth Conference, and they came to do baptisms.

That evening, Farron was invited to speak to them.

This is about 2/3 of the group; the others are in the hall, waiting to come in.

Eventually about 30 of the boys sat on the floor (the empty space you see in front),

so the girls could have the chairs.  The adults stood at the very back.

It was a wonderful meeting and Farron did a great job speaking to them.

Lastly, a couple of pictures that I didn't take but that are precious to me.
The groom in this picture is Elder Richard Córdova of Otavalo, Ecuador.
He was a truly remarkable missionary (all the Otavalans were), and this is his wedding picture.
He was married in May at the temple in Guayaquil, Ecuador.  Luckily I am friends with him on FB, so I could copy these pictures.  What I wanted you to see was the traditional Otavalan Indian clothing he is wearing. Notice the shoes as well as the hat and vest.  I think the other couple are the bride's parents,
and you will notice the father is wearing the same kind of shoes. The mother is wearing the traditional Otavalan dress.

One other note . . . Elder Córdova is only about 5'2" tall and that is typical of his tribe.

I used to wonder how these Otavalan elders would find anyone shorter than they,

but of course the lovely Otavalan girls are really tiny.

This beautiful bride is probably only 5' tall, if that.

Aren't they a wonderful-looking couple?

When I saw this picture on Facebook, it made me SO happy I just had to share it with everyone.

Okay, that's all for today.  Have a safe, happy, healthy week . . . y vayan con Dios!

Sorry - no blog the week of May 20-27 . . . not much happening AND I've been recuperating from food poisoning which leaves me with no energy to spare.  Next week . . .

Hello, All --

We haven't been anywhere exciting or done anything unusual this week, so I thought I'd share something that is quite common here but will be very unusual to you.  (Be glad you don't have to experience it.)  I've mentioned La Cancha before.  It's sort of like a flea market in the U.S. except that it's HUGE - covers several acres - and it is permanent.  You can find almost anything in La Cancha if you are willing to wander up and down winding alleys and keep looking.  Some of the stalls/stores are under one big roof in the center of things, others are in alleys and streets that are pure mud when it rains, and some are along the main city streets that lead into and go through La Cancha.  In addition to all the aforementioned, there are vendors who set up shop on the street each day.  You'll see a little of each kind below.  Personally, I really dislike going down there but sometimes we have to because the prices are about half what you would pay in a normal (clean) store in the city center.  The two things I most dislike about La Cancha are the dirt (or mud, if it has rained) and the smell.  I can only handle about an hour there and then I have to head for home. However, the Latin missionaries here at the temple shop there all the time because of the lower prices and because they are not as spoiled as I am.  <smile>  Here you go . . .

First of all, as you get close to La Cancha (this is about a block outside), you start to see the street vendors along both sides of every street.  I guess they set up anew each day.  These ladies are selling fruits and vegetables.

The next two pictures are of fish vendors.

Don't ask me where the fish comes from

or how fresh it is.  I don't know and I doubt it is.

Another vegetable vendor.  I think the sacks of potatoes behind her are part of her booth as well as the cabbages and other green vegetables in front of her.

This lady is selling papayas.

This one is selling all kinds of potatoes (there are about 400 varieties in Bolivia.)

Notice her little child sound asleep on the cement (bottom right corner) with very little padding.

 Along the street that leads into La Cancha there are several stores that sell grain, noodles, and rice.

This one has ALL kinds of grains.  The problem is that there is nothing to keep dirt, insects,

people's hands (and/or the stray cat) out of the bags.  

For this reason I am not comfortable buying any of this stuff.

Here are a couple more pictures of the same kind of store.  These are permanent locations, by the way.

 

 Here's a lady selling bananas.  Can you see her hat on the other side of the pile?

She's in the street, just off the curb.  The people you can see in front of her are on the sidewalk.

Another vegetable seller with her wares on a piece of plastic in the street.
That is, the one in brown is on the street.  The other lady, with the white hat,
is on the sidewalk.

And here's what gives La Cancha it's inimitable smell - the open air meat markets! 

One of the VERY few that actually has a covered display case for at least part of the meat.

And this is how you buy a chicken in La Cancha.
There are several blocks lined with this vendors like this.
I have to hold my breath as we walk by.
Well actually, I try not to be anywhere near them but sometimes it is inescapable.
I admit I took most of the meat and chicken pictures from the bus.

Here's a more pleasant (and better-smelling) sight:  a lady selling vegetables with her baby in a sling on her back.  They carry the babies this way until they are about 2 years old.  It does keep them safe, but I wonder how badly the mothers' backs ache!

 

Now a total change of subject.  I recently received a copy of a mini-book entitled "The Birth of the Church in Southern Bolivia".  It is a fascinating 77 pages of journal entries from the first missionaries who taught the gospel to isolated natives in the southeastern corner of this country.  In the little village of Queriza, the missionaries and the villagers (almost none of whom were members at the time) built this beautiful chapel, which is still in use today.  This picture (from the book) was taken in 1968 - but the chapel looks just the same now.  It is the only Mormon chapel in South America that has a bell tower and a bell!  What a beautiful job they did and what a tribute to the faith and selflessness of both the missionaries and the village people (many of whom were baptized as soon as the church was completed.)

Okay, that's it for today.  Have a happy, healthy, safe week . . . y vayan con Dios!

Hello, All --

Not much news today, but here are some random pictures from our week . . . 

To start with, we had to go to the Aduana (the Bolivian Customs office) to try and retrieve 2 boxes of vitamins/supplements we had ordered from the U.S.  Each box weighed more than 5 pounds; therefore, we had to pay taxes and customs fees.  This was the only office (out of 3) that I dared take a picture of, because I didn't want the officials to see me doing it.  The full-time elders from the Cochabamba Mission Office went with us. They are registered to pick up parcels all the time.  We could not pick up ours without registering, and we couldn't register because we didn't have a receipt showing we pay rent and utilities here!  (Our rent is paid directly to the Missionary Department in Salt Lake City, and the utilities are included.)  So . . . the elders went with us (the second time) and helped us get the packages.  The boxes arrived in Bolivia on April 21; we finally got them on May 2nd.  ¡Asi es Bolivia!

We went to lunch with President and Sister Jensen at the Cine Center one day.

We saw this cute little boy and his sister.  Farron says that's an Iron Man costume, right?

Obviously the new Spiderman movie is playing at the Cine Center.

On the way home we passed this hotel,

called (appropriately) Hotel Azul (the Blue Hotel).

We pass it every week on our way home from church.

It fascinates me because it's SO BLUE.

Saturday night after we were finished at the temple,

we went to "Beef and Buns" with the Chalmers (on the left) and the Hursts (on the right).

Both couples are leaving for home this month.

This is what we saw as we got off the bus, coming home, and walked to the temple gate.
If you look closely, you can read the words on the sign.

We were waiting for the bus one day this week,

and noticed these poor jacaranda trees which have been trimmed to avoid the power lines.

They've been desecrated, actually.

Don't you feel sorry for them, chopped to pieces like that, and leaning to one side?

But the surprising thing to me, was the way the new growth is growing straight up 

from those horizontal branches.  Can you see what I mean?

I can't help but wonder if eventually the new growth will be so heavy

the whole tree will fall into the street.

That same day we went and got haircuts.

This flower was growing in a neglected planter in front of the shop.

I don't know what it is, but I think it's beautiful.

And right next door in front of the little pharmacy

was this gorgeous lily of some kind (at least I think that's what it is).

The flowers are so huge I was sure it was a fake,

but it's not!

Here's a closeup.

Isn't it gorgeous?

Lastly - and sadly - the Hursts left for home (Bonners Ferry, Idaho)

yesterday afternoon.  They have been a real blessing to all of us and we will MISS them!

(President and Sister Jensen on the right; the Hursts on the left.)

Okay, that's all for today.  Have a happy, healthy, safe week . . . y vayan con Dios!