Lisbon Portugal, Lapa Week 1

Querida Familia e Amigos!                                              October 6, 2014

WOW. I don´t even know where to start! My area is LAPA. it is in historic downtown lisbon! These keyboards are a little different so I will try my best to write with proper grammar. Haha.

So we left the mtc and flew to Texas first. Then an overnight flight to London.Then to LISBON. On the fight I could see the entire coastline of Portugal as we flew to Lisbon. It was amazing! We were all so tired and all had major jet-lag. We arrived at the airport and Sister Fluckiger and President Fluckiger were there to meet us. We had a really big group. We all rode on a bus to the mission home and then we ate dinner there. The famous lasagna was so good! Then we had like a testimony meeting afterwards. I was so, so tired. The most tired I have ever been my entire life! It was rough. Then we slept in the mission home. The Elders stayed in a hotel. In the morning we had breakfast and quick interviews with the President. The view from the upstairs room was gorgeous! We could see the red bridge and big Christ statue. In my interview President Fluckiger told me I would be right in Downtown Lisbon and that my companion is A NATIVE. Sister Cardoso has lived in Portugal her whole life! I was scared when he told me that. But she speaks a lot of English so it´s all good. I help her with English and she helps me A LOT with Portuguese.

After that we went straight to the church in the Benfica area. There I met my companion, Sister Cardoso. We were all so tired. I was trying hard to not fall asleep. I was still jet-lagged! I think I am barely getting over that. We were waiting all day to leave to our areas because there were so many new missionaries. So we sat around the church all day long. And then we finally drove to LAPA. We had to haul my luggage around this big mall called Colombo to get me a travel pass. We had to take pictures for my passport and it was so hard hauling my luggage up and down the stairs! We had really good ice cream. I will send a picture. The gelado is so good here! Everything tastes better here. Bread, milk, cheese, fruit... everything!

Anyways, they didn´t have my bus pass ready until today so we had to walk the past few days. But now I have a pass! We walked around EVERYWHERE. And I loved it. I love walking! Because then we can take in the environment and enjoy everything. Friday I had my first lesson with H----, A---, and B---. A--- and B--- are members. H--- is A---´s son and Sister Cardoso told me that when they try to teach him he just says no and runs away. But he let us teach him Friday! I testified a lot and the spirit was really strong. H--- agreed to be baptized in a few weeks! We just went out of the lesson smiling and we were so excited. Sister Cardoso said that they thought he would never accept but that my spirit and testimony really helped. That was my first lesson! The other two that day didn´t go as well. We met with K----, L--- and L---. K--- is like 8 and L--- is 15. They are both baptized. But their mom, L---, is not. She doesn't want to change her lifestyle. We were trying to teach her but ended up just teaching her children. She was just running around the house cleaning and showering and stuff and wouldn't sit for a lesson. Then we taught T--- and her sister. T--- says she knows she needs to be baptized but also does not want to change.

The rest of the weekend we were just trying to get to the Church in the Benfica area for Conference and we watched Conference. We ate at the Mission President´s home for Sunday dinner. It was really, really good. Yum! And we watched the last session at their house. President Fluckiger drove all four of us in the Lapa area home really late last night in his little car. There are four missionaries in Lapa. Me and Sister Cardoso and Elder Cluff and Elder Fox. Elder Fox is new like me. He was in a different zone in the mtc though so I don´t really know him. We are with them all the time! Our area is so beautiful. It is the historic part of Lisbon! Right in the center. If you search Lisbon in google... that´s where I am at! All of the hilly streets with yellow trolley cars... Yeah! It is amazing. I can´t believe I am here! Last night when President Fluckiger was driving us home we turned the corner and there was this huge Cathedral and it was all lit up! It was gorgeous and I just said WOW! Sister Cardoso says it´s called the Estrela Igreja.

I love being here. It is all so perfect! I can barely understand a thing anyone says. Especially because it´s always so loud here and people talk really fast! But I am catching on... slowly. It is really helpful to have a native speaker as a companion! Sister Cardoso is great. We get along really well! She likes to eat healthy with lots of fruit. And she always makes sure that we wake up in time to exercise in the morning.The first morning I was getting ready and I heard a bell from some Catholic church somewhere and I was just in awe! I am living in Europe. And sharing the light of the Gospel to those in need! It is so incredible. I am so glad that I have this opportunity. I can´t wait to teach more lessons tonight. Hopefully I will be able to understand the people better! Love you all.

Love,
Sister Anderson

This is the area we are in right now. Very touristy! It's a huge shopping street like the one in Paris and its in OUR area!! Lapa!! But its kind of far from our apartment. Our apartment is in a little residential area more like the one that we stayed at in our Paris apartment.

Coastline view that I had all the way down to Lisbon!!!

We ate fish and cod in London airport.

Ice cream in the coolest mall I've ever been too. Colomba.. look it up!! The gelada was so good. But we had some REAL Italian gelato the day after at a place really close to our apartment. It was even better!

 

We took my luggage all the way down this HUGE road and then up the hill to our apartment the first night. It was soooooo heavy. Elder Cluff took my big mama bag as I like to call her. Poor guy.

We took this like 30 minutes before I sent it to you -haha.

My companion sister Cardoso.

Lisbon is a dirtier and more colorful version of Paris.

This is right outside the door here. HAHAHA I can't believe it - so beautiful.

 All of the people are really nice here and everyone knows a little bit of english.

All the museums are closed on Mondays, so I'm a little sad about that. Sister Cardoso told me that our mission president doesn't want us to go in the cathedrals either. :(

A little park int he middle of Lisbon.

The street right below our apartment that we walk past every day!!!! So beautiful.

One of my favorite buildings. Yellow with red flowers!!! It's close to our apartment.

 It is so beautiful. It looks like New Orleans square with trolleys and hills.

The hilly streets we walk up and down every day!!!!!!! We rode a yellow trolley today too. I have a bus pass so we can ride them all the time now!! We got my pass today.

The cobblestones that have become my best friends.

Our apartment.

View from our apartment balcony. 

Our kitchen. This was before I deep cleaned it today. hahaha It was so dusty and gross. Supposedly sister missionaries don't care about dust.

Our tiny balcony.

Tiles in our apartment!!!!! They are everywhere here so beautiful. I will send you some decoration for our house like that eventually!!

View from our apartment!!

More of our apartment. It reminds me a lot of our Paris apartment. I am planning on cleaning all the dusty gross corners and stuff. It's so cute with yellow tiles everywhere!!!!

I love you all. Have a nice week!!! I am LOVING it here. I am scared to teach the lessons tonight.. Hopefully they will go well. My comp is going to make me start the lessons and invite them for baptism. That's so scary because I can't understand them. I love you all!!

P.S. Our mail thing is like broken so just mail it to the mission office. I won't get mail very often though. kinda sucks. Maybe we can fix our letter thing?