Strange Land....learning NOT to be a stranger

Buna zuia de la Chisinau!!!!

Man this week has just opened up my eyes to a whole new way of thinking... Did you know you can buy milk in a bag, or pay a dude 30 cents and you can go literally anywhere in the city along with the other thirty people crammed in to a little bus, or the fact that Russians and most Moldovan celebrate Christmas on the "new day" (7 Jan) instead of the "old day" (25 Dec)? I think it is safe to say that I feel like I am in a whole 'nother world over here in the Republic of Moldova. Have you ever looked at a map of this place!? We are literally bordering Ukraine! 

Elder Quist and I!

I live in the capital city - Chisinau

I'll just start back in Bucharest when everything was normal. We met up with Elder Baker and the three of us got on to a train that would take us from Bucharest to Chisinau in 15 hours... we left at 7:15pm and arrived around 9:30am the next day. I don't know what you imagine when you think of a train, but it probably was not the kind of train that I was on. This bad boy is straight from the communist regime, where everything is written in Russian, and you can bet 1,000,000 Moldavian lei that somebody has probably peed in the little cot that I was sleeping in. We had a TON of luggage, and thankfully it all fit our little room with three other sweet communist bunks. We made ourselves at home, which gave us the weird feeling that "home" was in 1960 when these trains were probably pretty cool.

Chillin' in our bunk

Elder Baker... my cherished friend

Elder Baker and I played a little guitar, we chatted for a little, and then we were off to sleep. Come 2am, we were woken up by the train lady saying that we were on the border of the two countries. 4 hours later we had made it through customs, and they had lifted up every single car and switched the European train wheel thingys to the Russians ones. It was pretty neat to see how they did it, but man, I would never want to be the worker do that at 4 am in the morning in December...

We finally made it to Chisinau feeling 50% rested, but excited to see our new home. We parted ways with Elder Baker, and some of the Russian missionaries helped us get our bags and everything to our apartment. It is a huge one, kinda old, but I absolutely love it now that we put up a Christmas tree and lights :) 

Some fellows walking home on a snowy day.

Elder Quist and I got right to work by looking at the Area Book, setting up some companionship goals and what not, and then got out and contacted because, well, we knew no one! I felt pretty overwhelmed because I am a man of order, and I felt like so many things were out of my control at that point. Everything was foreign, and even the Moldovans who speak Romanian don't even claim that it's Romanian- its Moldovaneste! Just think speaking English with a Russian accent and that is it. I thought it was the ugliest thing! The first guy I met was speaking to me in this weird language and I was just in shock that nobody had a pure, beautiful Romanian accent. Thankfully, this nice fellow guided us to a currency exchange place where I got rid of all my Romanian lei and switched it to the Moldovan stuff, which is worth even less (17 Moldovan lei to a dollar) This brings up the next concern... Elder Quist and I had no clue how much to spend on groceries! Everyone says you can just eat out everyday here... but it is hard to just drop 40-60 lei every time you want to eat something!

Stefan Cel Mare... the center of Chisinau

Centru lit up

Chisinau itself is a fairly beautiful city. It is the capital of Moldova, and is built on 7 hills... I like to dream that they are mountains! Just yesterday as we were walking home through the dirty streets, it dawned on me as to how foreign this land really is. I honestly could have never dreamed about something like this. Moldova is not part of the European Union, and that means that there is even more corruption and illegal things going on... like riding those maxi taxis around the city holding on to dear life, even if it means jamming your rear end in between the dash board and windshield... true story. In America, we have it pretty dang good- don't forget that! Amidst all of these little quirks, the people of Moldova are truly special, and I had many experiences this week that helped my heart grow a little bigger to make room for these humble people.

This is what Moldova really looks like...

Being that we started with 1 investigator from a previous companionship, Elder Quist and I had a lot of time to go out and find somebody to teach. The first night it was so dang cold, but I felt like we needed to go out and contact, to show the Lord we are ready. Almost no one was willing to stop and talk with us. We went out the next day and had a much different experience. I felt a strong urgency to just talk with everyone, and to testify to everyone that I could. We taught many people about the Book of Mormon that day, and found a family that wanted to learn more. We are going back tonight! 

Having a great conversation with Nicoleta

The next day we did the same, and talked with a nice 24 year old guy by the name of Nicolai. He accepted a Book of Mormon, and then we met up with him the next day. We have met up with him every day since, and have taught him the doctrine of the kingdom. Nicolai has had a very rough life, and has had to work to provide for himself his whole life. He now works 7 days a week from 8 to 5 and then travels outside of the city where he is staying. He used to drink and smoke, but felt like he needed to change, as well as change his friends. So there he was, walking down the main street, and we felt prompted to stop him. Nicolai is full of humility and has a strong desire to repent and come closer to God. He asked us when he could be baptized. We set a date for the 30th of December, but a lot is going to have to get straightened out in his life. His first step is asking his boss if he can get 2 hours off on sunday to come to church. We are praying for him, that God will make it possible for him to be baptized soon! 

Nicloai

Even after 3 days of meeting with this awesome guy, I have seen a significant difference in his countenance. The gospel truly is giving him hope, Jesus Christ is truly healing and bringing him peace. I felt a great love for Nicolai as we taught him the gospel of Jesus Christ, and know that God has a great plan for him. I am humbled to think that even after  week of being here, the Lord is using us as his hands to bring people into the fold. I feel true joy being one of his missionaries here in this rad country. 

Elder Coberly learning about this nice lady's children

Sweet little lady... she has a rough life.

Look at that rug!!!

My love for this country also grew as we went to an old folks home and sang for them and chatted with each one of them as we delivered little goodie bags to each one. there are like 20 missionaries and 3 senior couples in this city so this makes service projects fun! I really loved sitting and talking with some of the old ladies, letting them give me big juicy kisses on the cheek, laughing with many, and comforting some that just have had plain hard lives. The spirit of Christmas was just bursting as we brought tidings of great joy to all! 

Walking home on a snowy day.

The boys

I am reminded that it truly doesn't matter where you are, there are always people that need the gospel, whether that means actually learning the the doctrines, or just receiving an act of kindness- it is because of our Savior! We all have a great duty and privilage to light the world this Christmas season. Man, being a missionary during this time really is the best... and to think I get 2 more weeks after the 25th since they celebrate on the 7th!!!

Many more great stories to come, I wish you all a great week and a Craciun Fericit! Can't believe we get to facetime soon!!!!

Love,

Elder Ditto