Lon is at Stake Priesthood Meeting so I thought I would write while he is gone. Our preparation day (P-Day) is on Monday and all the museums and National Parks are closed on Mondays. So we decided to try and get in as many as we could this week before the Temple opens again and we don't have a chance until September when we close again.
We spent Tuesday getting the laundry done and groceries bought since the President was home and we could take the car. The missionaries and President and Sis Petersen came home exausted but thrilled with their week.
On Wednesday, the Carlos Ortiz family invited us to go with them to "Amapulapa" in San Vicente. We had never been there so we were excited to see more of this beautiful land. We stopped in San Vicente at the home/photo shop of a temple worker, Brother Valdez Cruz for a pottie break. He sent his grand daughter out for cold drinks for us. We found out that he was the first member in San Vicente, moving here from Honduras. The first church meetings were held in the very house we were in. When Bro. Ortiz was to be baptized, his father died three months earlier and Bro Valdez Cruz baptized him in the very springs that we were headed to, Amapulapa. You can look on the internet for all the places that we visited this week if you want to see more photo's of them. Amapulapa is a big water park but we only got into the first pond that is fed directly from the springs and sat under the waterfall and swam with the little fish that liked to bite at your feet if you didn't keep them moving. Bro Ortiz, his wife, and two daughters, 8 and 10 were excellent guides and we learned a lot about this part of El Salvador. Bro Ortiz was raised here and Sis Ortiz served her mission here. Pictures # 1 and 2.
On Thursday we walked to the Anthropology Museum, photo #3, that is about 15 minutes from here. It is a very nice museum. In the religion section, showing all the religions from the Mayan to present, they have a big picture of the Temple and the church pamphlets that the missionaries use. Of course the Mayan was the first religion for centuries, then the Spanish conquered this land and forced them all to be baptized into the Catholic religion. In the mid 1900's the government let other religions into the country. We learned a lot here.
We had to hustle home so the Figueroa's could pick Lon and I up and take us downtown to their favorite restaurant for "dulces" in Santa Anita. It was one of those street cafe's that we have been warned NOT to eat at. But we had to try the dulce's The first Torreja,, was made with bread, soaked in egg yolks, and fried. Sounds like french toast huh? But then it is soaked in the sweetest syrup I have ever tasted and when they serve it to you, they pour even more of the syrup over the top. It is in every home during Holy Week (Easter). You only need about 2 bites and you have a sugar high! The next was made from Yuca,Nuegados. I can't believe what all they use yuca for. They deep fat fry pieces of yuca then soak them in a different tasting syrup. They weren't quite as sweet but still you only need a little bit to get all the sugar you can handle. Lon and I shared a piece of each while the others each had a plate for themselves. They then ordered what I think of as their version of nachos. Fried yuca on the bottom, radishes and cucumbers next with cubed pork in a gravy poured over the top. We didn't try that. We used the excuse that we had a dinner engagement at 6:00, which we did have. It really didn't look good and we were afraid of the flies and germs from the kitchen. Picture #4.
On Wednesday, the Carlos Ortiz family invited us to go with them to "Amapulapa" in San Vicente. We had never been there so we were excited to see more of this beautiful land. We stopped in San Vicente at the home/photo shop of a temple worker, Brother Valdez Cruz for a pottie break. He sent his grand daughter out for cold drinks for us. We found out that he was the first member in San Vicente, moving here from Honduras. The first church meetings were held in the very house we were in. When Bro. Ortiz was to be baptized, his father died three months earlier and Bro Valdez Cruz baptized him in the very springs that we were headed to, Amapulapa. You can look on the internet for all the places that we visited this week if you want to see more photo's of them. Amapulapa is a big water park but we only got into the first pond that is fed directly from the springs and sat under the waterfall and swam with the little fish that liked to bite at your feet if you didn't keep them moving. Bro Ortiz, his wife, and two daughters, 8 and 10 were excellent guides and we learned a lot about this part of El Salvador. Bro Ortiz was raised here and Sis Ortiz served her mission here. Pictures # 1 and 2.
On Thursday we walked to the Anthropology Museum, photo #3, that is about 15 minutes from here. It is a very nice museum. In the religion section, showing all the religions from the Mayan to present, they have a big picture of the Temple and the church pamphlets that the missionaries use. Of course the Mayan was the first religion for centuries, then the Spanish conquered this land and forced them all to be baptized into the Catholic religion. In the mid 1900's the government let other religions into the country. We learned a lot here.
We had to hustle home so the Figueroa's could pick Lon and I up and take us downtown to their favorite restaurant for "dulces" in Santa Anita. It was one of those street cafe's that we have been warned NOT to eat at. But we had to try the dulce's The first Torreja,, was made with bread, soaked in egg yolks, and fried. Sounds like french toast huh? But then it is soaked in the sweetest syrup I have ever tasted and when they serve it to you, they pour even more of the syrup over the top. It is in every home during Holy Week (Easter). You only need about 2 bites and you have a sugar high! The next was made from Yuca,Nuegados. I can't believe what all they use yuca for. They deep fat fry pieces of yuca then soak them in a different tasting syrup. They weren't quite as sweet but still you only need a little bit to get all the sugar you can handle. Lon and I shared a piece of each while the others each had a plate for themselves. They then ordered what I think of as their version of nachos. Fried yuca on the bottom, radishes and cucumbers next with cubed pork in a gravy poured over the top. We didn't try that. We used the excuse that we had a dinner engagement at 6:00, which we did have. It really didn't look good and we were afraid of the flies and germs from the kitchen. Picture #4.
Afterward, we were driven through the downtown of San Salvador. It was just like trying to herd cattle. Between the people and the shops in the street, there is not much room for a car. But the wheel barrels full of fruits and vegetables were amazing. There are so many that I can't name. I've never seen them before. We got home about 5:30 and headed for dinner with all the missionaries at 6:00 to the home of the Wegkamps. He works here with the Embassy. It was a full day and we didn't get home til after 10:00.
Friday the 16th we headed to the 3 museums and 3 ruins that are open to the public. El Salvador has a lot of Mayan ruins but no money to excavate them. We went back to the Ruins of Tazumal where we had gone last week but it was fun cause this time we had a guide that was a Mayan. Picture #5. The Petersen's didn't go with us. Sister Petersen twisted her knee while in Utah and is using a walker to get around.Then we went to the Ruins of San Andreas. We met a Mayan who was making jewelry Picture #6 and had a great visit with him. He allowed us to take his picture but would not look at the camera because he didn't want his spirit to leave him and go into the camera. Both of these Mayan men were familiar with the Book of Mormon and it was fun to learn about their religion and compare it to ours. Notice his ear ring, two sticks going through his ear lobe. Our last ruin and museum were our favorite because they are so different than the others. After visiting Tikal and the other ruins on our tour in June, we have seen how the rich and rulers lived. The Ruins of Joya de Ceren is a small Mayan village that was buried in Volcanic Ash around 640 BC. The people seem to have gotten out but the ash fell so fast that everything else was found just as it was left. The layers of ash and lava rock are 4 to 8 yards deep. The museums at each of the ruins were amazing and really told the story well. The things found at Joya were so preserved it was fun to see how these people lived their everyday lives.
It has been a great week of exploring and learning more about the land and people of El Salvador. We are excited to get back to the temple though. Monday we get to go to the temple and help make sure all is ready for Tuesday morning. We are on the AM shift for the first week and then will be on the PM for two weeks. We are trying a new schedule, trying to fill in the gaps where there are less workers. Won't break my heart to only have to do one AM shift at a time. I probably won't write for two weeks as we don't do anything exciting that we can talk much about outside the temple now. We will settle into our routine and look forward to Saturday when the buses will again fill our parking lot. We send our love to you all. Thank you for your prayers in our behalf and you are in our prayers daily. Love Dad and Mom, Grandpa and Grandma, Lon and Nancy
Friday the 16th we headed to the 3 museums and 3 ruins that are open to the public. El Salvador has a lot of Mayan ruins but no money to excavate them. We went back to the Ruins of Tazumal where we had gone last week but it was fun cause this time we had a guide that was a Mayan. Picture #5. The Petersen's didn't go with us. Sister Petersen twisted her knee while in Utah and is using a walker to get around.Then we went to the Ruins of San Andreas. We met a Mayan who was making jewelry Picture #6 and had a great visit with him. He allowed us to take his picture but would not look at the camera because he didn't want his spirit to leave him and go into the camera. Both of these Mayan men were familiar with the Book of Mormon and it was fun to learn about their religion and compare it to ours. Notice his ear ring, two sticks going through his ear lobe. Our last ruin and museum were our favorite because they are so different than the others. After visiting Tikal and the other ruins on our tour in June, we have seen how the rich and rulers lived. The Ruins of Joya de Ceren is a small Mayan village that was buried in Volcanic Ash around 640 BC. The people seem to have gotten out but the ash fell so fast that everything else was found just as it was left. The layers of ash and lava rock are 4 to 8 yards deep. The museums at each of the ruins were amazing and really told the story well. The things found at Joya were so preserved it was fun to see how these people lived their everyday lives.
It has been a great week of exploring and learning more about the land and people of El Salvador. We are excited to get back to the temple though. Monday we get to go to the temple and help make sure all is ready for Tuesday morning. We are on the AM shift for the first week and then will be on the PM for two weeks. We are trying a new schedule, trying to fill in the gaps where there are less workers. Won't break my heart to only have to do one AM shift at a time. I probably won't write for two weeks as we don't do anything exciting that we can talk much about outside the temple now. We will settle into our routine and look forward to Saturday when the buses will again fill our parking lot. We send our love to you all. Thank you for your prayers in our behalf and you are in our prayers daily. Love Dad and Mom, Grandpa and Grandma, Lon and Nancy
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