Monday, November 19, 2012

Happy Thanksgiving

There was a big car race in Macau this weekend.  This is a square named Top Sehk (we go finding here a lot) the big TV screen showed the race.  I thought it was funny how many men were just standing there watching. It happens a lot here, I think the funniest is in malls outside the
electronics store!! There are often 5-10 people just standing and watching!
 View of fisherman's warf from the ferry
I think these plants looked cool. It is Tai, which I think is one of the prettiest languages
 These are pictures from last p-day we walked along a beach in Tai Pa and then hiked a mountain up to a statue of a Goddes named A-ma and then walked around an AMAZING Chinese Temple. By far the funnest I've seen yet! (includding Big Buddah!)





 


Hello Mom, Dad, Kelli, Nathanael and Savanna!!
Happy Thanksgiving!  I can't believe it's that time already!!!  A little over a month until Christmas!!!  Crazy!!!  I'm glad you have a fun plan for Thanksgiving!!  And you get to go hiking with the Sisters! I bet they will love that!  Is Thanksgiving their P-day?  Do you know?  I feel like proselyting might not be that effective for them.  Kind of like Chinese New Year here.  
It's amazing to hear how the missionary work is going in Ottawa!  I can't believe how many miracles are happening!  I'm so glad that Heavenly Father is blessing Ottawa so much and that the Sisters and the ward are doing such a great job to find and teach these prepared people!!! It's soooooo exciting!!  

What is the weather like in Ottawa?  Has it snowed yet?  Guess what?!!  I got to wear a scarf and a blazer on Saturday!!!!  But I was a bit toasty towards the end of finding.  hahaha we bundled up because it finally looked cold and rainy outside and then we realized it wasn't that bad!

Questions -
1 - How long is your visa for Macau?  
When I first came in, they gave me a 30-day visa, and they kept that visa when I re-entered Macau after Zone conference.  The visas are 30-day, 20-day and 10-day and as far as we know, it's up to the discretion of the guy at the immigration desk as to how long our visa is.  Obviously we want as many days as possible, so we just stand there, smile as big as we can and pray that they will give us a 30-day stamp.  President Hawks is trying different things to get more days.  For example when I came with the Zone Leaders, he had me go before Elder Denos who had been here awhile hoping that the guard would give us the same stamp because we were together.  (It didn't work.)  But somehow Sister Hintze has gotten 3 30-day stamps which never happens!!  Sister Clements got 30 days and then 20 days.  So, I'm in at least until December 7, and then probably into next transfer, because President Hawks said my companions will likely move and then I will help the next people get adjusted.

Serving in Macau is such a new experience!  It's so weird to teach in English.  I love it because I feel like I really can be myself and get to know the people I work with better, but I express myself differently in Chinese, so I miss that too.  The Filipinos are soooo loving.  A lot of them have really hard lives.  Most of them have families in the Philippines who they are working to support.  They have a fire for the gospel and for missionary work which is just amazing.  M's day off is Wednesday so she can't come to church, but we invited her to help us do missionary work on Wednesdays.  She said, "Yes, I'll be here.  Every Wednesday I'll be here!!! Except for 2 in December because I need to do. . .(I forgot what) but every other Wednesday I'm here at the church!!!. . . well I guess maybe I should text you first to make sure you'll be here, but then I'll come!!"  She was so cute!  We've met so many cool people finding too.  On Saturday, Sister Clements got to speak French 3 times!!!  We also end up speaking Chinese quite often too.  It really helps a lot to know Chinese even though we're serving in an English branch!  We also met a lady from New Jersey!  She said she sees the missionaries in her neighborhood all the time!

We are teaching an adorable girl who is 21, and reminds me a lot of another girl we taught in one of my previous areas.  She's practically a member (most members don't know she isn't)  but is just afraid of some of her extended families reaction to her getting baptized.  But she is soooo good!  We're meeting her tonight.  We're planning to go to dinner together at a food festival and then have a lesson afterward.  We hoping to help her set a goal to be baptized on December 23, pray that she agrees!!!  

Oh no!! My time is up!  I've got to go!! I love you all and hope you have a good week!  (I'll get 1 more set of pictures loading and send it right after I write my report!)  

I love you!!
Kasey

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