The Missionary Training Center (CCM In Spanish)

~ Highlight of the Past Ten Days: Getting my first letter (Annie you´re fantastic) ~

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I will begin by saying I get so much more sleep here than I have in the past 8 years of my life. Going to bed at 10:30 and getting up at 6:30 is glorious. And you´re not missing out on anything because everybody has the same schedule. And never before have I looked forward to studying so much. Guess that´s just one of the many miracles/blessings of serving a mission!

 

In General:

Mexico City looks like some one took a box of crayons and colored in all the buildings in East Jerusalem. Honestly. And they drive about the same speed and distance from other

moving objects too :)

 

Driving from the airport to the MTC (or the CCM, as they call it here) all the 18 year old Elders and 19 year old Hermanas (´Sisters´ in Español) had their faces glued to the windows, freaking out about no marked lanes and houses built on top of other houses, and everything being in Español, and guys in the middle of the street selling who knows what. . . and I´m in my seat like, ´Did you see the flowers on that vine back there?!´ I suppose traveling does things to you :)

 

 

 

I know talking about the weather is super cliché and all, but it´s one of my favorite topics, so expect to be updated regularly :) The weather in Mexico City is beautiful. I was so worried it was going to be miserably hot and humid and nasty, but it´s cool and sunny, and it rains about once a day for just a few minutes. I get to wear my cardigans (yes!) and I´ve even busted out my super cool rain jacket, the necessity for which makes me so happy. Hermana Gleed (my wonderful companion) and I even ran through a thunderstorm the other day - best gym time ever!

 

 

 

 

Ah! This is super important. They have the same grass here as they do at the Jerusalem Center. I´m still freaking out over it. Ask Hermana Gleed how many times a day I mention it, multiply that by two and that´s how often I think about it. And the next time Google is available to me

 I will figure out how to ID it.

 

The Cafeteria food is. . . something to look forward to , simply because you never know what to expect. It could be very American, or very Mexican, or Mexicanized American, or vise versa. . . I cried with joy the first time they had veggies. Broccoli has never been so beautiful.

 

So to help us learn Español we spend about an hour every day using a program called TALL (Technology Assisted Language Learning). The desktop backgrounds of the computers in the TALL lab are set to change every 20 minutes or so, and they´re usually photos of nature and mountains and such. But a few of the computers have a Seattle theme, and so if I´m lucky I get to look at moss and rhododendrons and the Space Needle and the EMP building while I learn Español - it´s a tender mercy of the Lord, really. (though I´m sure my companion is quite sick of me exclaiming, ´I´ve been here Hermana! This is the [insert Washington State location here]!´) Also our favorite part of TALL is switching the weather gadget to our mission - we´ve been keeping and eye on the weather in Paraguay, and according to the gadget it goes from 98 to 58 on a semi-regular basis.

 Don´t know how to take that.

 

As for the earthquake, the CCM has an alarm system hooked up to the city´s main sensor system, and if anything so much as moves a hair we get to drop what we´re doing and make our way outside to stand in these big ol´ green circles on the ground. (not that the green circles keep us safe. . . they just keep us all in the same place so they can find us) We´ve done this twice now, and I didn´t feel anything either time. (I think one might have been a drill. I don´t know.)

 

The mosquitos here have meat on their bones they´re so big, but I haven´t been bitten yet. Whenever we´re teaching our investigator (which is an interesting experience, since neither Hermana Gleed and I can speak enough Español to say anything we haven´t studied) we have to fend them off. I accidentally squished one yesterday with my Spanish Phrase Book. I´ll have to avoid that page now. . .

Also, I want to watch the Truman Show when I get back. Not because it´s amazing, but because I´ve never seen it and I´ve always wanted to and gosh darn it I´m going to see it eventually!

 

(Note from Mom:  There was a 6.2 earthquake ~200 miles south of Mexico City August 21st.  The news reported that Mexico City felt it (because it is built on a dry lakebed), some buildings were cracked, schools sent children home for fear of aftershocks, and somewhere an arch crumbled.)