Rancagua After One Month

Elder Oakes´s birthday party at the mission home, with Elder Casper, Pablo Resek (President Resek´s 12-year old son), and Hermana Mason. Elders Casper and Oakes are the Assistants to the President.
Our apartment is directly across the hall from the elders, we have become like "family" and often host late night treats in our apartment. A favorite is nachos with guacamole.
Another birthday party - this time for Elder Casper (far left). He is the grandson of the famous golfer Billy Casper. We were at the only Mexican restaurant and cantina in Rancagua. The food was good but not quite like in Mexico.

We live 2 blocks from the main city plaza (Plaza de Los Heros). Here is the large statue commemorating an important revolutionary battle in the 1800s. The beautiful Catholic Cathedral is in the background. Hermana Mason is bundled up because July is mid-winter in this part of the world.

During our first month here in "La Mision Chile Rancagua" we have experienced four zone conferences ALL in SPANISH, several teaching appointments (some with the elders and two on our own with a recent 75-year old convert named Maria), a trip to the church headquarters in Santiago (Elder Mason got to go while Hermana Mason was hard at work in her little cubicle in the oficina), and we have met many amazing young Elders and Sisters. We are so impressed with their proficiency with the Spanish language - we have many miles to go before we can communicate in Spanish. We seem to have established a weekly routine - Monday to Friday we are up by 7:30 am, at the office by 10:00 am, go to lunch from 2:00 to 3:00 pm, work until about 8:00 pm and go to bed by 11:00 pm. Our P-day (day off) is Saturday. Sunday church is from 10:00 am until 1:00 pm. Some evenings we go with the elders on teaching appointments. On the personal side we have survived a few days with no water (much less hot water), frequent power outages (which is still a problem), a bad cold (Elder Mason) and our first Chilean haircuts. After one month our apartment has become home. We now have reliable hot water, a washer and small dryer, adaquate furniture, a comfortable bed and several electric heaters that are working hard to keep us warm. We are happy and feel blessed to be here.