Awesome Companion, Stinky Apartment

Everything is just wonderful here in the mountains of Ecuador!  I think i like Manantial a bit more that I liked Guamani.  Guamani was a great place but i just think that there are a few more people here in Manantial.  Well there's actually probably alot more people here.  Manantial borders with Guamani too.  Which is kinda funny that i just moved one sector over. Manantial is just a bit further south than Guamani.  We have a bigger sector here too which means more places to contact and work and it has more houses.  There's more people walking in the streets too.  The view of the mountains and volcanoes is really nice too.  So i really like it here!  It's a nice sector.  The house is a bit different though.  Most of it is fine but the kitchen isnt as nice as my last one.  Its pretty small and there is hardly any cupboard or counter space.  There is hardly any utincils, no plates, and very few of everything else there is in a kitchen.  Except i just bought a new pan, 3 forks and 2 plates today.  The bathroom is small and the shower is terrible.  Its even worse when someone else in the apartment complex thing is using water.  The house and especially the kitchen smell horrible because the last elders that lived here didnt clean it at all when they left and have probably never cleaned it before.  So we have been working on that the past week.  The desks that are in this house are very old and very small.  The chairs are just metal and uncomfortable and the legs on my chair are uneven a bit.  The closets arent as good as my last house and there arent very many of them.  Other than those few things the house is good.  Its a pretty good size, the beds are alright and the view is wonderful when it's a clear day.  So that's pretty much all about the house and the sector.  

This past week we have been trying to find the members that live in our sector.  I dont know if i said this last week but me and elder Caceres are opening this sector because the last two elders that were here both left this last transfer.  So we dont really know anything here in our sector.  So we have met a few members but not a whole lot because it's hard to find out where they live.  Church was good this sunday.  The building we meet in isnt a chaple.  It's just kind of a section on a buisness complex thing on the side of a busy road.  Its really small and pretty loud inside because of all the traffic on the road.  I think there is normaly around 150 people that attend every week too.  And that's a pretty good amount for a ward in Ecuador.  So yes it's a ward.  And with that many people in the small room for sacrament meeting is a ton.  The members and bishop seem good too.  

Well i have learned a bit of spanish from my new companion.  And just a few tips on teaching the lessons and stuff that like that.  So far it's been really good.  He's a good companion.  He's pretty funny and knows alot of english.  Which has been nice for when we want to say something to each other and dont want other people to know what we are saying.  But in the streets and the house we mostly just speak spanish.  (to answer mom's question...) He doesnt cook anything interesting.  Just normal, borring, easy stuff.  Like all the missionaries.  

Well that sounds pretty super duper fun to go down to Boise again!  I pretty much just tell everyone here that i'm from idaho.  Sometimes i change it up and say utah though.  I would like to speak in the Meridian 5th ward when i get back.  Maybe i could speak in both wards like i did when i left.  But that's still a while away.  

So this last week we have been able to find a few pretty good families.  None of them were able to come to church on sunday but we still have faith that they will next week.  Me and Elder Caceres have been working hard to find new people this past week.  We started out with only one investigator lady named Ines.  She's actually really good.  She comes to church every week and really wants to get baptised.  She just has to get married first.  We havnt been to most of our sector yet becuase have just been focusing alot on the stuff around our house.  And we have found a good amount of people in this little section so i'm pretty excited to get to the rest of our sector.  I think there is alot of good people to find in the other parts of our sector.   

Here's my companion.  Sorry i kinda forgot to take more pictures this past week.  Ill do better this week.  

Well that's everything for now!

Elder Eastman