P-day is the best way to start the month

February 1, 2010

Dear Family,

I usually check my email around 10.30 here. Which is 5.30 in missouri and texas, 4.30 in utah and idaho, and 3.30 in california and washington. So yea. Also, I did send a letter last week in the mail but I don´t know how long that will take to get home. I sent it last wednesday, so just judge from then. After a few letters we can get a rough average estimate of how reliable, or unreliable, the post really is.

I´ve been making a list of interesting things to tell you so you actually read these. so here I go.

First off, the buses here are totally crazy. You know the bus in Harry Potter? it´s either 3 or 4 I can´t remember, but yea same exact thing. Minus the shrinking and growing. But these things careen around cars, people, and corners. It´s kind of ridiculous. I´ve only ridden in 1 bus and 1 hiace. that´s pronounced ´yawss´ A hiace is a 15 passenger van. That thing was jam packed with 20+ people in it. talk about a crazy ride.

The toilets here are kind of odd. They don´t have a handle, they have a button on the top that you push. but other than that it´s actually pretty similar. I just thought the buttons were cool.

We are supposed to shower every day. I do, but sometimes I wonder how effective my shower is when the water is roughly the color of urine. That´s what soap is for right?

The doors here are all metal and they don´t have knobs. Some of them have handles, but they don´t turn to open the door, they are just to assist you when you use your key. That´s the only way to open doors here is if someone inside opens it for you or if you have a key. Also, a lot of the windows have bars over them. Yea...

Sometimes I´ll see Michael Jackson and Barack Obama shirts and I laugh.

The contrast between technology and poverty here is odd. You´ll walk into a house that´s falling apart, the only furniture is a few plastic chairs and a foam pad as a bed, and you´ll have a tv and dvd player in the corner. There is one less active member who is really into computers and computer games. It´s kind of funny. He´s just got a small apartment with his bed, a small closet for clothes, a couch and his computer desk. And it´s a nice computer, much nicer than Grant´s is, even after his recent upgrades. How about them apples?

Speaking of televisions, everyone here has one. And they are always on. And either there are only 4 channels or there are only 4 good channels because everyone here watches the same thing. Yesterday I kid you not every house we passed was watching the same thing on tv. It was something with, oh, that guy from grease. I can´t seem to remember anything from before. Also, there´s almost always a soccer game playing. Every day there´s a game. it´s ridiculous. I´ve watched more soccer here just from what´s on before we start our lessons than I watched any sport in the whole year before the mission. well, that might be an exaggeration, but there is a lot.

The food here isn´t bad, but I´m in the biggest city in cape verde. I´m sure this is as good as it´s going to get. The bread here is amazing though. It´s all fresh baked and I could just eat it forever. In fact, I think I just might.

Also, the taste of anything from america is like mana from heaven. If you ever get the chance to send a package, send anything. I don´t even care. If it´s american, it´s good.

Well that´s about it for now. I´ll try to send some pictures this week.

Elder Canute Peterson