On the Road Again

We're in Victoria to start interviews with the missionaries.  We arrived Saturday and then attended two different Sacrament meetings on Sunday to spend time with the members.  Dad had a meeting with the zone leaders and the Stake President, as well.  Then on Monday the interviews began.
This is Elder De La Cruz and his new companion Elder Mendoza.  They were very excited for some drawers to put their clothes in and a new frying pan. 

Later that day we got on the road to Mante.  We always try to arrive before dark because of safety issues but sometimes it just can't happen.  This is a beautiful sunset as we turned off the main road to Xicotencatl. 

We stayed at the Mante Hotel which is an interesting place.  The windows are just a little short but we don't have to live there just stay there from time to time.  We are so grateful for the home they have given us to live in.

On Tuesday after we finished the interviews in Mante we got back on the road to Valles.  This time we decided to try a different hotel there.  It's the Hotel Valles.  It's about 70 years old and has very beautiful architecture for a Mexican hotel.





Further back in the grounds we found a little pool with a crocodile in it and many turtles.  They said they keep the crocodile fed and he rarely eats the turtles.  "Rarely" is the important word.

When we got to the Bosque zone and I was teaching them about leading music, housing (keeping their houses clean), nutrition ( they brought a menu of what they usually eat each week), and the English progress of the Latino missionaries, I noticed that we had a very unusual phenomenum in the room. 

L to R: Elder Davison (U.S.), Elder Gonzalez (Uruguay), Elder Alvarez (Mexico), Elder Gulbranson (Canada), Elder Soelberg (U.S.), and Elder Barboza (Peru).

Five different countries were represented in this little group.  We enjoy listening to the differences in language, food and culture among the Latinos from many countries.  Why do we always think they all eat tortillas and beans?