Week 5 in Ostrava

Hello Everyone!

Another week has passed here in Ostrava. Crazy! I just barely got here, and I'm already looking ahead at a few short weeks before the end of transfers. We taught a bunch of lessons this week, had some really interesting experiences with people who had "everything" but felt empty and came to us for answers, US getting contacted by people and getting chances to talk with them about what we're doing here, and even a run in with food poisoning. I guess I'll go in order.

So, with teaching lessons, it's been about the same as other weeks. That is to say, it's been fantastic! Ahh, I can't begin to describe how much I just love teaching. It's kind of fun in Czech, since I have to think really hard to simplify what I want to say into what I'm able to say with my grammar and vocabulary. That's kind of a blessing in disguise, really, especially if I can make that a habit in other parts of my life. It's been said that it is true intelligence for a man to take a subject that is very complicated and teach it so simply that a child could understand it (Parley P. Pratt). Isn't it great that I get the chance to practice that here without even trying to make that the case? Either way, people are very helpful in helping me practice my Czech over the phone, in lessons, on the street, or anytime I talk to them. Ah, it's great.

Someone who was looking for answers and contacted us was a man named Jirka. We had an appointment with a man on Saturday evening but, despite our attemts to contact him when he didn't show up, we had nothing. After about 15 minutes of waiting, we decided to go out and contact. As we were packing our things, however, we got a text from one of our investigators. This man has it all: a business, a fiance, a high rise apartment, a luxury car, and all the golf clubs and polo shirts to match. That night, however, he came to us looking for answers. He felt he was missing something in his life. We hopped on the next tram, met him in the park and, about an hour later, he had decided to come to church and we were headed to our next appointment, looking forward to his up and coming progress.

Then there are always the people who talk to us about what we're doing here. They're generally nice people. One man, a tourist from Britain, even knew how to get our attention. We were walking towards the Namesti (town square) when we heard someone yell "Elders!" in English and with an accent. We turned, and there he was. Although he wasn't going to be in town for long, it was really funny to me that, even in a place like Ostrava, people know who we are and like to wave, get our attention, or talk to us for a minute. He wasn't a member, but it made me realize how much people notice us out here. I only thought that kind of thing happened in utah, too. Guess I was wrong.

Finally, a bit about the food. I'll start with the food poisoning and bring in some stuff about the food we've got here. This weekend (after that appointment on Saturday) we were about 45 minutes from home. So, we dropped into a cheap place to grab a bite to eat. Elder Auger recommended the Chicken Gyros, a little pita sandwich stuffed with all kinds of meat and lettuce. Mine was great. His was too, however about 8 hour later and for the next day or so Elder Auger was out for the count. We added up how much he slept and it ended up being about 20 hours for the last day and a half, or so. I felt a little queasy, but it didn't turn into anything of consequence and we're both fine and running around again.

So, the food here is really great. They don't have a lot of fresh vegetables and fruit (at least, as far as I've been able to find). Most things go bad after three days, if that's any indicator of how "fresh" they are. The reason being is that people go grocery shopping daily, at most every other day. For weekly purchasing missionaries, that is a problem. Even so, we're always on the lookout for green stuff. In the meat department, pork is "what's for dinner" here, and it's always really good. Kind of like how beef is back home. We make stroganoff sometimes, and usually do sandwiches for lunches. One thing that's missing, though, is cheddar. They have it, but it's ridiculously expensive. I've gotten a good taste of eidam cheese being out here. It's not bad, but I was always a fan of really sharp cheddar back home. The bread here is great. They have every kind and size, shape, and color of bread. They make some with cheese and ham baked into it, some rolled together, and some from potatoes. It all tastes the same, but they all look really neat.

Main meals with members (which happen a lot) consist of soups, sauces, and some kind of meat or potatoe. Today, I'll talk about Halusky. Halusky is like mac and cheese in america. Swap the cheddar powder for Bryndza cheese, the macaroni for little potato dumplings made with a strainer in boiling water for 8 minutes, and add fried bacon, and you've got Halusky. It's really really good, and it feels like a brick when it settles in your stomach. Definitely something that sticks to your ribs after lunch. Next week I'll talk about Svickova, probably the most classic of Czech meals. Oh, before I forget, though, we were at the garden of a member last week (people have these random gardens outside of towns instead of backyards, since everyone lives in little apartments). After weeding for a little while, they bring out this fantastic soup and follow it up with ovocne Knedliky. Oh, they were so good. Potato dumplings about the size of a small tennis ball with whole strawberries inside them. Smother in yarroh cheese, powdered sugar, and melted butter. Eat hot. They are sooo good.

Hope you're all doing well back home. We've got some baptisms coming up next week, so I'll be sure to write about them when they happen. Overall, things are going great here. Hope you're all in good health, happy, and safe back home.

See you soon,
Brent