We have had a busy and enjoyable week. We spent the first part of the week in Frankfurt, Germany, on our visa trip and then the last part of the week in Kazan, a city four hours north of us, with President and Sister Sartori. So we are productively using our P-day to return to our schedule and responsibilities that await us for the upcoming week.
We were able to stay in a hotel just a couple of blocks away from the Frankfurt Temple which allowed us to attend two of the days we were there which was wonderful. One of the mornings we were able to do some initiatory work before our session started. I had an ordinance worker who spoke German and one who spoke French, and then I read the words in English. It really brings into perspective the reality of a worldwide church. I love it! We were stopped by an American family in the grocery store one day. They noticed our name tags and said hello. They live in Stuttgart where the dad is stationed with the military. The one son was in Frankfurt to receive his endowment before entering the MTC next month on his way to a mission in Korea. They have another son currently serving in the Pusan mission, and the dad served his mission in Seoul West in the early 80's. We think it is so great that these family members were able to serve in the same country. They'll have so many similar experiences and the language to share.
We were able to attend an activity one evening with all of the senior couples who are serving in the Area Office in Frankfurt. It was on Pioneer Day. They had salads and bread for dinner and then one of the couples who is serving there as Church Historian missionaries gave a presentation commemorating the pioneers. Sister Derr, the church historian, has put together a book with collections of writings from Eliza R. Snow. We were told she does a lot of programs on KBYU. Anyway, we sang a lot of Sister Snow's poems and writings that are put to familiar hymns and tell the story of the pioneer's journey. It was very well done, and we enjoyed being able to be with so many English-speaking adults and to have a little pioneer nostalgia that we wouldn't have had otherwise. One of the couples we met had been the Temple President in the Madrid Temple and was called before they left their assignment in Spain to serve as the executive secretary to the Area Presidency in the Western Europe Area there in Frankfurt. So they completed their temple assignment, went home for eight weeks, and left again for Frankfurt. I don't know how long of a calling this one is, but I really admire these faithful Saints who are asked to serve away from home for extended periods of time. I know they and their families are blessed, but it would still be hard.
With this being our second trip to Friedrichsdorf, we were more familiar with the area and able to maneuver through the little town quite well. We have our favorite bakery. I have to say it's a good thing we don't live there because I would become addicted to the pastries! We enjoyed a walk in the nearby forest during some of our free time. It is very green and has many pines and birch trees, similar to what we're used to seeing. It is quiet and beautiful, and we enjoy being out in the nature. We walked by many farms along the way that had beautiful flowers and gardens. We also were able to go to the open market one afternoon to see beautiful flowers, produce, breads, cheeses, sausages, etc. It appeared that many of the locals walked or rode their bikes to the market and filled their baskets with lots of fresh things. The hotel we stayed in was very comfortable. It is customary for breakfast to be included with your stay, and we enjoyed that! Yogurts, muesli, breads, cheeses, fruit, eggs, etc. I even had time and got the courage to get my haircut after eight months without cutting it. I was mostly glad to have it thinned but ended up with a funky layer in the back that is less-than desirable. Oh well, I have another eight months to let it grow before Sharla can fix me back up!:) It was amazing to me the few German words that came back to me from my three years of high school German. I guess sometimes our studying can come in handy after all:) Being in Germany and not speaking Russian for just those few days really threw me for a loop once we returned to Russia. My brain takes a while to re-program!
We got home late Thursday night and stayed up even later to get laundry done in order to be ready to leave the next morning for Kazan. Russia really is beautiful once you get away from the cities and see the many fields and forests. The sunflowers are all in bloom now, too, which is so beautiful! Sister Sartori said we live in the sunflower belt of the world. I believe it, because I have never seen so many sunflowers! They all face the sun! In fact, we learned that as young flowers they turn their faces to wherever the sun is, but once they are mature, they just stay facing the same direction. We also saw many large harvesting machines working the fields. I don't know if it was wheat or barley or something else.
We loved seeing Kazan. It is a city with a population of 1.4 million. One side of the river is the old city and the other side is the new, contemporary part of the city. There was construction everywhere because they are getting ready to host the University Olympiad event next summer. We took a tour in the Kazan Kremlin, meaning fortress. It is a huge area where all of the government officials' offices are, a large Provo Slavic church, a Muslim mosque, many towers, and museums. It is all surrounded by a big wall that served as protection during the war times. There were buildings on the property from the 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. It was very interesting. We learned a lot about the people who settled in that area known as Tatarstans. They originate from Bulgaria and Turkey and speak their own language. They are held under their own government and laws within their territory but are considered Russian citizens and are bound by Russian law when they are outside of their territory. They are of the Muslim faith. Our tour guide spoke very good English and was very knowledgeable about the history there.
There are two sets of missionaries in Kazan. President and Sister Sartori worked with one set, us with the other. We were able to visit with an investigator (her first meeting) and two inactive sisters. The investigator woman, Regina, was very warm and inviting. She told the missionaries she was worried about communicating with us and was prepared with dictionaries when we got there, but she was pleasantly surprised that we were able to communicate as well as we did. She lives alone, has no friends, is 72 years old. She accepted a Book of Mormon and gave me a gift of a small framed picture that she signed on the back. I told her she would meet many friends if she came to church on Sunday. She didn't come this week, but I hope she will have a desire to come in the near future. It is such a treat to meet people like her. One of the less-active sisters we met with did come to church the next morning so that was great. She is probably in her mid-20's, only member of her family. She has been a member for several years but is active only off and on. We invited her to the YSA Conference in Moscow next month; I hope she comes. It was just great to work with the missionaries. The two elders we worked with are elders who we have not known before so it was great to get to know them. They are fabulous missionaries! They took us on the underground metro which was very clean and nice. Other than that, we walked a lot. In fact, combined with the walking we had done earlier in the day at the Kremlin and around town, we figure we walked at least eight miles. My feet still hurt! I don't mind the walking, but we were walking a lot on cobblestone-type roads or dirt and rocks which wears on the feet. My shoes are sturdy and comfortable, but they need a couple more inches padding on the bottom:)
The Kazan branch is great. The Saints just love it when missionaries come to visit. They bring their cameras to take pictures. We spoke in Sacrament meeting and that went pretty well. Elder Peterson is getting professional on his Russian talk. I still use a translator but am able to testify in Russian. It just takes a lot of time to speak in English and then wait for the translation--doubles your speaking time. So I had to cut out half my talk, but that's okay. We were very grateful to the Sartori's for inviting us to accompany them to that part of the mission. These large cities have such small branches, but the Saints are devoted to the gospel and continue to be the pioneers in their respective cities. It is fun to imagine how the church will grow in the next few decades.
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