Week 44 - Veszprém

Fresh Nővér completed her first whole week in Veszprém and here are some things she had to say about her new area.

The Veszprém Branch:

"There are like 50 people [in the branch] and a lot of them are older ladies or couples, and some families … just a few younger singles but mostly older people. I like it because they think I am cute even when I don’t feel like it. Haha! Most of them have been members for a while, but there are a lot of less actives we work with ... I like this branch, and I think it would have been a good place to be a greenie because no one speaks English with us."

Fresh Nővér with one of the younger
members of the branch who wants to
be a sister missionary!

The Investigators:

'We have a cool new guy ... that we found on Thursday, met with on Saturday, and then he came to church and stayed the whole time.... Getting people to come to church is the hardest and he just came!" Another investigator "is so sad and doesn't believe in God and is just really unhappy, but when we meet with him he is happier. So we met with him and then the next time we went back he was smiling a little and he had cleaned his house and just seemed better. It was cool to see the progression in such a short amount of time." One of the sisters they are teaching is deaf.  "We laugh all the time with her and it is the cutest thing because she can’t hear but just loves us! We are always yelling the lessons. Haha! ... The work is really good here in Veszprém! We teach a lot of people so that is cool :)"

The "we" is Fresh Nővér and 
Maxfield Nővér. It looks like they have 
been out in the rain and are trying to 
catch some on their tongues!

The Weather:

"It is snowing today and has been really cold this week. Oh … and rainy too! One day my boots get wet and they didn't dry in time to wear them the next day. ... And I am covering in bug bites that spread when you scratch them so that is crazy! I am really itchy and have bandaids all over my body. Hahaha! It’s kind of funny but I feel like a gross bug lady! We sprayed bug repellent all over our house so I feel like I am camping! It’s really funny!" [They got the bugs from the home of someone they visited, not from their apartment.]

This week looks like it will be a
lot better ... cold but no rain!

The Apartment:

"The coolest thing ever!!! We have a hot tub spa bath thing, a loft, a deck, and just really cool rooms and stuff. I love it :)"

Their apartment is on a very tiny, windy, 
one-way street. A craft store is on the left 
and their building on the right. 

This is the craft store Kézművesbolt. 

The cute kitchen ... small but colorful!

The view of Veszprém from the apartment balcony.

Thanksgiving in Hungary:
"We are having a District Meeting and Thanksgiving lunch on Thursday :) I’m so so excited … It is my favorite holiday and I’ll be back in Székes and with Broadhead and Butterfield :) plus I'll get to eat good food ... I think we might eat chicken instead [of turkey], but all I really care about is the mashed potatoes :)"

Happy Thanksgiving! ... Boldog hálaadás!

(Thanks to Elder and Sister Felsted for the photos of the outside of the apartment and the craft shop which I copied from their blog.)

Week 43 Photos - Veszprém

This was Fresh Nővér first email from her new area: (no photos from this week so far ... these are from the internet)

Picturesque Veszprém is set in the Bakony Hills 
within the Balaton Uplands, one of the most unspoiled 
and beautiful national parks in Hungary. 

The fire tower is a landmark in Veszprém. It
originally functioned as a watchtower and was later
used for the early detection of fires. 

"Veszprém is really pretty, the smallest city I have served in so far and also the coldest city in the mission.... so it’s cool because I love the cold... not! Haha!  Honestly, I am always cold, but it’s okay.  Oh, and it is also a super windy city too so that makes it colder.  It really is pretty though and very hilly.  My calves have been hurting because I am not used to walking up hills! Our apartment is the coolest apartment ever!!! It is like a couples loft and so we have a tub with jets, a balcony, and a little loft where a ladder pulls down.  I love it, and it will be a fun place to be for Christmas. The members and investigators are so cool :)  I really like the people here. I like this area so far, which is good because I will probably be here for a while."

These are the Margaret ruins ... the remains of
significant early medieval ecclesiastical buildings which
were built for Dominican nuns around 1240.

The church and the monastery were destroyed at the
time of the Turkish Conquest. Today only the foundation
walls and part of the church wall are visible.

There are four missionaries in Veszprém; Fresh Nővér and her companion Maxwell Nővér, as well as two elders. Their district also includes the missionaries from Székesféhervár so she was able to see Broadhead Nővér and Butterfield Nővér when they had their district meeting on Friday. Also on Friday ... "We also had two feeding programs in a row so I was very full at the end. The people were super cute and I loved just talking with them and feeling like I could understand a little more!"

The Castle Gate, also called Heroes’ Gate 
commemorates the Hungarian victims of World War I. 
The building was constructed in 1936.

Saint Michael's Cathedral was founded around 1000 A.D.
and is one of the oldest cathedrals in Hungary.

"On Sunday we went to church, and I really like the ward here! I had to introduce myself and give my testimony in church and so I thought I would write it for you guys :) ...

"Jó napot kívánok. Fresh nővér vagyok. Kaliforniából jöttem. Ida jöttem Magyarországra Maricusban. Előszór szolgáltam Miskolcon, aztán Budán, Székesfehérváron és most itt Veszprémben. Halás vagyok, hogy itt lehetek. Szeretnék tenni a rövid bizonyságom. Tudom, hogy Isten a mi Mennyei atyánk és Ő szeret minket, azért Ő küldet a fiát Jézus Krisztus a földre a Megváltonk lenni. Tudom, hogy az evangélium teljessége vissza lett állítva a földre Joseph Smithen keresztül, és Ő lefordította a Mormon Könyvét. Tudom, hogy ez igaz. Ezeket a dolgokat én mondom Jézus Krisztus neveben, Ámen."

Week 42 Photos - Székesféhervár

This week was bittersweet for Fresh Nővér.  

The sweet:
An investigator committed to a baptism date.
The Elders' had a baptism this week.
There was a "cool" Halloween Party on Saturday.
She said, "We did a lot of really good work together ..."

The bitter:
"... and now I have to leave."
Fresh Nővér thought she staying in Székesféhervár for another transfer, but when the transfer call came she is being transferred to Vesprém.  
"I didn’t say goodbye to anyone because we thought I was staying."

Some of the missionaries and branch members
at the Halloween Party. 

"My costume for the Halloween Party...
scary!" It is a bit hard to tell, but basically
she just painted eyes on her eyelids.
Her eyes are closed for this picture!

It is not Thanksgiving yet, but Fresh Nővér
is ready to dig into this Hungarian feast!

Broadhead Nővér and Fresh Nővér
with the elders investigator Audrey.

Fresh Nővér and Eszter smiling for 
the camera.

Fresh Nővér traded glasses with one of her
favorite branch members!

A little about the new city that Fresh Nővér will be serving in:

• Vesprém is 75 miles southwest of Budapest, 29 miles west of Székesféhervár, where she is serving how, and has a population of about 62,000 people. 
• It is one of the oldest urban areas in Hungary and is 9 miles north of Lake Balaton. 
• Veszprém was among the first Hungarian cities to have a university - students studied law and arts here for several centuries. The university was destroyed by fire in 1276, and it became a university town again in the 20th century.
• It also had an important religious role during the struggle to make Christianity the official religion of Hungary - Stephen I of Hungary defeated the armies of his chief opponent, Koppány, near Veszprém.

A photo of the castle district of Vesprém.

Week 41 Photos - Székesféhervár

From Fresh Nővér's email::

"So this week was crazy also! We went to Budapest twice :) The first time was on Thursday for Zone Conference and then again on Friday for Kriszti’s baptism." 

"Zone Conference was so cool ... mostly because I got to see all of my friends and also because the speaker was really good.  ... We just talked about missionary work and how we can better find people, and the Seventy, Elder Texeira, said something I really liked: "It's not about numbers, it's about the difference you are making within yourself and others." Sometimes I think we focus too much on just the numbers and not the actual people. It kind of drives me crazy, so I just loved what he said because that is what I try to do as a missionary… making a difference and helping people, not because I want recognition or the president to like me more, but for the people."

"His wife also spoke to us and challenged us to all start reading the Book of Mormon from the beginning and finish it by the end of the year. Sister Broadhead and I accepted the challenge and we are reading 4 chapters a day. Haha! It is kind of a lot but we have the time, I mean … we are missionaries! We also decided that after we finish reading the Book of Mormon for this challenge we are going to read it in Hungarian before the end of our missions!!!! That will be like 6 months to read it but it’s in Hungarian so.... it’s hard! Anyway, if anyone is in a slump with Book of Mormon reading you can hop on with the missionaries here in Hungary and try and finish it before the end of the year :)"

The Hungarian Book of Mormon

Then on Friday we got permission to come back up to Budapest for Kriszti’s baptism!!!!! We went home at like 7 pm on Thursday night from Zone Conference and then got up the next morning and went back to Budapest … it was crazy, but so worth it!!! Kriszti is a sister I taught the 3 transfers I was in Buda. ... I love her so much and she is my first investigator to be baptized :) The baptism was so special and I don’t actually know why but it was so different than any other baptism I have been too. I guess it is because I felt so close to her and had helped her a little bit to get to that point. It  is the coolest think seeing someone that you taught get baptized!!!!… Made my whole mission worth it, even though it is worth it without baptisms!"

Kriszti and Fresh Nővér ... "She is the 
cutest, coolest, sweetest lady ever!"

Perkins Nővér, Butterfield Nővér , Kriszti,???
Fresh Nővér, and Westover Nővér  

Kriszti after her baptism with the sister missionaries 
and Panni, her best friend!

Fresh Nővér and Panni at the 
baptism ... you can tell they are happy 
to see each other!

"Those were the significant big things for my week, but on Wednesday we carved pumpkins with a few investigators and that was really fun because they had never carved pumpkins before. Also, Broadhead Nővér and I got in a pumpkin gut throwing war which I started, of course :) It’s just so fun to throw stuff at each other, like popcorn... that happened the other day too :)"

The pumpkin carvers showing off their talents!

They look even better when they are all lit
up and ready for Halloween Night!

This week I asked Fresh Nővér a little bit about the branch in Székesféhervár and this is what she said:  It meets in "a rented space in like a business building. There are about 35 to 40 people a week... a lot of kids :) The cutest primary! ... The ward is cool!"

 This is Richie one of "the coolest" branch members.
He is from England!

A few parting words:

"So this is a weird thought, but the other day, Broadhead Nővér just kind of zoned out and I asked her what she was doing. She said, “Practicing my homecoming testimony.” I just looked at her and was like “Dude you don’t go home for 9 months.” ... but then it got me thinking about standing in front of everyone at home and like giving a talk and it didn't scare me like it used to! Maybe because it would be in English and that is the easiest thing in the world, or maybe because I am a spiritual giant … which I am not … or idk but this thought just made me happy and I feel like I have progressed. I mean I’m not a perfect person or a perfect missionary and I have a lot of work to do and will be doing it forever, but I am just grateful for my mission and how it has helped to change me in really good ways :) And, I am still me though, that’s the coolest thing! :) "