Albania is fantastic! We took a train to the Salt Lake Airport and flew to Chicago Airport. In the airport, I got to call my family, who was sitting on the boat in Lake Powell. I'm a little jealous. But I'm in Albania, so it's ok!! We got to talk for like an hour and a half and it was fantastic! After talking to our family, we flew to Austria. The plane was crazy! It was huge, and we were in the middle row, which was nice, because we could all sit next to each other. I am so glad I'm small, because it was perfect for sleeping on the plane. I curled up and was out cold. I slept on and off throughout the whole plane. We weren't allowed to watch movies, but the lady in front of me was watching the new Cinderella, so I may have sneaked a peak every once in awhile. I love that movie. So we got to Austria and it was awesome! You couldn't see much because there was fog, but you could tell it wasn't America. Plus all of the signs were in a different language, with English on the bottom. That was interesting! So we walked around to find a drinking fountain, and finally gave up. While sitting there, we ran into about 6 Elders! They ran up to us and asked if we were the Albanian missionaries, and we were so confused that they knew that. They then explained that they had just finished serving in our mission, and were on their way back home. We talked to them for awhile, and then one of them asked if we wanted to talk to some Albanians, and we were so nervous! But we said yes, and he took us to talk to an older couple. I understood most of what the lady said, but the Gjagji, old man, was difficult to understand. But they were really nice, and we talked to them for probably 20 minutes after the elders left to catch their flight. We then went to find our gate, and ended up talking to a bunch of Albanians while we waited for our flight. It was so fun! Most of them were living in America but coming to Albania to visit family, so they spoke English, and helped us out quite a bit. We boarded the flight, and both Sister Eliason and I fell asleep before the plane even took off. I slept the entire 2 hour flight, which was amazing! We got off, grabbed our bags, and met President and Sister Weidmann and the APs a few seconds later.
We drove to the mission office, and it was crazy! Albanians are crazy drivers! But it was fun to drive around Tirana and see the city. We ate, had interviews with President, and then went on exchanges with other sisters. Sister White and I went to a members house to share a scripture. She had made us stuffed peppers (i think they were green chilies) and they were so good! I couldn't understand most of what she said, but she was super nice, and said that I spoke like I had been there for a month! After meeting with her, we went back to the office, and walked to President and Sister Weidmann's house for dinner. Their house is super nice! We met with them, had a small testimony meeting, and then slept at their house that night. They let us sleep in, and I was so happy! I didn't realize how tired I was, until I woke up the next morning.
The next morning, we went to the memorial, which looks over Tirana. It is where Elder Oaks dedicated the land for missionary work. It was so cool to look over everything! Then we went back to the office, and met the trainers! We had a small meeting to figure out who was going with who/who was going where. My trainer is Sister Cheshire, and we are in Tirana 1st ward! After the meeting, we grabbed our stuff, and the APs drove us to our apartment. We dropped my bags off, and went to work. Our first lesson was with the Keqja family. They speak English, so it was nice to talk to them. They are a fun family! They have a little 8 year old boy that reads his scriptures and prays everyday. We are still working with the rest of the family, but he sets a great example for them! We meet with them every day, and always come out exhausted. The dad has a lot of energy and wants to talk about English and American, so we get really excited when we give our entire lesson. But we love them, even though it's hard to teach them sometimes.
Our next lesson was with a lady that hadn't met with the missionaries yet. We walked in, and started talking to her. We were about to start the lesson, when her friend came in. She was a friend from her Catholic church. The lesson didn't go like we hoped, because her friend was not a fan of what we had to share or about our church at all. But it wasn't horrible. We haven't heard from the lady again, but I hope we do.
Next was Anxhelina. She is amazing! She is getting baptized this Saturday, and she is so ready! We meet with her everyday, and love meeting with her. She had her baptismal interview on Saturday and was so nervous. But she came out with the biggest smile on her face, and you could see how excited she is.
The next day, we taught Kayla. She is amazing! She heard about the church from her cousin Floriela, who is a recent convert. She is getting baptized later this month! I love getting to meet all of these people, even though I can't understand all of them. But, Avash Avash :) I think I have heard that phrase about a million times!
Sunday was interesting! We picked up the Keqja family for church, and they stayed for about an hour. In sacrament meeting, the person conducting said that their was a new missionary in our ward, and invited them to bear their testimony. An elder had just been transferred to our ward, so he got up to bear his testimony. I was so happy, because I thought I was off the hook! But then after giving his testimony, he went over and talked to the bishopric, and then came over to me, and said that I was invited to come up too. So I was trapped...I went up, and gave my testimony. I said, I am a new missionary also. I have been here for 5 days. I don't understand a lot, but I am learning! I then gave my testimony, and sat down. Between not eating, and bearing my testimony in Albanian, I was shaking so bad! But after the meeting ended, Jona, one of the members, came up to me and said, in English, that my Albanian was perfect! It was so nice to hear! I may not understand most of what is said, but I can speak apparently!
I came out of the chapel, and Megis was there! I was so happy to see her! We spoke for a little bit, and then I went to class. I will see her again tonight, and hopefully can talk to her a little more. Other members also tried to speak to me, and I couldn't understand most of it. I would turn to as Sister Cheshire for help, but she was talking to other people! Luckily, Floriela stuck to my side and whispered in my ear what the person had said. She was a huge help, and I'm glad she stuck with me. I understood people every once in awhile, but would second guess myself a lot.
After church, we went back to the apartment to eat and study, and then went to choir practice. Wow that was great. In case you didn't know, Albanians can't keep a beat, or a tune. At least the majority of them can't. Even the choir director was off! I tried to sing a little louder than usual to help them out, but it was usless. The entire thing was hilarious. I couldn't stop laughing! I can't wait for next week!
After that we went to teach Vera, a member in our ward. She is so sweet! We read 2 Nephi 4 with her, where Nephi is having a difficult time, but decides to rejoice in the Lord instead of be down. It was a good lesson, and I was able to speak a lot more than usual, and I understood a lot! It was a great lesson. She is a great member and made it easy to speak. She came to a lesson with us before and is a huge help, so speaking to her again was easier.
Today, we went to a Lake in Tirana and ate sandwiches with some of the other missionaries. It was a lot of fun!
It has been a good week in Albania, and I'm so happy to be here. Even though it is SUPER hot and humid, and I'm always dripping with sweat, there is no other place I would rather be! I hope everyone is doing great! I miss you and love you all!
Love,
Motra Bennett