Guyana - Land of Many Waters

 

    Well everyone I have landed on the Continent of South America! I live in a village called Great Diamond. It is about 30 minutes south of Georgetown (Capital).We cover the small and close areas on bike and then anything that is more than a 20 min ride we catch a bus that is hustling the roads. The buses are crazy... more so than the ones in Grenada... which I thought couldn't be worse. They smell like monkey cages says Elder Hardy... haha which I feel is a pretty close guess of what it's like... Horse drawn wagons flood the highway as well pulling people and giving them rides to places because they can't afford the normal fair for a bus. Normal fair is $160 per person Guyanese... so like 80 cents U.S. People are very poor where I am living. I live in a pretty nice apartment compared to some. Straight cold water out of the tap and shower, so glacier freeze in the mornings... although we do have an a/c unit... which is nice!

      Elder Hardy was with one of the missionaries I came out with, who I enjoyed being around in the MTC. One downside of this past week... he is sick.. so we haven't been able to do as much work as I would have liked but... ya know me... I work crazy hard. Missionaries say I'm the work horse of the mission... which is pretty crazy! I have lived up to one of my goals, so that's cool!

      We had 74 people at church and 7 were investigators brought by the members... It is crazy how humble and prepared and understanding these people are about the Gospel of Jesus Christ... It makes me very, very happy knowing that this place is very well off for the future of the church... lots of RM's and lots of strong youth! It is a simply Amazing place to serve in and I'm grateful (except for the stench of Rum waste from a local distiller down the road a ways.. it's gross... we'll put it that way!)

I love you all and Have a good week!

Love Elder Hill

Snapshot of Guyana

Guyana is unique–it is the only South American country whose official language is English! Much of the population speaks Guyanese Creole (an English-based creole), and many indigenous languages are also present. Guyana is religiously diverse – a little over 55% of the population is Christian, while about 28% is Hindu and another 7% is Muslim. Guyana’s culture represents several diverse influences, including African, Indian, Amerindian, and British cultures. The south of the country also has strong Brazilian cultural influences. American pop, reggae, calypso, and even Brazilian music are all popular within Guyana. Cricket and soccer are the most popular sports. The One Pot Meal–a meal using a mixture of whatever meat, peas, beans, or other ingredients are available– is common in the country. Pepperpot (a stew using beef, pork, or mutton and flavored with peppers and cinnamon), curry, Guyanese chow mein, and several seafood dishes are also quite popular. Fresh fruit is often used to make juices. Chinese and fried chicken restaurants are also popular among the locals.

More about Guyana in the West Indies Mission

...and More

Goodbye Grenada ....

I will be transferring to Guyana, South America! I'm going to an area called Diamond... It's a village pretty close to Georgetown. I've heard there is a possibility I'll be on bike... so it will be my first area on bike. I will still be district leader for one transfer, and will be serving with Elder Hardy. Elder Strong will also be going to Guyana.  I will miss my friends in Grenada...

Last Baptism in Grenada

     Baptisms are the BEST! I have been super stoked for this one! 

K----- knows the church is true and he knows Heavenly Father is leading him down a path that is true. He has told us he wants the spirit to be with him all the time so he can make good decisions. He is just an all around awesome guy!

Grand E'tang

Funny story....

     Today we went up to the Grand E'tang Lake. [a crater lake in an extinct volcano, surrounded by rainforest] We hiked to a place called Mt. Qua Qua. Well halfway through, it starts to just down pour... and so the trail is just getting super slippery. I'm sliding all over the place, and so is everybody else! The ground was like clay so it was like stepping on a million banana peels over dey. We (E. Strong, E. Smith jr., and I) have a brilliant idea to run down this hill.. more like slide down.. so we get a nice running start.. and here we go. I start sliding down and then BAM! My foot gets stuck on a wood plank sending me over my feet in front of me... Haha! And then I go sprawling headfirst into a massive patch of Razor Grass! So this grass has little edges on it like razor blades, and my face and neck got all scratched up and my arms and legs. Now i'm just looking like I got into a fight with a huge cat. I probably won't ever do that again! I would say that it was worth it though! haha because I was laughing and so was everybody else!

Elder and Sister Smith

Smith, Hill, Ramdhanie, Wilson, Loewen, Strong, Grigg, Smith