Christmas Phone Call!

We don't have any video clips of our "phone call" with Andrew this morning (it was 7:30 at night there, but 8:30 in the morning here!)  It was actually a "Skype" communication, so we got video AND audio!  Anyway, we did take some notes of things he said and thought we'd share a bit!

Question:  What are your favorite things about Russia?

Answer:  The people (especially the branch members, who are super nice)  Finding "golden" investigators, with open minds; and CHOCOLATE!

Question:  What will you be doing on Christmas?

Answer:  Working!  In Russia, Christmas is celebrated not on 25 December, but on 7 January!  

Question:  Is it more difficult to find investigators in the cold winter?

Answer:  Actually, I prefer contacting in the winter.  There are virtually no drunk people out on the streets, so we can talk to anyone we see.  

Question:  What do you eat?

Answer:  Andrew said that because they travel around the zone so much, they end up eating whatever the missionaries they are visiting are eating.  His companion, Elder Langston did mention that Andrew makes a "killer borsch" and also something called "plove" which is apparently something like rice with chicken and curry and is a Ukrainian dish.  He also mentioned that they eat some sort of "cheap" grain - he thought it might be buckwheat, but wasn't sure of the English word for it.

Question:  Do  you have enough money?

Answer:  Yes, it is plenty as long as we keep track of the expenses that are reimbursable.  They won't let us starve or anything, so if we run out of money we can get more, along with a lecture about fiscal responsibility!  :-)

Question:  Did you get a pair of boots yet?

Answer:  No, but lots of missionaries go their whole missions without boots.  They are really expensive to get good ones and so far I haven't needed them.  As long as we keep walking, our toes stay warm!  

Question:  How do you get around?

Answer:  We use buses and "transports" a lot.  The "transports" are basically vans that you can take to various destinations.  We walk if it's close enough.  For travel between cities, we get to take the train!

Question:  Is it a hindrance to work so much in the dark?  (The sun sets at 3:30 in Samara right now.)

Answer:  I don't really notice it much anymore - we just keep working.  It was easy to get  up in the summer, though, because the sun came up so early - something like 2:00 a.m.  (We're thinking he may have been exaggerating a bit on that point!)

Andrew also demonstrated his Russian skills for us - sometimes intentionally (He and the Branch President's son had a conversation for us) and sometimes accidentally.  When Joshua asked him what his favorite part of being in Russia was, he started answering in Russian!  We all sat there listening and finally Joshua said, "Uh, we don't speak Russian!"

In all, it was wonderful to get to talk to Andrew. Those 40 minutes sped by remarkably fast!  He looks good!  He sounds good!  I wish there was a way to get/give a hug through Skype, but I guess I'll just be content with what I got!  Merry Christmas to you all from Andrew and from us!