Elder samuel haycock's
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bringing the light of the gospel to the people of kiribati
Elder samuel haycock's
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Mauri Tina
I here in Nonouti. I made it safely here from Tarawa I arrived here last Thursday so I've been here for four days now. The Relief Society in Matang is throwing a welcoming/new party this Thursday so that will be different. The travel story. My travel group left the MTC at 12:00 pm to catch a bus to take us to the UTA Front Runner. Our driver was very nice and we took our luggage onto the second to last car like it said on the instructions. Sit Down and wait for the train to take off. We then were greeted by a Train Hopper, definitely a very interesting guy, he slowly starting to accept the gospel knows kind of what was bad. The conversation we had about religion was interesting. Then an older couple got on and they were headed to the airport to go and see their granddaughters mission farewell then go on a little vacation after. Then the train started to move and we were supposed to get off at North Temple and then take the GREEN TRAX to the airport. So excited that it was just going to be a straight route to the airport. The intercom turned on and said "The trax are closed from draper to Murray and there will be a bus bridge between the two stations." Oh that is great now that means I have to take all of my luggage off the train onto a bus back off the bus back on to the train. On the next stop this older gentlemen gets on and you can tell he has had a great life, lived a great life, but he didn't want anything to do with our church and didn't want to hear about our religion, but gave us this great advice "listen to your heart and follow god's commands". Sweet and Concise. So time passes and we are at the America Fork exit and the intercom comes back on and says the North track is cleared from the accident that happened earlier today. From talking to this older gentleman we found that there had been a Butane? tanker that flipped over on the highway causing the tracks also to be closed. So we were able to get safely off the train at North Temple. Take the Green Trax to the Airport, I hope you got the photo of our group that a lady sent from here phone while we were waiting for the train to come and pick us up. They helped us with our luggage to get it on to the train and we were off to the airport. After arriving to the airport and going to the wrong terminal. we were able to find the airline we were supposed to check in with, DELTA. After looking confused this guy was nice and helped us get checked in to give us our boarding passes it was weird when I checked in it brought up four other names with mine so that sped up the process a little bit. We then had to go check our luggage and pay for our extra bag which was a little ridiculous price of $150 to get it all the way to Tarawa. For some odd reason the lady that was checking in my bags kept messing up but my total kept coming to $200 but both of my bags were under weight so that was good so it should of been $150. So I had to go to another counter and get checked again and they found the problem it was how they entered in my information which was weird anyway they got that fixed and I was able to go to our gate and wait for the plane. I basically watched the bags while I waited for some to call their parents, some were trying to find phone cards, and others were using the restroom. While waiting for our flight to LAX we met this girl who broke her hand from being kicked during a rugby game. They then called us again to check our passports which was weird but okay. When we finally boarded the airplane it started to rain on the runway. I was seated on a wing two seats behind the Emergency Exit next to the window which was nice. That was probably the fastest flight that I've been on, Oh wait that was my first flight that I can remember. It was nice to look out the window and be able to see the beauty of the earth. When we touched down in LAX we got out and had to walk around from the terminal that we were at and walk to the International Terminal to go try and check in so that we could possibly eat before we got on the plane. We found out when we got there that check in wasn't until 7:30 which wasn't until another hour later but that didn't give us much time to really go find something to eat so we decided that we would try and find some phone cards what a joke when you are trying to talk to people that have no clue what you are talking about and don't know how to work the computer. Just a nightmare when we actually found the guy that knew what he was doing it was time for us to check in. What was nice about our flights is that we were able to just to check in with the airline and go through the "express lane" connecting flights. We then were able to go to the International security check which by the way is really ridiculously long and took us an hour to get through. So by the time we got through it was 9:30 and boarding was at 10:20 so that gave very little time to eat because all of the lines were really long and so elder Jackson and I decided we were going to try the pizza because it had the shortest line at the time. It still took 20 min to go through the line and get our food which wasn't terrible. It was some great Fresh Italian Pizza. Our next goal before our flight was to find a phone that we could use our cards on. That was a joke when i tried to call you it somehow hung up, then i tried to call you again it went to voicemail, then I let my comp use my card and his went to voicemail, so by the time I called you again it had no time left on it so I just gave up trying to call you. By this time boarding was about to commence so they load the plane the smart way they load the people that have seats in the back first which is smart so you are not tripping on people's stuff so where we were seated on this airplane was 5 rows behind the premium class as it is called This airplane fitted eight across 2 on each side and 4 in the middle we each had our own portable movie player that had games, music, and movies on it. We were supposed to leave at 11:30 PM but we didn't leave for another half hour because of the "FIJI TIME" as they called so no urgency. After driving the plane to the runway we finally were off and because it had been a long day we tried to get some shut eye which was nice because they gave us a pillow and a blanket to use. So that we could go to bed. Once the plane finally leveled out and most of us were asleep they woke us up so that they could give us a meal. I was still full so I just told them know I was so glad I did because they others said that it was disgusting. I then fall back asleep unaware of what was going on while I was asleep. I woke up because Elder Herr must have been fighting something because his arms came out like he was going to sock somebody, but yet he was still fast asleep. So I check back up our flight because it shows how much longer we have and find out that we are already half way back to LAX Airport and I had no clue why. I later find out that one of the crew members had a stroke on the plane and while I was asleep they made an announcement asking if there was a doctor on board. Sure enough there was. So when we touch down in LAX we still had to stay seated while they unloaded the passenger that needed Medical attention, Unlock the International airport because it 5:30 in the morning and it is not open at this point. After sitting on the airplane for 3 hours we were able to finally get off and go back out to settle with the airline our tickets. So as travel leader when we got to the base floor I had to go call the church office about our flight. I was greeted by a nice lady whose name was Rachel and here first plan was for us to stay there in LA and catch the flight on the eighth and then one on the tenth to Tarawa, but we find out that our luggage will be locked on the airplane and just moved to the next flight which is no bueno if you don't have a change of clothes so I call again and transferred to Rachel again and they tentatively said that we will catch that next flight then stay in Fiji for a couple of days and leave on the Tenth, she had me wait on the line while they talked to their supervisor, plans were confirmed. Then we had to wait in a two hour line to get shuttled to the hotel they were providing. When we finally got to the counter it was 8:30 and we had to wait for the next bus to take us to the hotel which was on the other side of town and that trip took an hour and then we waited in the lobby of the hotel while they prepared our rooms until 11:30. When I finally got up to our room I had to call the office again to find out more information about our flight itinerary. She had me call back at 1:30 to get more information because it was still night time in Fiji. I call back after a shower and nice nap and find out that we are supposed to meet a guy in Fiji by the name of Meli. So We get back on the bus to check back in to the airline to get our boarding pass go back through security and wait for the plane to get there which didn't come for another hour after but they were nice and fed us some subway to hold our hunger. When we finally boarded the aircraft it was 4:30 in the afternoon We actually didn't leave till five thirty which meant that we would arrive in Fiji at 12:30 in the morning which was a little crazy. The flight was nice and they fed us two meals which were actually decent. When we arrived in Fiji it was a shock. Customs, then trying to find our luggage to a long time the Airline tried to set up hotels for us but we told her that we had someone waiting for us outside. When we actually went through the security process. We were able to meet up the guy. Who said that the church would take care of us. so we jumped in the vehicle to go just across the road to the hotel they set up for us. The time right now was 2:30 AM when we finally made it to our rooms we were so exhausted from staying awake for a good 36 hours that Elder Murri and I just fell asleep after a little exploration of our room ... The rest of story is pretty boring but you know that we made it safely to Tarawa so I am going to end there. I packed great all I forgot was a towel which they are sending from Tarawa on the next shipment. Mosquitoes are great have like maybe a max of 20 mosquito bites without bug spray right now. The heat and humidity are bearable compared to Fiji. Occasionally I'll wear socks but in order to build callouses on my feet from sitting cross legged I have to go bare foot. Weirdest thing I've eaten so far Bread Fruit which tastes a lot like water chestnuts no flavor I have also had coconut water which is very good and fresh coconut. So they made four of our group stay in Tarawa so that they can meet their companions and fly to Kiritimati and spend 11 hours on flying. I did meet Elder Berends he is one of the west zone leaders and I worked with him for the three days that I was there in Tarawa. I love you guys a lot. Can't wait to talk to you next week as you can tell my pdays are on Fridays so if you want to email me, email me before. Later Today we will have some beach time which will be nice to sit and relax for a little bit here is the address if you are going to send any packages they are actually pretty fast at getting them here usually no more than six weeks. Elder Haycock LDS Mission PO Box 400 Bikenebeu Tarawa, Republic of Kiribati Central Pacific I tangiriko, Elder Ekaki (Haycock) PS I sent that package home for you guys to enjoy because they told us that dictionary is crap so you can look at it some of the words are correct so that will help with my testimonies. It would be nice if you could edit this before you put it on the blog some of the spelling is really bad as I don't have spell check. I can't wait to talk to you next week after my welcome party.
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Elder Samuel HaycockI am called to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. This blog is about my adventures in sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ for the next two years in the Republic of Kiribati. Archives
July 2018
CategoriesContributorRachel Haycock - I am the mother of 6 amazing children and the lucky wife of a dear, sweet man. I love to write, read, cook, teach and sew. I hope you feel the Spirit of the Lord as you read about Elder Haycock's adventures in sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. |