Loving It!

 This week brought an end to one mission, and a start to 2 missionaries being in our district and to being in the north. There's nothing as constant as change, they say! Apparently, we celebrate by going to the mall and taking pictures! Monday was spent saying goodbye...  Tuesday was busy with Allen studying, and me taking a day off to recover from a cold.

And Wednesday, we welcomed the 2 new missionaries into the district at our council meeting.

Welcome, Sister Cao and Elder Phan! Both are natives.

We love our missionaries, the old and the new. It's hard to say goodbye when they leave, but fun to meet the new ones when they come.

Thursday came quickly, and Allen and I used the day by walking at Yen So Park. We can't teach people we find on the street, so we walk around, hoping that people will notice us and remember our badges, or be curious enough to ask us about them when they see us. It happens occasionally, but not today. Yen So Park is a large one, and we were happy to see how well-kept it is. It's beautiful, and also has some very interesting statues and fountains--not working, unfortunately. 

These are the coolest fountains. Too bad they're not working! That would be so very awesome!

My next big change-up for the week was a shorter haircut. I figured I needed one after 5 months. 

The best day of the week came Saturday, and the best treat came that day: Kevin arrived for a week-long visit with us!

Hey! He had a long flight. And I had a long wait--we got to the airport 2 hours early. 

We got him home and went out right away for a doner kebab for lunch, which I personally love. 

And after that, we went off to Hoan Kiem Lake to see what we could see...

And what we saw was a lot of Ao Dais! Of course...

                                        There are also artists who do portraits, caricatures, etc., all along the sidewalk.

Yeah, I'm celebrating that Kevin is here.

This is the Gnoc Son Temple on Hoan Kiem Lake.

An English Club was at the lake, finding people to practice English with. They found 3 willing participants. The cost was a photograph together.

As the sun went down and the lights came on, the decorations became more beautiful.

And the crowds became more... crowded!

It's always amazing to see how weighed down the bikes and scooters can get.

Beautiful...

Sunday was a fun and interesting experience for Kevin to see what church is like for us in Vietnam. It was really fun to introduce him to our friends, who were all very delighted to meet him.

After we ate in the afternoon, we set out on a walk to show Kevin what the streets of Hanoi are really like, not what the tourist venues are like. We found 3 separate pagodas in the nearby neighborhoods and he had a wonderful experience being introduced to the area.

These 2 people were very friendly and wanted to find out all about us. These kinds of surprise interactions really make our days fun and special.

Our next stop was the Quynh Loi Pagoda. We have been here twice before and met with the monk, who was very friendly. We had arrived after closing time, so we couldn't go in, but we saw the beautiful decorations they were preparing with the gorgeous orchids that were there.

Now we were heading for home, but as we passed a pagoda near our apartment complex, the older woman inside beckoned for us to come in. She led us upstairs where another woman insisted on taking pictures with us. She turned on the lights so we would be sure to see everything; it was pretty amazing.

So many colors!

Dragons on every pilar...                                                                                                      

This sweet lady was busy packing little bags for the people who come visit (we guessed). She gave us each a box of crackers.

And here is the streetside view...

We are looking forward to a week with Kevin, showing him some of the amazing things we have discovered in Vietnam. 

We hope your week is just as amazing!