Kenzie+Korea: The First One in Korea

Hello from KOREA!!!!

Wow. The last few days have felt so long! So much has happened! Okay, I want to share all of the details because coming to Korea has been the biggest adventure of my life thus far! As a very wise woman once said: let's start at the very beginning, that's a very good place to start (*read in Julie Andrews voice*)...

On the morning we left for Korea, the sisters and I woke up bright and early at 2:45 a.m.--the literal buttcrack of dawn. We boarded a bus that dropped us and about 35 other missionaries going to Orlando off at the FrontRunner station. Yes. The FrontRunner station. 2 hours, three heavy suitcases, and a train switch later, we made it safely to the Salt Lake airport. Wow. That was an adventure! I felt like we were a bunch of cows smashed like sardines in a cattle car. There was so much luggage everywhere and commuters literally had to climb and crawl over people's luggage. It was a pretty odd and funny experience. We took a flight to Seattle that was late because of fog so we had a three second layover before we had to get on yet another airplane. This airplane was going to take us to Seoul. Yay! I got to sit next to Cooper 자매님 and Hall 자매님 and we got to listen to classical music.

What's worse than being stuck on a plane for 14 hours? Being sick and stuck on a plane for 14 hours. As we traveled throughout the day, I just kept feeling worse and worse and when we got on our flight to Seoul, I just wanted to die. I felt so, so sick. I drugged myself with Benadryl so I could sleep, but I felt so bad for everyone around me because I was just a gross, sad germ. When we landed in Seoul, I was so depressed and nervous that I would get worse. I just prayed and prayed that I would feel better. Our flight to Pusan was delayed a little so we got to walk around the airport, which was basically just a giant mall. It was SO cool.

After we finished our flight to Pusan, we went through the simplest and most efficient customs screening I've ever been through, grabbed our bags, exited the terminal, and met President and Sister Barrow. Oh! That was so exciting! The office elders drove us to the mission home and that is all a blur because I was so exhausted, but I do remember being so amazed at the huge city and all of the flashing neon lights. Korea is a neat place.

When we got to the mission home, President and Sister Barrow welcomed us, fed us some super yummy snacks and sent us to bed. I don't think I've ever slept better in my entire life!

The next morning we woke up and had a delicious breakfast all together, had interviews with President, finished some technical business, ate our first Korean lunch (so delicious!), and then we got to meet the trainers! We played some fun games together so President and Sister Barrow could see how everyone worked together then we went out onto the streets to 전도 (proselyte). I started off with Sister 박 and she was very helpful to me. She is a Korean native, so she taught me some really useful phrases and she helped me with pronunciation a lot. She spoke really good English too. After that, I went with Sister Beazer. She is American, which was really comforting because I was really discouraged. After I went with Sister Beazer I got to go with Sister Kwon (can't remember how to spell her real Korean name). She is from Seoul and she speaks excellent English. I was so discouraged by the time I got to her that I almost cried. I told her that I felt like a horrible missionary and that I was scared to Jundo and that I felt really awful at the language. She gave me a really excellent pep talk and we clicked really well. I really like her a lot. After jundoing with Sister Kwon, I went with Sister Chow who is Korean but she grew up in L.A. so she had to learn Korean at the MTC. She is really sweet and we ran into a less active member and shared a message with him. We jundoed to the restaurant where we were going to eat dinner. We ate some super delicious bibimbap and jundoed back home. This time was our last time and I went with 김예지 자매님 (my trainer!). She speaks very little English, so were were super creative with communication. We got along so well and joked the whole way home. At one point on the way home, there was no one around so I pretended to jundo to a dog tied to a fence. I used high form and everything. That made 김예지 자매님 laugh so hard. Then a few houses down from the mission home, we found another dog stuck on top of a fence. We decided that he was a misguided soul that needed the gospel. We offered him a Book of Mormon, but he kind of just stared at us blankly. Weird. Some people just aren't ready for our message (hehe).

After jundo, we had a short testimony meeting and went to bed. Cooper 자매님 and I both woke up at 4 a.m. and couldn't sleep so we got up and talked to each other about how nervous we were to get our trainers. We had a really good conversation and comforted each other a lot. It was then that I realized how much I was going to miss her. She really is so great! We had such a great friendship and companionship! I am so grateful that I got such a great first companion so I could learn how to be a good companion/how to have a good companionship.

Later that morning, we were assigned to our trainers. I was so nervous when Sister Kim YeJi was assigned to be my trainer because she doesn't speak much English, but once we started talking to each other I realized what a blessing she is. Not only is she super patient with me, but she is also the nicest person in the world.

Then it was time to leave the mission home. It was time for the real deal to start. So Sister Kim and I trekked across Pusan with my super heavy luggage and she was just so sweet. She refused to let me push the really heavy bag and also took the small one. I have already started making a list of things that she does in my journal in case I ever train one day. She is celestial.

We got to my first area, 진해 (Jinhe), and I had a few minutes to unpack before area meeting...apparently DM(District Meeting) and AM(Area Meeting) were moved because everyone wanted to meet me. I felt so popular. Haha. Our apartment is so nice! It is really small and cute! Our area is really awesome. There are two other Elders that serve in the area with us. They are super nice. After that we got kimchi and ice cream and went home to call members, investigators, etc. so I could introduce myself. Speaking and understanding Korean over the phone is impossible.

The next morning we woke up and Sister Kim took me to this really nice track to run. It was so funny to be the one awkward white person running around the track.

Later that day, we had DM and we jundoed with some of the sisters in our district. Sister Koyle and Sister Steward. They are so nice! The are both STLs and both used to be companions with Sister Kim. I really hope there's not a trend there. I can't go back to STL prison...haha. On Friday night we had a dinner appointment with the 1st counselor in the bishopric. If you look up Jinhe on google you'll find lots of beautiful pictures of the cherry blossom festival in the spring (sadly, it's too hot and humid for blossoms right now). Anywho, in all of the pictures you'll see this really beautiful wooden bridge thing. Yep. The 1st counselor lives across the street from that. Dinner was so much fun. Pretty much the entire young men's group and 1/3 of the ward was there. I had no idea what anyone was saying and I just felt like the awkward foreign exchange student who sits in the corner and says a few awfully pronounced memorized phrases--probably because that is exactly who I was. Lol. We ate bibimbap with raw fish and caviar (yum...and I mean it. It was so good!). I really love this area because we have a guitar!! Yay! We sang some primary songs for the family and I had to share my testimony of the Book of Mormon. I was so nervous, but I think it went okay because everyone seemed to understand it. I just loved that the Korean kids got such a kick out of the fact that I have hair on my arms. Haha...definitely going to go home and shave. Lol. But it really was so fun. And you know it's been a good day when you go to bed with incurable kimchi breath and caviar in your teeth. No matter how many times you brush, it's still there. Lol.

On Saturday we had a stake service activity and the whole zone was there. And guess who is in my zone??? Amende 자매님!!! My "Seoul Sista" from the MTC. We were SO excited to see each other!!! Also, here in Korea when you do a service activity you get to clean the hiking trail that leads to a famous and very beautiful Buddhist temple. Yep. You heard that right! It felt like P-Day! It was so cool and the forest is so gorgeous!

After service we had a super long meeting with the stake missionary guys and I literally understood nothing. But Amende and I were in the same boat and there was kimbap (my fav!) so I was cool with it. On Saturday night, we taught English class, which was SO MUCH FUN!!! I love teaching English. It is so humbling. Plus, it helps the members know how I feel all of the time. Haha. After English class we had another dinner appointment with the former bishop of the ward. He is probably the sweetest human I have ever met. His entire family lives in Orem, Utah so he gets really lonely so he loves it when the missionaries come. His family sent him Jelly Bellies and we all ate them together. It was so funny to see the Koreans' reactions to some of the flavors. I love these people to death!

Sunday was rough. I literally understood nothing. But my testimony went okay, so that was good. I really love our ward. They are all so fun. Every Sunday after church we all eat together. It is so much fun! They also do family home evening together every Sunday night. And even the adults get so into the games. It is SO much fun! Koreans are hilarious! I love them so much! It is so funny because everyone stares at me like I'm an alien or something. Haha. I'll probably come home with a big head because everyone that passes by always says "OH!!! So pretty!!!" But the ward mission leader will keep me in check because he already told me I was funny looking and that my Korean sucks. You've gotta love Koreans! Haha. They are so honest! It kills me! I just love it!

Today we got my foreigner card and now we are going to go to one of these big rooms where people from all over the city come and play boardgames. I am so excited!

Well, sorry for the longest letter ever! In short, it's really rough not speaking or understanding ANYTHING and the work is really, really, really slow in our area. We currently have zero investigators and hardly and PI's. Also, nobody understands me when we jundo and if they do they look at my like I'm crazy and walk away. People are really unperceptive to the gospel here. But we have been praying to find people who are prepared for us. Please pray for us too. There's nothing worse than being an unbusy missionary!!

Okay, well I love y'all so much!!!

사랑해요!!!

I you love!

잔스 자매

Sister Johns