Randomness

-Why does ice cream have to be so good, I would have saved like 20 euros in Spain if Gelat0 and Helado weren't so good.
-It seems that people who walk with their hands behind their backs just seem wise.
-I think I had malaria when I was really sick a little over a month ago. A girl in our group had the sam symptoms, went to the hospital, and was told she had malaria.
-I enjoyed a really nice walk on the beach last week in Den Haag. I wanted to see the sunset, but I was also super tired from coming from Uganda the night before, then going to Amsterdam briefly, and seeing people in Den Haag. I forgot that in the summer the sun sets around 11:00 PM. But I ended up staying up that late anyway, chatting with Albert and Cynthia. Albert's from Ghana, and was baptized in October, Cynthia is from China and was baptized when I was here. They're going to the Temple in October. Good people.
-Water is so powerful. We are so dependent on it. Gives new meaning to "Christ is the water."
-Goodbyes are the worst. It was hard saying goodbye to the Crane School kids (I got some notes from some of them), and my business class students (they're all supposed to email and give me money when they're all rich), and Parliament peeps. I told everyone I would come back, and I will. It might be next year, in 4 years, or even 40 years, but I'll come back. It was hard saying goodbye to my friends in the group. Even though many of them go to BYU', it's still hard cause things won't be the same. I got closer to them than I thought I would.
-What do people think Spain is like? I didn't really have a clue, for some reason I kinda thought it was a desert, but not at all. It is so gorgeous! The scenery that I saw reminded me of California, Montana, Israel, Ireland, Scotland, Arizona, and Utah.~
-I threw up on my last day in Uganda. It was good, cause you have to get sick from the food at least once in Africa.
-The North Sea looks pretty disgusting.
-Some bus and tram routes were changed in Den Haag, which confused me a little, cause that's pretty much the only way I know the city.
-I wish every returned missionary could return to their mission. It has just been amazing getting the same missionary feelings again, visiting the cities, and the people. I had the same 'scared to go home' feeling by the train tracks in Arnhem, which was my last feeling. I had the same 'they might not be home' feeling visiting some people in Den Haag, where we would always get dogged...and they weren't home. I ran into the sisters in the tram in Den Haag- they asked for referrals, so I gave them a list of people I used to teach. So I've done the same in Rotterdam, Arnhem, and Eindhoven. I heard that Kor, who we baptized, stopped going to Church. I dropped by and surprised him. He was so shocked and excited to see me. It was so much fun! Instantly I felt like a missionary again, by sharing a spiritual thought and committing him to come back to Church, it was a powerful and special experience.
-I've gotten 2 business propositions in the last week. A member in Uganda wants me to invest in his tour business. I ate at my favorite doner kebab in Den Haag with the owner and he's selling 2 restaurants and wanted to know if I wanted to buy them....Dad? I got the phone number of the owner of a Surinaams and Indonesian restaurant. Provo needs one of those.
-What a night and day difference coming from Africa to Europe. It's a really weird feelings and makes you feel a little guilty almost. In Getxo, Spain for example, the green 'go' light is a green cartoon guy. Come on, is that really necessary. I really shouldn't complain, it's just sad seeing how much money there is here and how people there lack money for basic necessities.
-I need to learn more about the Basque people and why they want to separate from Spain. It seems like everything is going perfect there--it's a really nice country there and I'm sure they would hurt from separation. I think there are only a few who want it.
-The 5-6 hour ride to Getxo was beautiful! I talked to Ivan a good chunk of the way. They also showed the second Planet of the Apes in Spanish. That movie is lame no matter what language! Ivan was really worried that I didn't have a place to stay. I think he was finally convinced that I was looking for an adventure. And it was! It's a really gorgeous town. I arrived at sunset! Wow! So I slept on the beach, listening to the waves, looking at the stars. Except for getting sand all over, the mosquitos, and being awoken at 6 by city workers, it was perfect. The next night wasn't so much fun. I wandered Madrid until 2 in the morning looking for a place to sleep. Madrid closes all the stations and parks, so I slept on a bench. Ha, it was funny, I really felt like a bum. Yeah, traffic was loud, and it was cold, so I really only got like 2 or 3 hours of sleep. The next night in the airport was better.
-Here in Holland I have had bad luck with public transportation. I've missed so many buses, trams, and trains, or they come really late. I have bad luck with backpacks too cause both of them are broke.
-I went to the Temple last week Saturday. I had it perfectly planned out, but then ended up missing a train which messed up everything else. But despite my plans being wrecked everything ended up alright and I made it to the Temple afterall and had a great time. Things work out like that.
-I arrived in Spain one day too late. Real Madrid finished their season the day before. The bull fighting season ended in May, and the Running of the Bull isn't until July. So I have to come back to Spain to do all those things.
-What is it about sunsets, sunrises, stars, and water that makes you think deep and about higher things?
-Bilbao and San Sebastian are both very beautiful cities where hardly anyone speaks English. Same with Madrid actually. I wish everyone could experience the thrill of just showing up somewhere where there's a communication barrier and going from place to place. It's exciting.
-On the trip from Mukono to Rwanda, there were lots of beggars at the rest stops. It's interesting that the white people didn't give money, but the Africans did.
-On the rafting trip it was fun pulling the girls into the raft when we were thrown overboard.
-I love it how Europeans clap when the plane lands. We should start doing it in the U.S.
-So I've been on this brown craze lately. I bought some brown shirts, brown ties, and almost a brown suit. I was with Mark van der Donk and he noticed this and asked if that meant I like brown girls now that I've been to Africa?
-I really like the song, Dare you to Move
"Dare you to move...
...Between who you are and who you should be, Between how it is and how it should be...
...Dare you to move, Dare you to lift yourself off the floor."
-I'm going to Asia on my next trip. China, Indonesia, India, Thailand...not really sure. But I'm going to go in December, or a year, or 2 years...but I'm going.
-Think about when someone's hurt you. Now multiply that by 2 or 3 or 100 and that is how much you've hurt Christ. That neat thing is that He will forgive you, if you forgive that person who hurt you. Amazing how that works. The Atonement is so beautiful and sweet like that...and is often learned through experiences, which makes it difficult, but so worth it.