Walking in the Park

 We are still exploring walking paths near our home. One morning we took a long 4 mile walk around the lake. Our home is in the northwest under Escape Residence. We walked south across the railroad tracks to the lake, around counter-clockwise across the bridge and back up, crossing again at the railroad bridge.

There were many bust statues, including one of Chopin, but I didn't take any photos. I'll have to go back soon.

A Pair of Baptisms

 I was asked by the sisters to come play the piano for a pair of baptisms this weekend. One was on Saturday and one was after church on Sunday.

What a wonderful weekend! We even had a surprise baby shower for a new baby in the branch. He's such a cutie.

We enjoy the mix of friends at church.

Sightseeing

There is a lot to see in Bucharest. We don't understand much of what we are seeing, but we enjoy it anyway. We walked through Cismigiu Park where then-Elder Nelson dedicated Romania for the preaching of the gospel.

The number of pergolas covered in wisteria was shocking. I am definitely returning here in the summer when they are all in bloom.

Within walking distance is this memorial for those who died to break the bonds of communism. The Memorial of Rebirth is supposed to be a metal crown, but most people call it a "potato on a stick." The names of the individuals who died during the uprising are posted nearby.

I can understand why they named this bar Thor's Hammer because who wants to say, "Meet you at Mjölnir."

Located in front of the National Theater on University Square in Bucharest, Caragiliana, also known as the Clown Cart, is a sculpture by Ioan Bolborea featuring sixteen bronze figures by the Romanian playwright Ion Luca Caragiale.

We walked over the train tracks to find an old church nearby. It only took us 3 days and 3 separate trips to finally find it.

There is still so much to see!

A Lovely Baptism and Fabric Shopping

 We were invited to a baptism of a wonderful woman in Panduri Branch. She has lost the use of her voice, but you can hear her whisper. We enjoyed hearing her bare her testimony. There is always a smile on her face.

I was happy to be asked to play the piano for the event. On Tuesday we wandered through the city looking for second hand stores and fabric shops. We scored on both accounts.

The Made In Italy shop had men's cotton shirting fabrics. There are 10 1/2-meters here and they cost $31. Score! The Humana second hand store had everything for 22 LEI so I bought a blue wool sweater and Paul bought a wool sport coat. Total cost was under $10.

Here is my first block of Mrs. Peach. This is English Paper Pieced so I can work on it on the couch. The fussy cutting really isn't hard, just had to get the lines right so they make a secondary design when sewn together.

Down the street from the fabric shop was a delicious shawarma restaurant. I love hearing the carver shaving off meat from the spit. These workers were incredibly fast.

We then enjoyed a day with the missionaries during zone conference in the Panduri Building. The messages shared by leaders are always uplifting.

Moving In

 We were finally able to move in to our new apartment and get the WiFi set up. It is a fantastic place and we are very grateful. The ceilings are high, it is a quiet location, and there is underground parking.

The is the view from the front door. We have one air conditioning unit and it's in this main living room.

Paul set up the TV so we can watch Pluto, YouTube, BYU-TV, and our Plex. I found this quilty rug at IKEA and found pillow covers to match.

The kitchen is quite small, just one side of a galley kitchen. I hated to put in a microwave and take up 50% of my counter space. But the cabinets are numerous and easy to keep clean. There is even a dishwasher there.

The water heater is to the left of the oven. Currently the overhead light is out but someone is coming tomorrow to fix it.

In the hallway is a washer and guest bathroom. We are using it as our office, but it is officially the "Country Humanitarian Office."

We are completely spoiled to have a second bathroom.

Gotta love those hexi tiles. Then at the end of the hall is our bedroom and bathroom.

If I pull back the curtains I have this view. The largest building towards the left is the Press Building.

There is a soccer pitch out of view but we can hear then hollering during nighttime practices and games. It is now too cold to open the window.

If I go out the kitchen door, there is a little patio to better enjoy the view. I very carefully cleaned the glass railing so I didn't fall 6 floors to the playground below.

It's a wonderful place to sit and enjoy some sun and quiet.

I've never seen an elevator for parking, but it seems to work fine. The Nielsens were the heroes to find us such an amazing place for the next 18 months.

And thanks to IKEA for furnishing it all!

General Conference

 Our first General Conference in Romania was spent in our temporary apartment due to waiting on the internet. Of course, I had to make cinnamon rolls. I also made a Conference Music Bingo card, but did very poorly again. There is just too much new music! I only was able to fill in 4 slots.

I loved the music in every session of Conference. Elder Bednar's talk really made me sit up and listen.

 Ancient voices from the dust plead with us today to learn this everlasting lesson: prosperity, possessions, and ease constitute a potent mixture that can lead even the righteous to drink the spiritual poison of pride.

We loved seeing Elder Homer! He is such a sweet man--incredible smart and runs a council like the Savior would:

If we heed God’s word, we will receive more; if we ignore His counsel, we will receive less and less until we have none. This loss of knowledge does not mean that the truth was wrong; rather, it shows that we have lost the capacity to understand it.

On Saturday we walked to a shawarma restaurant in between sessions. On the way we saw a little hostel that looked adorable. And with a name like this, it belonged in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

I think we will find shawarma to eat every week we live in Romania. It is that good.

Elder Holland's message about the Savior was powerful and encouraging:

So, if sometimes the harder you try, the more difficult it seems to get; if, just as you try to work on your limitations and your shortcomings, you find someone or something determined to challenge your faith; if, as you labor devotedly, you still feel moments of fear wash over you, remember that it has been so for some of the most faithful and marvelous people in every era of time.

On Sunday we moved to our new apartment because the internet installer was coming on Monday morning. We were able to stream Conference at 7pm and 11pm. We stayed up until 1am to watch President Nelson. Our favorite temples announced were Price, Utah, El Paso, Texas, and Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. I had predicted the first two simply because they are retirement options for us.

Service Project in Tunari

 We had a opportunity to participate in a service project in the suburbs north of town. A school needed to revamp a science lab that had asbestos wall panels in order to make it safe for students. We came with 20 volunteers and worked all day. We met with Sister Bills again. She and the Gibbons worked with missionaries outside planting flowers and trees.

This is me responding to Elder Willard. What? I love the biology model in the room.

This is Helmut Wondra who came from Vienna to help train us. He was excited to help us in this project. We absolutely loved having him with us for a few days.

A group of 5th graders also helped us from the school, but I didn't have any permissions to include pictures of them. We spoke to them about the power of volunteering, which is not really a thing in Romania.