Bella Vista

Dear Family, 
 
It feels weird talking in English (or in Spanish for that matter (read below)). 
 
Well, I`ve arrived in Bella Vista! Whoever told me that it is the area 
near the temple doesn`t actually know what he`s talking about. Asi 
pues, My area is about 45 min outside the center of Cochabamba. It`s 
like Henderson is to Las Vegas. I look out of my house and it looks 
like I`m looking at Las Vegas. My house would be where Mission Hills 
is in Henderson. However, Bella Vista really is a ``beautiful sight``! 
My area is just at the bottom of the mountain and it is the greenist 
area in Cochabamba. It has trees, flowers, fields, etc. There is 
running water everywhere, but it is irrigation (spelled right?) 
systems. There are lakes and rivers in the mountains.. But anyways 
it`s pure country side. Or in other words, seeing pigs, roosters, 
cows, sheep, etc. on the streets is normal. For example, I saw like 10 
sheep on the top of a van with their legs tied. I thought they were 
all dead going to a restaurant or something like that. But then one 
winked at me. I got scared. Then all their heads poked up and looked 
at me. O..K.. 
But more important than the area is the people there. They are all way 
nice and always smile and salud us. They also all speak Quechua. It`s 
actually about 50 50. But they all tell me I`m going to learn Quechua 
fast here like some other gringos that were here. Do I want to learn 
another language? It`s hard learning an obscure language from a 
language that I`m still learning. 
 
Oh pucha my time is almost up!?? what happened. Oh well. Well, my 
companion is crazy, but great! Probably one of the most obedient 
Latinos in our mission. He is a real people person and talks with 
EVERYONE. That is something I´m probably going to learn from him. No, 
he´s not the best teacher, but he has love and the spirit, which is 
the most important thing! 
 
Have fun. I´ll write more next week.. Puchache.    Kaya Kama 
 
-Elder Walker