Rome, Italy

Rome, Italy
Montesilvano, Italy

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

10/24/2102 - Taranto, Italy


Cari amici e famiglia,
             Okay, once again I don't have much time to write this email, our P-days are crammed full of stuff to do and it’s so hard to find a second and sit down and email you guys. So, yes I did get the email from trav and the package yesterday at zone conference, tell him to expect a letter from me because after a couple weeks ago we are only allowed to email direct family members. So if people don't get emails from me that’s why.  Thank you everyone for the birthday wishes and I did get the packages and letters and everything here at my new address last Friday. Stuff gets here pretty fast. If you want to mail packages to the mission office though that isn't a problem, because that’s how most missionaries get packages anyways because it’s the safest way. In Rome postage and packages don’t "disappear" as often as they do anywhere else in the mission. As a matter of fact it’s probably a lot better to mail packages to the mission office. I have more peanut butter now than I know what to do with. It should last me through the rest of the mission. The Syrup mix grandma sent will be awesome once I find vanilla. It’s expensive and rare here in Italy.
PLEASE SEND ME MY BALLOT!!! Even if it ends up arriving back in America late. Everyone here in Italy is going nutz about the election and I promised everyone here I’d let them see the ballot while I voted, so no voter fraud okay? Because that’s illegal and the government reads these emails =) I almost forgot that Mike is old enough to vote. It’s interesting how little the Italians know about American politics but how interested they are in it.
            I've think I’ve mentioned this a couple times already but I'll say it again. Taranto is no different than our home ward haha. IT IS AMAZING HERE. We eat dinner often with members and don't have to give talks or teach lessons during Sunday ever =) Last week was the primary program and we had a good 25 little kids up on the podium singing their hearts out about choosing the right. I love it here. The only thing is that after my interview with president yesterday he made it very clear I shouldn't get too comfortable here and that I wasn't supposed to come here originally but it was just a last minute inspiration on his part transfer night. So this will probably be a short lived dream =(  I'll make the best of it while I can. I speak Italian fluently so having an Italian companion isn't a problem. We talk too much haha. He says I’m the first companion he’s had that talks so much I could be an Italian. There is never a moment of silence at home. We get along really well. 
            Okay so you need something for the missionary newsletter, get a load of this story =). So when I first arrived here Anziano Visitin was explaining to me the work here and our investigators. He started talking about a guy named Stefano who we were teaching but that he was very lazy and wasn't making any progress so Anziano Visitin got up and started to erase his name from our white board. At the exact moment he went to erase the name the phone rang. And it was................... Stefano! Yeah way crazy. Well anyways. Stefano came to church that Sunday, and had already been a couple times in the past few months because his mother and little brother are members. They are a Romanian family and Stefano doesn't look like the baptizing type when you first see him. He’s a BIG guy with some of the gnarliest tattoos I have ever seen. So continuing. He came to church and then we had a little lesson with him and talked a bit about baptism and asked him to think about a date. Well at our next visit which was a Thursday we asked him about a baptism date and he responded by asking if he could do it in 2 weeks! That was a shocker but we went ahead and also set up an interview with the bishop for the following day just so they could get to know each other. After the interview Friday night  Bishop Vescovo came out and asked us why we don't baptize him this very Sunday. We said we didn't know if we couldso we held an emergency ward correlation meeting, organized everything and sure enough Stefano Kovacs was baptized last Sunday along with a man named Valentine, one of the Sisters investigators. Crazy huh? MIRACLES!! Work continues to go well here and we may have more baptisms if everything goes to plan here.  
            Alright today we had an awesome P-day. We went to a city called Matera about an hour away. Now this is a city so old and so beautiful, this is where they filmed "Passion of the Christ" It was amazing. I’ll send some pictures. There are tons of caves and old houses and everything. There is this huge valley that goes along side the city which is on a hill alongside a cliff. Ok, looks like there might be some problems hooking my camera up to this computer =( google it okay! "MATERA"
            Well thank you grandma Nancy for the $21 I'll be sure to go get myself a nice little gelato. I got a post card from the Carpenters too. Thanks everyone. Say hi to the missionaries back home for me and make them work hard. I love and miss you all. Have a great week everyone and tell grandma Carolyn happy birthday for me and Aunt Heather, my fellow October Birthdays!! VI VOGLIO BENE!!
       Con Amore  -Anziano Kyle Hill

10/17/2012 - Taranto, Italy


Ciao Tutti,
          Not much time. I spent a bunch of time writing the mission president.  Things here are going well and I am having a blast here in Taranto. Anziano Visitin rocks and the work here is a bomb! I love and miss you all. I loved grandmas birthday card, it made us all laugh. Letters are arriving so thank you everyone. Have a great week and talk to you all next week. 
 Vi voglio bene,  Anziano Hill

Monday, October 15, 2012

10/10/21012 - Taranto, Italy


Ciao tutti,

         Very short email I’m so sorry. There isn't much time today because we have a ton of stuff to do. My address is 

             Anziano Kyle Hill
             Via Carlo Sforza 4/1 
             74100 Taranto, Italia
        
          As for my package, make sure you cover it in Maria stickers and what not, so no one breaks it open, even Jesus pass along cards from the missionaries works, things are sketch down here. 
         This city is amazing thought. I love it, I love the members and my companion Anziano Visitin rocks, he is from Trieste. This is a huge ward here and it’s weird how normal it is. It reminds me of back home. The work here is rocking also. The thing is Internet is really difficult here so for the next couple Wednesdays instead of emails you guys might get voice recordings =) fun huh? For my birthday we had District Meeting and had a little party. Nothing too big. I almost forgot it was my birthday until the mission president's wife, Sister Kelly called me in the morning to wish me a happy birthday haha. Conference blew my mind. I sent a good sized email to mike today (hence why I gotta hurry up with this email) I'll let him talk to you guys about it. I would really like to see that kid though before he leaves, even if it’s a week or two. If only I could of left when i turned 18, I would have been home a year already!! The talks were amazing. I enjoyed all of them. I'd like to know what your favorites were.  Ao now you all of something to write me about =) Well that’s about it. I gotta go. I'll have pictures for you next week promise. I love and miss you all!! 
                     Con amore,   Anziano Kyle Hill

10/3/2012 - Taranto, Italy


Ciao Tutti!
        I have been transferred!! OHHH SNAP!! But not far at all actually. I’m going to Taranto which is like an hour away. It’s a big city with a ward almost bigger than ours back home. I'll be serving with an Italian named Anziano Visitin, he’s from Trieste up north. I don't have much time to write today thanks to transfers so maybe I'll write some more later today. We'll see. 
        Nothing really new this week other than saying goodbye to a bunch of people and some shed tears. I have some pictures of our district. Me and some English course students, and an imegnada (huh?) we made. It was way good. We were able to find a couple new investigators this week to so I'm not leaving Bitonto behind dead. Taranto should be a very different experience for me because it’s such an established ward. One of the biggest in all Italy. I don't know my address yet so keep sending stuff to the mission home. I'll get you the address next week. Also for my birthday package I want to know if I can request maple syrup and pancake mix since we don't have that here in Italy. I love and miss you all and can't think of much else to write. I’m so sorry. Next week I promise more. Have a great week and stay outta trouble! Vi voglio bene!
        Con amore,   Anziano Kyle Hill