📍Chachapoyas, Amazonas, Perú

 We had transfers this week. I got pranked and told beforehand that I was going to a nasty area in Chiclayo. Then we pulled up to the meeting and President Giuria announced that I would be going to an area called Chachapoyas...

Chachapoyas is the furthest area in our mission from the city. It is the area that everyone would kill to go to because of how beautiful it is. We got shipped off on an 8 hour bus ride to a city called Jaen. I served there about a year ago. It was super cool to spend a few hours there and see some people that I had met there. Then from Jaen we hopped in a combi and had another 5 hour ride up to Chacha. This place is so dang cool. I had come here on exchanges last march and it is seriously such a beautiful place. I am definately lucky. 

Chachapoyas is part of the state "Amazonas" so technically is part of the amazon rainforest. But it sits right on the transition zone where the Andes mountain range turns into the Amazon rainforest. They call this transition zone the "ceja de selva". It is super cool because we are surrounded by lush green jungle but also mountains. It's called "cloud forest". Chachapoyas also sits at an elevation of just below 8,000 feet. So we are way up here. I have been living at sea level for a long time now so the elevation has been weird the last few days. I've had to take some pills and am always out of breath but man, I could not be more happy to be here. Because of the elevation it is also COLD here. It hasn't gotten above 70 degrees since I got here 🤯 absolutely heavenly. We crack the windows open and it gets down to like 60 in our apartment at night👌 absolutely maravilloso.

The people here are completely different. It is a completely different culture. They talk, walk, cook completely different. Their accent is absolutely beautiful as well. The hard part is that their names are insane. Because we are in the jungle/mountains the names are still mostly indigenous. Instead of the classic Juan Carlos Mendoza Arrasco that I got used to in the city we're dealing with Culqui Lihuisi Poquioma Malqui. Straight up lamanites. 

I feel like I am in the Perú I had invisioned before the mission. This place is so dang cool. 

This city has a ton of super cool history. The Chachapoya people were a pre-inca civilization. Chachapoya means "warrior of the clouds". They were later conquered by the incans and later by the spaniards. There are a bunch of museams and cool places to learn about the history that we are going to go to. 

As if the location wasn't enough to make me the happiest man on earth, my companion literally couldn't be any better. I am BACK with mi ñaño elder Arellano from Ecuador! We were already comps literally 3 transfers ago. He is such an absolute stud. I couldn't say enough excelent things about the guy. Since I got to this mission nobody has served with the same comp twice until now so it is crazy that we are together. I am so unbelievably pumped to be with this guy. 

The one down side of serving in this garden of eden is that the work here is tough. Like really tough. This area has had 2 baptisms in the past 12 months. Can't complain though, it is a whole lot easier to go knock doors or contact when it is 65 and cloudy outside. 

Since this place has a ton of cool tourist atractions there are a ton of foreigners here. The other day a group of 3 girls and a guy from colorado, florida and oregon talked to us in a market. I literally could not hold a conversation with them. I am so awkward. They were kinda laughing at the fact that I couldn't hold a 15 second conversation. I was disappointed at my ability to talk to other american non-missionaries. I didn't think I was that awkward. Luckily my companion speaks great english so people can talk to him instead of me. 

Completed 18 months in the mission. Crazy 

“The Book of Mormon provides the fullest and most authoritative understanding of the Atonement of Jesus Christ to be found anywhere. It teaches what it really means to be born again. … We know why we are here on earth. These and other truths are more powerfully and persuasively taught in the Book of Mormon than in any other book. The full power of the gospel of Jesus Christ is contained in the Book of Mormon” -Presidente Nelson 

Some pics from the last few days in Pomalca and first few days in Chacha.