SETTELING "INN" IN THE BARRIOS 9/3/2012

Hola, Hola Hola,

 

Greetings from Argentina! Yes I have finally made it to the land of my beloved Evita and I am so thankful to be here!

Well we barely made the plane to get to Buenos Aires! Our flight from Miami into Dallas was delayed several times because of Hurricane Issac and so we landed in Dallas at 7pm. Our plane to Buenos Aires was leaving at 7:10 so we looked at the board and it said still boarding the plane after it had been delayed 1 hr 15 mins waiting on us to arrive! We ran to the gate as fast as we could, just missing the hatch being closed, we got on the plane!

To my very much surprise, Hermana Cahoon and Leavitt were on board and started crying when they saw us, that meant my entire District while at the MTC was Argentina bound minus Sister Andreason, who went ahead of us in July, it was sooo good to see everyone and I too almost got.. well... moving on.

The ride there was tough, it was a full flight and I was like cramped like no other with nowhere to put these legs of mine. Movies were playing all around me, I must admit, I did watch a little of  Snow White and the Huntsman, not clue though what was being said, but the film looked pretty good! I mean really, that don’t offer blinders just headsets right!

We got to Buenos Aires and headed to the temple the same day! We got a special tour of the temple by the architect that redesigned it, it is so pretty inside! They basically re-did the whole thing! It was a long day as we did theintialsas well and then met up for dinner that night with the Latin Group, they split us into 2 groups as there are 22 of us and it was just easier to handle everything this way I am sure!

We went on a tour of Downtown Buenos Aires the next day, and I am kind of sad that it isn´t a part of our Mission. It’s like NYC and I love it! We get to go there when our Mission is over for like a tour etc., so much to see there it is truly beautiful that much I can tell from the short time we were there.

HOWEVER, yes I am now in Merlo! My area is called Altos de Merlo which translates into Merlo Heights... sounds fancy right? Nope it is actually pretty poor... I think Alabama was a palace compared to this place, we do have a nice pension (place where we live) though as the locals’ houses are so small and quaint the people here live in like cement boxes. No carpet etc. I don´t know how they do it! Oh wait.. I´ll be doing it the next 18 months haha!

I saw Elder Mitch Call at transfers! It was really exciting to see him!

My trainer or Papi, is Elder Delgado! He is from Tijuana Mexico! He speaks a little bit of English, so thank goodness for that! He is very patient with me which is good because I cannot speak the language at all. I do understand everything really well but I can´t speak; imagine that after no Spanish in Alabama!

The members are really nice here! They feed us allot... and I meant allot! They fill your plates with food, and I can´t like eat it all, so I am gonna have to adjust to that as I am not gonna gain that weight back, forget that! Haha

The mission is different.  I don´t know what to think of it yet.  I just need to get used to it because things were run differently in Alabama, I need to do as President Carter said, forget everything I knew in Alabama and learn here.. soo yaa. The mission is driven, it is great to have goals though. There are just so many adjustments I will be making, I am sure it will all come in due time.

Well not much else to update besides that I am alive, well for now, how long, I don´t know! Ha

The computers here are awful so hope you get this, it seems to be taking forever and you haven't responded, although I know you are there that’s the email I opened up to thanks! We are just gonna have to play everything by ear and will figure this out together!

 

Well I love ya´ll and I hope to hear from ya´ll soon! I hope everything is going well en El Estados Unido (United States) Cuidense!

 

Love,

Elder Draper
 

PS ( If your sending things you will want to address it to address below...pass along please mom) Dear Elder is still available for free and is delivered I hear, once a week about every 7 days, I also hear packages take at least 4 weeks (hint hint I am looking forward to my Birthday Oct 8th mom). Be sure to wrap in brown paper like the BAW blog says and seal with Christ Pics and mail as directed:See BAW Mission blog for complete details.

 

La Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Ultimos Dias

Elder Wade Draper
Mision Argentina Buenos Aires Oeste
C.C. 92
1702 Ciudadela
Buenos Aires, Argentina

 

MERLO BUENOS AIRES WELCOMES ELDER WADE DRAPER 8/22/2012

 MERLO II BUENOS ARIES WEST

  WELCOMES ELDER WADE S. DRAPER

     AUGUST  TRANSFERS 2012

 

Merlo II Coordinaces
 

34°39′S 58°43′W / 34.65°S 58.717°W / -34.65; -58.717
Country	Argentina
Province	Buenos Aires
Partido	Merlo
Founded	August 28, 1755
Elevation	16 m (52 ft)
Population (2001 census)
• Total	244,168

Merlo is the head town of the eponymous partido of Merlo and seat of the municipal government, located in the Greater Buenos Aires urban area.

The city was founded by Francisco de Merlo in 1755 and rebuilt by Juan Dillon in 1859.
Merlo is divided in two distinctive regions: Merlo Centro, a middle class district clustered around the train station; and the working class and barrios..  Merlo II is located in the working class.barrios. 
 
Wikipedia Argentina Working Class:
(or lower class, labouring class, sometimes proletariat) is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs (as measured by skill, education and lower incomes), often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes. Working classes are mainly found in industrialized economies and in urban areas of non-industrialized economies.

When used non-academically, it typically refers to a section of society dependent on physical labor, especially when compensated with an hourly wage. Its use in academic discourse is contentious, especially following the decline of manual labor in postindustrial societies.
The term is usually contrasted with the upper class and middle class, in general terms of access to economic resources, education, cultural interests, and other goods and services. The cut-off between working class and middle class is more specifically where a population spends money primarily as a lifestyle rather than for sustenance (for example, on fashion versus merely nutrition and shelter).

Wikipedia Argentina Barrios:
Life in the barrios of Argentina is a struggle for most and living conditions are often precarious. The main disadvantage of living in the barrios in that it presents very cramped living condition with only the basic facilities available. People living in these areas lack running water, proper sanitation and face high risks of crime. Lack of schooling and a full educational offering are also problems. Garbage disposal is inappropriate presenting their own health risks. People built their own poor structure houses from provided government grants.^[3]

The Reconquista River (Spanish, Río Reconquista^[1]) is a small river in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Together with the Riachuelo, it is one of the most contaminated watercourses in the country. The Reconquista is part of the Río de la Plata basin. It is born in Marcos Paz, Buenos Aires Province, and flows across 18 municipalities, emptying in the Luján River. Its drainage basin has an area of 1,670 km², and is populated by around 4 million people.
The river carries about 33% of the total pollution drained by the estuary of the Río de la Plata, taking into account both industrial and domestic waste. There are about 12,000 industries in its basin, 700 of which dump their waste into the watercourse without controls. Studies have found nitrites, nitrates, ester-phenols, PCB, and heavy metals. These pollutants can cause hepatitis, skin reactions, gastrointestinal problems and eye infections.

The administrative and commercial center is around the main avenue, Avenida del Libertador General San Martín. This tree-covered avenue stretches seven blocks from the railway station to the historic district and has few buildings reaching over two storeys in height.
Merlo is bordered by Moreno and Paso del Rey—both cities in Moreno Partido—and the Reconquista River (northwest), San Antonio de Padua (north), Libertad and Parque San Martín (east) and Mariano Acosta (south).

The origin of Merlo goes back to the town of Villa San Antonio del Camino, a hamlet clustered around a ranch-house belonged to the Spanish landlord Francisco de Merlo and which had been founded as a result of the recurrent Araucanian raids throughout the eighteen century

Francisco de Merlo's Coat of Arms.

Francisco Javier de Merlo y Barbosa was born in Seville, Spain, on August 11, 1693 and died in Buenos Aires on April 4, 1758. Merlo arrives to Buenos Aires in the early 18th century and made a fortune and became part of the Buenos Aires upper class; Merlo served as notary public in the municipal government or cabildo of Buenos Aires. He also was a laity member of the Third Order of Our Lady of Mercy. He married Francisca del Toro in 1713 and they had eleven children. After widowed he married María Teresa Gamiz de las Cuevas in 1748, who gave him a son.
In 1729 the notary public Francisco Sánchez Botija dies in Buenos Aires and his last will was his fortune were gave to his compatriot, friend and compadre Francisco de Merlo with the condition that a sanctuary were built to his memory and fifty masses were celebrated every year for the absolution of his soul.
With that fortune Merlo bought many haciendas in the western countryside and by the middle of the 18th century he established a large state between the upper Reconquista and upper Matanza rivers, seven leagues (35 km.) from Buenos Aires.
Merlo built his ranch-house on high ground overlooking the nearby Camino Real del Oeste, a road that linked Buenos Aires with Lima, the capital of the Viceroyalty of Peru. At its side Merlo erected a private oratory, fulfilling the last will of his compadre and it was consecrated to saint Anthony of Padua and the Immaculate Conception.
For many years the oratory served as parish church of the huge and almost unpopulated Parish of La Matanza.
He also established one of the first schools outside Buenos Aires in where the locals could learn to read and write; the school was entrusted to the mercedarian friars.

In the second half of the twenty century Merlo experienced an important influx of immigrants from the provinces and the old town sprawled over the countrisyde and the farms were replaced by housing for residents with a lower range of incomes.