October 25, 2018

Hi Family - This week was a good one.  For some reason just being on the streets this week has been more fun than normal. 

Thanks Mom but nothing too specific for my Christmas package.  Thank you for sending me one.  Your Halloween package made it.  Thank you. The beef jerky was amazing.  As for a don't in the Christmas package, don't send candy please.  I will probably get plenty of it and at that point I have 6 months left so I gotta stay off of that sugar.  

Thanks for everything.  And don't worry my visa hasn't come yet.  ha ha ha I think they will send me to the Salt Lake City south mission.(but don't worry)  Everyone is super delayed on their visas..  I am staying in Stavanger with the same companion.  This will be our 3rd together.  So next transfers are the first week of December. December 5th.  

As for the work.  Still going great.  Have really nothing new to report on as to people we are teaching but something really fun this week was that we got to go on splits with the AP's this week.  I got to go with Eldste McCourt who was second companion in Norway.  Back to the good o'l days of not knowing what is going on and having a blast.  We had a great time and had a lot of fun.

Biggest thing this week was that I have learned that I don't understand the Muslim religion.  I'm trying.  I  have mastered talking with Muslims but I'm still confused.  It will be weird coming home to not being surrounded my Muslims.  It is so normal now.  

My cooking skills have increased. Hard to believe I know.  I make some mean cal zones and stir fry and enchiladas.  

Also, we had a huge American lunch at the senior couples apartment this week.  Because he worked in the military he can get on the base and buy food from the states.  We had re fried beans and they were amazing!!!  I am so excited for those when I get home!

I'm really excited to come back to Norway with the family.  A Saturday evening and a Sunday will be plenty of time in Fredrikstad.  I think it is a good amount of time in Oslo and a good time in Stavanger.  Depending on where I go next transfer could determine if we wanted to go to Bergen after that or somewhere else.  

I am doing great!  I fly to Oslo on Sunday for mission leadership conference.  Should be fun!

Love you

Eldste Egan

October 9, 2018

It's October and Norway is starting to get cold. Cold and Rainy.  It's always raining in Stavanger.  The next place I would love to serve is in Bergen. BERGEN!  That place is so amazing!!!!  The city is perfect for missionary work and the waterfalls and ocean and mountains around are amazing and beautiful. 

We recently were able to go to a diversity religion night here in Stavanger.  Pretty funny being in a room with all other religions.  Everyone seemed to really love talking with each other but nobody wanted to speak to the members of our church.  Best thing to do, ask someone to explain the trinity and they will confuse themselves soon enough.  It just takes about 5 minutes for them to think it through.  

Good news, I might fly again Bergen next week for a baptismal interview.  Hopefully it happens.  I have flown 11 times since August first.  It is weird that it feels normal to fly every other week.  The airport is my second home.  

Well besides the bad news about no baptism happening, this week was super fun.  After the diversity religion thing, they gave us all flowers, I didn't know what to do with them so I used them to talk with people on the streets.  Super fun!  

I have become a professional cook and make some mean chili.  I am excited to come home to cheap Tabasco sauce that actually comes in a big bottle.    My next big purchase on the church card will be these famous baked potatoes.    

Next transfers are in 3 weeks.  I will most likely be staying but don't send anything until I say so because there will be another transfer before Christmas.  

Thanks for everything mom. Things are going great and missionary work is moving forward.

Eldste Egan

Ocean in Stavanger

The Hills in Stavanger

The Church in Stavanger

Close Enough

Mom,

Don't worry my visa has not come and my old one is expired.  But don't worry there is nothing to worry about ha ha. I am still allowed to be here and will work out.  

2 hour church is great news! What an exciting conference to watch. It will be easier to get people in church but I don't mind the 3 hour church for people we are teaching because it shows if they are actually dedicated or not.   For families, the change is perfect, for those who don't have an active family or a family who are not members, it can be a challenge.  But I am super excited about the change and that they still kept Sunday school and Priesthood.  I have finished all of conference now.  It just took some extra time yesterday.  

Conference was great. I liked the first session the most.  Plus we had someone come that session and I loved President Oaks talk.  And sadly Norway will never have a temple, maybe during the second coming but it's not happening before that!

I didn't go to Bergen this past week.  The interview ended up not happening.  Flying in Norway is so different than in the state.  You need to be to the airport one hour early.  You don't need ID at security and you never have to take your shoes off.  Sadly the airports hardly have any places to eat like the airports in the states.  Norwegians don't like eating out because it costs so much money.  Everything is just so expensive. But they do have a lot of little places to shop in the airports.  

Great week, fun story is that we took a ferry to some islands outside of Stavanger and knocked on doors out there.  Nothing really happened but it was a fun experience and it's fun to see the different parts or Norway.  It's so green and beautiful.  It's always fun to take a ferry out and just be on a boat.  It has been nice that no cruise ships has been in lately which keeps the docks less crowded.  

By the way,  got a great email that said that the my blog is on the top 100 blogs in Norway.  I will forward you the email. I'm number 99 and President and Sister Hill's blog is number 95.

Love you,

Eldste Egan

Stavanger at Night

Bus Stop in Stavanger

On the Ferry

Stavanger Ferry

September 18, 2018

Hi Mom,

Don't expect a huge email today even though it is pouring rain, I've still run out of time.  I think there needs to be a second ark built at the amount of rain this place gets!

Please keep convincing dad about study abroad.  Thank you!

And i know the Ikea breakfast sounds nasty but a buffet breakfast with potato wedges and Norwegian pancakes was not something I will complain about.  And unlimited soda!  I never have soda because it is so expensive.  A can of soda costs 2.50 dollars.  So having soda is so great!

This week was great. President Tew came into town on Friday and stayed until Sunday night.  We were lucky to get invited over to have dinner with them and some members.  We then studied with President Tew the next morning and had sport (we invite members and non members to play volleyball and soccer on Saturdays.  Let me tell you, president Tew is athletic!  Well we contacted this 18 year old american kid on the streets a couple of weeks ago, he came to sport and loved it.  We gave him a tour afterwards and he even came to church the next day for all 3 hours and then we talk him afterwards.  He said he is all in to know if it is true.  We are meeting with him again on Thursday.  We also got to do some contacting and other things with President Tew for the weekend.  Overall a ton of fun!  Next week I will be flying to Oslo again for zone conference, and for mission leadership conference.  I will only fly 4 times in the next 6 weeks. Sounds like a lot but it is so much less than normal.  

Hope you have a great week.

Thanks for everything

Elder Egan

Hi Mom,

I hope I can send some rain to you.  It sounds like Utah could use it.  It has rained every single day again except today.  We went and hiked Preikestolen again today and it was a blast.  We take these boats that go so fast and then a bus.  The view was amazing again.  My first time there it was so busy, but this time was 500 times better as there was only 16 people up there!  Going in the fall is so much better!  Sorry it costed 50 dollars

This week was fun.  Started teaching another young 20 year old.  The fact that I can teach 2 times a week right now is a dream and a blessing!!!  I don't expect it to last but I hope it continues.  

I fly to Oslo tomorrow and come back late on Friday.  We have zone conference and then a mission leadership conference with an area 70.  It should be fun.  

I'm sorry I don't have a ton of time because of the hike and also I cant remember much from what happened this past week.  Mostly just proselyting and 2 teaches and planning for the zone.  President Tew has changed things!! Like changed them on how this mission runs.  

Have a great week.  Love you.

Eldste Egan

September 7, 2018

Hi Mom and Dad-

Busy Week...

Tuesday, it was raining so nothing too fun on p-day.  Hopefully it stops raining because it literally never stops!  We just contacted in the city that evening.  

Wednesday,  we had district council and then waited with this recent convert member to help us on a teach.  Well the random dude we found out of the area book never showed up..... Not Surprised.....  Well the recent convert asked what we are doing for the next hour, we told him that we would just go into the city and talk to people.  He then said to come in his car and he can show us some good places to bank on doors.  Well an hour later and a ton of rock music and showing us these beautiful places and ice cream.  Honestly such a great hour of my life!  We then went and banked on doors and had some interesting conversations. People sometimes (they just don't make sense!)  Well we had a dinner at a members house.  He is 28 years old and was baptized maybe 2 years ago.  He is so funny and we had Pannekaker for dinner.  Took the bus back to Sentrum and talked with people until the night was over.  

Thursday,  we spent many hours dealing with the stupid government to get permission to set up a street stand.  The same office referred us to 10 different people on the phone and every person we talked to had no idea where to go.  We then had an interesting teach with a guy who we met 2 weeks ago while contacting.  He believes that because he believes in Christ, all of his sins are washed away.  He didn't like how many things we could compare it to.  Overall terrible lesson but I walk away looking at the commandments and the gospel at a different level of Just Making Sense!  We hope to meet with him again.  We will see how it goes.  Contacted for a couple of hours and then had a dinner with a less active guy from the Philippines.  I have learned to love Filipino food on my mission.  Europe has started a 21 day challenge, I don't know if this is going on in the states but it is marketing genius!!!  But we have been trying to go to everyone with these new cards that has 21 questions and 21 days with 21 scriptures.  

Friday/Saturday An early day as I head to the airport early to catch a flight to Oslo.  It takes about 50 to get to Oslo.  I land and then take the flytog (super fast train that can get you into Oslo in about 20 minutes)  Walk to the center and start splits with the AP's.  Well President and Sister Tew invite us to come to dinner that night (Blessing on blessing)  but before this I take a box of BOM's with my companion down to the busier part of Oslo and just split up and did our thing!  I felt like I was serving back in my old area again and had so much fun.  Drove to the Tews and has an amazing dinner!  Wow they cook good and healthy food!  Drive back and have a late night at the musical!  I miss it so much!  So I get to bed at about 12 ish and I get woken up at 6:30 by one of the AP's saying that I needed to go with one of them to drive President and Sister Tew to the airport.  Well it takes about 45 minutes to get there so I knew it would be fun.  We drove them in the huge mission van.  I then drove it home and on the way home we stopped by McDonalds and I dropped over 13 dollars in Mcdonalds on myself.  It tasted so good!  I haven't had a egg mcmuffin since I was home!  I then run into Elder Hansen even though he isn't serving in Oslo and that was fun.  We then had a street stand with the Book of Mormon challenge for hours in the heart of Oslo and I was in heaven.  Oslo will forever be the place where I felt like I served my mission and my favorite place in Norway.  I would go back and serve there in a heartbeat.  Took the flytog back to the airport and ran into some members from the states in the airport.  I have now taken 7 flights in the past 4 weeks and many more are on the way.  Security in Norway is the best.  Wouldn't say the safest bust the longest I have waited in security is about 5 minutes.  You don't have to show ID here to get on a plane.  

Sunday,  Had dinner with the new bishop after church and he fed us cheese burgers.  So good.  Then just spent time in the city contacting people for the rest of the evening.  The more time I spend on my mission, the more fun it is to go out for hours on end and contact literally everyone.  

Monday,  Spent a ton of the day on the streets again using the Book of Mormon challenge.  I never want to use any other card from the church to give to people with or without a book.  I have realized how important the look of and the substance of a good card or idea!  We then helped a inactive member put together a couch from ikea.  Nice couch, 1000 pieces.  We then got asked by the senior couple that they needed all missionaries at the church to help out with YSA for the night because only 2 people showed up.  Traveled home.  I love sleep with all of my heart.

Today...  Well I found out about this thing called ikea breakfast, and let me say it is the best money spent on food on my mission.  For only 9 dollars( around 72 kroner)  I can get a buffet breakfast.  The first one I have seen and it has good food.  I will be making more trips to ikea to eat food.  And then I went and hiked Dalsnuten!  Just look up pictures of it.  But it was an amazing Hike.  You could see everything!

Again, This kind of email is a once a area that I serve in kind of thing!  So the next one might be in 5 months.  

The mission has about 64 missionaries.  Maybe a little more but it is very small.  I don't blame the church for it.  I don't have a car in this area.  I haven't had a car since my first area that I served in.  Honestly I don't like having the responsibility of a car.  I don't like cleaning it, filling it with gas and reporting all of our receipts.  As a missionary, public transportation is the way to go.  You get some pretty funny conversations going on the bus.  

I suprisingly don't see many americans.  We have about 3 families that are american in this ward.  But you can pick out american english in a heartbeat and it is an amazing thing to hear.  

I am using all of my weekly allowance on food every week.  Prices have gone up and honestly we don't eat that well but fruit prices and meat prices are so expensive.  But they make a meal a meal.  So I use all of it that I can.  Plus I just don't want to make food when I come home at night.  Luckily Ikea is only a 30 minute bus ride away!

The mission is great.  Nothing happening work wise.  I want to get someone progressing and someone willing to meet again so badly.  We have one potential who is an 18 year old kid of a member but he is impossible to get ahold of.  Luckily there are so many random things that happen that make the day so fun.  Its all worth it in the end.  My companion is great.  I tease him a lot but it is a lot of fun!  My district that I am serving in is a blast.  

Again don't expect this again.  Maybe this counts as my Christmas Present to you mom?

Eldste Egan

Splits with the AP's 

Gas in the Mission Van

My visit to Bergen

August 21, 2018

Hi mom,

This week was super busy and a lot of fun.

First, Preikestolen was amazing!  So much fun and we were so lucky because it has rained every day except the day we went there and today!  It rains so much!  I can't wait to come back and do it with the family.  

Bergen was awesome!  It is really weird that I have taken 5 flights in the past 2 and a half weeks.  I didn't get to see the heart of Bergen but the surrounding area and close to the city is amazing!  My next to trip will be to Oslo next week!  Zone conference was the reason we were in Bergen.  It was fun to be in charge of most of it and to present.  

I did see the Disney Magic ship in port!  It is cool to think I am serving somewhere that people go on cruises to visit. Fun to see a cruise ship I spent a week with my family on.  I really wanted to get on it for some chicken fingers and ice cream.  

The new ward is awesome!  We got invited over for a dinner this week with this family that has 4 kids.  They are all close to the same age as our family and it felt like I was home again.  Teasing eachother the entire time and it was a blast.  Sadly this dialect is a difficult but so cool!  I have never asked people to repeat themselves more in my life!  Its one of the most active wards with 100 people!  Really cool because Norway has about 4500 members and maybe 1400 are active. So having a ward with this many active is awesome!

I went on splits with an Elder from Denmark!  It was a blast!

I taught my first first lesson in over 2 something months!  It has been a long time since I have taught someone and it felt good to be teaching.

P day was changed for many reasons and I think it makes perfect sense that President changed it.  The main reason is so that conference can be more effective and so President Tew can visit the wards that the conference will be held at the day before!  That and many other reasons that make perfect sense.  I am in full support with President Tew on the change even though it will take some getting use to.  

Love from Stravenger,

Eldste Egan

The DISNEY MAGIC in port.

Norwegian Air (on my way to Bergen) 

Not a barf bag - a "In a while you will be fine"- bag.  The funniest part is that it's in English. 

August 15, 2018

Hi Mom -

Not much time to write this week.  My P days are now on Tuesday and today I was able to hike to PREIKESTOLEN! (Pulpit Rock)  So amazing - you have got to come do this hike.  Oh my gosh, it was so cool.  Here are some pictures.  Talk to you next week.  Just know that everything is great and that I fly to Bergen Sunday and stay until Monday.  Love you guys.  
Love, Eldste Egan

Pulpit Rock is one of the most popular hikes in all of Norway. It towers an impressive 604 meters (which is almost 2000 feet)  off the LyseFjord near Stravengar.  

August 7, 2018

Hi mom,

This week has been so busy.  If my emails are shorter this transfer is it because there is so much stuff to do on P-day here it is amazing.  We will hopefully be going to Preikestolen in a couple of weeks.  We need to rent a van but the senior missionaries are going to help us out with that, it will cost me like 25 dollars but so worth it.  We are planing on going on a hike today but it rains so much in the west.  I fly to Oslo tonight again and back home tomorrow night.  It was so fun taking a plane and also really weird.  I only can have 43 pound bags to fly so it was a struggle.  Don't send me anything that I would have to keep because I literally have no room or weight for it.  

Zone leader means pretty much planning everything for the zone, creating a zone plan, organizing all of the district councils, zone conference, going on splits with every district leader in your zone and so many calls.  It is a lot of fun but also I will not be able to keep up in my journal at this rate.  

Walking around the city and taking random buses and not knowing anything has been a lot of fun.  It is fun to be on the same playing field as my companion on knowing members. It isn't just me trying to learn about them, it is him too!

I feel like i am in the American part of Norway.  Stavanger is awesome.  So many restaurants and things to see and do.  And so many cruise ships.  I have talked to so many people from around the world this week.

The ward is awesome and I'm looking forward to getting to know them better!  So many young men it is weird!

Have a great week.  Talk to you soon. I still have to pack and do a lot of other things today before I fly at 5!

Love, 

ELDSTE EGAN

My new companion - Elder Pfeifer

View from my plane ride from Oslo

Cruise port in Stravengar