Week 10: Benson Boone is still a thing in China

Hey everyone! 

This week I made it to Hong Kong!! On Tuesday I left the MTC and had the longest travel day of my life that lasted until Thursday morning in Hong Kong. It was super long and tiring, but I made it and got to start doing missionary work!! 

Highlights:
- Right after we landed and got driven to the mission offices it started POURING rain, so hard that they had to tell all the missionaries not to come to the mission offices for transfers until the rain died down, so we were stuck there for a while before our trainers and everyone could show up. 
- The food here is AMAZING, I actually love it so much. The members here are even more amazing, and are some of the best people I have ever met in my life! 
- There have been so many miracles so far since I've gotten here, it's been crazy! I'll mention a couple of the best: I ended up in an apartment with Elder Zhao, a good friend from BYU which is actually insane!! It's been so fun so far. 
- On the first day I was here my trainer and I were doing language study and he had me do some role plays of teaching about the restoration of the gospel. While I was talking a guy at the table next to us kept looking over at us, and when I finished talking he handed me his phone and asked if he could have our number! Which is crazy, cause from what I've seen so far in Hong Kong, most people aren't interested in learning about Jesus Christ. 
- Another thing on the first day was that I was feeling pretty overwhelmed by everything by the end of the day, and we were doing some studies in a McDonald's and a song by Benson Boone came on which kinda surprised me, I wasn't really expecting it, but it reminded me of home and of my friends and helped a ton. It was a really cool little thing that reminded me that God's looking out for me. 

Anyways, I'll end it there cause I could seriously go on for hours, there's so much to talk about! Giant snails, the fact that I now live in a city in a jungle on the opposite side of the world, etc. But for the sake of keeping it short here I'll just mention what I have so far. Hope you're all doing amazing! 
Love you all! 
Elder Blankenbiller

Pictures:
1. Giant snail
2. Me and my trainer
3. Hot pot!! 
4. The view out my window
5. Some noodles I had. So good






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