Day 7 Looking for Church in La Spezia; June 22, 2008

Sunday morning and I wanted to go to Church and just be with the Saints and take the sacrament. So yesterday I frantically e-mailed a girl I know who served a mission in this area and asked if there was even an organized branch in La Spezia? Her family got a hold of her and soon I had a return e-mail with can't-miss-it directions.

Sunday School at 9 and Sacrament Meeting at 10:50. Sounded pretty normal. I decided to leave about 8:30. Blockade number one: no train leaving Vernazza until 9:35. Wasted a whole hour! Walked up to the old Catholc church on the hill (it was locked) and sat in a tiny, overgrown park built above the train station and wondered if children ever even used the play equipment surrounded by 3-foot weeds.

When I finally arrived in La Spezia it was already 10:00. Outside the station there's lots of construction, but where are the bus stops? I asked a kindly old man with many warts on his face, and he pointed me in the right direction. Race down the stairs, and more stairs to a side street, but which direction do I go on the bus? Pulled out Larry's trusty compass and decided to go East. I asked two old ladies which bus to take, and they said number 3. That was not on my directions! I went up the street to the stop going the other (East) way and waited. No bus. Here came the same old man again, so I asked him for directions again. He said bus 3 also. Help, what do I do? The guy speaks no English. He motions that he will take me there. This is kind of wierd . . . but at any rate I am taller than him and probably lots tougher.

So I decide to just trust him, and let him put me on bus 3. After winding around in lots of back streets we come to a more main road, and he says "Scendere," meaning I should get off. There was a large park, and we both got off. We waited a few minutes, and then he motions that I should ask a nearby taxi driver. So I do, and he speaks no English either, but I understand him to say "Bus L." I suddenly realize that my directions did not say bus 1, they said bus L; but the font it printed in did not make a distinction! Hallelujah, I know what I am doing now!

In a few minutes, bus L appears and I get on. At every stop, crowds of people get on, all carrying bright bags. This must be the bus going to the beach! Pretty soon the bus is so crowded I can't see out, so I squeeze my way to the front. I have to be able to see what's ahead to find the Penny Market, which is my clue to get off. Sure enough, eventually we approach the red Penny Market sign, and I squeeze my way out of the body jam.

I was glad to be free, but I realize I'm in an industrial area on a Sunday morning, and there is no one to ask for directions. So I follow what I've got as best I can, and after about 10 minutes I arrive at a long building like many others behind a parking lot, with a doorbell that says, "La Chiesa di Gesu Cristo." I ring the bell, they buzz me in, up to the second floor, and I'm here! It's 11:00 and the music is just starting for the sacrament hymn. I'm so happy I could cry. I made it!

The room is small and bright, and there are about 50 people in attendance. The branch president and one counselor preside. The sacrament is passed by 2 boys about age 12 with dark hair and tans. It only takes a few minutes because we are so few. The starting speakers are missionaries. The first is a greenie, and he speaks so slowly I can almost understand. The second is a Hawaiian elder of Chinese descent, and he starts with "Aloooo---ha!" The congregation answers him with "Aloooo---ha!" This is going to be fun! He speaks in rapid-fire Italian, but he carries the Spirit, so I can pretty well follow what he's saying. He's happy and on fire and he reminds me of what Troy must have looked like on his mission. So I really enjoyed the meeting.

Afterward I spoke to several missionaries and the branch president's wife and daughter and had a good time chatting with the members.

Getting home was lots easier, now that I knew where I was going. The only glitch was the bus driver couldn't sell me a ticket, so he just let me ride for free. Once again, I was left hoping the inspectors would not get on! It only took 1 & 1/2 hours to get back to Vernazza from the time I left the church. I was home by 2:00. It was a long wild goose chase, but it was worth it!