A Trip to the Baltic States

Another week another blog post and this one is caulk full of adventure! We traveled to Lithuania's neighboring Baltic States this past weekend and even though it was such a great trip, three countries in four days can be very tiring! You know you've done a good job when you need a vacation from your vacation and that is definitely the truth with this trip. However, I've come to fall more in love with Europe and it's going to take a lot to get me to leave.
We started our adventure with an eight hour bus ride to one of the MOST gorgeous cities I have ever been to, Tallinn, Estonia. I LOVED this city so incredibly much. The town itself was incredible and the people were so friendly. There was just a feeling that I got from the city that is truly indescribable. We spent two days there and I wish I could have stayed for much longer.

*Disclaimer: This post has a lot of photos... but when you take over 1000 in one trip it's hard to narrow it down. Kudos to you if you're able to scroll through them all.



Can I go back already?

 

Model status right here.... Love the old buildings in Estonia.

Street artists and cobblestone roads.

Gorgeous parks and fabulous friends.

Wait... where are we trying to go?



Estonia! We have arrived :)

At the Viru Gates located at the entrance into Old Town

Stopping to smell the flowers along the street market.

St. Catherine's Passage

Walking the streets of Old Tallinn

This man was celebrating his last night of being single and in honor of that occasion had to walk the streets of Tallinn, guessing girls names and asking them to kiss his cheeks. Kiss a man off the street in Europe, check!

Town Hall Square

We didn't find the beach we were hoping for but this was close enough

Master's Courtyard

Gorgeous lookout of the city... Seriously I'm smitten.



On Sunday morning we got up very early to catch a ferry over to Helsinki, Finland. We spent a lot of the day trying to figure out where to go and what to see... but once we actually found what we had been looking for we loved it! Helsinki, compared to Riga and Tallinn, is very much a modern city.

Welcome to Finland!

We rented bikes to explore the town with and it was the best idea ever as my feet were very much protesting by this point!

Posing in front of statues, we look similar don't we?

I loved all the boats!

Gorgeous Helsinki Cathedral

Another lock bridge, I love these!



Marriage proposal...? What the Bridge of Love brings out in two roommates.

 

Uspenski Cathedral

Heading back to Tallinn on the ferry

We got back to Tallinn late and then the next morning at four we took a bus to Riga, Latvia. We ran into the problem of it being Mid-Summer's festival so a lot of things were closed and when I say a lot of things, I mean EVERYTHING! Europeans take their holidays very seriously. However, Riga was just as gorgeous as Tallinn and Helsinki and we naturally fell in love with it too.

House of Blackheads

Cat House... this one made me think of my grandma and her love for cats.

The Baltic Countries love their cats

So gorgeous!

The Riga Castle

The House of Three Brothers

After a four days of walking non stop and exploring everything we could with the time we had, we headed home to Vilnius on a bus leaving at three in the morning. Sad to leave, but so ready for some R&R.

Waiting for the bus to Vilnius with flowers we had bought earlier in the day.

Now that I've explored more of the Baltic Countries I want more than anything to go back and experience their wonders again!

Called to Serve

Where do I even begin my story... Let's start backwards shall we? Today Emma and I had a Mexican Fiesta with our host family after we got home from church. Jolita is constantly cooking for us, making all sorts of delicious and gourmet dishes. We decided she needed the night off and a taste of some real Mexican food.  So much fun! We made chicken quesadillas and Pico de Gallo. I made a ice-cream crunch dessert that they loved too.

 

Medeina and her friend Victoria helping us cut stuff for the pico! And yes that would be me in the background, shredding some chicken.



Love love love our host family!



Delicioso!

Church today was really great. We were fifteen minutes late to church because we missed the first bus and we were worried about missing the sacrament. Well we got there and they were still singing the opening hymn. We were in luck! I told all of the Lithuanian missionaries serving in that ward about my mission call and they were so excited for me.

 

Waiting for an LDS mission call can make a week seem incredibly long and I mean incredibly long. And to make matters worse it didn't arrive on Wednesday (as most calls do back home in Utah) so we were thinking we would have to wait until next week to find out. Well on Thursday, as Emma and I were watching some good ol' YouTube videos with Medeina, my brother sent me this picture.

No words, just the picture. I literally jumped off my chair I was so excited! I FaceTimed my mom (thank goodness for modern technology) and told her we HAD to open it! So, being the best mom in the world, she dropped what she was doing at work, gathered the troops together, and we planned on "opening" it at 3 P.M. Utah time... which meant 12 A.M. Lithuanian time. In times like these time does not matter.

On my end I started getting the technology portion of it ready and I called Lindsay and Michaela to come join in on the fun.



My outward appearance may not show it, but I was freaking out on the inside!

As I ran around the house, getting everything ready, Emma and I celebrated in the turn of events the day had taken.  Midnight could not have come slower, but it did eventually come and I was oh so excited.

I had people on the computer, the iPad, and the iPhone. Twelve in total were tuning in from other parts of the world and on my end we had ten. Thanks to Emma for letting me borrow some of her Apple products for the occasion.  

All around the table :)

My mom opened the envelope, put the letter to the screen for me to read, and well... I'll let the video speak for the rest of it. 

 

Sister Watts is going to the Russia-Vladivostok Mission reporting October 9th to the Provo MTC!!!!

I think I must have read the first part of the call from memory because I could not see the actual destination and when I could see it I definitely couldn't pronounce it.

In shock, but so excited about my mission call!

My mom sent me a picture of the call. Sister Watts is going to Russia!

It was so fun to have Lindsay and Michaela there!



My roommate was the absolute best during the week... listening to me worry and list possibilities as to where I would be sent and then sharing in my excitement when the call actually came. She also took the role of photographer and videographer. Thanks a bunch Emma!

When I got to researching my mission on the web a bit this is the first picture that I came upon. It was comforting to say the least.

Photo credit: http://russianelder.blogspot.com/

Since my call packet is back home in Utah I didn't get to look through it to find the map of my mission, so I found it on the internet.

Everything in the salmon is in my mission.
Photo credit: http://elderwhitmore.blogspot.com/p/map.html

I picked up a Russian Book of Mormon today at church and some other Russian handouts the missionaries gave me. How awesome is it that I am in a Russian/Lithuanian speaking ward here?!

I also found a whole slew of blogs from not only Elders and Sisters in the Vladivostok Mission themselves but my Mission President's blog! I have definitely indulged myself into reading their stories and I can't wait to learn more. So far some of the highlights from my researching have been...

• "Record 8 Baptisms in One Week!!!" from the Mission President's Blog. That was just last week too! The work is moving in Vladivostok.
• Do not drink the water in Russia!
• Apparently "brave belly button" in Russian sounds like "smelly poop" in English, just in case you wanted to know.
• Vladivostok Russia is 17 hours ahead of Utah.
• "The Vladivostok Mission covers the largest geographical area of any mission in the world. It borders North Korea, China, Mongolia, and Alaska. Includes Siberia and the Arctic Circle." North Korea?! Siberia?! Arctic Circle?! Boy oh boy!

As soon as I read where I had been called I knew that it was where I am meant to be and serve. I am so excited to serve a mission. This church and gospel have brought such happiness, purpose, and light into my life and I can't wait to share that with others. I'm so very grateful for this opportunity Heavenly Father has given me and the trust that He has in me to continue His work in Russia.

 

The people of Vladivostok better be prepared because Cестра Watts is coming!