Thursday, April 8, 2010


This is some of our YSA after a fireside. They are getting their jackets, boots, scarves, hats and gloves on and ready to go outside.
L. is Donna
M. is Anna who served a mission in Japan and is now working in Moscow for Henry Kosak the CES EEA boss.
R. is Dasha from the wonderful Savchuk family.
Back is Inna the YW district Pres.





























Our only male left is Andrey and he is moving to Ulan-Ude on the far east of Russia. He will be supervising the building the new church building in the city

































































































Novokutznetz Branch President, Elder Green in their "chapel". Beside the chapel, they have a small office to the left and a bathroom.














Novokutznetz is an old coal town with lots of manufacturing. This is how they get their power. Coal. Every inch of Novokutz is covered with black coal smoke and when you go in at night and clean you face, the cloth is black.











We travel to Novokutz at least once a month via a 9 hour bus ride. This is really the most depressing city we have seen.














This is Elder Ahuna who is full blooded Hawaiian. When he was just a child his father met an Indian who did the hoop dance and elder Ahunas father did the Hawaiian dances, so they taught each other their dances. Since then the Ahuna family has traveled all over the world doing these dances. So, Elder Ahuna was allowed to bring his hoops. He is doing the dance here in the Mission Home for the Senior Couples Conference.






This is Elder Ahuna.


















These are some of the ice sculptures outside the Novosibirsk History Museun.















More ice sculptures.














In the park where the ice sculptures are just as the sun is starting to go down at 4:30 pm.
















More park.

Thursday, April 1, 2010


this is looking across the river to the left bank. the elevated "train" is actually the tunnel that the metro passes through to cross the river.













This is a picture of one of the ice slides that the missionaries went to on P day
















Another view of one of the slides.
























Sorry, this is a repeat.











More ice slides.















The start of one of the slides.

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

One of the main roads we have to cross. Notice the two strips of blacktop? That is because the car tire when they are heated wear away the ice. Everything else is 8 inches deep in ice.

Leaving the park.

Donna Korateava, a new convert to the church. Her parents don't know because they will throw her out of the house if they find out. She caught up with us on our walk home

This is down the center of the park. Everyone comes here for their kids to play and the dogs to run.

This is the entrance to the park we walk through.

Another set of apartments we pass by. As you can see, there is an 8 inch deep layer of ice over everything.

This is a manhole that has no cover, right in the middle of the path. Someone did put some boards over it, which in some ways is worse, because you don't see the hole unless you know it is there.

These are some of the paths heading off in different directions.

Now we are in the 3rd and 4th blocks where we head through apartment blocks.





This is the next block of our walk. We have to cross tranvie tracks. Can you see the foot path through the snow. Everyone walks single file, so all you see is narrow tracks through the snow.


This is the scenery in the first block of walking home after church. Everywhere there are exercise bars for people to do their exercises on.


As you can see, everything is falling into the hole for the whole block.





This is one of the heating pipe that has sprung a leak. You can tell them all over town because of the steam clouds over them. This one is right behind our church, with the black fence the back of the church.



Dad, after he got his Iceshoes on and leaving the church parking lot.



President Sovchucks car with an electric heater on the engine so he can start it after church. You either have to do this or leave it running in -20F weather

Saturday, January 2, 2010






Some more of the ice on the street in front of our apartment.

Elder Wilson sleeping. He is tired from cleaning the "Palace".

This is new years day at the Mission Home with some of the missionaries playing games.

This is the road below our apartment. There are two tracks for the cars and the rest is ice.

These are two ladies conversing at the gate of our park. Notice they are wearing fur coats. It is - 20.






















This is one of the steam plants in Novo. They burn coal and you can see what they do to the air.

This is one of the steam pipes that carry steam to the houses. They are not under the ground and so have to make bridges over the driveways or roads.

Most of the houses will be buried under the snow before long. They have to dig a path to the door.

This is a road into another village.

Notice the path into the village. There is no road for cars.

Green is used a lot in Siberia. It makes a nice contrast against the snow.

A plowed road leading out into Siberia.

More villages on the way back to Novo.