Kenny & Becky Kapp: Pliz and Than Q!

We had occasion to visit the hospital several times one week and when we told President and Sister Tui'one that we never have problems even after hours, the president said, "It's probably because they don't speak English very well so they can't tell you not to come".

This is one of the signs on the isolation ward at the hospital. It make me realize how difficult English can be with our multiple ways to pronounce vowels. Always remember to say "Pliz and Than Q".

Our new ride (the SUV in the front) It is a Hyundai Tuscon
Our old ride (the van in the back). We drove it approximately
15,000 Km in the five months we used it. It was much harder
to maneuver than the Tucson but kind of nice to sit up higher.

We were assigned a van to drive around for the first 5 months of our mission. It was handy as we carried a short step ladder with us as we surveyed the Stake Center Technology. The data cabinets are hung up on the wall so it is difficult to see what is in them or to work on them without the step ladder. We can fit it in the new ride (seen below) but will have to plan better as we need to fold down a back seat to get it in. It will be nice to get better gas mileage and it is much more maneuverable. Parking here can be difficult especially in a full size van.

For those of you who are wondering what it is like to have the steering wheel on the right hand side of the car, here is a photo so you can imagine slipping behind the wheel ... then driving on the left side of the road. It actually isn't as hard as I thought it would be. The hardest part is actually the turn indicators (on the right side of the steering wheel). It is not uncommon to switch on the windshield wipers instead of the turn indicators. We call it the "senior missionary wave".

L->R Back row, Sister and Elder Hafoka, Elder and Sister Kapp, Sister and Elder
Elder Tautua'a. Front row, Elder Mortenson (Washington St) Elder Purdy (Utah)

Note the safety rope. You may need
to click on the image to see a larger view.

See the lunch and the boots

We were working at one of the chapels while they were cleaning the roof (pressure washing it). Lunch was hung in a nearby tree where his boots also sat so they wouldn't get wet or eaten by animals or bugs while he pressure wash the roof of the Church house in Longolongo.

Safety is not an issue as he has a rope which is held by someone on the ground on the other side of the building.

We do love and miss our family and friends but we are grateful for this opportunity to serve and strengthen our own testimonies. I love serving with Lepeka, she is my best friend and so much fun to be around 24x7. Our hope is that you feel of our love for the Lord and know that we are committed to doing our best to follow our Savior's example. We invite all to come unto Christ as there is no other means by which man can be saved.

We love the people of Tonga and are so appreciative of their kindness and generosity. We have learned a lot from them. Our challenge for the week is to look for ways to be kind and polite and loving to all who cross your path each day ... then perhaps you can get a glimpse of life in Tonga too!

Bonus Section for the sports enthusiast!

We had the opportunity today to attend a Rugby game between Tonga and Samoa. It was the Pacific Nations cup opener today and there will be another game next week against Fiji that we're hoping to get better seats for. We took several photos so you will see many posted below. This was a real national event and was standing room only everywhere (it got much more crowded than show in the panorama photo). They have berms on the end of the field to make it easier to accommodate lots of people.

Panorama view of Teufaiva Stadium in downtown Tofoa ... a suburb
of Nuku'alofa (hehe).

Don't I make Sione look small???
He was listed at 6'3" and 325 during his playing days.

While we were at the Rugby game we met Sione and Keiti Po'uha and two of their children, sons Viliami and Sonasi. They saw us (not sure how he recognized two palingi missionaries in Tonga) and came over and introduced themselves asking if we were the Kapp Perry missionaries serving in Tonga (we'll link up with the Perry name anytime).

Sione is a Bishop in the Bountiful 6th ward (Tongan) that meets in Woods Cross, Utah. We attended this ward just prior to entering the mission field but did not meet him at that time as he was out of town. He also had a career with the NY Jets playing Defensive End and Nose tackle from 2005 - 2012 (click here to read more about Sione Po'uha). They are a delightful family here on vacation for 2 weeks visiting family. The 2 boys have never been to Tonga before. Sione is also going to do a mini American Football camp at Liahona on Monday morning. I think we may sneak over for a peek.