Nueva Santa Rosa Branch 

Yesterday, we went with the couple who live next door to us to a baptism in the branch where they serve. We have meant for some time to take a picture of some of the motorcyclists in the city (of which there are very many) and how they interact with the other traffic on the roads.

This isn't the best picture but you can see the long line of motorcycles taking advantage of the space between lanes of traffic to get ahead. Even on rainy days like this one, there are many on motorcycles and they are quite aggressive in their efforts to get ahead. Besides doing this they will mostly ignore traffic signals, and when needed, go on the sidewalk. I should note that, when using the sidewalk, they will yield the right of way to pedestrians.

It seems that, when in an area of perpetually mild weather, you have options that you might not have in other areas. One such option would be to have your baptismal font outside. We later learned that they used all of the water stored for use in the chapel to fill the font so there wasn't any water available for the rest of the evening. They used two hoses to siphon the water out onto the lawn after the service.

Another custom that we found unique was the whiteboard set up in the chapel during the service. It says, "Happy Baptism" and names the two boys who were baptized. Besides the four senior and four younger missionaries, only two grandmas were in "Sunday dress." The rest were rather casual. One new convert (a delightful young man with enthusiasm for the gospel) wore a T-shirt suggesting he would be willing to work for beer.