日本のたくさん新しい写真 (Many new photos of Japan!)

So short and brief descriptions in this blog. Yet, this post is replete with pictures to hopefully make-up for my negligence.

I think this means "Welcome to Japan!"


We went to a temple around New Years time and it was so crowded! I found it really interesting how you can have this traditional temple in the middle of a sprawling metropolis. This picture captures that dichotomy.


Beautiful Tokyo Tower, I love this picture.



Just some innocent fun at the Laundry Mat! You can kind of see me in the reflection. Using appliances in Japanese is not the most convenient thing if you catch my meaning. I spent 10 minutes trying to figure out what meant "normal" on this thing.




Oh sweet Lord, I love this. The first Japanese appliance store we went to had this... thing. So funny to watch and so fun to ride. I think it's ages 12 and up.. what's really funny is maybe a month later we saw this machine in some woman's house. I can't believe people use this to work out. It's a mechanical saddle.


These are some girls who we met through the church. The one on the right accepted Jesus while we were there. I think the one on the left is still non-Christian. I swear though this is how they looked all the time. They were always giggling about something. You can kind of see the church in the background lots of people. Talking... eating.. It's after service lunch-time.





We arrive in Osaka, fresh off the Shinkansen. At first we though the Shinkansen didn't have bathrooms (that's what we were told). Then we found the bathrooms were accessable by these gliding doors -plus!- the toilet seat (up/down) and flush are activated by an IR Sensor you put your finger near. Different, yeah?


This is my room in Osaka. I love it.. the best part is Eco, our toilet. I will introduce you later.

Track Sushi in Osaka, for a team members birthday.
I spent $12 for... 24 pieces of mind-boggling delicious sushi.
I can get used to that!


This is the karaoke place we went to after track sushi. I think the following video will speak for itself.

Hello from Iwake!

I want to apologize for the lack of updates, it's very difficult to find an internet connection let alone a time get on! I just woke up and had breakfast and we are supposed to gather for devotions in 5 minutes.

I'm out in the "country". The town is called Iwake, and is about a 2 1/2 hr drive from Tokyo. They told me it was the country, but it's actually a city. There are mountains and more green than Tokyo, but it ain't the country! It is only me and 4 other team members here, as we split the team into three groups for this week. My team went to meet with a guy named Eriya who is involved in the CCC (Campus Crusade for Christ). We spent 3 days in the city of Tokyo, where he is located, and then left for Iwake (another 3 days here). I feel like I have so many stories, but I can't get them all out on the blog. I'll just have to tell you in person! Remember, God is good!

One cool thing though, I went to an onsen (public bath). It was really relaxing, but there is something unsettling about showering/bathing naked in a room full of gloomy japanese salarymen. So... More to come later!