Electric Town

Its been a busy two weeks. 

I moved into the Noborito Ecclesia Church in Tokyo, Japan on June 29th, and since then I’ve had almost no free time, but in a good way. Most times when you move somewhere new you need time figuring out where places are or how stuff works, and its hit and miss, mainly miss. But when you move into a community, you are instantly doing everything that they have learned from adapting to their surroundings, and you must adapt fast yourself. 

The first couple days I was at the church, a couple from Kentucky and a couple Canadians were here to help out in Iwaki. The 3rd day I was here a bboy team (breakdance team) from California came to do Christian ministry and put on some street performances. The team star, Jojo, was only 8 years old.... so they drew a pretty big crowd. They are called Break Free, and were constantly sharing the gospel with those they met. Really good ministry, and pretty good bboys too!

One day that week we went to the beach, and as Austin, (one of the Break Free team),  and I were walking along the board walk, we were joking around and being noisy, and a group of about 10 Japanese guys on the beach heard us and started yelling at us. After a couple seconds were realized they were inviting us over to their barbeque for free beer and top grade Japanese BBQ. We ran over, and got some amazing free food... one of the guys owned a pretty successful meat shop, and the rest of the guys worked for him. When we told them we had to leave to meet up with other friends, they gave us some more meat to share with our friends. Just goes to show how open and friendly the Japanese are. 

This past week a team from Seoul, South Korea were here, and they impacted the whole missionary team here daily. Really awesome people, very spirit led and we were blessed to have their help with FUSE and the outreaches we do. They prayed with insight only God could have given, and were always stoked to be doing what they do. They were the kind of people who in some ways remind me of how Christians are called  to live. 

So life in Japan is pretty crazy... soo many people everywhere 24/7. Tokyo is can be pretty grungy, I love it, and its parkour paradise. We take the Tokyo Rail system everywhere, and sometimes there are too many people on the train to move an inch.... they will literally have railroad guards come and push people in so that everyone can fit on the train. But at least its air conditioned, so people can breathe... at least us tall people can. 

The clothing styles here are also super weird... its really popular for guys to do their hair up with a lot of product, to wear leather boots, and to carry purses. A lot of things that are considered girly in North America is normal here for guys... really weird to get used to. But because of this, girls in Japan can be ultra girly... they dress like 1700s styles... frilly lacy white umbrellas, frilly dresses with wiring (so they are always rounded), and lots of bows in their hair. They also have styles called “Hiker” and “Climber”, where the climber style would wear short shorts and climbing clothes, and hiker would wear really outdoorsy and hippy-ish clothing. Actual hiking and climbing in Tokyo aren’t as popular as these styles are though... I saw a magazine in a bookstore that was about hiking and ‘how to hike’, with diagrams on how to step over a log or walk uphill. Or course there are real hikers and climbers in Japan, but I feel like the busy youth in tokyo would rather dress the style and look cool then actually make time go out and do it for fun.

So far I have visited Shibuya, Harajuku, Machida, some other places I can’t pronounce, and Akihabara, which is also called Electric Town. Akihabara was definity my favorite.... the shopping area started in WW2 in the alleyways there as radio parts stores, so the military could easily get parts to fix all their mechanical gear. Now it has tranformed into endless blocks of computer parts, random electronics, and used video game stores. Japan takes its used game stores seriously... many random alleys even in small towns have makeshift shops set up with a few retro games and game systems. For instance in the town I live in, Noborito, there is an alley way that a man lives in the end of, (in a small house), but the alley way is only 3 feet wide and has a roof at about 7 feet... and is lined with PS and Gameboy games. (If you’ve ever played resident evil, its kind of like the merchant from that game...). In Electric Town there is a game store that is 3 stories tall, each floor about the size of a basic cd store, but they sell only used and vintage video games. But it is branched off of an alley way, so its really hard to find. Any video game system you could ever think of is there. Also in Electric Town the alley ways that were made for WW2 supplies now have electronic parts merchants, and you can buy virtually anything from quarter inch cable ends to components to build a motherboard. Here’s a video I found by a white guy in Akiharaba, he doesn’t go in the alley ways, but its still decent... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSeO0c4Q4Ac 

So these past two weeks I have been helping getting the two teams around Tokyo, (but really mainly learning along side them, sometimes even I was the one following them), and doing ministry. By ministry I mean inviting people to our youth church, and just talking with people and making friends. In my free time I have been studying Japanese, and have been taking 2 free Japanese classes a week. Twice a week we visit ShenShuu University in Tokyo, and just practice Japanese and hang out with awesome people. Twice a week we play music on the streets, usually outside train stations. Mainly i’ve been playing acoustic and singing, but i’m also trying to master the Cajon. This past Sunday I also played electric in the worship band at FUSE.

Right now life has slowed down a bit... both of the teams that were here have left, and now I have the floor I live on to myself. So finally I can start a schedual, and now there is enough room in the fridge to start cooking asian style... although I do love eating out at ramen houses. 

What I plan to do this month is to buy a cheap surfboard so I can get out more and possibly find a crew to surf with, start meeting with the Tokyo Parkour team , (TKPK), and hopefully use that as well to meet some proper people. Also i want to find some time to go help at Iwaki. I was originally planning on visiting Iwaki - the disaster area - once a week, but because of my schedual, the distance and train fares, I will now try to go for a week every month.

I love Japan, the people are always a good time, the architecture is amazing, and God has been teaching me a lot since coming here. Im stoked for this next year!!

Tokyo

Finally I have moved to Tokyo. About a week ago I bought my ticket, and then on Monday I left. Both of my flights I had a crying baby in the seat next to me, but somehow I was able to get a decent sleep on the overnight flight to Haneda Airport in Tokyo from LAX. In Denver Int Airport, I met an older man who was getting on the same flight as I was. We started talking, and he was dumbfounded at what I was planning to do in Japan, saying that nowadays kids are all selfish and could care less about the rest of te world. He was an atheist, but still appreciated my values and what I was hoping to do. He said that even if you don't believe in God, you can still learn a lot about how to live from the Bible. He kept saying how amazed he was, and even pointed me out to the flight attendant when we boarded and bragged about what I was doing to her. After I arrived in LAX, I started the hunt to find the bus that takes you to international departures, since it is a separate building from arrivals. I ended up banding up with a Kiwi and two japanese americans who were on the same flight to Tokyo, and together we figured out how to get to Tom Bradly International Airport. We made it with just twenty minutes to spare. The overnight flight from LAX was 12 hours, and was with All Nippon Airwaves. Since the seats were fitted for Japanese, I could sit fully up and look around the plane since I was an entire head above the seats. It was pretty funny, I could see all the other white guys on the plane beacause they were mainly also tall for the seats. 

I arrived at about 5 am tokyo time, exchanged some money to yen, phoned the church to say I had arrived, and caught a bus to ShinYurigaoka. There I met Jeremy, a missionary for Paz Japan. He showed me how to buy a train ticket, and we were off on the train to Noborito, where my new home is. My room is pretty average, with paper sliding door walls and tatama mat (bamboo mat) floors. I am currently staying above the church, but will probably move to an apartment in the future. It is hot and humid.... about 32-35 degrees every day, (85 - 95 F), with the hottest days getting aroung 40 (105 F) degrees. The humidity is around 82% in the morning and 75% in the evening. Its rainy season right now, so its rained already since I've been here. 

After I dropped my stuff off in my room I had some breakfast, and went off to my first Japanese class. It was pretty cool, the teachers talked the entire time in Japanese, and our group was a mix of Coloradans, Nepalis, and a girl from Indonesia. After class Jeremy and I biked around Noborito, and he showed me where to get groceries and what was what in the grocery stores. 

That night I took a speed train to to Shibuya, where the world famous scramble crossing square is, (where in tokyo drift, towards the end, they drift through the huge mob of people). I've heard that more than a thousand people will cross at one time, the average during the week (at less busy times) being about 300 people per minute. Sibuya is awesome, its one of the most popular shopping districts in Tokyo, mainly with really preppy and expensive clothing. In Shibuya, Ty, (an american about my age who is working with Fuse), and I went to get some Udon, (thick noodle soup). Really good stuff, and only about 105 Yen for a bowl (about $1.30 USD). From there we walked over to Cyclone, which is a concert hall and met up with some of Ty's Japanese friends. We watched some hardcore metal bands, all local Japanese bands. 

This weekend is the 2 year anniversary for FUSE, the youth church I will be working with in Machida. A California breakdance team is flying in for 10 days and will be performing at the event. They are all staying at the church, so tonight I will have one of the breakers as a roommate for 10 days. Im pretty stoked to meet everyone and see how FUSE operates on sundays. 

So far I am still figuring out daily life here, getting settled in and getting used to taking overpacked bullet trains everywhere. So far life is really chill, just hanging out with people, practicing Japanese and buying essentials.  It was really stressful planning everything in Colorado, but now that I am here all the anxiety is gone and I'm just stoked on life for what's next. 

Soon I will repost about life in Japan, and hopefully post some pictures as well.

Stay Blessed, 

Isaac 

日本

Gabe and I in Pai, Thailand... fixie bike rollin.

SO I decided i was long due to write another blog... last time i wasn't so faithful. Too busy with DTS (a christian discipleship training school) in New Zealand to keep it updated. But now I have a lot more free time.

It's now been a couple months since traveling Thailand... which was a super revolutionary time. Learned about simplistic village life, (it should be a requirement for every human to live in a village for a month.. you learn so much about life, and values) and had many talks with travelers about their world views.

Tonsai - Lived here for a month- rock climbing paradise

Backyard Bar... best reggae in the jungle

 The great thing about backpacker culture is that everyone is so relaxed and open to talk about anything, the conversation usually ends up pretty good. It was tops. I would spend our days hanging with the random travelers we met, and the nights hanging in Thai bars, listening to live reggae and having some proper conversations. We also spent about a week in Laos, which was like being at a college party 24/7... Drunk westerners everywhere, and some bars even had drug menus... you could order a shroom tea or a bad of weed to go with your chicken sandwich. The one cool thing about Laos was the tubing... you tube down this river, lined with bars on both sides, and people will throw you a rope to pull you in. Beautiful country, but the scars left on the town by the party scene was visible. 

As some of you may know, I'm a christian, (not as in I go to church every sunday, (1 hour a week christian), but as in I believe in the redemptive truth of Jesus, and that to be a disciple is to live within but apart from secular society. This means that I study the bible, try to live out my faith, and commune with God). So my time in thailand and new zealand was partly to see the world, but mainly to learn about the bible, and discuss my beliefs with people around the world. I had long conversations with friends, vagabonds, and hipsters and about their thoughts on sex, weed, politics, religions, religion as a society, and different christian views. 

After T land I ended up driving a rented car around new zealand for 2 weeks with three others who i consider family, (Mary Lloyd, her mother Holly, and my brother Evan), along with some hitch hiking. Hostel hopping was surreal! Community meals with people from around the world, good stories, and had some kosher hostel jam sessions with random travelers, when we could track down a guitar. 

All this traveling has made me realize some things... one of which is that if you feel God calling you to something, you need to go for it. A second one is that life is pretty much pointless if you are going to school to work, working to survive, and surviving for the main point of not dying. So this, along with a spiritual calling, is why I have decided to move to japan.... Tokyo, the city of at the end of the world. Its time to step up to my beliefs, to live life for a greater purpose, to act out what it means to be a true disciple of Christ. Although every year I take off from school is another year that my scholarships won't pay for, and I'm already broke, I feel like it's time to make some steps toward living how I've been saying  and realizing is the way to live. 

In response to all this, I have applied to Paz Japan Missionaries, and been accepted! I am currently fundraising to spend around a year in Tokyo, working for Fuse Jesus Community... a church plant and community centered around sharing Jesus' love. But for me to do this, I need a community of supporters... so currently I'm searching out people who will support me month to month in Japan. I will be going out to the disaster area about once a week, bringing food/water, helping clean up, and just being there for those who need it. The rest of the week I will be working with the churches ministries, such as street ministry, evangelism, youth ministry, and college ministry. 

If you feel called to bless me through promising a monthly set donation, please do! Here are the ways to donate....

How to send a donation to PAZ Japan Mission
Four Options:
1. Mail a check to our mission account in Peoria, IL, with a note saying who it is for, and the missionary can access the money here in Japan. Here's the address of our mission:
PAZ Japan
c/o Project Amazon
P.O. Box 3253
Peoria, IL 61612

2. Donation by credit card, Gail Hodel (Project Amazon and PAZ
Japan executive secretary of our headquarters in Peoria, IL) runs
credit card donations from the PAZ office twice a month (10th and
the 25th). If you choose to utilize this option, please call the office
at 309-263-2299, to give your credit card information, since she doesn't recommend sending credit card information via
email. She works part time, so if she is not in the office,
please call and leave a phone number and she will return your
call.

3. Donation online through our website, using Paypal, use:
www.pazjapan.org (but you will, again, have to send a note saying which missionary or which project it is being sent to.)

4. In case there are problems sending online through our website,
you can send money directly to PAZ Japan using paypal (and not
going through our PAZ Japan website), using the email address:
projectamazon@gmail.com
This puts the donation into the PAZ account and it will be
tax-deductible. Send Gail an email specifying that your donation is
for a certain missionary or project.

If you have additional questions, please call our PAZ Japan
headquarters: Gail Hodel, 309-263-2299,
or send an e-mail: dove@dpc.net

heres a random video made by Paz Japan

Support Promo from Fuse Jesus Community on Vimeo.

Thanks for reading, hope this gets you stoked on what people are doing around the world! If you agree with what I'm doing, check out these sweet links! Christine Huber's blog, a missionary I will be working with... http://www.ekklesia.cc/amazing_grace/, and the Fuse Jesus Community website! http://www.thefuse09.blogspot.com/
 If you don't agree with what I'm doing, shoot me a facebook message.... I would love to hear your thoughts.

the unknown road - Kia Ora

SO after many people asking me to keep them updated on my travels, I decided to start a blog! Im new to this and dont really like blogging, so bear with me...

Currently I am attending a YWAM in Oxford New Zealand, which is pretty much community living while persuing Christ. Dont really know how i ended up deciding i was going here, but it all worked out... We mainly go to Christchurch (closest major city) and just hang out and talk with random people, chill at hostels, or do activities like slacklining and climbing. We have a mini half pipe, a slackline, and a ghetto climbing wall on base, which is pretty choice...

So our first day in Christchurch we were chillin at a food handout in the city square came over and started talking to us about the evil white man. Michael, (a weathered old white Aussie man), told us about how white people are all stupid and ruin everything. He said he has traveled the world, (modern day jack kerouac), and realized that islanders know how to really live, while we(white culture) are too caught up in ourselves.
After walking around a bit we found a kid playing guitar on the street. We walked past, then pulled out our instruments ( we had a guitars, a mandolin (which i played) a harmonica, and two bongos), and walked back next to him, one by one, with our intruments playing along. He thought it was pretty funny, and he joined him for a jam sesh, and made him like 10 bucks NZ.

I've really started some major insight on this trip and God's call on me. Through taking time daily to soak in His presence. It's hard to explain what this means to aethiests, but basically sometimes you can just physically feel God. It's also pretty awesome to hang out at hostels (we went to one in Hamner Springs called Le Gite, but we called it Legit) and just talk to random travelers. So far I have met more people from around the world than from NZ. 

One of my favorite things in Oxford is this giant hedge. Its a huuge hedge made out of trees, (20 feet tall, by like 20 feet wide), in the kind of monkey tree with crazy branches. We can literally tree climb from one tree to the next for about an hour of continuous tree climbing. at one point you climb over a walkway about 8 feet off the ground. Pretty legit.And I am about to go night climb it so.....