Konichiwa from Japan! The World Race has touch down in a new country! Things are a bit different this month because we are living with families. The Japanese have graciously opened their homes for about 3 weeks. Each team is separated into homes around the suburbs of Osaka. This month Sharion and I are living with a family that has two daughters, (11 and 14). The 14 year old, Mickey, speaks very good English. She has been to America to visit her cousins and also spends time each summer in Guam studying English. The 11 year old, Miri, is more shy and is hesitant to practice her English. They are both adorable and very friendly. The rest of my teammates are staying with other families around town. It’s about a 20 min ride to each house from me, which makes it difficult to spend a lot of time as a team. Each morning my team meets at the Aishya Family Center. Two people work at the preschool for the day, while the other five walk around town meeting people and building friendships. Our ministry starts tomorrow, so hopefully at the end of the week I’ll have some stories to tell.
It is amazing to be living in houses this month. Heat is a beautiful thing, especially in the cold weather. When we got on the plane in Malaysia it was about 85 degrees, but when we got off the plane it was about 30 degrees. Our bodies have needed some adjusting time, so the heat is enjoyed. Japanese don’t heat their homes in the same way as America. There is a space heater in the living room, which is turned on when people are in the room. It is the only part of the house that is heated during the day. Then when everyone goes up to their bedrooms to sleep, they turn on a space heater for about 1 hour to heat up the room. However, when you fall asleep the heater gets turned off. We sleep under many heavy blankets to keep us warm in the night. We bundle up to walk/bike around town, but it’s not too bad. We are staying warm.
Food is definitely different in Japan as well. Japanese eat a lot of curry/stew over rice. This is a cheap option that my team has had often. Japanese raman noodles are also popular. Sushi is very popular and very cheap. We went to a rotating sushi bar on Saturday for lunch. As the sushi goes around the tables, like a toy train, you can pick up any plate that passes. Each plate is 100 yen ($1). Most plates have two pieces of sushi on them, however the cheaper sushi rolls (such as a tuna roll) have more pieces. There are a variety of raw and cooked fish as well as non-seafood items. Our team enjoyed some tuna salad, shrimp tempura, beef and cheese, and pineapple slices. I was able to try raw squid, salmon, and (my favorite) a shrimp, avocado, and onion piece. As long as you keep track of your plates you are good to go!
Please pray for our team this month as we navigate living apart. We are hoping to find a balance of spending time with our host families and spending time as a team. We do not get much time as a team, only about 2 hours a day, so pray that we are able to be intentional with this time. It is quite a change and adjustment from spending 24/7 with our team over the last 4 months. Also pray that we are able to have great conversations as we walk around town. That we are able to spread the love of Jesus and build friendships over the next 2 weeks. Thanks!!
