I'm in America, but...

I have tons of pictures from Japan I want to get up on hurr. School has started and I'm extremely busy, so thank you for being patient with me.

So...last time I posted stuff from Morioka. And after Morioka, I went to a lovely city calledHachinohe in the Aomori prefecture of northern Japan. While serving as a missionary, Hachinohe was my second area and I served there for a total of 7 months. I feel that I really grew the most in Hachinohe. I went in there hardly being able to introduce myself in Japanese and left being able to hold fairly solid conversations.

Sister Kitamura is such a kind member. She looks after the missionaries and with me, I felt we developed a certain familiarity that was deep and eternal. I was blessed to be able to spend lots of time with her in Japan. She went out of her way to help me out. She helped me find a place to stay. I stayed at Brother Ono's house, another member I grew close to. Anyway, here's some pics and vids.

Freaking sweet dolls made from paper!

Bro. Ono.

Sister Kitamura and her infamous bike.

Hachinohe

Peeing statues

We went to the beach. The crew was solid.

Tree of Life. in Japanese. Crazy.

Japanese child.

Near the beach where we took a lunch break.

great.

Morioka rock star

I have been to the city of Morioka a few number of times, but have never really been anywhere besides the restaurant that sells unholy amounts of kats curry and the church. Bro. Takako, a member I know from Kamisugi. And he's the most rockin' homebro I think I have ever met.

The first time I ever really talked with him, he was ta

lking about the movie New York Doll, which just so happens to be one of my all-time favorite films. Anyway, he frequently asks me about Led Zepplin, Queen, Aerosmith, etc. The guy knows American Rock & Roll better than any Japanese person I have ever met.

So, as I told Bro. Takako that I would be coming to Japan, he got way excited and invited me to go to a concert that his band will be playing at. I agreed and was excited because this is something I had never had the opportunity to do as a missionary. See the Japanese rockstar in action.

I arrived in Morioka about 5 hours before showtime, so I had a chance to hear the band practice a bit. They had some of their own music as well as some adaptations of some American rock and blues. I shot some footage of them rockin' around.

As I listened to them singing Rolling Stones, I didn't really notice it, but I guess I was singing along with them. Then next thing I knew, they told me I was getting on stage with them.
We had many adoring fans

I even got a flower from one the cool fans.

The BA band.

Oh Sendai the beautiful

Made it to Sendai peeps. Working on getting the blog organized and shiz. I`ve got a few posts to go.

So, I left Tokyo. It was a lot of fun hanging out with Amy and Nathan and stuff. Good peeps with good souls. I headed up north for the land of milk and honey called Tohoku. This is the area where the major earthquake of March 11th happened.

Being back in the mission is pretty insane. Frequently, I feel the urge to run up to every single person I see and tell them about the church. Entering convenience stores is always a joy and every time I think about how we couldn`t enter, I find it funny. They are really nothing exciting. Listening to music, watching TV, and even being alone while here in Japan has brought back such refreshing, nostalgic memories. It is like going home after being in at school. Stepping off the bullet train and into the Sendai eki, I felt comfortable and at home. Sendai was my home for so long. I had returned.

I met up with Monma and Kan while in Sendai and I stayed at the Satos. We went to see the fireworks and everything. Seriously, Japanese fireworks are incredible. They spit in the face and tickle the buttcheeks of any firework show I have ever seen. Ran and Rei Sato were wonderful enough to hang out with me at the firework show. As cool as that was, the highlight of the show was watching this kid dance. I have no idea what he was up to, but he looked like he had to pee the entire time. He stood up watching the fireworks and anytime they would stop, he would do a dance like he was trying to help himself from peeing his pants. It was awesome.

Anyway, met up with Monma for some kappazushi. Then, with Kan, we went to the ocean to see the quake. This video is a little long, but I think its well worth a watch for at least a few minutes.

(insert video here that refuses to upload)

Truly unbelievable, am I right? It`s one of those things that you hear about how bad the situation or damage is, but it doesn`t really hit you until you see it with your own eyes.

So videos don't like to upload for me. dang. Man, blogger sucks. I'm going to check out tumblr.

Anyway, things in Sendai were great. I had a blast. Next, Morioka!

I know its been a while.

but heres a picture after I rocked out with some japanese rockstars in morioka.So, its been really hard to post everything I have wanted to post. I have lots of neat experiences but internet usage is really strange around here. I promise as soon as I get a chance I will show you everything I have to show you. Lets see if this video will upload or not.

great it worked. I have about 15 more minutes on the computers.

Heres some pics

Thats right Amy. It is grape ぜりー

The things I do for this blog...and you people

So...turns out I couldn't upload anymore videos because I had no more memory on my picasa account. This morning I bit the bullet and paid a whopping $5 for 20 more gigs (that's gigabytes for you less tech-savvy people)

Anyway, got some more memory. Here's how the rest of the night went.

.Karaoke. is. amazing.

So basically, you walk into this place, rent a room, and sing your heart out. They have these high-tech karaoke song machines that have almost any song imaginable. We paid for 2 hours and sang our hearts out.

At the end of the day, it all ends with purikura. Such a great day.

Then after that....

Japan and it's interesting stores.
We went to Harajuku. Super fun and so many random styles and fashions. Thisis the epitomy of Japanese pop culture, I felt like.

I met up with Nagahama Hikaru, my great friend from the mission. We met up with Honda Satoru, another missionary friend and Kuwahara Sei, a friend from Aizuwakamatsu. I wasn't supposed to see Satoru or Sei, but they called Hikaru and we all ate dinner at Ootoya...

Can't post anymore. Dang. Karaoke was super good. I think I'm going to have to figure this out tomorrow. I'm too tired.

To be continued...

oyasumi nasai

Then next we went to Asakusa

<--------Taiyaki. Cream inside a fish-shaped bread cover is delicious beyond belief.

Asakusa, the largest Japanese shrine I have ever been to.

So yeah, I'm a liar. You can put up lots of vids on a single post. Whudda thought?!

Shampoo flip flops

Tokyo, nothing at all like Sendai.

So holy crapper dude. Tokyo is like literally 20 times the size of Sendai. Unlike anything I have ever experienced. We never were in an area where at least 100 people were not around us on every side. The buildings are huge and wrap around each other like a confusing maze. The train system is like a nest of snakes wrapped and intertwined with one another. I was really glad I was traveling with Tomo, Amy, and Nate.

So thoughts that I have...Basically, writing is boring and I would assume that you probably think the same. You're probably bored right now and that's the only reason you're reading this. Your boredom is more dense than reading boredom; therefore, I have gained you as a loyal reader. And I thank you for that. However, vlogs are apparently a thing of the future and although I have no intention and didn't plan on this blog taking up that medium, I happened to take 84 photo and videos with my iPhone today. I'm tired, lazy, and think that my videos and photos are way more interesting than anything I can say, so here goes.

Our day started off at Shibuya Train Station, quite possibly the busiest area in all of Japan. The Shibuya crosswalk is pretty sweet!

Shoot! Blogger will only allow me to post one video at a time. Well, no need to get down. We'll just separate them into separate posts.

Another travel, another time to blog

Melon cream soda. The best!!

This morning, I was awoken to the loud cry of cicada bugs. I haven't heard that sound in a long time. I rolled out of my futon onto the tatami mat of the Takabori's house. Dang it feels good to be in Japan, again.

Yesterday's travels all went smoothly. At LAX, I had about 5 hours before my flight took off. It was a long time to wait and my nerves were grinding at me. I have never been the greatest flyer, and having all that time to sit in the airport just made me think about all the things that could go wrong. I talked to my sister, Alyssa; she gave me the necessary "slap" in the face that I needed.

On the flight, I watched a few movies, read some of my book, and took a nap. Before I knew it, we were about an hour from Tokyo. Crisis averted. Usually, long flights kill me. I just get so uncomfortable. This 11 hour flight wasn't bad.

There was a really chill Japanese woman sitting next to me named Yuko. I really said only about 2 or 3 sentences to her. That was enough to play my gaijin (foreigner) card and she was impressed by my innccccredible ability to speak Japanese. After the flight, she came up to me and we chatted briefly about my trip. She asked if I was going to Kyoto and I said that I am planning on it. Out of the blue, she asked it I would stay at her house. I was like "YEAH!" Sweet! free place to stay in Kyoto. Score. She seemed pretty genuine. Not like a creeper. But we'll see. Let you know how that goes when I cross that bridge.

After getting raped by how weak the dollar is at the currency exchange counter, I walked outside and breathed in the fresh, humid, japanese air. Felt good. I walked around for about 15 minutes just soaking in the Japanese-ey feel of everything. People speaking Japanese around me, the signs, and everything created this refreshing feeling. Like coming back to your hometown. So many incredible memories were created here. It is kind of like my second home, I guess.

I took a bus to Tama Plaza where Amy's Mom, who is one super rad woman, met me. We picked up Amy on the way and headed back home. As soon as I stepped in their home, I felt that refreshing feeling once again. The smell of a Japanese home and their tatami mats, the taking off of the shoes at the genkan. So great.

So, I'm in Japan everyone. and it is one beautiful place to be. I love you all. Hope you're doing well.

India-Day 47-Final Day

Here we are. My final day in India. It has turned out to be a great adventure. An experience of a lifetime, indeed. I have seen things that I never before even thought about. India is a magnificent place with so much majesty and wonder. I have thought a lot about what I have learned and felt here. And although I will never be able to express feelings into as detailed descriptions as I would like, I will attempt to summarize what this trip has meant to me.

1) It has been said too often: "Don't sweat the small stuff." When one is to ask what is "the small stuff", a common answer is "everything". Truly, I have felt this valuable lesson hold true in India. I felt it most as I worked with spiritual men like Jemal and Jaidara. Both of them are great men who have taken on the oaths to become monks. As I worked with them and the many other monks at the Ananda Ashram of Pune, I felt that life seemed more simple than it usually does. Truly, what in life is worth stressing or worrying about? Nothing. Frequently, we get so bothered by the small things that we must do everyday. Or frequently, is it not true that we get so impatient with others around us? Why? Truly, it's not worth it. The monks frequently must have disagreed with our methods of working or acting, but there was never a time when they ridiculed. They allowed us our own freedoms to try things, mess up, and then try them again. Meanwhile, they were always there to help. I just thought about how different this is from myself. If I am working with someone who knows little about a project we are working on, I all to often decide to do it myself, rather than teach them. I get annoyed at how slow they work. I know I have done this on film sets many times, when the fact is that we are all beginners at some point in our lives. We have no reason to get annoyed with that person who can't seem to figure out how to get it just right. Anger is never justified. Again, a valuable lesson from the monks.

2) I feel I learned a lot about spirituality in a different sense than I have ever thought of. I learned that we are all on a path of spirituality. This path began when we were born and continues even after we die. On this path, every human soul is striving at different rates. Some try harder and succeed more at become spiritual. Some don't have that spiritual drive, and don't excel towards God as much as others.

The amazing thing that I felt as I thought a lot about spirituality is the way that God works with every person, despite religion, culture, or race. Here I am in a country where the idea of God is absolutely different from the idea of God that I hold. But does that make them any less spiritual than myself? Absolutely not. There are saints, monks, priests, pastors, bishops of all religions who are doing everything in the power to follow God, which in all honesty, is more than I can say that I am doing. I am no heretic, you see, but I would say that there are people who are, on their own spiritual path, making greater strides toward God than I am. I would not say this is a form of righteousness versus unrighteousness, but rather working toward a common goal at your own pace. I know with all my heart that God loves each of his children. Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Jew, Agnostic, or whatever other belief we hold to, God works with us each the same and wants us to be happy all the same. I learned that we really are all the same.

3) No matter how much money we choose to give, it will never be as valuable as time. When I was en route to India, I got to thinking about what it was that I was going to do. I thought about how I wanted to help the people of India. A thought came over my mind that left me feeling more selfish and self-satisfying than I had thought I was before I left. The thought was that here I am, not a rich man, but a fortunate man. I was spending about $2000 of mine and my parents' money to fly over to India to have an experience of a lifetime. "Was I really doing it for the people or was I doing it for myself?" I began to think. If I was truly going for the sole fact of helping the people, why would I have not just donated all that money. Wouldn't that help them out better anyway? This thought taunted me often while in India until I started to get to know the people. I saw them for what they truly desired: love. In America, we are rich. In comparison to the rest of the world, we are millionaires. I thought about this, and I thought about why can't we just be happy? We never go without. We always have food on our plates, clothes on our backs, and a shelter to sleep in. Yet, there are so many people in America who are truly not happy. They are deprived of love. That same love that people in India desire. I saw this as I played with the children in the village that one day. Seeing them smile and run around made me realize that the time I was sharing with them, the feelings of love shared between us was more valuable than anything I could ever ask for. I will never be able to forget the little baby's face as she held onto my hands trying to walk or the boy who followed me around with bare feet in the mud playing soccer. Or the smile of the kids as we shared a piece of candy with them. They had nothing, yet had something so desirable, it left me yearning for more. I did not want to leave and as I think about life in America, it saddens me that experience like that are few and far between. I could have given that village the $2000 I spent to go to India, but would it have really improved their lives? Some people may still not be convinced, but I firmly believe that it would not have. For a short period of time, would they be able to enjoy certain pleasures that we have in America, but such things are temporary and not long-lasting. And I fear that such things would cause them to forget the truly joyous things that are found in their simple lifestyle. I learned, once again, that all the money in the world won't provide for your happiness. Spending time with someone nice who smiles and is willing to share a laugh will provide through life.

I guess those are 3 main points I just wanted to hit on. The thoughts, as always, are unorganized and weak, but they are comfortable for me. I enjoy expression through words and thought. I only wish I was more skillful at it. India was amazing. I don't know if this will be my last post or not. But should it be, stay tuned. This blog won't end. Although this journey has ended, there will be another one beginning. For life is not about the destination. It's about the journey. I love you all. Thanks for reading. Namaste.

India-Day 44

Last week, I learned that the Fifa World Cup is the biggest scam ever. In many countries, the media is completely monopolized and controlled by one person or one group of people. In Spain, for example, a certain mob boss controls 98% of the nation's media and is able to raise morale within the country. With an unemployment rate of 20% and an economy that is in the hole, Spain made a great contestant to win the world cup. Even on the national level, the amount of influence this mob boss has extends even as far as CNN to where they predicted Spain and the Netherlands to win far before the finals or even the semi-finals were decided. Even in the advertising during the world cup, billions of dollars went to the advertising of Spanish tourism. In international newspapers and television media, there were all sorts of ads selling Spain. And here's the clincher...anyone who watched the World Cup probably saw some pretty atrocious calls by the refs. The games were fixed from the beginning. The winners were decided and refs were paid off in order to ensure that those teams one. Indeed, quite the conspiracy. The important point being: America never had a shot from the beginning. They were doomed to lose.

So, do you believe all that? Personally, I don't, but a crazy Dutch man I met who hates the Holland team does. But he only hates them because they're in on the entire thing. He was a really cool guy. Genius. Pure genius. He spoke like 7 languages, and he is doing a dutch radio show here in India on spirituality. So, we got interviewed by him, being that we are foreigners and have had the wonderful privilege to experience a pilgrimage of sorts while here in India. It was an interesting interview, but pretty fun.

Bangalore is such a beautiful town. I have enjoyed being here far more than any of the other cities I have been in. We took a train in from Nagpur on Wednesday. Napur was a good halfway point between Bangalore and Delhi. And Kartik had to stop so he could give a presentation on renewable energy. The city has recently had some major coal plants wanting to come in. India, in a progressive sense, is attempting, like the rest of the world, to move towards renewable energy in the form of mainly solar and wind. Kartik shared in a media press release the benefits environmentally, as well as economically, of going green. While we were sitting in this press release, they actually had us, "The American visitors" stand up. Then, they had us walk to the front of the room, where they welcomed us by giving us a floral arrangement. It was really random, but nice of them.

Nagpur is a really cool city, but small by Indian standards. Really well known for oranges, or so we were told. I was really upset that we couldn't eat any. Unfortunately, they're not in season right now, so it was quite the bummer. We got to see some of the city. We went to a museum, which was really neat. All sorts of statues and art from anywhere between the 1 century and the 15th century. So rad.

So, we left Nagpur after only a day. We left and went to Bangalore. The trip to Bangalore was really uncomfortable. Although we were in a sleeper car, we arrived so late that everyone else had their luggage already under the seats stored. So, we couldn't really fit our luggage and theirs. This meant that I had to sleep with my luggage, so I basically set it on the bed and then snaked my body around each piece and slept there. It wasn't at all comfortable, but it was a bed, nonetheless. We finally arrived in Bangalore around 9 PM on Wednesday night.

Then came 2 days of Indian wedding madness. Such an extravagant event. It was really cool. Every ritual that they did had really significant meaning. For example, they have a ritual where the groom pretends to leave the bride. He decides that he actually doesn't want to get married. Then, the bride's father and brother try to convince him to not leave the wedding and to push through with the marriage. I don't exactly understand the meaning in all this, but it's really magnificent. The morning of the second day, the groom comes to the marriage with a parade of people. Everyone is dancing and celebrating. Unfortunately, we slept in for that part so we didn't get to see the grand procession. Nevertheless, it was quite the remarkable experience.

So the wedding was for Akeila and Vivek. Akeila is Ashok and Krishna's cousin. In India, basically anyone is invited to the wedding. If you are friends with someone who is going, you probably should go too. Basically, that qualified us. But everyone at the wedding was really nice. They welcomed us with warm hearts and delicious food. THE FOOD WAS AMAZING! Our plates were banana leaves and we ate with only our hands. The craziest wedding food I've ever had! But everything was so delicious. And it was all you can eat. I ate until I could really not put any more food in my mouth. It was awesome. Agh. I can't even describe it. I wish that you could have been there.

Overall impression for an Indian wedding: amazing. Probably too amazing for me. I could not imagine putting on a 3 day extraveganza for everyone. Seems too stressful.

Anyway, things are going well. I have recently fallen in love with butterscotch ice cream and Bangalore. It is such a nice city. Today, we went around to see some sights. We saw the capitol building and a really rad palace that belonged to some king. More like a governor, I suppose. It was really lidgit.

I am leaving on Monday night. That's crazy. It's going to be so bizarre to be in America again. I have become so used to India.

India-Day 37

My time here in India is coming into the final ten days. I don't know why but time periods in the form of 10 days are so much easier to me than saying weeks. I always feel like when the 10 day mark hits, things get serious. I feel that I am actually moving on to something in a short time.

I must say, India has treated me well. So many amazing, magnificent things that I have been able to see and experience. Truly, it has been the opportunity of a lifetime. I feel like I have learned so much about people, myself, and the path of spirituality that people from all races take in order to follow God. Truly magnificent.

So, I'm in Dheli. It's a very crowded city. One of the most densely populated city in the world (according to wikipedia). Delhi is really rich in history. Well, I guess all of India is rich with history. Everywhere you go, there's something to be seen. But, Dheli is the place where Ghandi was killed. 3 or 4 hours away is Agra, the location of the Taj Mahal. There are several religious sites. I have learned that the farther North you seem to come, the more Muslims there seem to be. We went to a Hindu temple yesterday and right next door there was this Muslim mosque. To Kartik, this was very very surprising. There has always been so much turmoil between the Hindu and the Muslims that to coincide is really difficult, or so it seems.

We left Pune on Monday by train. The train was an experience, in itself. As we were driving to the train station, our car got a flat tire. We were running on a little bit of a time crunch, so we changed the tire super quick and went on our way to the station. Traffic was pretty bad, but we were able to make it on time. Not only on time, but we were early. Apparently, the trains in India are about as reliable not nearly as reliable as Japan. In Japan, I could time the train down to 30 seconds. India...it was a different story. The train was running an hour late. There was confusion over this because Rahm and Kartik thought that the train was leaving from Pune. There should have been no other stops before it. So the fact that it was late seemed odd. Anyway, we hung out for a little bit at the train station, then made our way over to the platform with all our luggage. Loading the train was such a hassle. We have seriously more luggage than I think stuff that I own in total. Huge bags that wouldn't even fit under the seats or in the aisle caused lots of frustration between us and some of the other passengers. However, we finally got everything on, and moments later, the train departed around 6:00 or so.

So trains, I found, are really nothing too exciting. We were in the air conditioned compartment which was nice, but I think it made me sick! I've had a sore throat and cold-like symptoms ever since. I am pretty sure my body is so used to the heat that being cold like that affected me drastically. But yeah, I basically just hung out until about 10:00, cuddled up in my little cot, and then went to sleep. The cots are so small. My feel were sticking out into the aisle the entire night, unless I pulled my knees toward my chest. I slept decently, to say the least. I mean, what can you expect. All I can say is that it wasn't the worse sleep I have ever had. I have definitely slept a lot worse.

The next day was nice. Our train wasn't set to arrive until about 9 PM that night. So I took almost the entire day to read 1984. Fabulous book. I read it in high school, but didn't remember anything at all, so I read it again. It was great.

We arrived in Delhi and took 2 taxis to get to the place where we were staying, which is a house owned by Ananda.

We then took a bus to Agra where we saw the famous Taj Mahal. Honestly speaking, it was spectacular but not as amazing as some of the other things I have seen. I really liked it though.

After that nothing really went down. We are still chilling in Delhi. We have just been relaxing because it's so hot. We have gone to the mall to buy kurtas (traditional Indian formal clothing) for the wedding. Also, we saw the movie Inception. Seriously such a great movie. It was amazing. I highly suggest every one of you should go check it out. Anyway, I need to go to bed. Good night. We're heading off for Bangalore tomorrow. That should be a trip. I'll let you know how it goes. Namaste.

India-Some more pictures

Here are some great pictures from my trip. So that you understand a little bit about what the pictures are, you should read my post before this one. Love you

The caves at Ajunta. You can't really see it, but this is me standing on top of the mountain overlooking the canyon, river, and caves.

The half-moon of the canyon. You can see the really pretty waterfall.

Inside the canyon. This pictures was taken from the bridge crossing the water. You can see the caves in the distance.

I told Jaidara that I would catch him meditating.

Caves at Ajunta

The path on the caves at Ajunta

This is the inside of the caves with great acoustics. Ajunta.

Friggin' Monkeys!

You can't really see but there is giant statue of Buddha and a round acoustical room.
Ajunta.

The outside of another cave at Ajunta

Here we are standing on top of the huge temple that was carved at Ellora. Atop this temple are room with giant towers that extend into the sky. This temple was carved from the top to the bottom over several generations. Each generation passed down the plans in order to assure that the temple was built correctly.

.

Another shot of the temple at Ellora. This is shot from the ground up.

The temple at Ellora.

The temple at Ellora

We played a lot of soccer at the Ashram where we were staying. This game we played right after a huge rain storm had hit us. It became known as the infamous "Mud bowl"

Vive le futbol

When it's all said and done, the men with the handprints took the V.

Celebrating a victory

Daisy Dukes- my fav.

Such a rad awning. It's crazy.

The intricate detail of every inch of the Ajunta caves. This is a step.

The man. El Sergio, the Godfather. Not really. He's a rad 23 year old monk.

Krishna and I

Shot outside of another temple at Ajunta

Each detail is so fine.

Statues of Buddha and other priests

One of the tiny monk rooms. "Ohhhmmmmmm"

This is the temple where the ceiling is painted like a tapestry.

Ashok and some hottie

Buddha

Ridin' like a prince

Katiani wearing a sick cowboy hat and my shades

There's a lot of flies in India

Aaron calls the urinals in India "glorified bushes". Except bushes smell better

The temple at Ellora

The entrance gate to the temple at Ellora

A full shot of the temple at Ellora

The temple at Ellora

One day, Tom and I couldn't handle the flies anymore. We went on a killing rampage. 7 flies dead in less than 10 minutes

Ashweney's Dad

Ashweney!!

A family, out on a Sunday outing, frequently rides scooters. Family size scooters.

The village at the top

Hiking up to the village at the top of the mountain.

The crew. Not everyone, but Krishna, Jaidara, Tom, Aditiya, Ashok, and Aaron

A frog chillin in the banana trees.

Workin' it.

Ashweney, the cute next-door girl.

Ashok and I building a rack for the solar panels.

The group meditating at a sweet temple.

An actual Indian camel!

Ashok and Aaron

A rad temple we went to some weeks back. It was right on the edge of a mountain.

A local man selling corn on the cob.

The site where Hindu religion says that the 5 great rivers of India all come from.

Krishna at the site of the origin of the 5 major Indian rivers. The water is spitting out of the cow's mouth. It is considered a sacred honor to be able to drink water and wash your face with water from the cow's mouth.

Me.

A local 7-11 (no, not really, but the equivalent)

McDonald's!

DOMINO'S!