Nago Road Trip!

I must apologize, this was meant to be posted early last week. My blog has been sort of acting up lately, and hasn't been letting me post pictures, or move them where i would like them.

So, i just decided to leave them all in a long line in random order!

Two mondays ago, we loaded up into two vans, two cars, and a tiny Japanese cube car, and headed off to Nago!

All the students, interns, and our friends from on base and our Japanese friends, all headed up together. It was one long car line going down the road.

We hit the famous, "Elephant Rock" tourist spot on the island first, Manzamo Beach. It was good to be back, i don't think i had seen it since last year! There is also a big famous hotel on the beach, that is in a local Okinawan movie called "chekitou chyo!" (Check it out yo!). We were excited to see it in person.

Then! We sped off the one of our favorite spots on the island: Pineapple Park!

It was VERY crowded this time! but, it also had some new parts to it! They added a board walk to it, and also cute pineapple cars that drove around tourists to see where the pineapples grew.

After filling our tummies full of pineapple samples and noodles and cookies, we headed toward a beach we like to eat lunch at. But it was cold, and raining, and the covering over the picnic benches was gone for the winter. So we turned around and headed to Expo Park!

There, we made a great, bountiful amount of PB&J sandwiches and ate our lunch in the parking lot!

After that, everyone split into groups to enjoy and explore the park. This time, instead of the Aquirium (which is completely amazing), i headed to the Okinawan houses. There is a whole area that has the old style Okinawan houses, and you can tour them and see how they used to live on this island.

One of them has employees working in it, and they teach you various things when you come in. We stopped and attempted to learn one of the Okinawan traditional dances (very hard...), and we sat down and played the Sanshin (Japanese instrument, like a 3 string guitar). It was a lot of fun.

After that, we met up with the Newell's at a famous Okinawa Soba shop. It was good, and not too expensive.

After all that, we fellowshipped and played games at their house, and then before it got too late, we all made the trip back home. Everyone was tired, but also very blessed and happy by a fun day.

Here are a bunch of photos!

(learning to play the Sanshin, or Shamisen)

(going into the old Okinawan style homes)

(Kentaro breaking the rules again...)

(the evil pineapple that bites my arm every semester!)



(its super big, you could sit in it most likely)



(it was smaller than my hand!)



















(me and Natsuki, she's so tiny! i love it)




(me as a giant Goya-bitter melon)




(this is the famous hotel, it was in a movie made right here in Okinawa, "ちぇけらっちょ")








(the elephant rock)







(a fast tree)



(Mariko - she drew herself!)

(me - she also drew me. at the valentines day dinner we had, i sang some worship songs and some random fun ones too. one of them was sixpence none the richer's "Kiss Me" song, but in Japanese. I had chocolate "kisses" repeatedly thrown at me all throughout the night...)

This past weekend, Andrew and Kayo got married! The wedding was BEAUTIFUL, it was very nice, and very fun. I didn't get the best pictures, but others did. In my next post i will include some from it.

This past Tuesday, i filled in on an English class up in Naha. It's really fun, because for two hours we help the teacher go over their lesson, have a "snack time" (Ocha time), and then i got to tell them about where i live in the states. The people that come (all older, maybe a couple college aged) are all really cool, their willing to try, and its neat to watch how excited they are to practice their English with you. I hope to get some pictures this next week, i forgot my camera when i went.

Things have been really cool here, but also (as always) challenging. God ALWAYS surprises you in the ways He wants to stretch your heart. And its good, it's different than what i anticipated, but its also something i knew I needed.

I felt like i was just going to be an intern, just grading, helping with ministry, and encouraging the students. But its a bit more then that.

As an intern, i myself am being discipled by those around me and older than me, but i am also learning to disciple those around me and younger than me (Even if not younger, in the position of a student). It's really a place for these students, these Christians, God's children, to grow and be discipled. But along with that comes correction and rebuke, encouraging and learning and growing.

It's sort of hard for me to step out in this, i don't like to confront and i don't like to upset people's "liking" of me. But I know that isn't right, that it isn't love if i hold back what needs to be said or done. So for me; this is a stretching. But as i step out each time, and i start to watch out for these kids (tho some are older than me) and concern myself with their spiritual well being and growth, God creates a beautiful thing in my heart. I learn to pray for these people, to watch out for their interests too, and i really start to genuinely care what happens in their lives.

God is interesting. God is really good.

God bless you all,

-'manda