amberlynn

In the very moment, when something devastating occurs, fear and adrenaline race through your body. You want to run, hide, and pray. Instead you stand frozen looking around for what seems like an eternity. On Friday afternoon, at approximately 1445 Japanese Standard Time, one of those moments occurred. Unfortunately, this moment didn’t close seconds later with a brief sigh of relief. Instead, this moment of fear persisted, paused, resumed, and morphed. First, Earthquake. The initial shock was an earthquake scaled at 8.9. The 5th largest earthquake every recorded. The earth started to tremble just as we had felt countless times over our lives. Just a little quiver was all that we expected. As it continued, the rumbling and movement was a deeper movement and much more dramatic. Fear could be seen in our eyes as our ... read more

Seoul, South Korea People who live in Seoul, S. Korea are, as a whole, the friendliest Asians I have ever met. Immediately after our arrival we were assisted with a bus ticket purchase and sent on our way. Unfortunately our initial visit was on a Tuesday, so we were unable to visit the most famous, Gyeongbokgung Palace until our return visit. During both visits we visited Gyeongbokgung Palace, Changdeokgung Palace, and Insa-Dong. From the airport the bus takes about one hour each way. Since we had two layovers we were able to snack, eat, visit two palaces, and visit with a few locals and tourists. A few especially exciting encounters included the sweet Starbuck’s girls, the missionary from Thailand, and Sophia, a little American girl who was from and lived in Seoul. Changdeokgung Palace: This palace ... read more

Every day I am realizing how the observation of famous wonders and interesting places are not nearly as cool as the people you experience these places with. I am recognizing this as I begin to fit in, deepen relationships, and feel comfortable and happy here in Japan. My New Friends: Yuki and Moe. Yuki is a new friend from my new church. She is kind, fun, has a beautiful heart for God, loves children, and we get along great! Moe is a new friend, through my grandmother. Moe is visiting her hometown in Yokohama for the holiday. We met for the first time on Christmas Eve in Haraujuku at a really cute artsy café, called D’s Café. She is a psychology major in my hometown. Moe and her family were so kind and enjoyable. On New ... read more

After two months of silence, I am finally adding news of my life. My foot was, and is still, broken. I was in a non walking cast for one week, a walking cast for three, and have been wrapping beyond those four weeks. Since Japan, unlike anywhere I have lived in the U.S., requires me to use public transportation and my feet, I had a difficult time getting around. Sometimes, it was really frustrating, other times I just gave up and avoided the activity. My friends and my neighbors were so helpful to me. One neighbor took me to school EVERY day for four weeks! Another, stopped by my house to pick Autumn and I up for church. I am so blessed to have such wonderful, kind people in my life. In the last three weeks ... read more

All week long, my days are devoted to students. Occasionally I will have a “coffee date” or “movie date” with a student. Sometimes I make it to the gym or go for a run to Yamashita Park then run along the harbor. Then, I make dinner, prepare lunch for the next day and go to bed. It’s funny how moving from one side of the map, to the other, does little to change ones lifestyle. While the activities, language, and diet may differ by region, many things remain. Passions and ambitions remain. Relationships, friendships, and kindness remain. This morning, I was picked up by our school nurse, the sweet man who fixes all of our housing problems, and our sweet “morning announcement” translator- Kawamora Sensei. They picked me up and offered to carry me to ... read more

Writing on this blog seems…somewhat like a dreaded home work assignment. One that I am interested in, after I finally come around to working on it. Over the first weekend in October, I spread my wings and took a trip, solo. I hopped a train after school Friday evening, to Tokyo Station. There, I attempted to help a mother and child board the bus to Mito. Unfortunately, she had no idea that I was trying to offer to help her. In Mito, I experienced my first taste of a P90X workout, fantastic Chicken Curry, a Sushi-Go-Round, Harry Potter 1-2-3, the biggest fireworks festival I have ever seen, and visiting new friends. One of the most interesting experiences was actually spontaneous. After attending the fireworks festival, we decided to skip the lines of thousands into the train ... read more

Today was an undeniably stressful day. While the company of my favorite two English teachers at Yokohama Jogakuin was pleasant...the pain of sitting at my desk for HOURS calculating grades, began to wear on my mental energy. So much so, that when it came to finally go home, I was almost too exhausted to force myself to the gym. Do not worry, I was able to muster the energy and steered my beautiful gray bike to the land of weights and running. While at the gym, the younger boys I had heard speaking English, started talking with me. At least one of them attends Yokohama International School. It was nice to speak with and understand people that I didn't know. Both of those conversation pieces, speaking and understanding, are in short supply for me. Another highlight ... read more

Adventures in Yokohama: So, besides going to school everyday. I try to do exciting things like eat, go shopping, do laundry, talk on Skype, and hang out with the Policemen of Yokohama. On Friday, I decided to attempt to register my bike. While I still know only the basics in Japanese (Hello- Konichiwa, Gomen- Sorry, doi tashimashite- you're welcome, Shoganai- It can't be helped, and Gonbate- Press on/You can do it). You may imagine that none of this knowledge was especially helpful when I arrived at the Police Department to register my bike. In fact, it continued to be useless as I was led to a bike shop by one of the studdly patrol men, as he talked with the bike shop owner, led me back to the bike shop, then contemplated how to tell me ... read more

Sunday was a day full of culture and fun; between church, sushi, napping, and taking a cruise on Tokyo Bay, the day held all the adventure that I needed. Tokyo Bay Cruise: In the evening Rachel, Autumn, and I drank a cup of coffee before heading out to Tokyo. I was so happy to be getting "dolling up" for the evening. With each stroke of my brush and each bobby pin in place, I excitedly anticipated the night on the water, meeting new friends. After walking to the station, switching trains and lines, we finally arrived. We were introduced to Rachel's friend Arisa, along with other Japanese and gaijin friends. While on the cruise boat I made several discoveries. In Japan no matter where you are or what you are doing, there will always be 150% ... read more

Yesterday, was the last day of English Day Camp at school. Which also means, the last Saturday of the year that I must work. After work, I decided not to return to the empty house. Instead I went for a walk, following my map so that I would not get too lost. It was beautiful, the muggy summer has just begun to give way to the breeze of Spring. I left school and headed the only direction that guaranteed my happiness. I walked straight, or as straight as curvy Japanese roads can go, toward the harbor. As I walked I prayed a little, thought about life as a journey, and really pondered my new life here. While the move has been an array of excitement and fresh beginnings with everything from culture, friendships, and God, it ... read more