Brasilia: A Tempting New Home

(WOW it's been a few days... I hope you don't mind a lengthy blog)

"Tudo Bem?" from Brasilia! I've been here in the capitol of Brazil for... 4 days now and I have so many updates! .. now where do I start?

It's been quite a transition from Sao Paulo to Brasilia. I landed in Brasilia about 3pm on Tuesday to the realization that I had to say "tchau!" to any English communication. No, not Portuguese, but my life and language here in Brasilia for the next 5 weeks will be in japanais. I am living with the Yassui family who speaks only Japanese in the house - I guess I knew I'd be speaking Japanese a lot.. but not this much. It's been very good for me, but I find myself having headaches a lot. I'm either dehydrated (doubtful because I carry a quart of water everywhere I go - it's a desert here..), I'm getting yellow fever (again, doubtful because the first thing I was forced to do in landing in Sao Paulo was to get an immunization), or my brain just hurts from trying to transition into a language that I normally only get to speak once a week!
Anyway, Pastor Toshiyaki, or Toshi Sensei is the pastor of Nucleo Bandereinte's Alliance Church, a 2nd generation Japanese-Brazilian (Nisei), making his son Akira a 3rd generation (Sansei). Toshi has been the native pastor here in Brasilia for about 15 years now, and his wife, Hiroko is actually a Japanese woman who ended up sticking around after a 1-month missions trip to Sao Paulo with her church in Ehime, Japan. Therefore, she would be a 1st generation Japanese-Brazilian (Issei)! I like to joke that I'm a Non-sei... haha...


(My humble abode for the next 3 weeks. My room is actually located on the 2nd floor of the church. The Yassui's live behind the church, and the fellowship hall is above their house, with my room at the end of the hall. The Japanese languages classrooms are also on the first floor.)


(Something very unique about Brasilia is it's organization. Everything is divided up by street, meaning that there's a "church street," "school street," "pharmacy street," "national embassy street," etc. Assemblies of God is to your left... and the Mason's to your right!)

Like I mentioned earlier, Brasilia has only been in existence since 1956. It was in 1960 that a young, single woman, Ninomiya-san, from Japan came by herself to plant the very first Alliance church in Brazil, and that is the very church I’m serving in for the next 5 weeks. This woman who ended up serving in Brazil for almost 40 years beat the American Christian and Missionary Alliance in getting to Brazil. You go girl! So, I’m living on Alliance pioneered Brazilian ground! I think that’s pretty kick butt…

Ninomiya specifically came here to Brasilia to reach the Japanese-Brazilians. She began the Japanese language school to prevent children from losing touch with the roots. Hiroko, who was influenced by Ninomiya to come to Brazil has taken the baton and has been heading up the language school for 15 years now. Most of the children who come to the classroom are sent by their parents who do not attend church. Therefore, the school is a great opportunity to plant seeds early in the lives of the children. I will be teaching Japanese with Hiroko for my time here. This month is in preparation for the speech contest at the end of the month where the kids will get to show off their skills to their friends and family. This gathering will be evangelistic, so please be praying for that. We’re aiming to get 300 people to attend. This week I have mainly been critiquing the kids' speeches and helping them with pronunciation. I was able to share my testimony in each of the 3 classes today, so I hope that planted some seeds too!



(Sharing my story)

(Japanese morning exercises with Hiroko!)

My heart was warmed last night… I attended house group with Toshi and Hiroko and I met a very precious lady named Takahashi-san. She is 94 years old (she claims to be 93). She is a 1st generation Japanese Brazilian who cam to Brazil as a nurse to the Amazon and stayed because she could not afford to go back to Japan. So for 74 years now, she has called Brazil her home, never returning to Japan. My conversation with her was probably the funniest thing I’ve ever done. Being 94, she’s quite senile and her short-term memory has failed her. I initially introduced myself as a "halfy" and she was impressed with my Japanese. We'd go on with our conversation about the Amazon.. life in Brazil and about 10 times in our 15-minute conversation, she would interrupt and say, "Whoa... you're speaking Japanese! Are you a halfy?" At times when she was telling me about all the cobras, monkeys and pirahnas of the Amazon, she'd slip into Portuguese, forgetting that I could not speak it. Oh... so presh... Takahashi-san has only known the Lord for 4 years now, and being too frail to go to church, Hiroko goes to her twice a week to pray. So I hope to go along and talk some more with her some more!



I have a really bad feeling that I'm not going to be learning any Portuguese while being here... if I'm not speaking Japanese... I'm speaking good ol' English. A Brazilian by the name of Marcos has been taking me around Brasilia to English schools and classes to promote a Christian English Camp that him and I will be doing in a few weeks. On Wedneday, we went a public school and spoke to about 8 different middle school classes. They asked us to return today, and I was in for a surprise… instead of 8 small classes, the teachers gathered ALL of the students for a mini seminar with “our new American friend Hannah!” Well, after telling them about the camp, I was bombarded with questions about America. Not questions about Hannah Montana and MTV, but heavy duty questions like, “Obama or Hilary?” “Do you like Bush? “What are your thoughts on the Iraqi War?” “What do you think of the Kyoto Protocal?” and “Do you have any issues with immigration?” I was taken back by these Brazilian highs schoolers' extensive knowledge of American issues and politics! Ashamed with the little opinion and knowledge I had (which will now change), I felt I was stammering the whole hour… but Marcos later told me that I spoke very diplomatically, so I guess that's good… Toshi explained to me later that the college entrance exam requires Brazilian seniors to state their opinions on world issues. I am impressed by that! I made many many friends today, I think this may be one of the only places that I am actually liked as an American… and I intend on taking advantage of that!





Love you all so much... Have a wonderous weekend!

Cidade de Sao Paulo

It just keeeeps going...



My one and only tacky tourist picture... to prove I'm really in Sao Paulo

This morning at breakfast, we received sad news that Tamie Komono, a Japanese-Brazilian lady from the Fukuhamos church who had been fighting cancer for months had gone to be with the Lord. After Tim and JoLee took me to the C&MA field office (where I took the photos), and to the mall where I got my Starbucks city mug (to add to my collection), we went to Tamie's funeral. I never met this woman, but from the ceremony and the many people who grieved over her death, I gathered that she was an encouragement to many. Tamie was single, about 60 years old, and had 5 other siblings, all believers. The church community around her will miss her very much. Next Saturday, the church will hold a memorial service for her. Please pray not only for her family and friends, but this service dedicated to the honoring of her life would be an evangelistic tool to many who do not know the Lord as she did.

Off to Brasilia tomorrow morning at noon! Boa Noite (Noichi)!

My First Japanese Embrace

One time I tried to hug my cousin good bye, and it was probably one of the most awkward things I've ever done... I think she actually tried to push me away! Typically, it's not very culturally accepted in Japan. But today, at Vila Ema, a Japanese-Brazilian church plant here in Sao Paulo, I received my first hug from a Japanese person..

Last night when Alex and I were discussing schedules and times to be ready for church, he said that Vila Ema started at 10:00am. Being aware of the Brazilian time schedule, I understood it common and accepted to be at least an hour late. So with that assumption, I responded, "So church actually starts at 11:00am right?" And Alex's response was, "Nooo, they're Japanese." haha...

The church was held in a garage with about 30 or so attendees. Most everyone was Japanese, with a few Europeans. All of the worship was done in Portuguese. Fortunately, I understood because they were all songs I recognized, but it was still fun following along in Portuguese. At one point, they switched gears and sang "Shout to the Lord" in Japanese, but that's all the Japanese that was spoken the whole time. I was glad to have the opportunity to move over to the corner with a translator and two other elderly Japanese people to hear the message in Japanese. I think they were really confused when a gringa like me busted out her Japanese Bible and nodded at every good part of the message!

At the end of the service, I was blown away, and really thrown off into confusion when a mob of elderly Japanese ladies and men attacked me with elongated embraces, stretched smiles, and pecks on the cheek... I have never seen such warm greetings come from Japanese people. I can honestly say that that was the first hug I received from a Japanese person. I suppose that warmth and charisma is what makes them also Brazilian. I hope and pray that that is a door wide open for evangelism! I was touched by the conversations I had, and my time at Vila Ema only makes me more excited for the ministry I have prepared for me in Brasilia for the coming weeks..


Christian and Missionary Alliance Church (at Vila Ema)



If you look closely at the screen, that is "My Jesus, My Savior" in Japanese.

The Brazilian family sent by the Brazilian C&MA to Japan. I believe they are specifically ministering to the many Japanese-Brazilians who have reverse-migrated back to Japan for economic reasons. The Brazilians in Japan are considered "dirty people" because they mostly work the "dirty jobs." Japanese people tend to be racist against people who are not pure blood. Therefore, the Japanese-Brazilians in Japan have been very open to the Gospel.

Lunch after church: Brazilian BBQ, all you can eat steak! Pretty much, they come around with different parts of a cow on a stick and you say yes or no to it... and WHY don't we have this in the states? Oh, and it's only like $R20, like 15 U.S. dollars...

The Zell's passing me on the the Bubna's until Tuesday

An interesting fact I learned about Brasilia today: the city of Brasilia has only been in existence since 1956! A bit more history for ya.. for the next 5 weeks, I'll be in a "planned city." The capitol of Brazil was always Rio or Salvador, so in order to get some of the population to move inland, the government hired people from all over Brazil to construct the city. The Japanese population is there now because of relocation and farming. As you can see, Brasilia is a very modern looking city.. my kind of city!


Well, for two nights until my flight to Brasilia, I'm with Tim and JoLee Bubna, the C&MA field directors of Brazil. I haven't had any bad host family experiences yet... even if I did, I wouldn't post it anyway ;-)

Later gator

I bought a scarf from Equador, in Japan, in Brazil

So I've been wanting a pretty scarf for a long time... and I bought one today from 2 very nice Equadorian ladies in Liberdade, the Japanese business district here in Sao Paulo. Alex, Melissa, and I took the subway today to Liberdade, literally "liberty," pronounced "Liberdagy." Very cool place. I was in cloud 9. This "Japantown" that's in the heart of Sao Paulo looks just like the shopping neighborhood down the street from my dad's place in Tokyo, except everything is translated in Portuguese.

"Voce falar japanais?" I would ask (can you speak Japanese?), and I was lucky to find someone who could answer yes. Most of the Japanese-Brazilians there were Nisei or Sansei (2nd of 3rd generation), so their Japanese was either poor or non-existent. But the few conversations I was able to have were very good. But I realized today that these people have most likely never been to Japan, because Brazil is their home. I feel that I will have difficulty finding common interests because of the drastic cultural difference. Please continue to pray that doors or relevancy would open and relationships, despite the differences, would result.


Liberdade


The Butsudana shop, or "Buddha shelf" store. Most likely every Japanese Brazilian will have one in their home while professing to be Catholic.


The most popular Ramen restaurant Asuka.


An ad from a local bank, "100 years of Japanese immigration to Brazil."

Sounds of Sao Paulo

The urban serenade of Sao Paulo City... TV's broadcasting the hourly soccer matches.... men yelling at the moving screen... fireworks going off at every goal... and the echos of barking dogs following every explosion...

I've been in Sao Paulo for 2 days now. Of the many cities that I've been to, this by far is the most unique! Being the 3rd largest city in the world (#1 Mexico City, #2 Tokyo), housing 22 million people, I'm not kidding when I say this.. there are people EVERYWHERE! Fashion statements are loud and proud because of course, all the models come from here! It's almost as hilly as San Francisco, and with the mad-man driving, a drive to the grocery store almost feels like a roller coaster at Cedar Point! I'm lucky to be here in May, being 'winter' with dry 60's weather - like that perfect day in spring before all the pollen invades. Portuguese sounds beautiful, but I change my mind when I try speaking it when 'r's are pronounced like an 'h,' and 't's are pronounced like 'ch'...

The Zell family, who I've been staying with have been so hospitable (Alex (TFC alumni) and Julie (Nyack Alumni.. ew.. :) and their daughters Melissa, Jodi, and Linsey). They have been missionaries in Brazil for 3 terms, and total of 9 years. Alex teaches at the Alliance seminary here in the city while pastoring their church plant here in their humble abode. Julie makes wonderful brownies and brews phenomenal brazilian coffee at just about every hour. I've beat Melissa at chess already, and in two days, we've already also played phase 10, fill or bust, apples to apples, and skip-bo. So... if you'd ever send them a care package, GAMES wouldn't hurt!

Their info:
http://www.cmalliance.org/im/mlocator/missy.jsp?m=43355

A Brazilian couple came for dinner tonight, Marcelo and Elaine with their twin babies Felipe and Clara. Marcelo is of Japanese descent, and Elaine is of Italian, therefore, the twins were halfies like me! Marcelo didn't speak much English or Japanese, but it was still a blessing to hear his heart and story. Elaine was a youth leader under the Zell's when they first came to Brazil, when she started dating Marcelo who was an unbelieving Buddhist at the time. After Alex had the opportunity to share the Gospel with Marcelo, he said he was not ready. But after some time, Marcelo has had accepted Christ in a dramatic fashion. Over a decade later, he has gone through seminary, is now studying for his masters under Alex, and desires to start a church plant and be a missionary to the tribes of the Amazon! Even better, he has lead 2 of his Buddhist brothers to Christ! Praise God! I hope to have the same stories by the end of this summer!

From left to right: Linsey, Julie, Felipe, Elaine, Marcelo, Clara, Alex, Jodi, Melissa.

We're off to the Liberdade district tomorrow. That's the "Japantown" of Sao Paulo. I'm psyched for that. More to come! "Obrigado" and "tchau" with a kiss for now...

Peace out America!

A 5 hour lay over in Houston… what do you do? FINALLY post your first blog!

Hannah Ito here! Hello and THANK YOU to all of you visiting my summer blog. I’m at a state of mixed emotions, sitting here at gate E15 waiting for my flight to Sao Paulo. I remember back to my freshman year in college thinking of all the places I’d go on my internship… India… Cambodia… Romania…. Brazil?! Who knew that here are over 800,000 Japanese-Brazilians living in Brazil? I tell that to people that I'm going on a 7-week missional internship to the Japanese-Brazilians, and they all say,”… that’s random…” Well, let me tell you that it has been the most “random” year of research, and my heart for these people has progressively swelled and expanded!

(if you're not interested in history, skip or skim the next 2 paragraphs!)

In a nutshell (NOT a file box, RBS diagram, or senior paper), once upon a time, in the early 20th century, Japan was NOT the powerhouse, but Brazil was (where the good coffee comes from). So the Japanese government put pretty posters up everywhere, convincing rural Japanese families to pick up and move to beautiful Brazil to work the coffee plantations and come back with some yen. Little did this families know however. The Japanese government only wanted to balance out their population for economic purposes, and the Brazilians needed some workers to compensate for the African slaves they has to let go in 1888. “Well hoooow convenient!” they said!

So in June of 1908 (notice the exact 100 year difference!), the Kasatomaru docked at Santos outside of Sao Paulo with families full of hope and confidence. But it didn’t take long for them to realize the extreme difficulties in acculturation and soon formed their own communities in the midst of surrounding persecution. To make matters worse, the Pacific war broke out which intensified the persecution from Brazilians. When Japan surrendered, the Japanese in Brazil had to face the fact that they had been betrayed and forgotten, and they would never return home. So since then, these people have taken on the identity of Japanese-Brazilian, or Nikkei, and the number of them has climbed up to be over 800,000, the largest population of Japanese outside of Japan. Crazy!

Today, the Japanese-Brazilians still look Japanese, but act Brazilian in their language, religion, and lifestyle. While being there, I will be doing a variety of things, and this is definitely a tentative schedule. I fly into Sao Paulo and I will be there for a week. A lot of this time will be adjustment and tourism, but I will have the opportunity to visit various churches. From there, I fly to Brasilia, the capitol, and my ministries will primarily be there. I have opportunities to teach English and Japanese, participate in the Centennial celebrations, and help out with vacation bible school. It is the older generation that still primarily speaks and Japanese, so I will visit a lot of elderly’s homes also for individual evangelism. But in all honestly, I’m pretty clueless as to what my 7 weeks in Brazil looks like. I have no expectations, and I am SO EXCITED!!!

Before I leave on a jet plane, I’d like to thank some people in my life for their encouragement and wisdom that has brought me to this point in life:


















































































































And there are so many more... I wouldn’t be the person I am today if it weren’t for y'all's part in my life. I hope you will visit this site often this summer. I'd like to update at least twice a week, but you never know… Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers. Feel free to e-mail me at hannahito@gmail.com, and my skype name is hannahito. Hope to hear from you! Ciao!

Acts 10:34,35 “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.”