Doin' It Big In China

Mom and I inside the 2008 Olympic Bird's Nest

After 20-some pages of visa application paperwork, I received approval to travel to Beijing, China for spring break. My mom is an interim vice-principle for an international school there and my dad scheduled to visit Beijing the same time I would be there. It had been 8 months since I last saw my parents (or any other family/ friends for that matter). It may not seem like a very long time to be away, but for a 22-year-old Minnesota boy who had never lived outside of St. Paul, it sure seemed like it.

I arrived on a Sunday morning around 1:00am... 1:30am by the time I passed through customs. The Chinese Customs Officer did a double-take on my ID picture. The picture on my Passport has me with long hair and a clean-shaven face. I look about 12 years old despite my actual age of 18 at the time it was taken. The officer first had me take of my hat to try and see the resemblance between my Passport picture and the way I look now. Not good enough. He asked to see another form of ID so I handed him my Minnesota Diver's License. This did not really help the situation because my Driver's License picture has me completely bald (I think was going through a phase of really extreme hairstyles at that time...). Finally, he asked me to smile into the security camera, snapped a photo of me, and allowed me to pass through. I'm not sure if he finally saw a close enough resemblance or if he just gave up and let me go through to stop holding up the line.

I proceeding to baggage claim and walked out of the airport to see my parents smiling and waiting for me. We hugged each other with excitement and walked together to the car. My heart felt a great joy that moment.

The next four days were about as action-packed as they could have been. If you don't know my dad's philosophy on how vacations work, it sort of goes something like this: do and see as much as you can without stopping from the moment you wake up until the moment you go to sleep. As tiring as that may sound, I am growing accustomed to the style and even (dare I say) enjoying it. During the school day, my mom worked at the school, while my dad and I traveled all over Beijing sightseeing.

Olympic Village - check.

The Great Wall of China - check.

The Forbidden City - check.

Tiananmen Square - check.

The Summer Palace - check.

Eating authentic Beijing duck - check.

Shopping at the famous knock-off brand "Silk Street Market" - check.

Each night I went to bed exhausted yet thankful for the incredible sights and wonderful fellowship of being with my parents. Did I mention I got to hang out and play tennis with a Chinese PE teacher amidst the tourism chaos? So awesome.

As I reflect on the time I had, I can't help but be filled with joy over the blessing God so graciously gives me. Why would he choose to save me from sin? Why would he choose to provide me with parents who love Christ, each other, and me? Why would he give me the opportunity to see the world?

It can be for no other reason than God's own delight in His Son, whose work on the cross ransomed me from hell, making the Spirit's residence in my soul possible. All his blessings and grace are sweetly savored in the mouth of an otherwise wretched, hopeless sinner!

Winter Break Adventures

My Passport is in the hands of the Philippine government for visa processing. No Passport, no leaving.

I had to spend the holidays in the Philippines this year. At first I was disappointed. I miss my family, my friends, my church, and my home. When the break from school started at the end of December, I longed to be back in Minnesota exchanging gifts, reminiscing with relatives, and telling stories of my journeys thus far. God had other plans for me.

The first week of winter break I traveled to Baguio and Kabayan to climb Mt. Pulag with three high school guys. We took the more difficult and experienced route up the second largest summit in the Philippines over the span of 4 days. God graced me with an incredible amount of gorgeous scenery, as well as a humbling realization of how out of shape my legs are. I never considered myself a mountain climber or an outdoorsy person, so adding the Mt. Pulag summit to my life resume was that much more rewarding.

A few days after returning from Baguio, I traveled to Puerto Galera with a missionary family from Minnesota. God blessed me with a sense of home here in the Philippines as we talked about things like the Twins baseball stadium, the hopelessness of the Vikings, and the various kinds of fish we could find in the land of 10,000 lakes. Puerto Galera also provided with a time of much needed rest and reading. I must say, spending the Christmas and New Year season on the beach had its benefits.

When I returned to Manila I still had a week let before spring semester began. I got in touch with my grandparent's doctor's nephew. The doctor is practicing in Minnesota and before I left for the Philippines in July, I met him and he gave me the phone number of some of his family members living in Manila. I contacted Oli (the doctor's nephew) and we arranged to meet for coffee at a nearby mall. Oli is the Vice President of Marketing and Sales for the Filipino TV station called GMA. He knew I graduated college with a degree in Media Communication so we had lots to talk about.

Before I left the mall, Oli invited me to the GMA studio to be in the audience for the show "Party Pilipinas." When I went to the studio on Sunday, we got front row seats nearest the stage. Famous Filipino celebrities were literally inches away from us. Oli took a bunch of pictures of me with the celebrities and I even got a close-up of me watching the show on live TV. Just watch the video below!

Despite not being in the States for the Holidays, I truly was gifted with a number of incredible experiences. Spring semester has just begun and I will be updating my blog more often to keep everyone in the loop!