Mary's Birthday!

Last Tuesday, June 20th, Mary celebrated her birthday at the Brazilian restaurant in Kobe. We had a great time and I loved to eat churrasco!!!

Mary and Kerrie

Beautiful ladies!!!

This is almost everyone who was there!

It looks just like Brazil!!!

A happy couple!

LeeAnn's Baptism!

LeeAnn has been a very special friend! Mansur and I met her, when I first moved to Kobe and Mansur was still living in Tokyo. He would come for the weekend and we would go to Kobe International Baptist Church at the time. That is where we built great friendships. We got to know LeeAnn quite well! Then, when we decided to get married in Brazil, LeeAnn booked a ticket even before the bride and groom had planned their flights! Mansur went to Brazil through Singapore and South Africa, while I flew via USA. LeeAnn stayed with my family for 10 days or so, and we had a great time. Now, my parents keep inviting her for a longer home stay! She is actually thinking about the possibility since she loves Brazil.

This year, LeeAnn made a final decision to follow Christ and she was baptized at the beach party along with many other friends. It was a blessing to be a part of it!

Beach Party

Once a year, our church has a special service at one of Kobe's beaches. We get together with a few other smaller churches in the area of Kansai (Osaka, Kobe, Nara, Kyoto). This year, many people got baptized in the sea. It was awesome. Unfortunately, Mansur was working in another island, Shikoku, and could not join us. Check out the pictures!

This is just a small fraction of the crowd

watching people get baptized.

This is Yoko getting baptized. She made the

decision a week before the beach party.

Praise the Lord!!!

Here is our brother David. God has been working in

his life, molding him! His baptism was a great blessing to all.

Kaori is the sweetest girl... God's light shines through her.

Intensive Course at Kobe University

I am majoring in Applied Linguistics at Kobe University, but I am also taking a few lessons on European Economy, Law and Politics in order to receive a second graduate certificate on European Studies. It is extremely difficult since I have never studied any of it before, but I am enjoying the lectures.

For two weeks, I have been taking an intensive course in European Private International Law, lectured by a professor from Scotland. It was awesome to learn so many new things. The explanation was outstanding, allowing uninformed students like me to enjoy and understand the material.

This picture was taken yesterday, after a small party organized by Kobe University. The Scottish professor is the one beside me, the 3rd one from left to right. We were a very international group of students, from Hungary, Brazil, Canada, Korea, Iran, Taiwan, and Japan. It was a great experience.