Ok, so after we left the youth hostel we caught two trains (one a bullet train aka shinkansen) to reach our sister school and homestays. Us teachers didn't get homestays, we got to stay at the school house instead. Each of us got a seperate room there, but I happened to get the middle lounge which had 3 doors leading into it. Ahhh the complete lack of privacy.
We did many activities.
Day 1 - arrive, get taken to a ferris wheel on top of a mall so that we can see the whole of the city. We thought it was a small town... we were wrong. Then we had dinner paid for us at a lovely restaurant. Mm-mm
Day 2 - Monday - school assembly introducing us. Students sing NZ national anthem poorly, Japanese students dazzle us with Karate Demo and great brass band playing excerpts from Carmen! Our kids feel like celebs due to the applause we got when we left the assembly hall. That afternoon we painted pottery. Dinner was at a lovely sushi restaurant with the Principal, DP and two other teachers. The waitresses wore kimono! After that, the principal left us and we went out for karaoke!
Day 3 - Tuesday - The school organised for us to rent bicycles and cycle over a 7.3 km bridge.. both ways. We blithely said that all of our students could ride a bike.... and now they can! I'm actually super happy with the one student who couldn't. SHe was a total trouper... however, hanging out with her for that extended period of time meant that I got a sunburn. Boos. I have a major t-shirt line on my right arm! We sorted out our own dinner by hitting the local mall about 15 min before closing. ALl the food was on special.
Day 4 - Wednesday - Dogo hotsprings!! Onsen! Sugoi!!! The students didn't go, they went to a shrine or something. We also got to see a super cuckoo clock! Oh, yeah, for you Studio Ghibli fans, Dogo hotsprings was the inspiration for the hot springs in Spirited Away. That evening we went to dinner at a teachers house. She came to NZ last year and went to one of our teachers houses so was returning the favour. It was very cool. She lives in the country and has a rice field and large vege plot. SHe also took us to her local shrine. Awesome. I ate soo much (and continue to do so)... I may have put on a few kg already!
Day 5 - Thursday - Matsuyama castle and visited a broadcasting station. THe kids were initially bored with the station, but then they got to go on sent and watch a lave newscast being broadcast. That evening we had the Sayoonara party and our girls did much better this time, singing the school song and performing a Samoan dance (3 of them are Samoan) and the chicken dance... with chicken puppets included! It was very cool. We got taken out for dinner after to a yakitori sort of restaurant. Much sake was imbibed. Twas very fun and made the tidying up we did after a bit easier.
Day 6 - Friday- today. Caught several trains to get to Hiroshima. Wow.
Then rushed to get train and ferry to Miyajima shrine. It's fabulous, built so that at high tide it is basically in the water. There were wild deer and raccoons wandering around! Made it back to the main land to get Okonomiyaki (local specialty) for dinner. Oishii!
Must hurry and go!
Point of fashion: comfortable travel
Current Obsession: Nihon!
Beau, I'm not updating anywhere else and may run out of internet time before completing an email. Love you!!