Student Journals
Thursday, June 26th by Laura
It is about 9 am on our flight to Osaka which is about half way to Detroit. We made it through both
Newark and Detroit airport. We boarded the Osaka flight at 3:40 pm. I had been sitting next to a
lovely older Japanese woman who has already begun to immerse me in the culture. She has
attempted to help me learn Japanese, shared some candy with me, showed me a Japanese newspaper
and made a paper crane. This may sound a little sappy, but despite the language barrier and how the
gesture of smiling seems to be universal. Anyway in regards to the whole group, everyone has been
pretty relaxed and quiet except for the cheers when we took off and landed. We will have a group
meal around 6:30 and stay overnight in a hotel. Tomorrow will be tours of Kyoto and Osaka.
Saturday, June 27th Ana
Today we work up at 7 am, Laura and I had a great breakfast. A lot of stuff looked gross but when I
tried it, everything was delicious. Our first stop was the Osaka Castle Museum. For lunch we had a
bento box we also had Anko a sweet bean paste dessert. After dinner half of the group went to sleep,
the other half went to the arcade to do games and Karaoke. Overall, it was a great day.
Saturday, June 28th by Trevor
I awake on Saturday morning very early to a cloudy yet beautiful sunrise.. Even with the clouds I see
why this country is called the land of the rising sun. We have three options for breakfast. A few others
and I choose the buffet on the 51st floor (the top). We have a delicious spread of traditional Japanese
and western cuisine. After breakfast we all meet in the lobby and board our bus en route to our first
stop, The Golden Pavilion Temple. Our Tour guide's name is Yumi and she is very sweet and speaks
very good English. On the ride she tells us many facts, statistics, and little odds n' ends that make 1 1/2
bus ride go very quickly. I few quick ones were that sake is made from different rice than the rice
mainly eaten, some women may spend up to $100,000 on a single kimono and belt, and what the
traditional Japanese condo is like and how much it costs. The Golden Temple is magnificent; the air is
calm and clean, the woods forest surrounding the area is beautiful, and the pond is rightfully named
mirror pond, reflecting all of its surrounding beauty. We are approached by Japanese students holding
translation pads who speak in excited broken English. The obviously enjoy talking with us, and we all
enjoy it too, as well as get a few kicks from it. After walking around and taking advantage of all the
group photo ops, we come to a shrine where I light a candle wishing my family and friends safety. A
quick trip to the gift shop and we are back on our bus. As we journey to our second destination, we
pass a Shinto shrine. Yumi tells us the religion is the ancient religion of Japan whose followers worship
natural things like the sun, earth, water, rocks, and millions of other deities. Very interesting to say the
least. We arrive at our second destination which is lunch. We have a traditional Japanese box lunch
which consists of many interesting things, some delicious, some just interesting. No one complains.
Now it's shopping time. With a huge store next to our lunch spot it is easy to find lots of cool things.
My favorite things were the beautiful carved wood ink prints. Then it's back to the bus and onto
Kyomizu Dera, The temple of pure water, named so because of the clean water springs that a monk
discovered and built around 1200 years ago. We are told people came to pray and to get the benefits
of the clean water. The entire place is amazing although it is very crowded with tourists from around
the world. The view from the veranda is breathtaking and we are told that years ago people would
jump off the 200 foot ledge to test their fortunes or end up in the land of Buddha. The huge trees
mirror the massive temples and pagodas in their size and stature, I can't tell which I think are more
amazing. Fountains for good fortune and cleansing are tucked into nooks all over the place and
towards the bottom of our walk there is a large fountain with three spouts, each of which brings a
certain type of luck. Only greedy people take water from all three. After that its bathroom and ice
cream breaks before we get back on the road on the way to Osaka Palace. Osaka Palace is immense. I
picture ninjas and enemy warriors scaling its massive stone walls and think how hard it must have
been. The view from the top of the main tower which was rebuilt in 1997 is great for seeing Osaka's
modern architecture. It's eight floors are a walkthrough of the great battle that ended with
government power being shifted to the hands of the Tokugawa Shoganate and from Osaka to Tokyo.
Everyone has had a long day and we go back to our bus for the ride to our beautiful hotel where we
will shortly have a delicious Japanese buffet.
Sunday, June 29th by Julia
Our group left the Osaka Bay hotel at 9:15 and we got on the tour bus to meet the Rotarians in
Toukashima. On the ride over, Oshima san read off each set of roommates and host family
information. He also gave us our table assignments for the welcome banquet. My table was #9 and
my roommate is Cari and our host was Tetsko Michida. He explained that she owned a big Japanese
restaurant.
After going over the family arrangements, we discussed the schedule which included our activities for
each day and the appropriate attire for each day. It was very useful. On the drive over we crossed the
Grent Bridge. It’s 4 km long and as tall as the Tokyo tower. It connects the island of Honshu and Awaji.
We took an unscheduled break at a rest stop due to bodily needs. The rest stop had a great view of
the bridge.
We arrive at the banquet and Cari and I met Toshihiko Okamoto and the Hisane Shigen at our table.
Ms Machid arrived a few minutes after we had been served. After the banquet Tetsuko drove Cari and
I back to her restaurant where we met Chika (17) and Naron(14). They knew a little English from school
and Chika had a list of questions prepared for us to help her study for her test on Tuesday. After a bit
of broken Japanese and English and lots of assistance from a drawing pad which now contains some
amazing doodles we were able to understand each other. We decided to help her study for her test
and she showed us her text books. A little while later, Naron and Chika brought us outside to meet
their dog Sara. Naron pointed out their house was very near to the restaurant. Hen Tetsko drove the
four of us to the small in that Cari and I would be staying at. In the room we listened to music with
Chika and Naron and found out that they like Avril Laugese and the Bentles. We walked back to the
restaurant together and when we got there we entered a tatami room after taking off our shoes. We
helped set the table. Lots of people came to welcome us. One woman was a professional opera
singer. Tetsuko made a great diner. There were various types of sushi and fried chicken. All of the
food was delicious. Then Toshi announce that it was question time. Cari and I split into two groups,
one side of the table question her while the other side questioned me. Some of the questions were
what music do you like, what club do you belong to and what’s your favorite movie... We exchanged
email addresses with everybody. It was a tiring day but it was completely worth it.
Monday, June 30th by Hannah
Breakfast this morning was huge. It is amazing the Japanese are so skinny with the amount of food
they eat. Then we went walking with Tetsun-san. He took us to a temple which was a hundreds of
steps high into the side of a mountain. When we got back we were taken to the kindergarten where
Okasan works and we played oni or something which is actually a version of tag. We also blew bubbles
with the kids and when we were inside I played Japanese children’s songs on the piano and the
children sung along. We then went to have dinner with other Rotary members and after we went to
an ancient “castle town” which still preserves traditional Japanese culture. Jayla and Becki from
another home stay and Katya and I went with our host parents to a series of greenhouses filled with
extremely rare or genetically engineered orchids. After that we went to the Dochu Sand pillars which
are beautiful rock formations in Tokugawa Mountains. We at lunch at the udon shop. It was delicious,
but everyone laughed at me because I can’t make the loud slurping noise the Japanese were used to.
Then we went to Wakimach High School. We stopped and joined an English class which was having a
party. We played Japanese chero, made origami and cooked and ate tako yaki which are balls of
cabbage dough with octopus or squid in the center., The students made us each presents, card and
origami. That night, we went to dinner to a sushi restaurant. The food was on a conveyor belt and you
just picked a plate of food as it ca around., When dinner was over we drove to Becki and Jaylas host
family house, where they had arranged for their friend a kimono maker to give us each a set of
traditional clothing. It was an incredible full day and it was the most fun I have had in a long time.
Tuesday, July 1st by Katya
Okay, first day of July, and once again my roommate and i wake to a ginormous breakfast; I won't go
into that because the list would probably take half a page. After breakfast, our host dad took us for a
walk around the neighborhood and a visit to a temple. Afterwards, we met up with Becki and Jayla,
and drove to a hotel where we gathered our group of Rotarians. After our host families dropped us off,
we waited a while for everyone to show up, and then set off on a bus ride to the Naruto Whirlpools.
Unfortunately, we didn't arrive at the right time, so the whirl pools were just a bunch of bubbling
water. Then, we went to watch the Awa Odor dancers and even participated in it.
Tuesday, July 1st, 2008 by Abby
Today was very fun! I woke up at 8 to find a hot breakfast of eggs and salad. After breakfast, my host
father drove me and Emily to the Tokushima Prince Hotel where we met up with the big group. After a
lot of catching up boarded the bus and drove to Naruto City. In Naruto, we visited the Naruto Diiachi
High School. We first divided ourselves into two groups and one group went to English and the other
group went to Calligraphy class.
A lot of people, myself included, had already done calligraphy so we went to English.
In English class we were divided into groups with 2 Americans and 2 Japanese., We talked about and
explained Independence Day. They explained to us in English the words for Japanese lunch i.e. bento
box, and nattou – fermented soy beans. It is about as good as it sounds. Afterwards we all wrote
wishes and comments on the white board in the classroom. After this we had lunch in the school
cafeteria, We had an omelet which is egg on top of rice with ketchup
After lunch we split into two groups and had a tour of the school. Both I and my partner Rachel speak
Japanese so we were able to help in interpreting the tour. Our tour guides want to be home health
care professionals so they are taking classes in health, , nursing, etc. They tried to explain all of this to
us.
We departed for the Naruto whirlpool where we walked out on a tour under the bridge to see the
whirlpools. Unfortunately, there were none because it was in between tides – still water. We then
went to see Awa Dancing. After the performance we all go to try dancing on stage. It was very hard
since you have to coordinate you hand and foot movements. It was great seeing the entire group
today.
Wednesday, July 2nd by Daniel
Today my host family took me to the Osaka Art museum. It was amazing and they had many historical
painting such as the Mona Lisa. Then we went to high school and we met another American who is
here for a teaching program. She has been her for a year but is leaving soon. They had a welcome
party for us and we went to one of their fashion classes. The students asked us a lot of questions. Then
we went and saw their archery club. That was really cool. We also saw their Karate club and they did a
little fight for us. Then we did indigo dying and that war really interesting. That’s about it for now.
Thursday, July 3rd by Geoffrey
I woke up early so I could say goodbye to my host family before I got on the bus for my next adventure.
I will especially miss my host families so Hiro. I had a lot of fun with him for the past 4 days. We took
an hour bus ride to Kochi City. We had lunch at a very nice hotel and I was served by the most
beautiful waitress I have ever seen. After lunch we took a tour of the Japan National Bank. It was
amazing seeing where and how all of the Yen was produced. After the bank we went to the National
TV Broadcasting Station. After that I hooked up with my new host family. I can hardly wait to see what
new adventures await in the next 4 days.
Thursday, July 3rd by Grace
Konichiwa! At 7:45 this morning we packed up our entire luggage and left our family in Tokushima. In
Tokushima I stayed with Julia S. and we had a great time. The family was so nice we stayed with a 12
year old girl and a 7 year old boy and a little toy poodle named Cookie. The first home stay could not
have gone any better. Today we moved onto Kochi for our second home stand and we also did some
touring along the way. When we arrived in Kochi, we went to the Bank of Japan and learned about the
economy and counterfeit money. Then, we went to NHK television broadcasting station and got to see
filming cameras and sets. Next, we went shopping to an arcade in downtown Kochi. It was very fun.
After that we met our host family. There is a moon, dad and really cute 5 year old girl. We went to
their house and ate dinner. Then Emily and I went to sleep in preparation for a full day of sightseeing
tomorrow. I think we will have a great home stay and I am having an amazing time so far.
Friday, July 4th by Devo
Celebrating July 4th in Japan just isn’t as exciting as it is in America. It could be because we’re the only
one in the country celebrating. We started off the mooring with the group and went to the botanical
garden. The heat, high humidity made it hard to enjoy be we adored the exhibit with AC or the cool
green house. Next we went to the Rotary lunch where we sang, exchanged banners. Later we
ventured to a local high school where we answered questions and were introduced to Japanese games.
It was so exciting to see kids our age and compare our lives. All in all, as a group we had an
outstanding day.
July 5th by Rachel
My roommate Allie and I were woken up by our host family to a great breakfast. Using broken English
and an electronic dictionary we learned all of the fruit apples, peaches, and melons were grown by him
on his property. The fields he owns are nearby. It is no wonder why everything is so delicious. After
breakfast the details of the day were explained. First we were meeting with another host family and
heading to the beach. We were surprised to hook up with Lesley and Nicole. We were with our hosts
and their families. We had a surprise visitor who was a wakeboard instructor. We all boarded my host
boat and all got instructions in wake boarding. None of us came close to being a good as our teacher
as he was even able to do back flips. After the boat we returned to the beach were we had a fantastic
bbq all in the span of one day.
Not sure what day this was written by Cari
Hey Mr. Kroll-Devon and I had a little extra time on our hands here in Kochi at our homestay, so we
wanted to give you an extra journal entry to enjoy/send out to the eager parents. So here goes: Last
night Devon learned how to do laundry... without a dryer. We decided to hang the sopping clothing
outside our room (which is actually the 11 year old daughter`s room). Unfortunately, we were
impeded by a large and obnoxious thunderstorm that actually undid all the fantastic drying that had
been accomplished. Event one. This morning we woke up after realizing that there was yet another
thunderstorm so our clothes were once again very wet. Alas, we waited longer. But moving on. We
had a fantastic breakfast while watching their ever present TV... a cartoon where kids were stuck in the
sky on clouds (I`m not quite sure how they got there in the first place, couldn`t tell you.). We had rice,
miso soup with clams, eggs, bacon and grapes that tasted slightly different than the grapes we have in
America. More tangy, much better. Lunch took three and half hours. We wanted to give our family
another present because they are so accommodating, so we offered to make them an American meal.
Little did we know that shopping in a Japanese supermarket would be rather difficult as nothing is in
English and Devon is allergic to dairy. Somehow we managed to procure ground beef, brownie mix,
peanut butter (not included in the meal), what we hoped were graham crackers (in cookie format!),
marshmallows, pasta, mozzarella and some other type of cheese that is still unknown (not for Dev),
and potatoes. We ended up making up recipes for pretty much everything, after Devon looked up
some funky smore brownie recipe. Unfortunately we couldn`t read the directions on the back of the
brownie packet, so we completely improvised that, as well as the entire meal. What resulted is shown
in the pictures that are attached and above. Some noodley, meaty, tomatoy mess of pasta (which was
quite good I may add), twice baked potatoes (yes, I used my phone to convert F to C), and a truly
fantastic cake that was honestly a stroke of good luck. That was our day so far. They loved the meal,
and the 17 year old daughter asked me for the potato and cake recipes. As we made them up, it was
fun to write down what we thought we used. Just wanted to chime in. Devon says hi to her family,
and I say hi to Mom, Dad and Scott (although Scott will probably not read this anyway), Well wishes,
Cari
July 6th by Nik
As we reach the half way mark in our trip, I am amazed at how fast time has flown by. My second
home stay family in Kochi is wonderful and their hospitality is great. Yesterday we went to the mall
and had a Chinese lunch. Chinese food is better in Japan. Afterward we went to Kochi Castle where I
was attached by some hungry pigeons, it was really cool. We were going to go to some local caves but
there just wasn’t enough time to fit this in. This morning, four high school students invited us to
practice English. This exchange of culture resulted in plans to have lunch in a very fancy restaurant at
the top of the mountain. The views were fantastic and the food delicious later we could not resist
another trip to the mall. We wasted a few hundred yen on arcade games. We met up with another
home stay family and shopped for souvenirs. I don’t know how I will bring it all back. The sun set
beautifully as we drove back home. It was sad to see as it concluded the last day with my host family
in Kochi. I will be both happy and sad as I leave tomorrow morning of Ehime.
July 7th by Mark
On Monday, July 7th we traveled from Kochi to Ehime, a trip that lasted two hours. We arrived at the
Regal Regency Hotel in Ehime we had a lunch which consisted of a buffet and a with a pre determined
main course whose contents tasted like chicken. After lunch we were given some free time which a
group of kids and I played American football. After an hour or so we were brought to a room where
we met our homestay families. Nik Geoff and I were introduced to our host father Jero Senoo, who
gave us a sheet of the names, nicknames and ages of everyone in the family It was an hour and ten
minutes to get to their house. The house is a suburb called Niihama and is surrounded by mountains.
The house itself is large and beautiful with a large yard in front which is inhabited by a shigaken dog
named Mimi. A while after we met the family we went to the welcome ceremony dinner hosted by the
Niihama Rotary club. After Chinese dinner we all went we went home and finished the night off with
fireworks which Geoff and I paid for. We stayed up until midnight and then went to sleep.
July 7th by Rebecca
The same morning breakfast, the last good bye ritual then onto Ehime. Vending machine can coffee.
When we got to the hotel, we ate lunch and met my host family. I was happy to hear thy had a puppy
and some children, (technically adults) they were 22 and 24 and the eldest 29. And for the first time in
four days, I was excited. Okanagan (mom in Japanese) took us shopping for food and found a favorite
of hers – Starbucks, harmful we talked politics, chemicals in detergent and such. Yes, she is particularly
fluent in English. We left and went to a book store where I jumped for joy. My favorite visual (genre of
music) magazine and they were 840 yen or $8.40 US. Dinner was with mom and kids. We laughed
over many thing especially Eigos inability to speak English. He got very frustrated when his mom
pestered him. She had a unique ability to really roll her eyes and make a sarcastic remark. Later that
night the father came home from work at midnight and his English was perfect. We went to bed with
sore sides from laughing and a smile thinking about the next day.
Tuesday July 8th – Ehime Homestay by Andrew
In the morning Cameron and I visited the factory that our host mother and daughter worked at. It was
a paper factory that made the wrappers for McDonalds and other fast food chains. We saw the
wrapper production for McDonalds "Shaka Shaka Chicken." After telling our family that we did not
have Shaka Shaka Chicken at McDonalds in the US, she took us to McDonalds after leaving the factory
to experience the shaka shaka – which was incredibly good. After the quick fast food run we took a trip
to a Rotary meeting where Cameron and I each gave a speech and ate lunch. After the meeting, we
were escorted to another Japanese High School where we took a calligraphy class with freshmen then
had a long meeting with the school's English Speaking Club. The principal personally escorted us
through many parts of the school and although he did not speak much English he was extremely nice.
We also saw and played Japanese instruments at the school including a special traditional drum. While
the high school was very nice, I wouldn't be able to survive there for two reasons. The first is that the
building itself got incredibly hot as there was no air conditioning and the temperature was about
31degrees Celsius. The second is that the school day was incredibly long and the workload was heavy.
We had a very interesting dinner that night which consisted of a pot of boiling water in the middle of
the table and a variety of raw meat that we could dip in and broil to eat.
July 9th, by Rebecca
On Wednesday, Jayla and I woke up in the cottage. We were chauffeured by three Rotarians. We
were taken to a fishery which as a vegetarian I found very gross and then to a potato farm. After that
we went to a pearl factory where we each got to put the balls in the shell and to keep a pearl for
ourselves. We went to an English class at a high school where the boys were not shy. Then we went
tour host family and rested. We used the internet and ate dinner with the 31 year old son and his
friends. They all ate tongue and intestines and I enjoyed my salad and soy sauce covered rice. After
Jayla and I just wanted to go home. We were on the news at night. It was quite awkward and
embarrassing.
July 10th by Rachel
Today Julia and I woke up and showered, did our make up and hair. We had breakfast and talked to our
host mom. Then we went on the computer. Then our host mom showed us masks she made for special
Japanese ceremonies. Then she showed us a video of the Japanese ceremonies using the masks that
show no facial expressions. Mike and my brother, Steve, showed up and waited downstairs for us. Our
host family invited Mike and Steve to come to the Rotary meeting lunch with us. Julia made a speech
and the translator translated what she said, then I made a speech and she did the same for me. Then
my brother made a speech in Japanese and the Rotarians were impressed. Then mike made a speech
and Steve translated for him. Then we went to Okaido Matsuyama and we went to the arcade and
played some video games. Mike and I played teikan and Julia and Steve played Mario cart. Then we
had to go to the train station and we met up with my host mom’s sister and we got on the train and
got to the last stop, at the hot springs. We got man carriage rides and we shopped. Then we took a
tour around the hot springs, then went shopping some more. Then we had foot baths in this public
footbath fountain. Then we waited about 15 minutes for this clock ceremony our host mom wanted to
show us. It was pretty interesting and cool. Then we went back to Okaido Matsuyama and mike and I
went to the arcade and we played some video games and then we took pictures in the photo booth.
Then we met back up with Julia and Steve and we went to Starbucks to meet our host father. Then we
went to a rotating sushi bar and had a great dinner with our host family and the host mom’s sister and
her son. We all chatted and had a great time. Then we went back to our house and Mike and Steve
helped us pack. We listened to music and sang and dance. Then we did calligraphy on fans with the
whole family. Then we finished packing and talked with the host family and had a great conversation.
Most of the day my brother was translating for us, and it helped a lot. The communication was a lot
better with Steve translating. Then we went on the computer one last time and then we went to bed.
July 11th by Adri
The day started as I woke up in the home of my host family in Ehime. Dan and I were driven by our
family to the bus stop where we met up with the rest of the group. Although I loved my host Family it
was great to see everyone again. We got on the bus around 9 o'clock and were off to Imabari. The
group arrived at the Imabari plaza hotel and were given our room assignments. Each one of us had our
own rooms which I particularly enjoyed. at 6 o'clock we all had dinner at the hotel restaurant which
was an excellent meal by the way. Later on we were allowed to leave the hotel and explore the city on
our own, as long as we were in a group of four or more, until 10 o'clock. Myself, Trevor, Rebecca, Jayla,
Lesley, and Devon found a bowling/karaoke center and sang the night away. It was a great stay but I
was eager to get to sleep and travel to Kagawa the next morning.
July 14th by Emily
Today was a very interesting and exciting day. After waking up bright and early and eating breakfast
(which consisted of ham, fruit, bread, eggs, salad and or course rice) Jayla and I headed for Shodoshima
High School with our host mother and father. There we met the principal and got to sit in on an
English class. There was also a newspaper reporter with us asking us questions and taking pictures of
us which felt kind of strange. The students in class were very shy but the teacher had us all playing
games together so they slowly opened up to us. After that, we headed down the road to the mayor’s
office. Outside was a very large van that almost looked like an ambulance vehicle. A man approached
us and started talking to our host parents and then led us to the other side of the truck which was
open and had a small table and chairs set up. We were told to take off our shoes and proceed up a
small set of stairs to where the table and chairs were waiting for us. “Have you ever experienced and
earthquake?” Our host father asked. Jayla and I looked at each other slightly confused. No we
answered. Well you will now. Exclaimed our host father. Moments later the van began to shake and
everything started to move all over the place. It was a little scary but a lot of fun! Next we proceeded
to the mayor’s office and sat to talk with him for a while. This was so nice and seemed he seemed very
happy to see us. Our last stop of the day was to our host sister’s high school. We live on a separate
island for the actual island of Shikoku, so we had to take the ferry boat over to Chikako’s private school
on the main island. After eating lunch with her and her friends, we sat in on Chikaki math class. It
wasn’t as exciting as the English class, but I was still interesting because I recognized a few things. I
have learned this past year in Algebra II. Overall, it was a very busy day, but it was a lot of fun!
July15th by Cari
Today absolutely flew by, as it is not 11:49 at night and we just saw ourselves on the 11 o’clock news.
It was the second to last full day of the entire trip, so we seemed to pack quite a lot in the course of
one day. My brain was trying to brew possible sentences as Julia and I went through Kagawa.
Needless to say we had a great time, and as I’m writing this journal I’m slowly becoming sad that the
trip is drawing to a close.
But anyway, today was special for a million different reasons, so I'll just hit the highlights. Julia and I
woke up and met the mayor of the city we're staying in. There were three other girls from rotary there
as well (Hannah, Nicole and Julia Hecht). We had an interesting time sitting in plush leather chairs in
his office exchanging comments and compliments as photographers circled the room endlessly, and
the film kept rolling. They told us we'd be on the news three times tonight, 6, 9 and 11. Lo and behold
we were, it was pretty funky.
After the publicity stunt, Julia and I joined our host father’s friend for a barbeque up in the mountains.
We fell in love with his house (all wood and bamboo, airy, beautiful, with a separate tea room, an
outdoor enormous grill thing that all Japanese families seem to have, a leather couch outside, an
unbelievable view...) and his cooking. We had steak, peppers, onions, pumpkin (which I swear, it's
butternut squash. They just keep calling it pumpkin), Indian bread, and a dessert of cherries,
pineapples and watermelon. We became great friends with the three grown up daughters who were
there, exchanging favorite movies, books, actors, etc to get acquainted. It was a very chill, amazing
lunch.
We returned home to pack and get ready for the farewell party.
Then there was the farewell party. I would upload pictures for you but it’s almost midnight and I'm
completely beat. Basically, it was very fun. People sang, danced, ate Japanese food, bonded some
more with their host families. Rotary thanked us, we thanked them. It was very nice.
And now I'm here after a shower, TV, packing, saying goodbye to thousands of people. I will miss
Kagawa, and all of Japan. This trip was fantastic.
Well wishes,
Cari
Tuesday July 15th by Cameron
Today I woke up at about ten o clock and take a shower. I eat cereal and fruit
for breakfast. Before we went to the Rotary Farewell Party later on today we
stopped at a clothes store and shopped for about twenty minute. Then we
stopped at a CD store and browsed around for about fifteen minutes. Then we
went to the farewell party and it was a lot of fun. We were able to see our
fellow rotary members dressed up. We ate dinner and some of the members put on
certain performances which were great. Then after my family and I went to
Karaoke and sung until our voices couldn’t withstand another note. When we got
home we said goodbye to our Japanese friend and off to bed until tomorrow.
July 16th by Allie
It’s so weird to think that today is our last day in Japan. I have had a great time, but it will feel really
good to go home and sleep in my own bed. This morning e had to wake up early, jump in the shower
and eat a quick breakfast of a pancake with fruit before getting into the car. Before we left I gave some
gifts to my host families. The ride to the meeting place was the first of many hours spent driving. Next
we drove a couple of hours to Osaka, but it wasn’t bad because it gave everyone a chance to catch up
with each other and to catch up on some sleep., Once in Osaka we were given four hours for lunch and
shopping. Grace, Laura, Andrew, Emily and I had Japanese style pizza for lunch and got some nice gifts
for family and friends. We went to an arcade and took some photo booth picture. Roaming around the
city was a refreshing change of pace from the busy schedule I had been following for the last several
days. The hotel rooms were very nice and after bringing up our suitcases and watching some sumo
wrestling on TV we had our final dinner in Japan. I’ve gotten so use to eating with chopsticks its going
to be strange going back to a knife and fork. We considered going out after dinner but the hotel is sort
of isolated so we just stayed in. It’s probably for the best because I had to repack my suitcase anyway –
this is one thing I definitely will not miss. It’s hard to believe that this is my last night in Japan. I should
probably finish packing. I’m really looking forward to tomorrow’s thirteen hour flight - haha
Date? – by Jordon
This morning I woke up at 7 with my host father saying good morning good morning! (One of the few
English things he said) I went down to the breakfast table with Adri following soon after. We had a
delicious breakfast of sandwiches and fruit. The host family's son translated what his father had just
said to us while eating and said that we were going to visit his company. When we arrived, all the
workers were standing outside a factory building waiting for him and us. The father, Adri, and I all gave
speeches. Soon after, music started playing for it was time for the morning stretches. We then took a
tour of his ceramic filter factory. At the end they put Adri and Me into a room with workers uniforms to
try on. After we came out, they put us to work. At 12 we went to lunch where we just caught Ana and
Devon running out the door. They said the udon noodles were great so that's what we had. Back to
work it was. Even though it was manual labor and we weren't getting paid, we gave all the workers
with us a fun time in what could seem like a dull day. After work Adri and I relaxed for the rest of the
day.
Hiroshima by Trevor Heilblim
As our bus reaches our destination, the first thing I see is the dilapidated frame that was once the
Hiroshima Center for Industrial Development. Now it is the A-bomb Dome. What is left are the
destroyed remnants of a concrete building that can only tell you one thing. True disaster struck this
place. Running through my mind are thoughts of despair and anguish. How could anyone ever think of
causing so much destruction, and this is only the beginning of our tour. We walk along the river and
see rubble on its banks. Remnants of the wall the once lined the river. I know from what our guide tells
us that bodies lined the same banks on that fateful day in 1945. It took months for the bodies to be
cleared away.
My group travels to the point just below the hypocenter of explosion. We are told that ground
temperatures reach levels of 6000 degrees. My skin hurts being sunburned from a prior day at the
beach. I know the people here didn`t even have time to feel pain. However, models of people with
their skin melting off from radiation burns tell me that some felt like it was hell on earth.
We then travel to a monument built for students that lost their lives. Ten thousand students. That is
ten thousand children and teens, many, no doubt around the same age as the students I walk this tour
with. Paper cranes hang all around the monument. I feel tears well up in my eyes but continue on.
We move on to a staggeringly beautiful monument, erected for a girl who developed leukemia in the
years that followed the bomb being dropped. In the hospital she folded one thousand origami cranes
for good luck. The disease was stronger and she died. Her friends began a fundraiser following her
death. Every year ten million cranes are sent to the monument from around the country to symbolize
an effort of peace. It is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen, not just the structure with all
the colorful birds created from paper, but the idea of thousands of students helping in an effort to
have peace.
We move on to a mound with a single gravestone. I know what is about to be said to me, and I am
correct. This was a mass grave of the unknown. Seventy thousand people were cremated and buried
here, their identities never to be known. I see two girls in my group hug, obviously comforting each
other at the thought of such a terrible fate. I make sure they are alright before moving on. It is hard for
all of us in the group. We walk across a field area to the main monument. It is a chest filled with all of
the names of the victims of the bomb. Across a small waterway is a torch. We are told it is the Peace
Flame that will burn eternally until the day nuclear weapons no longer exist. Surrounding this central
area is an awesome sight. Scouts from many different countries gather together certainly in an effort
to learn about the terrible event that occurred here. I pray that these young men return to their
countries with the same feeling that I have, a peaceful world cannot truly exist with nuclear weapons.
Before going into the museum we walk through the Victims Memorial Building. In the Hall of
Remembrance, I reflect on what a peaceful world would be like. I remember when I was young a
teacher told me I was lucky to live in a time without war. That did not last long, is all that goes through
my mind. I see pictures of victims that could be no older than two, and I know that there must have
been younger ones as well. How horrible to never experience life. But possibly better than the child
that survives the initial blast and develops fatal cancer, suffering for years, or the women who never
finds her children and has to live with their loss. All these thoughts rush through my head so quickly I
feel dizzy. In the museum, besides the roof tiles that are melted and fused, or the tiny school uniforms
worn by students no bigger than my precious little sister, one thing truly grasps me. It is a wall of
letters from the mayor of Hiroshima. Each letter is written to the Ambassador of a country that has
continued to test nuclear weapons. At first glance, I don`t think too much of it. Then it hits me like a
ton of bricks. This wall, this Museum, this entire memorial and park in a city that was once no more
than ash and a few half demolished foundations is a promise. A promise that the Japanese people have
made to the world, to truthfully inform everyone about the devastation and pain caused by nuclear
war. It is a promise to reach for true and everlasting peace in a world where people do not have to fear
such a force. As I realize this, my thoughts change from complete sadness to hope. Hope that maybe
we can remember this sad event and reach for the awesome goal of a peaceful world together as
humankind. The Japanese people will never forget that fateful day sixty three years ago, but instead of
hate in their hearts; it seems there is hope that one day peace is possible. On April 6th, the day the
bomb dropped, thousands of people every year gather in Hiroshima to remember what happened in
hope of it never being repeated. I, unlike any President of the United States, promise to be there one
day in the future with these people, to remember the dead, and to hope for a world at peace.