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Published: November 2nd 2006
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Sept. 25: I learned how to do Ikebana, Japanese flower arranging. It took about half an hour to complete the arrangement. It was fun to learn.
Oct 1: Mama, Grandma, Mama’s Aunt and I went to Okurayama. It is the Olympic ski jump for the Sapporo winter games in 2007. We got to go to the top of the jump and watch skiers as they practiced for the upcoming winter games. There isn’t any snow there yet so it was very interesting watching them practice. At the bottom of the jump is a museum with every winter Olympic game that there is. The museum was a lot of fun and since I could take pictures I took a ton. In the museum there were several interactive exhibits which we all took advantage of. They also had a ski jump simulator that all four of us tried out. I think Grandma was the best jumper of all of us. The entire museum was dedicated to learning about the Olympic Games and trying your hand at the different sports. It’s definitely a fun place for people of all ages. It’s one of the many places that I wouldn’t mind seeing again.
Oct. 3: Almost all the foreign exchange students tried on kimonos today and got our hair fixed up. It was a lot of fun. Everyone looked so pretty I loved it so I took lots of photos. I hope you enjoy the beautiful colors of the kimonos. For those that don’t know, the kimono is the traditional dress of Japan. Today they are mainly worn for special occasions.
Oct. 4: Most of the exchange students went to Bunraku which is the traditional puppet theatre of Japan. The puppets are usually run by three people. One person runs the head and right arm. The second person runs the left arm and the third person runs the feet. The puppets don’t seem like puppets because of their life-like movements and facial expressions. Almost every part of the puppet is moveable; from its arms and legs to it’s’ eyebrows. They can make some pretty weird and interesting facial expressions and movements. It’s quite the experience. Sorry I don’t have any pictures since we weren’t aloud to take them.
Oct. 14: Mama, Papa, Sayaka, Grandma, Grandpa, and a couple other relatives and I went to an Onsen (hot spring). It was a
lot of fun. Part of it is outdoors so I now know what it’s like to walk through the freezing cold after being in really hot water. Unlike most people think, it’s quite relaxing. You don’t notice the cold too much since your body temperature is so hot from the water. It’s about 43 degrees Celsius, which is roughly 110 degrees Fahrenheit. The next day on our way home we stopped at the Noboribetsu Bear Park. We rode a ropeway up to the park and then you get to feed the bears food. It’s so much fun. You throw the food in to the bears and they are jumping and waving their arms just like little kids do when they want to be picked for something. It’s adorable! After the bear park we stopped at several other places on the way home to enjoy the view. I took several pictures and will post them along with this entry. When we got home that evening after we ate supper I helped Mama, de-head and gut tiny dried fish. It was quite interesting; we did it while watching TV.
Oct. 21-22: All of the international students that go to Hokusei went
to an Onsen. I’ve now been to an Onsen two weekends in a row, it’s wonderful! On our way to the Onsen we stopped at the Ainu Museum. The Ainu are the native people of Japan. It was an outdoor museum with several huts and statues next to a lake. We watched a short performance of the different songs and dances of the Ainu in one of the huts. In that hut they had fish hanging from the ceiling that were actually real; they had been smoked and hung up last year. Afterwards we got to embroider headbands with the traditional stitch that the Ainu use to decorate everything. The next day after leaving the Onsen we went to the Edo Wonderland. It’s all about the Edo period in Japanese history. We were able to watch a couple Ninja shows and go through two buildings that reminded us of haunted houses. The first one we went through we thought was a shrine, until a giant cats tale came swinging down at us above our heads. It was fun. They also had miniature horses there that you could feed carrots too.
That should get everyone caught up on what I’ve
been doing here so far. I’m not busy when it comes to visiting places anymore since it is getting cold out. However, I am busy with studying for my classes especially Japanese. Classes are going well, and my host family is wonderful. The weather here is starting to get cold now. It was 2.9 degrees Celsius this morning (Oct. 24) when I arrived at school and it got up to 10 degrees Celsius. That’s somewhere between 37-50 degrees Fahrenheit. I’m loving the cold while all the other exchange students wish they were back home on the east or west coasts where it’s warmer. I can’t wait until it snows. We did notice snow on the mountains now, so it should be coming soon. Hope all is going well in the States or wherever you are. Enjoy
Joy's Japan Photos I’ve added some new photos to the album. I’ll try to add some more soon. If you have any questions about anything please let me know by e-mail or by leaving a comment. Thank You.
Best Wishes Everyone
Joy
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Laura Shipley
non-member comment
enjoyable
Thanks Joy, for allowing us to read your travelblog. It is so interesting, and we always look forward to the information and pictures. You must be having a great time and experiencing so many new things. Keep sending updates, we love it. Laura