Hanami

Purikura

Purikura

Sakura

Sakura

Sakura

Today I went with my friend to go look at the beautiful cherry blossoms which in Japanese are called sakura in Japanese. Hanami is when people go sit under the beautiful sakura and have a picnic with their friends and family. Well we didn't have a picnic because we went out for lunch before then but we went and took a walk through the park and took many pictures of the cherry blossoms. The cherry blossoms that we saw were white. I am going to Kyoto soon and many people say there are really beautiful cherry blossoms there so I will take many pictures and update my blog again after my trip! Right now is a very beautiful time in Japan with the cherry blossom season and I am enjoying it so much! And of course with every outing we have to take purikura pictures. I think I explained in one of my previous blog entries that the young people love to take these purikura photos when they go out with friends. Then after you can decorate the photos however you would like! I am sure I will come home with hundreds of purikura pictures but I think it is one the best way to remember an experience!

The Biggest Temple in Nagasaki

Today I went with my host family to the biggest temple in Nagasaki. The inside was beautiful and everything inside was so detailed. My host father had a friend who does taiko drumming at the temple so we got to go and play the huge taiko drums which are really cool but really expensive! The drums were really loud but really fun to play on. He also showed us around the temples. It was very neat to see. I think it was my first time going to a big temple like this one.

Chinese Lantern Festival

At the Ryoma museum.

This statue was really cool it was all made of dishes!

One of the temples.

The balloons everyone let go to celebrate the New Year.

On the 14th of February was the Chinese New Year. This is the day the Chinese Lantern Festival started. I went with my host mother and host brother to look at the lanterns that weren't lit yet. It was raining out so before the lanterns were lit we went to the new museum of Sakamoto Ryoma who is a very famous figure here in Japan. It was mostly all in Japanese and so I mostly just looked at the pictures. Then we returned back to the lantern festival in time for the countdown to the New Year and the time when the lanterns were lit. To celebrate the New Year everybody let go of balloons too. I went two more times to the Lantern Festival. One time I went with my host mother to have a tour of some of the Chinese temples. The temples were really cool to see but I didn't understand much of what the tour guide was saying. Yesterday was the last day of the festival and once again I went with the host family and so I got to see the pretty lanterns lit up one last time. Here are some of the pictures I took.

Huis Ten Bosch

Nawael and I at the super trick art museum.

Christmas illuminations.

This was at the super trick art attraction.

At the super trick art museum.

Hot chocolate with almond cream.

Beyond the windmills are the cute houses that I like so much.

On one of my last days of winter break Nawael, Chelsea, and I went to Sasebo to go visit Huis Ten Bosch. The tickets are usually very expensive but Nawael received three tickets as a present and chose to take Chelsea and I to go with her! Huis Ten Bosch is a Holland themed theme park. The buildings are so pretty. I didn't feel like I was in Japan anymore beccause I felt like I was in Europe. There were attractions like a boat ride down the river, going inside to see how a windmill works, a teddy bear museum, a trick art museum, some small rides, 3D movies, shows, and there was even a parade. Only the parade was more for little kids. When we first arrived we ate lunch at the Chocolate House. The restaurant was also connected a chocolate shop. The chocolate shop had a huge chocolate fountain. I drank some hot chocolate with some almond cream in it! It was delicious. The almond cream tasted just like the almond butter that I put on toast at home. We went and had fun at many of the attractions after lunch. We went and rode the river boat 3 times! I liked the boat because there was this one area that I liked and got to see a little bit more of it. It was either a residential area or rental houses. It was separated from the park by the river and all the houses were so cute! Chelsea, Nawael, and I also had fun shopping for souvenirs. Nawael and Chelsea bought cheese. The cheese at Huis Ten Bosch is really good. At night we got to stay and see the pretty illuminations. Most of the park was lit up with Christmas lights. After dinner we headed home. The day was so much fun but really cold because Huis Ten Bosch is right by the sea. There were not many people at Huis Ten Bosch because of the weather so it was nice not to have to wait in line for anything. Here are some pictures that will show you more of what we did at Huis Ten Bosch.

Rotary New Years Party

Everything that went on for the kimono.

Me with one of the geishas.

On the day of the Rotary New Years party I was very busy. First I went to the weekly Rotary meeting where they had a small party. Instead of a sit down meal it was a buffet and after we took a picture of the whole club. After the Rotary meeting my host mother picked me up and we went to the hair salon to get my hair done. The detail in my hair was amazing. I wish I got a closer picture of my hair. We arrived to the party early so that someone could help me put on my kimono. It took so long for all the layers to be put on me. After the party was over and I took everything off my host mother helped me fold the pieces and we put them in piles. I was so surprised how much I had on. One of the pictures I posted is a picture of the pile. For the New Years party we went to a old and expensive Japanese restaurant. We sat on tatami mats on the floor. I sat on a little chair. Everyone else at my table sat in seiza. Seiza is first kneeling on the floor and then folding your legs under. I have to sit in seiza for tea ceremony club but I can only do it for a short period of time before my legs fall asleep. We listened to some speeches at the start of the party and toasted to the New Year. During dinner we were entertained by geishas. They danced for us, played music, and sat at the tables with us talking and serving us food. One of the geishas was so nice and we had a lot to talk about. She is the one in the pink kimono above. The geishas even had us go up and dance with them sometimes. It was very entertaining. I also participated by picking out names from the box for the prizes as well. I had a lot of fun and learned a lot about Japanese culture. Once the party was over I was very happy to take off my kimono. It is so pretty but very tight and tiring.

Pictures From New Year's Day and Winter Break

A traditional New Years decoration.

The New Year decorations on my host family's door.

The pile of clothing that came inside of my fukubukoros.

My New Year's money came inside of these envelopes.

This soup includes mochi and many people eat mochi on New Year's.

I think this is sake and they drink a little bit of it on New Year's day inside of those little red bowls.

A closer look at what is inside the boxes.

The expensive boxes filled with food that people eat on New Year's day.

Christmas cake that had real gold flakes on top.

Bowling on Christmas.

Winter Break and New Year's

My winter break officially started on the 20th of December. The day before winter break Saturday the 19th, everyone went to school and they held a ceremony just saying it was time for break and we had a little Christmas service as well. We then cleaned our classroom and had to take everything home! I did not realize how many books I had and I am now dreading bringing everything back once school starts up once again. On my first day of winter break I went to the Rotary Christmas party. Everyone packed into one bus to head up to Unzen because there was snow there and people couldn't go in cars. However there was not as much snow at all compared to Minnesota. At this onsen in Unzen we had a buffet listened to some speeches and all of the exchange students performed a dance called Bon Dori and we also sang the song "Silent Night." We all had to bring one gift to exchange. The party ended with playing a game of bingo and getting to choose what present we wanted. Then after everyone received a present we were able to open them. I received a cup from Starbucks that can hold coffee and tea to go. I was happy that my present went to a girl I thought that only the exchange students were exchanging presents. I bought a Christmas Minne Mouse bow from Disneyland while I was there. It ended working out perfectly and the girl who will be an exchange student next year ended up loving it. We ended up going home early so a couple of the other exchange students and I went to karaoke in Isahaya. I didn't end up singing that much because my throat hurt. Chelsea and I then took the train back to Nagasaki. I rested a lot on the 21st, 22nd, and 23rd. On the evening on the 23rd though I had a Christmas party to go to and I enjoyed it very much. On Christmas I woke up and ate breakfast. Then I was able to talk to my cousins on Skype. It was so nice to visit with my family on Skype . I then opened up my packages that I got. I had three packages to open. I read one of my magazines I received and snacked on some of the treats that I received. It was a very peaceful Christmas morning. When my host parents were finished with work my host father took me bowling. I lost every game that we played but that was ok because my score got better every time. We also played air hockey. When we returned home we had a piece of Christmas cake. Christmas in Japan is very quiet and not much happens. People mostly celebrate by eating Christmas cake. My host mother explained that Christmas in Japan is mostly a holiday for couples. For Christmas dinner we went to my favorite Indian restaurant. On the 26th of December I went with Chelsea to the movie "Up" in Japanese, shopping, and out for Italian food. The movie "Up" here is only in Japanese right now. We didn't mind though because we had both seen it previously and it was a chance for us to study Japanese. On Sunday the 27th I met up with a few of my classmates and we went ice skating. It made me miss Minnesota. One of my friends had never been ice skating before so I taught her how to ice skate. By the end of our time ice skating she was doing so well. The next day I was also once again busy with my friends. We went to karaoke and was there for about four hours! I can't believe how long kids in Japan go to karaoke for. I get bored after an hour or two. On Tuesday I once again went out with Chelsea and we saw the movie "2012" in English. I was a little scared but ended up enjoying it. The next two days people were busy running around preparing for the new year. I went to go get a haircut and my host mother said that many people in Japan go to get haircuts for the new year so I was happy that I could participate in that tradition! On New Year's Eve we ate soba (long buckwheat noodles). It is traditional to eat soba on New Year's Eve because it symbolizes longevity. I did not stay up late on New Year's Eve. However I did watch the New Year's music program on the t.v. for a little while with my host family. It is the last concert of the year and all the famous bands and singers get together and have one last concert. The costumes and performances were amazing. I did not get to see my favorite band though because they came on too late and I already went to bed. On the morning of New Years day my host mother and I woke up early to go buy fukubukoros. Fukubukoros are boxes at stores and they put random items in them and you can buy them for $50 or $100. There are various prices. The $100 have around $300 to $500 of merchandise inside of them. At least the two that I bought were like that. The thing is there are only a limited number of fukubukors and you don't know what is in the fukubukors. People were lined up outside of the mall a while before the mall opened and when the doors finally opened people ran to their favorite stores to get a fukubukoro. I bought the last $100 fukubukoro at my favorite store. There were only ten and then buy the time I finished buying my fukubukoro at my favorite store they were all gone and so was the other store's fukubukoro that I wanted. However I did find another store that I liked and bought one more fukubukoro. There were so many people you could get swallowed in the crowd. When I got home I was so anxious to see what I got inside the bags. One of the fukubukoros that I got was really good and I liked everything inside. The one that I was expecting to like the most was quite a disappointment. It was from my favorite store so and I like everything in the store but I did not like many things inside the fukubukoro so I gave some of it to my host mother. When we returned home it was almost lunch time so we headed over to my host mother's parents house. They live only a little ways up the street. They are so nice and my host grandfather is very funny. They had these boxes filled with various foods and it cost around $200. I was so surprised. In between lunch and dinner I studied for a bit and my host father went through all their New Year cards. People send new year cards here out to almost everyone they know wishing them a happy new year. I received one New Year card from my school teacher. It looks like so much work. My host mother said she sent out around 200! We then went to my host fathers parents house which is right next to my host family's home. We once again ate one of the expensive New Year's food boxes. On New Year's day I received money from both my host parents and my host mothers parents. It is called otoshidama. Children receive this money from their grand parents and parents up until they are grown up and have a job. New Year's in Japan usually lasts for three days. So there is a lot of celebrating going on. The day after New Year's we went to the shrine to pray. Most people in Japan go to the shrine to pray around New Year's so there was a huge crowd. After we were finished praying we went to go get our fortune. We went to my host mother's parents house again for dinner because her brother was in town with his wife and his son. They lived in the United States for two years so they spoke English very well. I had a fun time talking to them and we also played a couple of games. It was nice to have that little family gathering because it made New Year's feel more like Christmas in the United States. On Sunday the 4th my host mother and I went shopping because there were many New Year's sales going on. Every store had a sale and so many things were marked down very low. We also went to go see the movie "Public Enemies." I enjoyed it a lot. This next week is my last week of break and I am a little bit excited to go back to school once again. Akemashite Omedetou gozaimasu! Happy New Year!