Outbound to Gufu + Tokyo Japan, October 19-21, 2017
 |
| Tea Ceremony |
Western Tokyo + Musashino/Mataka
By: Pat G
The bullet train arrived on time to the Tokyo station and we were greeted by all of our home hosts with signs indicating who would go home with whom!
The station is huge and very confusing, so we just followed our hosts to one train after another until we arrived to our home location. I believe we were on 4 different trains in a very few minutes!
My host and her husband have lived in their home for 20 years and their youngest daughter, age 39, lives with them. I had an upstairs room, by myself. That first evening we almost had a Western dinner: Shrimp salad and then some Japanese curry on the side with rice. Chopsticks were not even on the table!
The next morning we attended a tea ceremony, along with 2 other members of the Western Tokyo club. Following the ceremony, all four of us headed into Tokyo, first to drive past the construction of the Olympic Stadium for the 2020 Olympics, then to visit a city on “steroids”. The size of the buildings, height wise is phenomenal! We also visited an art gallery of a local Japanese artist, all about this interpretation of Mount Fuji. Then another tour of the downtown and back home for fabulous evening visiting and eating multiple foods, including delivered Japanese Pizza!
Because of the impending typhoon, many of us decided to change our reservations to the next day instead of staying one more day, so this was also a goodbye dinner. We had a very fun time discussion our cultures, sharing photos of our families, and discussing which countries we had visited on our “map” panel that I gave my hostess for a small gift. They seemed to love the panel and want to use it often.
The following morning we went to the local bus station for a trip to the Haneda airport where I caught up with my roommate Johanna and the Missman's, who had also changed their reservations to get out one day earlier. (this came as a result of an email from our airlines encouraging us to change our reservations due to the incoming typhoon and possible airport shutdowns.
My daughter was all ready in SF for a conference so she picked us up at @ 10 am on Saturday which worked out very well.
A fabulous experience!
Second Homestay
Tachikawa, Japan, October 19-22, 2017By: Nancy S
 |
| Front: Hiromitsu (Hiro), Yukino; Top: Fumiko (Fumi), Nancy, Syota (Syo) |
My host family of four, two parents, a college daughter, and a high school son, all spoke some English, so I had no trouble communicating. Thursday, after meeting me at the train station, Fumi and I went to an art museum with an exhibit called “Fear in Painting.” I could not believe the huge number of people who were there to enjoy the art.
After the museum, we took the train to her home in Tachikawa and had dinner with her son. Her husband was still at work and her daughter would be home from college for the weekend. We played Kings in the Corner with a deck of Sacramento playing cards with which I had gifted
them. They also enjoyed Blue Diamond Almonds from Sacramento as a snack.
On Friday, I toured with Hiro, the husband. We took the train into Tokyo and went to the 45th floor of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. Clouds obstructed the things in the distance, but otherwise the view was wonderful. Our next stop was to the oldest temple in Tokyo called Sensoji Temple. It had a pagoda, an incense burner, a hand and mouth cleansing station, and an altar with the Buddha of Compassion. After a lunch break of soba and chicken, we took the bus and subway to the Polar Science Museum back in Tachikawa. It had displays about the Japanese stations at the North Pole and South Pole including a video of the aurora. We then took the monorail back to our neighborhood and walked home. In the evening Hiro, their daughter, and I played Kings in the Corner. After dinner we talked for awhile and then went to bed.
On Saturday after breakfast we did laundry. Then we headed out for a full day of sightseeing. We started at a restored farmhouse right in Tachikawa. It had been carefully done to keep everything as it would have been years ago. We stopped for lunch as we drove to the town of Kawagoe. Our tickets were good for four sites in the town.
- First was the history museum which covered from the early native tribes to the medieval times, and on up through history.
- Next was an art museum that was featuring an artist who painted scenes in Japan and other countries.
- Then we went to the Kawagoe Castle. It had various meeting rooms, and of course a beautiful garden.
- Finally we went to the Kawagoe Festival Museum which had a couple floats and pictures of their October Festival Day.
After a fairly long car ride home, I took them out to dinner as a thank you for letting me stay at their home. It was already 10:30 PM when we got home, so we went straight to bed.
On Sunday after breakfast I gave each of them a package of Jelly Bellies and the Left Center Right Game. We then walked to their polling place, because it was election day. Their procedure is very much like ours.
After saying goodbye to everyone, I headed for the train station and the city of Hiroshima. It was a wonderful two and a half days, as all Friendship Force visits are.
Post-Journey visit to Hiroshima (Oct 21-27)
I took the train to Hiroshima on Sunday. It was raining hard, but the trains were running. Fortunately my hotel was close to the train station, as it was really pouring and so windy I could hardly use my umbrella when I arrived in the city. I just stayed inside the hotel for the whole night and went no where. There was a Lawson store attached to the hotel, so I was able to get something to eat.
Monday through Friday were absolutely beautiful days with blue skies and sunshine. I spent Monday in Hiroshima, Tuesday in Miyajima, Wednesday in Himeji, Thursday in Odawara for the Hakone tour package to Mt. Fuji, and Friday morning in Tokyo. Mt. Fuji was absolutely beautiful with a little snow at the top. I saw no signs of the typhoon unless it was the reason there was snow at Mt. Fuji.
In Friendship and Peace
