E-TEAM Hokkaido News Archive 2007 ETEAM HOKKAIDO EXPERIENCES JAPANESE HOME STAYS

June 19th, 2007

On the afternoon of Sunday, June 17, we had a tea at the church and our Japanese home stay families came to meet us and take us home with them. We stayed with them until 5:30 Monday afternoon. Below are comments from the team members about their home stays:

Hannah: Eleni and I went to Akiko's house. First we ate chicken, rice and potato salad. Then we went to rent movies. After we got home we played with sparklers with their daughter Ai. The next morning we had eggs, ham and toast. Once we finished eating, we left for Sapporo and I had my first train ride. We shopped for a few hours and then she took us back to the church. We had a very fun time.

Blake: Homestay was a blast! We went bowling, ate Japanese barbeque, and took a tour of Sapporo. Our family was very gracious. We had an awesome time.

Matthew: We shot fireworks (hanabi) in the backyard. We played Shogo (Japanese chess) and Hanafuda (card game). We went shopping in Sapporo. We had lunch at a ramen shop in Sapporo. We played dogeball with the Japanese children at the after school center for Japanese children.

Andrew: My home stay was an interesting experience. Our home stay parents were Mr. and Mrs. Okawa. We saw Mt. Moiwa, a sheep farm and we ate some very good food. Over all my home stay gave me a very good look into real Japanese life.

Nic: I really enjoyed my home stay. The Japanese family I stayed with was very nice and hospitable. They took me to a garden park, strawberry picking, and to play park golf. They didn't speak much English so it was a more difficult time with comedic outcomes. All in all, I loved it and wish to do it again in the future.

Rachelle: I was very homesick for my team. It was a good experience, but I was glad to see everyone again. The family was very nice and vey willing to give us anything.

Eleni: Our home stay lady's name was Akiko and she had a daughter named Ai. Akiko spoke very good English and loved to travel. We played with sparklers and went to Sapporo by train. While we were downtown we saw Blake ad Matthew. That evening we helped out with her English class.

Abi: My home stay family was the Miramis. They were the most hospitable and generous people I have ever had the privilege of staying with. They wanted so much to offer the entire island of Hokkaido on a silver platter. Unfortunately, only so much could be experienced within a day. Thank you so much Mirami family!

On Monday night and Tuesday morning we visited high school English classes. We performed our songs and mime and then broke into small groups with the Japanese students and had conversations! The Japanese students practiced their English by asking us questions and we answered and then we asked them questions. It was so much fun trying to communicate with each other - and we did a pretty good job of it! After that we went to lunch and then went to do some yard work for one of the Japanese pastors. It was more like clearing a field (as you will see from the pictures).

Tuesday night was a time of rest and relaxation - we had Pizza Hut pizza and watched a movie!

Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings!