Well, I pretty much have a routine now. I get up, go to school, speak some Japanese, hang out with friends, eat Japanese food, play with clay, take the train home, eat more Japanese food, practice Japanese with my host mom, do some homework, relax, go to bed. Of course there are variations, but even when I have a regular day, I really enjoy it.

I’m getting more comfortable with my fam. My mom and I talk the most. She’s still sort of shy speaking English, but gets totally pumped up when I show interest in practicing Japanese. The last couple days she’s been quizzing me on the Hiragana characters with little flash cards. (She’s taught Japanese in the past, and has textbooks and stuff.) It’s good cause it makes my schoolwork a whole lot easier. My dad’s not around much, and even when he is we don’t really talk to each other because he doesn’t speak English. My sister Kyoko and brother Akira are 26 and 29, and even though they technically live at home, they’re never really here.

I’m super excited about ceramics. I have it 4 times a week for 2 hours each time, so I get a looot of practice. Today I made 5 little bowl/cup-type things that I’m pretty proud of. Next week we learn how to trim the bottoms, then later on we learn how to glaze. It’s so awesome. And my instructor is the coolest little Japanese man. He’s maybe 60 or so, with shaggy grey hair and little round glasses. He speaks Japanglish and plays all kinds of music in the studio, like Neil Young, Tracy Chapman… Japanese stuff… Jazz, etc.
(Luke and Hillarie: Yesterday he was playing Claude Bolling, weird eh?)

Saturday I think I’m going to do a day trip to Osaka with some friends. Just to look around. Then Sunday I go on my ski trip to Nagano.

Photos:
1. Some of us have matching phones
2. Me sitting in the caf
3. Lucy in the sweats… with diamonds
4. Pachinko! (some kind of slot machine game? …it’s all over the place)
5. Smiley fence
6. Driving on the left side
7. Flea market at Toji Temple in Kyoto
8. Things were sort of expensive there
9. As the Japanese girls would say… Going to shopping
10. Plastic food outside a restaurant. Good for me ’cause I can just point.
11. Train ride
12. White bread only, thick slices and no end pieces. They’re probably out there somewhere with the muffin bottoms
13. After a long day of school/ceramics, Drea and I went for a nice cold kids-size glass of beer
14. Lucy playing with toys in the school lounge
15. I got some stuffed animals for my 21st. I know… weird.