After spending a week in Kariya, stepping out on my own in Nagoya seemed like an entirely new experience. I was no longer traveling with an entourage, nor did I have the luxury to be driven everywhere. It was kind of nice being able to explore the city on my own pace. Of course, it was also nice to stay at a hotel with a shower and central heating. =) I had one last breakfast with Yoko-san that morning. I…
After a busy morning at the station, Yoko-san and I stopped for a quick bite to eat at a ramen restaurant, then we headed off towards Toyota, to visit none other than the Toyota Kaikan Exhibition Hall. Toyota is about a half an hour drive away from Kariya. I had been running on little sleep the past week, so with that paired against my uncanny ability to fall asleep in cars, I pretty much dozed off during the entire ride….
The day after our trip to Nara was our last full day in Kariya. It was somewhat bittersweet since I was already growing accustomed to life in Kariya. However, traveling on a group schedule was becoming quite tiring and I was looking forward to spending some time on my own following the homestay. With it being our last day, I knew had to pack in as much as I could, so Yoko-san and I started off early in the morning…
奈良はとても奇麗で、にぎやかだった。あの日は一週間で一番暖かかった。 朝は早く起きて、朝ご飯を食べてから出かけた。駐車場で集めて、バスに乗った。奈良は刈谷から遠いので、三時間くらいかかる。ドライブの途中で皆と喋ったり、お菓子を食べたりした。早くても、皆は元気だった！ 二時間半ぐらい奈良に着いた。初めて行った場所は東大寺だった。沢山シカがいた！シカを触りながら、東大寺に歩いていた。東大寺の前に奇麗な庭があるので、皆と写真を撮った。 そして大仏殿に入った。奈良の大仏は鎌倉のより大きいです。大仏に向かって右の柱には四角い穴がある。私たちのツアーガイドが説明した:「この穴は、奈良の大仏の鼻の穴と同じ大きさになっていて、くぐると無病息災のご利益がある」と言っていた。 マジで！? やってみたい！ +++ ++ + 無理だよ！！！ 全身痛かった！(>.
The day following Okazaki we had a more relaxed schedule as we were spending the entire day in Kariya. Early in the morning Yoko-san drove me over to Mississauga Park, where all the delegates were being dropped off. Yoko-san herself had the morning free, as did all the other host families. The delegates were invited for a special visit with the Mayor at City Hall, followed by a culture day at the Kariya Cultural Center. We waved goodbye to our…