Days 7-9

Konnichiwa Minna-san!

Here at the Japanese Academy, we've been really busy these past three days so we haven't had much time to write a blog entry, but we've done a lot of activities and made a lot of progress :)

On Thursday, we had our field day or Undokai. The Japanese Academy was split into two teams: red and white, who competed in various culture-related events such as a Japan-themed obstacle course. In culture class that night, we prepared for the Tanabata Matsuri with a lesson on Sadou, or Japanese tea ceremony, and how to put on the traditional Japanese Yukata robes. We also had a special lesson on Japan's environmentally friendly outlook.

Friday, the 4th, was packed with activities. In the morning, we painted fans to carry around at the Tanabata Matsuri. We painted these fans with traditional Japanese symbols and/or scenery such as cherry blossoms and dragons. After our daily language classes, the girls all rushed to pick out their Yukata robes to wear for the festival. Even though it was "first come, first serve," all the Yukata were extremely pretty and both the girls and the boys all looked great :) The Tanabata Matsuri was a great success, based on the actual Japanese star festival, we learned traditional dances, saw or performed in a skit performance of a Japanese myth, and ate Japanese sweets and takoyaki (fried octopus).

After our festival, the Japanese Academy, along with all of the other Language Academies watched a fireworks show. It was not only fun for us, but it was a great inter-academy bonding experience. We had a sing-along, took pictures, ate ice cream, and ran around in the festivities.

Today, we had a cooking class where we made Japanese curry rice which was definitely enjoyed by everyone. We also had another practice session for the Olympic competition between all of the academies.

Sore dewa mata!

-Quinci