Today was one of the best days thus far. We didn’t do anything extremely amazing or unique, but we spent our time in good company. It just goes to show that people are what make a place special. Mizuki and her British boyfriend, Rob, drove from Misaka (suburb of Kofu) to Mt. Fuji to hike with us. They picked us up at our hotel and drove us to a smaller mountain with a great view of Fuji. The hike up took us just over an hour. I enjoyed my conversation with Mizuki so much, that the hike just flew by. She spent a year teaching Japanese in Portland and that alone gave us a ton to talk about. Poor Rob had to continually listen to Portland’s many great attributes. She told me about her host family. The mother is a professor of Nutrition and actually hopes to conduct research in Japan. Japan is famous for having very healthy school lunches, so she hopes to look into the long term health benefits of the Japanese school lunch program. Pretty cool! Mizuki also told me about several of her perceptions of life in the US. She said that she felt young school children were more accepting of other students being different (fat, a different color, or simply having a unique style). She also felt that the gap between rich and poor was more obvious and much larger. It was really nice hearing her enthusiasm and admiration of Portland. I have always known I was lucky to grow up in such an open-minded and progressive city, but hearing it from someone not from there was a nice reminder.
Rob was also superb company. He is a very funny and kind person. He was hilarious to watch interacting with Mizuki’s family and neighbor. It is obvious that they hold him in high regard and have greatly accepted him into the family.
My favorite part about hiking in Asia is that everyone dresses as if they are climbing a much more serious mountain than what they really are. Many people had bells on their bags to scare away bears, most people had hiking poles, and everyone was wearing the appropriate hiking attire. When I hike, I usually don’t bring the bells and whistles, but I do make food a priority!
Once back in the car we spotted a Japanese antelope crossing the road. Since being in Japan, we have seen a mother snow monkey with her baby, a fox, a badger, and now a Japanese antelope. It really looked more like a large goat to me, but we looked it up and sure enough it is classified as an antelope. Mizuki drove us to Fruit Park in Misaka and then to a bomb-diggity curry restaurant. Curry rocks for many reasons one being that it offers vegetarian options. Chana masala- Yes, Please! Oh and banana lassi!
The rest of the evening was spent at Mizuki’s lovely home with her incredibly welcoming family. They alone have been the best part of Japan. Her father wrestled my Dutch friend Tim to the ground and tickled his feet, continually left the room and returned with Mizuki’s brother’s clothes to give to the guys (a pair of pants, three pairs of shorts, a sweater, two shoulder bags, and a pair of ear muffs), and took photos with me wearing her brother’s fireman’s helmet. He made me laugh to the point of tears. Her mother cut up a persimmon for us and explained that Yamanashi is famous for its grapes, peaches, and persimmons. We all sat around and watched a Japanese gangster movie. The whole family is very special and have made the trip feel worthwhile. I am so jealous of Rob for getting to spend so much quality time with these great people.
Rob was also superb company. He is a very funny and kind person. He was hilarious to watch interacting with Mizuki’s family and neighbor. It is obvious that they hold him in high regard and have greatly accepted him into the family.
My favorite part about hiking in Asia is that everyone dresses as if they are climbing a much more serious mountain than what they really are. Many people had bells on their bags to scare away bears, most people had hiking poles, and everyone was wearing the appropriate hiking attire. When I hike, I usually don’t bring the bells and whistles, but I do make food a priority!
Once back in the car we spotted a Japanese antelope crossing the road. Since being in Japan, we have seen a mother snow monkey with her baby, a fox, a badger, and now a Japanese antelope. It really looked more like a large goat to me, but we looked it up and sure enough it is classified as an antelope. Mizuki drove us to Fruit Park in Misaka and then to a bomb-diggity curry restaurant. Curry rocks for many reasons one being that it offers vegetarian options. Chana masala- Yes, Please! Oh and banana lassi!
The rest of the evening was spent at Mizuki’s lovely home with her incredibly welcoming family. They alone have been the best part of Japan. Her father wrestled my Dutch friend Tim to the ground and tickled his feet, continually left the room and returned with Mizuki’s brother’s clothes to give to the guys (a pair of pants, three pairs of shorts, a sweater, two shoulder bags, and a pair of ear muffs), and took photos with me wearing her brother’s fireman’s helmet. He made me laugh to the point of tears. Her mother cut up a persimmon for us and explained that Yamanashi is famous for its grapes, peaches, and persimmons. We all sat around and watched a Japanese gangster movie. The whole family is very special and have made the trip feel worthwhile. I am so jealous of Rob for getting to spend so much quality time with these great people.
