Yes, we are still here!

Hey everyone! I have to apologize for the lack of blog entries lately - its one of the only unfortunate side effects of having such a busy trip! We have been getting back to the hotel pretty late every night, and are totally exhausted because our days are so busy. And now we are staying at a hotel that charges for the internet - about $1 for 15 minutes - kind of expensive actually. So there may not be any more blog entries before we get home.

But know that our trip has been absolutely amazing so far, and everything is going well. The students all seem to be having a great time, and I have really been enjoying myself as I watch them discover Japan. This is such a neat country, and I cant say how many times I have heard them say "This is the coolest ________________ I have ever seen!

We spent a day and a half in Kyoto, then a day in Nara, the older capital. That day was super fun because we rented bikes and rode between all the major sites. Nara has about 1200 tame deer roaming around, and you can feed them and pet them. We saw the worlds largest seated indoor bronze Buddha, housed inside the the worlds largest wooden building. Everyone liked that place so much that we decided to dedicate our own roof tile to the building restoration - you pay a donation and get to write your wishes on a roof tile. When the kids chose "To future travels together" as their wish, I just about cried. It was a really special moment. We also wrote RIP MJ on our tile!

But perhaps the most enjoyable moment that day was when we parked the bikes and sat next to a pond full of hungry turtles. I told the kids that they were not allowed to pick up the turtles because I thought the locals might think it was cruel, but when Adam and I went to to go get some snacks, we came back to find that our students have been befriended by two friendly Japanese guys who, in between doing handstands and asking Sasha to be their girlfiriend, were pulling turtles out of the water for the kids to hold, then throwing them (the turtles, not the students) as far as they could across the pond. Oh well, so much for respecting the animals.

We also made a visit to my old hometown and the high school where I used to teach. That was a LOT of fun! I never thought that less than a year after leaving Japan I would be able to see my different groups of students hanging out! What a trip! We had a big dinner at night and made a visit to the school to join the English classes the next day. It was great for the Japanese students to have a chance to use their English in an authentic situation, and great for the American students to be exposed to teens from another country.

Now we are back in Tokyo and today is our last full day. We fly out tomorrow evening. The journey home will be really long - 8 hour layover in Vancouver! If we have enough money we might rent a car and explore a bit.

So thats it for now - I will try to get the kids to write tonight but really cant promise anything. I know that you are all wanting to hear stories, but dont worry, there will be plenty to tell when we get home!

Signing off,

Miss Morello