TravelStream™ news feed for member sbowling99 on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/sbowling99 en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Fri, 16 May 2008 04:29:37 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210926300/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210926300/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210926300/tpod.html Fri, 16 May 2008 04:29:37 -0400 A Culminating Journey

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Tokyo, Japan

Last night everyone mostly stayed in the hotel, except for dinner. We all either stayed in our respective rooms, or we went to friend's room and hung out with them. Some people went to the first floor and went bowling, or played at the arcade. This morning, we started off our day with an origami demonstration by Mr. Kobayashi, a very famous origami folder. He demonstrated many different and unique folding techniques, such as a lip that moves when you pull on the sides, or a heart that beats when you pull something in the back. He taught us all how to make a card carrier. Then we had a chance to shop at an origami gift shop. We then rode the bus to Tokyo tower. We bought lunch at a Family Mart downstairs, and then rode the elevator upstairs to the observatory deck. We had an amazing 360 degree view as we walked around the observatory. It was awesome! Everyone can't wait to come home tomorrow! SEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ken Okamoto
After we had went to Tokyo Tower, we went to do other things and then shopping. We went around shopping for omiyage or just to look around and shop for ourselves. Most of us split up into different groups usually going with friends. Some people went to buy food, go shopping for omiyage, or they even went to an inside amusement park called Joypolis. Really, most of us just went shopping or went to get some food; there were only a few people that actually had gone to Joypolis which is very close to the shopping center. Most of the shops at the shopping center were meant for girls or shoes so the guys just went shopping for omiyage.
Christopher Kyono
After we went sightseeing in the Tokyo Tower, we had to rush to the Fuji Televison station. We had to rush over there, because Chizuko sensei got us a special tour. We got to see the television sets for the different news and game shows. Our tour guide was very good at explaining all the different things. It wasn't the high light of my day, but it was pretty fun. That's it!!! Saiyonara~
By: Christopher Tokita
Typed by: Kristen Ushio. ((Because chris is a slow typer!!! xD))

Editor's note. This may be the last entry. We will leave the airport at around 10:00 pm tomorrow, and I am not sure how much sleep we will get on the plane, so some kids may want to sleep when you pick them up. I have managed to get on a free wifi, but I may have to wait until the morning to upload photos, I'll see how fast it is now. It has been an amazing trip and I am again reminded of the value of these tradion trips. It was great being with some of my old students one last time. See you soon, Scott Bowling
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210847880/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210847880/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210847880/tpod.html Thu, 15 May 2008 07:03:26 -0400 A Culminating Journey

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Tokyo, Japan

Today is May 15th, 2008!!! Hooray!!! We're coming back in 2 days!:) Aren't you Happi???
Anyway, we went to Asasaka and someone (hint: it's a boy) got lost! Haha!!! There was a 100 yen shop there and we bought many stuff. Next time I say we should bring more money :). (Hint, hint. Wink, wink). Then we went to Akiabara. We went to the arcade there and we spent most of our money. It smelt like smoke and when we came out we smelt all smokey. Then we had to go to the store and spray ourselves with axe. By the time we came out, we smelt GOOD :).
The weather is finally warm and I don't need to keep borrowing people's jackets...yet...Every place we visited was windy so far, so we're enjoying this weather.
We're having a FUN time and can't wait to see you in 2 days. Peace!
-Chloe Nagasawa & Tiana Santos
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210762800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210762800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210762800/tpod.html Wed, 14 May 2008 07:08:27 -0400 A Culminating Journey

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Kyoto, Japan

Today we had to wake up at 5 am because we had to attend a 6 am service. They chanted for about half an hour, nonstop. We then went to the Royal Host for breakfast. But we went to early so we waited outside the restaurant. When we got inside we ate food like pancakes, eggs, bacon, and sausages. For drinks we drank orange juice, Calpis, apple juice, etc. After that we went to Heian High School. They gave us a tour of their school. After that they gave us a towel and bottled water. We then walked to the Hongwanji Temple. Our tour guide gave a tour of the whole temple. We got to take pictures. In one hallway there is a cat on the ceiling that looks at you no matter where you are. It was supposed to guard all the ancient scrolls and books, but it looked like a monkey. The outside scenery was very beautiful and there were people cleaning for the Saint Shinran Celebration. Also the boards were squeaky because it was an alarm system for the temple to indicate intruders. Then we left the temple. After that we went to Kinkakuji or known as the Golden Pavilion. We took many pictures and ate things. When we were done seeing the Golden Pavilion, we went to the movie studio. There were many things there. One of them was a haunted house. There was also a mechanical ninja hanging on a rope. It was pretty creepy. We all had a fun time there and wouldn't mind going back. We went to Kyoto station. There was a huge escalator and a long staircase. Some of us ran up the stairs while others preferred the escalators. We ate dinner at the station. And then took a subway to the hotel. And then we started the blog. And now we're done. Bye!
Ayari, Sam, and Kaimana J Bye. Again.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210709760/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210709760/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210709760/tpod.html Tue, 13 May 2008 16:20:59 -0400 A Culminating Journey

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Hiroshima, Japan

Hey Everybody! It's Kayla, yup me, Kayla! Anyways, so were currently on the city train and we rode the bullet train before this train. WHOA THE BULLET TRAIN WAS EXTREMELY FAST! Amazing! Well, I'm looking out the window and I see a big river and some buildings, not so fascinating at the moment, but it's cool. So the 8th grade is on its way to Miyajima, where were gonna be going in the onsen and staying in a hotel. Some people including myself are kinda nervous of going in the onsen, but were gonna give it a shot! Before we get off the city train, were gonna be making 8 stops, so Miriam, Alice and I are keeping count. Well, I don't have anything else to say, so SAYONARA! :]

Today we left our host family and went to Keiai School. We met up with all the hosts and all their classmates and did fun interesting activities. We were sad when we had to leave the school. We took a 15 minute bus ride to a bullet train which took us to a different train which took us to a ferry which took us to Miyajima. We went shopping and some of us got wooden swords(Ryan, Andrew, Ken, and Jarrett) and we got all sorts of souvenirs and omiyage for our family. The dinner was interesting. We got to grill our food, and got many courses. It lasted a long time and there was A LOT of food. The whole meal was oishii. The onsen was hot and refreshing. They had a separate area where the water was cooler, so there was a variety of temperatures. Some students chose not to go to the onsen, but I think they missed out. The taiko group was swell, but not as good as us.
Ryan, Kaelen, Andrew
· Today the onsen opened at 5 am. Some people like Brandon woke up early to go to the onsen. Brandon went 6 times and his skin feels smooth like a baby's bottom. Most people woke up at 6:30 am at the Japanese ryokan named Miya Rikyu on the island of Miyajima. We ate a traditional Japanese style breakfast. Everybody checked out of the hotel between eight and nine am. After we rode the ferry back to Miyajima-Guchi, we rode a bus to the Peace Park and Peace Dome. We around the park once, then we visited the Sadako statue to chant the Mele Kahea and to offer our thousand cranes. But right after we did the Mele Kahea some kids from Japan sang a song and tried to make us look bad but they were not as good as us. Lunch was at a restaurant named Serenado. The food was expensive, and we were served very little food in the main entrée. Some other foods are rice, miso soup, salad, cream puff, and an onion soup. After lunch, we walked to the Peace Museum. Everyone was probably sad, angry, or grossed out by the pictures of atomic bomb victims. A lot of other people were there it was really irritating to have people bump into you. After we were finished at the museum, we rode the shinkansen to Kyoto. In Kyoto, we checked into the Kyoto Monterey hotel. Overall, today was a good day. BYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!! ^_ ^ ^_^ ^_^ ^_^ ^_^
Jarrett Kam, Brandon Nakamura^_^

]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210592100/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210592100/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210592100/tpod.html Tue, 13 May 2008 07:39:53 -0400 A Culminating Journey

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Miyajima, Chugoku, Japan

Most of our host families took us to Space World. It was a nice experience that we could not get in Hawaii. They had a rollercoaster that rose straight up and sent the passengers hurling down, and one that went in loops for what felt like hours. I already miss my host family, and they were very nice. They made me feel at home. I miss my host family, I miss my family, but I do not Brett.
Ryan Andrade
My home stay took me to Kokura castle, which had a fun running game where you had to run in place and try to beat an old man in a race across Japan. Only one person was able to beat him and that was Nobutaka Yagi, Andrew's home stay. At the castle I got a souvenir coin with my name stamped on it, along with a pendant. The next day, we went to Space World. I saw a lot of my friends there, and got to ride the Zaturn, which is a roller coaster that goes incredibly fast and takes you straight up, then straight down. This all takes about 12 seconds. And no, I didn't misspell Zaturn, it is really spelled like that, not like Saturn. After that, they took me shopping at the Aeon shopping mall, where I got to buy omiyage at an electronics store, as well as a 100 yen shop. See you all soon!
Ken Okamoto
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210462080/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210462080/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210462080/tpod.html Sat, 10 May 2008 19:31:44 -0400 A Culminating Journey

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Fukuoka, Japan

It is a quiet Sunday morning in Fukuoka, the kids are all at their homestay families. Brandon got his wallet back yesterday. We all met last night for an elegant dinner at the Shouhakuen Hotel. Chris Tokita did a good job of leading the students in the Mele Kahea with his ipu. Our students were definitely feeling the effects of jet lag, but they did very well and I was proud of them. Chloe's host family had taken her on a trip, so she wasn't there and Jadyne did her part with the pu'ilis. Amy wasn't feeling well, so she didn't hula, but Lyndsey and Kate danced well while the students sang Royal Hawaiian Hotel and Kaneohe. Kristen gave a nice welcoming speech. Afterwords, there was a lot of picture taking and good interaction between the kids.
Mr. Bowling
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210456860/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210456860/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210456860/tpod.html Sat, 10 May 2008 18:04:41 -0400 A Culminating Journey

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Fukuoka, Japan

When we arrived at Keiai (elementary), we were greeted by teachers and a bunch of screaming kids (they were screaming "Aloha"). It's so cool that the school's so clean. They give you slippers to wear before you go in. Chris here, I enjoyed all the activities that they had planned for us there. My favorite one was the Sumo game. They would write numbers on a paper Sumo's and chop sticks. You would start off by picking a chop stick blindly. You would then look at what number you have and to the sumo with the corresponding number. Then two people tap the table till one of the sumo's fall down or pass the red circle. Back to Alice, yeah, that game was really fun! I kept on winning with a little sumo. My favorite activity was the tea ceremony, because the Japanese tea cake was really good. Back to Chris, the tea ceremony was fun, but my legs hurt after it. We had to sit Zeiza the whole time. After we left the Keiai, we continued to the middle school. There we met our home stays. Alice here again, so yeah, when we met them, we went to eat curry for lunch; it was pretty good. During lunch, Brandon found out he forgot his wallet at the elementary school, which had all his money. After that, he drank Chris' water. Chris again, currently, Alice and I are waiting for our host student to finish their classes. Everyone else left because their junior high students. We are paired up with high school students. Ok! We're done now. We would like to shout out to all the HMS families. We hope to see you soon! See ya!
Alice, Chris T.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210373400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210373400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210373400/tpod.html Fri, 09 May 2008 19:02:08 -0400 A Culminating Journey

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Osaka, Japan

We spent the night at the New Otani Hotel. The rooms are so big! We just finished eating breakfast and we are about to head over to the Keiai Middle School. Then we are going to be staying with out host families. Breakfast was very good, like even American food that was cooked even better than in America. I noticed there was no rice, and then Kaimana told me that they don't eat rice at breakfast, they eat salad instead. Then Chloe said, "oh no, I hope my family doesn't give me salad for breakfast!!". Okay, it's my turn now. My story will be about Japan's wonderful toilets!!!! Haha, the toilets, or bidet, shoots water at my butt! I didn't try it yet but from people's stories, I can tell I'll have fun with it. J Then, Jadyne told me that she couldn't flush the toilet. She woke up in the middle of the night and then had to use the bathroom. So after she took care of her business, she scrambled around the bathroom trying to look for a place to flush the toilet!!! Haha. Okay, it's Jadyne again. So last night, while Chloe was in the shower, I packed my day bag for the home stay nights. It's so full! I'm amazed that everything fit in perfectly. If I had anything else, it would probably blow up. But it'll be a lot smaller when I give them the omiyage. But my suitcase is a lot emptier now! Well, that's all for now. We're going to leave. Bye!!!
Miss you,
Kristen, Kate, and Jadyne.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210328640/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210328640/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210328640/tpod.html Fri, 09 May 2008 06:32:50 -0400 A Culminating Journey

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Osaka, Japan

We are at Kansai airport!!! It is 6:42 Japan time and we are feeling very touristy. We are now waiting for our connecting plane to Fukuoka. The Kansai airport is really cool because it has many cool vending machines with Cal pis (which is a drink). The airport is also very big and clean. Kansai airport has the coolest automatic drying machine in the bathroom. We also just finished eating dinner. The airplane ride was extremely long. We had some really awesome lunches on the airplane. We could either have curry or barbeque pork with some traditional Japanese desserts. All of the 8th graders were excited to finally arrive in Japan! Well we have to get ready to board our plane so be jealous. Just joking J Sayonara!
Lindsey and Kayla! <3
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210324980/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210324980/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sbowling99/japan2008/1210324980/tpod.html Fri, 09 May 2008 05:26:32 -0400 A Culminating Journey

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Honolulu, Hawaii, United States

Today is our first day of the Japan trip! It's been very exciting so far, even though we didn't get on the plane yet. This morning, everyone got there by 9:30 AM. The parents were sad and overprotective; it was kind of irritating. The parents and teachers that are chaperoning were scared to see that a lot of us got coffee from Starbucks to drink right now. They had wanted us to be quiet and sleep. I'm very excited to go to Japan. I've never been to another country before so I can't wait. It's so cool that the trip is finally here. We've all been waiting for it for awhile so it's nice to see that it's finally happening. The plane ride will be about 10 hours long. I don't know what we're going to do for 10 hours. The chaperones want us to sleep, but I don't think anyone is going to with all of the coffee that is being swallowed. Everyone's going to be hyper and talking. Sensei didn't tell us our room assignments yet. I really want to know who my roommate will be. Anyways, next time we talk to you, we will be in JAPAN! I am so excited! Alice, Miriam and Amy
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