The Kawahara Family

I am right now in the train station getting ready to head to Beppu. I am leaving Shimonoseki City. It is hard to put into words an experience that has never existed in my life. From the second I stepped foot into Shimonoseki the Kawahara family treated me like family. I did not know I could be made to feel so at home so far away from my home. The family is so warm and kind. They live in a beautiful and very big home. They did every little thing to make me feel welcome. Both the mother and father had me call them "Mama" and "Papa". They called me Izzy-san. I think the direct translation of this is "Mr. Izzy". This made me smile. In the house there was Mama, Papa, Miyu (pronounced Myou), Taka and myself.

They were so kind to me and so welcoming. I will miss them very much. I feel that they gave me more than simply an experience to remember. They gave me friendship and warmth that can only be given by a very good heart. Taka showed me all around Shimonoseki. He showed me all the beauty that Shimonoseki had to offer. He took me to Japanese gardens, an Acquarium, Tsunoshima (Masanao, If I spelled it wrong please correct me), an Onsen, and so much more. Miyu was friendly and her positive spirit put me in an even better mood. She is so funny that her humor manages to surpass the restraints of language. Even though, her English was limited she still had me laughing constantly. Mama made sure I was comfortable at all times. She always made sure I was well fed, the temperature was good, and that my clothes were clean. Also, her kind spirit could be felt so strongly that it made me feel very welcome. Papa taught me about Japanese history. He also explained to me many things about Japanese culture. He was very interested in American culture. I loved having drinks with him every night. We would drink and talk about Japanese culture and American culture. His love for his family emanates in all his actions.

This is me and Taka about to eat Fugu fish!


Without a doubt the hardest part of being in Shimonoseki was having to leave. I will miss Shimonoseki and the Kawahara family.

The Kawahara family has made my experience in Japan one that I will never forget. I thank them for that. It is hard to find people as kind and warm as them in the world. I feel so lucky to have met them, to have stayed with them and to have them as my friends. I look forward to the day they come to California so I can show them the beauty of my town.

I will go more into detail about my experience in Shimonoseki in future posts. I wanted to put up this post to express my gratitude and to let my friends and family know I am still alive (as I haven't posted anything in a few days).


This is Papa and me

My last day in Shimonseki

On my last day in Shimonseki I went to an Onsen and had Roof Soba noodles. Taka, Mama and I went to an Onsen. Onsens are awesome. Every single one of them is different from the next. I think that the mineral water in onsens are very good for my skin. When we were at the Onsen there was a man with many tattoos. Taka said "did you notice the man with lots of tattoos?" I said "yeah" and he then explained to me that this man was a known gangster and that I should not make any eye contact with him. The guy had tattoos all over his body so it was hard not to look at him. But I am alive and healthy so I didn't mess up.

After the Onsen. We went and got soba noodles. I have realized that one way to make an onsen experience even more awesome is to have good food after the onsen. The noodles that we got are only made in Shimonoseki. I like to call the noodles "Shimonseki famous noodles". They were delicious. These noodles are cooked by heating up a roof tile and then the noodles cook on the roof tile. When they serve you the soba noodles they are on a roof tile. It is pretty cool. Below are a few pictures.

Mama and I eating Shimoseki Soba Noodles.

Famous Shimonoseki Soba Noodles.

My understanding is that these noodles used to be cooked by soldiers at war. When it was really hot out they would put the noodles on the roof's of their facilities and this would cook the noodles.

Japanese Barbeque with the Kawahara Family

On my last night in Shimonoseki the Kawahara family had an awesome barbeque. Papa made many different types of food. We had Yakitori, vegetables, beef, Craw, Miso soup, Udon and many other foods. We all hung out had some drinks and lit fireworks. It was very fun. At the end of the night they made a little sign for me on the cement portion of their outdoor patio.

The food was so good. One of the many stereotypes about Americans is that many of us are fat. Well, I can promise everyone that if I were to stay with the Kawaraha family I would likely become very fat because all of the food they cook and eat is very good.

Below are some pictures from the barbeque.

Shimonseki Sightseeing

On my second day in Shimonoseki Taka showed me many beautiful sights. Taka and I woke up around 730. Mama then made all of us a very huge breakfast. Miyu said that Mama made breakfast that size everyday. Miyu then laughed and said "Mama loves Miyu".
All of the food in the picture was for me. This was my breakfast.

Taka and I met up with his friend Eri. Eri spoke very good English. Her English was so good that she easily could have passed for an American. She learned English when she was very young so she had no accent. The first place we went to is a historical museum in Shimonoseki. I learned about some of the history of Samurai battles. This only perpetuated my desire to be a ninja. Samurai stories and history are so cool. They had some amazing paper models of the historical battles. Unfortunately pictures weren't allowed.
Taka, Eri, and I at the top of the museum

Next we got lunch with Miyu and her co-worker, Shuri. We went to a place with sushi conveyor belts. Conveyor belt sushi is awesome. Basically the sushi rotates around on a conveyor belt and people are able to take whatever they like. Each plate is about 100 yen (a little more than 1 US dollar). I had Fugu. Fugu is a very famous fish because if it isn't cooked correctly it can kill a person. The fish itself has poison in it. If it isn't cooked at the perfect temperature then the poison remains active. Shimonseki is famous for it's Fugu. A knickname of Shimonoseki is Fugu city. So I had to try it.
Taka, Miyu, and Shuri and the sushi conveyor belt.


Taka and getting redy to eat Fugu


Next we went to a very high mountain in Shimonseki and saw incredible views of the city. I wish I had a picture that showed the beauty but my camera was not able to catch the vast beauty that I saw.

Next we went to a Japanese tea garden. It was so beautiful and peaceful . This was my first time at a Japanese tea garden. It was so cool to walk around because there was so much beauty. It was very relaxing.
All these pictures are of the Japanese Tea Garden




Last we went to the Acquarium. The Acquarium was really cool. We saw some crazy looking fish. We also went to a dolphin show. I tried taking pictures but the lighting made it difficult to see. I wish I had gotten more pictures of the dolphin show.
Taka and I dressed as penguins.
We did so many things in one day. It was fun. I was so tired that I fell asleep in the car on the ride back to Taka's house.

Shimonoseki City Day 1

I got to Shimonoseki around 12 pm. As soon as I got there I was greeted by Taka and his mother. Right at the exit of the station was Taka holding a sign that had written on it "Welcome to Shimonoseki Izzy". Immediately I felt welcome.





From there we went to Tsunoshima island. It is a very beautiful beach that is on the northwestern portion of Honshu (the main island of Japan). Taka and I went swimming. The water felt great because it was very hot. It is always an awesome feeling swimming in the ocean.

After that we went to a very beautiful location to see the ocean. I am not sure what this area was called but it was close to the island.

From there we met Papa (Taka's father) for lunch. We had a Japanese buffet. The food was excellent. It also was nice being with the family. I was surprised how comfortable I felt with them. I think this says a lot about how welcoming they were.



Then later in the day when Papa and Miyu (Taka's sister) got home we went out for Korean Bar-B-Que with Papa, Miyu, Taka and some of Miyu's friends. The food was awesome (to put it lightly). Papa handed me a menu and pointed at a food item. It was raw beef with a raw egg on the top. He said "do you want to try?" I said "yes." He gave me a surprised look and said "are you sure?" I said "I love all food." He got it for me. It was actually really good. After I tried a few bites of it I gestured for Papa to try some. He gave me a gross face and said "nah!" Dinner was fun. We talked, we hung out, we had drinks.

To the left is Papa, me and Junya at dinner.

Below is a picture of the raw meat and egg i ate. It was good!










After that we all went bowling. Papa beat everyone by a long shot. I don't remember his score but it was way higher than everyone else's.











Then when we got back home Mama brought out some snacks and drinks and we all hung out together (myself, Miyu, Taka, Mama, and Papa). I showed them pictures of my family and my life (via facebook). It was a wonderful first night.










Taka and I back at the Kawahara home.

A funny side note: I have learned that Japanese people love to eat food. I guess all cultures love to eat food but I am shocked by how thin Japanese people are considering they eat so much. I love to ask Japanese people "what is the stereotype of Americans?" So far everyone I have asked has included in some way or another "Americans are fat." Compared to Japanese Americans are fat.