Day 7

Today was the big day. Time for the meeting of the host family. O.M.G.

The YFU folks getting ready to leave.

Woke up feeling incredibly awake. Unfortunately, that was at about 5:30 this morning. (Pleasejetlagbeovernowmmmkthx). There was time for one last breakfast, one last hour of internet, and then it was time for goodbyes and a parting of ways. It was seriously tragic, and I really didn’t expect to be so sad to see everyone go. We’ve grown closer than possible at any summer camp, and in a shorter amount of time. Those who I feel closest with, I didn’t even start hanging out with until we were in Tokyo. It’s a whole new dynamic when you no longer are required to stick with the same group of people; new groups form, quickly made bonds un-bond just as quickly, and newer, stronger ones form. The “let’s-be-pals-because-we’ll-be-stuck-together-for-three-days-straight” bond has been replaced by the “I-actually-think-you’re-pretty-cool-and-we’ve-got-a-lot-in-common” bond.

For me, that means switching from hanging out with a bunch of girls to hanging out with a bunch of guys. Like last night after midnight, for example, when I was locked out of my room because my roommate wanted to hang out with her friends and didn’t tell me where she was going and took the key. I just sat in the lobby and chilled with James, Alex and Joe, while they used up all my internet minutes. Guys are so much easier to deal with.

Saying goodbye to my friends.

I miss them all already.

By the time we had gotten to the airport, passed security, and arrived at our gate, it was just Monica and I, the two Fukuoka people. I boarded the double-decker PokeBus, had some cranberry juice that was somewhere between apple juice and cough syrup, and an hour and a half later, I was in Fukuoka.

Oh, so you think I was kidding about the PokeBus? Check this out:

My host mom, Yoshiko, was waiting outside baggage claim with a pretty handmade sign welcoming me to Japan. Monica’s host family was there too, as were the YFU Area Representatives, and we all went to get gourmet airport food. I wasn’t hungry, so all I had was my disastrous attempt to make Milk Tea from scratch. Epic Fail.

My host mom and I.

So far, I really, really like my host family. Between Masahiko (my host dad), Yoshiko, and Noriko (my host sister), there’s enough English to make up for my broken Japanese. (Though I am really proud of myself for speaking as much Japanese as possible, instead of only saying what I know is right and grammatically correct). Needless to say, there’s been a lot of laughter and awkward silences. Yuta, my host brother, is very shy and very into video games. I don't think he's actually spoken to me once. Noriko loves punk, gothic and Lolita fashions, and she showed me all her fashion magazines and favorite boy bands.

I look forward to an awesome six more weeks!