Awwwww shit

Okay, this entry is gonna really suck because Im on a labtop at my new house and the keyboard is really freaking weird. I hope you enjoy long reading because I must recap two days worth in this post. Okay, let`s go.


Day what is it? four? five?: The magnificent seven take matsumoto castle.


This was the day that we got to goto matsumoto castle. We were originally supposed to mt. Fuji but the weather was supposed to be cloudy so they changed the trip. You know what? fucking hot sunny day all day. Oh well, we made some mischief. After we got to school we all met up and then talked to the freaking sweet bus driver. sonoato we got on the bus and then made our way for about a two hour trip to the castle. We just acted silly and obnoxious and fun to try to counteract kanai`s anger at us and a good time was had by all. We stopped at a convenience store and played my favorite game... Which is porn and which is fashion?!?!?! You basically pick up a magazine and guess if its porn or a fashion magazine and open it to find out. I guessed fashion and I lost when I found the cartoon sex about halfway through. Oh well. We bought some drinks and continues our journey.

When we made it to matsumoto castle we took the obligatory picture and an extra MAGNIFICENT 7 picture. It was pretty sweet. We took the castle tour and declared the 3rd floor as our new HQ and I think we ended up pissing off the security guard with the shennanigans but he didnt do anything because of what I call the "gaijin force wall" meaning that japanese people are afraid to confront foreigners. We hung out there for a while then went to the gift store and then ventured into the city. We just wandered around aimlessly for the longest time and then we found our way into the electronics shop where I found the again obligitory anime porn games which never cease to make me laugh. Some people bought some things and then we left. Josh now has an obsession with capsule toys containing half naked little girls. Go figure. Afterwards we were in search for lunch.

We ended up going between three different places for about half an hour before we decided on one and just ate there. It was a pretty good ramen shop and it wasnt too expensive either. It was overall, a successful venture. With our bellies full we went to a hyaku yen shop (read: dollar store) and thats where we found our new uniform. THere were a bunch of these retared visors that we all ended up buying and then wearing as a group. Now, these are big orange visors with a shield thing that goes over your face like one giant sunglass. (AK note: sunglass, singular of sunglasses).　We all wore them and highstepped around the street for a while and made a few signs to command us what to do. It was sweet. There were even more people staring at us than usual. One guy even got all of main streets attention by yelling at us to take off our masks to which we responded with a resounding no. Ill spare our antics for your sake and mine but one worth mentioning is that whenever one of us stopped at a vending machine the rest of us would just stand around buzzing until he made his purchase. Yes, it was awesome. We ended up getting back on the bus after a few more episodes and wore the masks the rest of the way home. Ill show you when I get back what they look like, stupidest but most effective thing ever.

We ended up getting back to the school and I hung around for a little bit then left with my host. He had a flute lesson so I ended up spending an hour in the public library reading some book about japanese high schools that was written in the early 80s. I can think of a few ways that I could of spent my time better but all involve too much nudity for japan to handle. Anyways, after we left we went home and ate our last dinner together. The family offered me beer and sake but I had to pack so I declined and just had water. It was a slightly sad last dinner but it was enjoyable. The dad got fairly drunk and said that I could come back whenever I wanted. That`s pretty good to know. I showered and packed and went off to bed. Oh yeah, my host played a song on the flute and it was really funny to watch this strange looking japanese guy play the flute. My last night at yamanashii gakuinn high had come to a close.

Day 6/7, whatever day it is now: Bye bye yamanashi and hello Koma

Yesterday we got up, ate our last breakfast together and left for school. At school it was a rather tearful time. A few of the girls ended up sobbing and I was a bit sad myself. I`d made pretty good friends here and, apparently, lots of the girls thought I was a looker. Matt passed on this info to me from what he heard from one of the exchange students. Thats right, here girls did me wherein america Im just another weird long haired dude with a big nose. Im gonna miss this. Anyways, after tons of pictures later and many tearful goodbyes we were on our way to Koma. It was a bit sad seeing everyone wave goodbye but today after school some of the kids came all the way to Koma to hang out for a bit which was cool. THere were some discussions on what we`ll do with our new hosts and whether or not they will be cool. Chris was pretty optomistic. After a trip we ended up coming to Koma and we were supposed to meet our hosts but some of us didnt get the chance because the third year kids and the band kids were at a baseball game so we wouldnt get to meet them till later. Mine was a band kid. It was okay though because I saw akane and me and the mag 7 found a new pasttime of yelling at japanese people at the school and getting them really excited. Koma kids love foreigners. We even taught a few kids Baby Kitties and they taught us a few things.

We ate lunch and then started making a little charm deal in the art room. The art teacher is awesome because his english is robotic sounding but he`s a really nice guy. We talked with him for a while and then did a few other things before returning to our main center area and waiting for our hosts. I was approached by sensei`s friend Saito sensei and he told me that I was supposed to look out for an austrian girl that he is hosting because she is coming with us to shosenkyou valley on monday and going to tokyo with us. He described her as "very beautiful in europe, short and slender". Then he said that she shall be my short term girlfriend, four days only, then nothing okay! It was really weird but I hope she's a looker and can speak pretty good english because I could use a good looking girl in my life. If any of you german speakers have any good phrases Im all ears because they could come in handy. Later the mom picked me up and said that my host would be late. He was so late in fact that I didn't meet him until this morning. It was just me and the mom for around 3 hours. I sat on the couch reading A short history about everything and she putzed around and then the two of ate dinner together which was a bit weird. I then took a shower and went to bed on my super comfortable futon. It was a rather weird day but it was pretty fun too. Ill write about today, tommorow as is custom and hopefully I dont have to do another two day post. This makes me wipe out man. Any feedback is appreciated. Until next time.


Mike

addendum: I just found out my roommate for college is named andrew yuan and he`s from connecticut. I also live in one of the non-airconditioned halls dammit. Oh well.