Golden Week Holiday

I spent one of Japan's beloved holidays, Golden Week, in my house sick with a cold.  I was able to get out for one of the days however, and we drove down to Kawaguchiko, one of the five lakes on the north side near the base of the grand volcano and Japan's symbol, Mount Fuji.  Here are a few shots from the day.

We visited Itchiku Kubota Art Museum and Saiko Iyashino-Sato Nenba, a traditional craft village.  We had also planned to visit a common starting point for Fuji's climb, Sengen Shrine.  The Golden Week traffic caught up with us however, and instead of sitting on a 4-mile stretch for several hours, we decided to cut our day short and go home.

I can't believe that my time in Japan is coming to an end.  I want to focus on having fun, creating lasting memories, and packing to go home, but my mind is also preoccupied by the Japanese Language Proficiency Test that I will be taking on July 1st.  I have very little chance of actually passing this test, but I will take it none-the-less.  If nothing else, it will be good practice for the next one I plan to take in NY next year.

Spring is here! Eco-challenge for this week - try drying all of your clothes on hangers or on a line instead of using a drying machine.  They dry faster than you think, and you'll save some money too!

Recently-

This is where we went to the Flea Market in Saitama

忘年会 - End of the year party dinner for the teachers

Went here to make pottery! (12/28/10)

Could see Mt. Fuji really well from the top of the mountain where the pottery store was

Look at the pro!  And the guy on the right who looks nervous...

First try was a little... wonky

The three of us doing our best.   The girl on the left is the school nurse.  The three of us are all 22, but born in different months.

Lana's pieces.  I kept the three on the left, and ditched the cup on the top right

Elliott's pieces.  He kept the first one as a trophy.  He ditched the pieces on the left and right of the diamond.

First try

Our friend made these.  

We went to this little cafe after making pottery.  It reminded me of my favorite cafe as a student at Waseda, and I took pictures to get a feeling of it for the future.  Maybe some day I'd like to open my own cafe.

My lunch.

My dessert.

Then we rode our bikes down some streets I'd never explored in Isawa, and found this really great park.

There was a peacock there...  Very random.

Elliott was basically half way up the climbing wall by the time he hit the first peg.

Pirate swing set!

Hope you're all well!  That's all I have for now.  We were going to go to Nagano today, but there is a lot of mixed forecasting, mostly involving rain during the day.  We want to go to a few things that are all outside, so being stuck in the rain all day might be a bit disappointing.  We're looking into going tomorrow perhaps?

How was Christmas?  Looking forward to New Years?

-Lana