All posts by Thomas Greve

City Life, Suita City

Personal day in Suita

Day of activity: July 13th 2014

Yay! Today we have a whole day to spend for ourselves. I decided to join some people on their shopping trip to Kyoto. We meet at Awaji station at 8:00 in the morning and arrived at the culture city of Japan at 9:00. Macha shops, a temple and some small sweetshops passed us by before we arrived at the shopping street. We went to the magnificent Ghibli store and took a picture with the giant Totoro plushie there.

We visited some really nice authentic shops. Chopsticks, fans, keychains, ribbons, t-shirts, statues and a lot of matcha goodies were available all around. I bought a nice yukata, which I will wear at the the ceremony in Uda, Nara.

My feet were burning a nd aching, but it was well worth it!

Mariska (The Netherlands)

City Life, City Theme Activities, Suita City

Yoshi!

Day of activity: July 17th 2014

Today we meet at the community center and meet some lovely locals there. We got to know each other better through questionaire and talked to the volunteers who were to make okonomiyaki with us. We were divided into 5 groups and settled at a baking station. Soon after the baking plates were on and special pancakes made of cabbage, dough, corn, bacon and other ingredienses were cooking, which produced a lovely aroma that filled the room.

After the Okonomiyaki was done we got to eat it as our lunch and it was delicious! After ending this wonderful meal we all got the recipe so I will definately try to make it at home!

We also went to visit a peace museum and wathed a short animated movie about the Hiroshima bombing. The movie was shown from a child’s perspective, which was so sad that in the end I shed a tear. It was so sad to see the loneliness and panic. After the movie was over, the movie producer Mr. Maeda answered any questions we had about the movie and it’s connection to the A-bombing.

Then we went to the Asahi beer factory where we had a tour. The tour itself did not contain much new information for me, but the walking did keep me vivid. I am not fond of beer but I tried some after the tour which ended with a short video. During the time we had to drink beer I shifted from beer to juice because I did not like it.

Before we went back we had a group photo taken. Then walked to the station. Another fun and interesting day came to an end.

Mariska (the Netherlands)

City Life, City Theme Activities, Suita City, Uda City

Uda – July 20th – travel day

Uda – July 20th – travel day

Uda – July 20th – travel day

Today the World Campus Japan participants parted with our host families in Suita, Osaka. I learned so many things about Japanese culture from them and in turn, I taught the children English. I really enjoyed teaching my host sisters who were eager to learn the English language. After saying my goodbyes, I managed to catch up on some well-needed rest on the bus ride to Uda, Nara. Before heading to our final destination, we stopped at a shopping district. Despite the heat, I really enjoyed myself. It was a pretty big shopping district with a Ferris wheel and the sea dominating the west side. I was also able to remember my host mom’s good cooking one last time with the bento she prepared for me for my travel to Uda, Nara. Overall, it was a sad yet exciting day in which I made great memories!

Sauche Eiland (America)

City Life, City Theme Activities, Suita City

Host family day in Suita

Osaka castle

Osaka castle

Day of activity: July 13th 2014

On personal day, Me and some friends went to Osaka castle. My host family guided us. The castle was past two moats, one of which was covered with vegetation. The castle took up a relatively small part of the inner area, but was impressive nonetheless. The inside of the castle had been turned into a museum. It contained real artefacts, replicas and models. It was possible to try on some of the replicas for a small price, which of course, I did. The view from the top floor was spectacular. Afterwards, we went shopping in Namba on this really long shopping street. And that’s how I spent my personal day.

Theo (France)