The last day in Arao was host family day, whish, as the name implies, is a day you spend with your host family. I think it’s a great day, because you really get to bond with your host family. In Arao I stayed with the Hatao family, who also host me last year. We went to Miyazaki, which is three to four hours to the south-east of Arao by car. My oldest host sister, Yuri, had motor cross training there (she is super cool!). It was up on a mountain in the middle of nowhere, which I thought was pretty awesome. We actually drove there in the family’s bus, which sometimes seemed too big for the narrow road we were driving on.
After that, we drove a little more, to a shrine called Udojingu. The place was huge, with several temples close to the sea. It was amazingly beautiful. We made wished by throwing a special kind of stone onto a turtle-shaped rock. I wished for the health of my host father, who, even though he was pretty sick that day, drove us all the way there and back again.
We ended our trip by eating some delicious food at a restaurant where we were given homemade gifts by the lady who owned the place. I was sad that I had to leave them the next day, but I had a wonderful last day with them in Miyazaki, and we parted with promises to meet each other again next year.
Maria (Norway)
