Day 4 in Japan

June 6, Tuesday – At around 9am, we gathered at City Hall and visited Hekinan Aquarium by bus. I was delighted to see the sea angels from Hokkaido. It looks like a demon with angel wings. I lost my camera on my way to the aquarium. Luckily someone found it and handed it to the reception at City Hall. Then, we visited a small park with full of Japanese Iris flowers. It is really beautiful. Then, we headed to a primary school in Hekinan.

As we arrived, we need to take off our shoes and wore the slippers in the lockers. 2 of us were assigned to the same classroom and attend the class together with other primary school children. Jian Rong and I were assigned to the international classroom, designed specially for foreign students who are poor in Japanese language and following the normal classes. We were like stars of the day, distributing bookmarks, coins and stamps. Some students even asked us for signatures. We had our lunch at the meeting room of the school. Lunch set was served. I don’t like the milk there. It was terrible.

Then, we headed to Mizkan for a demonstration on the tea ceremony. We all had problems sitting on our knees. It was tiring and I felt that my legs were going to be broken. There are many things more than just a cup of tea. There are manners and procedures to be followed, such as the way we sit and greet as the tea is served.

After the tea ceremony, we visited a new primary school built less than 6 months ago. This new school sure is very advance. There is an elevator and other advance facilities. Then, we headed to a Toyata factoring, doing on engine parts. It is nice seeing the inside of a car factory but I don’t understand their explanation. Then, we visited a wide parking lot with different models of Toyata cars, ready for export.

At around 5pm, we shopped for groceries for our dinner of the night, “sukiyaki”. The main ingredient of this dish is beef. It is a bit like steamboat with less water. We prepared the ingredients before going for the Judo and Kendo session at 7pm. I could not stay there for long without having a nice meal and departed early. I only managed to witness the Judo session. Jian Rong, Masao, Patrick and Audrey joined the practice.