Farewell Lunch

Our farewell lunch and certificate ceremony was held today.

Japanese/Brazilian dinner with UCR Friends

As a small token of gratitude, I wanted to cook some Brazilian food for the people at UCR who have made our programs at UCR successful the past years. We had a Japanese/Brazilian dinner party at Teramoto-sensei's place. I thank him and his wife for the patience with me and for letting me make a mess in their kitchen!

Mission Middle School

We went to Mission Middle School today and the students talked about calligraphy.

UCR

We also went to the campus for a short walk near the tower.

Downtown Riverside Tour

View of the Mission Inn from the City Hall.

View of the Court House from the City Hall.

Mission Inn Entrance

Araras at the Mission Inn

After lunch we went for a walk around the downtown area where the City Hall and Court House are located.

Lunch with Ed Traynor & Sheila Dwight

We were so fortunate to have been invited to lunch by Ed Traynor, my favorite potter in the States. He did not only invite us all but also gave us all beautiful pieces of work (photo 1). Our present for him was very small compared to that: "hina" dolls. We certainly hope that he will make plans to travel to Japan in the near future. I found out today that he is a Taurus, too, and I would very much like to enjoy great food on great pottery with him in Japan--typical Taurus people love good food. We also had the honor of having Sheila with us. She was my boss and mentor while I was in Riverside 24 years ago, and she is the one who encouraged me to go to Japan in 1992. I miss the days she took me to the theater, out for ice cream and invited me to these great parties at her place. Spending time with great people is always, always very inspiring to me. Thanks, Sheila. Thanks, Ed.

Beautiful day in Santa Barbara

We went to Santa Barbara today. It took us about 2.5 hours to get there, but the drive was really nice (see photos taken from the car).

Hiroko in Riverside

Hiroko was with us at JIU just one semester and she is back in Riverside for her interviews for medical school. We met at Starbucks and it was really nice hearing about her plans--I really hope she'll be able to enter a great school.

Interview #3

Today I am interviewing Haruka who went to the Mission Bell Elementary School for the second time. She took part in our special program in September as well.

MSI: How was visiting Mission Bell for the second time?

H: It was exciting because some of the students remembered us. They made a Pikachu for me and one of them had a crane. We taught them how to make that last time.

MSI: Was it easier for you to communicate with them?

H: Yeah, I think so. This time it was easier especially because we made flowers. Last time making cranes was more challenging. I had the experience before so it was easier to communicate with them.

MSI: What grade were your students in ?

H: Sixth grade. They tried really hard to talk to us. Last time I was with much smaller children and they couldn't understand our English. This time it was much easier to have conversations and answer their questions.

MSI: Were you surprised at their questions or something at the school?

H: They really like singing. They wanted us to sing Japanese songs.

MSI: Wow. Did you do that?

H: Yes. They sang the national anthem to us and we sang the Japanese anthem to them. They also wanted to know about the lyrics so I tried to explain, but it was really hard.

MSI: Did you sing a children's song, too?

H: We sang "Twinkle twinkle little star" in Japanese. They know the melody so I thought it would be fun for them to listen to that in Japanese. After that they sang to us in English, too.

MSI: That sounds like fun. I'm sure the sounds in Japanese surprised them.

H: Yes, they looked very surprised.

MSI: What do you think you could have done to make this visit even better?

H: I think this one was better than the one in September because we were prepared to explain about some Chinese characters and they learned some Japanese. Last time we visited more classes and didn't spend much time with one group. We could have taught more about Japanese culture, for example, we could spend more time teaching them how to write in Japanese.

MSI: Well, I hope you'll be able to go back for the third time and if not, I'll give the future students your advice.

Mission Bell Elementary School

We visited Mission Bell Elementary School today and made some origami flowers with the 3rd and 6th graders. We also answered students questions about Japan. We were welcomed by Principal Huben who gave us the thank-you letters students had written for our visit in September.

Artichoke....with Karen

I had to have an artichoke and salmon salad for lunch today. Karen was so kind and invited me to this great meal! She will be at JIU on April 11 to interview students who are applying for the Disney Internship Program.

Preparations for the school visit

Students spent two hours this afternoon preparing for tomorrow's elementary school visit.

Today's Creative Writing Workshop

Students took part in the Creative Writing Workshop with Amanda today.

Interview #2

MSI: How is your program going?

Ayumi Kikawa: I am very satisfied with the program. I have classes where I can practice a lot. I think I am improving my English skills even though I just arrived on Friday. My host family is very kind and fun. I am having a very good time.

MSI: Do you have a lot of homework?

AK: Yes, I am taking grammar, listening and oral skills development, so in all classes we have homework.

MSI: That's good. Do you have any activities?

AK: Yes, we each have a conversation partner. Yesterday my conversation partner and I talked a lot in the afternoon. We went to the UCR library and bookstore. In the library I taught him Japanese grammar. After that we went for tea. We are planning to go out for lunch this week.

MSI: That's great. Is he a UCR student?

AK: Yes, his major is Mathematics. He is a senior.

MSI: I see. What have you enjoyed most so far?

AK: That's a difficult question. I have enjoyed everything so far. I like communicating with my host family in English. Also, the view that has impressed me most so far is the one of Los Angeles from the Griffith Observatory at night. I felt the USA is really a large country.

MSI: What differences between Japan and the USA have you experienced?

AK: Here I noticed that people hold the door for you. In Japan most people don't do that. People in general seem to be more friendly.

MSI: What do you want to accomplish while you are here?

AK:I would like to improve my English so that my long-term study-abroad program later this year is even better.

MSI: Good luck to you.

Interview with a Scholarship Student at UCR

I interviewed two of the students who are participating in the JIU Scholarship Program at UCR.

MSI: Is this your first time in the USA?

Shota Ikeda:Yes. I've been to France before, but it's my first time in America.

MSI: What was your first impression of California?

SI: I felt it was really hot here. I thought it was summer in California. On our way from LAX to Riverside, I thought the road condition was not very good. The views were nice, but the road was bumpy. I saw beautiful places that could be in any good movie.

MSI: Yeah, when we left Japan it was snowing, so it felt really good to be in good weather. Have you been to nice places yet?

SI: I went to Magic Mountain on Sunday. Actually, I didn't like roller coasters until I went there, but I rode so many there and I like them now. American roller coasters are very exciting and now I think I can ride on all coasters in Japan.

MSI: I'm glad to hear that, but I am not a fan of crazy rides. Have you been to other places?

SI: I went to Santa Monica Beach on Saturday. It was also a very beautiful place. It was warm there but it's not humid here, so it felt quite pleasant in the shade.

MSI: Your classes started yesterday. How is everything going?

SI: It's going well, but yesterday I couldn't understand everything. The teacher and classmates spoke English really fast and they all speak English with a different accent.

MSI: Where are your classmates from?

SI: China, Korea, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia and Spain.

MSI: What classes are you taking?

SI: Every morning I have Reading, Grammar and Oral Skills Development. Sometimes I take Listening and American Idioms in the afternoon.

MSI: What are you most looking forward to accomplishing while in Riverside?

SI: Of course besides doing well in classes, I would like to have a life-long relationship with my homestay family.

MSI: Tell us a little about them.

SI: I like them a lot. The mother is from South America and she has three good kids. They talk to me a lot. I teach them about Japanese culture and they teach me English. I'm always in the living room with them.

MSI: I'm very glad to hear that. I hope you'll be able to invite them to Japan one day.

Los Angeles Part 2

After lunch in Santa Monica, we went to the Getty Museum where we were able to see some great art and also the most beautiful view of LA. After that we lined up for an ice cream cookie sandwich at Diddy Riese (photo) and from there we drove up to the Griffith Observatory where we enjoyed a breath taking view of Los Angeles at night--hard to share with a photo. On the way back to Riverside we had to eat In-N-Out Burgers in the car as host families were picking every one up at 9 PM. We had a great day in LA.

Chinese Theater & Santa Monica

Saturday, February 12: We spent the day in the Los Angeles area. We first went to the Kodak Theater in Hollywood and from there to Santa Monica.

Departing Narita on Friday

Ten scholarship recipients and I left Narita Friday afternoon. We are going to be in California for two weeks. Students are going to be studying English, living with homestay families, visiting one elementary school, one junior high school, and we will go on three trips. The photo was taken at Narita Airport. Unfortunately it was snowing and the flight was delayed. We arrived at LAX one hour late, but the weather is just great here!