16 Days to go

Well, I am officially down to 16 days which is a little bit over two weeks. Wha have been up to the last few days? Well I had another what I believe was a really bad cold, the influenza panic seems to have calmed down a bit. I went to get some Sushi again at a different sushi place, this one was much smaller and rather then using a computer the orders were yelled directly to a chef. This place also had an English menu, still overall I felt that the place I went to last week was better. Of course fresh fried squid sushi is very good!

I also went to another event similar to the kids event a few month ago. It was with the same group, the families baked a lot of food, we talked and just like last time played games. Unfortunately my cold seems to have gotten the best of me here, and I couldn't enjoy the event very much. We did play one new game whose rules I'd like to remember here, everyone sits in a circle and music plays. Two people join hands and run to the opposite side of the circle grabbing both hands of a third person and running back with them. Then, the people that were sitting to the right, and left of the "third" person that was grabbed join hands, and repeat the action. The game goes on until the music stops. I had my camera...but I hate to use it as an excuse I was kind of busy running back and fourth to the bathroom to blow my nose (this is a 'no-no' in public here).

I haven't posted these pictures yet, but I've been walking around campus trying to take pictures with people that I've met over my time here. Not going as fast as I'd like to, but hopefully I'll take a lot of pictures since there are quite a few things going on over the next few weeks. First, the "end of semester" gathering and the "Christmas Party" are going on back to back next Friday. No excuses, I will take a lot of pictures, including asking people to take pictures of me. The Aikido club is also planning a little "going away" party for me and another Japanese member who is leaving for his Study Abroad in Canada in the spring.

There is no doubt, that if I had to point out my closest friends over my time at AIU most(but not all) of them would be members of the Aikido Club. Of course 600 people is an interesting amount of people. Its too many to meet everyone, but it still seems like you see a couple of people all the time and you kind of wish "Hey, I wish I've spoken to this person more, they seem nice/interesting".

Going home is definitely a mixed feeling, in a way I do miss home and I can't help but look forward to go back, see friends and family back home and tell about my adventures here. But it seems that there is so much more to do and see here, and so many people that I would like to get to know better. Coming back from Study Abroad, a lot of people when they hear about it the thought "going back to your old life"' might come to mind. But, that's kind of a bad way to think about it I think, Study Abroad is not a "vacation". I don't think I can go to the way things were (not that I really want to). I guess I'll have to wait and see, it seems to me like returning (reverse culture shock as its called) might be an experience on its own. Well, at least for now, this blog isn't gonna go anywhere so I might blog about it, tell how it goes.