鳥取で懐かしい

As the half year I had left quickly become the 8 weeks I have left I find myself getting busier and busier. Talent shows, dinners out, church events...it's already looking like a full summer.
Recently one event I had the opportunity to help out at was a local charity event, Cheer 4 Fukushima.
This event was designed to raise money for an orphanage that was damaged in the great Japan earthquake on March 11, 2011. Before coming to Japan I remember on March 12 sitting in a geography class at my university and watching a clip of the devestation. To this day hundreds of people remain missing. Swept away at sea with no sense of closure for their family


My sweet student, Nozomi, made this collage!

Represent Canada!

Another teacher in my building decided to volunteer at Iwaki Ikeuisha, an orphanage in Fukushima, and was touched. So much so that he decided to organize a giant fundraiser and community event. Designed to connect the international community with our local community here in Tottori. I volunteered to head up the Canadian cultural booth. I helped kids make handprint Canadian flags, which were super adorable. It was an amazing event, with local magicians, belly dancers and a flash mob choir as a few of the performers. Additionally at least 10 members of the local international community volunteered to cook and sell food, or run cultural booths. Thanks to those cooking I was able to stuff my face with Jamaican curry and an American brownie. Nomnomnom!
The next day at school a bunch of teachers commented that they saw me in the newspaper and lo and behold the sweet office lady presented me with a copy of my picture and the following article. It was a really cool event to participate in, and it definitely strengthened relationships between the international community and the local community.


Newspaper Fame!!

Last weekend I also had the chance to catch up with two old friends. One, Hikari, was a teacher with me last year who was transferred to a new school this year. She is in her early twenties and she joined my eikaiwa last year so we always have fun togethor. In the afternoon I had the chance to meet up with my friend Etsuko. When I first came to Japan I prayed that I would meet christian, English speaking, Japanese friends. I met Etsuko almost immediately and she told me that had been her prayer too! She is about 15 years older than me, but we hit it off and she always has good advice.
The last, and possibly most imporatant (just kidding) event of the weekend was the grand opening of STARBUCKS! The famed chain finally made it to our little slice of Japan and it is about a ten minute walk from my flat. On the opening morning there were over 1000 people lined up. That was a bit crazy, even for me, so I waited until the second day it was open to enjoy a cookie frappe on the gorgeous outdoor patio. Japan has few options for eating outdoors, so to have access to a giant wrap around patio is going to make this summer fly by! Only a few weeks left, hard to believe. In less than three months I will be starting a new job(!!!), pressing play again on my old life. It is a strange feeling. The longer I spend here the fonder I grow of Japan and my life here. On the other hand, I miss so many things about Canada and I know that coming home might be hard, but it is the right choice. The Japanese word 懐かしい (natsukashi) has been running through my head. It translates as a fond feeling for past times. I have been feeling it for Tottori already.

Discovering Tottori

This spring break I had the pleasure of hosting my parents for round two of their Japan travels. This time around we planned on just relaxing in Tottori, and then heading to Tokyo for a few days. Since they were coming during hanami season I wanted to make sure they could experience the sakura watching, but other than that I had no big plans. One thing I wanted to do was take them for delicious meals. Tottori is a quiet city, but we have some fantastic dining options, from quaint cafes to sprawling ones that overlook the sea. Although jetlagged I first took them to Cafe Source. It was a Sunday which meant Cake Viking. At Cafe Source this means an option to order 'all you can eat cake'. Yup, it's like a nomihoudai but with cake. It is a dessert lovers dream. We opted for regular pasta sets and then shared a moffle at the end. A moffle is a waffle made with mochi. It is as delicious as it sounds, and it was a fun start to their culinary experience. We also ran into four of my friends, two Japanese and two ALTs. The perks of a small town!!

                                 

Over the first week we stayed in Tottori and when we were not munching on treats we managed to see some sights. This time around I took my parentals to the prefectural museum. It's a stones throw away from the high school I work at, and the local 100￥bus runs directly by it. We hopped off and were transported into all things Tottori. We learned about the natural and enviornmental history of the city, as well as a historical tour of an ancient home. Even without being able to read the exhibit descriptions we could enjoy the history of my city 

On another day we decided to visit the sand dunes again, and to make a stop at the sunset cafe. We used the 1000￥taxi which is a tourist taxi service that runs from Tottori station. You get a taxi for up to 3 hours and for the flat rate of sen-en. It is a brilliant deal and although they offer tourist packages (which take you to three locations) you can also create your own route. After the sand dunes our driver (who was fantastic!) took us down a back road to show us where the camels come from (a cute camel farm!) and to see some shallot fields and a pear farm. Totally unexpected and a really unique experience. He then dropped us off at the Sunset cafe. Overlooking the sea of Japan this washed out cafe features giant windows that give beautiful views of the crashing sea. My Dad commented that it felt like Malibu, and it definitely does feel like you are on a beach vacation there! We ordered some pita sandwhiches that were surprisingly spicy with added wasabi, and it was a restful afternoon.

Sunset Cafe

We also wanted to see some sights that required longer distances (the tourist taxi only travels within Tottori city) so we rented a car for one of our last days in Tottori. Our first stop was Amadeki waterfalls. Although the snow was still packed we made our way down the steps and came to the enchanting falls. It was gorgeous, and I think I will definitely have to go back in the summer when the snow has melted.

                              

After that we drove to Yonago to check out the Tottori Flower Park. Touted as the largest flower park in Japan we were still surprised at the vast expanse of flowery fields and exhibits. A stand out is at one edge of the park which has a gorgeous view point of Daisen, a mountain that rivals Fuji in beauty. There is also a really great restaurant inside the park, which had a great katsu curry set that we all enjoyed. If you decide to head out to the park the rates are reduced if you show a passport or foreigner card. As well, after about 5pm the park is lit up for a nighttime viewing experience, and the price drops again as it becomes a 'twilight' entrance fee. After the park we drove into Daisen town to check out Daisen as close up as possible. We were hoping to snag some good Daisen soft cream but unfortunately the ice cream shops, and everything else for that matter, were closed. We got some beautiful pictures of the mountains though that were stunning.

On another day my family and I decided to go shoot a bucket of balls. We made our way up to Tottori Golf Center, which has a stunning view of the countryside, and bought our 2000￥ticket which gives you 160 balls and club rentals. It was a little intimidating at first, because I think we were literally the only gaijin to have ever golfed there, but it ended up being a blast and we even bought a second ticket.

Some of the other meals my family enjoyed included 100￥sushi, Enya, Doma Doma and Cafe Green Park. We also tried specialty mochi from Shamine mall, and I discovered just how good the raspberry cream mochi is!!

Tottori was an awesome time. It may be the smallest prefecture and the least populated, but it makes up for it in natural beauty and the kindness of it's residents. If you live in any of the nearby prefectures it is definitely worth at least a day trip!