2014 Tour Information Evening will be held on Tuesday, October 22 from 5:30pm. Don't miss it!! For those of you, who don't know about our amazing trip to Hyogo, Hiroshima and the Kansai Region in April of this year, please scroll further down the blog to read the postings and find out what we were doing. What a great time we had! If you are interested in coming along in April next year, get along to our info session to learn more. You will also be entertained by a fascinating insight into the language and culture of the Kansai region by our two exchange teachers from Hyogo Prefecture. Fun for all! This is a free session with no obligation to join the tour. Although I have no doubt that you will be so inspired and excited that you will be wanting to sign on on the spot :)

Have you applied to take the 2013 Japanese Language Proficiency Test? Applications close on Sunday, October 6 so you had better get online if you have not registered yet! http://www.jpf.org.au/jlpt The Japanese Language Proficiency Test is an internationally recognised exam that gives you a certified assessment of your language skills. It is great to have this as additional support for your CV when applying for jobs or scholarships. The test is currently only available once per year in WA and this year it will be held on Sunday, December 1 at Perth Modern School. You must register by Oct 6 or you will have to wait until next year. Applications are only accepted online. Come and visit the Centre if you need some study materials or want to get an idea of the level you are best suited to take.

We did it!! Hyogo Friendship Garden is officially open!!

It was a very chilly morning, but the sun shone brightly and a wonderful crowd turned out to see the official opening of Hyogo Friendship Garden on Friday, May 31, 2013. The garden, which is located in the prestigious parliamentary precinct in front of Dumas House, is built in the traditional Japanese dry rock style, but using the modern influence of the unique Awaji clay tile. The whole landscape is designed to reflect Hyogo with the rings of tiles representative of the whirlpools near Awaji island. Premier Barnett spoke warmly at the opening and declared his great appreciation of Hyogo's garden gift, which was presented in reciprocation of the 4 gifted koalas from WA on the occasion of the 30th anniversary. Hyogo Prefecture's Vice Governor, Mr Yoshimoto, accompanied by 7 other delegation members from Hyogo, was very proud to officially present the garden to Western Australia. The garden is open to the public so please make sure you make time to go and see it soon!

Last day laughs

The atmosphere was a little low as we departed Kyoto and headed for Nara on the last day of our stay in Japan. We had experienced so much and had two fantastic weeks, but Clare had left us and Tony was planning to head off after Nara...the tour was definitely coming to a close. Nara was a little damp, but there were plenty of tourists and it is always worthwhile seeing the giant Buddha. Not to mention the deer, of course, who apparently love to eat all paper, including paper money. Beware of that if you ever have money in your pocket as those deer are not shy!! We had to laugh about the toilet instructions in Nara Park - bit late for those, who needed the information earlier on in the tour, but we also enjoyed the unfortunate spelling errors. From Nara we headed to Iga to visit the Ninja Museum and Iga Castle. Participants seemed to enjoy the Ninja House and museum although it was unfortunate that the show had been cancelled. From there we headed back to Osaka and the Stargate Hotel in Rinku Town. By then people were simply concerned with how they were going to pack all their goodies and get them home safely. A significant number of participants had already had to invest in a second, smaller suitcase!! There was a definite twinge of sadness, but also a feeling of contentment among participants that the tour had offered them so many more amazing Japanese experiences than they had initially imagined. In addition, a whole new group of solid friendships had been made. In fact, the 2013 Tour Team had made plans for a reunion before the last night had even drawn to a close. I shed a tear as we boarded the Airport courtesy bus the next morning and waved goodbye to many of our tour team, who were continuing on in their travels. Our first ever HPGCC Tour of Hyogo, Hiroshima, and the Kansai Region had been a wonderful success and I felt very proud of what we had achieved as a team. My sincere thanks to my new Tour Team friends - we shared the trip of a lifetime that I will never forget. To everyone in Hyogo Prefecture, who welcomed us so warmly at every single stage, we are eternally grateful. And a special thank you to my co-leader, Shingo Usami, who was an absolute champion and a great support.

Nishiki Markets and Eiga Mura - feeling like a kid again!!

We started the day with a visit to the amazing Nishiki Markets where we did some determined food sampling before buying ourselves some various picnic items to enjoy in a nearby park. From there we headed to Eiga Mura, which I can tell you is truly great fun!! Clare and I went into the Ninja House where we had to find our own way out of each room through trick doors and secret holes all while actors dressed as ninja jumped out at us at every opportunity! We went from there into the haunted house where we squealed like teenagers - truly this is a fun experience and students would absolutely love it. This is a real samurai village film set where many period dramas have been filmed. There are actors dressed as samurai walking around the streets and you can also see a live short performance. There are plenty of ninja toys and costumes to buy so it really is a great experience for educators, tourists, kids, or just big kids like me. On the way back to the ryokan a few of us took a bus, which unfortunately stopped suddenly and the driver told us we were at the end of the line...not a good thing for me to hear as my directions are hopeless, but Clare and Jemma and their trusty map saved the day! Well done ladies! I would have still been walking somewhere around Kyoto if it wasn't for you.

The Rain Cannot Dampen our Spirits in Kyoto

As we left Kinosaki and headed for Kyoto, the rain started to pelt down around us. It was the first day of miserable weather in almost two weeks so we could hardly complain, but it was a bit of a let down as most of the things we planned to do in Kyoto involved walking aound outside. We battled our way up the narrow streets to Kiyomizudera - an umbrella in the eye at every turn. I love that area though...there are so many shops selling all kinds of crafts and knick-knacks...I could just spend ages wandering up and down. From there we headed to Kinkakuji, the beautiful golden temple. Even in the drizzle you cannot fail to be impressed by the image of the glowing pavillion across the water. There is something magical about Kyoto. Rain, hail, or shine you just can't help but love the atmosphere of the whole place.

A Night in Kinosaki

Arriving in Kinosaki I was determined to have everyone dress in Yukata and wander the streets to soak up the Onsen Matsuri festival. It was only a small festival and there were few people, but it was our first opportunity to participate in a real festival so I wanted to make the most of it. The staff at the ryokan were very helpful in getting us all dressed in the yukata of our choice in record speed. I thought we looked pretty good and it is amazing how beautiful it makes you feel to get dressed up. There were several stalls lining the streets and I got talked into eating chocolate bananas and strawberries...you can see from the photos how yummy they looked. Kinosaki is a really beautiful town famous for its onsen (hot baths) so most of us made our way to try at least one of them. The idea is to try several as each bath has different properties and unique surroundings, but actually it was pretty difficult to get dressed again each time and we had a huge meal waiting for us at the ryokan so I only had one bath myself. It was our last night in Hyogo Prefecture, but what a wonderful way to spend our time in this amazing prefecture that really can offer all aspects of Japan.

The Soba Challenge

We departed Hiroshima right on schedule and I thanked my lucky stars that our lovely travel agent had booked a hotel immediately adjacent to the shinkansen station as it was a very early start and with a train change to make along the way, we were determined to meet up with our coach bus in Himeji on time. Everything went smoothly once again (yay, team!!) and we were finally aboard a bus bound for Izushi, an ancient castle town famous for the Izushi Soba noodle. It was a fairly long ride and many of us napped after the rushed start to the day. Upon arrival in Izushi we were met by the staff of Hyogo International Association, who took us to an Izushi family restaurant where the owner had an area set up to teach us all how to make soba. We all got in it up to our elbows and concentrated hard on making the perfect shape and texture. I can tell you it wasn't nearly as easy as it looked and required quite a bit of muscle to knead the dough! Once the noodles were all completed we then moved on to another restaurant where we had our own noodles cooked as well as the restaurant's own home product. I would like to say that I couldn't tell the difference between the two, but I suspect the Japanese in our group may not quite agree. The restaurant policy is to award a prize to the person, who eats the most plates of soba, and on this occasion the award goes to.....Shingo!! Who else?? :) I think he had close to 30 plates. Actually, Yuki came pretty close, but I am afraid the rest of us put in a pretty poor effort. With full tummies we then took a guided walk around the beautiful town and admired the sheer enormity of the famous clock tower.

As the tour's end draws near, a rainbow appears

Ok, ok, I realise I have let some of you down by not updating the blog over the last few days, but truly you can't believe the schedule that we have undertaken. We have been from Hiroshima and Miyajima to Izushi and Kinosaki in northern Hyogo, then to Kyoto, Nara, and Mie Prefecture in just a few days. There was certainly something to be said for having a home base rather than having to pack up your suitcase each morning!! I will upload some photos soon, but rest assured that we are all ok, we have finished all scheduled activities, and are now headed for our final hotel in Osaka tonight. Sadly we said farewell to Team Member, Clare, this morning as she has now headed up to Shizuoka. Team Member, Tony, also left us just after lunch in Nara to continue on his journey. It feels very strange after two such wonderful weeks together that the time has come for people to start going their separate ways. Of our group of 15 eight team members will remain in Japan for varying lengths of time and with their own schedules. Seven of us will depart Japan tomorrow with amazing memories, wonderful new friends, and I suspect several extra kilos of both luggage and body weight!! This picture does not do it any justice, but as the tour draws to a close, we have just witnessed the most amazing full rainbow from the windows of the bus. Honestly, the colours were absolutely incredible and it really looked like you could see the full arc touching the ground at either end. What a wonderful feeling and a really apt image for our tour group.

The Highs and Devastating Lows of Technology

I had been worrying about this day for some time as we were due to catch the 8:59am shinkansen bound for Hiroshima and I really had some doubts as to our ability to check out of the hotel on time, get all our luggage to the station, then all jump on the shinkansen together with our luggage in the orderly, efficient manner that the Japanese achieve these things. Until now we have been so spoilt as apart from the homestay, we have had a single base at which we could leave our luggage and just pop in and out each day. However, from here on in we are on the move and carrying our luggage as we go, making things a tad more tricky to coordinate. Nevertheless, our fab team did not let me down and we achieved our task with military precision, much to the relief of our lovely travel coordinator, Kazu-chan. For many it was the first ride on a shinkansen and I think everyone was suitably impressed although the Japanese in the group immediately all fell asleep as only Japanese can do as soon as they take a seat. We arrived in Hiroshima and immediately transferred into a bus, which took us to the Peace Park and museum. There we were met by two wonderful volunteer guides, who took us around for a good few hours and shared their wealth of knowledge with us. At the Peace Memorial Terrena was able to leave her string of origami cranes that had been lovingly made by her students. Overwhelmingly our guide claimed that some 30 million cranes were delivered to the site each year from all over the world. How absolutely wonderful that Sadako's story still lives on so strongly both domestically and in the international arena. Time spent in Hiroshima left everyone a little quiet and lost in their own thoughts as we boarded the bus again bound for the ferry to Miyajima. It was strange to see our normally robust, chatty group so transformed by the experience, but I certainly don't think there were any regrets. A quick stop for some of Hiroshima's famous okonomiyaki at the ferry terminal well and truly satisfied our hunger pains before the quick ferry trip across to the iconic Miyajima. While the beautiful red shrine gate is often best seen at dusk and when it seems to be floating on water, it was still a majestic sight in the mid afternoon. We wandered with the deer and enjoyed a lovely afternoon although this was our first time to feel like real tourists as there were crowds at every turn. Returning to Hiroshima on the ferry I suddenly felt a twinge of sadness as it felt like we had made a turn towards the end of the tour. What a week and a half it had been so far!!

Home Away From Home...Homestay thoughts by Team Member, Tereena

Sunday morning at the Kobe Hotel saw a chatty group of Australians sharing their amazing experiences with their host families. Tales of interesting meals, generous hosts and a wide variety of activities were shared. The host families lived in a variety of apartments and houses, both inner city and in the mountainous countryside. We were able to experience relaxing in Japanese おふろ (deep baths) and sleeping on ふとん in たたみ rooms. Walking around the local neighborhood and sharing information about everyday life and tourist attractions in both Japan and Australia, I personally found that I could speak and understand more Japanese than I had expected. I could converse easily with the children, who were very excited to practice their English skills. I played card games and Wii, watched soccer training and TV, shared photos and videos from Australia. Many of us had lessons in cooking Japanese dishes, and even shared the idea of using avocado in makizushi (unheard of in Japan!). I am sure many of us have made friends with whom we will continue to maintain contact. Homestay has definitely added a valuable extra dimension to the tourist experience. A side note from Melissa: the host families were voluntary and coordinated by Hyogo International Association. We extend our heartfelt thanks to HIA and all families involved for their warmth and generosity.

A Date with Astro Boy and Go the Mighty Hanshin Tigers!

Welcoming everyone back from homestay on Sunday morning I really wasn't sure what to expect, but I was so relieved to see the big smiles and excited chatter as everyone shared their stories. It was time to get on the road once more so we boarded the bus bound for Takarazuka, home of the famous all female revue. Our initial intention had been to see the revue, but despite our best efforts the tickets had sold out within a matter of hours when first released so we were left to find an alternative plan. We started with a lovely lunch at Takarazuka Hotel although I must confess personal disappointment that our meal did not include the chocolate fountain that grabbed our attention both by sight and amazing aroma as we walked in the door. From there we walked to the Tezuka Osamu Museum, which shows all of the wonderful character creations of this godfather of anime. After a walk around the museum and a thousand photos with Astro Boy it was time make our way to the ball game. Yes, baseball is one of the most popular sports in Japan and a little bit of drizzle was not going to dampen our excitement. The famous Hanshin Tigers were playing at their home ground Koshien Stadium and it was easy to see that the Tigers fans far outnumbered the Swallows'. Team Members, Tereena and Vince, got kitted out somehow just as we were walking to the stadium - that truly was shopping efficiency! Once inside the atmosphere was electric. There was constant clapping and cheering going on, but not in a random, haphazard manner. The clapping routines and cheer songs seemed to be automatically understood by the entire audience and we quickly fell into step. At the end of certain innings the entire crowd blew up balloon whistles, which were then released on cue to a loud roar. I must confess to knowing only the very basic details of baseball, but I found myself getting well and truly caught up in the feverish excitement. Dinner was a sushi extravaganza followed by a stroll through Kobe Harbourland, the perfect spot for any romantic at heart. Ahhh...I feel a twinge of sadness as I now think of leaving Kobe, which has been home for the last 8 days. What a beautiful city and what amazing hospitality we have received. PS: Congratulations to Jemma for surviving her day in the sash...she was not at all comfortable being on display, but we thought she looked like Miss Australia... :)

From Serenity to Shopping Frenzy

We decided to take a little more relaxed approach to our day in Osaka on Friday so cancelled all scheduled arrangements for a free shopping day. This meant leaving the comfort zone of our tour bus and getting everybody on and off the local trains. It was a great experience although a little tricky trying to keep everyone together in the crowds. After a long week the call of "real coffee" was too much for some and we had to make a stop at Starbucks to replenish the caffeine cravings. Team Member, Diane, was a great sport and proudly wore her sash everywhere after receiving it as a result of her prowess at karaoke the night before. After a week of sightseeing and minimal time to explore any shops the team members were all excited by the massive shopping arcades suddenly in sight and I think quite a few souvenirs and gifts were purchased. Before we knew it, it was time to head back to Kobe where most of the team members were meeting with their host families with whom they would spend Friday and Saturday night. There was a bit of nervous energy amongst the group, but everyone was excited to see what the next couple of days would hold. As for me....it will be a catch up on sleep!!!