As we ride on the bus on the way to Akiyoshidai, I am stuck with a feeling of wonder and contentment of living in Japan. I look to the the mountains that are so different from the ones of my home - lush and full of bamboo and sakura, decidedly deciduous instead of rocky and full of the firs and pines that give Washington its name: the Evergreen State, and I realize that there really is so much beauty here, beauty of a different nature than what one finds in America. America staggers you with size and grandeur; Japan presents you with peace on a smaller scale. There is so much in this little island nation- such diversity from the snows of Hokkaido to the tropics of Okinawa and everything in between. There is so much to see and experience.
This thought makes me want to stay in Japan for another year. At first, this idea seemed scary, that I wouldn't be seeing enough of the world, during my time in it, but I've realized how easily it is to open your heart to this country and how firmly it wedges itself there. I don't think I'd be able to stay for more than 3 years at my age, simply because I truly need to go to Europe, but the idea that I could be 26 when I move to France, hopefully capable of speaking not only that language, but Japanese after having lived here for 3 years is incredibly appealing. I don't want to go home, not when Seattle no longer feels that way...
Highlights of my spring break trip:
Crazy time spent looking for an ATM and missing Sean and Imran 4 times on trains
Bus-ride to Miyajima and the ferry-ride to the island, deer, low-tide, miso-dango
Nice hotel room in Hiroshima with a corner view
Eating okonomiyaki in Okonomimura and dress-up purikura
Hiroshima Atomic Bomb Museum
White-snake observatory and sakura
Akidoshidai and Akiyoshido
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