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June 21, 2003 |
Mrs. West and her students from Milwaukie High School pose for a group shot outside an Olympic Village dormitory. This photo of the main building at the Olympic Village captures the spirit of the unique architecture of the complex. The city of Tokyo has taken great pride and leasure in restoring the complex that housed the Olympic athletes in 1964.
Would you like to drink some Coke or some Sweat? Pocari Sweat, that is! Vending machines abound in Japan! The variety of specialy health-oriented drinks is quite vast! Pocari Sweat is a Japanese version of Gatorade, by the way. |
Welcome to Tokyo! Friday afternoon, schools from four communities across the United States arrived at Narita Airport, located approximately two hours outside Tokyo, on the northeast edge of its metropolitan sprawl. The best news? Everyone arrived safely! The second best news? Everyone's luggage and passports arrived safely with their owners! As is usually the case with New Perspectives: Japan (NP:J) participants, they are both tired and excited upon their arrival. It takes approximately an hour to get through customs in Japan. Staff from the Laurasian Institution (TLI) -- the organization that administers NP:J -- met the students and teachers in the arrival lobby at Narita. Everyone was quickly whisked aboard buses -- they are sometimes called airport limousines! -- for the two hour trip to downtown Tokyo. It's "mushi atsui" in Japan in the summer. Loosely translated, this means it's hot and very humid. As a way of dealing with the weather and jet lag, ice cold bottles of water were distributed to all. As the bus made its way to the city, several students wrote entries in their journals describing the sights they were seeing. The occasional farms and scattered small towns eventually gave way to the suburbs and, lastly, the heart of the city. Rice fields and tiled roofs became less frequent, while "danchi" (large apartment buildings) and the skyscrapers and neon lights of downtown Tokyo eventually appeared. The students were thankful to be checking in to their home away from home -- the site of the Tokyo Olympics in 1964, the Olympic Village. There are four school groups participating in this, the third of four study tours being held in the summer of 2004:
Following a brief informational meeting with the NP:J teachers and TLI staff, a few small groups of students explored the neighborhood surrounding the Olympic Village. They quickly discovered restaurants that served sushi and "okonomiyaki" (think of an omelet, Japanese style). In addition, a few of the students enjoyed their first experience with a Japanese "sento," a very hot and relaxing bath. By 10 p.m., most of the students and teachers were sound asleep. Everybody was understandably tired after a full day of travel. Saturday morning, many of the students began waking up at 3:30 a.m., or 4, or 5! This is quite natural. It takes a couple of days to adjust to the time zone change. Virtually every NP:J participant was at the Olympic Village cafeteria bright and early to enjoy their first traditional Japanese breakfast. A bowl of rice, some "sashimi" (fish), and a delicious bowl of miso soup are among the more common ingredients. By 9 a.m. on Saturday morning, all of the teachers had consulted with TLI staff to confirm the logistics of their first full day in Tokyo. Some students were going to visit Tsukiji fish market, while others were going to the temple at Asakusa, or to the Meiji shrine. Still others were going to explore the shopping district known as Ginza, or take a walking tour around the perimeter of the Imperial Palace. Everyone is in good spirits and fully enjoying their weekend in Tokyo! Thank you for your support of this outstanding learning opportunity. We'll be back on line with another article in a couple of days, when the students are preparing to meet their host families. Until then, sayonara!
This camera shot gives you a look at the view of the downtown skyline as seen from the central plaza of the Olympic Village. Can you believe that the NP:J participants are only a 5 minute train ride away from Shinjuku Station, the world's busiest train station, located in the heart of Tokyo? Millions pass through Shinjuku's turnstyles on a typical day. |
