I had a brilliant time in Spokane during the four months. I think it was a magnificent opportunity in my life. I had never left Japan for such a long time and I felt anxious but there was not any need for me to worry about it. I experienced many various and fantastic things which I couldn't experience in Japan. There were three superb memories especially memorable to me.
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| With Karen |
First, the classes at
MFWI improved my English skill. I took classes for fourteen weeks. I thought the term was very long at first but it has felt very short. We had six subjects which were Writing, Reading, Conversation, American studies, Music and Grammar. My Writing teacher is Ron who is very funny and energetic. I was surprised when I heard his voice for the first time because it was very loud. He often does a big reaction and I like it. I didn't like writing paragraphs but I was glad to receive praise for my paragraphs. For example, it has good grammar, great adjective and so on. I had never written such a long writing but I can do it now. I also didn't like free writing. The first free writing, I wrote only 28 words but I can write more than 70 words recently. I think it was because through a lot of practices. I'm proud of my writing. Reading class improved my reading skill. I read interesting books in the class. The book I liked most was Little Women because this story was fascinating to me. I learned many things for TOEIC which is useful. My Reading teacher is Winnie who is very cute. She sometimes makes various gestures. I like her gestures and I can understand them easily. Conversation class was very fun because I like talking. I learned useful phrases for conversation. I like jazz chants which is good practice for rhythm and pronunciation. Recently, I also like discussion because I can learn about many different opinions. It is beneficial to explain about my opinion. My Conversation teacher is Lynaia who is kind. I think she likes us because she always looks fun. American studies is very fascinating to me. I learned about Spokane, diversity, American family and history. There was a lot of information. The most impressive things to me were that America has freedom and Spokane is famous for salmon. This information was often questions on tests. My American studies teacher is Karen who is wonderful. Her class was very easy to understand and she told us a lot of useful information. I had a lot of homework for all classes every day. I had never done so much homework. I think this is one of the reasons I improved my English skill. We could visit our teachers during their office hour. It was a fantastic opportunity to talk to native speakers and I could learn about them. I think it is easy to understand what teachers say but other American speaking is too fast for me so I was confused. I was very happy to improve my English skill by going to class at MFWI.
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| Marvelous host family at lake |
Second, I had a marvelous time with my host family. My host family likes Japanese food so I cooked sushi rolls, clear soup and tempura with my host mother, Kerrie. We had three hours for cooking. It was my first time to spend three hours on cooking. The sushi roll was a little different because we choose ingredients and rolled the sushi by ourselves. My host family liked raw tuna the most. We enjoyed Japanese food. This day was my host father, Bruce's birthday so we presented him with the photo stand. It was an amazing picture when we went to ride snowmobiles near their lake house. Kerrie's birthday is near Bruce's birthday so we presented her with a brooch. They were delighted to get these presents. Kerrie often wears this brooch on special days. I have a super memory about Easter in my mind. They invited us for Easter dinner. Kerrie gave us message card and chocolates. I like her dishes. They were very delicious. After dinner, we hid Easter eggs for their grandsons. We hid many colorful eggs. When they were close to eggs, we said "hot!" and when they were not close, we said "cold!" Next, they hid some Easter eggs for us and we hunted them. Their grandson, Carter told me where the eggs were. He was very kind. I enjoyed Easter. The most impressive activity was riding snowmobiles near their lake house. I rode one for the first time. I was so excited. When we went to the lake house, the lake had frozen over but it melts in summer. Kerrie said we should come back here and let's swim in the lake with her. We promised that we would come back to the US. I'm looking forward to coming back. I am fortunate to meeting such splendid people. These memories with my host family is certainly treasure for me.
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| Lovely Face Paint |
Third, there was some unforgettable events in Spokane for me. I participated in
Bloomsday on May 1st. My friends painted a Japanese flag and kanji on my face. The kanji means flower because it was Bloomsday. I saw very intriguing things. Many people took off their outer clothes and threw them on trees. It was a strange sight. I heard after Bloomsday these T-shirts and sweat shirts were contributed to charity. I think it was super. I walked 12 kilometer (7.46 miles). It was hard exercise for me. I had walked 3 kilometers before, which was the longest for me. When I walked half way, I thought dead of my feet. I saw a lot of people while the walking. Some people wore costumes, some played music on the roadside and I found MFWI teachers who gave me ice candy and candy. When I started, I met Sarah and she said "I finished!". I thought she was joking but it was true. I was surprised. I knew that she was 15th in the 30 to 35 age group. My finish time is 2:40:26. I want to said "good job" to me. Another memorable event was souran bushi with my host family. My friends danced at
River Park Square. They practiced hard a lot before the souran bushi performance. It was powerful and fabulous. My host family and we were moved by their dance. I wanted to dance with them. I also watched kendo. American people were doing kendo but there was not any difference between in American and Japanese. They were so cool. Spokane has awesome events and I enjoyed them.
These were especially invaluable memories to me during my Spokane life. I could not experience them in Japan. I thank my parents for giving me such a stunning opportunity. I definitely will not forget these memories.
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