Homestay Experience in Tono

It was only for a night but the homestay program in Tono City during the TISP 2013 was one of the things I was really looking forward to!

With my co-participants Mika and Mikako, we stayed in a lovely home owned by an elderly Japanese couple who we call "obaasan" and "ojiisan" (Japanese for grandmother and grandfather respectively).

The house looked very traditional with tatami mats and paper doors but the kitchen, toilet and bath had modern touches! Obaasan also owned a lot of beautiful chinaware. I was in awe just looking at her beautiful kitchen.

Our host grandparents didn't speak and English so staying there was quite a challenge! However, with Mika and Mikako's help (and maybe my little knowledge of Japanese), I was still able to communicate with our host family. 

We had Jingisukan (Genghis Khan?), a Tono specialty, for dinner. It's basically grilled lamb with vegetables. Obaasan kept telling us "Ippai tabete, ippai tabete!" which means "Eat a lot!" and so I did and I got so full!

After cleaning up, we took a bath and then obaasan dressed us up in beautiful kimonos. She also fixed our hair. (Apparently, she's a licensed hair stylist!)

In the morning, we found obaasan making breakfast. Vegetables in Japan are expensive but because obaasan has her own vegetable garden, she feeds us a lot of vegetables! Again, she made a lot of food and I made sure to finish everything up. I felt like I gained a couple of pounds in just one day lol.

Staying in a lovely Japanese house, the experience of having grandparents again, dressing up in a kimono and eating good, homemade Japanese food. Even if it was only for a day, I really loved that homestay experience.

Jodogahama Beach in Tohoku District

To be honest, I think I have quite a high standard for beaches. Why not? I live in the Philippines, a country that is filled with many beautiful beaches. However, if given the chance to visit a beach in a another country, I wouldn't pass on that!

During the driving tour along the Sanriku coast in Iwate Prefecture, Tohoku District, we stopped at Jodogahama beach in Miyako City for lunch. The place was actually heavily-damaged during the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami last March 2011 but has been rebuilt.

Soft-serve ice cream is quite expensive in Japan (well, practically everything is expensive there) at around 200 to 250 yen but it was too hot in the summer so I cannot resist buying

The coast was rocky and not too lengthy. The water was clean and the beach was protected by rock formations hence the waves are small and the place is very good for swimming. It was crowded because it was summer and it was a Sunday but I have to admit, it was a fun experience for me because the Japanese have a different way of enjoying the beach.

There was a rest house with shops and bathrooms but I didn't see any resorts. The guests pitched their tents near the shore.

Most of my co-participants ate their lunch under the sunlight but I cannot manage that! I had to take cover in the shade, lol.

We only spent a couple of hours there and I wasn't able to take a dip but I really enjoyed the time we were there.

I wouldn't say that it can rival Coron, Cebu or Boracay but Jodogahama beach in Miyako Prefecture certainly has its own charm!

Traditional Farmhouses in Tono Furusato Village

With only a couple of hours of [uncomfortable] sleep in the bus the night before and having to walk around Otsuchi town under the summer heat the whole day, naturally, everyone was tired as heck. All I wanted was to rest!

But darn, I could not sleep immediately because I was too giddy about the place where we were staying.

Tono Furusato Mura is a farming village in Tono City, Iwate Prefecture. It has three farmhouses where guests can stay. There is a main hall with a restaurant, a library, and a souvenir shop. I think they also hold workshops there in the village. They also have a number of facilities which we weren't able to visit because of time constraint.

Above is the farmhouse where the ladies stayed. Being there I felt like I was transported somewhere else-- like in a Rurouni Kenshin episode, maybe? Lol. To be honest, I never imagined that it was possible for me to experience staying in such a lovely place even if it was just for a night. It was really amazing. (And I felt like everything I spent going to Japan for that program was totally worth it.)

Looks like the workshop or stabling area inside the farmhouse

Tatami room!

Paper doors

Fireplace

We had dinner first and the went to the (gasp!) public bath. But that's another story for later haha!

Dinner yummmm

Super refreshing morning view from where I slept (Oh, we slept in futons, by the way!)

I don't know if I will ever be able to return to Tono. I'm just thankful to TISP for giving us this amazing experience!

Otsuchi Town Photodump

During the summer program at The University of Tokyo last August 2013, we had the opportunity of visiting the tsunami-affected areas in the Tohoku District.

From Tokyo, we took a 10-hour night bus ride to Otsuchi Town in Iwate Prefecture, Tohoku District. Otsuchi town is one of the hardest-hit areas of the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami. It lost around 10% of its total population. The place may be quite familiar to people because of this photo:

photo from http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/world/asia/article2944281.ece#tab-4

One year and five months later, here is a view of Otsuchi from the hill. Very little land was occupied when we went there last August 2013 but we were told that there used to be a lot of structures before the tsunami. At the bottom of the photo, you can see a cemetery.

My co-participants and a volunteer of Otsuchi. Behind them is a mobile library.

Cranes: folding a thousand of them is said to be able to make a wish come true

We were divided into groups and given a tour guide (mostly teenage volunteers who are residents of Otsuchi). Our group's guide was Akane, a college freshman. We cannot talk to each other without a translator. However, when one of my Japanese co-participants talked to her about anime, we started to understand one another, lol.

Slope protection [against landslides]

Below is Otsuchi Elementary School. It was rebuilt with trailer material (a temporary situation).

Wind and solar energy for lamp posts

We had lunch at MAST department store, which I believe is the same building where the ferry in the first photo was resting on. It was back to normal when we went there.

Kaisendon (raw seafood on a bowl of rice) for lunch!

Black sesame ice cream after a long day of walking in the summer heat

A model representation of Otsuchi town before the tsunami