Me and my han (team) at the Yamanaka Lake summer camp
Me and my han (team) at the Yamanaka Lake summer camp
For the majority of our final week in Japan, Stephanie and I joined nearly 300 other Ashinaga funded students from all over Japan at the yearly summer camp at a lodge in the forests of Yamanaka Lake. We spent 6 days and 5 nights there doing many different activities both with our han (team) and together with all the other students at the camp. After the camp, we went back to the Ashinaga Heart School in Tokyo and stayed for a few more days to take care of unfinished business such as souvenir shopping and last-minute sightseeing. We finally headed back to CA on August 8th after a brief farewell party the night before.
Our lodge behind some trees at the Yamanaka Lake summer camp
All the 300 Japanese students (and a few other international students besides Stephanie and I) at the summer camp got placed into teams of about 15-20 students and spent each day with them; eating meals and going to the bathhouse together, playing games and chatting, and doing each day's activities together. One of the major activities planned was mountain climbing, but that got canceled due to the rainy weather. Instead, we had a mini sports festival and a skit competition. The highlight of our time with our team was getting very personal and close to them so we could each talk about ourselves, i.e., our family and financial hardships that allowed us to get Ashinaga funding, our dreams for the future, and how we are going to achieve those dreams. When we weren't with our team, all the students at the camp were together listening to lectures by Ashinaga-related people, doing various written and verbal workshops, singing the camp song and doing the dance, watching related videos, etc,. All in all, for someone like me who has never even been to a summer camp in America, it was quite a unique and worthwhile experience. I learned a lot about myself, the people in my team, Ashinaga, Japan, and many other things.
I wasn't able to take very many pictures during my time at the camp because we were constantly busy with activities and much of the time spent with my team was a little too personal for photos. But here are some that I managed to take...
Yamanaka lodge: An extra building that was part of the lodge we stayed in. As you can see, we were out in the forest and it was many degrees cooler than in Tokyo XD
Morning gathering: Every morning, all the teams would gather outside the lodge and hear announcements about the day's activities.
Curry rice and watermelon: Breakfasts, lunches, and dinners were provided for all the students and staff at the camp. Although we usually ate our meals at the restaurant inside the lodge, this day we ate curry rice and watermelon outside with our team.
My teams' room: This is the tatami room where I did all the personal activities and games with my team. After curfew, the boys would go to another room and the girls would sleep in this room.
Campfire: This campfire was unlike anything you'll find in America. In addition to singing songs, many of the students and staff took turns holding up torches and passionately shouting out their dreams, future goals, and the obstacles they had overcome for all to hear. It was definitely very powerful and moving to watch and listen to.
Last day speech: The elderly but charismatic founder of Ashinaga gave a speech the morning before we left the camp.
One last group song: Before we got on the bus that would take us back to the station, everyone sang the camp song, "Ayumi," one last time with the camp leaders (the five people in the blue robes).
Me singing "Hare Hare Yukai" at a karaoke place in Akihabara
The day after getting back from the summer camp, Stephanie and I went out separately to wherever we wanted to do our final souvenir shopping. I was eager to return to my beloved Akiba one more time and get the last few anime goodies I wanted. After spending a few hours in Animate and Gamers, I did karaoke one last time as well. I will miss the anime stores in Akihabara and Japan's advanced karaoke booths!
Again, if you want to see all the anime goods I bought during my two times at Akiba, I wrote about them on my blog here.
Pokemon movie ads: Before getting on the train to Akiba, I noticed a bunch of posters advertising the 12th Pokemon movie that was currently in theaters. Apparently JR had some kind of promotion going on where, if you collected all the pokemon stamps at the various stations, you could win Pokemon prizes.
Haruhi ad: Upon arriving at Akiba, I couldn't resist taking a photo of the giant Haruhi ad on this building.
Maids: Maids standing on the street and handing out fliers for their café is a common sight in Akihabara. Maybe next time I'll psyche myself to actually go to a maid café XD
Festival and concert: That day there was a small festival/concert going on in Akiba. Here are some kids doing toy scooping.
Karaoke: Singing "God Knows..." at karaoke. I love how so many of the anime songs have actual footage from the show on screen, something that's lacking in the karaoke places outside Japan.
Pachinko parlor: The front of a pachinko parlor in Akihabara. Lots of Evangelion promotion going on because the 2.0 movie was currently in theaters.
Gashapon: It started to rain heavily while we were in Akiba so we hung out at the giant electronics store, Yodobashi Camera, for a while until it stopped. The number and variety of gashapon machines on the 6th floor of that store is amazing!
Me in front of a Bambi UFO catcher at the Seiseki-Sakuragoaka arcade
For my final day in Japan, I didn't venture too far; just went to the arcade at Seiseki-Sakuragaoka close to where the dorm is. Then we did fireworks in the evening followed by a farewell party.
Purikura booth: Purikura, or Japanese photo booths, are very popular and more high-tech than any similar thing you'll find in America. You go inside, take a few photos, edit the photos using a computerized drawing pad and stylus pen with paint colors, stamps, etc., then print out the photos and send them to your cell phone.
UFO catchers: UFO catcher machines in Japan are similar to the claw-grabbing machines you'll find in America except they're more numerous, diverse, and extravagant XD However, they're just as frustrating and difficult.
Pokemon UFO catcher: We tried to get one of the Pokemon products in this UFO catcher but to no avail XP
Ice cream UFO catcher: Yes, there's even an ice cream UFO catcher.
Arcade games: In addition to purikura and UFO catchers, there were also a lot of game machines in the arcade.
Fireworks: For our last night at the Ashinaga Heart School dorm, we did hanabi (fireworks) outside. The sparklers were a little smoky.
Farewell party group photo: A lot of the students at the dorm had gone home for summer vacation, but there were still enough left to throw us a short farewell party. I'll miss everyone! I will definitely return to Japan someday!
Again, you can see more videos of my trip on my YouTube channel, and more Japan coverage from my 2006 trip.
