JAPAN ~ Hosting An Exchange Student 2015

So... two years ago, the kids and I decided to host a Japanese exchange student through States' 4-H International! It turned out that our local coordinator was the spouse of our county 4-H Dairy Club. She approached us about hosting a Japanese student, and after some contemplation, we went for it!

Introduction to the American rootbeer float at a local favorite drive-in!

Making connections with people who are not like us is critical to the survival of our world. Two years ago, we did not know how isolated our country would become due to current National Embarrassment Trump. (I did not vote for him, and despise everything he stands for.) We were enjoying the wonderful Obama years where diversity was celebrated more than ever before in my life!

So it did not seem a stretch to host a teen from another country. But now, in retrospect, I understand how very important it was. We need to make our globe smaller and more open, not segregated and fearful. I'm glad my family had this experience when we did. I'm glad we have made friends from the other side of the world in a time when those friendships mean everything.

One of the last drive-in restaurants in the Midwest! Yes, you drive in to a parking spot, and a
wait person comes to your car to take your order. Or you can sit at the open-air counter, or at
tables in the lot. Lou's is only open in the summer so we have to get our rootbeer float fix then!

There is so much to blog about during our short, but life-changing four weeks together! So I will make a series of posts here.

The spoiler is that, despite living on a seriously tight budget, and despite never thinking it could happen for our family, Big Sister ends up traveling to Japan by herself the following year! This is the kind of awesome craziness that can happen when you speak a simple 'yes' to a request. Adventures follow and wonderful things happen.

My first attempt to make onigiri (rice balls) with furikake (seasonings)! Our Japanese guest was gracious but let us know
that these were not quite like what her mom makes. ;) I've learned some tricks since then! 

Food was a big part of our experience- both introducing our guest to American dishes, but also trying some Japanese dishes! We kind of ate our way through the month. It was super fun. One big surprise was to discover how much American food is available in Japan. There were not too many surprises for our guest, although she loved the experience.