The last week of our exchange was busy and exciting. On July 8 and 9, we split into 2 groups and started our school visits. On Monday we went to Shikaoi Elementary, Shihoronai Elementary, Sasagawa Elementary and Shikaoi Junior High School, Urimaku Elementary, Tsumei Elementary and wrapped up at Urimaku Junior High. We enjoyed lunch at Shikaoi Junior High, where we ate in the classrooms with the students. Lunch was delicious and it was interesting to see how the students at the school participate to serve lunch, and clean up afterwards. On Tuesday we visited Shikaoi High School where we met the students that will be travelling to Stony Plain in October. We also participated in a cooking class and made our own bento lunch of ginger pork, rice and salad. While at the schools we participated in traditional Japanese games, songs and dances. All the students we excited to teach us their culture and have us in their schools. After our visit to the high school, we toured the Shikaoi Fire Hall. It was really interesting to see how they handle emergency calls and what their fire trucks are like inside, being that they are smaller than ours in Stony Plain. We then headed to the Aozora Kindergarten class where we met the young students who delighted in showing us their games and having us play with them. It was so much fun!
On July 10 we started our journey to Sapporo. We took the train from Shintoku to Sapporo where we arrived in a bustling station/huge shopping centre. We enjoyed lunch at “The Buffet” where we tried many different types of Japanese and Western cuisine. We walked to our hotel to check in and drop off our luggage and then enjoyed some free time checking out Sapporo and doing some shopping in the Tanukikoji Shopping Arcade, a 1.5 km long covered street filled with shops and restaurants . The next day we walked to the Sapporo TV Tower where we went up 90 meters and enjoyed seeing the view of the beautiful city. We then toured the Former Hokkaido Government Office Building and the beautiful grounds surrounding it. We found a cute little restaurant where we enjoyed lunch and then headed off to do more sight-seeing and shopping. The group enjoyed dinner where they cooked their food directly at the tables. The following day we toured the beautiful Hokkaido Jingu Shrine and then headed to the Shiroi Koibito Chocolate Factory. It was the grand re-opening, so it was quite busy, but interesting to see how the famous Shiroi cookies and cakes are made. We all got ourselves and our families some tasty treats from the gift shop. Then, it was back on the bus to start our drive back to Shikaoi. Once we arrived, we met up with our host families to spend the weekend with them.
Our last weekend in Shikaoi was spent with our host families, enjoying pancakes at the Heisei Hall, and participating in the Shikaoi High School Festival. Due to the rain, the parade was cancelled, but the presentation that the students put on were fun and exciting to watch. Even the teachers were involved! After the presentations, students participated in games and activities, while others did some shopping and toured around the Town. On Sunday the High School students were making and selling treats and snacks in their classrooms. The atmosphere was fun and you could hear laughter everywhere. It was also great to see the Stony Plain students involving themselves in all the activities. That night, the teachers and chaperones spent time together over dinner and then enjoyed some fun Karaoke singing. Monday was the national holiday, Ocean Day, so there was no school and a lot of host families did not have to work. Our host families took us shopping, out for a round of golf, and for a final authentic Japanese dinner. Our last night was spent with our new families and cherishing the time we had.
Tuesday was our farewell breakfast. The Town of Shikaoi presented the Town of Stony Plain with a gift of a Celadon pottery jar. After breakfast and many tears, we got on the bus and sadly waved goodbye to our new and old friends and families. We waved out the windows until we could no longer see them and started our long, 9700 km journey back home. We were excited to see our families after two weeks away, but sad to leave a town and the people in it we had all come to love. Until next time Shikoai, mata oai shimasho.
Stony Plain in Shikaoi 