Bunkasai!!!

You must understand that Japanese students prepare for Bunkasai (Culture Day Festival) like how we might prepare for homecoming or the prom. They take this seriously. Each club performs during the festival. My English club performed Cinderella in English! They did good, but the pictures turned out a little dark. Enjoy!

The steps leading up to the 3nensei level and my classroom. 

My English Club students performing Cinderella. 

The students after they performed the "soran" dance. It's a traditional dance that has spread like wildfire in schools across Japan. It's a fisherman's dance. The music is kinda funky and upbeat. I wish I could find a recording of it! I'd rock it!

Kawata-sensei. The teacher responsible for guiding all these talented art students. 

The basketball team boys show off their art. 

This is the principal and vice principal.

Some amazing art work by a 3nensei student. 

My Favorite Kids in the Whole School: 3nensei girls: This clique includes: Maaya, Ayaka, Misa (my little adopted daughter), Itsuka, Mai, and Yurie. 

They're playing some game that's similar to Chess. During the break in the ceremony all the boys gathered to play this game in a crowded room. 

2nensei Tennis Club Girls 

3nensei Girls: There's Mariko in the center. My favorite! Kenta is in the back w/ his new girly haircut. 

2nensei (2nd Yr JHS) students.  

1-1 and 1-2 Class banners. One is Japanimation and the other is Spiderman. These two banners won. They will use these banners for the Taikutaikai (Sports Day Festival) next week.

3-3 Banner--They wrote something in Korean for the heck of it. That is Kimura and Kawata-sensei, their homeroom teachers. It's so werid how it looks like them!

3-4 Banner 

3-2 Class Banner 

Sachi Rocks Sam&Dave's World!

Sachi-chan, you go girl! I was so proud to be in the audience. Sachi rocked covers of songs by artists such as Beyonce, Prince, and Missy Elliott. Oh and BooBoo-chan is sooo cute.

Her band was mad cool too. They're called Funky D Music? 

Sang it gurl! 

Me, Sachi and BooBoo-chan. She was so cute, she wouldn't let me go the whole night. Don't ask me why she was in a smoky club @ midnight though. 

Sachi & BooBoo-chan. She wouldn't smile for the camera.  

Sachi (middle), her friend and her little niece, BooBoo-chan. Kawaii ne!

Taiko in Heguri!!!

Taiko is Japanese drumming. I'm not sure if it's a noun or a verb, but you get the idea. This is my JTE's daughter performing in our town of Heguri-cho.

Ms. Kikuchi's daughter and sister are on the left and her daughter's friend on the far left.

The girls on taiko drums. So empowering for young Japanese girls to have this sort of hobby. 

Bodybuilding in Japan?!?

Ok, this has become a habit. This is actually my second time going to a bodybuilding contest in Japan thanks to my friend, Fiona. She won 2nd Place in the Mr. and Ms. Osaka contest (I didn't have my camera to take pictures of that contest). These are pictures from our friend, Dana 'Pebbles,' Fitness contest. That event also just happend to include a StrongMan Contest and a men's bodybuilding contest.

That's Pebbles on the far left. She won 3rd Place :(. Maybe because her body was too "bootyliscious."

This guy is Korean-New Zealander! That's a mouthful. He was really cool. He chose Jodeci for his freestyle pose session.