nothing to prove

the rents

Finally some visitors from home! My parents made the trek across the Pacific on Wednesday of last week. After 12 hours of flying to see me we got to take the hour long train into Tokyo and then the 2 hour shinkansen (bullet train) to Niigata. Makes me think of the trip home and how it is going to be one long ass day! Once we arrived in Sanjo I took them to their hotel and we grabbed some dinner before I let them get some sleep. Sadly the next couple of days I had work during the day so, with the help of some English maps and vague directions from me, my parents set off on their own. They only got lost a few times, from what they told me, but they managed fine without me. At night we had dinner and just caught up in general.


Friday afternoons I don't have work so I took them to one of my favorite ramen shops for lunch and then we headed to the Sanjo country side. Yes, there actually is nature in Sanjo. I was definitely surprised to learn this myself, ten months after I arrived here. In my defense, it is in the recently merged area of Shitada. There were some gorgeous cliffs and a cool damn but more just a scenic drive. The only mistake of the afternoon was trying to find this scenic outlook which turned out being just one big hike into the forest. After that we headed back to get ready for an enkai (drinking party) I had planned, with the help of my teachers, for my parents. Lots of my Japanese teachers and good friends came to drink, eat, and be merry. I sincerely doubt my parents were ready for the party, despite my explainations, but they took it in stride and it was a fantastic party.



Bright and early the next day we took the shinkansen to Shiozawa, where my homestay is located, so my parents could meet the family I have been staying with since when I studied abroad in Tokyo. It was quite the humbling experience for my parents who where not used to being bowed at so many times. Asuka, the daughter and good friend, and I played translators all afternoon while we ate lunch for about four hours. Again, my parents were shocked at how much food kept coming from the kitchen even though I warned them. My dad has taken a liking to sake (rice wine) so we went to Echigo-Yuzawa Station where there is a wall of sake for tasting. Sadly, shortly after we got there they closed but we still managed to all try about five different kinds of sake. After that my family walked away with three big bottles of sake, one from my homestay and two that were bought at the station. The afternoon of translating completely drained me so I headed back to my apartment to relax once we got back to Sanjo.


The following day we met Melissa for lunch at the Maki Winery. It was a set menu and the food was amazing. Afterwards we took a walk around the garden before doing some wine tasting. Luckily it was a gorgeous day, despite it being rainy season. Then it was off to Mount Yahiko to see the Yahiko shrine and the view from the top of the mountain. By the time we returned to the bottom it was time for dinner so we got some famous Komadori miso ramen back in Maki. After stuffing our faces with the huge gyoza (potstickers) and talking with some random Japanese people next to us, it was time to try out the onsen (hot springs). Sadly, I couldn't help my mom out much since the genders are seperate but she seemed to have survived. It was so relaxing but a little to hot for my parents.



Once Monday came around my parents were on their own again because of work. However, on Tuesday I got to take them to my favorite school with me, Ojima Junior High School. It was fun because my parents got to see what a good day at work was like. We had five classes and ate lunch with the students. One of my teachers from Ojima had mentioned that there would be someone from the Niigata newspaper at class but I honestly had thought he was joking. Well, he wasn't and a man came to the first years class to take pictures and did an interview with my family afterwards. The article was printed in Thurdays paper. One of the assignments for my students was to write letters to my parents and my principal gave them each a gift before leaving. My parents got a truely unique experience and I am glad they got to see what I have been doing all year. That school is one of the reasons I wanted to stay and if I could have been at that school everyday I wouldn't be going home next month.


Tuesday morning I sent them on their way to Kyoto and I will join them Friday morning. I am assuming that everything is okay since I have not gotten a call from them. It is kind of odd being the one to worry about how they are doing but I am sure they are having fun.

posted by Aaron @ 6:46 PM