January 16, 2020
Faith's Winter Holiday
Hello again!
This holiday season was honestly amazing. For Christmas, my host family celebrated the weekend before Christmas Day (as most Japanese families do) with two amazing dinners together. My host mom even included some avocado because she knows its my favorite! I spent Christmas Day with Mona, one of my best friends on the program, walking around Shibuya and just chatting. These few days were especially difficult as this was the first time for me to be away from my family for the holidays. I miss them so much!
New Years (which is much more important here than Christmas) was another set of a few amazing days. I spent New Years Eve with my host family and we started the evening with my host grandparents eating a huge and delicious meal. Afterwards, my host grandparents went home and my family just watched TV while eating a ton of snacks, including my absolute favorite Japanese snack: じゃがりこ. Around 11:30 we walked over to a local, but popular shrine. At exactly midnight, the monks rang the shrine bells and everyone rushed (in an orderly fashion b/c Japan) to bow, clap and throw in their 五円 coins. It was such a cool cultural experience.
Now that school has just started again, I'm realizing how all the time I spent with my host family helped my Japanese language skills. My comprehension skills have improved immensely and I can understand my classes much better than before.
Now after an almost month long break, its time to get back to work. (And look forward to our next big break in March!) - Faith Villarreal
