19 junior high school students and 5 adults come to Mikura to share cultures
We greeted the Camp Zama group at the pier and were glad that the typhoon seemed to have abated. Still, because Saturday was set to be windy and choppy, we rearranged the dolphin watching and swim trip to ~3 hours after the group arrived. We had FLAT CALM seas all around Mikura and great visbility!! There were five groups of dolphins that we saw. The students were spread into 3 boats. For some, it was their first time snorkeling, let alone with dolphins. Smiles were plentiful as was the conversation after our dolphin trips.
Our afternoon was spent at the Mikura School with their students – a cultural exchange which had the kids playing tag, writing each other's names in both Japanese and English, and learning to write kanji (characters of the Japanese language) in brush caligraphy.
The afternoon began with a tentativeness from both groups of students, but after tag everyone was together and laughing and gesturing in communication. A group photo had all the kids in a tight group (of ~40 children) smiling and making funny faces. Children, it seems, are the same around the world.
Tomorrow is a workshop on communication. Tonight, the Camp Zama youth have dinner in the only restaurant on Mikura – Yamaya.
Till tomorrow.
Kathleen