Guzen Media Japan 55

In this episode John and I talk about the 4 Day English Summer Camp we attended with my 1st year students.

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Sushi Shopping

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Guzen Media Japan 54

The 2007 JET participants will be arriving at the end of this month, so I will be doing some mini episodes over the next couple of weeks to give some advice and tips that I hope will be helpful.

-relax and enjoy the last few weeks with love ones.
-take lots of pictures and video of anything and everything.
-bring your laptop or purchase one here.
-internet speeds are fast and getting connected shouldn't be too painful.

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Japanese Summers-Suika and SuikaWari

I don't remember the going rate for suika (watermelon) back home, but this one cost ¥2380 (about $20 US). Good thing I hate watermelon. If you are invited to someones home or gathering and you want to impress, suika is a good choice to bring along.

Many Japanese like to celebrate summer by playing a game called suikawari (watermelon splitting or cracking). The game can be played anywhere, but the beach in the most popular place to play.

All you need is
suika
blindfold
stick (bokken is a good choice) or a bat
open space
some friends (would be nice, but not necessary)

If you do have friends to play with then janken to see who goes first and you're ready to start. Place the suika on the ground, put on the blindfold, spin around a few times, channel Zatoichi, then try to find the suika and whack it like it's a pinata.

Keep taking turns until the suika is located and successfully split open. Then digg in and enjoy freshly smashed suika.