Days 57-60: Summer Camp #1 (Yamanashi Prefecture, Hatsugatake)

Our first camp! I had no idea what to expect. We were housed in a facility called, if I remember correctly, Shounen Shizen no Ie (literally, nature house for youth) in the Hatsugadake (8 peaks) area of Yamanashi Prefecture, which is just West of Tokyo but is a totally different world. We were in the mountains, and it was actually cold, making me regret bringing nothing warmer than shorts and a T-shirt. But the campers warmed our hearts. (Aw, shucks.) No but really. They were great. Meeting the ACs (American Counselors) was so great. Watching the kids learn and have fun was great. I'm so glad I got to be a part of such a positive experience.


The signpost to our facility. After getting dropped off, we followed a narrow unpaved path through the woods until we reached a small clearing. Our place was literally in the middle of the woods.


The roaring campfire on night #2. The campers LOVED making s'mores (which were unfortunately made with millet cookies instead of graham crackers and a dab of chocolate sauce instead of chocolate bars--but real, authentic, campfire-warmed marshmallows!)


Practicing skits in the gym.


The whale I drew on "tattoo lady" Jonelle's arm at the American Carnival.


A few of my favorite girls. This particular group was a "dance group" that entertained us during recreation by performing the dances to all their favorite K-Pop and J-pop songs (many of which I know and love from home.) The girls on the far right and far left are REALLY good (like Kaba Modern good, I'm serious) and I told them at the end of camp to keep pursuing dance in high school because they have a lot of talent!


All of the ACs and me! They were SUCH fun and I'm only sad I could only spend 3 days with them before moving onto the next camp. After weeks of relative isolation, I was so happy to have some kind of social fulfillment.