Is it a net? Is it ham? )h, it"s Riley.

On Tuesday 28th of May, Taminmin College 2013 group went to Sandanbeki pirate caves, a charcoal factory and Shinjo park. at Shinjo park. We had lunch and had a go at playing on the new (to us) and cool playground equipment. We slid down slides, jumped on a trampoline, flew down the flying fox and did just about playtime related. some were playing tip while others were exploring, and those two were Mitchell Pemberton and Benjamin Williams. They walked across a bridge and found on the other side, a massive pirate ship playground which  they explored and told the others about. Then as they left people rushed over to it and started playing. then along came Riley Rusu who just played normal, but at the back of the ship there was a net which was closed at the bottom so if you got in it, you would find it very hard to get out. Riley rushed to the back and jumped into the net, he got distracted and bit by bit slid down deeper into the net. eventually he got so deep he could not move his legs at all therefore he was stuck. He started screaming out to the rest of the class, he was stuck fast!

Riley was sitting there all squashed up laughing about it and then he told us to get him out, but he was stuck fast.  Before we went to help him we all took photos and laughed about his situation. Every body started to push and pull to help him. After struggling for 5 minutes he could move his legs and he finally got out, his knee was bleeding from rubbing up against the rope and his back was red from rubbing up against the rope. We all got on the bus and went home.

Yahhhhh Mei!!!

On Friday the 24th of May the whole class experienced  Kendo for the first time. Everyone dressed up in a Japanese kendogi (jacket) and a hakama (a skorts like garment). Kendo means "Way of the Sword" and is a modern Japanese martial art.
The Japanese students helped everyone put on the clothing needed for K

endo (kendogi and hakama) and then organized everyone into rows after doing a formal bow to initiate the lesson. A few students demonstrated to everyone how to perform the various drills and stances.

After the demonstration it was our turn to attempt kendo. First thing we did was a drill to teach us how to hold the shinai (the bamboo sword) and how to use it. Then we did an attack drill where we charged while shouting "yahhh" at our oppenent and at the last moment yelled "mei" as we struck their shinai.

Next the Japanese students put on protective gear and stood in a line opposite us. We charged at the students but this time striking them on the men (the protective helmet).
As the lesson started with a formal  bow it also ended with one. The Kendo sensei (teacher) then handed out tenuguis (cotton towel wore under men) to keep. We took a group photo and left the budokan (martial art school).

Bronte: "I really enjoyed Kendo but found it difficult to hit them in the head and I kept running and hitting them on the wrong sides."
Santino: "I had lots of trouble hitting the men hard enough because just as the shinai was about to the hit the men I saw the japanese girl's face so I pulled back so I wouldn't hurt her."

Wakayama castle

On Saturday we went to the Wakayama Castle, which was an an absolute experience. It was built in 1585CE and still as beautiful as it would of  been back in 1585. The gardens were spectacular. around the castle there were ninjas and they were guarding the castle in a way. There were many displays within the castle.  These displays included: swords, armor and art. At the top of the castle there was a magnificent view of the city.

On this day we got lunch from the host which was nice and I had a sandwich and others had, sushi, rice, eggs and fish.

On the way back we went to a fish market and that was so big. it had all sorts of fish and the whole place
smelt like fish. Around the market there were game rooms and i played a game but didn't win any thing.










By Olivia Wadsley

Being quiet for a long time...

Friday 24th
Buddhist temple: a crash course in meditation.

Goal

• Sit in an uncomfortable position.
• remain silent for 20 minutes
• stay still for 20 minutes, even if everything hurts
• be afraid of the monk with stick catching you out wriggling or falling asleep
• and, relax.

Vice Mayor Visit and Origami Expert!

Yesterday we visited the Kamitonda town council hall to see the vice mayor and ask questions about his role and daily life. He showed us around the mayor's office and we had heaps of fun speaking in the chamber as if we were in session. After the vice mayor visit we were given humongous water bottles that were probably able to supply water for the whole week for each of us! Then we headed over to the culture hall to make origami with an expert! His name was Nita san. He taught us how to make a crane and a cicada. His skills were amazing, he could make squids, horses, dragonflies, butterflies and almost anything you could imagine. Luckily, I was able to keep the origami horse-It took him 2 hours to make! The experience was amazing and it was a privileged to be able to learn from such an expert. Maili Clarke

JUDO in JAPAN

 Judo is a highly competitive sport. it includes self defence and grappling. on Wednesday afternoon the Taminmin students went in and tried judo out. They encounted many moves from which were past out by the judo students. The "headlock" strong and hard to get but, we were taught to counter the offences move.
laying on the ground, they wrapped there leg around our arm and put their hands around our necks. time to get out!

Student update from Kamitonda Junior School;

Hello in Australia! the school and home stay families here in Kamitonda are very welcoming and helpful. There is always an eager greeting to be heard from the members of the community. We have been in and out of the classrooms meeting the students and teachers, and we have even tried Judo!  Riding to school has been a new and exciting experience. The views here are magnificent, with mountains lining the sunrise and sprouting rice paddies scattered through the area. The food is new and there is lots of seafood. Our home stay parents are making a huge effort to keep us well cared for, with yummy foods and doing our washing.
Photo: Sasha, Jade, Kate, Sophie, Maili, Jaide in front of a Buddhist shrine