For Jayden Duchou and Hannah Pomeroy, their host family in Shiraoi, the Kumagia family, made them feel part of the household right from the beginning.
“They were super nice and a loving family who were very welcoming,” Hannah said.
Jayden added they were a lot of fun and they liked going to the mall which suited both girls.
As far as Japanese cuisine, the girls had very distinct reactions to some new culinary experiences.
“I tried cow tongue, cow diaphragm and cow cartilage, oh and I also ate raw bacon,” Jayden said.
“I was surprised there wasn’t as much raw food as I thought there’d be in Shiraoi.”
The cow diaphragm also made it on Hannah’s list of things she tried. However, she also mentioned her new favourite food from Japan – the tempura or dumplings.
Each girl had different memories of what surprised them in Japan.
For Hannah she notices how different and neat the bathrooms are.
“I had to get Jayden to help me figure out how to work the shower in our hotel room in Tokyo,” she said.
Hannah also liked Tokyo for all the trains which went everywhere. She also took note that people rode bicycles everywhere.
“Toyko made me feel like I was home,” she said.
“I also loved it because there were so many little shops everywhere and right by our hotel was a temple.”
For Jayden, she found it very different that her host family sat on the floor at their coffee table to eat dinner.
Hannah spoke of an amusing incident during a dinner out.
She ordered a cream soda, which came with ice cream and ice cubes sitting on top of the glass of pop. When Hannah sank the ice cream to the bottom of
the glass, it caused everything to overflow.
Jayden admitted she didn’t have a favourite event or amusing anecdote but says she’ll always remember when her host family went to the photo booth with her or when they stayed up late lighting fireworks.
“I’ll always remember being on the plane on our way to Shiraoi and the suspense of not knowing what kind of culture I was going into,” she said.
For Hannah, she said her most memorable experience in Japan was when the group and the members from the twinning society climbed a volcano.
Both girls said they’d love to go back.
“I would love to go back because it was a lovely experience and I miss my host family so I would like to go visit them again one day,” Hannah said.
Jayden wants to save up and go back in two years.
For information on the Quesnel/ Shiraoi Twinning Society or the delegation to Shiraoi, call 250-992-6532, leave a message, someone will get back to you.
