December 18, 2025

It has been about two months since my last journal, and I have done a ton since then. To start, briefly after my last entry I climbed Mt. Fuji; the tallest mountain in Japan. It was a three-day trip with the second day being the one where I attempted to summit the mountain. I started at the 5th station before having to bypass the gate to start the hike as it was officially off season. The hike lasted a total of around 6-7 hours with me having to turn back due to the snow and ice at around 150 meters from the summit. The hike was beautiful with the mountain changing from multicolor volcanic rock to an intense snowy peak. During the last day of my stay, I was invited to participate in sunrise meditation on a mountain and later I had a chance to try dolphin meat for the first time. It was sectioned into two parts, the meat and the skin & blubber. The meat strongly reminded me of liver, and the skin & blubber was tough and oily. Overall, it was a really enjoyable experience, and I would recommend trying everything available if given the chance.

I also just recently switched host families and live across the city from where I used to be. My new house is located by one of the major streets in Kyoto, Shijo, and is located almost directly next to the river. My host family consists of three people. My mom who works with Kyoto city, my dad who works as an editor and my older sister who did an exchange year in New Hampshire a year or two ago. Regarding my commute, it remains relatively similar in time wise, but I am taking an entirely different railway now.

This past weekend after my school’s finals; I went on my Rotary’s Hiroshima excursion trip. It was a three-day trip with me leaving Saturday morning and arriving back in Kyoto Monday night. The first day consisted of a large amount of driving, going to a viewing platform, and spending some time at a Christmas market. The second day was the day with the most activities. The day started with us going to the Peace Memorial museum and Peace Memorial park. Afterwards we took a boat to Itsukushima where we got a tour of the temple from a priest and witnessed a traditional wedding take place. After the tour we had some free time, and I decided to go to some Budhist temples with two other exchange students. On the last day we took a ropeway to the top of a mountain. Where we partook in a quick little hike before starting our trip back home. Overall, The Island was nice with a lot of friendly deer, the temple was really unique and cool, and the nature was pretty with the contrast between the mountains and ocean.

In its entirety, I feel like I am thriving. Everything has been fantastic, and I have had no issues that have been affecting me for an extended period of time. While I don’t really understand all that much at school, I still enjoy attending class. Overall, Japan has been wonderful, and I am forever grateful for this opportunity