Visit to Yaita

On the 6th, I met my brother and father in Shinjuku. After a quick stop at my aunt's, my father, brother and me, along with their two big suitcases, took the train to Ikebukuro, then transferred onto the train bound for Utsunomiya. At Utsunomiya, we only had to transfer one more time before arriving in Yaita, (in the Tochigi prefecture), where my grandmother lives. Since I came to Japan last year, I didn't get the chance to go see her. And I didn't know how to get there either. So now I know and I'm planning to go visit her during the summer.

It was a bit colder in Yaita but it was great to be able to relax and spend some quiet time with my family. The house is very small and there isn't much to do in Yaita, but just being with people I love is enough. On Saturday, my father's brother and his family came over to visit. Together, we also went to visit my grandfather, who is now living in a nursing home. His memory isn't so great and he often can't recognize people, even his own family but I'm glad we got the chance to see him.

Back row: (from left to right) Vincent, me, my grandmother, Mayu (my cousin), Noriko (my aunt)
Front row: my father, Tetsuro (my grandfather), Shoji (my uncle and dad's brother)

Supper time

Decorated my phone with stickers bought at the dollar store

The most memorable incident is probably what happened on our last night at Yaita. My brother and I found these cool do-it-yourself bead keychains at the dollar store near Tokai. So we wanted to buy some more at the dollar store in Yaita. Our uncle dropped us off at at the dollar store before going back home. We found the keychains easily and bought a few of each different kind. After our shopping, we started walking back together. But at one point the road forked and I was absolutely sure that left was the way to go. So I took the left while my brother continued on the right. I thought the roads joined together after but I was wrong. I will let you know that I'm very bad with directions. Unless I pay especially close attention to where I'm going, (ex. turn right at the 3rd light, then turn left at the post office, etc), I have a hard time finding my way back. Even in Shinjuku, my brother who was there for the first time in his life was the navigator. So... Yaita is definitely not as big as Shinjuku... but it doesn't have to be big for me to get lost. I walked about 10 minutes in one direction, then another 10 minutes in the other direction... It was starting to get dark and I knew my father would be angry that we had separated. I was tempted to ask a pedestrian where the Ashikaga bank was located because from there, I knew my way. But maybe to prove my brother wrong, and to prove to myself that I could, I decided I would get back home by myself, without asking for help. So I kept walking. And then finally, (Allelujah!) I stumbled across a familiar landmark (by pure chance), the shop near my grandmother's house. My dad was not happy. My brother had arrived minutes before but since I wasn't there, he set out to look for me. But finally, he came back and everything was ok. Except that I really need to improve my sense of direction...