2012 Day 10: Nara big Buddha statue & Osaka castle

We went to Nara, which is known for having many deer roaming its streets. We
ignored them at first and went to the big Buddha. It's sort of a big go-to spot
in Nara, and there were a lot of other foreigners there too. It was very
impressive, and we even got to attempt to squeeze through a hole the size of its
nostril. Earlier that day we went to Osaka castle, which was also very
Impressive. It was exciting to see the inside which had been converted into a
museum. Several of us donned samurai garb and took pictures together. It was a
blast! We went to the high school and chatted with the students for a tad. We
took the train home and spent time with our host families. I went to a kimono
shop and a small sushi restaurant. It was delicious!
-Romannnn

Today we went to Osaka Castle. I was really beautiful and had an amazing view.
We got to try on samurai clothing for only 300 yen and take pictures. Everyone
walking by wanted to take pictures with us as well. I also bought a mini samurai
helmet and pretended to wear it in the museum. We also went to Nara. At the
temple with the Big Buddha, there were tons of adorable deer! I wanted to take
them home with me, but settled for some pictures. The Big Buddha was enormous,
probably taller than my house. We went through "nostril," technically a log with
a hole in it, and if you made it through you were lucky. Next we went to the
high school where we talked with the host brothers and sisters. I went home with
my host brother after we met up with my host sister. We went to a steak
restaurant for dinner and back at the house we did hanabi, sparklers. I stayed
up late talking with my two host sisters about the differences between Japan and
America. It was really fun to practice my Japanese and teach them some more
English. Overall, it was a really fun and interesting day.
--Virginia