Saying Goodbye

On 7.18 we had our farewell dinner. This was the first step, and most formal, in the saying goodbye process. All of us, with our host families and sister cities members, gathered at a park for a fabulous potluck. The sister cities Chairman addressed the group. All 10 of us were called up one by one to receive a packet of gifts. After lunch we had a scavenger hunt with our host families where we received a few more goodies.

Monday 7.19 was a national holiday so schools and offices were closed; it was designated as a host family day. Since our flight was early on Wednesday 7.21 we had to head to Chitose on Tuesday. We arrived over by city hall at 8:30am like usual. One by one our kids arrived with their luggage in tow and their host families. Mothers, fathers, and siblings were hanging around to see the group off. I noticed a few tears right away. Many sister cities committee members also came out to say goodbye.

When the bus showed up, it was a clear indication that it was time to go. We hauled our luggage to the bus so the bus driver could load it. It was time to say our final goodbyes. I was running around hugging my host families and telling committee members to come to B-N in 2 years for the 50th. Kids were saying goodbye to their host families and for a few the tears really flowed. We boarded the bus and everyone outside was waving. From inside the bus we waved until the bus had pulled away.

We stopped in Sapporo for lunch and to shop for a couple hours and then went on to the hotel in Chitose. We went to dinner at Royal Host, which is basically a Denny's, that night. Knowing we were flying home the next day, I asked what food everyone was missing from home. A few people responded - Monical's pizza , Mexican food, good steak. I of course responded with Starbucks. There is Starbucks in Japan but I couldn't possibly place my crazy order. My follow up question to kids was then - what will you miss about Japan? To that I got a resounding, "EVERYTHING".