09/10/09, Thursday

I spent much of today getting to know Shouhei (or Shou), one of the students from Oberlin who had volunteered to help the ryuugakusei (international students). After he helped lead a campus tour for my group, he showed me and Joongeun (my neighbor) his apartment, and a nearby 100 yen shop (think dollar store, but with the goods actually being high-quality).

An impressive incarnation of our favorite characters, in Shouhei's room.

After helping us receive membership cards to a supermarket that was attached directly to it, he introduced us to the nearby gyuudon (beef bowl, basically rice dishes with sliced beef and onions, etc.). Though the communication became a bit shaky at times, I can say that the all of us learned plenty of new words.

Gyuudon is fast and cheap, but delicious- especially for tired and hungry travelers.