So, all is well. We had a long but easy flight from Detroit to Osaka. We stayed overnight in a triditional inn near the airport and then transferred to Shimimoto by train. Our first performance was at a local fair in a light rain. The crowd loved us and danced with us even in the bad weather. We then went home with our host families for the first real sleep in probably two days. Today we had a performance exchange at an elementary school and then a performance at a nursing home. Again, the kids did great. We tried to teach a dance to the kids but they were too wild so we made it simple and short. In the afternoon we did a wheelchair dance with the residents of the nursing home and they enjoyed it very much. Everyone is enjoying their host families although in some cases verbal communication is a challange. We will change host families several times while in Shimimoto as they are doing this for the first time and wanted to keep the visits short.
About this blog, well, it wasn't as easy as I first thought. I have yet to figure out how to get our laptop on the internet so I am using our host's computer which primarily is in Japanese! Without the help of a visiting student from Stanford University I would be in big trouble. So, we might have to wait a few days before I figure out how to pictures and videos. I was luckey to be able to compose this in English!