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Again we spent the YMF nights at a picturesque pond-side cottage named Kanakana-tei. ("Kanakana" is the Japanese version of the sound made by the constantly-chirping cicadas which surround the house and pond. "Tei" means cottage.) Four people--Hiroshi Yamaguchi, a member of the Oita Medieval Chorus, James Dunning from Irvine, California, my husband, and I--spent several delightful days at Kanakana-tei, courtesy of our Yufuin friends. The morning after the Festival, we hoped to take our annual breakfast in the Gallery building of Kamenoi Besso. However, the Gallery has been converted to a wonderful shopping boutique, so instead we enjoyed tea and juice at the nearby to Setsuan-go house. The Gallery is a quaint old sake brewery which was moved from Fukuoka to Yufuin several years ago at enormous effort and expense. It was moved again this year, but only a few meters. It felt unusual to be in a familiar old haunt in a new location. But I was relieved to find a large antique table and to see the thick green forest through the windows as usual.
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After returning to Oita, we three went in the evening to COARA office to join the Internet Live broadcasting. This time, the main theme was our trip to America. I narrated our video as it was broadcast, explaining such experiences in Arizona as Don Plym's home and Saguaro cactus, and our home stay at Jim's house in Irvine. My husband took a picture after the broadcast. On the left are Mr. Ono, general secretariat of COARA, and Mrs. Sawako Yamasaki. |
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Jim already had some friends in COARA's office, because he had visited here two years ago. On the left is Yukihiko Goto, then Koichiro Yuki. |
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After visiting the COARA office, we relaxed at home for the first time in nearly a week. A long agenda of events and responsibilities finally was finished. We toasted many times, producing a lot of vacant cans of beer. |
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