My second meeting with Eiko was a blast! My goal throughout this assignment is to truly get to know her, not just talk to her because I have to. We realized that if we met on Wednesdays, she would have to bring her daughter along and I was perfectly okay with that! Actually better than okay, if you know me at all, I was beyond excited to get to spend time with her daughter! I love children!
Come Wednesday, I couldn’t keep quiet. All my friends knew what I was doing! At 1:15, Eiko picked me up from my dorm and we went to the Fort Worth Zoo, all three of us. Her daughter, Haruka, is absolutely precious. She is full of life and such a joy to spend time with.
Once we got there, I realized that Eiko and Haruka had memberships at the zoo. I thought that was interesting because I know plenty of Fort Worth natives that don’t and I didn’t think it was common to have one. She told me that she used to walk around the zoo with Haruka for exercise and fresh air before Haruka started pre-school. It makes sense because the zoo is definitely more interesting than the park. It was obvious that Eiko knows the zoo well. She explained to me that it is mating season. For this reason, the male and female lions were in the same pin and many of the animals were not on display. It was interesting how oblivious I was to this had she not pointed it out.
It was an absolutely beautiful day at the Zoo. Eiko and I followed Haruka everywhere. She constantly stayed a step ahead of us running from animal to animal. We were able to chat while doing so, though. I asked her how her week had been in which she replied, “okay,” and motioned to her daughter. I’m guessing she spends most of her time taking care of Haruka and being a mom. I can’t imagine that on top of taking classes. She asked me how mine was and I replied the same, “okay.” I told her I had a test and a paper the day before and she seemed to be amazed! I think she thinks my schedule is more demanding than it actually is.
She also asked me how my sorority was going. She had a hard time saying “sorority” so I sounded it out for her. She still couldn’t get it so she pulled out her pocket dictionary. It was one of the most interesting pieces of technology I had ever seen. It had an English QWERTY keyboard, but gave the definition in Japanese. I typed in “sorority” and she was able to read the definition and understand. Or at least I hope she did, I can’t read Japanese to know that it was correct.
After a while, Haruka decided she was hungry. I seemed to forget how children are when they’re hungry. She definitely kept reminding us until we headed toward the Burger King at the Zoo. Once it came time to pay, Eiko pulled out her wallet and paid using her Japanese credit card. Even the cashier noticed. It was interesting to see it and to watch her sign her name in Japanese. I was surprised that it worked here in the states, but I guess Visa is international! Good to know for myself in the future!
All in all, it was a successful day. I was able to relive some childhood fun and go to the zoo while conversing with my new friend and meeting her daughter. I can’t wait for our next meeting. We’ve decided to meet weekly and I am definitely going to stick to that!
Sounds like a wonderful place to have a meeting! The part about the English to Japanese translator was really interesting. I had no idea that sort of thing existed. Also, the Japanese credit card is really good to know too! If I was the cashier I'm not sure I would have accepted it because I had no idea that was legal!
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