Japanese School

I met with Eiko on March 30^th for lunch after she picked up her daughter, Haruka, from school.  As always it was an enjoyable conversation and time spent with her.  I will admit, though, it is hard to chat when there is a vivacious four year old sitting there with you.

We went to Panera Bread, one of my favorites, and one of her favorites, too! I immediately asked about her family still in Japan.  She told me that being in Tokyo, they are fine.  They felt the shock of the earthquake, but did not have any damage from the tsunami.  She said the most damage they had was from plates falling out of cabinets and breaking.  Most importantly, she said they are worried about the drinking water because there is no bottled water in the stores and they are just waiting on the government.

I was glad to hear that they were okay.  I then asked if this would affect their plans to go to Japan this summer.  She told me they had already cancelled their flights, but that her family was making arrangements to come to Texas instead. They try and see their family at least once a year so that Haruka can experience true Japanese culture.

My favorite part of our conversation was when she started telling me about a new school that Haruka is attending.  It is a Japanese school in Dallas.  She will go every Saturday starting in April and participate in activities similar to those of Japanese schools. I laugh because I just watched My Big Fat Greek Wedding and this reminded me of how they all had to go to Greek school.  I'm just glad I didn't have to go to Lebanese school. I learned that the Japanese school year starts in April and ends in March.  That may be just a little too much school for me! After a bit more explanation, though, it sounds like they also have frequent breaks, so maybe it’s about the same. 

I’m looking forward to meeting with Eiko without her daughter.  I love Haruka’s company, but it would be nice to talk to Eiko without the distraction. More to come!