The Ocean with my Homestay Family

Today began with waking up at 9 AM-it was amazing because I got more than eight hours of sleep and that was the most sleep I have gotten since I was in Los Angeles. After a huge breakfast (pork loin, asparagus, ham, egg, soup, rice, mixed vegetables, and apple juice) Katsuhiro, his mother, his brother, and I set out for the ocean in a boardering town. After going up in a tower to have a great view of the ocean, we went to the Ibaraki Prefecture Oarai Aquarium. I was really excited about this because of my salt-water aquarium. It was a really nice aquarium with exhibits showcasing many types of fish and other aquatic life. There were some great coral reefs, reef fish, jellyfish, sunfish, sharks, rays, otters, seals, penguins, and many more. Having been to Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, I compare everything with it, and this aquarium, although probably not as big, was excellent as well. After this we went to a nice little restaurant that I believe was French. I had a beef dish, pasta, bread, and an excellent dessert. Finally it was time to head back to the meeting place for me to return to my group. After a fantastic send-off by the locals, our group headed back to the hotel for the evening. The evening festivities were a shopping trip and a group meeting to plan our group presentation that is upcoming in Tokyo. Tomorrow we go on one last Tokai tour and then we are off to a traditional Japanese inn (ryokan) called Omoide Romankan. Below is a picture of me with Katsuhiro and his mother and brother (Katsuhiro is on the right).