Japan Air Flight #004 has landed at JFK and the group is working their way through the airport to collect their luggage and pass through customs. They should arrive in Farmington around 1-1:30pm.

It was a smooth flight and all are tired but excited to share their adventures with you!

Japan Airlines flight #4 just took off. Our intrepid travels are in great spirits.

This from Kate Doemland, ” Bold, resourceful, informed….a few from Team Tokyo on JAL 004 ready for departure! Wheels up! See you stateside!”

I will post again once they have landed and give a more accurate time as to when they will arrive at Porter’s tomorrow.

Japan Airlines has given the group meal vouchers and is putting them up at the Tokyo Inn for the night, which is near the airport. They are scheduled to depart between 9:00am – 11:00 am local Japan time tomorrow morning. They will land at JFK tomorrow (1/21) between 8:00 pm – 10:00 pm and should be back in Farmington by 11pm – 1:00 am.

Students will not be required to attend IM classes on Monday, but they will need to attend their IM class on Tuesday morning at 8:55am for the last day of the term.

I will update you tomorrow on their flight status and more specific arrival times.

Japan Airlines flight #4 was cancelled this morning due to maintenance issues. The group is currently getting off the plane to go back through customs and to a hotel provided by Japan Airlines.

I will keep you posted once I know the name of the hotel and more details about their departure time tomorrow.

Kate and Dan report that the girls are energized and looking forward to another night in Tokyo!

A beautiful image of Kichijo School just now. Students are in the final cleaning of their homeroom classes, and shortly we’ll walk through the school gates one last time to Nishi-Ogikubo Station. From there, we’re en route to Tokyo Station, Narita Airport, JFK, and Miss Porter’s School. Our adventure comes to close in Japan, but in so many ways it has just begun.

Kichiko School

We’ve had the experience of a lifetime; these words from our students:

Welcoming…memorable…SO THOUGHTFUL…bittersweet…kind…hospitable…warm…considerate…inclusive…remarkable…living…unforgettable…generous…learning experience.

Mata mite ne. 

Until we meet again.

We are so very close to returning, but first, there’s time for one more class!  The Porter’s students participated in an Ethics class with students from Kichijo, discussing a very appropriate topic…happiness!  They discussed and shared their ideas about family, friends, passions, and of course food.

Sara organizing her thoughts.

Annika decorating

Clare, Gabe and their Kichijo partners collaborating.

We leave Kichijo for the last time in about two hours, with hopes to return one day.

To Our Kichijo Family: You are part of all our yesterdays!

You are forever in our spirit.

We began our Farewell Party with a well-prepared schedule of fun,  and the afternoon passed far too quickly. Porter’s students were not to be intimidated by a quiz, even at a party, and the contest went to a tie-breaker in the final round. The room turned boisterous with animated card games, hundreds of charming photo-ops, tabletops scattered with delicious snacks and treats, and many, many rounds of hugs and tears.

As we drew to the close of our lovely and memorable gathering, each school sang a song important to its community and tradition. The meeting room filled with joyous teenagers fell silent save the dulcet tones of Porter’s and Kichijo students in song. It was a special, even profound, moment in time.

Finally, we took a group photo of the host-sisters, buddies, faculty and staff of both programs:

We are surely building our tomorrows from the lasting spirit of this exceptional opportunity and adventure. Thank you to our host- families and host-sisters and buddies; thank you to everyone at Kichijo  School who worked tirelessly to make our International InterMission visit such a stunning success, and thank you to Miss Porter’s School for insisting that global citizens need to be… well, in immersion experiences around the globe. Tomorrow is our final “sayonara.” Bring tissues.

KIchijo held a farewell party this evening for the Porter’s students.  It was a lovely way to end our last full day in Tokyo.  There were many, many tears, much laughter, and promises to keep in touch.  Our students shared a rendition of “Farmington’s Calling,” a song which is normally performed in certain circumstances, but we felt it was appropriate to share with new family.  The Kichijo students in turn sang an impromptu version of their school song, which was an unexpected and wonderful gift.

Some of our students are heading out for one more night in Shibuya before packing and preparing for travel tomorrow.

Today is our last full day in Japan and that fact is bringing with it conflicted feelings.  There’s sadness that we’ll be leaving, and several of our students have shared lovely messages from their host sisters expressing deep connections.  There is also homesickness and a desire to return to the “real world”.  The students are looking forward to their last few chances to have fun with their new families, to see the amazing sights of Tokyo, and, of course, to eat amazing foods.

This morning our students had an opportunity to practice shuji, the art of Japanese calligraphy.  This ancient art requires many years of study and practice to achieve proficiency; in the hour they had, I think our girls did remarkably well!  Like many ancient arts in Japan (such as the Chado they experienced yesterday), the purpose is not just to create something beautiful, but to focus the mind and body.  It is simultaneously writing and meditation.

Gabe and Julianne hard at work.

Later today, Team Tokyo will enjoy a farewell party with Kichijo students (and are planning to sing for them to show their gratitude), and then many will have a Friday night on the town.

Our current plan is to leave Tokyo at approximately 7:30 Saturday night local time, to land in NYC at 6:30 Saturday night.  It looks very strange because we will be traveling backwards in time.  We are all very hopeful that we don’t encounter the same kind of delays as we did at the beginning of the trip…but if that happens, it’s just another chance to practice resilience and flexibility!

The Tea Ceremony, or Chado, (“Tsa-do”) is an essential part of Japanese culture and a ritual that takes years to master. The formal ceremony itself, the chaji, is a meditation on tea, the beauty and impermanence of time, and a call to a spiritual awakening of our human imperfections. Formal tea ceremonies usually last about four hours. (Ours did not!) The tea room is spare and unadorned, except for the beautiful natural elements of the tatami mats, or the presence of a singular, small display of chabana (flowers).

Some tools of the Chado ceremony: a tea container, a bamboo ladle (hishaku) for purifying one’s hands, a tea bowl for matcha, a chasen (bamboo whisk), and chashaku, the small, delicate, tea scoop above the bowl on the right.  

 Porter’s students had an introduction to the tea ceremony in a formal class taught at Kichijo, but when the Porter’s students left to meet host-sisters, the Kichijo students remained in class, taking instruction on the proper placement of utensils, appropriate presentation of the bowl, and the physical approach to the furo (heating structure), hibashi (fire chopsticks), and other tools and vessels included in this very specific ceremony. Kichijo students in this photo have been taking the tea class class for two years.

There are many Japanese images and poems surrounding the art and ritual of tea drinking. I’ll close with this from Kobayashi Issa, a late-18th/early 19th century Japanese poet from Kashiwabara in the mountains of the Shimano Province. His pen name, “Issa,” means “one cup of tea.” Enjoy!

the tea smoke

and the willow

together trembling

What a beautiful way to welcome-in the evening!