Yonsei Youth
Yonsei Basketball Association
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This page is devoted to Yonsei V which visited Kumamoto, Japan in August 1998.
It was hot and it was Humid. Despite these adverse conditions, Yonsei V team members and their families enjoyed a once in a lifetime trip to Kumamoto, Japan. Both the boys and girls played against a strong Kumamoto Prefecture All Star Team ( No.4 ranked girls team in Japan), Tamana All Stars and Ariaki High School. But not all was about basketball, YBA provides opportunities for fourth generation Japanese American youth to experience an exchange of ideas and cultures by living with local families. Each of the players spent 4 nights with their respective Japanese host families and enjoyed first hand knowledge of the Japanese lifestyle. Meanwhile the American families stayed at the nearby "Ryokan" (Japanese Inn), where they had their own personal "Japanese" experience...e.g. taking communal baths, using Japanese style toilets, and eating "basashi" (raw horsemeat). Reluctantly the YBA group bid farewell to the newly made friends of Tamana and proceeded to Hiroshima. The team made senbatsuru (1,000 cranes) and presented it to the statue of Sadako at the Peace Memorial Park. The group also attended the very noisy Hiroshima Carp baseball game. Some of the boys decided to wear bright red happi coats and their effort paid off as they were often seen on the big screen TV at the ballpark. (The Japanese do not have a 7th inning stretch... they have a 7th inning "demo" - ask a Yonsei ). Kyoto and its rich history awaited the Yonsei group as they toured the various temples and places of interest. Shoppers of the group took over the city, as many mini-disc players were purchased as well as Japanese artwork, dolls, swords, and sake. Some of the families left early for the mainland in Kyoto, but the rest of the die hards made it to Tokyo. No more tour buses or guides...the group was on their own. The group wanted to attend the last post-Obon being held in another town, where unique dancing is called AWA-odori could be seen. Foe some, it was their first subway experience... from purchasing tickets from a machine (trying to figure out $$) to fighting the crowd to get on and off the train before the doors closed. Miraculously, no one got lost. By this time, the group was hungry for "real" American food and enjoyed the offerings at the local "Sizzlers" Not wanting to leave, but feeling a little bit homesick (and with very little money left) the group departed Japan thru Narita airport... but not without the final shopping frenzy at the airport trying to spend that last yen. Article courtesy of Lillian Nishihara |
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