Another day in Fukuoka

Right now, I'm sitting around my host brother's apartment, watching a tape of the game we played earlier today. My host brother, Toshiki, lives in a studio apartment by himself in Fukuoka city. His girlfriend, Katomi, has been spending a lot of time with us. At first, it was a bit awkward to be staying in such a small space with the couple, but I got used to it quick (she made a great breakfast this morning). All of the players were assigned host familes; all are with Japanese lacrosse players from various Fukuoka Universitys around the island. Hearing everyone's stories from the night were pretty entertaining. Most players are staying with Japanese kids who live on their own, but some are in houses with families. Cito's got a sweet setup. His Mama-san did all his laundry for him-washing his clothes, AND shoes...All the hosts are very generous and kind to have us stay in their place.


Today's Games


We saw a lot better competition today than we did yesterday. The first team we played this morning was a team called INFINITY: a club team made up of some of the best players on the island of Kyushu. We came out a little flat, and they deifnitely did not fold easy. The score ended up being 9-5, probably shouldn't have been that close. It seemed that most everyone had a long night hanging out with their hosts, and probably drinking a little bit (it's a very common part of their culture, and drinking and being merry is jus expected). Japanese players are not the biggest of athletes, but they hustle on every play and don't give up easy. Their stick skills are really what is lacking for the most part, but the team we saw today had some pretty good players who could definitely score when they had the rock open in front of the net.

The second game we played was against a U-19 team from around the island...and oh did we bring the rain. Literally. About halfway through the first half, it started raining harder than I've ever seen it rain before. This was some serious asian monsoon rain...apparently.

NEWS FLASH: Super Smash Bros gamecube tournament has begun: Toshiki, myself, Marcus Sylva from Sonoma State who is living nearby with another host, his bost brother Atsuo, and their friend Heita. Of course, Marcus is getting worked over by the Japanese haha. good times.

Anyways, the rain came in buckets and the clay soon turned to a mud-pit. I've seen some rainy days in Oregon, but nothing like this, it didn't stop until well after the game and it has continued into the night. The game was called at half time, which was followed by numerous American and Japanese players alike sliding on their stomachs through the puddles. This rainy season has been very tough to get used to, but I've been getting used to just going with the flow. Our team is starting to mesh well together on and off the field, and although many of us, including myself, are very much lost in translation battling the language barrier, it really has been quite the trip so far.

Traveling is not easy with 24 players and 3 coaches. The subway systems are very complex, and without a guide can be very difficult to navigate.

The only "field" we have played on so far.

Souvenirs.