GRC has events almost every week. There were various events students could enjoy cake, pizza or popcorn, and singing, dancing, game tournament and karaoke. There was an event that surprised me a lot. It was a swing ride that students were able to experience.

Stores start selling big pumpkins, Halloween costumes and Halloween treats in October. America gets the Halloween mood immediately. The main character of American Halloween is children. On the Halloween day, the children in the neighborhood wearing a Halloween costume came to our house to get treats. They were so cute, so I felt comforted by them. Japan also has Halloween, but it’s different form that in America. That was very fresh to me.

Also, I made a Jack-o'-Lantern for the first time. The pumpkin was very big. Removing seeds and hollowing out the design was especially hard. After making it, I put a candle into the pumpkin. It was beautiful.

GRC had the Halloween party and it was held until around 11 pm. We had a dance party and a costume contest. The students had costumes with high quality.

Jack-o'-Lantern

Halloween Party at GRC

Thanksgiving is a day to spend the time with the whole family. It is an American holiday on the fourth Thursday in November. People enjoy eating while talking with their family members and relatives. There were a lot of foods such as turkey, mashed potato, pumpkin pie and cranberry sauce on the table on the day. They were made by my host family. All the food was very delicious. Before eating, we held hands in circle, and my host father thanked us. I learned about American culture, so it was a great day.

The next day, there is a holiday called Black Friday. They have a big annual sale that day. Most stores hold a sale and some stores even open from midnight. Many people go to the stores or the malls to buy something.

Thanksgiving

After Thanksgiving is over, Christmas season comes around. A Christmas tree was placed in our living room and our house was decorated. I made a gingerbread house with my roommate. On Christmas Eve, I went to church with my host family. I sang songs and experienced the candle service for the first time. There were many Christmas presents under the tree on Christmas morning. My host family gave me many presents such as a muffler, gloves, a knit hat and socks, and I was very surprised with them. Those gifts are really great and my treasure. I ate breakfast with my host family while watching Christmas movies and enjoyed playing puzzles and games on Christmas day. American Christmas is an important day to spend the time with the family. I was happy that I was able to spend the time leisurely.

Christmas Tree

Puzzle

In Valentine’s season, the store will turn lovely pink and red. For American Valentine's day, men give women gifts such as bouquets, message cards, chocolates and plush toys. On Valentine's day, there were many male students fully dressed-up. They had bouquets or message cards. My host family gave me chocolate, so I was very glad. Although America doesn’t have “White Day,” some countries have it like Japan.

I went to Los Angeles, California during the winter vacation with Nozomi and Hibiki. It took us about 2 hours to fly from Seattle to California. We traveled mainly to California Disneyland. We spent the whole first day on moving around because it was so far from the airport to our hotel near Disneyland. We used Uber for all transportation. We visited California Disneyland Park on the second day and Adventure Park on the third day. Both parks were very huge, so we were able to enjoy attractions without waiting. There were some attractions that did not exist in Japan, so I had a blast very much. On the last day, we visited Santa Monica Beach. It was the most beautiful beach I had ever seen. The weather was nice and the sea breeze was also very nice. We were anxious before the trip because we had to get airplane tickets and reserve a hotel by ourselves. However, it was a very good experience for us.

California Disneyland

Adventure Park

Santa Monica Beach

Amusement Park

I went to an amusement park with my friends at night. I got on various attractions there.

Rattlesnake Ridge

I climbed the mountain on a holiday. I got tired while climbing, but the scenery from the top of the mountain was amazing.

Basketball Game at GRC

I went to support my friend's basketball game.

Cookie Making

I made cookies with Nozomi at her house.

Seattle

Sometimes, I went sightseeing in Seattle

Bus

The bus service in Seattle is called King County Metro. If you are 18 years old and over, the bus fare is $2.75. If you are under 18 years old, the fare is $1.50. Also, you can change the buses for free within 2 hours. I didn't buy the Orca card (commuter pass), but I used an app for the bus service instead. When getting off the bus, you need to pull the yellow string, so I recommended looking at a map such as Google Maps while taking the bus.

Meal

There is no staple food in America . They mainly eat meat and fish. Sometimes salad and soup can be the main meal. There are people from various countries in America. As a result, you can eat various kinds of food from other countries.

Restaurant

They have the tipping custom in America. When you go to a restaurant, you pay tips according to the service. Also, an American meal is large. There is a box to take the leftovers home. If you can't finish the meal, you can ask for the box.

Animal

In America, squirrels and rabbits are in town. There were so many squirrels that I often saw them at school.

Transit Go

When I took a bus, I used the application every time. It's very useful because you can buy the bus ticket anytime when you want to take a bus.

Uber/Lyft

It's a taxi service. You can call a taxi anytime you want.

Venmo

It's a mobile payment service.

Bank Application

You can check how much money you have left in your bank account.