We celebrated Hario English School’s third birthday last Sunday with a fun evening of bowling and dinner. We went to Round 1 first and had a couple of games of bowling. I haven’t bowled many times, and it’s been about ten years since I last tried it, so I was worried about how well I could play. Fortunately, I didn’t do too badly, and was happy with my score. I got 91 points in the first game and 111 in the second. We added our points from the two games and Taka was in first place and won a gold medal. I think I finished in second place, so I was happy with my performance. We tried some UFO catcher games next, but nobody won a prize! I’ve tried these games several times and have never won anything, so I was thinking it might be impossible. Kevin has won a few times before, however, so there are ways to win.

After that we went for dinner at “Jitokko” restaurant, which specialises in chicken dishes. They served a raw chicken dish. I have never tried raw chicken, which is considered dangerous in Ireland, but I’m glad I did because it was delicious. Meat is often served rarer in Japan. For example, if you ask for a steak medium in Japan, it’s the same as rare in Ireland. I remember when I first heard about sushi I thought it was strange because nobody ate raw fish in Ireland 30 years ago. Even now, my dad isn’t comfortable eating sushi or sashimi because it’s raw. I’m always glad I can experience food from different cultures.

Happy birthday Hario! Here’s to many more great years!

Alan