07-12-09 Scout Troops and Fireworks!
Posted in Trip North on 08/17/2009 05:24 am by ScottYousuke is the leader of the local Boy Scout chapter. Today there was a scheduled field trip for some of the youngest scouts to the cities Disaster Preparedness Center. Yousuke invited us to go along, so Risa and I went with them to learn about earthquakes, house fires, and tsunamis.
The center was actually pretty cool. The earthquake simulator was fun/scary. Fun because you know its fake, scary because if that’s what a real 7.0 quake feels like, I’d be crapping my pants. They also had a dark smoky room where you have to feel your way to the exit, and a 3d movie that simulates the 1959 Ise Typhoon.
All in all, it was pretty fun. My only issue was with the guy who was explaining how to get out of a dark smoky house. He told people to use their hands to feel the walls/doors for heat, but he didn’t say to use the back of your hand. The back of your hand is more sensitive, and if it gets burned you can still use your hand to grab things. When feeling for heat, never use your finger tips or palm! always use the back of your hand!
The next stop for the troop was a neat ice cutter ship and the Nagoya harbor museum. The kids seemed to enjoy everything, although the little boy spent most of the time running around and pounding on any levers and buttons he could find.
Last stop of the day was Kiyosu Castle. This castle is a replica, although it was reconstructed within the last 5 years, so its a really well done replica museum made of wood rather than concrete. This particular castle is famous because it was the base of Oda Nobunaga, one of Japans primary historical figures.
The best part of the castle was the sweet armor I got to wear. The first room of the castle was showcasing some modern samurai armor made by local craftsmen and volunteers. When the main guy saw me, he said he would give me “Gaijin Service” and let me put on the good stuff! The whole time he was putting on the armor, he kept saying how cool gaijins look in samurai armor. Ha! Tom Cruise eat your heart out! I AM THE LAST SAMURAI.
When we got home, we got to enjoy some fireworks with Yousuke, his son Takehiko, Takehiko’s wife Sachie, and the two kids.