Reception Tanigumi

When we arrived, Tsumunji had made a sign for us to welcome us to their home.  It reminded us of something our kids would have made if we had been hosting a family from Japan.  The Omori family has been wonderful to us the whole time.  In the afternoon yesterday, they took us to see a Buddist mummy.  There were shrines and buildings with a lot of history from the 12th century.  At the bottom of the hill where we walked up to the buildings, there was a box filled with walking sticks for anyone that needed them.  I might need one after the race.  I知 going to do the half marathon instead of the full one.  Up on the hill, we met a man with a poodle named Bon Jovi.  It was very entertaining to hear his story even though he only spoke in Japanese.    The trees there reminded us of autumn in Utah.  The colors are all changing now.

Yesterday, after touring the marathon course, we had a reception with the staff from the Ibigawa marathon.  Gifts were exchanged and we had a great buffet lunch.  Gil is a city council member from St George.  He is our main representative.  The photo is him with the mayor of Ibigawa.

While we were driving the marathon course, we took a few breaks.  We spent a few minutes soaking our feet in a hot spring at a rest stop.

Last night, Mie invited a few people to visit for dinner.  Two of them are running the race.  One even went to run St George last year as a representative of being the best local runner.  We all went around the room introducing ourselves in English.  It was a fun night.