Soccer and Kyoto

So! This past Saturday, I got to play soccer!..but not normal soccer. My friend, and fellow exchange student, Marie has a host father who love to play soccer. He's about 50 or so. He plays every Saturday with a group of men in ages ranging from 21 to 60 I think. This past Saturday I got to join them and play goalie. It. was. GREAT! I hadn't played soccer in sooo long. It was funny because I could feel my confidence change going on the field and stepping off. Off the field I have to focus on my Japanese and not sounding like a total foreigner in another country, but on the field everything is so familiar so my confidence is up. Funny how that works. Anyways, Japan has some pretty lively old men! They could keep up with the 21 year old's for sure. And what is also amusing is that most of them smoke during the breaks!
Well, I know my knees don't approve but I think I'll be going back to play with them at least once more. Marie had said that her host dad said everyone was impressed with my performance :D

That very same day, I went to Kyoto with the AFS staff an exchange student from Canada and a former AFS student who is now teaching kindergartners English. It was a lot of fun. It was a perfect night and the trees were all changing color. Dinner was good too, I had a tiny thing of soba and a tiny thing of tempura over rice.
It wasn't very fun carrying my soccer stuff all over Kyoto though. I didn't have time to go back home after soccer that day.