So yesterday, I volunteered at an event in downtown Chicago hosted by the City of Osaka. And for those who didn’t know, Chicago and Osaka are sister cities. This year marks their 35 anniversary. The event was called RA-KU-GO is the Japanese word for comedy. Read About It Here There is so much to share about the event, I’m not even sure where to start. As I previously mentioned I got to volunteer for this event through a friend at church named Leroy. He referred me to a lady by the name of Mami-san, who was one of the event organizers. I can’t express enough how much I wanted to wear my Yukata to the event but I was sort of worried I would have tied my obi wrong since there are like no-instructions-online for doing so. Plus I’m not sure how accurate my obi really is.

Once at the event, there was a TV crew from a Japanese News Group in Japan interviewing people. Also, there was this lady wearing a gorgeous red kimono. She also had two little girls wearing kimonos. It was so amazing to see in person. It was my first time even seeing anyone wear a kimono so perfectly in person.

I ended up volunteering for the will call table. Course to be perfectly honest, I sort of wish I got picked to help with the stage setup. Even one girl got picked to wear a kimono on stage for a part in the show. Not sure how I’d feel about being on stage but I could have done it. However, I met this one guy at the table named, I think Mitsubishi, sounded sort of like Mishi or Mushi. I wish I could remember. Well, he was very nice to all of us and at one point kept pointing at me sitting behind the table almost like he was silently saying “It’s all you!” or “Great job!” He sort of made me feel like he was my boss and I was his favorite employee. I can’t quite remember his job title but he might have been appointed as a cultural ambassador for the city of Osaka. Oh and you’ve heard that the bowing thing Japanese people do is addictive, well, I caught it after the event. I had a hard time remembering to do it during the event but once I got home, I couldn’t stop.

After the show, we all received gifts from the performers. I got a Japanese fan, a notebook, and small white bath towel. One performer named Katsura Asakichi even gave me his e-mail address. He was looking forward to talking with me because he wants to improve his English. I really loved this event!