I continued on Thursday with multiple media interviews and other appearances. I met the rest of the Montana delegation before my day started. There were about 10 of them including Lt. Govenor John Bohlinger and state Senator Greg Barkas. I was very relieved to see some fellow Montanans on the trip! After brief in
troductions, Myuki and I left for the International Center that was host to the Montana Club. The Montana Club is basically a bunch of Japanese that work for the trade office and this year we were celebrating the 25th anniversary of the sister state relationship between Montana and Kumamoto City. I was pretty excited when I arrived because I found more people spoke English! I listened to a Japanese rendition of the Montana state song, watched Japanese line dancers and I even got to take part in the ribbon cutting ceremony.
Myuki and I had some extra time so she took me to a traditional Japanese craft store. I saw a lot of really unique things so I made sure I brought some back home with me for gifts. After a little shopping, I attended a briefing on Montana-Japan trade. It was an incredible feeling b
eing involved in such an important meeting about beef trade in Montana and the US. I couldn’t believe I was taking part in something like that! In September of 2001, the first case of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) was confirmed in Japan. The following month, the entire nation of Japan implemented 100-percent blanket testing on all of its cattle slaughtered for beef. Naturally, this halted the export from the US to Japan. Now Japan’s beef consumption has not only been cut but the majority of the beef they consume is from Australia. If you haven’t tasted the difference in beef between different countries, you should. You would be surprised the difference and realize just how lucky we are to have delicious US beef! The agriculture on Kyushu Island (the island of Kumamoto) is extensive—ranking number one in all of Japan’s prefectures (equivalent to state government) in the production of many fruits and vegetables, as 
well and rice. Most of the rice harvest was completed just prior to our trip. However, we were able to see harvested fields and the making of rice straw bales. The fruit tasted amazing! After dinner one night they brought in a platter of fruit for us to eat. Before I realized it I had eaten almost an entire cantaloupe. When someone pointed out how much I had eaten Mako noted that one cantelope cost 4,000 yen, that is $40!!!
By Thursday afternoon after the meeting I was beginning to feel sick again. The combination of all the new things I was experiencing started to get to my delicate stomach. I had more interviews that afternoon so I barred my teeth and got through them. It was my first experience going to a TV station in Japan. It was not what I had expected at all. Up to that point I noticed everything in Japan was colors of grey and black. That changes when you get to a TV s
tation I learned. The walls and floors are all brightly painted and the TV anchors often where costume-like outfits. This particular TV crew was very interested in my outfit. During the live taping I looked up at the monitor at one point and noticed they were filming my boots! They had a map of the US and I pointed to where Montana was and was able to say a few words in Japanese. The television interviews would prove to get even more interesting as the week went on.
That night I missed a small social engagement with the rest of the Montana group because I wasn’t feeling well. I drank Sprite to settle my stomach and a little vanilla ice cream made me feel slightly better to have something familiar. At this point in the week I was really struggling because it was nearly impossible to find relief, someone or something that I could relate with. The next morning I experienced the relief I was hoping for. I was joined by the rest of the Montana delegation who could speak English, felt the same about the food we were eating, and they were all just as excited to be in a different country!
troductions, Myuki and I left for the International Center that was host to the Montana Club. The Montana Club is basically a bunch of Japanese that work for the trade office and this year we were celebrating the 25th anniversary of the sister state relationship between Montana and Kumamoto City. I was pretty excited when I arrived because I found more people spoke English! I listened to a Japanese rendition of the Montana state song, watched Japanese line dancers and I even got to take part in the ribbon cutting ceremony.Myuki and I had some extra time so she took me to a traditional Japanese craft store. I saw a lot of really unique things so I made sure I brought some back home with me for gifts. After a little shopping, I attended a briefing on Montana-Japan trade. It was an incredible feeling b
eing involved in such an important meeting about beef trade in Montana and the US. I couldn’t believe I was taking part in something like that! In September of 2001, the first case of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) was confirmed in Japan. The following month, the entire nation of Japan implemented 100-percent blanket testing on all of its cattle slaughtered for beef. Naturally, this halted the export from the US to Japan. Now Japan’s beef consumption has not only been cut but the majority of the beef they consume is from Australia. If you haven’t tasted the difference in beef between different countries, you should. You would be surprised the difference and realize just how lucky we are to have delicious US beef! The agriculture on Kyushu Island (the island of Kumamoto) is extensive—ranking number one in all of Japan’s prefectures (equivalent to state government) in the production of many fruits and vegetables, as 
well and rice. Most of the rice harvest was completed just prior to our trip. However, we were able to see harvested fields and the making of rice straw bales. The fruit tasted amazing! After dinner one night they brought in a platter of fruit for us to eat. Before I realized it I had eaten almost an entire cantaloupe. When someone pointed out how much I had eaten Mako noted that one cantelope cost 4,000 yen, that is $40!!!By Thursday afternoon after the meeting I was beginning to feel sick again. The combination of all the new things I was experiencing started to get to my delicate stomach. I had more interviews that afternoon so I barred my teeth and got through them. It was my first experience going to a TV station in Japan. It was not what I had expected at all. Up to that point I noticed everything in Japan was colors of grey and black. That changes when you get to a TV s
tation I learned. The walls and floors are all brightly painted and the TV anchors often where costume-like outfits. This particular TV crew was very interested in my outfit. During the live taping I looked up at the monitor at one point and noticed they were filming my boots! They had a map of the US and I pointed to where Montana was and was able to say a few words in Japanese. The television interviews would prove to get even more interesting as the week went on.That night I missed a small social engagement with the rest of the Montana group because I wasn’t feeling well. I drank Sprite to settle my stomach and a little vanilla ice cream made me feel slightly better to have something familiar. At this point in the week I was really struggling because it was nearly impossible to find relief, someone or something that I could relate with. The next morning I experienced the relief I was hoping for. I was joined by the rest of the Montana delegation who could speak English, felt the same about the food we were eating, and they were all just as excited to be in a different country!
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