I'd heard multiple times that my JSP group was going to be part of Kawagoe Matsuri, but I didn't realize beforehand that it's the second largest festival in the entire Kanto region.

Then I got there and it was plain to see: we were late to our meeting spot across the street from where we were standing because there were so many people we couldn't move.

My morning started with a warm autumn breeze and fresh bread for lunch. I think people often comment on how good the bread is in various places in Europe, but don't underestimate Japan's bread, alright? It's the bomb.

Anyway, I hopped on the train to meet the crew at the station nearest city hall. Or so I thought. My head was so far in the clouds that I got on a train going the opposite direction instead and ended up getting to the correct location ten minutes late. Fortunately, someone else was an hour late, so my slip was not too bad.

After an hour of waiting for someone who ended up taking a different route, we raced through the streets of Kawagoe proper. A number of booths and buildings were being set up around us, but we had no time to waste. We dashed until we reached Koedo or "little Edo." That was when the people of Japan descended upon us on all sides, staring at our foreigner personas with the intent to...

I'm just teasing, but you have never seen so many people in one place. You also probably haven't seen so much authentic, delicious looking Japanese street food in one place. Furthermore, you haven't seen so many grand, intricate, Japanese floats standing tall above the crowd.

We pushed through until we reached our designated meeting place in front of city hall. We got to borrow and wear happi: blue colored fabric jackets to make ourselves stand out at the festival. Then we sat around for a little bit, watched a bunch of huge floats perform and headed out to draw ours.

A Japanese float is a "dashi." They have wheels, but they aren't motorized. A bunch of people get together and literally drag them through the streets. We got to help drag one. It was awesome. Every once in awhile the dashi would stop to perform and show off to nearby onlookers, so we stopped too. It was during those times that Japanese people came up to practice English with me, take my picture, let me pet their dogs...

It was weird, to be honest. A very old guy told me I was beautiful and I kept on bowing. I didn't know what else to do. It felt like I didn't belong there. It was a blast and I'm so thankful for the opportunity, but I felt a bit like a trophy. Like, look at the white people. It created perspective for me, though.

As a gay woman I've been subjected to quite a few scrutinizing gazes in my lifetime, but this one was distinctly different. It gave me the slightest idea of what the gaze upon an "exotic native" or "noble savage" must feel like, but again, only the slightest. If you take that privilege and amplify it to the degree at which it already exists for racial minorities... I couldn't imagine feeling that off in my own skin. It gave me a chance to check my privilege and for that I'm thankful.

Of course, not everyone in JSP is white. Still, it seemed like I was taking the place of a Japanese person who could have been drawing the float. The people who came up to me didn't see me as part of the festival, I assume. They saw me doing something totally weird but in a way that was visually pleasing to them. Maybe I'm getting too thoughtful about this.

One thing is certain. I had the time of my life pulling that thing.

Then our school officials departed and we had free roam of Koedo and the entire Kawagoe Matsuri.

I was a total dork and didn't bring cash. Cylie and Eileen helped front me while we hung out. I seriously owe them because there was so much good street food. Cylie got sweet potato ice cream. Eileen got chocolate covered bananas and fried squid. I got an egg yakisoba box. It was one of the best things I've ever eaten. We cruised through the main street of Koedo and looked through shops.

Then we ran into some other students and decided to keep exploring together. More food, more shopping, more pictures. We stuck together until deep into the evening. Our group consisted of me, Eileen, Cylie, Daniel, Casey, Ryunosuke and Kate.

Just for further clarification, Eileen is a friend from my home university. Cylie is a lovely participant in JSP that I need to hang out with more. Daniel is an E-Track student at TIU and is also really cool. Casey is in the same boat as Daniel with the added bonus of being in my Japanese class. Ryunouske is a J-Track Japanese student who loves to practice English and keep us safe and less confused in Japan. Kate is another lovely JSP student who I bonded with at the beginning of this series.

Even as my feet got tired, I couldn't shake my happiness. I was getting burnt out and running out of energy for people, but I was also in Japan. In Koedo. Walking down a street packed sardine tight with people. During a festival. Surrounded by everything I'd ever wanted to eat and see but only dreamed about.

Sometimes it just hits you how fortunate you are -- how many people you have to thank for helping you get as far as you have, and for the experiences you get to partake in. Thank you, everybody. Everywhere. Everyone who has ever touched my application for the program, bank account, heart, mind. None of this would be happening without you.

When we were thoroughly tired and had seen as much of the festival as we collectively wanted to, Cylie invited us to her host family's house. Her family's home sits on top of and beside a bar in the front room. The bar is all Hawaiian themed and positively adorable. We settled in, bought some drinks and ate some snacks courtesy of Cylie's host mom. They were so kind and put up with our noisy young adult voices so well. I don't drink, so I had some tea.

When we finished, we went up to Cylie's room and watched anime until we were at risk of missing the last train. We were having such a good time that it was hard to pry everyone out of the house. Fortunately, we made it to the station and to our respective home stations with a few minutes to spare.

I was so excited I posted pictures before I made it to bed at roughly 1AM. As the story usually goes, I have so much homework to do now that it's over -- but I wouldn't have traded that night for anything in the world.