60ft Up and Screaming: Joy's First Adventures in Japan I had been in Japan for approximately four days. I had prepared myself for a slew of situations, but somehow I never expected to be twenty meters in the air, wobbling my way across a rope bridge and hanging onto my harness for dear life. My host sister’s reassuring voice came floating from ahead, “大丈夫、Joy? Are you okay?” My legs were shaking and my head was spinning, but somehow I managed to squeak back, “大丈夫です！頑張ります！” With another three shaky steps, I stumbled onto the platform, and immediately my host dad and brother erupted into cheers behind me. Up ahead, my host sister broke into a wide grin, while my host mom gave us all a round of applause from below. As my heartbeat gradually slowed, I looked up and took a deep breath. In front of me, the lush forest of Tsukuba rolled against a bright blue sky. My adventure in Japan had just begun. I look like I'm smiling but deep down I'm screeching As I write this

初めまして！Greetings from Joy & Alex! ¡Hola! 你好！Bonjour! こんにちは！Hello! お待たせしました！We’ve kept you waiting, but we’re finally here – at your service, the 2016-17 LEX America Intern Duo, Joy and Alex! よろしくお願いします♪ The two of us will be filling this blog with snippets of our adventures and discoveries over the next year, so keep your eyes peeled for more posts coming your way~ To kick off our blogging journey, here’s a quick introduction to the both of us! ✯☆✯ Alex Wray Hello there everyone, my name is Alex! I am from a small town called Alexandria, Louisiana in the United States of America! I am a senior University student at LSU. I enjoy photography, Haruki Murakami novels, and long walks on the beach. How did you find out about LEX Hippo? I found out about LEX/Hippo when I came to Japan in October 2015 with my grandmother. She works as an exchange student coordinator for ERDT in America and won the a trip to Japan for placing a large number of students. She was allowed

初めまして！Greetings from Joy & Alex! ¡Hola! 你好！Bonjour! こんにちは！Hello! お待たせしました！We’ve kept you waiting, but we’re finally here – at your service, the 2016-17 LEX America Intern Duo, Joy and Alex! よろしくお願いします♪ The two of us will be filling this blog with snippets of our adventures and discoveries over the next year, so keep your eyes peeled for more posts coming your way~ To kick off our blogging journey, here’s a quick introduction to the both of us! ✯☆✯ Alex Wray Hello there everyone, my name is Alex! I am from a small town called Alexandria, Louisiana in the United States of America! I am a senior University student at LSU. I enjoy photography, Haruki Murakami novels, and long walks on the beach. How did you find out about LEX Hippo? I found out about LEX/Hippo when I came to Japan in October 2015 with my grandmother. She works as an exchange student coordinator for ERDT in America and won the a trip to Japan for placing a large number of students. She was allowed