Introduction

はじめまして！

Greetings and salutations!

Allow me to introduce myself: my name is Michael Migliacio.  A programmer / product manager by trade in both eCommerce and gaming industries, I currently serve as both the Bloomington Sister City Organization's resident techie as well as this delegation's resident blogger, photographer, and historian. Unless otherwise noted, the blog entries posted here that will be cataloging the adventures of the student delegates over the next two weeks will be written by me, so please feel free to toss all grammar / spelling / content complaints in this general direction. =)

Cultivating an interest in Japanese culture from a young age through video games, anime, and classic history, I studied the language for several years, acquired a certification, and now serve as resident Moon Rune Decryption Engineer (a.k.a. Japanese language interpreter) for professional gaming organization Team Evil Geniuses' Fighting Game Division. As one of the chaperones selected to lead the Izumi delegation next week, I couldn't be more thrilled.  My wife and I hosted two amazing students from Izumi for last summer's delegation, and I'm exceptionally grateful for having the opportunity to return the favor as part of the team leading this summer's delegation to Japan.

With the schedule now finalized,  the countdown has begun. We leave for Japan in four days.

Interesting factoid of the day:

While the attractions at Universal Studios Japan seems a little too close to home for a delegate day trip, the park also holds a surprising exclusive attraction that Japanese food gourmands cannot miss: the Osaka Takoyaki Museum.

Hidden away in a shadowy corner of the Osaka Universal Citywalk, this amazing attraction gathers several famous takoyaki vendors from all over Japan into a food-court style restaurant, allowing visitors the opportunity to sample various takes on the classic street food.  For those unfamiliar with takoyaki, the dish -- one of Osaka's most famous -- takes fresh "tako" (octopus) and a flour-based batter, and transforms them into a set of soft-yet-firm savory dumplings via a griddle.

Piping hot, the magical creations are then topped with several sweet and savory ingredients, such as green onion, sweet sauce, katsuobushi, mayonnaise, and many others.

While octopus is often considered a fairly exotic ingredient for Western palates, takoyaki dumplings do not have a fishy flavor, and thus are often enjoyed by people who generally don't like seafood. If you get a chance, 食べてみてください. That means "please try it!"

There's also a large gift shop filled to the brim with takoyaki-themed souvenirs. Last time I was there, I even saw a takoyaki-flavored soda.  Perhaps I'll be daring enough to taste it this time around! I have heard that a few of the delegates are interested in checking out the Osaka Takoyaki Museum, so be sure to watch this space for an entry on that experience as well as the rest of our time at Universal Studios Japan.