Dear Elliot, Emmala and Eliza,

Today we went to a national park that is fairly close to where Rachel and Mike live. There is a beautiful lake in the park and a long gorge through which a river flows with lots and lots and lots of waterfalls. It is a place with lots and lots of tall trees and everything is green. There are lots of ferns and other plants on the ground. It reminded me of some of the forests that are near where you live. It was really beautiful.

When we thought about visiting Japan, we didn't know what a beautiful place it is. We knew that there were some exciting cities and that there was a lot of history and culture that was worth visiting and learning about, but we are learning what a really beautiful place Japan is. Our time in Oirase Gorge was relaxing and wonderful.

I know that you would like seeing some of the interesting things that we are seeing in Japan.

Tomorrow is supposed to be a rainy day and we have only two more days with Rachel and Mike before we head south for a few days before coming back to the United States and your house. Our time in Japan is going quickly!