Our next Day began with a visit to Hiro-sensei's kimono shop. We all got to try on kimono's and yukatas. All of the kimonos and yukatas were very pretty. Also, we learned that there are different styles of kimonos and yukatas for men and women. After our brief stay at the kimono shop we went around the area for some site seeing and shopping before going over to the Edo Museum. Something else I want to take time to mention is that we were allowed to try on these kimonos and yukatas due to the kindness of Hiro-sensei. I would like to give thanks to him and all of his shop workers for their kindness and allowing us to try on such elegant, traditional, japanese clothing.
Our next stop as previously mentioned was the Edo Museum. The Edo Museum is a museum of Japanese history from the Edo era. The Edo era was a time in Japanese history when tokyo was known as Edo. The museum itself was huge. It contained many models, reconstructions, and historical items from the time which show how the japanese people lived during this era. There was so much to see in the museum. Unfortunately I can't put all the pictures in one blog.
After finishing our tour in the museum, we went to see the Sumo matches. While I loved the museum, it did not compare to how much I enjoyed the Sumo tournament. The sumo tournament went on for 14 days from 8:00am till 8:00pm every day. It was absolutely amazing seeing these huge Sumo wrestlers having their bouts. There were two active Yokozuna at the tournament. For those who don't know, a Yokozuna is a reigning champion in sumo. it is the highest title that can be offered to a sumo wrestler. Since the beginning of the sport of Sumo there have only been 64 Yokozuna, therefore getting to see two of them was a very special memory for me. 
In the video I put on here, the one in the brown is the Yokozuna and he shows exactly why he is a Yokozuna. I stayed until the end of the tournament, but I think that most of the class left well before then. Sumo has a lot of history and ritual involved in the match. I do not know all of the rituals involved, but I do know that most of the students that I talked to at Gakushuin all liked Sumo. My only regret is that I did not get to stay for the whole ending ceremony. I would have loved to have seen it.
In the video I put on here, the one in the brown is the Yokozuna and he shows exactly why he is a Yokozuna. I stayed until the end of the tournament, but I think that most of the class left well before then. Sumo has a lot of history and ritual involved in the match. I do not know all of the rituals involved, but I do know that most of the students that I talked to at Gakushuin all liked Sumo. My only regret is that I did not get to stay for the whole ending ceremony. I would have loved to have seen it.
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