Meeting Japan's #1 Sumo Wrestler - Hakuho!

I'm not sure what was more fun, being the only non-Japanese guests in a room of 200 people or meeting the new "yokozuna" (the top Sumo wrestler in the world). Probably the former since I enjoy being different and seeing the quizzical looks on people's faces when they tried not to act surprised that someone had invited a gaijin couple to this special occasion. So how did we get so lucky? Sean has some very generous friends who were kind enough to let us join them. He's the "Japanese Internship Director" for the hospital (in addition to his real job) so they'll occasionally invite him to things because he's fluent enough in Japanese that he could go to something like this and appreciate it. :) I thought we were just going to dinner with Tomoko and her husband (the intern) but then we walked up to this convention center where people are bowing to greet us outside, inside, at the elevators, near the doorway to the banquet hall (and of course we're bowing back all along the way). That's just the beginning of the bowing... we bow when his friends introduce Sean to their friends (each person individually) then Sean introduces me and I say my standard (hajimemashite) and bow. I really need to take lessons again from Yuko so I can speak more than just a few simple phrases. So after the mayor of Yokosuka and a few other people we didn't know spoke then Hakuho came out and made is grand entrance. We got in line to meet him and he was surprised that Sean spoke so well. The dinner was amazing too, what a fun night and an awesome memory. Our Japanese friends on base said we were lucky to meet Hakuho, they said it's very difficult even for them. Most Americans would not be impressed but we're just having a great time here in Japan discovering a whole new world!