VOLUNTEERING IN TOHOKU, Part 8 - A French wind on Ishinomaki
5th volunteering week-end for me with the AFJ ! And not the less interesting !
Yes we are !!!
This time, we worked under the spotlights : the French Prime Minister François Fillon visited the city to commemorate the events of March 11th and came to say hello to my team, with a dozen of cameras behind him. Saturday morning's weather had been so AWFUL (cold, heavy rains flooding the water pipes and flowing into our boots... we were frozen and wet...), I thought we had no chance to see any Minister's shadow in the area, but the rain stopped and he appeared with a tail of journalists, body guards and local officials.
Not exactly excellent volunteering conditions
Noemi is freezing and tired...
... and everyone is dirty.
Our dear old mud, always the same
Fillon, who bumped from our TV screens into "real life"
P. from the AFJ, our Working Class Hero !
Me and my friend G. were the first in our group who shook hands with the PM... Vive la France
We could talk a bit about our work to the French staff following F. Fillon before the PM asked us directly a few questions about our volunteering missions; then he had a short talk with the President of the AFJ, congratulated everyone saying that we were "giving a good image of France" and then left us with the journalists. I got interviewed by BFM TV, and then TF1 cameras. Finally I found myself into Saturday's 20:00 news programs on both TF1 and France 2, in addition with BFM ! Wow ! Here are the videos (no pink coat this day, I got so wet on the morning I had to change for a blue one at lunch break...)
TF1 (Saturday 22 October 2011 - 20:00) : here
France 2 (Saturday 22 October 2011 - 20:00) : here
BFM TV :
A few links about the PM's visit (in French) : Le Figaro, Le Monde, Le Parisien.
I have been very pleased to receive messages from my family and friends in France (and elsewhere), who "saw me on TV", as well as a few support messages from people I even didn't know - many thanks, everyone ! Every kind word helps us to convey more strengh to the victims of the tsunami !
Sunday morning : big blue sky (how ironic), and water/yogurt to give to the people who have been transfered to the government's "temporary housing". Oh, gosh. Of course, there are millions of them and the Japanese governement is just doing his best to give everyone a roof above his head, but the places are so narrow, so cheap-looking... and most of these grandpas and granmas are going to live their last years there. The positive thing is that they live in community now and stick with each other more than before, nevertheless...
The sad "temporary houses"
Inhabitants waiting for free Danone yogurts, Evian water and Uniqlo clothes
Ishinomaki is slowly recovering, but there are still so many things to do. Please come with us again !
Famille, Amis, je pense à vous.