Breathing Means More: Fukui Kar Rally 2013

This past month there was a huge event in Fukui called the Kar Rally. The purpose of the event is to bring everyone to the southern part of the prefecture to explore the many exciting and wonderful things there. Because Fukui is a long thin prefecture on the coast, driving from the north to the south can take multiple hours even on the expressway. The Southern area of Fukui, while full of natural beauty and history, is less populated than the north. Therefore, there are fewer schools and fewer ALTs who live there. The Kar Rally is a photo scavenger hunt game that encourage ALTs from northern Fukui and other areas of Japan to come and explore the rural south of Fukui.

Here are the rules:

1. You must complete the Kar Rally in teams of 3-5 people. You must all travel in the car together.
2. You must wear costumes that fit into the theme of the overall Kar Rally.
3. You must complete the photo challenges on the official list of challenges.
4. You must go to the checkpoints and complete the challenges there.
5. The quicker you complete the Kar Rally the more points you can achieve.
6. You must finish at the campsite in Takahama.
7. Your team must have a mascot (stuffed animal)
8. Your mascot must be in every photo
9. You must use paper maps and written directions only. NO iPHONES.

It is quite a challenge but also a ton of fun. This year’s theme was time travel. I was on team Madonna. Our concept was that we were all Madonna from different eras or decades of her career. Yes, we even had a team member in the cone bra (party hats!). Way to be bold Ashley! I was “Vogue Madonna” and wore a black suit. Our team won best costume and came in fifth place out of eleven teams. It was a blast and I am definitely looking forward to doing this again next year! Thanks to Nigel and Rachel for organizing this epic event. It was a ton of work but a great time for everyone involved. Also, thanks to all the volunteers stationed throughout Fukui to help us complete the scavenger hunt.

Here is a video of the event to help you get an idea of the pictures that people creatively came up with. Be warned it isn’t all PC or appropriate for younger viewers but it is hysterical.