Joseph was grateful for getting the window seat as, having been raised in the deserts of New Mexico, he had a love for the scenery of outdoors that was almost unquenchable, so getting to watch it go by during the bus trip would make the drive very enjoyable. Even more so, he had the company of his classmate and budding friend Naoko to help pass the time. He called out with an almost excited, "Here," when the instructor had called his name for roll call, feeling slightly awkward for the amount of excitement that had been in his voice as well as a bit nervous about the fact that he was actually here, about to head towards this great challenge that stood ahead of all these students.<br/><br/>It was the cheerful attitude of Naoko, as well as the stories of her cooking ventures, that helped quell the nervousness that played on Joseph's mind. As he listened, he also took mental notes of the usefulness of eggs to help bring life back into refrigerated leftovers, figuring this information would prove to be useful, not just in the upcoming expedition, but his cooking future in general.<br/><br/>He would reciprocate her stories with some of his own, mostly dealing with his life on the family ranch and how he had learn to cook thanks to techniques that had been passed down to him from various members of the family. One story was the retelling of one of his first attempts at trying to spit roast a whole deer that had gotten itself killed by a Mexican wolf. It was during a trip him and his friends had taken, riding horses through the grasslands of the state when they had come upon the freshly slain deer. Not wanting the carcass to go to waste, as well as attempting to show off his newly learned spit roasting skills his uncle Jeffrey had just taught him, Joseph found some sticks and fashioned a spit for the deer. He spent hours rotating the deer over a decent sized fire, making sure to keep the body well basted and not letting one side stay over the fire longer than any other. By the time he had finished cooking, the meat was at that 'falling off the bone' state that people tend to boast about and his friends were quite pleased with the meal he had made. That was one of the moments that made him really look into becoming a career cook.<br/><br/>As he was finishing his story, he noticed the bus seeming to come off the road they were on and coming to a stop. He looked outside the window to see the buses parked next to each other in the same manner that they had been at the school beforehand, seeing nothing but the building, parking lot, and the lands surrounding that the students were being told to stay off of as they were private property. This upset Joseph slightly as his instincts made him yearn for the forested areas, but that did not last too long as Naoko suggested they eat lunch together.<br/><br/>"That would be great," he stated while nodding his head slightly, wondering at the type of food this place would have. He looked down the bus to see the door open, a sharp bit of cold wind making its way through the air as some students began to file out, others opting to stay on the bus instead. Looking back out the window, Joseph smiled slightly as the students were coming off the other bus as well, recognizing the man he had briefly ran into at the elevators within the dorms. He watched the young man make his way into the building only to come out a few moments later and head towards the vending machines. "Must not be to his liking," he thought out loud before looking back at his cheerful partner, Naoko, "Well, might as well take a look, yeah?"