While there have been a few significant events since my last posting, I don’t have the time, energy, or willpower to write about them right now.  Therefore, I shall not.  Feel free to file a complaint with human resources.  What’s that?  I’ve previously used that line on this blog?  Well, if you don’t like it, see previous directive. 

This week, I had full classes on Monday and Tuesday, but Wednesday thru Friday were final exams.  One would think that the next logical step would be summer break, but no.  We actually start the next semester for a month, and THEN we get summer break… which is like a total of one month and therefore depressing.  But I digress.  The past few days I have not been a free as I thought I would be since I was grading the final exams.  I helped do the point calculation for the first year students and I graded the majority of the second year students’ tests.  I killed a total of three red pens during this process, so you can see the relative skill of my students…

R.I.P. beloved pen.  Only one was beloved; the other two were crappy ones I found…

Anywho, the point of this is not to tell you about my excessive workload and preponderance of grading, but rather to share with you some of the gems of English that I had the imponderable pleasure of savoring during my grading expedition. 

I don’t have many to share from the first year tests cause those were pretty straightforward.  The best parts of that test were translating the English into Japanese.  For example, the word “store”.  It was misread by many students, and the Japanese they wrote corresponded to “straw” and “star” among other things.  Awwww.   Also hilarious was the translation of “ship” into “sheep” and also “Seapa”, which is the name of a grocery store on the island. 

Anywho, so for the second years, what we had to do was to take a Japanese sentence and then fill-in the missing words in English below.  Here’s an example:

そのカバンに何冊の本を持っていますか。

(                       )(                          )(                           ) do you have in the bag?

And the answer is:  How many books do you have in the bag?

Now I shall share with you some of the best answers, to which I awarded pity points.

ぼくの班は書道を勉強しました、日本の書き方である。

Correct answer:  My group studied shodo, Japanese writing.

Given answer:  My group studied shodo, Japanese writhing.

(Cue mental image of a field of Japanese people squirming on the ground.  In class.)

彼女はたくさんの物を持っています。

Correct answer:  She has many things.

Given answer:  She halves many things.

Given answer2:  She sometimes has things.

(I must say, this mental image was of a rotund Japanese woman slicing melons with a katana… I don’t know…)

私達は物を運びますそれの中で。

Correct answer:  We carry things in it.

Given answer:  We carry thinking in it.

(I burst out laughing.  I wish I had an it in which to keep my thoughts…)

僕の自転車にするつもりです。

Correct answer: I am going to ride my bike.

Given answer:  I am going to raid on my bike.

(It inspires terror, I tell you.)

それにそれは可愛くもあります。

Correct answer:  And it’s pretty too.

Given answer:  And it’s portly too.

(I will say that I laughed out loud at this… and no one else understands why…)

あなたは英語が読めますか。

Correct answer:  Can you read English?

Given answer:  Can you reed English?

(Cue mental picture of the English language being beaten with reeds.)

So that’s all for the tests…  they were pretty good this time around.

The final story I will tell is that this week I received a lovely note from a student.

It read:  (heart sign) ポール (Paul) pretty!

The adorable nature of this note was somewhat diminished, as I found it taped to my butt.

Edit: So, I have about 600 80% finished blogposts that I’ve been sitting on for like, months now.  And I don’t know what to do.  So here’s this one that’s largely a recap of the major events in my life in the recent past.  I hope you all enjoy.  I also resist saying something melodramatic like, ‘I’m back!’ cause, let’s face it… I’m probably not… I’ve gone from like weekly blogpostings to practically bi-monthly, and while I hate to beat a dead horse, it really is because of this new school year.  Since then, I’ve been largely out of contact with everyone.  As my skype and gchat friends know, I’m also rarely online… and the weekends are hardly conducive to chatting since I do like to, you know, leave my house occasionally, and when there are 8 people in queue to talk to me, it makes it difficult.  In any case, I’ll let you read about things you actually want to hear about, and I’ll leave the excuses to my brother.  Onward.

It’s been quite a while, hasn’t it?  Over a month, if I’m correct in my calculations.  In fact, that’s most of this new school year.  And therein lies the reason for my absence.  With the increase in my classes and responsibility, has come a decrease in my usable time.  This applies to both during and after school, and essentially means that I haven’t had the time I used to to communicate with everyone.

In the golden days of the last year, I used to regularly blog from school and gchat with my family and friends.  No longer.  This year, I have no free time during the day, and what precious few minutes I do have are used to take a rest and not expend more energy attempting to type on my iPhone. 

You might think that this sounds a little depressing.  Well, actually, it’s quite the opposite.  My classes expanded from a measly 12 to a decent 18 and then an over the top (o.t.t., if you will) 22.  So, I spend the majority of my time at school teaching, which is as it should be.  I have a much better relationship with my students this year because of this fact.  The free periods I do have are filled with lesson planning and doing the grading for all of the lessons that I have so tirelessly embarked upon.  And then after school, you know how the errands go…  So my final explanation is rather blase, but truthful: I’ve been busy. 

Let us pause in our recollection of school for a moment to look at the weekends.  Each weekend is filled with assorted other activities, some on the island and others not.  Wayyyyy back when, I spoke of sakura viewing.  Since then, I’ve had trips to Shikoku to see the vine bridges, Golden Week adventures with Kasia, who came from China; trips to Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto, assorted places on the island; and, most recently, field trips, one that occurred and one pending.  …And now I suppose you’ll want to hear about these things.  Le sigh.  Let’s get this over with.

A few weeks back, I traveled to the heart of darkness, aka the forgotten realm that is Shikoku, to see the vine bridges.  Which, is exactly as it sounds, fyi.  Tis a bridge.  Made of vines.  This might not seem like such an interesting concept, but I guess a bazillion years ago, it was the only way to cross this valley thing, and so it was necessary.  Though, I hope the river was deeper at that time cause right now I feel like you could ford the river quite effectively.  Moving on.  The bridge is reinforced with steel wire, but that does little to comfort you as you cross said bridge.  Made of vines.  I’d post pictures but I’m lazy and you all know this.  The distinctive feature… other than the unorthodox construction… is that the slats of wood that comprise the body of the structure are separated by several inches.  So, essentially, the floor is see-though.  This does little to comfort you, as you watch the white water rapids surge beneath your feet.  And the hordes of Japanese people shaking the bridge don’t help either.  Fortunately, my enormous feet were able to span two slats on the bridge, thereby assisting me in my quest for safe passage.  Jill decided to cross in an easy, graceful sideways position (bonus points to anyone who knows what movie that quote is from).  Um, that’s pretty much it.  We crossed the bridge, had udon, and drove back.  It was pretty awesome though. 

Following this, Kasia, sister of Peter, arrived in Japan from China, where she is studying abroad.  We had several adventures together, spanning several cities.  Several.  Let’s see if I can recall everything in agonizing detail.  We tried a variety of foods and traveled around the island.  Then we ventured to Kobe and had steak and meat buns in Chinatown.  I believe there was also an excursion to a quaint tea shop in the middle of nowhere, and dinner again.  We also went to school one day so she could see how the kids live and work, and then we spent another day shopping in Kyoto.  There was also more food involved.  That trip was particularly successful, as I was able to pick up a few things for myself, which is rather unusual.  The final day was shopping in Osaka.  This entire trip was marred by the millions of people running around cause it was Golden Week, but it wasn’t enough to be detrimental to the enjoyment, in my professional opinion.  And that was the rough overview of that.

And then some more things happened that I’m sure were ever so fascinating and you all care so much.  

Finally, last week, I went on a field trip with the first year students.  Allow me to start by saying that I am universally adored by the first year students, so it makes anything that has to do with them infinitely more enjoyable.  Which is why I’m glad that there’s another field trip next week!  Yay!!  That one is to see an orchestra, which should be fun.  Anywho, last week, we went back to Shikoku and learned how to make udon.  Naturally, when making noodles, you are given instructions.  So everyone thought it would be infinitely amusing to have me designated as leader, and watch me as I attempted to follow the spoken directions.  Yeah.  This is what I get paid for.  First you have to add water to flour and salt.  Then you have to make it into dough.  Evidently, I did that somewhat humorously.  Following this, you knead the dough.  The dough is kneaded with feet.  So, we danced on the dough.  Also evidently humorous.  Then the dough is shaped, cut, and rolled out.  The rolled out dough is then layered in an accordion pleat and cut into strips, forming thick noodles.  The noodles can be cooked and served with fish broth, seven spice, and I personally like a little seaweed.  The end result was tasty, if somewhat time-consuming.  Next time, I’ll just buy noodles.  I have to say, this is something I probably would never have done were I traveling alone, so it was worth it just for that.  After that, we ate lunch and set out.  In Japan, there are no chaperones.  Instead, the teachers are positioned at strategic locales, where we wait for the students to come by in groups and check in with us.  But first we had to get there.  So we walked to the train station.  Along the way, my adoring fan club followed and one of my boys wouldn’t let go of me.  He had to be pried away forcefully and told to go with his group, all while screaming that he’d rather go with me.  Basically, it was the definition of cute.  (Addendum: this kid does this every day.  I have to place him in his desk when class starts or he stays with me in front.  And after school if he finds me, he likes to hug me.  Though, this isn’t that bizarre, as I know I’ve mentioned the touchy-feely-ness of Japan before.  So it’s largely my pleasure to lead students to class by the hand.  But I digress.)  After the most ghetto train ride of my life (read: there was no ticket machine and the tickets were stamped by hand… by a person who visibly shook at the sight of me…), we arrived in Marugame, city of dreams.  I’m fairly certain that I was the most innovative thing to happen to that city since bread was introduced to Japan.  I was stationed at Marugame Castle as my checkpoint.  When students arrived, I had to check them in and take a picture… which was not always easy, as they resist picture-taking sometimes.  As I climbed to the top of the castle, I was routinely accosted by students who delighted in hanging on me and asking me to accompany their groups.  I was having a good day with the Japanese language as well, so I had a very fun time chatting.  Upon seeing my friendliness with the small children, many elderly and young people who were just normal tourists began to chat with me.  I spoke to old people on the mountainside, and had a platoon of high school boys following me around asking questions.  I am forced to the conclusion that their ALT is either non-existent or not nearly as foreign looking as I am.  They were jealous that my students had me as a teacher, and I was told repeatedly of the distinction of my exotic beauty.  That’s all well and good, but there comes a point when it gets ridiculous to be gaped at.  I enjoyed waving to that point as we flew past it.  The teachers, too, were wondering what everyone was looking at.  I had to inform them kindly that that would be me.  You see, they may be used to me in school, but I’d lay odds that they had never encountered the public treatment of foreigners from the receiving end before.  Hopefully it was enlightening.  Though many of them were exasperated by the end.  Anyways, at least it’s comforting to know that there is one place in Japan where I get gaped at more than in my own town.  That’s pretty much the end of that story as well.  It was an excellent time, overall and I was happy to have experienced both the attractions and my kids in extracurricular contexts. 

This week, I’ve been trying to see more of the other ALTs, who have been likewise busy.  This year has brought a lot of changes, so we’re all not quite adjusted yet.  It’s been excellent so far, just very busy.

The upcoming weeks will feature the orchestra field trip, another work party, midterms, and a student teacher in English.  I look forward to reporting more on those things in the near future.  I think it will be most invigorating. 

Until then, please enjoy this update: a snapshot of my crazy life abroad.

CONTINUED NOW:  The field trip to the orchestra was rather nice.  It ended up that we travelled back to the mainland and then over to the orchestra hall sorta in between Kobe and Osaka.  It was a gorgeous building.  The entire interior was completely wood-paneled in a honey color.  Even the seats (which were, however, supplemented by cushions).  The orchestra basically played some classical music, and then after that it was like a learning time.  Vaguely reminiscent of those people who dressed up as famous dead people and told their life stories in elementary school.  Anyone else have that?  Just me?  Okay then.  DIGRESSION END.  So after that, they did samples of each instrument, essentially showcasing the sound that each can produce.  It was very interesting to hear how each instrument sounds alone, and then see how it blends in with the others to create a full piece of music.  Also of note were the bizarre white people playing assorted instruments like the viola and bassoon.  Yeah.  They looked like giants and I’m sure they weren’t as tall as I am, therefore, I must look incredibly bizarre to these people.  Speaking of (yes, let’s get back to this), it seems it was junior high day at the orchestra hall, since the entire hall was filled with schoolchildren.  And I was the only ALT who went, naturally.  So, I was incredibly popular.  Students from all schools were running up and circling me to say hi and greet me.  It made me sad to see that their English was so much better than my school’s… but what can you do?  I was intensely popular and spent the waiting time in the lobby talking with kids.  I’m pretty sure it’s my looks, yet again… I had to be called back into the hall by my teachers cause it was time to start… And you know that other schools’ teachers would NEVER speak to me, so it was good that some of mine came to tell me, lest both the students and I miss the performance. 

After the orchestra, I thought we were going home, but alas no.  Instead, we ate lunch on the bus (that was convenience store food purchased for me… and I would not have chosen normally, might I add), and then we went to the Asahi bottling factory to see soft drinks being made.  Asahi also makes beer, but we stuck to the tea and coffee… also this ‘cider’ stuff, which is basically sparkling water.  Anywho, that was interesting to see, but I couldn’t understand the explanations due in part to difficulty of language and in part to overuse of politeness.  Then we went home. 

Work party.  Yes, we had another enkai, but this time it was pretty good.  We went for yakiniku, which is where you cook your own meat on a grill that is in a pit in the table.  I know that this is everyone’s favorite part of the blog, so let’s get it on!  This time, I ate tongue, stomach, and assorted viscera that was possibly intestines pickled in plum… Be proud of me, friends.  I also had a flavored chuuhai race with a teacher, which passed the time.  Our table was termed the ‘international table’ and, for the most part, my table-mates were very good sports.  It’s more difficult to communicate but also more fun.  I ended up rocking the night away with Japanese phrases I had picked up, and the whole room was laughing.  A special thank you to anime for once again never failing to deliver crazy ways to say things that only work when you want to incite laughter.  The meal itself was cook-it-yourself, and we started with tongue, which, looks and tastes like… tongue.  We ate it with lemon juice.  Then we had pork, beef, chicken, guts, stomach, and liver.  I refused the liver.  Everything else I tried, but I couldn’t get over the liver smell.  Ugh.  The intestines weren’t so bad thanks to the plum pickling… but I have to ask… why do people bother eating things that taste and look so vile that you have to obliterate their natural flavor?  I mean, seriously.  Throw that shit out.  To add to the awkwardness, a student was working at this restaurant (they’re not supposed to be working yet) so that was fun.  We had to pretend not to see her.  That is, until everyone got drunk enough to not care. 

NEXT!  Midterms.  Midterms were hectic to say the least.  I helped prepare, administer, and grade midterms.  It took forever, and that, in combination with my regular work meant that I was at school late.  Very, very late.  Immediately following midterms… or perhaps during?  I don’t remember… we received student teachers.  They were from universities around here… Um, the English one… was… um… yeah… I had to teach with him for a couple days.  My teachers yelled at him cause he didn’t understand how to work with the ALT.  I’m not a prop.  I do things!  Now with SPEAKING action!  And when someone like him, who can’t speak English, tries and fails to read dialogue, it offends me.  Also, it’s fine to write slowly, but when you write slowly on the board and focus so hard you can’t speak, it’s dull.  And writing slowly loses its effectiveness when it’s messy, unclear, and plagued with grammatical errors.  So it was a challenge.  I’ll also add that my Japanese was better than his English, making it an interesting interlingual affair.  He was so nervous the day before our first lesson that he tried to plan out every last minute of class with me, which as you might guess, is a giant recipe for disaster.  Plus, we ended up staying until almost 8 at school, making me unhappy and hungry.  Plus, I had other classes to prepare for, since I teach all grade levels.  We made it through everything in the end, and now this week, I’m back to my regular schedule.  No more bonus classes, no practice classes, and no excessive prep.  So the last two weeks have been unbearable in terms of busy-ness and weather. 

Ah, it’s the rainy season now.  Which means it’s about 700% humidity and hot everyday.   Plus, it’s raining.  Which, according to Japanese, means it’s ‘cooling down’.  Lies and slander.  It just gets worse.   Even the powers of my Chi weren’t enough to combat that kind of weather.  During the evaluation lesson last week, my hair was a nightmare.  The kids were like, what is going on?  Yeah.  Today, too, it is raining and excessively uncomfortable.  Plus the teachers think it’s great to not use the aircon, or open any windows, or ventilate at all, really.  So I’ve taken to bringing fans to class with me.  Or using my book as one as I teach.  I’m not sure if this weather or winter is worse… Basically, any temperature extreme is intolerable when you completely lack climate control.  We might as well be teaching in a field or a cave at this point.  But don’t worry, Japan is eco-friendly.  That’s why I got four bags when I ordered a drink at the McDonald’s drive thru.  …. …. …. Yeah.

Now, we’ve reached the middle of the month of June.  I’m constantly and continuously shocked by the passage of time.  Soon enough I’ll be going home for summer break.  For now, I have the term to finish.  Finals are in a couple weeks, so I’m prepping for the listening tests, and planning my final lessons for this term.  Then, we start anew.  So, that’s pretty much an accurate recap of my life of late.  It’s been an endless flurry, and I’ve had little free time for much of anything in terms of relaxation. 

But don’t think for a minute that I’m not having a great time in spite of it all.  I’d much rather be busy than free.  I’ve been having a great time with my kids lately.  My Japanese is improving enough to where if we combine knowledge of Japanese and English, we can have pretty decent conversations.  So I can chat with them, and of course play games.  After school and during passing times, I’ve been chased by and have been chasing kids around the school.  Just the other day it got into an intense tag-like game in the 3rd year hallway.  The entire grade was soon watching as we played, complete with screams if we ran to close.  It was a blast.  Of course it adds to my exhaustion, but that’s a willing sacrifice.  I also had a nice two-hour long hang out with some boys after school.  I think the baseball coach was unhappy, but as my fellow ALTs know, it’s game over when we approach.  The students flat-out tell their coaches to scram cause they’d rather talk with us.  So between chatting and playing games, I’ve had a great time with the kids.  Getting to know them better also improves classtime.  My teachers have noted that the kids have been super-responsive in my classes lately.  I’ve even been able to motivate those kids who would usually sleep or ignore class with the effect of my presence.  So I’m glad that I’m able to provide some one-on-one help in class.  The endgoal is really a mix of learning a foreign language and learned to interact with foreigners and gain some international experience.  And so I think that we’re really doing that.  Full-steam ahead.

[Edit: I actually wrote this a while back, but I refrained from publishing since I had published my vacation post so recently.  Then I got busy and didn't have time to publish.  So here it is, and keep in mind that the timing is a little off.  Aka, sakura was like 2 weeks ago...]

 

So I wrote a whole post about last week [like, three weeks ago, now], aka the first week of the new year, and it was all done and ready and blah.  But I hate it and it’s boring, so I don’t think I’m going to publish it.  I realized that it’s largely just my reactions to seeing the new students and teachers and it doesn’t really lead to anything.  This isn’t surprising, since without classes, I’ve just been sitting around until we start. 

Anyways, instead, I think I’ll recap the weekend, which was far more interesting. 

Since last week was a little slow (mercifully, it’ll pick up this week with the return of classes), the other ALTs and I have been hanging out a little more often.  Friday night, Jill and I decided to hang out for a while and get some non-Japanese food at our favorite Italian place in the nearby city.  We followed this up with some karaoke.  Now, karaoke is one of those things that seems like it would get old quickly.  And it does.  But when it’s fun, it’s way fun.  And I think we both had work parties as a springboard for karaoke inspiration.  Therefore, we did karaoke.  For many, many hours.  We spent entirely too much money, but it was worth it.  We even smuggled in tasty desserts from the convenience store, including this lovely roll cake.  The packaging was the most simplistic and minimalistic that I have ever seen, and therein lies the beauty.   

Rough translation: BIG ASS ROLL CAKE

After leaving the karaoke building, we ran into a gaggle of teachers who were just entering.  Naturally, they were all smashed, and it led to some awkward, yet amazing conversation, the consequences of which are currently being experienced this Monday morning.  After dealing with the crowd, we stopped again at a nearby store, only to run into our supervisor buying crappy food in the middle of the night.  (He’s our age, so it’s not really all that creepy.)  Then we retired for the night. 

The next morning dawned early, complete with gorgeous weather and beautiful flowers.  UNfortunately, we did not greet the dawn, but we eventually did get out to the mountains nearby, whereupon Saadiqa joined the crew.  The mountain roads are lined with cherry trees, and there are food stands and picnics sporatically placed throughout the sloping hills.  It was absolutely lovely. 

Sakura, or cherry blossoms

The roads lined with cherry trees

They are beautiful, are they not?  Cherry blossoms are a staple of Japan, so it’s really fortunate that we get to experience them everywhere we go at this time of year.  You may have noticed some of the cherry trees beginning to bloom in my vacation post.  Normally, at that time of year, the trees would be in full bloom.  So while it’s unfortunate that I missed the height of cherry blossoms in Kyoto and Hiroshima, I did at least get to see a wondrous display right on Awaji.

After spending a while wandering the trails on the mountain, we jumped in the car and drove up north.  Way at the tip of the island dwells a Starbucks, and that sounded appropriate given all the beautiful weather and the complete and utter lack of anything else to do.  Drinking Starbucks is nice while overlooking the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge.  If it was a little clearer, the view would have been much nicer.  You can see Kobe and Osaka from the island, depending on position and relative clarity.  After these adventures, we settled in for just one more hour of karaoke before calling it a night.  I’m getting pretty good at my Cher, Ke$ha, and Gaga.  The other nice thing about Japan is the universal Disney obsession.  Consequently, there are plenty of Disney songs to choose from.

Sunday got off to an earlier start.  It was festival day in the town.  Not my immediate town, actually, but the one closer to Jill.  Still, we went and (after an arduous battle for parking) we made it to the festival.  Only to be promptly and continuously mobbed by students.  The eyes of the masses were perpetually on us, but it was a beautiful day. 

The entrance torii and path of sakura

Sakura and the masses

There are upsides and downsides to being the foreigner in Japan.  Let’s start with the negative.  Everyone stares.  As we walked the path, literally everyone sitting on the sides raped us with their eyes.  We had people staring, people calling out, people stopping to take pictures or even video.  People feel the need to make incessant, asinine conversation and, after talking in Japanese for 10 minutes, will ask you if you understand Japanese.  We got accosted by drunk people, and Jill got fondled by old men.  One old couple walked up to us and the wife asked her husband if he wanted to shake the ‘white person’s’ hand.  Our kids were very chatty, and that’s fine, up until the point where you greet them for the sixty-fourth time and deny that you are in couple with the other foreigner just cause you’re opposite genders. 

Now for the upsides.  The kids swarm you.  It’s a double-edged sword.  There’s nothing that can really replace the hilarious pitter-patter of feet.  When you hear it, you tense your body and brace for impact.  The calls of your kids and hilarious too, and then you have the obligatory banter.  My how cute you look, where did you get that ice cream, have fun, kids!  It can be excellent.  The other upsides are the nice gestures people make.  While bantering, the old men serve up extra scoops of ice cream.  People see you sitting and they walk over and give you a beer.  As you walk, people call you over and offer homemade sushi and other dishes.  Nice people might even give out a business card.  Plus, the people in the festival itself always throw the goodies your way.  I have many tiny bags of mochi in my kitchen right now.  So in spite of the oppressive stares and the strange interactions, there are some lovely perks. 

The festival was still going on, but we had other places to go.  One of my teachers invited me over to visit for the afternoon.  She had previously worked with me daily, but has been out on medical leave since February-ish.  She also invited Jill and Saadiqa, since her husband worked at Jill’s school for years, and is now at Saadiqa’s, since this new year began.  Saadiqa, unfortunately, didn’t make it, but Jill and I went to her house and had a lovely time.  She served sushi and sashimi with green tea.  Then we had some rice crackers and assorted other snacks.  The brought out cakes and tea for dessert, and afterwards, we got to have some special sakura mochi, that was tasty.  At the end, her mother-in-law brought out festival rice that she had just freshly made, and even gave us a large container each to take home.  So sweet.  Oh and the house was gorgeous.  Japanese-style, through and through, with sliding doors, tatami mats, carved wooden ceilings, an altar with incense, and beautiful, colorful decor.  Both Jill and I were in awe. 

After we finished this, we looked at the festival again (now devolved into revelry), spoke to a few more kids, and took a brief ride into the mountains.  The vistas were beautiful, just like the weather.

Mountains. The pockets of color are sakura!

The final part of the festival involved taking these large structures on poles called danjiri and carrying them from the shrine down into the town again.  They are elaborately decorated and beautiful.  Each neighborhood/community bands together to purchase them (at great expense) and then they are represented at all the festivals. 

The danjiri going down the sakura-lined path

So as you can see, the structures themselves are elaborate and expensive.  The men of the town carry them, and are usually roaring drunk, which means that the movement is erratic at best.  It’s a great thing, though, and we had a lot of fun.  I do have a small preference for the summer dancing festivals, but at least the weather was more agreeable during this festival. 

In a few weeks, we’ll have the festival near my house, which will tip the ratio of my kids to Jill’s kids in favor of mine.  It should be exciting to see, as well, as the environment itself is quite different.

In any case, that was my weekend in a nutshell.  A lovely sakura-filled weekend.  I hope yours was great too!

I feel that I have profited well from vacation.  (Woot for calques!)

As I previously mentioned, we are currently on vacation in between school years.  I’d like to add that I prefer having summer to separate my schooling, but I digress.  We had a few days to play around with so I decided to take advantage of the situation by traveling.  On Thursday morning, I departed Awaji, joyously awaiting my impending adventures.  I drove to the bus, took the bus for two hours, took two trains, and arrived in Kyoto.  And you wonder why I don’t leave more often…

In any case, after arriving in Kyoto, I went to Fushimi Inari, one of the more famous sights in the city.  It is composed of winding paths through the forests that are encompassed by large, red torii gates.  There are hundreds and hundreds of gates in rapid succession, stretching up the mountainside, and winding around.  Since I was on my own, I was free to do as I wished, and I wished to walk them all.  So I set off, walking through the forest gates.  I should add that the pathways are dotted with shrines, and the patron for this place is the fox spirit.  So aside from feeling like I was living Jade Empire, it was adorbs to see the little stone foxes everywhere.  He looks like renamon, which is, frankly, kinda awesome.  In any case, I ended up walked through most of the shrine, and enjoying myself immensely.  The view from the top was nice, but it was slightly foggy so the pictures didn’t come out so well.

Gate to Fushimi Inari

Many, many gates.

It's very peaceful.

The forest was beautiful and so was the weather.

Anywho, I ended up ambling over to another temple, after walking through one of the nearby neighborhoods, which was evidently a rather ritzy one.  The next temple was Tofukuji, which I had already been to in fall, but was worth a review without all the crowds, and in light of the spring flowers.  The cherry blossoms are somewhat delayed this year, so the pictures I have are not at the height of floral grace, but they are still pretty.  The downside was buying the ticket, during which the ticket lady turned to her fellow ticket lady and said, in Japanese, that she did not speak English.  Well, lady, you don’t need to speak English to sell me a ticket when I slap yen down in front of you.  Also, I speak Japanese.  Anywho, that was fun, and then I left.

I then decided to return to Kyoto station, pick up my bag and find my hotel.  Good thing, too, since I got grievously lost, and my trusty phone decided that it didn’t want to function.  After arriving at Shijo, I wandered the streets until giving up, restarting my phone, playing with settings, and getting it to function again, revealing my position via GPS, thus freeing me from my torment.  The hotel itself was okay… just okay.  The lobby was nice… but you could tell it was one of the places that was, at one time, a luxury hotel, and is now, less than.  The room was standard in every way, and adequate for my purposes, though the bed was too hard for my liking.

I then went out for a walk in the district, went shopping, didn’t buy anything, and returned.  I went for dinner nearby at a nice looking place that had decent food, but the servers had a debate about who would help me, which wasn’t nice, considering I just wanted to eat.  Anyways, I finished that and went home to sleep.  Early.

The next morning, I got an early start, which was good, cause I needed the time to find my trains.  You know, some of the station names are not written in romaji anywhere, so I had to play kanji detective to find out where I was going.  I took the express train to Nara, and headed out for the walking tour of the city.

Nara is a small city, more manageable than Kyoto, and definitely worth a day trip.  Most of the temples and shrines are centered around the main park.  Which is also famous for deer, which are messangers of the gods.  As such, they need to be fed senbei, apparently, and will follow you around.  They are quite friendly.  We had an accord: I shall not bother them if they shall not bother me.  They learned this, and we were fine.

I began my walking tour by stopping at a nearby garden.  Unfortunately, it was 650 yen to enter (about $7), which is more than I wanted to spend to see a garden that is half under construction.  Anyways, I continued following my guidebook’s walking tour and ended up near the center of the park.  The main attraction is Todaiji, the largest wooden building in the world.  Amazingly, it’s only 2/3 the size of the original building.  This building also dates from 1709, which is likewise impressive.  I stopped at the main gate to admire the nio guardians, large statues of imposing physical characteristics and expressions, and the continued to the temple proper.  The building was impressive, surely, but the contents were even more so.  The largest enclosed Buddha in the world resides within, flanked by other statues.  I believe it is also the largest Buddha in Japan.  And when I say large, I mean large.  I was not prepared for the scale of the thing, and I’m sure my pictures don’t do it justice.

Nio Guardian. I love it.

Todaiji, the largest wooden building in the world. Since 1709.

Giant Buddha. It's unbelievable.

Another view. The picture doesn't do it justice.

After that, I moved on to the next couple temples on the hill, walking around the back way to get there.  This is when I began to question my guidebook’s efficacy, cause there was no one else around.  Regardless, the view from the temple was fantastic.  You could see the whole Nara plain.  Then I moved on, walking through wood and encountering the only foreign tourists to say hello for the duration of my trip.  I finally reached the next shrine, which is apparently famous for lanterns.  There’s even a lantern festival at some point during the year.  I walked out through a long stretch of forest populated by deer and lined with lanterns.  It was beautiful.

Lanterns and deer on the forest path.

Kofukuji. I like pagodas.

Interior of Kofukuji. Buddha, ftw.

Then I stopped for lunch and had kamameishi, the Nara specialty.  It’s a rice dish cooked in an iron pot with vegetables.  Tasty, but not too high on the ‘wow’ factor, if you know what I mean.  I visited the final temple complex before leaving, where there was a huge pagoda, and several other buildings, including a small museum of National Treasures, which was very cool.

I returned to Kyoto, whereupon I walked to Toji, famous for it’s tall pagoda.  The scenery was amazing, complete with a nice garden walk, and the pagoda itself, as well as two additonal buildings filled with statues of Buddha, and some other people, whom I honestly can’t say I know.  I then set off to have dinner.

Toji, a Kyoto favorite.

Feeling slightly Japanese-ed out, I decided to try a French place recommended in my guidebook.  The owners were supposed to be French, but I didn’t see them.  Tristesse.  I did, however, sufficiently terrify the wait staff, which was somewhat unnerving.  Especially while eating.  After the meal (which consisited of entrecote de boeuf, pomme frites, Perrier, and mousse au chocolat), I returned to the hotel.

The next morning, I took the shinkansen to Hiroshima, where I checked out the Peace Park and the Atomic Bomb Dome.  The Dome was ghasty and beautiful, but otherwise uneventful.  Also, it’s a nice place to have people stare at you.  I will say that I think Hiroshima had the highest percentage of foreigners that I had noticed in a while, which was contrasted with their crappy treatment of foreigners.  Some kids even pointed and said, ‘Mamma, look, a foreigner,’ while I was riding the bus.  That’s how you know it’s going to be a long ride.

Genbaku Dome, aka the Atomic Bomb Dome

After the Peace Park, I took the tramway out to Miyajima.  The tram is an interesting contraption.  It functions like a streetcar (with tracks) while in the city, and converts to an actual subway/railway after leaving the city center.  Pretty cool.  I took it all the way to the end of the line, whereupon I had to take a ferry to the island.

Miyajima is famous for being the island with the large red torii gate that looks like it floats on the water.  I arrived at low tide however.  That was not disappointing, as this way, you could walk out to it and see just how massive it is.  Evidently, it’s 16 meters high, which makes for quite a display.  The island itself was beyond gorgeous, and I could even see a few places where I think Disney took some inspiration for Epcot Japan.  I ended up walking the beach, where people were digging for oysters, I believe.  Then I walked all around the main shrine.  There were many shops and street vendors.  I, personally, enjoyed walking and eating my food, which is very inappropriate here, but I had things to do.

After walking out to the gate, I came back to shore and checked out the shine itself, which had a small admission fee.  It was actually pretty cool.  All outdoors on elevated platforms.  I guess at high tide, the gate looks like it’s floating, and the shrine gets like, pretty pools and things all around and under it.  Evidently, it’s also engineered such that the water never hits the shrine itself or the statues, so that’s kinda cool.  Especially in light of how it’s, you know, an actual old thing.

Itsukushima torii

It's REALLY tall. And super cool.

The final legs of this trip involved me climbing a hill to see the uncompleted meditation/praying temple thingy.  It has a tall, gorgeous pagoda with it.  Then I walked back towards the docks, stopping to shop and eat, and got some presents for my staffroom.  They are shaped like leaves and are spongy cake with various fillings.

Tall and gorgeous pagoda, Gojunoto.

I took the boat and the tram back to Hiroshima, ate dinner, and settled in early.  I was much too tired from travel and walking to do much else, but I think hitting up three cities in a day is pretty impressive.

The following day, I took the train back to Shin-Kobe, and then the subway to Kobe.  While buying my ticket for the subway, a small child watched me with awe.  Then he took my ticket.  Not amusing, child’s father.  No matter what you think.  Eventually, I made it back to Kobe.  I stopped at my very favorite French bakery for some authentic bread products, and then I waited for my bus.  Yet another awkward conversation resulted from that, during which I was asked repeatedly where I was going, told them, asked when the next bus was, they didn’t know, then they tried to tell me in English and asked if I could understand Japanese AFTER we just conducted the rest of the conversation IN Japanese.  Palm-t0-face.  The train station was remodeled from ghetto refuge to respectable waiting area, a la Milwaukee Amtrak station.  That was nice.  Enjoyable bathrooms now, too, which is a huge step up from the previous disgrace.

Anyways, an uneventful but long bus ride later, I arrived back home, to find my car covered with a fine layer of China yellow sand.  Stupid China blowing its dust on us…  So I had to clean my windshield 800 times, but eventually, I got it done, and went home.

The following Monday, school began anew.  But that’s another story.

Here concludes my epic vacation post.  I hope you enjoyed hearing about my travels.  Feel free to offer reactions, even though I know it is futile to say so cause no one will actually comment, save perhaps the three people that do so religiously.  The rest of you freeloaders can take a good, hard look at yourselves and tell me what you see.

Until we meet again.

Wasn’t this epic post worth the wait?

Okay, okay, I’m super behind on posting.

In fact, it has been several weeks since my last post, which I think detailed some of the craziness that would ensue.  Since the earthquake, we had a work party, graduation for the kids, the last couple weeks of school, ending tests, more work parties, and now I’m sitting virtually alone, waiting for my vacation to begin.

Tomorrow, I will leave on a short vacation, but before then, I must survive the rest of the day.

I’m not sure where to start retelling my adventures, so I’ll just start with yesterday.  Chronological order is overrated. 

Yesterday was another boring day at work.  Why we have to even come in during vacation time is beyond me, but regardless, I sat here, gchatting and wasting time until lunch.  Then I took a break to go home, eat lunch, etc etc.  I picked up my teacher from the bus stop, and we all waited for the bus to the party.

As per usual, I was one of the first people picked up cause I live so close to school.  We then progressed south, picking up people along the way.  The bus ride itself was uneventful.   I sat with one of the young teachers who I get a long very well with (and is unfortunately transferring schools next year) and we had fun lamenting that no one told us it was formal wear at the party.  Thank goodness I can play the gaijin card and escape due to my ‘special’ circumstances.  It’s like excusing the special child for making noise at an assembly: he’s cute and doesn’t know any better.  Regardless, we made it to the party, which was in a large tatami room, where everyone had their own little tray on the floor full of food.  The leaving teachers sat at a makeshift head table composed of said trays, and the rest of us were elsewhere. 

Mercifully, unlike LAST enkai, I was not seated next to someone who spoke zero English, but next to one of my teachers.  The party itself was the same standard affair that I’ve likely described 300 times already.  The exceptions were the speeches given by the departing teachers. 

The food was good.  We started with a plate of sashimi (some of the best I’ve had, might I add), and then we had tiny plates of assorted things.  There was something with shrimp, and some kind of vegetable.  I don’t know.  Then octopus salad, which is always a staple, and one of my favorite things.  Then there was a sweet and sour fish with mushrooms that was good.  A couple bones, but hey, at least it didn’t have eyes.  Unlike the tempura which came next.  Someone needs to remove the heads from shrimp before frying them.  How does one even eat that?  There were also vegetables, but it was all too greasy, I thought.  We then had nabe, a hotpot dish, where everything is cooked together.  There were shrimp, mushrooms, eel, poached egg, cabbage, tofu, etc.  It was good.  Then we had noodles, somen I believe.  Always fun.  Then this egg custard thing with vegetables inside.  It was kinda meh.  Evidently, it’s very popular in Japan, but I fail to see the intrigue.  Possibly cause quiche is clearly the superior egg custard dish.  I miss quiche.  Note to mother: make quiche when I return.  Anywho, I didn’t really eat much of that… No sense in wasting calories.  AFTER THAT, we had miso soup with fish inside.  Standard.  And then the inevitable vat of plain white rice.  Pickles on the side.  Finally, there was tea and fruit.  How one is supposed to eat watermelon with a toothpick, I’ll never know.  At that point I was tired, had a headache, and was vocal about my disdain for inefficient eating.  No one understands anyways. 

After the food, we all sat around and did nothing but chat.  It was boring.  I get attention, but only until the novelty wears off and then I’m ignored.  This ignorance continued through the remainder of the festivities.  I watched them sing the school song, and I watched them throw people into the air, and I watched them give speeches.  I considered asking to leave after the main party ended, as a few people were going to go, but then they decided against that and we all stayed.  We moved to the lounge for drinks and karaoke.  As I predicted with my impeccable powers of deduction, it consisted of old people singing songs in Japanese.  That is, until I was forced onto the floor.  I had been minding my own business, talking with my friend, when I was told to sing something.  Now, this is no easy feat when you’re with these people.  It’s not like I can bust out a raging chorus of Ke$ha and have everyone join in.  No, no.  Instead, I had to find a song, in English, that people know.  Difficulty:  I kept getting asked to sing the Beatles or Billy Joel.  Do I look like I’m 60?  Seriously, people.  Yet one more check in my this-country-is-not-so-secretly-stuck-in-1955 column.  In the end, I did a rousing rendition of Livin’ la Vida Loca, which won the hearts and minds of everyone there.  I suppose the 90s are better than the 50s…

Then we all went home the end.  Only it was already way past midnight, and then I had to go to sleep and get up today.  I just came in late and no one noticed.  No one is even here anyways. 

Notable exchanges from the party yesterday:

A comparison of American and Japanese school systems.  You’d be sued in America for what we do to kids in Japan.

Being asked in Japanese by my principal if I spoke Japanese…. funny the first time…. didn’t see the humor the other 30 times… But evidently, everyone else did.  Conversation devolves into laughter, and everyone is happy. 

Teaching Japanese and English names for foods to each other.  I’m better than the teachers.  Cause I have to buy food, thus I know what it all is. 

Telling my transferring teachers a variety of things, like who their new ALTs will be.  Saadiqa is from South Africa.  Jill is genki.  We had a good time. 

Talking about Japanese customs with any number of teachers.  Everyone is crazy, and we’re all jealous of each other.  It’s cultural learning. 

Having a teacher come up to me, roaring drunk, and talk for 20 minutes in PRETTY GOOD English, even though I didn’t think he was so good at the outset.  Impressive.  And hilarious. 

All in all, I’d say it was a success.  There was a definite lull in the middle, during which I contemplated ways to gently phrase ‘bored out of my mind’, but after that phase passed, it was good food (nothing weird this time), good after party, and nice to see everyone.

I’m just sad that a couple of my favorite teachers are leaving… I will miss them and our daily conversations.  I had a couple friends, even, who are getting transferred.  I hope we can meet up outside of the academic circle.

In any case, that’s my official report on yesterday’s party.

To sum up the rest of the time… 

The last two weeks were an INSANE HORROR.  And by that I mean busy.  One would think that having the third years graduate would mean I’d be bored and listless.  No, in fact, every other teacher said that since I lost third years, I should go to class with them.  I, of course, am happy to oblige, as it’s far more interesting than sitting at my desk all day.  But, losing five classes, doesn’t mean that I lose five a day, but rather five a week.  This fact seems to have escaped them.  As a result, I was teaching every period of every day for about two weeks, and then grading all of the worksheets and tests that we did during those classes, AND THEN planning for the next ones.  So, I was basically at work from 8 to after 6, which made me tired, but it was a good tired.  I just didn’t really have time for fun.  That was sad.  From now, moreover, we shall have nothing to do until school resumes April 7.  That sentence shall remain unedited, as it is SO Japanese. 

Then, before that, we had graduation, which was at the same time as the earthquake.  Graduation itself was sad.  I would LOVE to post pictures, but, alas, that is frowned upon.  And I never post pictures.  Guffaw at that ongoing joke between me and no one cause you all want pictures and I get off on being withholding.  But the ceremony itself was somber.  Our graduations are so lively and happy and everyone tears up and you clap and you say yay!  This was serious and somber, like a funeral.  That’s kinda what it felt like, actually.  Everyone gave speeches and sang, and everyone cried.  First the girls, then the teachers, then the boys, then the parents, then the rest of the school.  Awkward.  A whole gym full of crying Japanese people… and me.  So anywho, the ceremony concluded, I was paraded in front of the parents, and then we waited for the students to process out.  I got pictures and it was sad and blah.  We had fun.  Two boys gave me their flowers from the ceremony, and I was in tons of pictures.  Pushy parents want evidence of internationalization, I suppose.  HA!  Your kid is SO diverse now.  It’s kinda weird to think of white people as the diversity requirement… I don’t think I’ve ever been that before…  Anywho, the ceremony itself was a repetition of this, translated:  Stand.  Attention.  Bow.  Sit.  Repeat 800 times.  And the gym was SO COLD.  I went the day before and bought heat packs with which I filled my pockets.  It helped, but I would have liked either a coat or central heat.  Whatever’s easier.  Sitting in 35 degree temperatures in only a suit is terrible.  The light jacket and the permeable pants?  Yeah. 

Anyways, so that was my recap of the last few weeks, with a focus on the year-end festivities. 

Comment and tell me what you think?  It’s been a while, right?  Yay, friends!

Final note: spell check tells me that the term ‘a couple’ somethings is incorrect and it should be ‘a couple of’ somethings.  Does anyone know why this is?  Katrine?  I write like I talk anyways, so it doesn’t matter in this context, but it would be helpful to know for the future.  And cause I love to discuss pointless theoretical nonsense. 

Sayonara.

This is my official statement regarding the recent earthquakes in Japan.

The quakes have happened thus far in the northern and eastern parts of the country, and that’s where everything is happening at this time.  It is very sad and unfortunate, and we have been hearing about it constantly, as I imagine most of you have.

My island, as most of you know, is located centrally, south of Kobe.  No one on the island felt the quake or its aftershocks.  The coastal regions have had evacuations from tsunamis, but other than that, we have not felt the major effects.  The island itself is located on a fault that has not been active as of yet.  So while we have not felt the quakes, we have received some high waves, though not to the degree of other places in Japan.

The earthquakes have continued, and we are advised to be cautious for the next few days.  They have started moving south slightly, and if they progress too far, we could have earthquakes hit very close to home. 

Should an earthquake hit the island or nearby, the coastal regions are very much exposed to both the ocean and the inland sea.  Of the two, it is more likely that the ocean-side would be affected.  It would, however, be more adverse if the quakes moved to the inland sea. 

In either scenario, I am largely in the same position.  I live as far inland as possible, in a valley of sorts.  I am protected by mountains on all sides and am very far from the water.  In my day-to-day life, I have no need to venture too far out of the immediate vicinity.  As such, I shall continue to operate much as I have been for the duration of my stay in Japan.

It would be premature to worry about anything affected me, or near to me in the immediate future.  Should more quakes happen, I should be sheltered from the tsunamis they might create.  If an earthquake strikes nearby, I live in the middle of fields, away from large buildings.  My apartment has three doors, and I live on the second floor.  There is plenty of open space to flee to, and the mountains are nearby to provide any necessary height.  The most pressing disaster would be if the mountain dam were to crack from earthquake stress.  This would flood the valley, creating a large amount of standing water.  This rupture would only likely occur as a result of extreme force, and is unlikely, barring another quake of similar magnitude to the large one last Friday.  The bridges to and from the island are capable of withstanding up to a magnitude 8.5 on the Richter scale.  The earthquake that struck the north of Japan was magnitude 8.9, and was the fifth strongest in recorded history.  It is unlikely that another would happen again so soon.  Any aftershocks must be, by definition, of less magnitude than the principle quake, therefore, it is likely that the majority of buildings would remain unaffected, and access to the island would not be restricted.

As of right now, we are simply hearing about the effects of the quake, just like the rest of the world. 

I will reassure you, again, that I am okay.  We hope that the earthquakes will not affect us.  By the time I begin traveling for spring break in two weeks, we expect most things to return to normal.  The planes and trains have mostly resumed operation, as far as I know.  Of course this does not apply to the areas that bore the brunt of the force. 

In the meantime, I will encourage you to stay up to date with the news.  If anything changes, I will inform you as soon as I can.  Please note that I will contact my parents first of all, and update facebook regularly, even while away from the computer, through use of my iPhone.  In the event of another large disaster, I will endeavor to let you know as soon as possible in regards to my status.  Feel free to contact me with questions as well.

Finally, thank you all for your loving concern.  It’s truly touching.  It’s good to know that were I to die a horrible death by earthquake bludgeoning and tons of filthy water smothering my very livelihood, someone would notice.

Cheers.

… and sometimes, you’re not.  But every once in a while, you have to put down the chopsticks and reflect.

What I mean is, living in any foreign country is always a multi-faceted experience.  For example, you attempt to learn about the ways of the people.  No matter what you do, you’re not going to be able to assimilate in, but you can at least offer respect.  Reading people can be a huge problem.  Am I in trouble?  Did I do this wrong?  Are they appreciative?  Can I help more?  It’s an endless list of questions, but also of exploration.

I was sitting on the floor in my apartment two weekends ago.  It’s rather commonplace now, yet when I think of apartments, I still mentally picture, you know, furniture.  Regardless, I just refocused on the situation a bit.  Like, I’m in Japan.  How many other people can say that? 

With this attitude in mind, I entered into last week.  I was fully and completely prepared to do nothing.  It was end of year testing, I had one class for the whole week, and I really had no interest in doing much else.  I indulging in copious amounts of literature while brooding at my desk.  I was approached during the aforementioned session of broodiness and I was asked to translate some lines from Japanese to English.  Awaji’s claim to fame (aside from being the birthplace of Japan) is the invention of these traditional Japanese puppets.  Aka they are old as hell and everyone has to love them.  So I was told that I should translate a bunch of the lines from the play into English.  I thought they were crazy.  Me?  Translation?  I hate translation even in French; how am I supposed to do it in Japanese?

A few hours later, as I mused over the Japanese, one of my English teachers told me that she had actually already done the translation.  Now, this might be a facepalm moment, or one of those lack of communication moments, wherein all the Japanese people neglect to inform the ONE person who needs the information the most of all.  In the end, it’s a moot point, cause the English was incomprehensible.  There’s an awkward conversation.  “Um, sensei?  Um… um… …What do you mean by this sentence…?   Yeah… that one…  I’m not sure I understand…. it’s just … um… there are … um… many ways to say … like, um, the same thing… For example… the verb changes…. depending on the um… object…. yeahhh…….”  But eventually, we reached an accord which involved me creating detailed, yet succinct phrases that the students could handle speaking.

Now you might be asking yourselves why I had to do this at all (or you might be asking yourselves why you are still reading this).  The deal is, on Awaji, we have koalas.  Not wild koalas.  But koalas nonetheless.  They were donated by the state of Western Australia, which has a sister relationship with Hyogo, aka my prefecture of residence.  Now, as it turns out, this year is the 30th Anniversary of this relationship, so the Premier of Western Australia was coming to Japan.  So, key parts of the puppet show were translated so that the Australians could understand it all. 

After I finished preparing all of the English, I was then informed that I would have to stay after school with the puppet club to train them in English.  Of course this sounded bittersweet.  I have been WAITING forever to be asked to help out with clubs.  After being told that I was a distraction to the kids (not exactly untrue) I thought I would never be able to go again.  So I leapt at the chance to help out.  Of course, I also had to stay after school, which, when combined with shopping, cooking, and errands, meant that I was getting home far to late for my pay grade.  Regardless, I decided to go.

When I walked into the room, I was greeted with shock and concern.  Eeeeeeeee???!!!!  Poru ya??  It was pretty hilarious.  Then I was surrounded and questioned.  We do so have fun.  I ended up training a second year girl in English for the play.  She did a nice job, and after some coaching, she clearly sounded much better than the other students.  Clearly.  So I was rather pleased.  I did this for several days after school.  The final day I stayed was Thursday, and they did a rehearsal of the play in its entirety. 

It was at that moment, sitting on my shoeless feet on a thick tatami mat, watching children clap wooden blocks, chant, and act out the puppet show that I realized: I was happy to be in Japan.  It was a beautiful expression of their culture, combined with my own efforts to globalize and enrich.  The accented English, the wavering of the Japanese chants, and the clank of the instruments just felt strong.  I couldn’t help but smile as I sat, wiggling my toes to wake them up, watching their bright, serious faces deep in performance.  After the rehearsal, a few students lingered.  We could speak, alternating in English and Japanese, filling in words, and ever so occasionally resorting to a dictionary to clarify.  We learned about each other and had a great time.  I’m no expert, but if I had to make a judgment call, I’d say that this is the sort of thing that one remembers forever.  The little problems melt away, and the image just imprints.

To bring the story full-circle (as I do so often like to do), the performance occurred this past Sunday at Awaji Farm Park, England Hill (there’s a hefty dose of irony).  Everyone thought I was Australian, but I clarified.  Kylie and I went to see the puppets, and we got in for free cause we’re teachers.  My students seemed so happy that I came, and the teacher in charge of the puppet club thanked me many times.  Though it was a sacrifice to get up so early on my day off, it was most definitely worth it.  The ceremony itself ran over an hour, the puppet show, a mere ten minutes.  The rest of the ceremony consisted of standard diplomacy: let’s have Japan thank Australia, and Australia, Japan.  Let’s thank each person by name, let’s present some gifts, let’s translate it all.  Translation highlight: the new female koala being called ‘sassy’. 

The kids went up there, did their thing, and they did it well.  I shan’t retell the whole play itself, as I have it on video, and I’m investigating the prospects of an upload.  I need to see if the sound came out or not, as we were slightly far away.  They presented Australian wine to the Governor of Hyogo, and a Japanese hot spring towel to the Premier of Western Australia. 

When the ceremony concluded, I congratulated my kids, we took some pictures, and then Kylie and I explored the rest of the park.  It is essentially a small zoo slash petting zoo slash conservatory.  They had a variety of gardens, birds, kangaroos, rabbits, and of course, koalas.  The day concluded with a trip to our favorite all natural cafe for lunch which became dinner and dessert. 

I think that this past week was a huge success.  I had dinners with friends, I saw a traditional art being performed, and I interacted closely with my kids.  It just serves to prove that it’s not only about teaching English.  The experience in and of itself is valuable beyond what I had previously considered.  I can only hope that next year proves to be as memorable as the first.

Graduation: March 11

Year 1 ends: March 25

Year 2 begins: April 7

One day, Kylie, her friend, and I went to Awaji’s famous suisen fields that cover the mountains to the east. Here’s some pictures of our adventures!
AKA, lazy photo blog, ftw!!!

The entry to the Suisenkyo.

Climb the path!

Hi, Kylie! Hurry up!

Pretty!

That's Nushima and these are the flower fields.

Ume (plum) blossoms and suisen.

Awaji's south-eastern coastline.

Valley! Doesn't merit exclamation point!

Suisen are like daffodils or narcissus.

PINK!

Birdie! PRETTY!

These are tsubaki. NE, KELI??

Tsubaki.

The final year of the Uzushio Marathon encompassed a variety of celebrations.  The marathon itself, I did not participate in, however, I did participate in the overall celebration, such as eating copious amounts of udon and watching the kids play taiko.

If you recall from my previous posts, there is a small island off of Awaji called Nushima.  This video is Nushima’s elementary school kids playing taiko drums for the marathon.  They’re good, aren’t they?

The previous weeks have been filled with students testing, beginning end of the year preparations, and running around.  The school year in Japan begins on April first, which means we are currently spiraling towards what would be finals, along with any number of concluding ceremonies.  I find myself left behind in the bustle of the staffroom.  Everyone is preternaturally busy, a marked contrast from what I do.  I thrive during the normal class time, when my days are filled with students and actual classes.  Now, many classes are cancelled or rescheduled to accommodate test prep. 

The third years also have been testing for high school.  Not everyone goes to high school, but many want to.  Some of my favorite students have been telling me about where they are going.  Most of the students will end up either at Mihara High School, just a brisk walk/bike ride from here.  Others in Sumoto, a longer bus ride for them (or drive for me).  But a select few will travel farther.  One of my students got a soccer scholarship in Kobe.  Try describing scholarship in Japanese/English hybrid speak, and you’re on your way to my everyday. 

So today, once again, I pass time at my desk.  Lesson planning, grading, reading a little.  My new favorite activity has been studying Japanese- a desirable, yet challenging activity.  It’s nice to be able to remain sharp in spite of the downtime at my desk.  So I study foreign language.  I have a plethora of experience, thanks to my Bachelor’s degree studies, so I don’t mind studying a new language in the slightest.  It’s only frustrating when you realize you have to slow down and memorize.  Fortunately, it’s easy to remember most common words, as you hear them repeated all day. 

The weekends have been busy.  As you might remember, I’ve had a rush of busy weekends lately that afford me no respite.  This proves true up until this past weekend.  Sometimes, I yearn for the lazy Sundays of college, lying in my pyjamas until dinnertime.  But I enjoy the constant activity for the most part.  Perhaps this upcoming weekend will afford me some time to gather my courage and, of course, do some cleaning and organizing.  I am loath to fall behind on keeping the dust at bay.  Without central air, there is no filter to prevent the accumulation of legions of dust bunnies.  We must destroy their rebel alliance before it gains too much momentum.  As the emperor of my mansion (as apartments in Japan are called), I must be ever-vigilant to the impending discord between my reign and chaos.  Nevertheless, the forces of me usually prevail, returning to the light from even the darkest of dust-clogged times. 

In unrelated news, two weekends ago, I spent some time driving Kylie and her friend from Tokyo around Awaji.  Kylie doesn’t have a car (as she lives in the city), and I had nothing much going on, so I drove them.  It was a good opportunity to see more things on Awaji, which I feel are always overlooked during our standard trip planning.  So Friday night we had a lovely dinner at this little cafe.  I do so enjoy getting traditional Japanese fare, so it was nice to have a good dinner.  We finished the meal with warabi mochi sundaes (わらびもち） which were beyond divine, and then returned home.  Saturday, we visited Fukura to see the whirlpools, eat lunch, and have some gelato at the absolutely fantastic gelato place on island.  We then made a trip to see the flower fields on the Eastern coast.  They are called Suisen (水仙) and are sort of like a daffodil or narcissus.  The flowers were sprawled across the mountainside, reaching over the hills.  The pathways meandered through the fields, up the side of the mountain to the top, where there was a viewing station.  One could see the ocean, the outlying islands, the mountains, and all the way to Osaka.  I have pictures.  They’ll likely never see the light of day.  Regardless, it was a nice trip.  After this we moved on to Takosenbei (たこせんべい）, a store that sells, you guessed it: senbei.  It’s like a rice cracker slash potato chip and is quite delicious.  The store is a giant warehouse of senbei, featuring a multitude of flavors.  Some were outstanding, such as onion, wasabi, ume (plum), and sunflower seed.  Others left something to be desired (along with an unpleasant aftertaste), such as squid and fried chicken.  I ended up buying the mix bag.  Perhaps you, gentle reader, would be interested in placing an order? 

Following that weekend was, of course, more class, filled with the similar excitement of the preceding week.  This past weekend was also suitably active however, so we shall discuss post-haste.  Saturday was my Skype day.  I had the imponderable pleasure of speaking with my mother, one Keli Smith, one Peter Kordas, and one Katherine Jacob.  It has been a while since I was able to truly have a leisurely chat.  I am usually online at school, but in a different capacity.  That’s where I have daily run-ins with friends such as Samantha Flavin, Carissa Molina, and Klarissa Keadle.  If your name isn’t on the list, why aren’t you online more?  Fellow ALTs Jillian Marshall, Saadiqa Abrahams, and Joe Moore also make guest appearances on a virtually daily basis.  Usually, we all have a nice time, so the next time you’re free, send a gchat! 

Sunday was the last annual Uzushio Marathon (うずしおマラソン).  It was the thirtieth and last year, as I hear they ran out of funding.  Some of my fellow ALTs ran the marathon, but Jill and I were there for udon.  And udon alone.  Fortunately, it was good.  Unfortunately, the people serving it thought we were adorable pets, and we were treated as such.  Sometimes, rural Japan has its quirks.  Nevertheless, we had a nice time, and we watched the competition, even managing to run into some of our kids in the meantime.  It was a nice activity overall, but unfortunately, it meant getting up even earlier than we get up for school to make it on time.  So my week began after only a single day of vacation, and this was most unfortunate.  As a result, I look forward to the upcoming weekend, and all that it will hold.  Preferably some tea and relaxation.  For now, I continue.

Next week is the final week of classes for the third years.  It’s my duty to come up with a game for  them to play that is fun and educational.  Any ideas?  I’m open to suggestions.  I still have a few weeks left of first and second years.  My second years shall be doing reading tests.  Reading tests happen to be one of my most treasured experiences, as they afford me individual interaction with the students on a personal basis.  For now, I lead them in repetition of the story for pronunciation purposes.  A futile, yet noble gesture, I assure you.  And the first years continue on.  My former first year teacher is out for likely the rest of the year on medical leave, so I have been teaching with the other first year teacher.  It is my first experience teaching with a male teacher, and it has proven to be quite rewarding.  The class itself comports itself quite differently that what I had determined to be usual.  We also do slightly different activities.  I have enjoyed the change of pace thus far. 

This concludes this edition of Paul’s Life.  This episode was brought to you by the Corporation for Public Br– actually, no.  It wasn’t.  I forgot.  They don’t get funding anymore.  So sad.