My first backpacking trip!!

Only 2 more days and then I'm off to Vietnam!! I'm so ridiculously excited I can't stand it. It's so hard to think about work right now, when all I can think about is what I should pack and where we should go. But I still have 3 classes and kumon lessons tonight, so must concentrate!
We still don't have anything concrete planned for Vietnam, but it looks like we're going to go north to Sapa, where there are secluded tribal villages, to do some mountain trekking and see how tribal people live. It'll be cold up there, so along with my beach wear I have to bring winter clothes:( But it sounds like it'll be worth it. I've seen amazing pictures. We're also heading to Halong Bay for a boat tour. There are some amazing rock formations to see there, and delicious seafood to eat:) Our last stop will be a four day stay on a beach, maybe Phu Quoq Island, which sounds like an unspoiled tropical paradise, with $3/hour massages, delicious food and beautiful scenery. Maybe a little shopping in Ho Chi Minh City, and our trip will be complete!
Anyways, I'll be back in January, hopefully with amazing photos and fun stories to share, so I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and New Year!!
Love

Stupid gaijin moment #4

So my Japanese exam was on Sunday, and I went with a girl who was taking a different level than me. She planned out which trains and subways to take in order to get there, and I followed along. It wasn't until we were almost at the university that we realized that I had been assigned a different test site, in a completely different part of Nagoya!! There were so many times that I could have checked and still made it in time, but by the time I checked, I was an hour away from where I was supposed to be and the test was starting in 20 minutes. Needless to say, I missed the first of the three sections, but I went anyway and sat the other two parts. They weren't nearly as hard as I had expected, and had I had a little more time to study, I think I would have done well. However, missing the first section I would have had to get almost perfect on the rest of the test to pass, which I'm sure I didn't. Ah well, there's always next year. Next time I'll know to check my test site:)

300 kanji in 3 days

So I had the bright idea of signing up for a Japanese test when I first came to Japan. There are four levels, 4 being the easiest, 1 being the hardest. I decided to sign up for level 3, thinking that I could already pass 4, and with some studying could probably pass level 3 by December. Well, the test is on Sunday, and man am I regretting that decision. I'm barely through any of the material (not that I haven't been studying, but reviewing level 4 stuff took longer than I thought), and out of the 300 kanji (chinese characters) I need to know, I had still only learned about 100 by the beginning of this week. So, now I am attempting to learn the remaining 200 kanji in 3days. (I started yesterday). Doesn't help that I agreed to go bowling/drinking with some teachers from my school tonight and to an all day mochi (japanese rice cake) event tomorrow. Might have to pull an all nighter, ahh I feel like a college student again. Wish me luck!!

Stupid gaijin moment #3

Hasn't been long since the last one. Hope this isn't a trend. This moment wasn't really caused by me being foreign; I could've just as easily done it at home, but the solution would have been SOO much easier in Canada, where I speak the language. Last night I discovered just how far my car can go on empty. Not very. I almost went to the gas station by my house after school yesterday, but you have to make a right hand turn out of it, and there was alot of traffic, so I decided to wait until I had to leave for Japanese class. When I tried to leave, my car wouldn't start. First time I've ever run out of gas. I walked to the station in hopes that it would still be open, trying to form in my mind how I would get across that I needed gas. Keep in mind, I don't even know how to say "gas" in japanese, so it would have come out something like this: "gasu o irimasu. watashi no kuruma wa ie de arimasu." I need gas. My car is at my house. (I think.) Which probably would've gottena blank stare. Luckily, since I was already late for class, my Japanese teacher called me to see if I was coming, and I kept her on the line and asked her to talk to the gas lady for me and explain my situation. The gas lady (she's like 80 and tiny) drove me back to my car and put gas in my tank for me. She was so nice. You can't tip in Japan, so I'm going to bring her a present later today. Anyways, I finally made it to class, and now I know my car doesn't ride on fumes for long:)

1st run-in with the cops

Not as bad as it sounds. On my way home last night there was a roadblock. The police were pulling everyone over. The cop who asked me to roll down my window was female and very nice. This was lucky because I had forgotten to grab my IDP (international driver's liscence) when I switched purses. She said a bunch of stuff in Japanese and looked at me expectantly, and even though I understood the gist of what she said, I replied, " Sorry, I don't understand." (In english of course.) And wouldn't you know, she spoke english! Thankfully, she didn't seem to be aware of IDPs and was satisfied with my Canadian driver's liscence. Just in case the next time I don't get such a nice cop, I'm gonna answer in french and really throw them for a loop.

You know how difficult it is to get Beaujolais Nouveau at home? (Well, maybe a few of the fellow wine snobs reading this might.) They sell it for one day and it's a mad rush to the liquor/wine store? Well, lo and behold they sell it here too, even in Taki-cho, but my supermarket ordered so much of it (and I'm pretty sure that there aren't that many wine drinkers in my town), that when I went at almost midnight yesterday, there was still enough to last me all year and then some. Apparently Japan is the place to be in November. And here I thought I'd have to give up good wine when I moved to Japan.

Beautiful Autumn in Nara

I had a pretty interesting weekend. Took the train to Nara on Saturday morning to meet up with Akemi, a Japanese girl who I met at Mt A. She took me to Saidaiji temple, where we went to a tea ceremony. This temple is famous because the bowls that it uses for it's tea ceremony are gigantic!! It was very laid back because it was so funny to see everyone attempting to drink out of these huge bowls. Hard to be serious. After the ceremony, a 91 year-old man whom Akemi's father knows, took us on a tour of the buildings around the temple. He has been going there to worship for 25 years, so he knows it well. He explained alot of the history, statues and architecture, and it was to Akemi to translate what she could into English so that I would understand. (She did a marvellous job:))

We then went to Yakushiji Temple, another famous temple in Nara. Here I found out my fortune. There is a box containing many small envelopes. You take one in exchange for 200 or so yen (~$2), and read the fortune. If it is a good fortune, you can tie the strip of paper to a rope with many other people's fortunes. Mine was good, although it told me that I should work harder, so I tied it on.

I met Akemi's family over dinner, and they were so nice to me!! I really enjoyed spending time with them, and her mom even made me pinky swear to come back again!!

On Sunday, Akemi and I went to Osaka Castle (really more of a museum now), which was really interesting, and beautiful. The highlight of the day was when I got to try on battle gear and pose for pictures. You should've seen the crowd gathered to watch me make a fool of myself. It was awesome!!

We also saw Tsutenkaku Tower, which is surrounded by streets with small shops, only most of the shops were closed!! When Akemi asked a shopowner why, he said that the sons of the families that owned them didn't want the shops, so they had no one to run them. Only about half, or maybe less, of the shops there were open. It gave the area the atmosphere of a ghost town.

Finally we went to Namba, a fashionable shopping/ dining district in Osaka. We shopped for a bit, had dinner, and then it was time for me to head back to the country. I'm not sure why, because I think Taki is at around the same latitude as Nara (don't quote me on that), but the leaves have changed colour there and are beautiful in red, yellow and orange, while almost everything here is still green:(

Borat gets 2 thumbs up!!

For those of you who haven't yet watched Borat's new movie, "Cultural learnings of America for make benefit glorious nation of Kazakhstan": watch it. I couldn't wait for it to come to DVD (no chance of it coming to theatres here, Japanese people would definitely NOT get the humour), so I downloaded a handicam version, and even with the less than stellar quality it was hilarious.

Not too much has happened in the last little while. I bought a sofa and loveseat, because I'm tired of sitting on the floor and I got jealous of my friend who has couches... but they won't be delivered for another two weeks. My apartment is getting really cold, and I'm dreading the winter. It's actually still pretty warm outside: 20's during the day, maybe 10 or so at night, but there's no such thing as central heating, so what you get outside is what you get inside, making for cold nights. There are a few substitutions for central heating though. The one that I might start using tonight is called a Kotatsu. It's a table with a heater under it. You put a blanket over the table, and then the table top over the blanket, and you sit with your legs under the blanket. Very common in Japan to use sit here while eating mikan (clementines). Incidentally, my agriculture students have their own farm, so I get mikan very cheaply:) Another heating option is a kerosene heater, which apparently will heat my whole apartment, but also stink it up, so I'll have to air it out frequently. For now, I'm not using anything, but I did buy a huge furry blanket to cuddle under:)
I'll have more exciting things to write about next week since I'm off to Nara to visit a Japanese friend this weekend (Akemi, a girl who came to Mt A for 3 months), but for now, I'd like to leave you with an excerpt from a book I'm reading which was written by an American living in Japan, about the many problems he has faced over the years. (Japan: It's not all raw fish, by Don Maloney)
The following are the rules of the road in Tokyo as he sees them, although I'm pretty sure that most of them apply down here in the country as well. The bold comments in paranthese are my comments).

"First of all, never observe the posted speed limits. The numbers on those signs are obviously put there by the same people who put the numbers on the "Suggested List Price" tags in discount stores back in Cleveland. The only difference is that you divide the list prices by two; you multiply the speed limit numbers by two." (There are however, speed traps, with signs that warn you that they're coming up, so learn the kanji and slow down momentarily. Speed tickets here run up to $1000 plus a day in court and driving lessons.)
Do observe very carefully the "No Right Turn" and "One Way" signs. But, never miss an opportunity to make a U-turn, no matter what the signs say. (I can't read any sign, so I ignore them all, ESPECIALLY the no U-turn ones... I think.)
At an intersection, never stop for a red light unless it has been red for at least five seconds. And never, NEVER stop for a yellow light. Once you have stopped for a red light, don't wait for it to turn green before you take off. As soon as you spot the light turning yellow for the cars crossing in front of you, go. (Since cars don't stop for yellow- or red- lights, the latter rule is one I don't follow. I do, however, abide by the former rule.)
If you are planning to turn right at the next intersection, be certain to get into the far left lane. Once securely all the way over to the left, turn on your right turn directional signal and cut across the traffic. (Do this all the time- usually by accident though.)
You can almost never find a curb-side parking area on "No Parking" streets like Roppongi. There are always other cars already parked there. Simply double park." (Note: you can park anywhere as long as you put your hazard lights on.)
"If you are trying to pull out from a side street into a busy thoroughfare, don't wait for a break in the traffic. Simply put up your hand, the back of it facing the side window of your car. Wave it back and forth- doing a slightbow at the same time- and pull out. Answer any horn-blowing by blowing your own.
When you are fortunate enough to find a street with two lanes or more- like Aoyama Dori- don't ever stay in one of those lanes for more than half a block.. Keep switching.
Every time you do stop in traffic, pull on your emergency brake. If it's night time, turn off your headlights. Everybody else thinks you've parked there, and you catch them well off guard when you speed away. (Haven't seen this yet, but I'm sure it's only a matter of time.)
Remember that trucks, buses and taxis in Japan always have the right of way. If you don't believe this, try to take it away from one of them. (On the other hand, ambulances and police cars with their sirens on don't have the right of way. Often I'm the only one pulled over to let an ambulance pass... Remind me to drive myself to the hospital if I ever need to go (knock on wood).)
Pedestrians have the right of way inTokyo only if they are already in front of your car. If they're not already in front, you must do everything you can to prevent them from getting there- even if their hand are up or they are carrying that little yellow flag. (It really should be a white flag.) (This is particularly annoying when you are the pedestrian, however I'm not nearly as passive as most Japanese, and I make the cars stop for me.)
No matter why the car in front of you has stopped, blow your horn at him. And keep blowing it until he moves. Do not exhibit patience under any cicumstances. (This must be a big city thing. I think I've only heard a horn once since I got here. And I don't know what mine sounds like.)
Move your eyes around all you want, but always keep your head pointing straight to the front. If you turn your head, the drivers on either side may think you see them edging in on you and keep coming. If they don't think you see them, they might not. (I even have a special mirror in my car that allows me to see my passengers without turning my head. Didn't realize why till I read this.)
During rush hours, especially, always block intersections. After all, if you let the cars enter form side streets, your street will become even more crowded.
Those general rules above apparently apply to everyone. There is one rule for foreigners only: In the event a policeman takes issue with you over any infraction of the traffic rules, you must never admit to him that you speak one word of Japanese no matter how much you've spent for language lessons. You might try just repeating "Gomen nasai," (I'm sorry) but never any other Japanese. And, if he speaks some English, don't answer except by telling him over and over that his English is magnificent. (We call this "playing the gaijin card" and even the Japanese people I know have told me to do this if I ever get in trouble. Apparently it works, unless you look asian and they don't believe that you don't speak Japanese, like my friend Doug.)

Thanks for reading:) Later.

Caffeine high

Hey, it's Wednesday night, I'm sitting at home, and I drank waaay too much coffee tonight, so I'm writing because I'm bored. Not much is new, although I did find a fun detour on my way home from school in Ise today. I stopped at the mall, which is home to a real coffee shop(with non-fat lattes, yum), and lots of nice stores. I bought an awesome hoody that I've had my eye on for awhile now. It says SWE (I think short for sweden) and a picture of a crown, and then it says, in small print: "Life in the forest in Europe was enclosed by the abundant vegetation and the animal and was vivid." My 1st Engrish!!! Had to have it b/c of the Swedish reference. I also booked my trip to Vietnam today !!! Well, the flights anyway. I'm going with a cool girl from Ottawa, who lives in Shizuoka (another prefecture) and we're going for about 2 weeks, and spending New Year's Eve in Beijing. I'm so excited I can't stand it!! Definitely not helping with my restlesness tonight. Ok, can't think of anything else worthwhile to write, but at least that ate up a little time:) Later dudes.

Stupid Gaijin Moment #2

It was only a matter of time till I did something stupid enough to write about. So, you know how if you use a cleaning product that has ammonia in it (like Windex) and a cleaning product that has bleach in it (like many bathroom cleaners) you make toxic chlorine gas? Now imagine not being able to read the labels of said cleaning products, and eventually giving up and buying something random. So, here I am in my bathroom last night, cleaning the sink after having cleaned the mirror, when my eyes and throat start to feel funny. Luckily I realized what I had done pretty quickly and wasn't exposed for long. And I had a friend kind enough to take me in for the night so I could air out my apartment.

Anyways, on to more upbeat news, Friday night was the Halloween party, and man did we look foolish. Halloween isn't really celebrated in Japan, so it's a pretty strange sight to see a huge group of foreigners in costume. First we went to an all-you-can-eat, all-you-can-drink place to get nice and hammered before the party even started. I went dressed as Betty Boop, although more than a few people thought I was naughty Snow White.. haha. The party was lots of fun, and some people had some pretty interesting costumes (like Doug and Chito as construction workers/traffic directors- basically a useless job in Japan, the only purpose of which is to combat unemployment).

Bluce Lee strikes again!!

Another wholesome weekend, but this time in Kobe. Managed to navigate the trains to Kobe and met up with Eri on Friday night. She took me home and her family was so welcoming!! We ate dinner and chatted, and right away they told me to think of them as family while I'm in Japan.
On Saturday we met Sachiko, Eri's friend and went shopping. Shingo, Eri's bf, joined us in time for Chinatown, where we ate a tasty lunch, and checked out the Bruce Lee store, complete with statue (see above). Another friend, Mami, met us afterwards and we went to Kitano, an area that was settled by foreigners and where there are many western styled houses. We ate dinner at a restaurant here, which puts loads of garlic in most of it's dishes. It was delicious (and they have toothbrushes and toothpaste in the bathroom ). After dinner we drove up to this spot on a mountain that overlooks the city for an amazing night view. A very romantic date place, and there were tons of couples to prove it:)

On Sunday, Eri and I went to Osaka to shop some more. We also went up in a huge ferris wheel that gives you a really good view of Osaka. Not a pretty city though, Kobe was much nicer. Then I started the long trek home. It was a nice weekend, and I'm looking forward to more trips to see Eri and her friends in the future.

Now I'm in test week, so no classes (except tomorrow at Ise Manabi High) and on friday I get to go to Nagashima spaland, home of the world's fastest roller coaster!! Friday can't come soon enough:)

ALTs can now stay for 5 years..... sounds like trouble.

So, 2 of my classes were cancelled today, giving me time to write. For some reason my school enjoys radically altering the class schedule with little or no notice, so today Tamai-sensei and I were supposed to teach during 3rd and 4th period, but 3rd period was moved to 2nd period, and nobody told us. We only found out after 2nd period was over, so our students were up in the class, probably wondering where we were. Since they didn't get to have class, my teacher decided to give the other class study time as well (next week is test week). So I'm down to one class today, last period. I'm seriously going to fall asleep at my desk.
Anyways, last weekend I had the most wholesome weekend probably since junior high school. Friday night we just went to a friends house for dinner and drank wine (don't worry I didn't do that in junior high). Saturday I went to a festival a few towns over (and got a parking ticket:( I think they're expensive here too, but I won't know till I actually get the ticket in the mail. Completely Doug's fault, now I know to stop trusting him when it comes to stuff like that!! :P).
After dinner (at a really nice Italian restaurant), we came back and played pool and darts at a 24 hour internet/manga cafe (man were there some geeks there).
On Sunday, I had my first taiko performance in a festival in my town. I only played one song, but it went well, and I can't wait for the next time!! Plus my costume was hot:) I ate some weird things, like squid on a stick (not as delicious as it sounds), played a game and won a prize (actually I kinda lost , you know the skeeball game? but the boys running it told me I won anyway and gave me a prize). Went for my first run in about 2 months with a friend who wants to train for races too, and the 4k that we did was much harder than I remember. But I'm stoked about running now and went again yesterday, and it felt much better. Sunday night we went bowling (told you it was a wholesome weekend), the American kind with the 3 holes. I actually did pretty well, I think it's quite a bit easier than Canadian bowling.
Monday was a holiday here too, although I had no chance of finding a turkey, so instead I celebrated Thanksgiving by going to a BBQ and eating lamb. It's also still summer here, temp-wise, so it would have been weird to eat a turkey anyways.
This week has been pretty laid back... Tuesday's with Doug have become about us testing the limits of what we can get away with at work. This week we rented a movie and watched it with the american exchange student, Tyler, snacks and all. And since I didn't have any classes yesterday, I got to tag along on a field trip with Doug, Tyler and a few teachers from the school. Beat sitting at my desk all day killing time. We went to Ise, Shima, Futami (I know you don't know where any of that is, but it's along the beach and very beautiful). In Futami there are 2 rocks in the ocean that are tied together with rope, that symbolize marriage. They're close to a Shinto shrine and they hold festivals twice a year to change the rope. It was a nice field trip.
Today I'm off to Kobe, to stay with Eri and her family. For those of you who don't know who she is, she went to Mount A for 3 months and I helped her learn english. I'm really excited to see her again and meet her family :) So, I'll write about Kobe next time....
Ooh, I almost forgot about bunkasai. Bunkasai is a school festival that happens every year around this time. We had ours last Thursday and Friday. The students work hard on different displays, and performances, and then we have 2 days of no classes to check it all out. There was a talent show, lots of tasty food, tea ceremony, time to check out all the displays of art, history, etc, and they also brought in some musicians and comedians. It was a good time, I even got to make a glass bead (by melting glass and shaping it, although it broke so the teacher gave me one of hers, which was much cooler anyway), and dye a facecloth with japanese indigo dye. Ok, now I'm done.
Love.

We won a game!!!

Best weekend ever! We went up to Nagano on Friday night (long drive by the way, about 6 hours). We meant to leave at 7pm, but due to many complications it was about 9 when we finally took off, and therefore almost 3am when we rolled in to the hotel. We were staying in a hotel with all the other ALT soccer teams from across the country, and it was loud. After a short night's sleep we were off to the fields, in our fancy new uniforms, bright and early. We played 3 games on Saturday, and actually didn't do too bad! We lost our first one, 1-0, tied the second (0-0) and then lost in penalty kicks, and won the 3rd 2-1 in penalty kicks. Saturday was my first soccer game ever, so I was pretty terrible, but I think I improved over the weekend, and it was alot of fun. On Saturday night we were tempted with a huge dance party with all the teams in our hotel. I bought ume shu (plum liquor) to drink and didn't like it, so I ended up trading drinks of it for many different types of liquor. A bad mix by the end of the night, to put it lightly. So much fun though. So we wake up hungover on Sunday and have to play another game. Running while hungover is NOT my favorite thing to do. It really sucked, but we lost, so it was our last game. Nagano was beautiful, we were on a ski resort (no snow though obviously) so there were mountains all around us while we played.

On Monday I had the most random night yet. After taiko practice I met up with some friends at an izakaya in Matsu. My friend Nigel has some friends visiting from China (they're Canadian, just teaching in China), so we were out for their last night in Japan. I drank 3 big ringo chuhais (apple coolers...sort of) in a bout an hour and then we decided to go back to Nigel's place to play darts. Drunken darts, what fun. Nigel made the losers (me and Doug) shoot whisky, and that was the end of us. When we got back to Doug's place, we (well, he really) decided to take us to a nearby bar and buy us Guiness. None of us could even drink half of it. Definitely the drunkest I've been on a school night. Luckily I was at Doug's school on Tuesday, and as we have our own office, and neither of us had classes, we napped all morning. Doug actually stretched out on the floor of our office and slept. Man I love this job. I watched tv on my computer too. Can't believe I get paid for this;)

Last night I started a Tuesday tradition. After getting back to Taki from Doug's school, I only have about an hour before Japanese classes, so the past two weeks I've been eating dinner at Kura, the local izakaya. The first time I went, the owner/chef sat down with me and explained everything on the menu for me (it's all in kanji, so even him reading it in Japanese to me is sooooo much easier than reading it myself). He's a really cool guy. So this time I get there, sit at the bar, and he shows me an english phrasebook he bought with phrases you need in a restaurant. So he's learning english to help me out, and we had a good chat in Japanese too. He asked me if I'm going to come every Tuesday, and I told him probably, since it's so convenient, and he's great to practice Japanese on. Gets me in the mood for class:) I'm getting really excited about speaking Japanese here now.... I'm alot less shy about it than I was when I first got here:)
Anyways, I'm out for now. Miss you:)

Good cheesecake DOES exist in Japan!!

If I make it that is :) Even after having to make subsititutions for the many ingredients I couldn't find here, and finding out that my oven cooks a cheesecake in half the time of a regular oven, it still turned out pretty damn good.
And last night I found this amazing little cafe/restaurant right around the corner from my house ( I knew it was there before but never bothered to look for it till last night), that serves coffee, plays the Beatles and makes their own sausages (I think). We got like 10 different types of sausages, all of which were awesome, and we had a grill right at our table. The food was really tasty, but I am really excited about the prospect of studying there. They have couches, serve lattes, and are open till 10pm. I'm so used to going to Timothy's or Starbucks at home to study, since I'm so easily distracted elsewhere, so I'm gonna ask if they mind me hanging out there sometimes to study Japanese. The best part is that I can practice on the ladies that run it, since they don't speak any English!! Anyways, off to teach my one and only class today:)

New cure for hangovers: spicy food and sports:)

I know, I know, I`m starting to slack off already with writing this thing. I`ve gotten some complaints so at least I know people are reading this though:) Quite alot has happened since I last wrote. I have car insurance now, so I can drive my car at last, and have been, all around the area. The first weekend I had it I drove around all day Saturday, getting very, very lost. But it was fun. I bought a tape adaptor so I can hook up my ipod, and cruise with some good tunes. Love it. Anyway, I`ve also been to Nagoya a couple times recently, once with my friend Doug to visit his cousin and her friends who live there and the second time to see my little bro and his new place. The first time I went we ended up at this awesome little bar called Smashhead. There`s all of 2 tables and some bar stools, and when we walked in it was full of foreigners, one of which Doug actually knew from back in Mie. The people that own this bar import vintage American toys, so I bought a Betty Boop bobblehead air freshener for my car, which made me think of Trish when I saw it. Miss you:) Looks great in my car.

The second time I went up was last Friday and I made plans to meet up with Jake, and also Michi and Toyoko at the starbucks near the subway station. Only when I came out of the station I couldn`t find it and got very lost:( Luckily, Jake now has a keitai (cellphone) so we were able to meet up elsewhere and he knew the way to Starbucks. It was so great seeing Michi and Toyoko again! I didn`t realize just how fantastic Michi`s english is until I got here. It`s so nice to be able to have complex conversations with someone here. Hopefully by the time I leave I`ll be able to talk to him like that in Japanese:)

Jake`s new apartment is pretty nice, large enough for a city apartment, and in the best neighbourhood ever! I`m so jealous, even though I love where I live. The place where he lives is called Osu, and it has a shopping district full of really cool shops like vintage clothing stores with tons of stuff from the 60`s, 70`s, 80`s and used kimonos too. It`s a really cool place.

I headed back to Mie on Saturday afternoon and that night we had a pub quiz at a bar in Matsusaka. Basically we were in teams, they asked us really hard questions and we had to answer them while drinking heavily. It was much harder than I expected, but my team came in 2nd thanks to the smart ladies from the south who know their Japanese history:) Did you know there are 19 types of Guiness? Yeah there was a drinking category and it was one of the hardest ones!!

So, on Sunday, with bad hangovers, we went to an indian restaurant for lunch, and then to Ise for soccer practice (our tournament is this weekend). It was really fun, and somehow the combination made me feel alot better. Go figure. Then we played tennis (a very productive day after a night of partying), although we were all pretty lazy about it.

Now I`m at school in Matsusaka and just found out that english club is cancelled today so I get to go home on time! I think I`ll make a pit stop at the batting cages on the way home:)

Miss ya:)

Have car, can't drive it:(

So I've have my car for a few days now, which would be exciting, except that I still don't have insurance, so it's sitting in my parking spot. In order to get insurance, I have to wait until the shaken papers have been transferred to my name, which is taking longer than I expected. It's frustrating to have to bike everywhere when I have a perfectly good car just waiting to take me places.
Meanwhile, the last week has been pretty eventful. My brother came down to Taki-cho for the weekend, due to the small problem of being temporarily homeless in Nagoya. We went to an izakaya with my friends and then to the castle for drinks. Then on Saturday we went to the Ise Grand Shrine to see a taiko festival. Apparently we saw the country's best taiko group, and they definitely lived up to the title. Fantastic! It made me really excited to play the taiko in my own festival, which is fast approaching. (Just a sidenote... the arcade at me local grocery store just got a Taiko Drum Master video game!!! Can't wait to play!) Somehow Jake and I got roped into playing four-touch volleyball game that night, as everyone on my friend's team was running late. I had intended to only watch and cheer them on, but ended up having an awesome time. Four-touch volleyball is this bizarre twist on volleyball where you play with a dodgeball and each player (four per team) has to touch the ball once and only once before sending it over the net. Since it was our first time playing (and the Japanese teams we played against were obviously pros) we came in last in the tournament, but we definitely improved by the end of the night, and even managed to score a few points!! I would definitely play again. Then we were off to a party, hosted by some friends that had just climbed Mount Fuji the night before. Don't quite know how they managed to pull off a party after that, butit was fun:)

On Sunday I got on the train to Nagoya with Jake, but got off in Tsu for a book swap. That's one of the perks of knowing so many other foreigners here; we are our own library of foreign books. I came away with many more than I'll be able to read before the next one though;)
I've actually had quite alot of work this week, between classes and correcting essays on world peace that some students are submitting to a contest. And by correcting, I obviously mean crossing everything out and writing new sentences while trying to figure out what they meant to say. It's much more difficult to correct essays in engrish than I thought. Luckily, Doug and I were in it together so we were able to share the really funny sentences.

Last night I was a guest teacher at an eikawa (adult English class), and after hearing horror stories about how difficult adult students are to keep interested, I was a little nervous. My class was amazing though! They were all really friendly and excited to have me there, and they're even having a welcome party for me! Ooh, and one woman said she's going to give me a used kimono (new one's are worth thousands of dollars, so it's very exciting to get a used one for free!)! So for an activity last night I thought of some questions about weird aspects of Japanese culture that I didn't understand and got them to explain them to me. I found out that the reason it's rude to eat/drink while walking is that sitting while eating shows that you are honouring the food and the person who prepared it. And even though fast food chains are making it easier to break the rules, people will still think I'm rude if I do it. I asked a mother and daughter pair whether tattooing and body piercing is accepted in Japan, and got two very differet opinions. The young girl is of the same mindset as many North American teenagers, that people should be free to do what they want with their bodies and shouldn't be judged based on their appearance, while her mother thinks that it's an insult to the parents for a child to mark up the body given to himher by their parents. I also learned that some bathhouses won't let you in if you're tattooed. Not sure what that means for me and my belly piercing (I've been to one and didn't get kicked out). Anyways, it was alot of fun, and I'm a little sad that I only get to see them once a month. They're a great group of people. Well, I'm off to class, so TTFN!

Shout out!

Hey, just want to say hi to all of you at Chapters that are reading my blog. I just saw Tina's comment:) Hope you're all well and I miss you lots!! Feel free to visit!!

Sabotage!

So, we couldn't get my internet to work last night, and it seems the problem lies with the phone line. For some reason I no longer have a dial tone, so it appeared that my phone had been disconnected. I looked everywhere for a phone bill that maybe I hadn't paid on time, but to no avail. When I got to school today I told my supervisor and he called NTT, the phone company. They apparently suspect that someone cut my phone line!! So, someone is coming over tonight to check it out. Who would do that to a poor foreign newcomer? Maybe I've already pissed off the neighbours. My predecessor, Helen didn't have a good relationship with them b/c of noise complaints during parties she had, but I think they are oversensitive and the walls are paper thin. I'm holding out hope that the internet company accidentally cut the line when they installed my internet, and it's not sabotage on the part of some irrate neighbour of mine:)

Almost, but not quite...

Yesterday was one of those days where, even though nothing really bad happens, enough little things go wrong to make you feel that the world is against you, just for one day. It began when I walked to the train station at 7am and the weather was very nice, so I hadn't brought an umbrella or jacket. Why would you when the sun is out and you haven't read the forecast... Of course, as soon as I got on the train, the downpour began. The problem is, after the train I take a bus, and then have a walk from the bustop, with my laptop in a not so waterproof bag. So, I was forced to buy an umbrella at the station for 400yen ($4), an outrageous markup since it was obviously a 100yen store umbrella. Then my bus was late, which is frustrating b/c my first class at this school is first period, so I had no time to prepare or dry off before walking into class. Then, I discovered just how bad this school's english is. I had prepared a very simple game of esl bingo for them to play, but even though it was explained to them in japanese, many of them still refused to talk to each other in English, instead choosing to copy down each other's answers. Four classes means four times the frustration. Some students were good though. Then, I was really looking forward to a croissant from the nearby bakery at lunch, but it's closed for the next month:(
Anyways, like I said, all insignificant things, but by the end of my 1.5 hour commute at the end of the day I was relieved to be home and find my modem waiting at my door for me. Internet at last! Well, not quite. All the instructions and the setup program they sent me were in Japanese, so of course something had to go wrong with the modem so that I would have to troubleshoot (not so easy when you can't read the manuals). Eventually I gave up, but luckily I have befriended a computer geek who is going to come set it up for me tonight:) Then I'll be able to devote more time at work for, well, work:)

Even better car!!

So, just before we went to look atthe car yesterday, my friend Kat got a call about another car at a different dealer. Same price but 2 years newer, and extra year of shakken (long explanation made short, this will save me from paying about $600 in the spring for an inspection), 8 CD changer, AC, dark turqoise with shiny wood panelling on the dashboard, and so pretty!! And they're much more lenient about payment so I can pay some now and the rest when I get my next paycheck:) Kat's calling them today to tell them I'm taking it, they're going to clean, inspect and fix it up and then I'll go in to do the paperwork, and it should be mine within the week!! I'm so excited, I like it 20X more than the other car. I'm going to have the best car of anyone I know!!

Buying a car today, I think!!

Yesterday I went car shopping and found a pretty decent car to buy. Haven't actually seen it yet, but they're bringing it into the dealer from another town today so I'm going to see it after school. Hopefully it's everything they said it was, and if I decide to buy it I should have it within a week or so! No more bumming rides and generally feeling like a burden to anyone with a car... I'll be able to go shopping, to the river and wherever else whenever I want!! Man I'm stoked. It's a little more expensive than I originally planned on, but after hearing stories of old kei-cars that have broken down, I decided to dole out a little more money up front to get something more reliable. And it's roomy too! Big enough to fit 5 people and luggage, unlike most JET cars. This is a picture of a wagon-R that is one year newer, so it'll be similar, but wine red.
It's like a tall hatchback. Sorry for the boring post, but it's really all I can think about rightnow:)

Stupid gaijin moment #1 (of many I'm sure)

For those of you who don't know, gaijin means foreign person. The polite term is gaikokujin (foreign country person), and gaijin is kind of rude if a Japanese person calls us one, but many of us refer to ourselves this way. Since I am so lacking in Japanese ability, and don't understand how things work here most of the time, I am prone to doing stupid things occasionally that make me look like a stupid gaijin. Last night for example, I was on my way home from my school in Ise, and I managed to find the train station on foot, and change trains when I needed to, so I thought everything was going fine and I'd soon be home. Little did I know that at Oka Station, the tiny train station closest to my house, you have to go to the very front of the first car in order to get off. So, here I am, trying to figure out why the door isn't opening, while people are getting on through a door in the next car, and then I realize it's not going to open, and I turn to a nearby girl and cry "Sumimasen, how do I get off?". She helped me get into the next car, and tried to open the door that had just closed, but it was too late and the train began to move. Now the thing is, where I live is very country, so if I were to stay on the train and get off at the next stop, it's too far to walk, and I'd probably have to wait about 2 hours or so for the next train. Cut to me running up the aisle yelling "Sumimasen (excuse me)" over and over to the conductor, who stopped the train (we had only moved like a foot or two), looked at me like I was a madwoman, and when I said I wanted to get off, he began explaining (in Japanese that I couldn't understand for the most part) that I should have gotten off while we were stopped (obviously). Anyway, he let me off after he scolded me for a minute, and I got off, feeling like the biggest tool. At least now I know what to do at that station:)

I hate trains!

So, I was super stoked about the fireworks down in Kumano last night, and I ran to catch the train after work yesterday. While I was waiting, thunder and lightening began, and as soon as I got on the train it started pouring. Kumano is like 3 hours further south, so I figured it could still be nice there and wasn't to worried. Until the train arrived at Misedani Station, where Chito and Ryan got on, and they announced that the train was delayed due to the storm. They kept saying to wait just a little longer while they checked the train and the tracks, but about an hour later we got fed up and went to a ramen shop, giving up on the train. After the boys ate (I ate earlier) we headed back to the station to see if the train was by some chance, still there, and it was!! We decided to get back on, even though we were almost guaranteed to have missed the whole fireworks by the time we finally arrived, and after having been delayed 1 hour and 55 minutes, we were off. When we got off the train 2 hours later, we actually did see a couple fireworks from the station, and when we met up with everyone on the beach they announced that there was one last session. So we did end up seeing about 10 minutes worth of fireworks, and they were still by far the best I've ever seen. They lit up the sky in spirals and showers of light, and there were ones shaped like cats, faces, hearts and mickey mouse. Unfortunately I was too mesmerized to snap any photos, so the one you're seeing here is just a little one I saw after leaving the station. We stayed over in Kumano, and woke up at 6, a whole group of us stumbling, half asleep, to the train station to catch early trains home. Now I'm at work, and feeling like I might crash pretty soon, since I only slept for maybe an hour and sort of dozed (uncomfortably) on the train. Next time I'll bring a pillow.

See, already I'm getting lazy with the posts and school's not even in yet. I went to Tsu last Wednesday night and stayed till Friday at Debbie's house for orientation, which was ok, but the party on Thursday night was lots of fun. Expensive though. We had to pay about$30 for all you can eat and one drink, but there wasn't nearly enough food for us, and what was there was pretty disappointing. Add that to all the chocolate martinis I drank, and well it was a pricy night, tbut alot of fun too.

On Saturday I went to see Miyazaki's new movie, which was all in Japanese, no subtitles, and apparently terrible, according to Chito, who speaks Japanese, although I didn't understand enough to form much of an opinion. I also bought a new microwave/ toaster/ oven combo so now I can bake!! I might make cookies as omiyage for my other two schools if I can find time.
Afterwards, we went to Matsu to play tennis, and even though it was raining, it was the most fun I've ever had playing a sport I think. It seems like it might be a regular thing, so I might even buy my own raquet. Speaking of sports, I also joined the Mie JETs womens soccer team, because it isn't very competetive, and sounds like alot of fun. We get to go to Nagano at the end of September for a tournament.

On Sunday, we went swimming in the river at this beautiful spot with rocks to jump off into the really deep water. I'll definitely be going back there often. Just need a car, or people to bum rides off of. I finally got paid yesterday, so we went for payday drinks in Matsu last night, and ate lots of yummy food in a little izakaya near the station. Apparently the last train to my town leaves Matsu at 10:30, so that's late enough for weeknights.

Finally, tonight I am off to Kumano, about 3 hours away by train, to see what are supposed to be the best fireworks in Mie. Anything can beat what I'm used to; 10 minutes of disappointment. These are supposed to go for 2 hours and be amazing, so hopefully the trip will be worth it. I'm staying over and taking the early train back in the morning, so I'm only taking 2 hours vacation.
Anyways, I gotta go catch the train!!

Shopping spree in Nagoya!!

Well, I did alot this weekend, so this may be a long post, but since it''s almost the end of the work day here and I'm falling asleep at my desk I need something to do. Let's see, on Friday we all met up in Matsusaka for curry dinner and then drinks at my new favourite bar, Hunky Dory's. It's like a really laid back jazz bar, and they serve Guiness. Can't go wrong with that! And it's within stumbling distance from Doug's house, and therefore very popular among the Matsusaka JETs. We didn't drink much and went home early because we were all tired from a long week of work (and by work I mean doing nothing all day of course), and were prepared to get up early for the long haul to the beach in Shima.

On Saturday I caught a ride with Brian to Shima, and I had a fantastic time at the beach party. We cracked open the beers as soon as we got there, and I quickly discovered the joy of swimming in the ocean with a can of beer (and later a bottle of wine) in hand. The water here is so much warmer than at home, I really spent most of the day in the water. We basically just sat around and chatted, ate and drank, and I made some new friends, including a few other wine drinkers and I believe a wine party is in the making. We all got tired of sitting in the sun by around 5 and drove back to Matsusaka for dinner at an izakaya (japanese bar). I love eating at these because basically everyone orderss a bunch of small dishes and shares, which is a great way to try new things whe you can't read the menu and don't know what to order. Then the bill gets split evenly. No fuss. Around 11pm we drove up to Tsu, about 30 minutes away for a party at another JET, Debbie's, place, where we were greeted with blender drinks:)

On Sunday, I went to a local festival with Brian and his supervisor, and we watched people dancing with dragon heads (it has a name, really, I just forget what it is). We also got to catch goldfish, which I was terrible at ( I caught one very tiny one and another one that jumped out of my bucket!) We ended up giving them all back anyways because they were dying in the plastic bags they gave us. We played a couple more games and I tried Takoyaki (little fried balls of octopus and batter), which were delicious!!

Since I had Monday and Tuesday off, I decided to go shopping in Nagoya on my own. I went early Monday morning and took the Rapid Mie train to Nagoya and the the subway to Sakae, a really nice shoping district. This is definitely the place to go if you're into shopping for designer clothes! Louis Vuitton, Prada, Gucci, there's even a Tiffany's! Fortunately I also found some cheaper shops and managed to buy quite a bit. I even shoped at the GAP which I always avoid at home. My new favourite store though is Zara, which I think we have in Canada, but not Halifax. Kind of like a slightly more expensive Jacob, but with good sales too. They had some really nice winter coats, so I'll definitely be going back before it gets cold. I also found a bookstore that sells english books (I bought 3!) and a Starbucks. It took me awhile to find it, but was I ever glad when I did! I bought espresso beans to use with my new espresso machine, and the barrista spoke really good english so I asked her for recommendations on places to go in Sakae. Already I get excited when I come across someone who speaks English, especially after having to point at pictures in McDonald's to order the egg mcmuffin meal (that's right, mickey d's for breakfast).

Somehow I didn't get lost, even without a map or asking for directions, but I did almost fall flat on my face at one point as I was walking along the sidewalk and suddenly got distracted by one of those underground car parks where machines lift the cars and put them away. I tripped over my own feet, and although I didn't actually fall, I did give a Japanese man on a bike a bit of a fright I think.
There were also two occasions in Nagoya when I realized how foreign I actually am. The first was in a shoe store where I found some shoes that looked like they might fit me and was about to ask for a size when I realized the section I was in was the Queen Sized section, and I got embarrassed and left. The second was after I ordered my Venti Caffe Latte, and while I'm used to walking around with a coffee in Halifax, I have heard that it's rude to drink while you're walking here. However I could only sit in Starbucks for so long, and eventually left with half of my drink remaining. I figured I could sit down once in awhile and take a sip, but I think the very act of carrying a cup of coffee was enough to get me many strange looks. It seems strange to me that walking and drinking can be frowned upon in a place where there are vending machines everywhere on the side of the road!

In the early afternoon I took the train back to Matsusaka to meet Doug. A teacher that he had taught with in the past had invited him over to her place in the mountains to drink and sleep over, and feeling awkward about such an unusual request, Doug invited Ryan, Chito and I along. We went to this teacher's house for dinner and then went to a local festival where I met some teachers and a student from my high school in Taki,and learned the Bon Odori dance, a traditional dance done at festivals at this time of year. Then we went back to the teacher's house (I forget her name) where she invited us to take baths. In Japan, you wash thoroughly outside the bath and then soak in the tub. The bath water is shared. I'm not sure if it's common to be offered a bath in this situation, but in order to prepare myself for onsens and public baths, I figured I may as well. All in all, the night wasn't as weird as Doug warned us it might be. I think he was worried that she was going to get wasted and talk too much, but it was ok. We woke up early and tried to sneak out before she woke up, but her mother caught us and woke her up.

Yesterday wasn't nearly as exciting as the rest of the weekend. I mostly just biked around town, bought groceries, and cooked my first meal. Now I'm back at work, although only for one day. Tonight I'm off to Tsu to stay with Debbie for orientation. Two days of learning how to teach and get by in Japan, complete with an all-you-can-eat (and drink?) party tomorrow night. So many parties, I love it!!

Four day weekend!!

Usually I'm not so good at keeping a journal, but my days at school are so long and I have nothing really to fill them with yet, so here I am, wrtiting every day. I'm sure I'll fizzle out once school starts.

Dinner at Dr Azuma's house was pretty nice. His wife is a fantastic cook, and I learned that she's a red wine drinker as well, so if I get invited back, I know what to bring! They also have a daughter about my age, and a golden retriever that made miss Molly back at home.

Monday and Tuesday of next week are a holiday, the Bon festival, so I have a long weekend because there won't be any teachers at school. I don't have a clue yet what I'll do with these extra days, but I might see if I can tag along to the river for a swim and/or do a little exploring in nearby towns. We'll see.

Tonight we're going for yakiniku (korean bbq) in Matsusaka, and tomorrow is the beach party, so it will be at least a good start to the weekend.

Survived the trains!!

Yesterday I went to my school in Ise, and although I was scared to death of taking the train by myself, I actually didn't get lost! Now I know how to pay, and transfer between lines, and I even learned how to take the bus. I'd say I'm now confident enough to escape from my lonely little town anytime I please. As for the school I visited yesterday... it's a school for part time students, and apparently the english level there is, well, I think the teachers there called it "the lowest in Japan". In fact, one of the teachers admitted to having very poor english, and barely said two words the whole time I was there. So, I'm a little worried about this school. I have to make super easy lessons and make them as fun as possible b/c the students hate english. Well, at least they have a stack of dvds I can pick scenes from to study, including Back to the Future 1,2 & 3!!!

Last night my friend Chito, who REALLY lives in the middle of nowhere, hosted a BBQ welcome party for the JET that arrived in Matsusaka yesterday, only he couldn't come. So, I guess it was more a party in honour of this new guy that no one's met yet. Whatever it was, it was fun. We BBQ'd and drank wine (or at least Chito and I did), and lit fireworks!! (Aww, the fun that can be had for $3.)
Tonight I'm off to Dr. Azuma's house for dinner with his family. I met him last week, and his English is excellent, so it should be a good time. It'll be my first homemade Japanese dinner, and I can't wait! As long as they don't try to feed me Natto (fermented a.k.a rotten bean curd). Ewww. Or whale.

Wimpiest typhoon ever!!

Or, more accurately, it changed course and missed us completely. I was really starting to get scared last night when the sky turned yellow and the clouds looked so ominous, but apparently I needn't have worried. So today I am off to my second school, Ise Manabi High School in Ise, although I'm not sure when. It'll be my first time on the train by myself, so hopefully I won't get lost. Wish me luck!!

Week 1 in Taki-cho!

So, here I am in Japan, after about a year of planning for it. Tokyo orientation was a blast, besides all the boring, mandatory meetings, we did alot of partying and wandering around Shinjuku. Then, last Wednesday all of us JETs bound for Mie-ken boarded the Shinkansen(bullet train), which wasn't as impressive as I thought it'd be. We were ushered onto a new train in Nagoya, and one by one got off at stops where there were excited Japanese people holding signs bearing Western names. I was among the lucky(?) group of prefectural ALTs that got off in Tsu and walked to the Board of Education (BOE) where our supervisors were waiting to drive us to our new homes. I introduced myself to the 3 teachers who were there to retrieve me, and promptly forgot their names (just now starting to be able to remember Japanese names). They took me to school to meet the kouchou-sensei (principal), and finally to my apartment. After showing me where everything was, they left me to my own devices for all of half an hour before coming back to pick me up for dinner, where I amazed everyone with my chopstick skill and ability to eat sashimi. They also thought it was funny (in an amazing sort of way, I think) that I could speak a little Japanese, and one teacher in particular almost fell over laughing when I said Hajimemashite (nice to meet you) to him.
Due to all the partying in Tokyo, I crashed my first night in Taki-cho at about 8pm and slept until the excruciating heat woke me up at 6am. Taki-cho looks like a tropical resort, with all the lush greenery, but it feels like one too, without the luxury of swimming all day. The heat, combined with the conservativeness of everyone here, may actually drive me mad before the summer is over. I'm used to wearing tanktops when it gets hot in Canada, but I definitely can't wear those at work, and even walking around town, I feel naked compared to everyone else.
So far, work has mostly consisted of Tamai-sensei (my supervisor) taking me shopping for food and things for the apartment, registering as an alien (that word really makes me feel foreign), getting a cell phone, etc, and showing me around. He and the other teachers have also been treating me to lunch everyday, which must be getting expensive, but I've given up trying to pay.
My first weekend here was alot of fun, and a relief from being super polite all the time, because I went to Matsusaka (the nearest city) to eat and drink with other JETs. We ended up drinking at the site of an old castle that is now in ruins. Then, on Saturday, I went with Brian (the other JET in Taki-cho) and his supervisor to Miyagawa (Miya river) for a children's festival where we went swimming in the river, catching fish and eels that they released, which they then BBQ'd for us, and hitting watermelon blindfolded (like a pinata). After that we went to a school festival and ate curry prepared by the cooking students at my school, watched a Taiko drum performance and dance performance, and saw some fireworks. I'm planning on joining both the Taiko team and the dance team if they'll let me.
Now I'm back at school, and they are forecasting a typhoon for tonight, but I don't think it'll be too bad. They measure wind in m/s here, so I converted what they said on the news, and it'll probably only be around 110km/h, which isn't too terrible, right? I was supposed to go to one of my other schools (I have 3 now!) in Ise-shi tomorrow morning, but my appointment has been changed to the afternoon b/c of the storm. Well, at least I'll have my first typhoon under my belt early.
I guess I've written enough for now, I'll write again tomorrow if I get a chance and tell y'all about my first storm here in the inaka.
Love