卒業式

Last week Friday, I attended my first Japanese graduation.  It was enormously different from every graduation ceremony I’ve ever been to.  When I think of graduation, I think of general joy and excitement about what lies ahead.  I think of noisemakers and general rowdiness.  Last week’s ceremony contained very little of these.  The staff all wore black suits (the principal wore a coat with tails), and the students wore their uniforms.  The students marched in, and later up to the stage, with military-sharp turns and four count, 45 to 90 degree bows.  Everyone cried.  One of my co-teachers had to pause while reading the names of the students in his homeroom class to wipe his eyes.  The principal, vice-principal, and representative from the BOE all had tears running down their cheeks.  The previous class president, as representative of the graduating class, cried through the entirety of his speech and had to step away from the podium twice to compose himself.  I had difficulty understanding the speeches, so I gave up trying to understand him through sobs and watched the students react to his words.  Perhaps the image that will stay with me the longest is of the interaction between two of the “cool” graduating boys (you know the type, 15 year old boys who think they’re amazing and therefore have little need to pay attention in class except to make jokes).  One of the boys sobbed into his hands, the other (sitting directly behind him) tapped him on the shoulder and offered him a pack of tissues.  The boy in the front took one and offered the pack back, but the boy in the back shook his head and patted him on the shoulder, which just made the boy in the front cry harder.  That’s the moment I started to cry. 

The students collectively sang their class song from the chorus contest in November.  They struggled through it (even though they’ve been practicing for a week), and the second the song was over, there was a collective sob from about 75% of the students as they started crying harder.  It was crazy.

One of my students ran up to me after the ceremony with a letter in her hand.  She gave it to me, and managed to say (in Japanese) “Thank you for taking care of me” (which is a common thing to say in this situation).  She apologized for not being able to speak in English at the moment (I was impressed she could speak at all since she was crying so hard), but continued to thank me.  Then I did something essentially forbidden in Japanese culture.  I gave her a hug.  At first she tensed up as if she was thinking “what is she doing to me?” but she quickly relaxed and started crying into my shoulder.  I miss hugs.

Anyway, no event in Japan is complete without a follow-up 宴会　(enkai: dinner party).  We celebrated graduation at a Japanese-style restaurant.  Dinner was delicious and accompanied by large amounts of alcohol.  I think the most interesting question of the night has to be “Hawaii… In Hawaii… tobacco… good taste?  Good taste?”  My response was, in Japanese, “I’m not really sure, but I think they taste the same, but in Hawaii many people smoke marijuana.”  The look of shock on their faces was amazing.  They then asked me how Hawaiian beer tastes.  Anyway, I didn’t drink that much because I had to get up early the next morning.

On Saturday, I went on a trip with the office staff of my school.  Actually, I think the administrators (principal, vice-principal, and head teachers) were the only men invited, but all the female staff members were invited.  I believe this is because we went on a nature walk to see the flowers.  It was pretty amusing because the women would fall behind (looking at flowers or stopping to sample something at a booth or buying omiyage (souvenirs)), and the men would wait and smoke until we caught up.  I think this happened four or five times.  

We had lunch at a really nice restaurant.  I believe this lunch to be the most expensive lunch I’ve ever had, beating lunch in Ginza by quite a bit.  Lunch was 8000 yen ($80.80 American based on the exchange rate at 7:15 this morning).  It was delicious, but not really memorable.  They did a lot of creative things with ume (pickled plum) and tofu.  We had ume juice, some sort of cold tofu in bamboo, grass tempura, and the usual sashimi.  Overall, I felt pleasantly full after lunch, unlike usual staff meals (like Friday night) where I feel like I ate too much.  It was a good day.

Sunday was another day of soccer.  The group was significantly smaller this week (I think because of St. Patrick’s Day today), but I still think we had a good time.  I’m not as sore today, which I would like to attribute to being in better shape (but in reality we cut practice shorter).  Oh well, I can believe what I want to believe.

Children's home, soccer practice, belly-dancing, hanami, and more quality George time

Okay, so I need to update more often.  I was flipping through my photos and I realized I have not just one or two events to update you all on, but five.  Bad me.

A few weeks ago (mid-February) a group of us went to a home for children who have no parents.  It was a lot of fun.  I wanted to steal this child, but I managed to resist.  As you can tell by the other photo we tore it up (literally) and made valentine's day cards.  Quite a few people, Liz included, were afflicted with "シール病気" (sticker illness).

Last weekend was Dasai soccer practice.  The Saitama JETs get together ever other week (weather permitting) and play soccer in preparation for the big tournament in Nagano in June.  We played for about 3 hours, and I shocked myself at how much I remembered from high school.  However, I'm not quite as in shape as I was back then (the next day my JTE asked me why I was walking like an old woman).  

Friday night was excellent as well.  My friend Kara is an amazing belly dancer and she performed in a cozy little restaurant in Omiya.  The group consisted of a bunch of people I kinda knew, but not really, so it was fun to essentially get to know other JETs that I hadn't

 really talked to before.  The main exception was Albert.  Unfortunately, he had to leave early so we made plans to meet up the next day.

Saturday, lunch with Albert.  In true Tokyo fashion, we rejected Japanese food and ate at TGIF.  That reminds me, last last Friday, I went out with Liz, her friend from Australia, and a bunch of JETs.  Unfortunately, I got there late so I didn't eat anything.  I think that may have been a factor in our decision to eat there.  We met up with his hot other half for another meal (btw, they're really cute together.  Just thought I'd share).  We talked about Little Mermaid on broadway and Wicked.  I was a happy person.  Anyway, they went back to work and Albert and I ended up wandering around Yoyogi park where we stumbled upon some cherry blossoms.  We also saw some jugglers, tap dancers, and a lot of couples playing with those velcro ball things that you catch on paddles that are strapped to your hand.

After an extensive search for a tie rack in Tokyu Hands, I made my way up to Omiya for more quality time at the George.  Let me back up a week.  At soccer practice, I talked with Anna and her boyfriend (two more of the elusive "I know who you are, but I don't think I've ever actually talked to you" people), and as a result, she invited me to her birthday celebration the following week.  Okay, back to this weekend.  As it was her birthday, we all ensured there was always a drink in front of her.  However, she got back at us all by guilting us into drinking to keep up.  Luckily for me, everyone else went to the station at the same time.  I ended up catching a taxi home from my station (instead of riding my bike) and I managed to somehow rip the zipper off my jeans (Don't ask me how.  Or where the zipper is).  I also had a 50 minute long phone conversation with a roomful of drunk guys who were playing poker.  It was during this conversation that I learned that the recontracting conference in May has been cancelled.  I'm very disappointed.  :(

Which brings me to today.  As my favorite Sundays usually go, I slept in (with my bottle of water close at hand), watched a bunch of TV, and cleaned.  I think I really need to talk with my supervisor about the paint in my apartment, because the beige paint is chipping and somehow dripping purple down the walls of my bath room.  I think that's a bad sign.

February 2008

Forgive me, I’ve been extremely lax in updating this in the past few weeks.  I would say I’ve been busy, but that’s not really the case.

My trip up to Sapporo was amazing.  I’ve never seen so much snow in my life (that I was old enough to remember).  We walked around Odori park and saw well over a hundred “little” snow sculptures  (about 1m³) as well as about 10 really large snow displays including a slide, a snowboard/ski ramp, stages, and a promo for Prince Caspian (due out this summer).  We also saw a Bailey’s ice bar, some fish frozen in ice, and a lot of really stupid foreigners.  A highlight:

 Two visibly intoxicated white guys with open cans of beer in their hands point at a hand-held sign advertising a strip club and say “Where?  Where?”  The Japanese guy holding the sign looks a little startled and replies, “Japanese only.”  I don’t think that’s true, but if I were that guy, I wouldn’t want them in my club either.

We also went to the 2009 Toyota Big Air competition.  It was pretty cool to see professionals doing crazy flips and turns on a snowboard, but I’ve never been colder in my life (that I was old enough to remember).  Looking back on it, I’d do it again, I’d just wear a couple extra pairs of socks.

Since I’ve been back in Saitama, things have been pretty relaxing.  Two weekends ago, I went out to Harajuku for a friend’s birthday party.  I decided earlier that I wasn’t going to stay out all night since I was tired, so it was imperative that I catch the 11:30 train from Ikebukuro.  Due to an almost comical amount of mix-ups, I arrived in Ikebukuro at 11:31.  Luckily, a friend of mine who lives near Ikebukuro was still awake, and I slept on the couch in his apartment.

Yes, I said his.  At school on Monday, I always talk with my co-workers about what we did the previous weekend (good English practice).  I was very careful to say “their” and “they” when referring to my friend since guys and girls who sleep in the same apartment are generally considered to be dating/hooking up.  However, I slipped when talking to the art teacher at my school.  Of course, he caught it and started giggling (seriously).  It was then I knew I was doomed.  Then, he said, between giggles, “You naughty?  Nasty things?”  Alternately hilarious and horrifying (he is a 60 year old art teacher who likes Amy Winehouse and Fergie although he can’t understand what they’re saying).  I emphasized that we were only friends and I slept on the couch, but he already made up his mind. 

In other news, we have a new AET in Hidaka.  He’s working at Koma since Zac left.  He’s American, been studying Japanese (mostly) on his own for five years, and has a brother who married a Japanese woman and lives in Japan.  It’s weird not having Zac around anymore, but I guess it’s sort of preparing me for when Dan leaves in July. 

Speaking of the summer, I’m officially staying for another year.  I even have the official papers (in Japanese and English).  It’s nice knowing that I have another year to improve my Japanese and get another year of classroom experience under my belt.  The girls are all staying and the boys are all leaving.  Jenny and I both are requesting to stay at our respective schools, but Kristine wants to switch.  I really hope I get along well with the new AETs.  Jenny and Kristine are great, but we don’t hang out much.

I cleaned my apartment this weekend.  It was awesome and sorely needed.  

The worst cold or the mildest flu

Cold and flu season hit me with full force at the end of last week. I returned home from work on Thursday and didn`t leave my apartment again until Tuesday. Luckily, my friends are amazing and brought me soup, bread, and salami.

Also, Zac left yesterday and he`s not coming back. This leaves five AETs for six schools.

I`m going to Sapporo this weekend for the snow festival. Hopefully the cold weather doesn`t push me into a relapse of illness.

Snow Day and AAAR Birthday Party Bash !!

Last night, we simultaneously celebrated thebirthdays of four of our friends.  In true Shane style, it was amazing.  Shane booked the George for two hours and arranged a nomihodai for about 50 people.  No good party is complete without a theme, and, as we were all born in the 80s, we pulled out the spandex, legwarmers, andhairspray.

It was awesome.  Unfortunately, it is definitely one of those times when words cannot describe 

the sheer fantabulousnous that it is.  Fortunately, I figured out how to add photos.  These are just two of the many I took from last night (if you want to see more, go to facebook).

Also, it snowed this week!  I woke up at 8 on Wednesday (an hour and a half past when my alarm clock went off), opened my curtains and saw snow!  Snow, as in flakes falling from the sky and everything covered in white, not the snow/rain that predominates in Salem.  Classes went as usual, but the best part was lunch break.  The kids ran out into the snow and threw snowballs at each other and I couldn't help but join them. They ended up teaming up against me, but I still think I won.

Visit from Mom

My mom came to visit last weekend with Michael. In preparation, I cleaned my apartment and bought new sheets and covers (and now my couches match).

We met up at the station on Saturday morning, had some lunch at the ramen shop, and visited Koma Shrine and my school. Essentially they saw Hidaka in an afternoon (with the exception of the park with the red flowers, since the flowers are only in bloom for about two weeks in the fall). We then went to Kawagoe and shopped around for awhile.

At 7 we met up with a few other AETs, my JTE and another teacher from my school for “dinner and drinking.” While everyone was nervous beforehand (I think), almost everyone had a good time. We had yakiniku and beer, and followed it up with an hour and a half of karaoke.

My friends admitted/complained that my co-workers are cooler then theirs. Although my interaction with the other teachers at their schools has been minimal at most, I always have a great time when I go out with my co-workers. My JTE and I swap stories (he says it’s a good way to practice his fluency), and I spend many free periods gossiping with the office ladies. Furthermore, Sato-sensei (the JTE we went out with on Saturday) not only found us a great place for dinner, he ended up treating our karaoke. Plus he sang the classic “I Want It That Way.” The other teacher who came out with us is equally as much fun. She’s the youngest teacher on staff (not counting me) and she teaches Japanese (kanji and such).

On Saturday night, when she was surrounded by seven people who were speaking in conversational English, she said to me “クリストルの感じ分かる。” (essentially, “I understand your feelings”). She continued, “私たちいつも日本語しゃべるけど。。。” (“we always talk in Japanese but [it’s difficult for you to understand]”). While I was in complete awareness of my situation, I didn’t ever stop to think about it from the perspective of my co-workers. I’m always getting compliments from them about how well I speak Japanese, to which I always respond with a shake of the head and a “上手じゃない” (no really, I’m not that good). However, after noticing how little she spoke when she was in the situation I find myself in everyday, I realized I’m really not as bad as I thought.

Anyway, back to my mom. We all had a lot of fun at dinner and karaoke, except for the huge embarrassment I felt when my mom announced that Kaz could move to Hawai’i and marry me.

The next day, we ventured out to Tokyo. A quick stop at Tokyu Hands turned into a 2.5 hour long shopping trip (which was topped off by a stop at Milky Way, land of delicious parfaits). We finally checked into the hotel at 4:30, then I anti-climactically took a nap until dinner. We got semi-lost on our way to the sushi restaurant that was recommended to us for dinner, but it turned out well because I got a new carpet for my apartment.

The following day was a national holiday known as 成人の日. This is a holiday that celebrates young adults who turned twenty in the past year. I believe it’s a bigger event if the twenty year old is a girl (if only because she gets dressed up in a fancy kimono). Coincidentally, we decided to visit Meiji shrine on this day. I was kinda bummed that we didn’t make it to Harajuku on Sunday to see the cosplay-ers, but I think it was worth it to see the elaborate kimono. After Meiji and Takeshita-dori (essentially a shopping area for teenagers), we crossed Tokyo and went to Ginza (the high-class, brand-name area of Tokyo). Michael’s cousin lives in the Tokyo area, and we met her for lunch. She brought her fifteen year old daughter who understood English very well, but was convinced she couldn’t speak it. I spent the majority of the two-hour, 5000yen lunch talking to her about Disneyland in Japanese. After perhaps the most frustrating search for a belt in a shopping district, mom and I parted ways in Shinjuku station.

I am now even more convinced that I am re-contracting and that I can’t help but end up, in the long run, in Hawaii.

あけましておめでとう！

Happy New Year!

I'm now re-settled in to my apartment in Japan.  I've hooked up my new printer, Region 1 (America) DVD player, and thrown out the forgotten food in my refrigerator.  Furthermore, I gave my apartment a good Japanese-style scrub down (meaning I wiped down the wood floor with a "floor towel" and vacuumed the tatami because I'm not quite sure how else to clean it).  Unfortunately, my washing machine hates me and makes evil beeping noises anytime I try to run it.  Therefore, I did laundry in my bathtub and hung it outside to dry in the sunny yet cold outdoors.  (but enough about chores in my apartment...)

On New Year's Eve we planned to stay out in Tokyo all night.  First we played some pool, then ventured to an izakaya for some food.  Around that time I was hit by a bad case of dizzies (I promise, I only had two drinks at this point so it wasn't inebriation).  Thus it was decided to cut the evening short, however pool and dinner isn't exactly a spectacular New Year's Eve, so we made one more stop before heading home.  The bar we chose was small and cozy in that familiar sort of way and the playlist seemed to be from Greatest Hits of the 1980s.  The bartender was friendly and insisted on responding to our "ありがとう" (thank you) with "you're welcome."  After a complimentary bowl of good luck soba and 4500 yen (for 4 shots, 4 beers, a gin tonic, and a cassius orange), we finally went home.  Unfortunately we missed the second to last train, so midnight was celebrated on the Kawagoe JR train platform.  Regardless, and although the dizzies accompanied me for 90% of the night, this was one of the best New Year's Eves I've ever had.  

In true Japanese fashion (so I've heard), we went to an onsen on New Year's Day to wash away 2007.  Two of Dan's friends visited from the U.S., so I got to show off my *ahem* expertise in the usage of an onsen.  I think it says quite a lot that I've not only become comfortable enough to bathe next to my co-workers and complete strangers, but next to a girl who has never enjoyed the onsen experience before.

Dan's friends left yesterday, and (almost) everything has returned to normal in Hidaka.  Kristine's friend from college is visiting, and Zac hasn't returned from his vacation, but Kaz and I spent some quality time in the 教育センター (education center). I updated my new computer, he read a book, and we parroted ”あけましておめでとう” (Happy New Year) to the 20 or so people who stopped by merely to wish the office a Happy New Year.  

Lastly, I'm currently bicycle-less.  It disappeared from the station's bicycle parking lot without a trace.  With any luck, they'll buy me a new one. *fingers crossed*