september 26th
i have gone from really short hair to shoulder length locks ever since my eighth grade year in junior high. it took me two tries, but i went from the long curly-ish hair of my childhood to the short spunky pixie cut that i still love now during that fateful last year before high school. since i've embarrassed short hair, i've had at least two friends cut their hair like mine because they liked the way it looked. i've also had other people tell me later, that they only cut their hair short because of the way mine looked. of course, this is quite the ego boost for a nerdy high schooler and an even odder college student, but it has now crossed that line. that line that tells me that i should blatantly ignore anyone (including my dear brother) who tells me i should have long hair. okay yeah, every once in a while i crave those cute braids that i wore every day when my hair was long enough for them, but come on, when a japanese high school girl cuts her hair to look like your short pseudo faux-hawk it's time to admit short hair is the way to go. don't get me wrong, looking at it on her it's a cute cut. but i feel that when this is a repeated occurrence, it's not just about the cut. it might have a little to do with the hair on my head. and to turn the focus away from my glorious, abundant hair (this is an ironic statement now, as my hair is nearly all 10mm long at the moment), and say that this girl has balls. the kind of balls that guys only wish they could have. you rock, haruna.
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
flashback!
september 26th
high school, to me, will always best be remembered as incredibly late nights of sitting in the media cave going blind staring at my G4, occasionally taking tongue exercise breaks with my boyfriend. i was an a/v geek, but not really cause we were only working on a very specific project. i, we, made THSTV (tigard high school television). this was mostly comprised of filming the antics of the hilarious matt and nathan (both of whom i was totally crushing on at one point or another, if only for the way they made me laugh). 'we' consisted of a couple more crushes of mine, a couple ex's (yeah, i don't know how to keep personal life and work separate), and some other people who didn't do a lot of work. my late nights were spent editing the final product into a cohesive whole. sometimes this meant cutting together every last moment of film that had to be aired the next day (hence me being at school till two in the morning, on occasion), but sometimes this just meant putting together the segments and intros in the right order--i made it out of school only a few hours late on those nights. now, i didn't find this home till the last two years of high school, but ever since then i have been vying to get back into that hole of an editing lab. this is important to me at the moment because i relived these moments today. at my base high school there are many clubs that meet before and after school. they stay way too late and get there way too early. i could not imagine doing this in high school, when motivation is at its lowest for american students, until i of course remembered not only my early mornings going to symphony practice but my late nights and occasional weekends put in for THSTV. so i felt a little kindred spirit with those students who were putting in the extra hours, although i was never as much as an over achiever as these psycho kids. then today, the ESS club finally met and asked me to check their pronunciation for their school video, and there i was. i was back in high school, 15-16, awkward and dying to get my hands on their editing project (even if it was on imovie). of course, my better judgement said, 'i'm the teacher. i'm supposed to assist, not do'. so i sat back and watched. it was crazy. the same tiny, smelly awkward cave of a room (although i could see the setting sun from theirs). the same dedicated bossy girl (that would have been ME) and the same support staff who just did what they were told because they knew better than to try to get too involved--a little selfish, yes, but damn it looked like a good finished product. this was the first night i stayed late, all the way till seven; and there were some desperate moments when dehydration and starvation began to creep up on me, when i was tempted to skip out, but i stayed. i stayed and tried to help them work their way through the english they had written themselves. i watched as 'leo' put everything together on their emac and controlled the recording of their narration. i chatted with the cutest girl as of yet, who got all genki and excited about harry potter and 'mr. allen rickman'. i tired to explain the absence of a subject in one sentence, asking the higher level english speaker to help out. and yes, i did rush out once the last girl finished her recording, after reading through it twenty times and recording about six different takes. but she was so sweet, and was trying so hard, that it just made me smile. these english club(/broadcasting club) girls remind me of me. they remind me of high school and everything i loved about it. but they are also very much japanese high school students: hard working and demanding perfection. the one difference i saw, from the other students whom i've worked with, was that they were not overly impressed with me. oh they appreciated my help, they asked me where i was from, but they did not take me at face value. i don't think they would have blindly followed if i told them that they should adjust their project one way or the other. for that i was truly proud to help them out on their video.
high school, to me, will always best be remembered as incredibly late nights of sitting in the media cave going blind staring at my G4, occasionally taking tongue exercise breaks with my boyfriend. i was an a/v geek, but not really cause we were only working on a very specific project. i, we, made THSTV (tigard high school television). this was mostly comprised of filming the antics of the hilarious matt and nathan (both of whom i was totally crushing on at one point or another, if only for the way they made me laugh). 'we' consisted of a couple more crushes of mine, a couple ex's (yeah, i don't know how to keep personal life and work separate), and some other people who didn't do a lot of work. my late nights were spent editing the final product into a cohesive whole. sometimes this meant cutting together every last moment of film that had to be aired the next day (hence me being at school till two in the morning, on occasion), but sometimes this just meant putting together the segments and intros in the right order--i made it out of school only a few hours late on those nights. now, i didn't find this home till the last two years of high school, but ever since then i have been vying to get back into that hole of an editing lab. this is important to me at the moment because i relived these moments today. at my base high school there are many clubs that meet before and after school. they stay way too late and get there way too early. i could not imagine doing this in high school, when motivation is at its lowest for american students, until i of course remembered not only my early mornings going to symphony practice but my late nights and occasional weekends put in for THSTV. so i felt a little kindred spirit with those students who were putting in the extra hours, although i was never as much as an over achiever as these psycho kids. then today, the ESS club finally met and asked me to check their pronunciation for their school video, and there i was. i was back in high school, 15-16, awkward and dying to get my hands on their editing project (even if it was on imovie). of course, my better judgement said, 'i'm the teacher. i'm supposed to assist, not do'. so i sat back and watched. it was crazy. the same tiny, smelly awkward cave of a room (although i could see the setting sun from theirs). the same dedicated bossy girl (that would have been ME) and the same support staff who just did what they were told because they knew better than to try to get too involved--a little selfish, yes, but damn it looked like a good finished product. this was the first night i stayed late, all the way till seven; and there were some desperate moments when dehydration and starvation began to creep up on me, when i was tempted to skip out, but i stayed. i stayed and tried to help them work their way through the english they had written themselves. i watched as 'leo' put everything together on their emac and controlled the recording of their narration. i chatted with the cutest girl as of yet, who got all genki and excited about harry potter and 'mr. allen rickman'. i tired to explain the absence of a subject in one sentence, asking the higher level english speaker to help out. and yes, i did rush out once the last girl finished her recording, after reading through it twenty times and recording about six different takes. but she was so sweet, and was trying so hard, that it just made me smile. these english club(/broadcasting club) girls remind me of me. they remind me of high school and everything i loved about it. but they are also very much japanese high school students: hard working and demanding perfection. the one difference i saw, from the other students whom i've worked with, was that they were not overly impressed with me. oh they appreciated my help, they asked me where i was from, but they did not take me at face value. i don't think they would have blindly followed if i told them that they should adjust their project one way or the other. for that i was truly proud to help them out on their video.
forty six days.
september 21st
i checked my counter today. i've been in japan for forty six days. this seems like a significant number. somewhat comparable to what it actually feels like. but then again 46 days seems like a lot, longer than i've actually been here. forty six days is the longest i've been out of portland city limits. it is the longest i've gone without breathing in fresh oregon air. forty six days is the longest i've been without eating my mom's homemade bread. and i wouldn't be surprised if it's the longest i've been without papa murphy's pizza. and you know how i know 46 days IS a long time? i am finally enjoying the last mercury i picked up, the date of the 'one day of a time' that i am partaking in is 'july 25'. 'july 25'!! do you know how many days of celebrity mocking i have missed? i could do the math...but basically close to forty six days worth. shit.
i checked my counter today. i've been in japan for forty six days. this seems like a significant number. somewhat comparable to what it actually feels like. but then again 46 days seems like a lot, longer than i've actually been here. forty six days is the longest i've been out of portland city limits. it is the longest i've gone without breathing in fresh oregon air. forty six days is the longest i've been without eating my mom's homemade bread. and i wouldn't be surprised if it's the longest i've been without papa murphy's pizza. and you know how i know 46 days IS a long time? i am finally enjoying the last mercury i picked up, the date of the 'one day of a time' that i am partaking in is 'july 25'. 'july 25'!! do you know how many days of celebrity mocking i have missed? i could do the math...but basically close to forty six days worth. shit.
either something is wrong with me or i should have listened to my first grade self.
september 15th
in one of my classes, where i'm STILL doing self-introduction lessons, a student asked me what i wanted to be be when i was small. translation: when i was little, what did i want to be when i grew up? i found this interesting because this is something i find rather comical about myself, or rather is a funny anecdote my mother likes to tell. my brother and i were readers from early in elementary school. i include my brother in this statement because i was only allowed to check out non-picture books in first and second grade because my brother, before me, was smart and could handle them(--my first memory of living in my brother's shadow during my k-12 ). so from a young age i liked to read, and i liked to write. not to brag or anything, but i've read the stuff i wrote in first grade and it's not half bad (for a first grader...). i actually have a vivid memory (well, maybe memory, it could just be a reinforced story) of saying that WHen I GRew i wanted to be a writer. this was something i really really enjoyed doing throughout elementary school, but lost sight of as i grew older. being the accommodating child that i was (and still am) along with being indecisive (yeah, i'm still that, too) i could not simply say i wanted to be a writer when i grew up. i said i wanted to be a ballerina, astronaut, dentist, writer. 'ballerina' because i took ballet and i guess i understood that this was something that should be important to me, even though i was the klutz of the class. 'astronaut' because space is cool, i made my own space control board in 2nd grade, and my big bro liked space. that and you can't dream much bigger than wanting to be an astronaut. and finally i had to include 'dentist' because my grandpa was a dentist--family loyalty runs deep in them here bones. and then there was the writer in me. looking back on this story, writer was the first thing to be dropped. oh, i think i still wanted to be a writer, but the story would go i wanted to be a 'dancing-dentist-astronaut' not a 'dancing-dentist-astronaut' who wrote about her adventures. now the point of the story is that here, on JET--in my first month--, i have started writing a lot. this is partly due to the need to stave off insanity and hold onto some of my ability to communicate correctly in english, but it is also linked to the fact that i really like writing. of course, i have been writing papers and school assignments for as long as i can remember, so not having these to keep me busy it only makes sense that i would start writing, if only out of habit. but i am enjoying writing for my own pleasure, and looking back at my college papers, i did actually enjoy writing quite a few of those. (<--freak). so perhaps i should have held onto that first grade dream of being a writer. maybe i would have been a creative writing major, maybe i would have gone to reed (as my childhood idol did), maybe i would be writing a book right now instead of blogging about my lost career, or just maybe, i don't have anyone to talk to and blather about my day's events to so i am typing profusely in a lonely-motivated attempt to pretend i'm still talking to my friends at home. yeah...it's probably that last one.
in one of my classes, where i'm STILL doing self-introduction lessons, a student asked me what i wanted to be be when i was small. translation: when i was little, what did i want to be when i grew up? i found this interesting because this is something i find rather comical about myself, or rather is a funny anecdote my mother likes to tell. my brother and i were readers from early in elementary school. i include my brother in this statement because i was only allowed to check out non-picture books in first and second grade because my brother, before me, was smart and could handle them(--my first memory of living in my brother's shadow during my k-12 ). so from a young age i liked to read, and i liked to write. not to brag or anything, but i've read the stuff i wrote in first grade and it's not half bad (for a first grader...). i actually have a vivid memory (well, maybe memory, it could just be a reinforced story) of saying that WHen I GRew i wanted to be a writer. this was something i really really enjoyed doing throughout elementary school, but lost sight of as i grew older. being the accommodating child that i was (and still am) along with being indecisive (yeah, i'm still that, too) i could not simply say i wanted to be a writer when i grew up. i said i wanted to be a ballerina, astronaut, dentist, writer. 'ballerina' because i took ballet and i guess i understood that this was something that should be important to me, even though i was the klutz of the class. 'astronaut' because space is cool, i made my own space control board in 2nd grade, and my big bro liked space. that and you can't dream much bigger than wanting to be an astronaut. and finally i had to include 'dentist' because my grandpa was a dentist--family loyalty runs deep in them here bones. and then there was the writer in me. looking back on this story, writer was the first thing to be dropped. oh, i think i still wanted to be a writer, but the story would go i wanted to be a 'dancing-dentist-astronaut' not a 'dancing-dentist-astronaut' who wrote about her adventures. now the point of the story is that here, on JET--in my first month--, i have started writing a lot. this is partly due to the need to stave off insanity and hold onto some of my ability to communicate correctly in english, but it is also linked to the fact that i really like writing. of course, i have been writing papers and school assignments for as long as i can remember, so not having these to keep me busy it only makes sense that i would start writing, if only out of habit. but i am enjoying writing for my own pleasure, and looking back at my college papers, i did actually enjoy writing quite a few of those. (<--freak). so perhaps i should have held onto that first grade dream of being a writer. maybe i would have been a creative writing major, maybe i would have gone to reed (as my childhood idol did), maybe i would be writing a book right now instead of blogging about my lost career, or just maybe, i don't have anyone to talk to and blather about my day's events to so i am typing profusely in a lonely-motivated attempt to pretend i'm still talking to my friends at home. yeah...it's probably that last one.
yesterday all my troubles seemed so far away.
september 4th
yesterday i had no internet (being at my second school) and i had no phone ('cause i forgot it for the SEcond time). i was a little disconnected.
so my second day, at my second school, went much better than the first. the kids actually paid attention (with a little near yelling from me to prompt them to do so), and i met with two girls who are very interested in going to college. because it's a mid-level high school most of the kids will not be attending college, so those that do want to are special. with one girl i was the 'interviewer' for her entrance into the university in saijo. the other girl is interested in studying abroad in america. (well so is the first girl, but she knows she wants to go through saijo u.). it was fun to actually correct english (for the first girl) with content in mind. i felt like i was actually doing something useful. with the second girl i gave her the web sites of the universities in oregon and my e-mail address. when i got to school this morning i had gotten an e-mail from her. aww. so cute! she wants to exchange e-mails and offered to help me with my japanese.. i e-mailed her back and gave her a link to the IELP at portland state and said yes to the e-mail exchange! i told her to e-mail me a couple times a week about what she is up to and said i'd try to do the same in 日本語. i'm totally psyched to have some place to practice my japanese now.
yesterday i had no internet (being at my second school) and i had no phone ('cause i forgot it for the SEcond time). i was a little disconnected.
so my second day, at my second school, went much better than the first. the kids actually paid attention (with a little near yelling from me to prompt them to do so), and i met with two girls who are very interested in going to college. because it's a mid-level high school most of the kids will not be attending college, so those that do want to are special. with one girl i was the 'interviewer' for her entrance into the university in saijo. the other girl is interested in studying abroad in america. (well so is the first girl, but she knows she wants to go through saijo u.). it was fun to actually correct english (for the first girl) with content in mind. i felt like i was actually doing something useful. with the second girl i gave her the web sites of the universities in oregon and my e-mail address. when i got to school this morning i had gotten an e-mail from her. aww. so cute! she wants to exchange e-mails and offered to help me with my japanese.. i e-mailed her back and gave her a link to the IELP at portland state and said yes to the e-mail exchange! i told her to e-mail me a couple times a week about what she is up to and said i'd try to do the same in 日本語. i'm totally psyched to have some place to practice my japanese now.
Thursday, September 14, 2006
it's a different world.
september 12th--later that day...
so it's been a really frustrating last couple of days. everything is making me think of home and the people i left behind. i'd kill for a massive portland hug right now. don't get me wrong, i'm still enjoying japan. i think i have a huge advantage over some of the other gaijin because i really love japanese food (和食--washoku). going out with other JETs, i have not eaten this much italian food in my life, and i have no, absolutely no cravings for food form home. i even discovered that chai exists here, if rather inconveniently located. but those simple thigns from home--mcmineman's ruby, biking over the hawthorn, having crappy food and cheap drinks at jax, laying under the trees in my 'front yard' on campus, going to magic gardens on a weeknight, visiting great harvest after work--that are making me reach out over the pacific and cling to my portland. today every moment stretched out till i didn't think i could stand it any longer. i finally got a package from home (i assume) but they didn't put it in my box because the postman thought i wasn't actually living here. tomorrow it should magically appear in my box, but it was just one more disappointment. the school day was incredibly painful as i had to act all genki (happy/hyper) for my self-intro lessons, and all i want to do is sob on katie and elena's shoulders. to make matters just a little worse, it decided to rain just as it was time for me to bike home. of course, normally i would just ride home in the rain, enjoy the cool wet air, but my hill...it's a little much for my breaks when the pavement is dry. going down in the rain would just be asking for death. THis is where my day, my week, began to turn. yamagouchi-sensei asked takeuchi-sensei (one of the part time female teachers) if she would give me a ride home. i felt like a fool worrying about the rain, but it turned out really good. dogishi-sensei, the other part-time female teacher who's next to my desk, also was catching a ride, so the three of us had some away from schoo. they suggested we go to molly malones (the irish-gaijin haven-pub) sometime. so awesome. i had them drop me off at my grocery store. now i was planning to try to get all my things bought that i needed to at fuji grand and the hyaku-en shop in the other part of town, but now i couldn't. this meant i actually took the time to explore my supermarket. around each corner i kept finding something new, and perfect, that i didn't know how much i really wanted. there was honey--mmm, honey...--, darlingly tea, extra virgin olive oil, vinegar, garlic, eggplant, onion--ooh, onion--and mushrooms. i just felt soo much better. i went home, put my new finds away, and headed to juntendo (my 'do it your self' store that is really incredibly close to my apartment). there, again not in a rush to go someplace else, i had the time to actually look around. i found a japanese-size laundry basket, hangers, a good fry pan (for 980yen), a teapot!, a knife and cutting board, and a full length mirror. i went home, reorganized, put things away, and took out my mirror. you know i haven't really seen myself since i've been in japan? definitely since i've been in hiroshima. it's so weird how seeing yourself in the mirror is comforting. 'hey, look, i still exist!'. so basically life seems a little brighter, even if it's for simple reasons, like cooking my own dinner. a year doesn't seem impossible for the moment, whether it will be two years is still a mystery, but at least the rest of the week looks a little more feasible.
so it's been a really frustrating last couple of days. everything is making me think of home and the people i left behind. i'd kill for a massive portland hug right now. don't get me wrong, i'm still enjoying japan. i think i have a huge advantage over some of the other gaijin because i really love japanese food (和食--washoku). going out with other JETs, i have not eaten this much italian food in my life, and i have no, absolutely no cravings for food form home. i even discovered that chai exists here, if rather inconveniently located. but those simple thigns from home--mcmineman's ruby, biking over the hawthorn, having crappy food and cheap drinks at jax, laying under the trees in my 'front yard' on campus, going to magic gardens on a weeknight, visiting great harvest after work--that are making me reach out over the pacific and cling to my portland. today every moment stretched out till i didn't think i could stand it any longer. i finally got a package from home (i assume) but they didn't put it in my box because the postman thought i wasn't actually living here. tomorrow it should magically appear in my box, but it was just one more disappointment. the school day was incredibly painful as i had to act all genki (happy/hyper) for my self-intro lessons, and all i want to do is sob on katie and elena's shoulders. to make matters just a little worse, it decided to rain just as it was time for me to bike home. of course, normally i would just ride home in the rain, enjoy the cool wet air, but my hill...it's a little much for my breaks when the pavement is dry. going down in the rain would just be asking for death. THis is where my day, my week, began to turn. yamagouchi-sensei asked takeuchi-sensei (one of the part time female teachers) if she would give me a ride home. i felt like a fool worrying about the rain, but it turned out really good. dogishi-sensei, the other part-time female teacher who's next to my desk, also was catching a ride, so the three of us had some away from schoo. they suggested we go to molly malones (the irish-gaijin haven-pub) sometime. so awesome. i had them drop me off at my grocery store. now i was planning to try to get all my things bought that i needed to at fuji grand and the hyaku-en shop in the other part of town, but now i couldn't. this meant i actually took the time to explore my supermarket. around each corner i kept finding something new, and perfect, that i didn't know how much i really wanted. there was honey--mmm, honey...--, darlingly tea, extra virgin olive oil, vinegar, garlic, eggplant, onion--ooh, onion--and mushrooms. i just felt soo much better. i went home, put my new finds away, and headed to juntendo (my 'do it your self' store that is really incredibly close to my apartment). there, again not in a rush to go someplace else, i had the time to actually look around. i found a japanese-size laundry basket, hangers, a good fry pan (for 980yen), a teapot!, a knife and cutting board, and a full length mirror. i went home, reorganized, put things away, and took out my mirror. you know i haven't really seen myself since i've been in japan? definitely since i've been in hiroshima. it's so weird how seeing yourself in the mirror is comforting. 'hey, look, i still exist!'. so basically life seems a little brighter, even if it's for simple reasons, like cooking my own dinner. a year doesn't seem impossible for the moment, whether it will be two years is still a mystery, but at least the rest of the week looks a little more feasible.
on the way to the forum, shit no, school. on the way to school today...
september 12th
there was this gawking kid. his mouth was agape, he looked like he was going to die of shock if something didn't break the tension. i smiled and said, 'ohaio gozaimasu' (good morning). he actually responded! 'ohaio gozaimasu. kyo wa ii tenki, ne?' (good morning, the weather is nice today, isn't it?) my gaijin response was, 'ii'. if only i'd added the ne, then it would have been perfect!
there was this gawking kid. his mouth was agape, he looked like he was going to die of shock if something didn't break the tension. i smiled and said, 'ohaio gozaimasu' (good morning). he actually responded! 'ohaio gozaimasu. kyo wa ii tenki, ne?' (good morning, the weather is nice today, isn't it?) my gaijin response was, 'ii'. if only i'd added the ne, then it would have been perfect!
i am swamped at work.
september 11th
so much of this has to do with the fact that i don't know what i'm doing yet, but i still have a hella of a lot to do. seriously, i think my pred's complaints did get somewhere, cause i'm so busy i have no time to study 日本語 or even write this blog. so my days consist of (for the moment) getting to school by eight--technically classes don't start till nine and i don't have to be here to 8:30 or 8:15, but with that little extra time i can get a stack of papers graded or an e-mail written. then most days i have a class first period. at my main school, yasufuruishi, the periods are 65 min and my self-intros are supposed to take up half the period. so with the first year classes i have 20 kids, or so, and each kid asks me a question and then i ask them the same. they learn, for example, my family's names, what kind of food do i like, that only the old star wars is good, and who both bert and kitty are. every time i teach a first year class i go to two classrooms a period, so basically i will never know these kids' names. my second year classes have 40 kids, but i only have one at a time so i therefore get more 'free' time as the lessons are still only 30 min. then i have a 'break' and i grade papers. actually, i struggle with choosing what to correct on papers that were written by kids who have had little to no english grammar lessons. and mind you, these kids, if they don't know how to say it, will just translate it online or with their electric dictionaries; so, half of what they're writing i have no chance of actually understanding. (example: “it was shouted, and female college students became quiet, and, as for the break I was good because the insid of a train became quiet though it was noisy.”) then i either have another class, or i try to make it to the cafeteria before the kids. the food in the cafeteria is actually really good, and really not that expensive. besides, right now it's the only hot meal i get every day. on thursdays, before lunch i have the only meeting i'm required to attend: the english teachers' meeting. they all talk in 日本語 and then look to me, i say something about my lesson plan or 'yes, i do like my new apartment' and then i'm once again ignored. the latter half of the day is reading more papers or attending more classes. i'm supposed to leave by 4:15 everyday, but on tuesdays there's ESS (english as a second something?) club, so i hope to participate in that. on wednesdays i visit my second high school, koyo high. the fact that i have a second high school was a surprise to everyone, including me, and i have to fill out paperwork every week so i can leave my base school and go to my second school. so far i've only had one day there, but it's similar in that i will be team-teaching and grading papers. koyo high school is a mid-level school (meaning most of the kids will not go to college) so they are less concerned about grammar and intense teaching. i think that means when i grade papers i'm responding to their ideas rather than correcting how they wrote their thoughts down. also, on wednesdays there will be a dinner downtown with some of the hiroshima city JETs, so i'll have that to look forward to every week.
but my absolute favorite part of the day is heading out from yasufuruichi high. i walk down my four flights of stairs, while the girls' long distance (i assume) team is circling the school singing their dreamy chants. i go to the front of the school and trade my uncomfortable shoes for my heavenly birkies, stroll over to the bike parking, and grab MY bike. after getting organized--fitting everything into my handy basket--i hop on, peddle up the slope to exit school grounds and start the 10 min coast down my large ass hill. perfect every time.
so much of this has to do with the fact that i don't know what i'm doing yet, but i still have a hella of a lot to do. seriously, i think my pred's complaints did get somewhere, cause i'm so busy i have no time to study 日本語 or even write this blog. so my days consist of (for the moment) getting to school by eight--technically classes don't start till nine and i don't have to be here to 8:30 or 8:15, but with that little extra time i can get a stack of papers graded or an e-mail written. then most days i have a class first period. at my main school, yasufuruishi, the periods are 65 min and my self-intros are supposed to take up half the period. so with the first year classes i have 20 kids, or so, and each kid asks me a question and then i ask them the same. they learn, for example, my family's names, what kind of food do i like, that only the old star wars is good, and who both bert and kitty are. every time i teach a first year class i go to two classrooms a period, so basically i will never know these kids' names. my second year classes have 40 kids, but i only have one at a time so i therefore get more 'free' time as the lessons are still only 30 min. then i have a 'break' and i grade papers. actually, i struggle with choosing what to correct on papers that were written by kids who have had little to no english grammar lessons. and mind you, these kids, if they don't know how to say it, will just translate it online or with their electric dictionaries; so, half of what they're writing i have no chance of actually understanding. (example: “it was shouted, and female college students became quiet, and, as for the break I was good because the insid of a train became quiet though it was noisy.”) then i either have another class, or i try to make it to the cafeteria before the kids. the food in the cafeteria is actually really good, and really not that expensive. besides, right now it's the only hot meal i get every day. on thursdays, before lunch i have the only meeting i'm required to attend: the english teachers' meeting. they all talk in 日本語 and then look to me, i say something about my lesson plan or 'yes, i do like my new apartment' and then i'm once again ignored. the latter half of the day is reading more papers or attending more classes. i'm supposed to leave by 4:15 everyday, but on tuesdays there's ESS (english as a second something?) club, so i hope to participate in that. on wednesdays i visit my second high school, koyo high. the fact that i have a second high school was a surprise to everyone, including me, and i have to fill out paperwork every week so i can leave my base school and go to my second school. so far i've only had one day there, but it's similar in that i will be team-teaching and grading papers. koyo high school is a mid-level school (meaning most of the kids will not go to college) so they are less concerned about grammar and intense teaching. i think that means when i grade papers i'm responding to their ideas rather than correcting how they wrote their thoughts down. also, on wednesdays there will be a dinner downtown with some of the hiroshima city JETs, so i'll have that to look forward to every week.
but my absolute favorite part of the day is heading out from yasufuruichi high. i walk down my four flights of stairs, while the girls' long distance (i assume) team is circling the school singing their dreamy chants. i go to the front of the school and trade my uncomfortable shoes for my heavenly birkies, stroll over to the bike parking, and grab MY bike. after getting organized--fitting everything into my handy basket--i hop on, peddle up the slope to exit school grounds and start the 10 min coast down my large ass hill. perfect every time.
crows.
september 8th
so on the way back from lunch i was passing a classroom and i heard a rustling noise. at the second doorway i glanced in and low and behold a crow was enjoying an afternoon snack of lunch wrappers. the crow is of course freaking out cause there's this 'big' human looking at him. he can't make up his mind--if he goes forward he has to go through me, if he tries for the other doorway, that's a ways back... he scoots around in place for a moment, i jerk in his direction to give him motivation for the back door, and he navigates his way quickly towards the back of the class, sliding on the slippery linoleum, as he scurries towards his escape. finally he's out. he jumps to the railing on the fourth floor 'veranda' and breathes a sigh of relief.
silly bird. trying to get away with a free lunch.
so on the way back from lunch i was passing a classroom and i heard a rustling noise. at the second doorway i glanced in and low and behold a crow was enjoying an afternoon snack of lunch wrappers. the crow is of course freaking out cause there's this 'big' human looking at him. he can't make up his mind--if he goes forward he has to go through me, if he tries for the other doorway, that's a ways back... he scoots around in place for a moment, i jerk in his direction to give him motivation for the back door, and he navigates his way quickly towards the back of the class, sliding on the slippery linoleum, as he scurries towards his escape. finally he's out. he jumps to the railing on the fourth floor 'veranda' and breathes a sigh of relief.
silly bird. trying to get away with a free lunch.
riding my bike in japan.
september 7th
before i left for japan i started to ride my bike--after five years of it collecting dust in my parent's garage. i wanted to get used to riding in the city since i knew it was the thing to do in my future home. i had wonderful trips cruising around portland and actually going to the east side. i learned the rules of the road and built up some stamina. now i'm in japan. bike riding is stereotypically the way to get around. the reality? bike riding is popular, but i still get shocked and confused looks as i trek my way into school. okay this is mildly reasonable for a couple reasons. firstly, i'm white. i'm the kind of foreigner that sticks out like swollen red thumb. secondly, apparently bike riding is for young people or for short trips. now my ride to school is like a mini-zoo bomb everyday. i say mini because, well there's not 50 bikes speeding down the hill with me, and the slope is a scoshe smaller. so, my bike ride to work 15 min or so on relatively flat ground, then i get to the bottom of bishomondai station and the hill begins. optimistically, one day i will be able to ride up part of this hill. yeah, only part. the fifteen to twenty min walk up my very large hill is only possible because of the dialogue in my head, 'this is good for you', 'you need the exercise' and 'think of what good shape you'll be in in just a couple months'. this is also assisted by the amazing ride DOWN the hill at the end of the day. now damn does that feel good.
beyond the large hills, that every school seems to be on, bike riding here is very convenient. all the public transportation stations have lots of bike parking (of course it's not as cool as pdx where you can take your bike ON the public transportation). every bike has a kick-stand. and because it's so acceptable, and japanese people are a little woozy, you are SUPPOSED to ride on the sidewalks. of course this gets a little tricky and involves much complicated pedestrian dodging. now every sidewalk has, in the middle, a trail of yellow paint over bumps that are (we gaijin presume) to guide the blind. so, my original assumption was that one side was for pedestrians and the other for bikes. now i'm not so sure. they just aren't consistent about it and i don't know if it's because they are adjusting for me--the weird looking girl who's skirt keeps flipping up, or there is no rule. the other difficulty is that they drive on the left side of the road here. i'm trying to adjust my instincts from swerving to the right to avoid a crash, to swerving to the left, but of course it's not that simple. so the other day i did swerve to the right and i almost crashed into this guy in a suit on his bike. he was very kind about it and said 'excuse me' in english. but earlier that day i tried swerving to the left and almost ran over a very small very frightened little girl. i thought her eyes were going to pop out of her head. i probably scared her for life. now, reasonably i could ask someone if there are any rules about bike riding and what side of the road i should be on, but i have a feeling that there aren't. this is another place where japan is an oxymoron. you think it should be orderly and clean and controlled, then you discover that there is no soap in the bathrooms at school, that everyone complains about the buses being 20 min late and that there is no discipline in the classrooms.
before i left for japan i started to ride my bike--after five years of it collecting dust in my parent's garage. i wanted to get used to riding in the city since i knew it was the thing to do in my future home. i had wonderful trips cruising around portland and actually going to the east side. i learned the rules of the road and built up some stamina. now i'm in japan. bike riding is stereotypically the way to get around. the reality? bike riding is popular, but i still get shocked and confused looks as i trek my way into school. okay this is mildly reasonable for a couple reasons. firstly, i'm white. i'm the kind of foreigner that sticks out like swollen red thumb. secondly, apparently bike riding is for young people or for short trips. now my ride to school is like a mini-zoo bomb everyday. i say mini because, well there's not 50 bikes speeding down the hill with me, and the slope is a scoshe smaller. so, my bike ride to work 15 min or so on relatively flat ground, then i get to the bottom of bishomondai station and the hill begins. optimistically, one day i will be able to ride up part of this hill. yeah, only part. the fifteen to twenty min walk up my very large hill is only possible because of the dialogue in my head, 'this is good for you', 'you need the exercise' and 'think of what good shape you'll be in in just a couple months'. this is also assisted by the amazing ride DOWN the hill at the end of the day. now damn does that feel good.
beyond the large hills, that every school seems to be on, bike riding here is very convenient. all the public transportation stations have lots of bike parking (of course it's not as cool as pdx where you can take your bike ON the public transportation). every bike has a kick-stand. and because it's so acceptable, and japanese people are a little woozy, you are SUPPOSED to ride on the sidewalks. of course this gets a little tricky and involves much complicated pedestrian dodging. now every sidewalk has, in the middle, a trail of yellow paint over bumps that are (we gaijin presume) to guide the blind. so, my original assumption was that one side was for pedestrians and the other for bikes. now i'm not so sure. they just aren't consistent about it and i don't know if it's because they are adjusting for me--the weird looking girl who's skirt keeps flipping up, or there is no rule. the other difficulty is that they drive on the left side of the road here. i'm trying to adjust my instincts from swerving to the right to avoid a crash, to swerving to the left, but of course it's not that simple. so the other day i did swerve to the right and i almost crashed into this guy in a suit on his bike. he was very kind about it and said 'excuse me' in english. but earlier that day i tried swerving to the left and almost ran over a very small very frightened little girl. i thought her eyes were going to pop out of her head. i probably scared her for life. now, reasonably i could ask someone if there are any rules about bike riding and what side of the road i should be on, but i have a feeling that there aren't. this is another place where japan is an oxymoron. you think it should be orderly and clean and controlled, then you discover that there is no soap in the bathrooms at school, that everyone complains about the buses being 20 min late and that there is no discipline in the classrooms.
bug bite blues.
september 5th
so now that i am living in a much more ascesible apartment the joy of being japan has returned to me. i am actually looking forward to my days of wandering, to japanese food, to exploring, to talking to people and struggling with my japanese. the things that i find the most difficult now are little things like bug bites. this sounds grose, but i have bed bugs. actually, to be correct they are tatami bugs. now at the orientations we were all warned that bugs are big and common in japan. to this i said nah...i'll be fine. now i sit at my desk at work, giant bug bite swelling on my hip, squirming in anticipation of being able to kill those damn bastards and find some sort of calomine lotion.
so now that i am living in a much more ascesible apartment the joy of being japan has returned to me. i am actually looking forward to my days of wandering, to japanese food, to exploring, to talking to people and struggling with my japanese. the things that i find the most difficult now are little things like bug bites. this sounds grose, but i have bed bugs. actually, to be correct they are tatami bugs. now at the orientations we were all warned that bugs are big and common in japan. to this i said nah...i'll be fine. now i sit at my desk at work, giant bug bite swelling on my hip, squirming in anticipation of being able to kill those damn bastards and find some sort of calomine lotion.
fuck fuji.
september 2nd and 3rd
so i started teaching on september forth. these are simple lessons, basically i'm talking about myself for thirty minuets (or rather trying to stretch my activity for just over thirty min, and because it's japan and they do have it planned to the min). the lessons are okay, but i'm still working out how to keep the kids attention and enthusiasm. the other reason they are probably not the best lessons: fuji. so i went to mt. fuji for the weekend of the second and third. this was a hiroshima-AJET (association of JEts) trip, therefore it was rushed and intense. i got back after midnight sunday night, the bus arrived at hiroshima station at 11:10pm. my train was at 11:37. there were some other girls taking the same train, so that was nice. the trip STArted at 5:30am on saturday when i woke up. i got all ready and was just on time for the train i had to catch, then i realized i didn't have my headlamp. light, when walking up a dark mountain, is a necessity, so i ran home, i tore apart my apartment (it's still trashed) and i still couldn't find it. i had to say screw it and catch the next train. i was supposed to be at hiroshima eki (station) at 7:10, i caught the 7:10 train. i was about 20min late and caused everyone to be late for the first time during the trip (as we were the first pickup point). the bus ride was 10 and a half hours. i sat in the front with dob, a third year that is pretty cool. he's from the u.k., near liverpool. the bus stopped every 2 hours, i think it's the law so that the driver can rest. snacks were purchased and then lunch at these many stops. i was still worrying about my headlamp and hoping to buy a flashlight or something along the way. i did get the cutest stuft 'animal' ever. its my cuddle buddy for japan now. it's a gourd which is used as a traditional way to drink sake. his name will eventually be a brand of sake that i like...once i find one. after the really long drive, and a couple movies (there was a vcr on the bus so we watched snatch and clerks) we arrived at station five of mt. fuji. the stations start at number one, at the bottom, and go to nine, then 10 is the top. station five is where most people start, it's right below the tree line, and has a lodge vaguely similar to timberline. i felt a little wussy starting at the highest road, but by the end i would say i would never start any lower. at station five we all quickly hopped off the bus and were immediately chilled by the cool mountain air. we had 15min to change and get our stuff back on the bus before it had to park for the night.
a couple of the girls were realizing that they didn't bring enough warm clothing. i had jeans, white-beater, batman t-shirt, new thermal, powell's hoodie, blue fleece, windbreaker, longjohn pants-for later, warm socks, converse, scarf (katie's) and my orange and pink kitty hat. i was feeling like i brought too much. for my bag all i had was the little guy from by backpacking bag, so i had to tie my extra hoodie and jacket to the outside. after changing, i bought my walking stick--the walking stick is a must as it is both a souvenir that you get stamped at each station AND the only way to make it up certain parts of the trail--i also asked 'light, arimasu ka?' (do you have any lights?). i bought an $18, very heavy, 'stylish' yellow headlamp, but hey it worked and i was glad i had it. the lodge closed at 8pm, the restaurant closed at 7, we were meeting at 7 at the restaurant. someone's 'good' idea. by the time we actually got in line for food all they had left was katsudon (deep fried pork) or curry. i had the curry, which had beef in it, yech. but it was food and it ran out, too. after 'dinner' john, isaac (two guys from seattle) and i went up to the third floor to sleep. we got comfortable on our three pseudo couches, isaac documented the napping with photos, and we were then promptly kicked out after only 5 min of horizontal rest. technically the lodge was open for another 15min. grr. but everybody was taking off, so i joined dob and the other 3rd/2nd years and headed out. mind you i didn't sleep on the bus, i woke up at 5:30 that morning, and it was now 8:30pm or so...to say the least this was going to be a long night. the beginning of the trail was pretty easy. i was feeling ambitious and looking forward to my upcoming workout. it was very dark and we were already pretty high up. looking out over the landscape below we could really only see clouds. it looked like the ocean. it was so se-real. looking up the mountain, we could see the lights of 'fuji town' or rather the stations that were servicing all the tourists. there were quite a number of gaijin, but mostly japanese people. our group was around 50 kids. we ran into another group of JETs that had had the same idea, hike the weekend after the season is over. there were also some other foreigners who we could have brief conversations with. i hiked up with dob and was happy to discover he also fears heights and was in the sam kind of shape i was, so we took it slow. the way the hike works is there are stations (6, 7, 8 and 9--six and nine were closed) and then sub-stations for each of the main ones. at each station you can get a stamp on your stick, which is pretty cool cause its actually burned into the stick. i made the mistake of listening to the girls who had done this before and only got stamps at the main stations, so my stick it pretty bare with only 4 stamps. also at each station they sell food (snickers bars and cup o' noodles and the like) plus hot coffee and oxygen cans. i of course scoffed at the oxygen, that is until i was close to the top and was having to consciously take long slow deep breaths (thanks yoga) to get enough air. i bought one snickers bar, and ate one cliff bar (thanks katie and elena) on the way up.
by station 8 i could barely keep my eyes open i was so tired and i decided that i had to rest if i was going to make it up the last 2 1/2 hrs to the top. lucky for me in the stations they have sleeping areas so you can rest on the way. now i thought this was ridiculous, except for if you got to the top early and want to snooze before sunrise, but at the point of station 8 i forked over my 3000yen and dob and i slept from 1:50 to 2:30am before heading out again. i barely slept, but i started out again with a definite spring in my step. the last bit to the top creaped along as the traffic jam had started. it was an actual line to the top for the last 2 hrs. now this did end up working to my benefit as i was then going slow enough that i didn't get altitude sickness. at around 5am the sun started to rise. we weren't quite to the top, but tiredness and still more line to wade through, dictated that we just sit and enjoy the sunrise from nearly the top. it was quite beautiful, not all that i'd hoped for (after hiking for 8 hours or so). but i took some photos, texted alex and mayumi (yeah i got reception up there) and enjoyed part of my last great harvest savanah bar. after the sun peaked it's way over the morning clouds we started up again.
the top was hilarious. there were just so many people, shops and civilization. okay, civilization is a slight exaggeration, but for the highest point in japan, on top of a barren volcano, there was a lot of crap up there. if we had been in season you could possibly be looking at a postcard from the mt. fuji postoffice on the peak, but it was off season--barely--so it was closed. zan nen. i used the toilet, bought my last stamp, a plaque with the date on it, and then met up with dob to head down. on a tangent...on the way up we saw this cute puppy, haro-chan, a of couple times. we also ran into him at the top waiting to head down. at that point he had a blanket tied to his back, socks on his two front feet and the finger from a glove around the tip of his tail. yeah, it was cold and he was cute. i had all my warm things on (at the hut, where i napped, i had added my longjohns under my jeans) and i was still freezing while sitting and watching the sunrise. (after the sun was up) on the way down, it was actually kinda warm. kinda. sooo...back to the order of events, after no real rest and a 8 hr (or so) hike we got on the trail down the mountain. it was only 5k, supposed to take 3-4 hrs. the was path very different from the way up. on the ascending trail there's a lot of points that were actually climbing. the whole trail was defined by chains guiding you to the top; these were very useful at the points that you had to work your way up steep rock slopes that were relatively sheer for a trail that anyone it supposed to be able to do. this climb involved a process of placing my walking stick properly, then finding a place for my foot, grabbing the chain with my other hand and heaving myself onto the the next level. this doesn't seem that bad till the air is thin, you've had no sleep and you've been walking up a hill for 5 hrs. ironically opposed to this, on the trail up, were the points where it was (basically) paved steps; these usually indicated you were near a station. so...back to the trail down: this trail was a decent slope of and loose pumas gravel. not nearly as bad as the way up, except when you're afraid of heights, you're tired and you really just want to be down this goddamn mountain. the first stint didn't seem that bad. we knew it shouldn't take that long because its only 5k, the race for the cure is only 5k. then after about an hour of trudging down the slope we ran into a sign that told us we had 4.5k left. we'd only gone half a fucking kilometer in and hour. we were screwed. but we had to keep going. dob and i kept running into amy (from new york) and paitra (from new brunswick, canada) so we kinda joined up with them. soon it was 9:30, the time we were supposed to be meeting at the bus, and we still had two hours to go, ay least. at this point we ran into kate (from pdx) at the 7th station bathroom. we took a break to catch our breath and such, then our guide (and miranda) caught up with us. he, our guide, decided to go ahead and tell the bus that we really were coming, the rest of us tried hurry up the pace. i had a nice conversation with amy about expectations of JET and the big question of one year or two. we caught up with paitra, miranda and dob caught up with the three of us, and then we all made the final stint at our five different paces. 11:30am we were at the bus. everyone else had been there for hours. the embarrassing moments of getting on the bus, last, were pacified by the fact that we still went to the an-sen (public bath) and lunch at a local hotel at the lake at the bottom of fuji-san. the trip ended in another 10 1/2 hr bus ride (which involved some sleep for me, a little of usual suspects (wish it was the unusual suspects instead) and dob's favorite, the goodfellas. and that is that. i woke up for work at 6 this morning. found my way by bike for the first time, stopped at 7/11 to print photos for class and made it in before my supervisor. i am absolutely exhausted.
so i started teaching on september forth. these are simple lessons, basically i'm talking about myself for thirty minuets (or rather trying to stretch my activity for just over thirty min, and because it's japan and they do have it planned to the min). the lessons are okay, but i'm still working out how to keep the kids attention and enthusiasm. the other reason they are probably not the best lessons: fuji. so i went to mt. fuji for the weekend of the second and third. this was a hiroshima-AJET (association of JEts) trip, therefore it was rushed and intense. i got back after midnight sunday night, the bus arrived at hiroshima station at 11:10pm. my train was at 11:37. there were some other girls taking the same train, so that was nice. the trip STArted at 5:30am on saturday when i woke up. i got all ready and was just on time for the train i had to catch, then i realized i didn't have my headlamp. light, when walking up a dark mountain, is a necessity, so i ran home, i tore apart my apartment (it's still trashed) and i still couldn't find it. i had to say screw it and catch the next train. i was supposed to be at hiroshima eki (station) at 7:10, i caught the 7:10 train. i was about 20min late and caused everyone to be late for the first time during the trip (as we were the first pickup point). the bus ride was 10 and a half hours. i sat in the front with dob, a third year that is pretty cool. he's from the u.k., near liverpool. the bus stopped every 2 hours, i think it's the law so that the driver can rest. snacks were purchased and then lunch at these many stops. i was still worrying about my headlamp and hoping to buy a flashlight or something along the way. i did get the cutest stuft 'animal' ever. its my cuddle buddy for japan now. it's a gourd which is used as a traditional way to drink sake. his name will eventually be a brand of sake that i like...once i find one. after the really long drive, and a couple movies (there was a vcr on the bus so we watched snatch and clerks) we arrived at station five of mt. fuji. the stations start at number one, at the bottom, and go to nine, then 10 is the top. station five is where most people start, it's right below the tree line, and has a lodge vaguely similar to timberline. i felt a little wussy starting at the highest road, but by the end i would say i would never start any lower. at station five we all quickly hopped off the bus and were immediately chilled by the cool mountain air. we had 15min to change and get our stuff back on the bus before it had to park for the night.
a couple of the girls were realizing that they didn't bring enough warm clothing. i had jeans, white-beater, batman t-shirt, new thermal, powell's hoodie, blue fleece, windbreaker, longjohn pants-for later, warm socks, converse, scarf (katie's) and my orange and pink kitty hat. i was feeling like i brought too much. for my bag all i had was the little guy from by backpacking bag, so i had to tie my extra hoodie and jacket to the outside. after changing, i bought my walking stick--the walking stick is a must as it is both a souvenir that you get stamped at each station AND the only way to make it up certain parts of the trail--i also asked 'light, arimasu ka?' (do you have any lights?). i bought an $18, very heavy, 'stylish' yellow headlamp, but hey it worked and i was glad i had it. the lodge closed at 8pm, the restaurant closed at 7, we were meeting at 7 at the restaurant. someone's 'good' idea. by the time we actually got in line for food all they had left was katsudon (deep fried pork) or curry. i had the curry, which had beef in it, yech. but it was food and it ran out, too. after 'dinner' john, isaac (two guys from seattle) and i went up to the third floor to sleep. we got comfortable on our three pseudo couches, isaac documented the napping with photos, and we were then promptly kicked out after only 5 min of horizontal rest. technically the lodge was open for another 15min. grr. but everybody was taking off, so i joined dob and the other 3rd/2nd years and headed out. mind you i didn't sleep on the bus, i woke up at 5:30 that morning, and it was now 8:30pm or so...to say the least this was going to be a long night. the beginning of the trail was pretty easy. i was feeling ambitious and looking forward to my upcoming workout. it was very dark and we were already pretty high up. looking out over the landscape below we could really only see clouds. it looked like the ocean. it was so se-real. looking up the mountain, we could see the lights of 'fuji town' or rather the stations that were servicing all the tourists. there were quite a number of gaijin, but mostly japanese people. our group was around 50 kids. we ran into another group of JETs that had had the same idea, hike the weekend after the season is over. there were also some other foreigners who we could have brief conversations with. i hiked up with dob and was happy to discover he also fears heights and was in the sam kind of shape i was, so we took it slow. the way the hike works is there are stations (6, 7, 8 and 9--six and nine were closed) and then sub-stations for each of the main ones. at each station you can get a stamp on your stick, which is pretty cool cause its actually burned into the stick. i made the mistake of listening to the girls who had done this before and only got stamps at the main stations, so my stick it pretty bare with only 4 stamps. also at each station they sell food (snickers bars and cup o' noodles and the like) plus hot coffee and oxygen cans. i of course scoffed at the oxygen, that is until i was close to the top and was having to consciously take long slow deep breaths (thanks yoga) to get enough air. i bought one snickers bar, and ate one cliff bar (thanks katie and elena) on the way up.
by station 8 i could barely keep my eyes open i was so tired and i decided that i had to rest if i was going to make it up the last 2 1/2 hrs to the top. lucky for me in the stations they have sleeping areas so you can rest on the way. now i thought this was ridiculous, except for if you got to the top early and want to snooze before sunrise, but at the point of station 8 i forked over my 3000yen and dob and i slept from 1:50 to 2:30am before heading out again. i barely slept, but i started out again with a definite spring in my step. the last bit to the top creaped along as the traffic jam had started. it was an actual line to the top for the last 2 hrs. now this did end up working to my benefit as i was then going slow enough that i didn't get altitude sickness. at around 5am the sun started to rise. we weren't quite to the top, but tiredness and still more line to wade through, dictated that we just sit and enjoy the sunrise from nearly the top. it was quite beautiful, not all that i'd hoped for (after hiking for 8 hours or so). but i took some photos, texted alex and mayumi (yeah i got reception up there) and enjoyed part of my last great harvest savanah bar. after the sun peaked it's way over the morning clouds we started up again.
the top was hilarious. there were just so many people, shops and civilization. okay, civilization is a slight exaggeration, but for the highest point in japan, on top of a barren volcano, there was a lot of crap up there. if we had been in season you could possibly be looking at a postcard from the mt. fuji postoffice on the peak, but it was off season--barely--so it was closed. zan nen. i used the toilet, bought my last stamp, a plaque with the date on it, and then met up with dob to head down. on a tangent...on the way up we saw this cute puppy, haro-chan, a of couple times. we also ran into him at the top waiting to head down. at that point he had a blanket tied to his back, socks on his two front feet and the finger from a glove around the tip of his tail. yeah, it was cold and he was cute. i had all my warm things on (at the hut, where i napped, i had added my longjohns under my jeans) and i was still freezing while sitting and watching the sunrise. (after the sun was up) on the way down, it was actually kinda warm. kinda. sooo...back to the order of events, after no real rest and a 8 hr (or so) hike we got on the trail down the mountain. it was only 5k, supposed to take 3-4 hrs. the was path very different from the way up. on the ascending trail there's a lot of points that were actually climbing. the whole trail was defined by chains guiding you to the top; these were very useful at the points that you had to work your way up steep rock slopes that were relatively sheer for a trail that anyone it supposed to be able to do. this climb involved a process of placing my walking stick properly, then finding a place for my foot, grabbing the chain with my other hand and heaving myself onto the the next level. this doesn't seem that bad till the air is thin, you've had no sleep and you've been walking up a hill for 5 hrs. ironically opposed to this, on the trail up, were the points where it was (basically) paved steps; these usually indicated you were near a station. so...back to the trail down: this trail was a decent slope of and loose pumas gravel. not nearly as bad as the way up, except when you're afraid of heights, you're tired and you really just want to be down this goddamn mountain. the first stint didn't seem that bad. we knew it shouldn't take that long because its only 5k, the race for the cure is only 5k. then after about an hour of trudging down the slope we ran into a sign that told us we had 4.5k left. we'd only gone half a fucking kilometer in and hour. we were screwed. but we had to keep going. dob and i kept running into amy (from new york) and paitra (from new brunswick, canada) so we kinda joined up with them. soon it was 9:30, the time we were supposed to be meeting at the bus, and we still had two hours to go, ay least. at this point we ran into kate (from pdx) at the 7th station bathroom. we took a break to catch our breath and such, then our guide (and miranda) caught up with us. he, our guide, decided to go ahead and tell the bus that we really were coming, the rest of us tried hurry up the pace. i had a nice conversation with amy about expectations of JET and the big question of one year or two. we caught up with paitra, miranda and dob caught up with the three of us, and then we all made the final stint at our five different paces. 11:30am we were at the bus. everyone else had been there for hours. the embarrassing moments of getting on the bus, last, were pacified by the fact that we still went to the an-sen (public bath) and lunch at a local hotel at the lake at the bottom of fuji-san. the trip ended in another 10 1/2 hr bus ride (which involved some sleep for me, a little of usual suspects (wish it was the unusual suspects instead) and dob's favorite, the goodfellas. and that is that. i woke up for work at 6 this morning. found my way by bike for the first time, stopped at 7/11 to print photos for class and made it in before my supervisor. i am absolutely exhausted.
my bike.
september 1
buying my bike was the most satisfying act of my life in japan, so far. i had been pining after the magical bike that seemed so far away for nearly a month. a month that felt like six. after riding almost everyday in portland, not touching a bike for that long seemed like torture. even after i had my new apartment lined up i imagined that it was going to be at least a week before i figured out where i could get a decent bike without forking over hundreds of dollars. on my first evening in my new place, after all five of the teachers who helped me move left, i felt desperate and lonely. i was in a new part of town, starving and i had no clue what to do. so, i set out to find food. now i do admit that i was eyeing the bike shops on the way to my new place. there were two on my street and there was a small hope that they would still be open and would have a decent selection. so yeah, stopped at the first one. the bikes were over $200 and the guy barely noticed me looking. i didn't want to step in for fear on actually having to speak japanese, and i moved on. the next shop (because now i've decided i'm buying a bike, screw sustenance, a bike is more important) was a little more dingy and more bikes, more USED bikes. i was of course drawn to a beautiful orange bike in the front. it had a nice basket and was well, orange. on closer inspection though it didn't have any gears. now i know that the most gears i'm probably going to get is 3, but i've been to my school, i've seen the hills that i will have to conquer, i want gears. so then i spot this oldish navy blue bike. a large, deep basket, the classic japanese gear shifter--with three beautiful gears--, the cool japanese style lock and marked down by 1000yen ($10). i do notice a newer, mat black one right next to it for the same price...but it's newer and the same price...something is probably wrong with it. i catch the owner's eye, a nice looking middle aged man (that reminded me of the guy gentiana bought her mom's bike from), and motioned at the bike i liked. i then tried to ask if the breaks were any good and he offered to let me try it out. after removing the 6 locks (it was locked to all the bikes around it) he pulled it out, adjusted the seat--impressed that i wanted it high, meaning the CORrect height--and took it out to the street. i peddled around the corner and went up and down a side street. it road like a dream! i went back, 'kore wa onegashimasu' (this one please). while he was getting his register book i picked a lock and motioned to it when he came back. he singled that no, i should take this other one, and then he gave me 3 bucks off of it. after i wrote my address, name and phone number in his book, he explained--through hand motions and simple japanese--that if i needed air or any work done i should come back to him. that was that. i had a bike. i was a happy happy little girl. i then proceeded to ride gleefully down the street, absolutely clueless as to what i would do next.
buying my bike was the most satisfying act of my life in japan, so far. i had been pining after the magical bike that seemed so far away for nearly a month. a month that felt like six. after riding almost everyday in portland, not touching a bike for that long seemed like torture. even after i had my new apartment lined up i imagined that it was going to be at least a week before i figured out where i could get a decent bike without forking over hundreds of dollars. on my first evening in my new place, after all five of the teachers who helped me move left, i felt desperate and lonely. i was in a new part of town, starving and i had no clue what to do. so, i set out to find food. now i do admit that i was eyeing the bike shops on the way to my new place. there were two on my street and there was a small hope that they would still be open and would have a decent selection. so yeah, stopped at the first one. the bikes were over $200 and the guy barely noticed me looking. i didn't want to step in for fear on actually having to speak japanese, and i moved on. the next shop (because now i've decided i'm buying a bike, screw sustenance, a bike is more important) was a little more dingy and more bikes, more USED bikes. i was of course drawn to a beautiful orange bike in the front. it had a nice basket and was well, orange. on closer inspection though it didn't have any gears. now i know that the most gears i'm probably going to get is 3, but i've been to my school, i've seen the hills that i will have to conquer, i want gears. so then i spot this oldish navy blue bike. a large, deep basket, the classic japanese gear shifter--with three beautiful gears--, the cool japanese style lock and marked down by 1000yen ($10). i do notice a newer, mat black one right next to it for the same price...but it's newer and the same price...something is probably wrong with it. i catch the owner's eye, a nice looking middle aged man (that reminded me of the guy gentiana bought her mom's bike from), and motioned at the bike i liked. i then tried to ask if the breaks were any good and he offered to let me try it out. after removing the 6 locks (it was locked to all the bikes around it) he pulled it out, adjusted the seat--impressed that i wanted it high, meaning the CORrect height--and took it out to the street. i peddled around the corner and went up and down a side street. it road like a dream! i went back, 'kore wa onegashimasu' (this one please). while he was getting his register book i picked a lock and motioned to it when he came back. he singled that no, i should take this other one, and then he gave me 3 bucks off of it. after i wrote my address, name and phone number in his book, he explained--through hand motions and simple japanese--that if i needed air or any work done i should come back to him. that was that. i had a bike. i was a happy happy little girl. i then proceeded to ride gleefully down the street, absolutely clueless as to what i would do next.
日本人: japanese people.
august 29
one of the biggest complaints of JETs at all my orientations is that japanese people are gossips. that you will have no privacy as a foreigner in japan. that you can't go anywhere without being stared at. and your entire school will know ever ounce of your business. so much of this has to do with the fact the gaijin (foreigners) cannot integrate into society. the many government restrictions mean that not only is society specifically telling the people of japan to not accept outsiders, it also enforces the reality that any foreigner they will meet will not be able relate to japanese people on a local/communal level. in a more intimate space, at my school i had an epiphany: many of the teachers don't speak enough english to ask me questions, and i certainly don't speak enough japanese to answer anything beyond the 'yes, i'm from america' 'yes, i've been to japan before' 'no, i only speak a little japanese'. therefore any real details about me must be spread by rumor. for example almost every teacher now leans over to look at my foot and says 'cat! is that a tattoo? not sticker?'. of course there is a line that can be crossed. like today my embarrassment of getting on the wrong bus (shit) and having to call murata-sensei for a ride (double shit) doesn't need to be told to everyone at yasufuruichi high. i think that some 日本人 can respect this. of course, i think these are the teachers that either have been abroad for long periods of time or have empathy for making mistakes in a foreign country. we'll see how i feel after more personal things are exposed to the staff, for now i'll hold on to my understanding point of view and remember the excitement of meeting someone from a completely different culture.
one of the biggest complaints of JETs at all my orientations is that japanese people are gossips. that you will have no privacy as a foreigner in japan. that you can't go anywhere without being stared at. and your entire school will know ever ounce of your business. so much of this has to do with the fact the gaijin (foreigners) cannot integrate into society. the many government restrictions mean that not only is society specifically telling the people of japan to not accept outsiders, it also enforces the reality that any foreigner they will meet will not be able relate to japanese people on a local/communal level. in a more intimate space, at my school i had an epiphany: many of the teachers don't speak enough english to ask me questions, and i certainly don't speak enough japanese to answer anything beyond the 'yes, i'm from america' 'yes, i've been to japan before' 'no, i only speak a little japanese'. therefore any real details about me must be spread by rumor. for example almost every teacher now leans over to look at my foot and says 'cat! is that a tattoo? not sticker?'. of course there is a line that can be crossed. like today my embarrassment of getting on the wrong bus (shit) and having to call murata-sensei for a ride (double shit) doesn't need to be told to everyone at yasufuruichi high. i think that some 日本人 can respect this. of course, i think these are the teachers that either have been abroad for long periods of time or have empathy for making mistakes in a foreign country. we'll see how i feel after more personal things are exposed to the staff, for now i'll hold on to my understanding point of view and remember the excitement of meeting someone from a completely different culture.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
