I wonder if I feel homesick. Last night I had a hard time sleeping because I missed my dog. :/ Whenever I walk by animal stores or see people walking their pets, I feel a sense of longing for my own animals. It's strange because I certainly don't feel the same way about people. The people I know are rational, logical beings (for the most part) and have the ability to understand why I am away and how to communicate with me while I am gone. The same cannot be true of my pets though. While Princess seems fairly happy in her new surroundings (as I am sure Chibi is too), I feel really terrible that they are not here with me.
Last night while looking for a certain picture of my dad and I, I was looking through all the really beautiful pictures I have of my niece. She really is one gorgeous child. She's also incredibly smart. Whenever I speak to her on the computer, she reminds me that when she is 6, I have promised her a trip to Japan. She wants to see where Hello Kitty lives. Of course she has no real concept of how far away I am but the child does not forget anything, ever, so I am honestly planning away at a trip for her next year. Probably some time next year during Golden Week. I figure I can head home and on my return flight bring her here. Still a 12 hour flight is a long time for a little girl, but a promise is a promise, and as long as I keep reminding her how far away I actually am, it should be ok. She still reminds me that when shes a big girl, we are supposed to go to France. I made that promise when she was 2. -.-
Yesterday I went to the Tokugawa Art Museum with Mandy and Yoshiko. OMG! It was so much fun! I love history and yesterday they were having the Hina Matsuri display. Everything was so grand! Yoshiko wanted to practice her English, so she took us around the garden and museum and explained everything as we went along. We must've been there for about 6 hours. It's quite a big museum and with the garden, it takes a long while to soak it all in. There was also a Tale of Genji display *swoons*. Be still my heart! I will be posting pictures of my trip in a while. =)
Tomorrow I am going strawberry picking! I have a feeling its going to be freezing. -.- It's been slightly warmer, but only slightly. It's really cloudy outside and it always looks like rain. It warms up for like... 2 hours then goes back to really cold. I blame the fact that I was raised in Los Angeles for my lack of tolerance for the cold weather but I am learning to tough it out. lol. I wonder if I will ever be called hearty. Probably not. LA 4 life. :D Getting back to strawberry picking though, I have been looking forward to this since early January! I am so excited! Also, I took the nail polish off my fingers because I figured my hands would get messed up during the picking... so I am also excited to polish my nails again! eee! Yes, I am actually that LA.
Finally, I am super excited to see Jennifer. I feel terrible that things have been rough for her in Japan but hopefully once she arrives things will turn around. I am looking forward to a potential roommate and taking lots of pikura. :D Also, I think she will really enjoy this area. It's not super fun fantastically exciting (like Tokyo is for me) but its a very easy place to live and enjoy. Also, we will both be close to Ariel and Nicky, which always makes me soooo happy! Also, Miaka said she might be applying to work here! That means the 4 of us could likely have a reunion here in Japan after all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sometimes life just gets better and better. :D I am keeping my fingers crossed for this new life.
Conclusion: I miss my animals. I need more pictures of chibi and princess... but I am still really happy with things here.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
learning to breathe
Recently, I've really been enjoying life. My routine is becoming more regular (every blog is say this) and I am learning the city at a decent pace. I am starting to be a familiar face at some shops and restaurants. It makes the city feel like home.
I feel like I've neglected my blog over the last couple of weeks... Mainly it's due to the pretty bad flu I had and follow up migraine. I had the flu for about 5 solid days. I thought you weren't supposed to get the flu if you've gotten a flu shot! Sah... also, the migraine that followed was the worst I've had in almost a year. It was really really really bad... It started about 6pm and lasted until about 1pm the next day... T_T I was exhausted by the end of it all. Thankfully its done and over with and I am back to my normal self- though few would probably call me normal.
It's been warmer here the last few days!!!! It's been soooo nice outside. Quite lovely actually. I obsessively check the weather here. It changes so often! Today it was raining and tomorrow its supposed to pour but Monday and Tuesday were divine! I used to wonder why the Japanese always talked about the weather... now I know!
I've started making a list of all the things I actually miss about home. They are (in no particular order): slurpees, beautiful weather all the time, my sister, my niece, my grandpa, my grandma, my dog (probably chibi the most T_T), princess, cheez-it, flavour blasted goldfish, laws against smoking inside establishments, my fancy smancy shoe collection, sephora, jocelyn- the lady who does my hair. I am sure there's more, but thats all I can think of as of now.
The question then becomes, should I decide to stay here longer, can I survive without those things in my life?? Not without Chibi... he would have to come here. No questions asked. I've promised little miss Beka a trip to Japan sometime when she's about 6 (which she reminds me of every time we speak). I've found a way to talk to my grandparents fairly regularly... And really, it comes down to slurpees and cheez-its. It really is a hard life without them...
Speaking of which, have I mentioned that my grandma is the absolute BEST PENPAL!??! She sent me a care package (my first!) and almost every week we exchange letters. I cannot tell you how much I enjoy checking my mail now. I never used to check my mail... ever. But I check it every week now to see if I have a letter from her. It makes me soooo happy to read them! I've also gotten into the habit of writing letters every Sunday night when I do laundry. =) People nowadays are really into electronic everything, and I totally understand it, but there really is nothing like a nice, handwritten letter. It makes my heart melt with joy. =)
Spring starts here on March 1. March 3rd is the doll festival. If you don't know what it is, you should read the link. Its kind of an interesting festival. All the little girls in my life should be getting something soon. =)
I got to meet the new group of recruits the other week! *5* guys. UUUUGH. lol. They seem like nice guys. One of them quit half way through training though... I think he's already back in the states. He said he thought the job was going to be more lecturing... I think he missed the point that they're JAPANESE and don't speak english as their native tongue... @_@ So there are 4 left.
I also got to hang out with one of the japanese girls who works with me at a local school. She grew up close by. It was really fun. We had some pretty tasty pizza and then I took her to the local pub with the really good ice cream. I swear I eat soooo much ice cream... check that, I EAT SO MUCH FOOD!
I also met up with another teacher who was an English major like meeee! She's super sweet and friendly... and low key! I think she may be joining us for some Saturday night dinner and dessert outings. We ate at a cafe/restaurant in Osu, which seems to be the place to hang out around here. I had the BEST avocado sandwich! Easily the best I've had in Japan. It tasted like one I'd eat at home. Then we had some pretty cool parfaits for dessert. Mandy was there of course. I am so glad I have Mandy! I would be so bored without her here! She's great company.
Speaking of Mandy, yesterday we went to Inuyama Castle. It's the oldest castle in Japan because it hasn't been bombed, earthquaked, or otherwise rebuilt. It's really cool. I took a CRAPTON of pictures. I will probably upload those a bit later and if I remember, Ill add a link here. lol. After the castle we went to the Jo-an Teahouse and had tea and Japanese dessert. I am not a fan of green tea or red bean... but I did it for the sake of cultural knowledge. -.- It was really a lot of fun and VERY BEAUTIFUL!! Like I said, the weather has been sooooo nice the last couple of days, it was a really awesome day trip. Also, when we got there, they offered to send us with a volunteer guide who spoke to us in English! She was so sweet. She gave us little origami samurai hats as a keepsake. I wish I could remember her name... -.-
OOOO! One last thing, we ate at the neko (neko - cat) bistro and had the BEST LUNCH! It was your basic Italian restaurant with a cat theme. I said I was vegetarian and they made my pasta without meat but added a ton of veggies. For 1300 yen (about $13.00) we had salad, bread, pasta, dessert and drinks. It was soooo good! and again, I ATE SO MUCH! do you see a pattern here?? The dessert came with little tiny cat shaped cookies, ice cream, this really awesome-i-dont-know-what-it-was bread with cream on top, and fruit. I am using this blog as a mental note to remember this place. ^_^
Work has also been going well. Since my mishap, I am working harder to improve my tarnished reputation... I got to sub a senka class. Senka is an intensive class that we teach which lasts 2 hours. It's a lot of fun but requires a lot of prep. I also did a bunch of demo lessons for the new school that just opened and the school director sent compliments to personnel about them. ^_^ Today the school director joked that he hopes someone gets a disease so I can sub for him again... though I don't actually think he wishes a disease.. perhaps just minor illness. ^_^
2 students of note: I met this guy who is 60-? now. He works for Mitsubishi building ships, though mostly his job was engineering the inside electronic equipment. He's lived in 6 countries: Russia, USA, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, and Japan. He's tried to learn the local dialect of each country, so he knows so many languages! I didn't teach him at all. Instead, I asked him about his job and he stood up and went to the white board and explained all about ship building! It was totally fascinating! I learned that liquid natural gas needs to be kept at -153 c. The other gas, needs to be kept at roughly -50c. and thats the same temperature that salmon needs to be kept at... so they'd transport gas one way, pick up salmon, and bring it back on the return trip. Totally randomly useless knowledge that I can store away and use for some trivia game later!
The other guy is 32 and hes a physics professor at a local university. Already!!! A professor! Physics!! I'm jealous. -.- His hobby is making pasta, which he has done now for about a year. He's made almost every type of pasta... when I told him that my sister and I have made the actual pasta from scratch, he said he was going to try it and let me know how it turns out. ^_^ He is also into heavy metal! He said in Japan there are the big 4: Metallica, Anthrax, Slayer, and Pantera. They have a name for it but I forgot what it was... I think they are the big 4 in the USA too though. He was totally cool. But in the not-so-much-cool-as-geeky kinda way. ^_^
Finally, last week I went and saw my first movie (with Mandy)!!! We went on Valentines day. ^_^ We saw "shiawase no pan" or "bread of happiness." It was a totally cute movie about a woman in Okinawa who runs a bread shop. She's looking for true love. There weren't any subtitles!!!!! eeeeeee!!!! I think I understood about 80% of the movie... I think. It was really a great movie to have as my first movie here.
It's so strange to feel alive again. The last 5-6 years have been so tough. But like every winter, the clouds eventually dissipate and the sun begins to shine again... I am happy.
I feel like I've neglected my blog over the last couple of weeks... Mainly it's due to the pretty bad flu I had and follow up migraine. I had the flu for about 5 solid days. I thought you weren't supposed to get the flu if you've gotten a flu shot! Sah... also, the migraine that followed was the worst I've had in almost a year. It was really really really bad... It started about 6pm and lasted until about 1pm the next day... T_T I was exhausted by the end of it all. Thankfully its done and over with and I am back to my normal self- though few would probably call me normal.
It's been warmer here the last few days!!!! It's been soooo nice outside. Quite lovely actually. I obsessively check the weather here. It changes so often! Today it was raining and tomorrow its supposed to pour but Monday and Tuesday were divine! I used to wonder why the Japanese always talked about the weather... now I know!
I've started making a list of all the things I actually miss about home. They are (in no particular order): slurpees, beautiful weather all the time, my sister, my niece, my grandpa, my grandma, my dog (probably chibi the most T_T), princess, cheez-it, flavour blasted goldfish, laws against smoking inside establishments, my fancy smancy shoe collection, sephora, jocelyn- the lady who does my hair. I am sure there's more, but thats all I can think of as of now.
The question then becomes, should I decide to stay here longer, can I survive without those things in my life?? Not without Chibi... he would have to come here. No questions asked. I've promised little miss Beka a trip to Japan sometime when she's about 6 (which she reminds me of every time we speak). I've found a way to talk to my grandparents fairly regularly... And really, it comes down to slurpees and cheez-its. It really is a hard life without them...
Speaking of which, have I mentioned that my grandma is the absolute BEST PENPAL!??! She sent me a care package (my first!) and almost every week we exchange letters. I cannot tell you how much I enjoy checking my mail now. I never used to check my mail... ever. But I check it every week now to see if I have a letter from her. It makes me soooo happy to read them! I've also gotten into the habit of writing letters every Sunday night when I do laundry. =) People nowadays are really into electronic everything, and I totally understand it, but there really is nothing like a nice, handwritten letter. It makes my heart melt with joy. =)
Spring starts here on March 1. March 3rd is the doll festival. If you don't know what it is, you should read the link. Its kind of an interesting festival. All the little girls in my life should be getting something soon. =)
I got to meet the new group of recruits the other week! *5* guys. UUUUGH. lol. They seem like nice guys. One of them quit half way through training though... I think he's already back in the states. He said he thought the job was going to be more lecturing... I think he missed the point that they're JAPANESE and don't speak english as their native tongue... @_@ So there are 4 left.
I also got to hang out with one of the japanese girls who works with me at a local school. She grew up close by. It was really fun. We had some pretty tasty pizza and then I took her to the local pub with the really good ice cream. I swear I eat soooo much ice cream... check that, I EAT SO MUCH FOOD!
I also met up with another teacher who was an English major like meeee! She's super sweet and friendly... and low key! I think she may be joining us for some Saturday night dinner and dessert outings. We ate at a cafe/restaurant in Osu, which seems to be the place to hang out around here. I had the BEST avocado sandwich! Easily the best I've had in Japan. It tasted like one I'd eat at home. Then we had some pretty cool parfaits for dessert. Mandy was there of course. I am so glad I have Mandy! I would be so bored without her here! She's great company.
Speaking of Mandy, yesterday we went to Inuyama Castle. It's the oldest castle in Japan because it hasn't been bombed, earthquaked, or otherwise rebuilt. It's really cool. I took a CRAPTON of pictures. I will probably upload those a bit later and if I remember, Ill add a link here. lol. After the castle we went to the Jo-an Teahouse and had tea and Japanese dessert. I am not a fan of green tea or red bean... but I did it for the sake of cultural knowledge. -.- It was really a lot of fun and VERY BEAUTIFUL!! Like I said, the weather has been sooooo nice the last couple of days, it was a really awesome day trip. Also, when we got there, they offered to send us with a volunteer guide who spoke to us in English! She was so sweet. She gave us little origami samurai hats as a keepsake. I wish I could remember her name... -.-
OOOO! One last thing, we ate at the neko (neko - cat) bistro and had the BEST LUNCH! It was your basic Italian restaurant with a cat theme. I said I was vegetarian and they made my pasta without meat but added a ton of veggies. For 1300 yen (about $13.00) we had salad, bread, pasta, dessert and drinks. It was soooo good! and again, I ATE SO MUCH! do you see a pattern here?? The dessert came with little tiny cat shaped cookies, ice cream, this really awesome-i-dont-know-what-it-was bread with cream on top, and fruit. I am using this blog as a mental note to remember this place. ^_^
Work has also been going well. Since my mishap, I am working harder to improve my tarnished reputation... I got to sub a senka class. Senka is an intensive class that we teach which lasts 2 hours. It's a lot of fun but requires a lot of prep. I also did a bunch of demo lessons for the new school that just opened and the school director sent compliments to personnel about them. ^_^ Today the school director joked that he hopes someone gets a disease so I can sub for him again... though I don't actually think he wishes a disease.. perhaps just minor illness. ^_^
2 students of note: I met this guy who is 60-? now. He works for Mitsubishi building ships, though mostly his job was engineering the inside electronic equipment. He's lived in 6 countries: Russia, USA, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, and Japan. He's tried to learn the local dialect of each country, so he knows so many languages! I didn't teach him at all. Instead, I asked him about his job and he stood up and went to the white board and explained all about ship building! It was totally fascinating! I learned that liquid natural gas needs to be kept at -153 c. The other gas, needs to be kept at roughly -50c. and thats the same temperature that salmon needs to be kept at... so they'd transport gas one way, pick up salmon, and bring it back on the return trip. Totally randomly useless knowledge that I can store away and use for some trivia game later!
The other guy is 32 and hes a physics professor at a local university. Already!!! A professor! Physics!! I'm jealous. -.- His hobby is making pasta, which he has done now for about a year. He's made almost every type of pasta... when I told him that my sister and I have made the actual pasta from scratch, he said he was going to try it and let me know how it turns out. ^_^ He is also into heavy metal! He said in Japan there are the big 4: Metallica, Anthrax, Slayer, and Pantera. They have a name for it but I forgot what it was... I think they are the big 4 in the USA too though. He was totally cool. But in the not-so-much-cool-as-geeky kinda way. ^_^
Finally, last week I went and saw my first movie (with Mandy)!!! We went on Valentines day. ^_^ We saw "shiawase no pan" or "bread of happiness." It was a totally cute movie about a woman in Okinawa who runs a bread shop. She's looking for true love. There weren't any subtitles!!!!! eeeeeee!!!! I think I understood about 80% of the movie... I think. It was really a great movie to have as my first movie here.
It's so strange to feel alive again. The last 5-6 years have been so tough. But like every winter, the clouds eventually dissipate and the sun begins to shine again... I am happy.
Monday, February 6, 2012
snow flurries
Sooooo! its been an interesting couple of weeks here... i feel like i need to make a list so i dont forget to write about all the things on my mind!
last week i made a hugeeee error and got lost getting to work. even though i thought i could make it to work on time, i didnt and i ended up being late. uuugh. it was pretty awful. i am still kinda kicking myself for it, but i learned and i wont make the same errors again. :/
to that end, i feel like i finally got a taste of the ugly side of japan. its certainly not anything i am going to blog about here but its something for me to be more cautious of in the future. i am lucky things worked out though... and i can move forward.
anyway, it was a pretty big deal but on to good news!
i went to the food faire at nagoya dome this past weekend!!! omg. omg. o.m.g. the food was soooo good!!! just the smell... just walking towards the door! lol. it was food from all over japan and around the world! i had okonomiyaki which was soooooooo good!!!! i cant believe ive waited this long to have some.... ive been in japan like what? 3 months now?! anyway... soooooooo good!!! also, we had shaved snow for dessert! mandy and i are on the same wavelength when it comes to food, so we are having some excellent culinary adventures!!! i took plenty of pictures, on fb... unfortunately, you cant taste them though. -.-
also, major language breakthrough! i have been forcing myself to watch japanese television for 30 minutes every day so that i can improve my listening skills! its hard with my general dislike of television, but its working! a few days ago i saw an entire program and understood EVERYTHING! eeee!!!! ok, so the subject was easy; dieting, but i understood it nonetheless! lol. it was pretty amusing. =D now that i am watching it more, i am certainly upping my listening skills. this makes me really happy. ^_^
in 2 weeks i am going strawberry picking!!! i am so excited!!! i hope the weather is nice... the weather is soooo all over the place here. i actually have to look at the weather every day to know what to wear!
speaking of weather, we had snooooooow!!! eeeeeeeeeek! it was freaking coooold! well, once it snowed, it wasnt that cold but every day leading up to the snow was freezing! how do people live like this all the time?!?! lol. im such a california girl... or l.a. girl really. i shiver at anything below 70. thankfully it doesnt really snow much in nagoya and i think the 3 days of snow per year are over! yay! *does happy dance*
teaching-wise, ive have some really awesome students lately! i taught the word "convoluted," "t.g.i.f.," and what it means to keep your fingers crossed! today was really awesome. i subbed for the teacher i shadowed during training. i met his adult students and we had some pretty great conversations. we had a chapter on medicine/getting well and we all talked about times we've been to the emergency (ive never been). lol. but one guy broke his elbow and made the grossest popping sound during his recreation... one guy fell out of a tree (hehehehe) and one guy broke his arm snowboarding. still, kalchik has him beat with a broken back... but it was pretty amusing when the guy drew a picture of what his arm looked like. lol. after we talked about illness, we went around the table and i had everyone tell me some good news! especially after talking about all that illness! lol. so, one guy said he goes to the hospital every month. when i asked him how that was "good" news, he said that his doctor keeps telling him he doesnt need to be there, nor does he need medicine, so hes in good health. lol. that was good news. ^_^ then one guy told me that his daughter spoke for the first time and said "mama" which was really cute.... and one guy told me that he bought this cheap white shirt from a thrift store and tried to dye it with coffee beans but it failed so the shirt still looks like an off-white color but he likes it anyway. lol. also, the shirt wasnt that cheap... it was like $20... which isnt cheap IMO. lol. but he was soooo happy telling the story that i gave him a pass for good news. ^_^
some guy was asking me about the places ive been and so we got to talking... and when i told him my least favorite place on earth was china, i think he was slightly offended. lol. he wasnt chinese or anything but has big love for the place. i tried explaining that it wasnt a big deal... but he got kinda defensive and kept explaining why he thought it was wonderful.... uh... yea, i could do without going to china again... but different strokes!
cindy le arrived in korea on friday!!!! yay!!! i got my invite for steves wedding in thailand!!! AAAAAND JENNIFER IS GOING TO BE HERE IN LESS THAN 24 HOURSSSSSSS!!!!
so... in the end, working hard, working on establishing new relationships and meeting old/good friends. i also put my buddha necklace back on... after years and years of hiatus. good luck is on the way. so far, i love living in japan... even the bad parts are like little potholes that you learn to avoid. ^_^ happy!
last week i made a hugeeee error and got lost getting to work. even though i thought i could make it to work on time, i didnt and i ended up being late. uuugh. it was pretty awful. i am still kinda kicking myself for it, but i learned and i wont make the same errors again. :/
to that end, i feel like i finally got a taste of the ugly side of japan. its certainly not anything i am going to blog about here but its something for me to be more cautious of in the future. i am lucky things worked out though... and i can move forward.
anyway, it was a pretty big deal but on to good news!
i went to the food faire at nagoya dome this past weekend!!! omg. omg. o.m.g. the food was soooo good!!! just the smell... just walking towards the door! lol. it was food from all over japan and around the world! i had okonomiyaki which was soooooooo good!!!! i cant believe ive waited this long to have some.... ive been in japan like what? 3 months now?! anyway... soooooooo good!!! also, we had shaved snow for dessert! mandy and i are on the same wavelength when it comes to food, so we are having some excellent culinary adventures!!! i took plenty of pictures, on fb... unfortunately, you cant taste them though. -.-
also, major language breakthrough! i have been forcing myself to watch japanese television for 30 minutes every day so that i can improve my listening skills! its hard with my general dislike of television, but its working! a few days ago i saw an entire program and understood EVERYTHING! eeee!!!! ok, so the subject was easy; dieting, but i understood it nonetheless! lol. it was pretty amusing. =D now that i am watching it more, i am certainly upping my listening skills. this makes me really happy. ^_^
in 2 weeks i am going strawberry picking!!! i am so excited!!! i hope the weather is nice... the weather is soooo all over the place here. i actually have to look at the weather every day to know what to wear!
speaking of weather, we had snooooooow!!! eeeeeeeeeek! it was freaking coooold! well, once it snowed, it wasnt that cold but every day leading up to the snow was freezing! how do people live like this all the time?!?! lol. im such a california girl... or l.a. girl really. i shiver at anything below 70. thankfully it doesnt really snow much in nagoya and i think the 3 days of snow per year are over! yay! *does happy dance*
teaching-wise, ive have some really awesome students lately! i taught the word "convoluted," "t.g.i.f.," and what it means to keep your fingers crossed! today was really awesome. i subbed for the teacher i shadowed during training. i met his adult students and we had some pretty great conversations. we had a chapter on medicine/getting well and we all talked about times we've been to the emergency (ive never been). lol. but one guy broke his elbow and made the grossest popping sound during his recreation... one guy fell out of a tree (hehehehe) and one guy broke his arm snowboarding. still, kalchik has him beat with a broken back... but it was pretty amusing when the guy drew a picture of what his arm looked like. lol. after we talked about illness, we went around the table and i had everyone tell me some good news! especially after talking about all that illness! lol. so, one guy said he goes to the hospital every month. when i asked him how that was "good" news, he said that his doctor keeps telling him he doesnt need to be there, nor does he need medicine, so hes in good health. lol. that was good news. ^_^ then one guy told me that his daughter spoke for the first time and said "mama" which was really cute.... and one guy told me that he bought this cheap white shirt from a thrift store and tried to dye it with coffee beans but it failed so the shirt still looks like an off-white color but he likes it anyway. lol. also, the shirt wasnt that cheap... it was like $20... which isnt cheap IMO. lol. but he was soooo happy telling the story that i gave him a pass for good news. ^_^
some guy was asking me about the places ive been and so we got to talking... and when i told him my least favorite place on earth was china, i think he was slightly offended. lol. he wasnt chinese or anything but has big love for the place. i tried explaining that it wasnt a big deal... but he got kinda defensive and kept explaining why he thought it was wonderful.... uh... yea, i could do without going to china again... but different strokes!
cindy le arrived in korea on friday!!!! yay!!! i got my invite for steves wedding in thailand!!! AAAAAND JENNIFER IS GOING TO BE HERE IN LESS THAN 24 HOURSSSSSSS!!!!
so... in the end, working hard, working on establishing new relationships and meeting old/good friends. i also put my buddha necklace back on... after years and years of hiatus. good luck is on the way. so far, i love living in japan... even the bad parts are like little potholes that you learn to avoid. ^_^ happy!
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
bring on the year of the dragon!
hello!!!!
seems the time here is going by sooo quickly! today was little miss beka's birthday and it was the first time i wasn't there to celebrate it with her! it was a bit sad for me but i look forward to many more birthdays with her. =)
as for life here, i am settling in fairly easily. i guess i should say "settled". i know where to buy everything i need now. i know which stores have the lowest priced items and im starting to recognize more easily prices in terms of yen, instead of trying to convert things to dollar. today i switched my phone bill to my new japanese bank account, finally registered for the national health insurance, and signed up for online banking. i also bought hair dye and cleaned my house for the new year. being able to accomplish the big things and little things around here feels great.
like ive mentioned, ive yet to really have a bad experience here. even my bad days arent really that bad. im starting to make a list of my likes/dislikes about living in japan. i love so many things about this place, but like any place, there are some drawbacks. like slurpees. there are no slurpees here and theres pretty much no way anyone back home can mail them to me... thankfully its still freezing cold here... so i havent felt the pain of slurpee withdrawals yet. also, i dont like that you can smoke in most restaurants. i dont go out that often, so it doesnt really get to bother me that much... but when i do, i notice it quite quickly. also, flaming hot cheetos. i guess its a good thing i dont have access to them because i can never eat just one anyway... as soon as i open the bag, i eat the whole thing... sah!
this week i had a conversation with a fairly high level student about the difference between nationalism and patriotism. he asked me if we stood during the national anthem. i told him that i did, and that from a young age, we are taught to do so. mostly at sporting events and such, but its fairly common. he said that the older people in japan dont stand for the national anthem because its a reminder of the war. he said his friend told him that when he hears the national anthem, he sees the faces of all of his friends that died during the war... and is reminded of the dangers of nationalism. japan was quite a nationalistic country pre wwii... and now, he says, japanese people try to pay more attention to the difference between nationalism and patriotism- both of which can lead you down the wrong path... its interesting to hear the japanese speak about the war. ive only heard it from a few older people and i almost never ask questions... as my family was obviously fighting on the other side of that war... but the loss is deep, especially among the older generation. it makes me uncomfortable really. so his point was that now, schools are starting to teach children to stand during the national anthem and some of the other generation is still very uncomfortable with the whole idea. it was an interesting conversation. its left me thinking about it since last week... i can definitely see the difference and the problem within people i know... *shrug*
also, its FREEZING HERE! currently, its 32 degrees. tomorrow its supposed to snow. the thought of me in a place that snows sounds like some sort of cruel, sick, joke... but seeing as how every other place in japan already has snow... i cant complain too much. id look forward to the next season... but the next season is rain... haha... so i think ill stick with this for now... at least im experiencing all the seasons? ive never had to do this before so its interesting! lol. having my face freeze... my earrings painfully freeze my ear... all new experiences!
honestly though... ive been staying warm in most places (as most places have the heat on 85 degrees - which coincidently smacks you in the face when you walk in that cold...). the trains all have heat and the underground subways are super awesome so... i dont have to be above ground in the elements too much.
i finally purchased a digital converter for the tv in my apartment. i am not a huge fan of tv but i figure at this point its actually studying/helping my japanese... so i keep it on for background noise. who knows! maybe when i get back ill even be a fan of television? ok, thats probably a stretch. what watching japanese television has taught me thus far: the japanese loveeee love love love food. yep. almost every channel has something on about food ALL THE TIME. lol. once in a while, you have news... in the evening there are a fair share of dramas... and there are a lot of game shows. funny, amusing, crazy, very japanese, game shows. today i was watching this show with a guy in a hamster ball rolling around in a safari trying to get near big, scary wildlife. an elephant poked him with his tusk and the guy went rolling around. it was rather amusing... lol. there was also a segment about robots... there was a robot that looked like r2d2 pulling a rickshaw. how cool would that be? id totally give up my car. well, i dont really have a car right now... lol. hrm...
what else... oh! i had my date with yousuke! i had a really good time. his english is better than he lets on, as he lived in australia for 2 years... hes also been to 30 countries! im sooo jealous! he's a music teacher... and also composes music... from mie prefecture, the next town over. hes about 6 ft... and way cooler than me. lol. we have tentative plans for dinner at some point this week... we'll see!
oh, i emailed a bunch of people offering classes in the area. im super excited! the classes i emailed about are: ikebana (flower arranging), calligraphy, japanese cooking, spanish cooking, japanese conversation, tea ceremony, french conversation, yoga, and the local social Klub. yep, klub with a k "cause its cool that way." soooo cheesy i had to email them too! hehe.
also, i am going strawberry picking with mandy in a couple of weeks! strawberries are sooooo expensive here.... they come in packs of 12 and cost maybe... $13? yea. f* that! strawberry picking is like $20 and all you can eat strawberries for one hour... plus you can bring some home! i am excited about this! ^__^!!!
i am eating way too much taiyaki...
theyre so freaking good! basically, its like a waffle filled with custard inside, served hot! soooooo tasty! i think theyd taste better with vanilla ice cream, but its currently waaaayyy too cold to eat them with ice cream... but when the time comes...!!
and lastly, when i move back i will have no real belongings, so i can actually work on getting the things i really want in a place... like a kohatsu. after getting to use ariels... i am in love. (although i am also in love with her bathroom...)
things to look forward to this year of the dragon: cindy le will be in korea starting feb. 2, which pretty much assures my near future trip to korea, steve is getting married in june, in thailand... and nancy in taiwan.
things to look forward to now: JENNIFER IS MOVING TO JAPAN!!!!!!!!! YAAAAAAAAAAAY!!! SHE WILL BE HERE SOON EVEN!!!!!!!!!! MY LIFE IS COMPLETE!!!!!!!!!! i was soooo happy i teared up when i heard! ok, not big tears, but a slight water for sure! ^________^ ureshiiiiiiii!!!!! with ariel and jennifer close by... how could life ever be bad??? if only my sister lived in japan.... lol.
ok. long blog. tired of writing. by the time ya'll read this itll be morning... so have a great day minna (everyone)!
seems the time here is going by sooo quickly! today was little miss beka's birthday and it was the first time i wasn't there to celebrate it with her! it was a bit sad for me but i look forward to many more birthdays with her. =)
as for life here, i am settling in fairly easily. i guess i should say "settled". i know where to buy everything i need now. i know which stores have the lowest priced items and im starting to recognize more easily prices in terms of yen, instead of trying to convert things to dollar. today i switched my phone bill to my new japanese bank account, finally registered for the national health insurance, and signed up for online banking. i also bought hair dye and cleaned my house for the new year. being able to accomplish the big things and little things around here feels great.
like ive mentioned, ive yet to really have a bad experience here. even my bad days arent really that bad. im starting to make a list of my likes/dislikes about living in japan. i love so many things about this place, but like any place, there are some drawbacks. like slurpees. there are no slurpees here and theres pretty much no way anyone back home can mail them to me... thankfully its still freezing cold here... so i havent felt the pain of slurpee withdrawals yet. also, i dont like that you can smoke in most restaurants. i dont go out that often, so it doesnt really get to bother me that much... but when i do, i notice it quite quickly. also, flaming hot cheetos. i guess its a good thing i dont have access to them because i can never eat just one anyway... as soon as i open the bag, i eat the whole thing... sah!
this week i had a conversation with a fairly high level student about the difference between nationalism and patriotism. he asked me if we stood during the national anthem. i told him that i did, and that from a young age, we are taught to do so. mostly at sporting events and such, but its fairly common. he said that the older people in japan dont stand for the national anthem because its a reminder of the war. he said his friend told him that when he hears the national anthem, he sees the faces of all of his friends that died during the war... and is reminded of the dangers of nationalism. japan was quite a nationalistic country pre wwii... and now, he says, japanese people try to pay more attention to the difference between nationalism and patriotism- both of which can lead you down the wrong path... its interesting to hear the japanese speak about the war. ive only heard it from a few older people and i almost never ask questions... as my family was obviously fighting on the other side of that war... but the loss is deep, especially among the older generation. it makes me uncomfortable really. so his point was that now, schools are starting to teach children to stand during the national anthem and some of the other generation is still very uncomfortable with the whole idea. it was an interesting conversation. its left me thinking about it since last week... i can definitely see the difference and the problem within people i know... *shrug*
also, its FREEZING HERE! currently, its 32 degrees. tomorrow its supposed to snow. the thought of me in a place that snows sounds like some sort of cruel, sick, joke... but seeing as how every other place in japan already has snow... i cant complain too much. id look forward to the next season... but the next season is rain... haha... so i think ill stick with this for now... at least im experiencing all the seasons? ive never had to do this before so its interesting! lol. having my face freeze... my earrings painfully freeze my ear... all new experiences!
honestly though... ive been staying warm in most places (as most places have the heat on 85 degrees - which coincidently smacks you in the face when you walk in that cold...). the trains all have heat and the underground subways are super awesome so... i dont have to be above ground in the elements too much.
i finally purchased a digital converter for the tv in my apartment. i am not a huge fan of tv but i figure at this point its actually studying/helping my japanese... so i keep it on for background noise. who knows! maybe when i get back ill even be a fan of television? ok, thats probably a stretch. what watching japanese television has taught me thus far: the japanese loveeee love love love food. yep. almost every channel has something on about food ALL THE TIME. lol. once in a while, you have news... in the evening there are a fair share of dramas... and there are a lot of game shows. funny, amusing, crazy, very japanese, game shows. today i was watching this show with a guy in a hamster ball rolling around in a safari trying to get near big, scary wildlife. an elephant poked him with his tusk and the guy went rolling around. it was rather amusing... lol. there was also a segment about robots... there was a robot that looked like r2d2 pulling a rickshaw. how cool would that be? id totally give up my car. well, i dont really have a car right now... lol. hrm...
what else... oh! i had my date with yousuke! i had a really good time. his english is better than he lets on, as he lived in australia for 2 years... hes also been to 30 countries! im sooo jealous! he's a music teacher... and also composes music... from mie prefecture, the next town over. hes about 6 ft... and way cooler than me. lol. we have tentative plans for dinner at some point this week... we'll see!
oh, i emailed a bunch of people offering classes in the area. im super excited! the classes i emailed about are: ikebana (flower arranging), calligraphy, japanese cooking, spanish cooking, japanese conversation, tea ceremony, french conversation, yoga, and the local social Klub. yep, klub with a k "cause its cool that way." soooo cheesy i had to email them too! hehe.
also, i am going strawberry picking with mandy in a couple of weeks! strawberries are sooooo expensive here.... they come in packs of 12 and cost maybe... $13? yea. f* that! strawberry picking is like $20 and all you can eat strawberries for one hour... plus you can bring some home! i am excited about this! ^__^!!!
i am eating way too much taiyaki...
and lastly, when i move back i will have no real belongings, so i can actually work on getting the things i really want in a place... like a kohatsu. after getting to use ariels... i am in love. (although i am also in love with her bathroom...)
things to look forward to this year of the dragon: cindy le will be in korea starting feb. 2, which pretty much assures my near future trip to korea, steve is getting married in june, in thailand... and nancy in taiwan.
things to look forward to now: JENNIFER IS MOVING TO JAPAN!!!!!!!!! YAAAAAAAAAAAY!!! SHE WILL BE HERE SOON EVEN!!!!!!!!!! MY LIFE IS COMPLETE!!!!!!!!!! i was soooo happy i teared up when i heard! ok, not big tears, but a slight water for sure! ^________^ ureshiiiiiiii!!!!! with ariel and jennifer close by... how could life ever be bad??? if only my sister lived in japan.... lol.
ok. long blog. tired of writing. by the time ya'll read this itll be morning... so have a great day minna (everyone)!
Monday, January 9, 2012
Working girl.
the end of another week is here, but since there is some random Japanese national holiday, i have a 3 day weekend! yay! i love random holidays! i feel like such a lackey since i worked 2 days, took christmas break, then worked 3 days and have a 3 day holiday... lol. after my 3 day holiday is PAYDAY! FINALLY!!! WEEEEEE!!!
i got a call from personnel last night. they told me that they got a call from the school i was at telling them that i was doing a fantastic job. ^_^ she said she was really impressed since it was only my second day of actual work. im glad they like me! i really like them!
my mission thus far has been to settle in, orient myself, and get a grip on the change. so far that has worked out well. ive done so much walking that my knee no longer hurts, my clothes fit better, and ive worn out 2 pairs of shoes. i also understand where my subway exit is in relation to the rest of nagoya and where i need to explore further. yesterday i signed up for classes at the international center. i placed in the highest level of conversational japanese they offer but im taking the class mostly to get over my FEAR of speaking japanese... and not so much the grammar practice.
while i was there (the international center), i went to the library to look at the flyers and such and then went to sit down and read a couple of magazines... i was there with my friend mandy and it was pretty obvious that we were engaged in reading... when a guy comes up and sits down RIGHT IN OUR PERSONAL SPACE. he proceeds to tell me that hes from nigeria and that he wants to get to know me... UUUUUUUGHHHH CAN HE NOT TELL IM IN A LIBRARY?! the short answer is yes, yes he knows how incredibly rude it is to speak in libraries but he continues his assault for near an hour. he wanted to know whyyyy i wasnt interested in him and whyyyy i didnt want to be friends, etc. normally i am against lying but i told him i had a boyfriend and he said "well you have a boyfriend in the u.s. and now you can have a boyfriend in japan." -.- uuuuuuuuuuuuugh. i was really annoyed but i didnt want to let him invade my space so that *i* left. so eventually he left... but i saw him again, hitting on another uninterested girl in the international center. >.>
otherwise, we had a really good day. yesterday night mandy and i went out for italian food and then went to a gaijin bar. (gaijin= foreigner). bars arent really my thing but i had never been to a gaijin bar before and i really wanted to know what this was all about... so we went, mostly to people watch. ZOMG EVERYONE SMOKESSSSS! coming from california it was just right in my face... and my jacket smells.... sah. anyway, it wasnt a completely fruitless night. we met these guys who sat and chatted with us for almost 2 hours. one of them was a businessman and the other is a music teacher (actually quite handsome!). they spoke little english and mandy is not quite conversational level japanese, so i spent a large part of the night translating and speaking... it was quite a jovial affair really. i exchanged info with the music teacher, then they left to head back to their respective living places and mandy and i stayed for about 30 more minutes and went home.
next week nagoya is having their semi-anual flea market! i guess its the biggest in the area.... so i am REEEEALLY looking forward to it. i picked up all sorts of events to go to from the international center. its quite an active place here... crocheting, ikebana and calligraphy are all on my list of things to *learn* while here... possibly a cooking class... and.... french? its time i get out and make friends with the locals so i can hunker down for the large stretch of working/living here... so it seems i am on my way to accomplishing that goal... which is good.
also, today i learned JENNIFER MIGHT BE MOVING TO JAPAN!!!!!!!! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYY!!!! ヾ(*・ω・)ノ゜+.゜★ィェィ☆゜+.゜ヾ(・ω・*)ノ normally i am against hugs, but i think i am going to squish her until i have squished the life from her. -.- the potential of having two of my bestest friends from college living less than an hours train ride makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. tonight there was talk of jdrama watching, japanese book reading, getting back on the classical japanese, haiku writing... and japanese death poem reading! i am one happy girl
and now i shall leave you with quote a bit of our masterful writing (i.e. Ariel's poem):
Longing for old days
of long study sessions, I
think of Common Grounds.
i got a call from personnel last night. they told me that they got a call from the school i was at telling them that i was doing a fantastic job. ^_^ she said she was really impressed since it was only my second day of actual work. im glad they like me! i really like them!
my mission thus far has been to settle in, orient myself, and get a grip on the change. so far that has worked out well. ive done so much walking that my knee no longer hurts, my clothes fit better, and ive worn out 2 pairs of shoes. i also understand where my subway exit is in relation to the rest of nagoya and where i need to explore further. yesterday i signed up for classes at the international center. i placed in the highest level of conversational japanese they offer but im taking the class mostly to get over my FEAR of speaking japanese... and not so much the grammar practice.
while i was there (the international center), i went to the library to look at the flyers and such and then went to sit down and read a couple of magazines... i was there with my friend mandy and it was pretty obvious that we were engaged in reading... when a guy comes up and sits down RIGHT IN OUR PERSONAL SPACE. he proceeds to tell me that hes from nigeria and that he wants to get to know me... UUUUUUUGHHHH CAN HE NOT TELL IM IN A LIBRARY?! the short answer is yes, yes he knows how incredibly rude it is to speak in libraries but he continues his assault for near an hour. he wanted to know whyyyy i wasnt interested in him and whyyyy i didnt want to be friends, etc. normally i am against lying but i told him i had a boyfriend and he said "well you have a boyfriend in the u.s. and now you can have a boyfriend in japan." -.- uuuuuuuuuuuuugh. i was really annoyed but i didnt want to let him invade my space so that *i* left. so eventually he left... but i saw him again, hitting on another uninterested girl in the international center. >.>
otherwise, we had a really good day. yesterday night mandy and i went out for italian food and then went to a gaijin bar. (gaijin= foreigner). bars arent really my thing but i had never been to a gaijin bar before and i really wanted to know what this was all about... so we went, mostly to people watch. ZOMG EVERYONE SMOKESSSSS! coming from california it was just right in my face... and my jacket smells.... sah. anyway, it wasnt a completely fruitless night. we met these guys who sat and chatted with us for almost 2 hours. one of them was a businessman and the other is a music teacher (actually quite handsome!). they spoke little english and mandy is not quite conversational level japanese, so i spent a large part of the night translating and speaking... it was quite a jovial affair really. i exchanged info with the music teacher, then they left to head back to their respective living places and mandy and i stayed for about 30 more minutes and went home.
next week nagoya is having their semi-anual flea market! i guess its the biggest in the area.... so i am REEEEALLY looking forward to it. i picked up all sorts of events to go to from the international center. its quite an active place here... crocheting, ikebana and calligraphy are all on my list of things to *learn* while here... possibly a cooking class... and.... french? its time i get out and make friends with the locals so i can hunker down for the large stretch of working/living here... so it seems i am on my way to accomplishing that goal... which is good.
also, today i learned JENNIFER MIGHT BE MOVING TO JAPAN!!!!!!!! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYY!!!! ヾ(*・ω・)ノ゜+.゜★ィェィ☆゜+.゜ヾ(・ω・*)ノ normally i am against hugs, but i think i am going to squish her until i have squished the life from her. -.- the potential of having two of my bestest friends from college living less than an hours train ride makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. tonight there was talk of jdrama watching, japanese book reading, getting back on the classical japanese, haiku writing... and japanese death poem reading! i am one happy girl
and now i shall leave you with quote a bit of our masterful writing (i.e. Ariel's poem):
Longing for old days
of long study sessions, I
think of Common Grounds.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
World Traveler Part II: Reverse culture shock!
Being in japan really changes how I view things. For example, I really enjoy quiet. Quiet time, quiet hobbies, quiet people, etc., and what amuses me the most is how you can live in a big city like Nagoya and not have a lot of noise. I’ve never heard noise coming out of anyone else’s apartment in my building and even when you walk by the door, there’s no sound of tv or people talking. On the train people sit silently (for the most part) and keep their eyes closed. Some people are amazed at how easily Japanese people sleep on trains but I wonder how much of it is people just trying to keep to themselves… In long lines at the supermarket, people don’t complain that there are not enough cashiers… and if they do complain, its quietly, perhaps to the person standing next to them but never audible enough for others to hear it. It’s a city though and when you walk out and about the city there is plenty of noise. People are always out and about walking, talking, working mostly… so you can hear noise but in a city as populated as Nagoya, I am in awe that it doesn’t feel loud.
I mention this only because I hadn’t really noticed this until I was at Narita Airport in Tokyo. It’s a large international airport and I left on Dec. 23rd so there were tons of people trying to get home. When I got to my flight area, I sat down and pulled out a book. As I was sitting there though I started to get angry and I couldn’t pinpoint why! Then I realized it was because it was sooooooo noisy! I had about 30 minutes before I had to board the plane and I was soooo annoyed with the noise that I went and sat at another terminal until it was time to board. Still I was trying to pinpoint exactly what it was and then I realized it was the first time I had been around so many Americans in a while and I wasn’t used to the amount of chatter! But it wasn’t just chatter, it was a lot of complaining and whatnot over how slow the airline was… how it was too crowded… how the people weren’t working fast enough….
Anyway, it was a bit of an annoyance that I hadn’t noticed before. And its not even that Americans are the only culture that complains- people in France did it ALL THE TIME in line at the supermarket. It was a bit of a bonding experience. Lol. I donno, I think you can assimilate to pretty much anything, if you want to, so I wonder what other things I will notice as my time in Japan goes on. This was the first obvious one that stuck out.
Also, I did notice how very big the plates are in the US! I understand now why people are always confused when they get to the U.S.... most people think the food is to share! Nope, one plate = all mine! lol.
Next up: 18 hours in Shanghai, NYE in Kyoto and the end of my winter break! Pics are already up on FB! ^_^
Sunday, January 1, 2012
World Traveler Part I: Mon Taxi Driver
Taking a taxi is not the cheapest form of travel but when you’re carrying a lot of things, it’s often the easiest. Also, I think most taxi drivers are kinda chatty and will talk to you about all sorts of things. Yamada-san is a self-proclaimed ojisan (old man) and has been driving a taxi for about 25 years. He is from the mount fuji area originally and moved to Nagoya when he was young. He told me about how unhappy his parents were with him moving so far from his hometown and wanted to know all about how my family felt about me moving away. He said that he moved in the mid 50’s so the transportation wasn’t as good as it is now and communication wasn’t as easy. He was excited that I made such a big move.
He asked me about my hobbies and what I like to do in my spare time and then wanted to know if I moved to japan for the anime, as many foreigners do. Lol. I told him that I liked anime but my biggest reasons for moving to japan are to work on my Japanese and to get experience teaching, as I want to be a teacher in the states when I am done educating.
He asked me where I was going and when I told him I was from Los Angeles, he said that he used to want to go to America when he was younger but now he’s afraid of going to the united states. He asked me if I was scared with all the guns we have in the u.s. and he said that he watches the news and sees lots of stories of murder and robberies. I told him that America was big and there are lots of safe places but that some are safer than others… I didn’t really know how else to answer that but I think it was an interesting insight from someone living in a different country.
Then he wanted to know if I was married. I said no. He asked me what the upper age limit is of a guy I would date and I told him about 35, at which point he told me that his son is 40. -.- haha. He said that his son didn’t have children and was not married and lamented that I didn’t date guys a bit older. Haha. He also asked me if I liked Japanese guys, but I don’t know how you answer that with anything other than a “yes” when speaking to a Japanese guy! So I responded accordingly. Then he asked me for my phone number. Haha. He said he knew plenty of young men that I should date. -.- He gave me his cell phone number and I gave him mine… He was old! And I was under a lot of pressure! And I cant tell old people no! -.- Anyway, it was quite an amusing experience.
I enjoyed meeting Yamada-san. We talked about lots of other things but I think that was the amusing part… lol. Yes, this conversation took place in Japanese…
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