Hello everyone, I am now officially on holiday in Japan for two days until we fly back home. I went to sea world with the students today and watched killer whales and dolphins and sea lions and walrus` and all that stuff. I enjoyed watching the sea otters. They are so cute. The best part about it was seeing the japanese spider crabs though. Wow. They were huge, like almost the height of me (with their leg span). Embarassingly, I couldn:t help but think how yummy they would taste. I never look at animals and think how I would like to eat them.....but crab is yummy. (sorry Donal).
So I am now back at the hostel and wondering what to do with my freedom and have already been invited out for dinner with some people from the hostel. I went out with a few people last night. What an international group: a girl from Canada/NZ, a girl from Wales, a guy from Portugal and a guy from Sydney. We went to this recommended place in a very non-touristy place, and had a REAL japanese restaurant experience. These japanese business men who wanted to work on their english bought us heaps of Sake and showed us how to cook our meal. It was a big wok, in the middle of our table with raw fish and tofu and cabbage in it that we cooked while we ate squid and other things we ordered. It was yummy until I was served this thing that looked like a foot/claw of some animal. One of the guys said it was a fin, but it had nails, I swear. I thought I was game for most things, but I can:t eat something that might actually tickle my throat with its claws on the way down the old esophagus. Just like I don:t want to try tongue. I don:t want to taste something that used to taste other things. I politely offered it to someone else and they gladly accepted my gift of "claw".
So who knows what adventures await me tonight. Should be fun. Lena (the girl from Wales) is really sweet and reminds me very much of Jane Moore (for those from Pram College who know her). But Jane:s not welsh, is she?
I must brag though: my grandmother is Welsh and she and I argued about whether Wales has the longest place name in the world or NZ. So last night Lina and I showed off to each other and said the names to each other. I knew that trick would come in handy one day!!
(Taumatawhakatangihangakoauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanitahu......or something like that....)
Oh, and I have decided to single handedly "smile-ify" this country. In Canada and New Zealand, strangers smile at each other when walking down the street. Its contagious and polite. Here they just stare at me or look away when I smile at them. (this is of course, when I am not trying to buy something from them. When I try to buy something , there is no lack of smiling...but thats just cause they want my Yen!!) So I am on a mission to see how many "smile-backs" I can get from these Asians. I am at 2 so far (and one of them was about 3 years old and it took me 5 minutes to get that one!)
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
I like volleyball...
Hi. I am free. Free of students, at least for the night time now. I will see them again tomorrow, but not till the afternoon. After being with 9 16-17 yearolds non stop for 11 days, any sane person needs a break. I caught some of the boys with b-b guns that they bought, and had been shooting in the hostel. I had seen the bullets in one of their beds and it looked like rabbit poos. It just proves how immature some of them still are. So I took the selfish approach and ranted on at them about how stressed out I would have been had one of them gotten shot and hurt and I would have had to find some japanese hospital and not had the health insurance papers to pay for anything and how it would not have been a pretty sight. I think they got the message. Either way, now it is their new host families problem!
So having properly vented to you all, the day today was pretty basic. We commuted to Chiba (more specifically Kimitsu) to deliver the students to their new families. We took a bus through the Tokyo Aqua Line (or something by a similar name) which is a tunnel (one of the longest underwater highways in the world) which spans the Tokyo Harbour. It was cool, especially because we stopped for lunch about halfway at this man made island full of restaurants and shops (like a fancy truck stop). I caught a glimpse of Mt Fuji (which really does over look the city) but not truly enough to say that I have seen it.
Tonight Tomi and I went shopping and both bought an Ipod and then he took me to the sports store district. Note: almost every different subway stop here has its own specialty (like electronics stuff, food markets, sporting good, funky clothing, etc etc). So I found a shop that sold volleyball stuff and shooed Tomi off to his night time plans so I wasn:t rushed. It was bliss. I am hoping I will get reimbursed for some of the stuff I bought by the Sports Coordinator at school, but we;ll see. It was fun, nevertheless!!
Tomorrow I get to sleep in and then we go back to the school (which is a 1 1/2 hr journey) for the welcome party where I get to reuse my speech from the other school. The day after is Sea World and then I have 2 free days before we fly back on Sunday.
I did want to mention some things I have noticed about Japan. Like the toilets. I have yet to be in a bathroom that has the same toilet that I have seen in the one before. There are so many things to notice and do in the stall, it takes so long becuase you want to see it all. Like the panel of buttons along the side of the toilet (in one I saw) that had 4 buttons. One was a bidet, one was a bottom wash, one was a flushing sound button (like in case you didn:t want anyone to hear what you were getting up to- in the real fancy restaurants this just happens automatically), and one was a stop button (to stop the bidet,etc). Then you have the standard NZ option of whether you should do a flush for a #1 or a flush for a #2, although its written in Japanese and its not normally the situation where you can show someone else and point to the button and ask which is which. THEN there is the flushing sensors which are individual in each stall as well. Plus most seats are heated. Again, another weird sensation, even if you have covered the seat in paper, you feel a bit grody, like some big woman has pre-warmed it for you. Anyway, I will conclude by saying that toilets in Japan are an experience.
Last note, the traffic lights are red, yellow and turquoise. So instead of "go on green" they say "go on blue".
So having properly vented to you all, the day today was pretty basic. We commuted to Chiba (more specifically Kimitsu) to deliver the students to their new families. We took a bus through the Tokyo Aqua Line (or something by a similar name) which is a tunnel (one of the longest underwater highways in the world) which spans the Tokyo Harbour. It was cool, especially because we stopped for lunch about halfway at this man made island full of restaurants and shops (like a fancy truck stop). I caught a glimpse of Mt Fuji (which really does over look the city) but not truly enough to say that I have seen it.
Tonight Tomi and I went shopping and both bought an Ipod and then he took me to the sports store district. Note: almost every different subway stop here has its own specialty (like electronics stuff, food markets, sporting good, funky clothing, etc etc). So I found a shop that sold volleyball stuff and shooed Tomi off to his night time plans so I wasn:t rushed. It was bliss. I am hoping I will get reimbursed for some of the stuff I bought by the Sports Coordinator at school, but we;ll see. It was fun, nevertheless!!
Tomorrow I get to sleep in and then we go back to the school (which is a 1 1/2 hr journey) for the welcome party where I get to reuse my speech from the other school. The day after is Sea World and then I have 2 free days before we fly back on Sunday.
I did want to mention some things I have noticed about Japan. Like the toilets. I have yet to be in a bathroom that has the same toilet that I have seen in the one before. There are so many things to notice and do in the stall, it takes so long becuase you want to see it all. Like the panel of buttons along the side of the toilet (in one I saw) that had 4 buttons. One was a bidet, one was a bottom wash, one was a flushing sound button (like in case you didn:t want anyone to hear what you were getting up to- in the real fancy restaurants this just happens automatically), and one was a stop button (to stop the bidet,etc). Then you have the standard NZ option of whether you should do a flush for a #1 or a flush for a #2, although its written in Japanese and its not normally the situation where you can show someone else and point to the button and ask which is which. THEN there is the flushing sensors which are individual in each stall as well. Plus most seats are heated. Again, another weird sensation, even if you have covered the seat in paper, you feel a bit grody, like some big woman has pre-warmed it for you. Anyway, I will conclude by saying that toilets in Japan are an experience.
Last note, the traffic lights are red, yellow and turquoise. So instead of "go on green" they say "go on blue".
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
So, we have had two days since I last wrote but they have not been as super-eventful as the last two weeks, but still busy.
We had a free day on Sunday so after much discussion amongst all the students and many plans being made then cancelled we agreed to go ice skating together and then split up. ice skating was fun and since most of them had never tried it, it was a good laugh. There was this 6 year old who kicked butt and made most of us feel super crap but she was so cute we let here away with it.
after that some of the students went to an amusement park and then back to the electronics mecca we went to before.
Myself and Jessi and Tom went to Harajuku and Takeashita street. Yes. Its true. That IS the name of the street. I know its immature to laugh at, but it was fun to discuss plans with that name in the conversation. anyway, Harajuku is a crazy young suburb where lots of teenaged girls dress up in "cos-play" and look like little dolls. It was pretty crazy but fun. Jessi is very into gothic-"visual kei" clothing and bought some crazy dress that looks like a french maid dress and these massive black leather shoe-boots with big silver studs on them. They didn:t have them in my size though so I passed......... : )
So it was funny to meet up with everyone back at the hostel at 6 and hear their stories of navigating their own way through the subway systems and getting lost and all that stuff.
Today we met up with a blind date that Tomi:s mom had set up for him (Kirarra) and went to a TV station. It was neat but I was most excited to get a glimpse of the New EnglandPatriots/Indy Colts football game with 10 minutes left. I was not able to keep the students watching it with me though so I missed out. Poo. At least I should be home for the superbowl!!
Duncan and I bought a plate of Fugu today and tried it. Not too bad, but we all got weirded out that something was going on in our stomachs after. I think it was just imagination though. If you an unsure what I am talking about Fugu is another name for Pufferfish, the fish that has poison in it and you can die if you eat improperly prepared Fugu. It just tasted like squid with a hint of cucumber. Not too deadly. Supposedly if you eat the liver, you can get paralysis in your limbs for up to three days! I heard that it is outlawed to do that now though. Hmmmm......Poor Duncan. He and I were shopping around Shibuya (major busy shopping area) and I said, "that street looks exciting" cause there were lots of lights and Japanese signs (go figure!). Anyway, I noticed a few "red-light" shops and thought, Hmmm, and then noticed a lot of hotels, Hmmm, And then remembered reading about LOVE HOTEL HILL in Shibuya which has a red-light district and there are several love hotels (where rooms are rented for the hour....) on a bit of a hill. I escorted Duncan away before he quite understood what we were amidst. I just fed him some more Fugu and it was all good.....
After all the shopping and TV we went up a really tall building (Tokyo Govt Offices) and on the 45th floor you can get a panoramic view of the whole city. On clear days you can even see Mt Fuji. That is before Tokyo had pollution however. I am destined not to see this mountain, but it looks real nice on postcards. Poo.
For dinner we went out, since it was our last meal together until we leave for home (because they will be at homestays tomorrow). So we went to the Hard Rock Cafe. They found it fun. Too much America for me though. including a 10% service charge added for any bill aftr 4 pm. Almost like the Hard Rock owners couldn:t handle that they don:t tip in Japan so they have to gut the consumer somehow!!
The students are all packing now and getting excited to join a new japanese family tomorrow. I will let you know how it goes.
We had a free day on Sunday so after much discussion amongst all the students and many plans being made then cancelled we agreed to go ice skating together and then split up. ice skating was fun and since most of them had never tried it, it was a good laugh. There was this 6 year old who kicked butt and made most of us feel super crap but she was so cute we let here away with it.
after that some of the students went to an amusement park and then back to the electronics mecca we went to before.
Myself and Jessi and Tom went to Harajuku and Takeashita street. Yes. Its true. That IS the name of the street. I know its immature to laugh at, but it was fun to discuss plans with that name in the conversation. anyway, Harajuku is a crazy young suburb where lots of teenaged girls dress up in "cos-play" and look like little dolls. It was pretty crazy but fun. Jessi is very into gothic-"visual kei" clothing and bought some crazy dress that looks like a french maid dress and these massive black leather shoe-boots with big silver studs on them. They didn:t have them in my size though so I passed......... : )
So it was funny to meet up with everyone back at the hostel at 6 and hear their stories of navigating their own way through the subway systems and getting lost and all that stuff.
Today we met up with a blind date that Tomi:s mom had set up for him (Kirarra) and went to a TV station. It was neat but I was most excited to get a glimpse of the New EnglandPatriots/Indy Colts football game with 10 minutes left. I was not able to keep the students watching it with me though so I missed out. Poo. At least I should be home for the superbowl!!
Duncan and I bought a plate of Fugu today and tried it. Not too bad, but we all got weirded out that something was going on in our stomachs after. I think it was just imagination though. If you an unsure what I am talking about Fugu is another name for Pufferfish, the fish that has poison in it and you can die if you eat improperly prepared Fugu. It just tasted like squid with a hint of cucumber. Not too deadly. Supposedly if you eat the liver, you can get paralysis in your limbs for up to three days! I heard that it is outlawed to do that now though. Hmmmm......Poor Duncan. He and I were shopping around Shibuya (major busy shopping area) and I said, "that street looks exciting" cause there were lots of lights and Japanese signs (go figure!). Anyway, I noticed a few "red-light" shops and thought, Hmmm, and then noticed a lot of hotels, Hmmm, And then remembered reading about LOVE HOTEL HILL in Shibuya which has a red-light district and there are several love hotels (where rooms are rented for the hour....) on a bit of a hill. I escorted Duncan away before he quite understood what we were amidst. I just fed him some more Fugu and it was all good.....
After all the shopping and TV we went up a really tall building (Tokyo Govt Offices) and on the 45th floor you can get a panoramic view of the whole city. On clear days you can even see Mt Fuji. That is before Tokyo had pollution however. I am destined not to see this mountain, but it looks real nice on postcards. Poo.
For dinner we went out, since it was our last meal together until we leave for home (because they will be at homestays tomorrow). So we went to the Hard Rock Cafe. They found it fun. Too much America for me though. including a 10% service charge added for any bill aftr 4 pm. Almost like the Hard Rock owners couldn:t handle that they don:t tip in Japan so they have to gut the consumer somehow!!
The students are all packing now and getting excited to join a new japanese family tomorrow. I will let you know how it goes.
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Snow and Soba...
i always feel like we should be having a normal day but it never seems to work out that way. Today we travelled again by shinkansen (bullet train) to a place about 1 1/2 hrs north(?) out of Tokyo to see some snow. There are ski resorts and stuff at this place and some of the students have never touched snow (most had seen it) before so we headed up to the bottom of a ski hill and rented some plastic toboggans. You know the real budget but perfect sleds? We had a great time and almost collided with every other skiier on the hill. It was perfect! One of the runs down the hill resulted in my whole face being covered by snow, sunglasses and all. Then Tomi and I went to a Soba restaurant (while the students continued playing in the snow and making snowmen). The only problem of this whole little escapade was the first time I went down the hill I held my hand out to slow down. My thumb unfortunately went in a hole while the rest of my body continued its forward progression. Not fun. I don:t think it is broken but definitely sprained. Annoying as you use your thumb for almost everything, worst of all chopsticks!!! Which brings me back to the Soba restaurant. We had a feast!
His mothers best friend owns the restaurant so we got more royal treatment and had cold Soba (buckwheat) noodles which are served cold and then dipped in this saucy juice which you concoct yourself with Wasabi and spring onions. So yummy. and that was only one part of the meal. We also had tempura (like deep fried but a little lighter taste) pumpkin, eggplant and shrimp. AND deep fried mochi (rice cake) and some kind of fish AND more japanese pickles and cabbage and stufffff. It was so yummy! Then when you are done the noodles you take hot water and pour it into your soba saucy juice (no other way to describe it!) and make your own kind of soup. I loved it. Then I had some slices of apple. The japanese apples are seriously huge, like half the size of my head. Not kidding!!
Then we headed back to Tokyo and went to the electronics market called Akihabara. A bit crazy and fun for techno heads I;m sure. Not my cup of tea. But some of the students bought ipods and PSP`s and other trinkets so it was worth the trip.
they have a free day tomorrow so they are all desperately making plans and then changing them to try and see all they want to see. They only have tomorrow and Monday left in Tokyo and then they stay in a homestay and go to school. I will not join them every day because....I don:t really want to sit in the back of a japanese classroom. Done it, got the postcard. I would rather see more of Tokyo so I get to have a few more free days ahead of me.
The plans so far tomorrow seem to revolve around ice skating (i keep bragging to the students about how great my mom is at ice skating....which she is, but its a bit foreign to them to try it so theyre really excited). The subway system is pretty complex here and one girl went back this morning to grab something in the hostel she left behind, and got confused and lost and ended up sitting on the side of the road and crying. Anyway, she made her way back to us, but it has reminded me that they are all still really young kids. And not to expect TOO much from them.
We:ll see how many tears are created tomorrow. Oh well, they have to grow up sometime, right?
Great to get some of the extra emails from you guys. I am feeling more in touch now!
Miss you, one more week to go and then SUMMER AGAIN!!
His mothers best friend owns the restaurant so we got more royal treatment and had cold Soba (buckwheat) noodles which are served cold and then dipped in this saucy juice which you concoct yourself with Wasabi and spring onions. So yummy. and that was only one part of the meal. We also had tempura (like deep fried but a little lighter taste) pumpkin, eggplant and shrimp. AND deep fried mochi (rice cake) and some kind of fish AND more japanese pickles and cabbage and stufffff. It was so yummy! Then when you are done the noodles you take hot water and pour it into your soba saucy juice (no other way to describe it!) and make your own kind of soup. I loved it. Then I had some slices of apple. The japanese apples are seriously huge, like half the size of my head. Not kidding!!
Then we headed back to Tokyo and went to the electronics market called Akihabara. A bit crazy and fun for techno heads I;m sure. Not my cup of tea. But some of the students bought ipods and PSP`s and other trinkets so it was worth the trip.
they have a free day tomorrow so they are all desperately making plans and then changing them to try and see all they want to see. They only have tomorrow and Monday left in Tokyo and then they stay in a homestay and go to school. I will not join them every day because....I don:t really want to sit in the back of a japanese classroom. Done it, got the postcard. I would rather see more of Tokyo so I get to have a few more free days ahead of me.
The plans so far tomorrow seem to revolve around ice skating (i keep bragging to the students about how great my mom is at ice skating....which she is, but its a bit foreign to them to try it so theyre really excited). The subway system is pretty complex here and one girl went back this morning to grab something in the hostel she left behind, and got confused and lost and ended up sitting on the side of the road and crying. Anyway, she made her way back to us, but it has reminded me that they are all still really young kids. And not to expect TOO much from them.
We:ll see how many tears are created tomorrow. Oh well, they have to grow up sometime, right?
Great to get some of the extra emails from you guys. I am feeling more in touch now!
Miss you, one more week to go and then SUMMER AGAIN!!
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Big fat sweaty men
So as you can tell we had a day to watch sumo wrestling but not after fitting in tons before that.
We saw the Imperial Palace (where the Emperor of Japan lives) and we kept going up to random old men and asking them if they were the emperor and if we could get their picture and making a huge big deal so that they couldn:t refuse. It was pretty hilarious. Caught it all on video too.
We went shopping and had lunch in a cute little restaurant where you sit around small tables but can actually fit your legs into a hole underneath the table. I am getting used to the weird looks I get when I ask for meesz to drink (water) although I am really becoming a fan of Jasmine tea too.
In the shopping market I found a whole store devoted to Mon-chi-chi:s!! Do you remember those funny little monkey looking things? I have to get one. I used to have a puzzle when I was younger that I adored!
So we took a ferry around a river that led us through Tokyo and we saw heaps of fancy bridges and it was very cool sitting on top of the boat.
We then headed out to the Sumo tournament and watched 20 matches. Each match begins with a bit of an intimidation act as well as a spiritual act to remove the evil spirits from the ring by clapping their hands loudly and stomping one foot and then the other foot. Then they go and glare at each other and then do the corner stomp thing again. This happens for a bit until they decide the intimidation has been enough and then they advance at each other. It is truly awesome even though it lasts only a few seconds for each fight. However the build up for each fight as well as for the last match is great. The best competitors are placed at the end of the night and some of the matches have sponsors flags posted at the beginning of the match (like women in bikinis walking around the ring before each round of a boxing match) to show how much money will be awarded to the winner of this match. So a lot of excitement goes into each fight. Best part was when some old man sitting in the crowd got flattened by one of the sumo:s who got flung off the ring. It was great! I even called 4 of the last 5 matches correct, based on some reading I have been doing from a book called Freakonomics (given to me for my birthday from the lovely D for Donal!) which discusses (amongst many other things) how sumo wrestlers cheat just like teachers. Obviously an intriguing subject for me to want to read about!!
After a big night at the sumo tournament and then finding out own way home (as tomi left us at the stadium) we had some quick dinner and then were all sitting in the lounge at the hostel, so I prompted some good old Health games (being a Health teacher...) and we had some good fun. One of the games involves wacking other people with a cushion to allieve yourself of being "IT", so we were having so many laughs even some of the other backpackers joined in. Problem was that I didn:t call the game quits until 10:00 and then expected them to go staright to bed. Yeah right. I went to bed but found out this morning that some of them were so wired they were hanging out in each others room and didn:t go to bed till midnight (and some even later). I think I should think twice about timing next time!!
We saw the Imperial Palace (where the Emperor of Japan lives) and we kept going up to random old men and asking them if they were the emperor and if we could get their picture and making a huge big deal so that they couldn:t refuse. It was pretty hilarious. Caught it all on video too.
We went shopping and had lunch in a cute little restaurant where you sit around small tables but can actually fit your legs into a hole underneath the table. I am getting used to the weird looks I get when I ask for meesz to drink (water) although I am really becoming a fan of Jasmine tea too.
In the shopping market I found a whole store devoted to Mon-chi-chi:s!! Do you remember those funny little monkey looking things? I have to get one. I used to have a puzzle when I was younger that I adored!
So we took a ferry around a river that led us through Tokyo and we saw heaps of fancy bridges and it was very cool sitting on top of the boat.
We then headed out to the Sumo tournament and watched 20 matches. Each match begins with a bit of an intimidation act as well as a spiritual act to remove the evil spirits from the ring by clapping their hands loudly and stomping one foot and then the other foot. Then they go and glare at each other and then do the corner stomp thing again. This happens for a bit until they decide the intimidation has been enough and then they advance at each other. It is truly awesome even though it lasts only a few seconds for each fight. However the build up for each fight as well as for the last match is great. The best competitors are placed at the end of the night and some of the matches have sponsors flags posted at the beginning of the match (like women in bikinis walking around the ring before each round of a boxing match) to show how much money will be awarded to the winner of this match. So a lot of excitement goes into each fight. Best part was when some old man sitting in the crowd got flattened by one of the sumo:s who got flung off the ring. It was great! I even called 4 of the last 5 matches correct, based on some reading I have been doing from a book called Freakonomics (given to me for my birthday from the lovely D for Donal!) which discusses (amongst many other things) how sumo wrestlers cheat just like teachers. Obviously an intriguing subject for me to want to read about!!
After a big night at the sumo tournament and then finding out own way home (as tomi left us at the stadium) we had some quick dinner and then were all sitting in the lounge at the hostel, so I prompted some good old Health games (being a Health teacher...) and we had some good fun. One of the games involves wacking other people with a cushion to allieve yourself of being "IT", so we were having so many laughs even some of the other backpackers joined in. Problem was that I didn:t call the game quits until 10:00 and then expected them to go staright to bed. Yeah right. I went to bed but found out this morning that some of them were so wired they were hanging out in each others room and didn:t go to bed till midnight (and some even later). I think I should think twice about timing next time!!
Saturday, January 13, 2007
Kekkon shi ma senga?
Picture this...a 17 yearold New Zealand boy sitting on the train, in Kyoto, with an old man-looking hat (that he bought at some tourist joint for $30 yesterday). He is sitting beside a Japanese 70-ish looking woman who is chatting and laughing with her friend. She smiles at the boy, and then the boy looks at her and says in Japanese " will you marry me?" (kekkon shi ma senga?). She looks at him weird so he continues....in japanese "I think we would be good together". She laughs at then the train stops, and as both of them are getting off, he says to her..in japanese..."i`ll call you". Wow. good laughs. I probably shouldn:t encourage it, but i did. The phrasebook the boy bought has some very inappropriate things for teenagers to say.....but its good fun.
So today we did some sightseeing in Kyoto and then had a 4 hour farewell party where we were clapped at when we walked in, then taken ontto the stage, then we had to speak into a microphone and do an impromptu speech, then they served us buffet type food, we pounded rice cake mush with a massive mallet as people chanted something, then the students played taiko drums on stage, then had to do another speech they had written, then we were clapped at like royalty as we left. In between all of that the students were celebrities....everybody wanted pictures with them. Girls were swooning over the boys....it was insane.
Funniest part of today, besides the teenager proposing to a grandmother:
We were on one of eleven escalators in Kyoto station ( a place that has a department store with 11 floors of stuff). So Kathryn and Hogan are discussing filth and debating whether they would rather lick a toilet seat or a handrail on an escalator. Kathryn insisted that she would rather lick a toilet seat because they get cleaned more often, and escalators have so many people touch them and just keep circulating again and again. She insisted that escalators NEVER get cleaned. Just as she finishes her speech on hygiene, a man in a uniform goes past her the other way on the escalator who is cleaning the escalator. Seriously, he (and his 3 other co-workers) were actually escalator cleaners. It was perfect timing, she almost peed her pants she was laughing so hard. It was great. Only in japan will they clean an escalator, and develop the Kyoto protocol to make the planet cleaner, but where they demand that you sweat in other peoples volleyball shoes.....
So today we did some sightseeing in Kyoto and then had a 4 hour farewell party where we were clapped at when we walked in, then taken ontto the stage, then we had to speak into a microphone and do an impromptu speech, then they served us buffet type food, we pounded rice cake mush with a massive mallet as people chanted something, then the students played taiko drums on stage, then had to do another speech they had written, then we were clapped at like royalty as we left. In between all of that the students were celebrities....everybody wanted pictures with them. Girls were swooning over the boys....it was insane.
Funniest part of today, besides the teenager proposing to a grandmother:
We were on one of eleven escalators in Kyoto station ( a place that has a department store with 11 floors of stuff). So Kathryn and Hogan are discussing filth and debating whether they would rather lick a toilet seat or a handrail on an escalator. Kathryn insisted that she would rather lick a toilet seat because they get cleaned more often, and escalators have so many people touch them and just keep circulating again and again. She insisted that escalators NEVER get cleaned. Just as she finishes her speech on hygiene, a man in a uniform goes past her the other way on the escalator who is cleaning the escalator. Seriously, he (and his 3 other co-workers) were actually escalator cleaners. It was perfect timing, she almost peed her pants she was laughing so hard. It was great. Only in japan will they clean an escalator, and develop the Kyoto protocol to make the planet cleaner, but where they demand that you sweat in other peoples volleyball shoes.....
deer like bums
So, I found out that the confusion on the volleyball court was actually a bit different than I had told you. I said "tabbimasen" which actually means "I DONT eat!", so here I was telling her I dont eat, in a way that she must have thought "I don:t eat volleyballs". Even weirder.
I have been playing TONS of volleyball though. Every day the students play their one sport that they choose and play all year, 5 days a week (so they get pretty good at it). So i have been joining in every practise and it has been like joining an in-depth japanese volleyball seminar all week. I have learned awesome drills and even words in japanese like "sabu" for serve, although I thought they were just saying serve in their own japanese english. funny how it kind of sounds the same. One of the girls lent me her shoes to wear for the practice which I tried to refuse and just wear barefeet, but that seemed to not go over well, so I wore the shoes but got embarrassed because i had to give them back to her all hot afterwards (atsui=hot), so the next day I was prepared to say i didn:t want to wear them again, and she insisted again and started showing me the grip on the bottom and I tried to say I am embarrassed to give them to her atsui and it just was not communicated. Fine, give me the damn shoes. Anyway, the girl then plays for 1/2 the practice and then slips over and sprains her ankle....in my mind, because she has crap shoes on because the foreigner has taken HER shoes!!! And i thought i wouldn:t have any stress on this trip.
Yesterday we went to a town by train with our students called Nara, which has lots of buddhist temples and we went to one that had a 16mhigh buddha. It was big..... and there were lots of deer roaming the streets, looking for people to feed them deer crackers which are sold everywhere. my better judgement told me to just let the students feed them and i am glad i did. the deer went crazy if you had the food. some butting heads against each other if a cracker fell on the ground. Others bit at students bums and backpacks. Little did i know i had lots of them following me because hogan (the japanese kids call him HORGAN) had put a cracker in the mesh pocket of my backpack.
I did get the nerve to put a cracker in my mouth and hold it out so a deer came and ate it from me. stinky breath though....
Went out for japanese at a real authentic restaurant (treated again by tomi:s uncle)...its kind of the equivalent to going to the Hilton hotel for dinner. Really neat food, lots of sashimi (raw fish), and a little sake (which was much nicer than i have tried in NZ before).
I could write for ages, and tell you lots more, but I have ramen to get too (udon noodle breakfast with tofu that Tomi has just made). I am having a really fun time and learning tons!
Very ka kooi! (cool)
I have been playing TONS of volleyball though. Every day the students play their one sport that they choose and play all year, 5 days a week (so they get pretty good at it). So i have been joining in every practise and it has been like joining an in-depth japanese volleyball seminar all week. I have learned awesome drills and even words in japanese like "sabu" for serve, although I thought they were just saying serve in their own japanese english. funny how it kind of sounds the same. One of the girls lent me her shoes to wear for the practice which I tried to refuse and just wear barefeet, but that seemed to not go over well, so I wore the shoes but got embarrassed because i had to give them back to her all hot afterwards (atsui=hot), so the next day I was prepared to say i didn:t want to wear them again, and she insisted again and started showing me the grip on the bottom and I tried to say I am embarrassed to give them to her atsui and it just was not communicated. Fine, give me the damn shoes. Anyway, the girl then plays for 1/2 the practice and then slips over and sprains her ankle....in my mind, because she has crap shoes on because the foreigner has taken HER shoes!!! And i thought i wouldn:t have any stress on this trip.
Yesterday we went to a town by train with our students called Nara, which has lots of buddhist temples and we went to one that had a 16mhigh buddha. It was big..... and there were lots of deer roaming the streets, looking for people to feed them deer crackers which are sold everywhere. my better judgement told me to just let the students feed them and i am glad i did. the deer went crazy if you had the food. some butting heads against each other if a cracker fell on the ground. Others bit at students bums and backpacks. Little did i know i had lots of them following me because hogan (the japanese kids call him HORGAN) had put a cracker in the mesh pocket of my backpack.
I did get the nerve to put a cracker in my mouth and hold it out so a deer came and ate it from me. stinky breath though....
Went out for japanese at a real authentic restaurant (treated again by tomi:s uncle)...its kind of the equivalent to going to the Hilton hotel for dinner. Really neat food, lots of sashimi (raw fish), and a little sake (which was much nicer than i have tried in NZ before).
I could write for ages, and tell you lots more, but I have ramen to get too (udon noodle breakfast with tofu that Tomi has just made). I am having a really fun time and learning tons!
Very ka kooi! (cool)
jellyfish is not oeshi
some notes from today....
just got home from authentic chinese restaurant at flash hotel where tomi`s uncle is head chef. he cooked us a 5 course meal, and we ate for 1 1/2 hours. insane! I had jelly fish, fish eggs and shark fin soup (although i didn:t know that was what i was eating at the time). it didnt look like soup, more like thick noodle stew. It was all very oeshi (yummy?), except the jellyfish....tasted exactly like i would expect it to taste....
Tomis uncle has asked us to go out with him for yakitori (japanese bbq meat skewers) dinner on saturday and he is setting up tomi on a bit of a blind date, but less intrusive because he and i will be there too. tomi is pretty nervous, its really funny. he keeps saying "bloody my uncle, bloody my uncle" instead of "arggh, my bloody uncle". Today he translated during japanese tea ceremony and said "we have just scratched the face of japanese culture" but meant to say scratched the surface....ha ha.
Also, played more volleyball and recruited some more drills for my team, and got dibs on good deals on some vballs so may bring some back with me from tokyo. met a boy in a pe class named "Daik" pronounced Dyke. Yes, i had to get him to repeat it.....
have yet to try the hole in the ground toilet....but will get brave tomorrow....maybe.....a little bit too much fecal matter still in the stall for me to jump at the opportunity to try it out.
just got home from authentic chinese restaurant at flash hotel where tomi`s uncle is head chef. he cooked us a 5 course meal, and we ate for 1 1/2 hours. insane! I had jelly fish, fish eggs and shark fin soup (although i didn:t know that was what i was eating at the time). it didnt look like soup, more like thick noodle stew. It was all very oeshi (yummy?), except the jellyfish....tasted exactly like i would expect it to taste....
Tomis uncle has asked us to go out with him for yakitori (japanese bbq meat skewers) dinner on saturday and he is setting up tomi on a bit of a blind date, but less intrusive because he and i will be there too. tomi is pretty nervous, its really funny. he keeps saying "bloody my uncle, bloody my uncle" instead of "arggh, my bloody uncle". Today he translated during japanese tea ceremony and said "we have just scratched the face of japanese culture" but meant to say scratched the surface....ha ha.
Also, played more volleyball and recruited some more drills for my team, and got dibs on good deals on some vballs so may bring some back with me from tokyo. met a boy in a pe class named "Daik" pronounced Dyke. Yes, i had to get him to repeat it.....
have yet to try the hole in the ground toilet....but will get brave tomorrow....maybe.....a little bit too much fecal matter still in the stall for me to jump at the opportunity to try it out.
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
I'm turning Japanese....i really think so
SO, here in Kyoto, and having good fun. Its a crazy place. Like seriously crazy....
Time is about to run out again, and i still want to write more and tel you all about everythng here. first off, the keyboard is nuts and has 4 characters on each key, so typing is challenging. hence the lack of capital letters. too tough to do fast.
did my speech today, went well. getting better at being confident about saying hello and thankyou. ohiyo gozaimas is good morning. did that well too. but did have some problems....
Truly, the people are really lovely and very cute. been practising alot of words with them, but still making aot of mistakes. FOR EXAMPLE: on volleyball court playing with some junior high students and giving high fives after good plays and just having good fun. next play, i mess up and take the ball from one of the students and lose the point, so I want to say sorry and try to be smart and say it in japanese. So I say " tami masen". she looks at me with blank look and very confused, so I say it again, figuring i said it too fast ( i was pretty confident that what i was saying was right). nope. more blank looks. so i gave up and next time i made a mistake i said "sorry". communication was spot on. she knew what i meant. Found out later that what i HAD said was " i eat". And then said again, "I EAT!" No wonder she was confused.....Hope you are well and communicating fine with the people around you. make sure you don:t take communication for granted.....EVER! Blank looks and body language can only get you so far....
more to follow,
CK
Time is about to run out again, and i still want to write more and tel you all about everythng here. first off, the keyboard is nuts and has 4 characters on each key, so typing is challenging. hence the lack of capital letters. too tough to do fast.
did my speech today, went well. getting better at being confident about saying hello and thankyou. ohiyo gozaimas is good morning. did that well too. but did have some problems....
Truly, the people are really lovely and very cute. been practising alot of words with them, but still making aot of mistakes. FOR EXAMPLE: on volleyball court playing with some junior high students and giving high fives after good plays and just having good fun. next play, i mess up and take the ball from one of the students and lose the point, so I want to say sorry and try to be smart and say it in japanese. So I say " tami masen". she looks at me with blank look and very confused, so I say it again, figuring i said it too fast ( i was pretty confident that what i was saying was right). nope. more blank looks. so i gave up and next time i made a mistake i said "sorry". communication was spot on. she knew what i meant. Found out later that what i HAD said was " i eat". And then said again, "I EAT!" No wonder she was confused.....Hope you are well and communicating fine with the people around you. make sure you don:t take communication for granted.....EVER! Blank looks and body language can only get you so far....
more to follow,
CK
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