On Sunday I went with Motoaki's family to his uncle's house in Ikeda (near Osaka) for a memorial ceremony marking the 13th anniversary of his grandmother's death. This was his mother's side of the family as she is from Osaka originally. I guess it is a normal custom for those who belong to a Tera (or Buddhist church) and that they also have one for the 33rd anniversary.
We got up EARLY and went to pick up his parents and sister. Though his family is really friendly, they are also REALLY quiet (except for the father but they always tell him to shut up as he can be rude or just plain annoying- not that I would know, I can't understand what he says really) so the two hour ride was pretty uneventful.
We got to Ikeda and it was pouring down rain. It's the rainy season in Japan and, due to some typhoons, the rain and wind are especially bad. Despite living the furthest away, we got there first. It was a little weird because I have seen these cousins more recently than Motoaki's family has. We went to see them last fall as a thank you for the gifts they sent for our wedding. So while everyone else was exclaiming how much everyone had grown, I wasn't phased. One interesting thing was that Motoaki's sister who is super shy and rarely talks to people outside of her family, ran right in and went off to her two guy cousin's rooms where, from the living room, we could hear a lot of exclaiming and laughing. Apparently the two guy cousins (one in his early 30's and one in his mid 20's) are big gamers and like anime, just like the sister, and they share the same interests over stuff.
While all of that excitement was going on, Motoaki, his parents, and I sat quietly drinking coffee and talking about the rain. Then Motoaki's cousins who live near Kansai showed up and it was his turn to get excited. When Motoaki graduated from University in Fukuyama he got a job in Osaka. Because he was new to the "big city" he spent the first year or so living with his cousins who live near Kansai. Because of this, he is really close to them and because they live near Kansai (the big international airport I always fly in and out of), we visit them a lot. I like this family as their daughters are in their late twenties and really outgoing. They also speak decent English and have traveled to America 3-5 times (although usually to Hawaii). They are extremely loud and always quick with a joke. Though I can't understand the words, they are so animated I can't help but laugh.
I guess I should stop and give a quick run-down of Motoaki's family.
His mother is the youngest of five- one sister and three brothers. The sister is the oldest and lives in Kobe. She came to our wedding but I didn't have much of a chance to talk to her. She is divorced, has no children, and due to some argument over religion, she didn't come to the ceremony. I get the feeling she is somewhat of a black sheep, though she and Motoaki's mom are close,
The oldest brother lives in Wakayama and has three children. This was my first time to meet him and his wife didn't come, due to health I think. He was quiet but relaxed, probably a bit shy because it was our first time to meet. His oldest son was the only kid who came. He is 48 and a police officer. His 20 year old daughter who also came (wearing the shortest black lace skirt you can imagine and knee high black stockings) is also a police officer in Osaka city- seriously the girl needs a TV show- although her style is the style you see all Japanese girls in. Not sure what the wife does, but she was really nice. at one point they told me that both the wife and daughter do kendo, a Japanese martial art that uses swords. Not at all what you would imagine with both of them having manicured nails, perfect hair, perfect make-up, etc
The second brother is the one who was hosting the party. I am not sure why, but the mother had been living with him when she passed. Maybe because he stayed closest to home? He looks just like Motoaki's mom and is sweet but also quiet. His wife is very nice and wants to know how she can improve her English. I suggested a gaijin boyfriend. They have three children, the two gaming unmarried sons (a bit of a growing problem in Japan) and a daughter who is married and has two little boys in elementary school. She definitely got the looks and the personality as her brothers spent the later part of the day smoking and playing games while she was going around talking to everyone and watching after her boys. Her husband was very nice and seems to be a big joker.
The third brother is the one that lives in Kansai and is the one with all of the personality. It is actually pretty weird because he looks JUST LIKE Motoaki. Especially with Motoaki's shaved head- it was all anyone said for the first half hour. This makes me happy because I can imagine Motoaki will be jolly and genki when he is old. His wife and daughters are definitely the life of the party (although Motoaki's father said that the one daughter drinks too much- this might be because she made a comment about him NOT drinking- I guess he used to be a big lush but has gone straight, but she said something along the line of her image of him will always be as drunk). They are both unmarried, though I am sure one has a serious boyfriend and is on the road to marriage as soon as the couple has more money. They kind of brag to the others about having met me so many times and they remember a lot about me. That sounds selfish of me, but what I am really trying to say is how they go out of their way to include me despite the fact that I can't carry on a difficult conversation. I think they really just love Motoaki (he's the big brother they never had and since he looks like the uncle, the son) and are happy I came along.
Anyway, it was really cool to see them all together as you could really see even the shy ones come out of their shell a bit as they started telling old stories and bringing up old jokes of childhood new year's parties and camping trips. Motoaki is a completely different person with these people. His immediate family is nice but SO quiet where, when they get with the extended family, they loosen up a lot. I also like the fact that none of the uncles seem to be like the grumpy old men you see in shops and on trains in Japan. They also refrain from making sexist jokes or comments as well (which, sadly, can still be expected from a lot of old relatives and coworkers here). They all continue to talk to me even though my Japanese is crap. The same for the aunts who are not at all picky or disapproving of the fact that I am not a Japanese house wife. I read horror stories on some blogs about mother-in-laws or sister-in-laws who are absolutely horrible- calling the non-Japanese wife fat or ugly. They didn't seem to judge me at all for wearing the completely wrong thing, but more on that in the next post...
Monday, May 30, 2011
Baby Baby
(May 27) Don't get excited. Actually, get the opposite of excited because we are a long way off. Not that Motoaki and I don't want to have kids- we just kind of want (need) money, time, etc. So anyway the title is about the fact that I had the "baby talk" yesterday with a group of 2nd graders (about 7 years old) at lunch. Quite funny actually. I eat lunch with students and everyday changes as far as what age I sit with. Older kids are fun because we can discuss things like music, movies, etc. On the other hand older kids can be snobby, rude, and generally stand-offish. Fair enough, when I was 13 the last thing I wanted was a teacher sitting at the lunch table asking me if I liked basketball.
The little kids (3rd grade and under) can be difficult because they don't understand conversations even in Japanese, but at the same time they are fun because they are generally excited to see me and will answer enthusiastically about the most mundane of topics (which convenience store do you like is always a hot topic). I will ask them simple questions in English but we also use a lot of Japanese. And it's nice because the little kids will not only correct my grammar, but they won't be snobby about it- just very matter of fact. So it started out talking about brothers and sisters and they asked me if I had any siblings. I told them, yes, that I had an older brother and a younger sister. They asked if we ever fought and I said that we did a lot when we were little and that Maggie and I especially had some blow outs due to being close in age and having to share so much. They asked how old she is and when I told them they were like, "Oh, she is really young. You are really young!" This is probably due to the fact that they think the staff at school are all over 50 and were shocked to here I wasn't over 30. I responded by saying that THEY were really young.
In Japan the kindergarten is housed in a separate building and does everything (lunch, play time, etc) separately, so the 1st grade is really the bottom of the totem pole. These being 2nd graders (and new 2nd graders- the school year started in April) they were quick to point out that they were actually quite old and that the 1st graders were REALLY young- like babies really. I laughed and said that the kindergarteners across the way were younger and one smart girl said that the nursery school (a combination of preschool-daycare) had very young kids (I think you can start there at 6 months). Then the wise boy with the older brothers told me the baby in my stomach was the youngest to which I said there wasn't a baby there. To which they all replied, "But your married!!" And then a kid started on a story about how the babies were waiting to come out. Knowing this was getting out of hand I quickly exclaimed, "I think it's going to rain!" causing all of the little eyes to dart to the window and thus beginning a discussion about how it wasn't raining but it might rain and how so-and-so didn't have an umbrella and how one time so-and-so went to the mall and bought rain boots that are pink and how so-and-so thinks purple is better than pink but that light green is the best... LOL- love how easy it is to change directions.
Now these were kids and so it didn't bother me at all for them to make the assumption that just because I am married I will have a baby any day now. But it does bug me when adults assume this and it is awkward when the teens bring it up. Like the time the kindergarten teacher patted my baggy sweater and asked "Baby??" or the time the 8th graders spent their lunch time saying over and over how cute my babies with Motoaki would be (it's a small town so a lot of the kids have seen Motoaki and I together at the supermarket and know what's what).
In America I get it a bit but not as much as Japan, where things are still a little behind when it comes to equality in the sexes. The same thing happens with people asking me if I need to go home early to prepare dinner for my husband or if I mind washing his clothing. At the same time, as behind as they are in gender equality, they are much more open about sex and bodies. In the elementary schools there are posters describing how food turns to poop (including a complete illustration of a cartoon but) and kids are allowed to say boobs, penis, etc as much as they want. Sometimes I feel like a prude (when it comes to talking about bodies) and sometimes I feel like a flag of freedom (when talking about the fact my husband is a way better cook than I am or ever wish to be).
The little kids (3rd grade and under) can be difficult because they don't understand conversations even in Japanese, but at the same time they are fun because they are generally excited to see me and will answer enthusiastically about the most mundane of topics (which convenience store do you like is always a hot topic). I will ask them simple questions in English but we also use a lot of Japanese. And it's nice because the little kids will not only correct my grammar, but they won't be snobby about it- just very matter of fact. So it started out talking about brothers and sisters and they asked me if I had any siblings. I told them, yes, that I had an older brother and a younger sister. They asked if we ever fought and I said that we did a lot when we were little and that Maggie and I especially had some blow outs due to being close in age and having to share so much. They asked how old she is and when I told them they were like, "Oh, she is really young. You are really young!" This is probably due to the fact that they think the staff at school are all over 50 and were shocked to here I wasn't over 30. I responded by saying that THEY were really young.
In Japan the kindergarten is housed in a separate building and does everything (lunch, play time, etc) separately, so the 1st grade is really the bottom of the totem pole. These being 2nd graders (and new 2nd graders- the school year started in April) they were quick to point out that they were actually quite old and that the 1st graders were REALLY young- like babies really. I laughed and said that the kindergarteners across the way were younger and one smart girl said that the nursery school (a combination of preschool-daycare) had very young kids (I think you can start there at 6 months). Then the wise boy with the older brothers told me the baby in my stomach was the youngest to which I said there wasn't a baby there. To which they all replied, "But your married!!" And then a kid started on a story about how the babies were waiting to come out. Knowing this was getting out of hand I quickly exclaimed, "I think it's going to rain!" causing all of the little eyes to dart to the window and thus beginning a discussion about how it wasn't raining but it might rain and how so-and-so didn't have an umbrella and how one time so-and-so went to the mall and bought rain boots that are pink and how so-and-so thinks purple is better than pink but that light green is the best... LOL- love how easy it is to change directions.
Now these were kids and so it didn't bother me at all for them to make the assumption that just because I am married I will have a baby any day now. But it does bug me when adults assume this and it is awkward when the teens bring it up. Like the time the kindergarten teacher patted my baggy sweater and asked "Baby??" or the time the 8th graders spent their lunch time saying over and over how cute my babies with Motoaki would be (it's a small town so a lot of the kids have seen Motoaki and I together at the supermarket and know what's what).
In America I get it a bit but not as much as Japan, where things are still a little behind when it comes to equality in the sexes. The same thing happens with people asking me if I need to go home early to prepare dinner for my husband or if I mind washing his clothing. At the same time, as behind as they are in gender equality, they are much more open about sex and bodies. In the elementary schools there are posters describing how food turns to poop (including a complete illustration of a cartoon but) and kids are allowed to say boobs, penis, etc as much as they want. Sometimes I feel like a prude (when it comes to talking about bodies) and sometimes I feel like a flag of freedom (when talking about the fact my husband is a way better cook than I am or ever wish to be).
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Golden Week Part 3: Miyajima
So the second part of my Golden Week took a complete turn and I went to Miyajima (the island with deer near Hiroshima) with Amy, Justin, Janet, Rich, and Mark. I have been there a million times before (twice last March) but this time instead of focusing on Hiroshima and having Miyajima as an after thought, we were going to focus on Miyajima.
Miyajima is only about 3 hours from my front door but due to Golden Week traffic it took more like six. Luckily my car was in good company. In a total random side note, at one of the rest stops we saw a teacher Amy and I work with. Actually, she is our vice principal. In another random side note, this same teacher is from Tsuyama and I taught her daughter at AEON for three years. Honshu is a very small island.
We ended up staying at a hostel right near the dock for the ferry that goes to the Island. Since our first day was mostly spent in travel, we decided to go into Hiroshima city proper (about 40 minutes by street car) to chill for the evening. We decided to walk to the Peace Park where the Hiroshima Bomb Museum is located. I have been here multiple times as well, but that night there was actually a festival going on so the park was absolutely transformed. There were GIANT paper cranes in the yard next to the museum and also a lot of tables with candles that people were decorating. It looked like the cranes had been decorated by school children. Just past the museum was a stage where there was a traditional dance/play being performed with a man fighting giant snakes (or, giant costumes). On another nearby stage was a concert featuring 3 college aged (maybe) AKB wannabes.
After wandering around there we took a quick look at the shops and then went to an Irish Pub for the night. There was live music going on and Guinness being served. In a side note I went to Ireland my freshman year of college and the first beer I ever had was a Guinness. Add that to my summers living in Germany and I am a dark beer girl. I will drink the light stuff served at all Japanese restaurants for lack of a better option, but Guinness and Dunkelweizen have my heart. The pie I had was quite disappointing though. Maybe if I hadn't JUST been to England and Scotland... The top was all flaky but then there was no bottom part to the pie and it was mostly a watery broth underneath. Granted, this is probably healthier, but still... (and for the Americans, when I talk about pie I am talking about something like a chicken pot pie).
The next day we got up early and hiked to the top of Miyajima. Being Golden Week, the island was of course packed but that was alright. I think it helped me to stay motivated to see sooo many people passing me by. We had a great time taking photos at the top of the mountain and then took the long, slippery, miserable way down. It actually wasn't too bad but I wasn't really in shape for it. At the bottom of the course an old Japanese man was warning people about how we shouldn't use it because it hadn't been maintained. Would have been helpful if he had been at the top.
We did the usual taking pictures of the gate, eating okonomiyaki and cream cakes, and browsed the omiyage (the Japanese word for souvenirs). One new thing, though, was staying until after dark and seeing the island all lit up. It was gorgeous and the weather was not hot, not cold. I saw a lot of couples milling about in Yukata, or Japanese robes that look like kimono. Definitely put it on my to do list to actually stay on the island with a family. I am sure it is expensive, but very beautiful.
The last day of Golden Week most of our group went into the actual museum while Rich and I chilled in the park. Then Justin caught the train home and the rest of us drove to Iwakuni (where Nana, our first home stay student, was from) to see the Kintai Bridge- an old bridge that is sloped. We also caught the white snakes and some soft cream. It would have been nice to do more but we still had the long drive back.
Maybe not the most inventive or exciting Golden Week, but a real vacation and a good chance to hang out with friends. Of course, it was nice to come home to Motoaki who, in misunderstanding and thinking Justin would be with me, had bought pizza! Granted, it had broccoli and mayo on it... He was rewarded with his omiyage of Beef Jerky which I had gotten at the import store.
Miyajima is only about 3 hours from my front door but due to Golden Week traffic it took more like six. Luckily my car was in good company. In a total random side note, at one of the rest stops we saw a teacher Amy and I work with. Actually, she is our vice principal. In another random side note, this same teacher is from Tsuyama and I taught her daughter at AEON for three years. Honshu is a very small island.
We ended up staying at a hostel right near the dock for the ferry that goes to the Island. Since our first day was mostly spent in travel, we decided to go into Hiroshima city proper (about 40 minutes by street car) to chill for the evening. We decided to walk to the Peace Park where the Hiroshima Bomb Museum is located. I have been here multiple times as well, but that night there was actually a festival going on so the park was absolutely transformed. There were GIANT paper cranes in the yard next to the museum and also a lot of tables with candles that people were decorating. It looked like the cranes had been decorated by school children. Just past the museum was a stage where there was a traditional dance/play being performed with a man fighting giant snakes (or, giant costumes). On another nearby stage was a concert featuring 3 college aged (maybe) AKB wannabes.
After wandering around there we took a quick look at the shops and then went to an Irish Pub for the night. There was live music going on and Guinness being served. In a side note I went to Ireland my freshman year of college and the first beer I ever had was a Guinness. Add that to my summers living in Germany and I am a dark beer girl. I will drink the light stuff served at all Japanese restaurants for lack of a better option, but Guinness and Dunkelweizen have my heart. The pie I had was quite disappointing though. Maybe if I hadn't JUST been to England and Scotland... The top was all flaky but then there was no bottom part to the pie and it was mostly a watery broth underneath. Granted, this is probably healthier, but still... (and for the Americans, when I talk about pie I am talking about something like a chicken pot pie).
The next day we got up early and hiked to the top of Miyajima. Being Golden Week, the island was of course packed but that was alright. I think it helped me to stay motivated to see sooo many people passing me by. We had a great time taking photos at the top of the mountain and then took the long, slippery, miserable way down. It actually wasn't too bad but I wasn't really in shape for it. At the bottom of the course an old Japanese man was warning people about how we shouldn't use it because it hadn't been maintained. Would have been helpful if he had been at the top.
We did the usual taking pictures of the gate, eating okonomiyaki and cream cakes, and browsed the omiyage (the Japanese word for souvenirs). One new thing, though, was staying until after dark and seeing the island all lit up. It was gorgeous and the weather was not hot, not cold. I saw a lot of couples milling about in Yukata, or Japanese robes that look like kimono. Definitely put it on my to do list to actually stay on the island with a family. I am sure it is expensive, but very beautiful.
The last day of Golden Week most of our group went into the actual museum while Rich and I chilled in the park. Then Justin caught the train home and the rest of us drove to Iwakuni (where Nana, our first home stay student, was from) to see the Kintai Bridge- an old bridge that is sloped. We also caught the white snakes and some soft cream. It would have been nice to do more but we still had the long drive back.
Maybe not the most inventive or exciting Golden Week, but a real vacation and a good chance to hang out with friends. Of course, it was nice to come home to Motoaki who, in misunderstanding and thinking Justin would be with me, had bought pizza! Granted, it had broccoli and mayo on it... He was rewarded with his omiyage of Beef Jerky which I had gotten at the import store.
Golden Week Part Two: Dancing
So I had heard forever that Nagoya was a great place to go dancing, but I had never made it there before due to it being far away and due to not really knowing anyone who actually lived there. I had been there with Motoaki once before but he isn't really one for clubbing. I myself am getting a bit old for it but I can't help but still love dancing and as long as I put up defense, it is pretty easy to have a fun night and not worry about any creeps.
When people talk about Nagoya they usually mention ID Bar a 5 floor club that is famous for being a foreign hang out. This is a plus because, although there are some great dancers in Japan, Japanese people aren't really known for clubbing. I blame it partially on the fact that they don't have school dances or dance/cheer teams. ANYWAY so us girls from the country (Rena, Amy, and Chie) were excited to go to this club but, while planning our trip, we heard from Justin and Adam that it was a little seedy. The negative side of being popular with foreigners is that you get guys who aren't afraid to hit on foreign girls and you get people who aren't polite as the Japanese (a stereotype but in general Japanese clubs are quite subdued). This didn't bother us since we are used to that from clubs in America, New Zeland, Thailand, but to be nice to our hosts, we agreed to try a different club first.
The first night Justin started to take us to a place he liked but unfortunately, in true Justin style, couldn't remember the location of. Luckily in Japan it is easy to find "party neighborhoods" where you find row after row of restaurants, bars, and clubs (I feel sorry for anyone wandering around the Twin Cities or Des Moines, although I guess there are down areas- just not as compact). So we wandered the party area until we found something that seemed just as cool as the one Justin had been too before. Of course, being cheap gaijins we decided to ask first how much it cost to get in, how late the club stayed open, and how many drinks we got with the entry fee. Rena, who has the best Japanese, did the asking and then we had a quick pow-wow comparing it to ID Bar. Luckily for Justin, ID Bar closes at 1pm so this new place was a better deal. We decided to go in but when we went to the entrance, we were told by the body guard (who had answered our questions seconds before) "Japanese only."
Now, this hasn't really happened to me before (being denied entry due to my race), but I have read about it on blogs and tips on Japan. I was ok with that because "That's Japan," and it works both ways. There have been times that, BECAUSE I am foreign I have been given a cheaper ticket price or have gotten into places that I otherwise wouldn't have. Plus, seeing as it is a club and not a more public place like a bank or shop, I see no difference in them not letting me in and the clubs in New York and LA that only let in really hot or really famous people. However, I WAS pissed that the guy didn't just tell us in the first place when we asked about price and stuff. Sure Rena has flawless Japanese but the rest of us had been standing two feet away and it is EASY to tell that I am not-Japanese. way to waste my time!
By this time it was getting to be too late to go to ID Bar anyway (Justin said it closes early due to troubles with fighting in the past) so we decided to go to a club that stayed open until 6am. We got in there and it was empty but that was ok as it was nice to just sit and talk for awhile. Then after about 2 hours (when ID Bar and other similar places had closed down for the night) the place became packed with a good mix of Japanese and non-Japanese and we were all able to get up and get down (LOL). Actually, I was surprised at how polite the non-Japanese men were. No one tried to grab any of us or stepped on toes or pushed us to the side. We were allowed plenty of space to dance and be loud. It was a lot of fun and ended up with us all completely exhausted.
The second night we got ready early and decided to take the plunge and go to ID Bar. Justin, bless him, really didn't want to go but we dragged him. When we first got there it was wall to wall people and a lot of them were BIG (the guys and the girls). I'm sure it was very similar to anything I have been to in the US but after being in rural Japan so long, it seemed like I had entered a world of fat giants. Part of it could be some of the clothes the girls were wearing. I hate to generalize but there seemed to be a lot of latin Americans and a lot of Europeans who were not dressed for their size. AKA big bottoms in tiny skirts. But anyway... I was a bit nervous and thinking that maybe this was a mistake. Rena, an engineer, couldn't help but think about fire code violations. We squeezed our way to one floor but didn't like the music or the crowd. Same with the next floor. On the third floor we found music that seemed to our taste (Gaga, FloRida, etc) and, oddly so, a LOT of Japanese people. Despite all of our talk of wanting to "go where the foreigners go" we ended up having an absolute blast dancing with a bunch of Japanese. One Japanese pair of boys was especially fun. One of them came up to me and told me he was 20, and I felt a little old, but got over it. Even Justin was surprised at how good it all turned out. It was kind of nice that the club closed early as we got quite the work out and were pretty tired. We could go home feeling energetic not burnt out.
And I got to dance to my new favorite song. This song actually came out last summer but I haven't gone dancing. I was afraid that it wouldn't be played but it was and it was great. Actually, it may have been played twice.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgM3r8xKfGE
When people talk about Nagoya they usually mention ID Bar a 5 floor club that is famous for being a foreign hang out. This is a plus because, although there are some great dancers in Japan, Japanese people aren't really known for clubbing. I blame it partially on the fact that they don't have school dances or dance/cheer teams. ANYWAY so us girls from the country (Rena, Amy, and Chie) were excited to go to this club but, while planning our trip, we heard from Justin and Adam that it was a little seedy. The negative side of being popular with foreigners is that you get guys who aren't afraid to hit on foreign girls and you get people who aren't polite as the Japanese (a stereotype but in general Japanese clubs are quite subdued). This didn't bother us since we are used to that from clubs in America, New Zeland, Thailand, but to be nice to our hosts, we agreed to try a different club first.
The first night Justin started to take us to a place he liked but unfortunately, in true Justin style, couldn't remember the location of. Luckily in Japan it is easy to find "party neighborhoods" where you find row after row of restaurants, bars, and clubs (I feel sorry for anyone wandering around the Twin Cities or Des Moines, although I guess there are down areas- just not as compact). So we wandered the party area until we found something that seemed just as cool as the one Justin had been too before. Of course, being cheap gaijins we decided to ask first how much it cost to get in, how late the club stayed open, and how many drinks we got with the entry fee. Rena, who has the best Japanese, did the asking and then we had a quick pow-wow comparing it to ID Bar. Luckily for Justin, ID Bar closes at 1pm so this new place was a better deal. We decided to go in but when we went to the entrance, we were told by the body guard (who had answered our questions seconds before) "Japanese only."
Now, this hasn't really happened to me before (being denied entry due to my race), but I have read about it on blogs and tips on Japan. I was ok with that because "That's Japan," and it works both ways. There have been times that, BECAUSE I am foreign I have been given a cheaper ticket price or have gotten into places that I otherwise wouldn't have. Plus, seeing as it is a club and not a more public place like a bank or shop, I see no difference in them not letting me in and the clubs in New York and LA that only let in really hot or really famous people. However, I WAS pissed that the guy didn't just tell us in the first place when we asked about price and stuff. Sure Rena has flawless Japanese but the rest of us had been standing two feet away and it is EASY to tell that I am not-Japanese. way to waste my time!
By this time it was getting to be too late to go to ID Bar anyway (Justin said it closes early due to troubles with fighting in the past) so we decided to go to a club that stayed open until 6am. We got in there and it was empty but that was ok as it was nice to just sit and talk for awhile. Then after about 2 hours (when ID Bar and other similar places had closed down for the night) the place became packed with a good mix of Japanese and non-Japanese and we were all able to get up and get down (LOL). Actually, I was surprised at how polite the non-Japanese men were. No one tried to grab any of us or stepped on toes or pushed us to the side. We were allowed plenty of space to dance and be loud. It was a lot of fun and ended up with us all completely exhausted.
The second night we got ready early and decided to take the plunge and go to ID Bar. Justin, bless him, really didn't want to go but we dragged him. When we first got there it was wall to wall people and a lot of them were BIG (the guys and the girls). I'm sure it was very similar to anything I have been to in the US but after being in rural Japan so long, it seemed like I had entered a world of fat giants. Part of it could be some of the clothes the girls were wearing. I hate to generalize but there seemed to be a lot of latin Americans and a lot of Europeans who were not dressed for their size. AKA big bottoms in tiny skirts. But anyway... I was a bit nervous and thinking that maybe this was a mistake. Rena, an engineer, couldn't help but think about fire code violations. We squeezed our way to one floor but didn't like the music or the crowd. Same with the next floor. On the third floor we found music that seemed to our taste (Gaga, FloRida, etc) and, oddly so, a LOT of Japanese people. Despite all of our talk of wanting to "go where the foreigners go" we ended up having an absolute blast dancing with a bunch of Japanese. One Japanese pair of boys was especially fun. One of them came up to me and told me he was 20, and I felt a little old, but got over it. Even Justin was surprised at how good it all turned out. It was kind of nice that the club closed early as we got quite the work out and were pretty tired. We could go home feeling energetic not burnt out.
And I got to dance to my new favorite song. This song actually came out last summer but I haven't gone dancing. I was afraid that it wouldn't be played but it was and it was great. Actually, it may have been played twice.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgM3r8xKfGE
Golden Week Part One: Food
So this is a bit of a back track, but I wanted to share about what I did for Golden Week. For those of you who don't know about Japan, Golden Week is a series of holidays that fall in a row at the end of April and the beginning of April. April 29th is Showa Day (an old Emperors birthday- in Japan we get the day off for the Emperor's birthday and then after he is gone, it is sometimes kept on as a day off), May 3rd is Constitution Memorial Day (I am getting this off of wiki and don't really know what that means), May 4th is Green Day (earth day), and May 5th is Kids day, or rather boys day since girls day is in March. Now, these holidays aren't really celebrated (except for kids day) and it really is just an excuse for most people to have a vacation (think Labor day- most Americans probably don't have any idea the history behind the day or President's day which is taken off by some but not really celebrated).
It sucked a little bit this year because May 2nd, a Monday, was not a holiday so I had Friday-Sunday off, worked one day, and then had Tues-Thurs off with work on Friday. Some companies are nice and you will get the non-holidays off at well but at school we get enough time in the summer as well as other days like sports day, culture day, etc. That was ok because I didn't have the money this year to do anything big (last year I went to Korea and the year before we went camping in Miyazaki, the southern tip of Japan's big islands).
Motoaki had to work at an art show so that left me free to do it up, and up I went. Starting with the three day weekend I went to Nagoya to visit my friends Justin and Adam who used to live in my area but transferred to the big city life. Nagoya isn't as famous as Tokyo, Osaka, Hiroshima, Kyoto etc but it is big and, due to having Toyota nearby, it has a lot of foreign influence. This is good for those of us who have gotten past the "I want to do everything Japanese-style." I mean, I like living here but on vacation I like to step out of that.
I drove to Nagoya with Amy, Chie, and Rena three girls who live in my area and who are all fairly used to Japan. Chie was born here but raised in New Zeland. Though she is pretty non-Japanese, she grew up with a Japanese mother and trips to Japan so she doesn't care about seeing temples and doing tea ceremonies. Rena is from Thailand but she is an engineer for a Japanese company and she has lived here a looong time. Amy is from America but did a study-abroad at a Japanese university. It was a good group in that we could focus on fun and relaxation rather than site-seeing.
Though there is a lot of great stuff to see and do in Nagoya, we ended up spending our time clubbing, eating foreign food, and shopping. I spent WAY too much on clothes but I did stick to the cheap shops so it wasn't too bad. And in my defense we found Zara (like an upscale H&M- my friend Bud showed it to me in Europe and now I visit it in Japan) and Gap- aka stores that carry my LL size.
It was especially good to see where Justin lives and where he hangs out. He and I were pretty close in Tsuyama and we keep in touch by calling and emailing. I also met up with him in London as he was there over the winter break as well. Justin is a bit naive and sometimes you kind of have to yell at him, but he is great fun on a night out, has good tastes in shops, and is great for gossip.
We also got great food in Nagoya due to the foreign influence found there. Though Justin is from England, his mom is Filipino. Thus, he knew of a great Filipino restaurant in Nagoya. When we first got there we were a bit nervous as it was a hole in the wall down a back alley and the food was just sitting out in big platters on a counter (not under any heat lamps or anything). But Justin was really excited and we didn't want to hurt his feelings (he had been telling me about this place on the phone). I was extra nervous because I am not good with spicy food and though I can manage it, I haven't been a big fan of other Asian cuisine like Thai and Korean. However, once we got over the fact of how mom'n'pop the whole outfit was, the food tasted great. It reminded me of something you would find in Hawaii or even Iowa- a lot of pork, vegetables, and more sweet than spice. I wish I had taken a picture but recently I have been failing on the whole photography thing. With facebook it's too easy just to wait and get the photos off of what other people post.
Justin wanted to make up for it the next night by taking us to a place that was supposed to be like TGIFs but was actually the Japanese version of Hooters. Why he and his friend thought four girls would want to go to a place called BJs is beyond me, but if you are a guy and are in Nagoya, you might want to check it out. BJs is set up to look a lot like Coyote Ugly only with more seating. All of the Japanese waitresses are dressed in daisy dukes and small tops and are all about 5'8 and only 110 pounds. They were cute and they weren't too flirty or cheesey (although that could be due to the fact that we were a bunch of girls). Of course, the highlight was when the "featured" waitress came out in an even skimpier outfit and did a pole dance. I will give her credit- the pole reached from the bar up to the ceiling/second floor and she went to the top. We laughed about it and clapped along but I wouldn't go again.
Probably the best meal, though, was something we found by accident. Adam was trying to take us to a cheap pizza place but when we got there it was closed. We decided to wander to find something else and stumbled upon a Hawaii place that had a good decor and AMAZING avocado burgers (the tuna/rice/tomato/avocado salad also looked amazing, but I was on vacation). I did get a picture of it as I wanted to make Motoaki jealous (I know, I know, what a witch...).
It sucked a little bit this year because May 2nd, a Monday, was not a holiday so I had Friday-Sunday off, worked one day, and then had Tues-Thurs off with work on Friday. Some companies are nice and you will get the non-holidays off at well but at school we get enough time in the summer as well as other days like sports day, culture day, etc. That was ok because I didn't have the money this year to do anything big (last year I went to Korea and the year before we went camping in Miyazaki, the southern tip of Japan's big islands).
Motoaki had to work at an art show so that left me free to do it up, and up I went. Starting with the three day weekend I went to Nagoya to visit my friends Justin and Adam who used to live in my area but transferred to the big city life. Nagoya isn't as famous as Tokyo, Osaka, Hiroshima, Kyoto etc but it is big and, due to having Toyota nearby, it has a lot of foreign influence. This is good for those of us who have gotten past the "I want to do everything Japanese-style." I mean, I like living here but on vacation I like to step out of that.
I drove to Nagoya with Amy, Chie, and Rena three girls who live in my area and who are all fairly used to Japan. Chie was born here but raised in New Zeland. Though she is pretty non-Japanese, she grew up with a Japanese mother and trips to Japan so she doesn't care about seeing temples and doing tea ceremonies. Rena is from Thailand but she is an engineer for a Japanese company and she has lived here a looong time. Amy is from America but did a study-abroad at a Japanese university. It was a good group in that we could focus on fun and relaxation rather than site-seeing.
Though there is a lot of great stuff to see and do in Nagoya, we ended up spending our time clubbing, eating foreign food, and shopping. I spent WAY too much on clothes but I did stick to the cheap shops so it wasn't too bad. And in my defense we found Zara (like an upscale H&M- my friend Bud showed it to me in Europe and now I visit it in Japan) and Gap- aka stores that carry my LL size.
It was especially good to see where Justin lives and where he hangs out. He and I were pretty close in Tsuyama and we keep in touch by calling and emailing. I also met up with him in London as he was there over the winter break as well. Justin is a bit naive and sometimes you kind of have to yell at him, but he is great fun on a night out, has good tastes in shops, and is great for gossip.
We also got great food in Nagoya due to the foreign influence found there. Though Justin is from England, his mom is Filipino. Thus, he knew of a great Filipino restaurant in Nagoya. When we first got there we were a bit nervous as it was a hole in the wall down a back alley and the food was just sitting out in big platters on a counter (not under any heat lamps or anything). But Justin was really excited and we didn't want to hurt his feelings (he had been telling me about this place on the phone). I was extra nervous because I am not good with spicy food and though I can manage it, I haven't been a big fan of other Asian cuisine like Thai and Korean. However, once we got over the fact of how mom'n'pop the whole outfit was, the food tasted great. It reminded me of something you would find in Hawaii or even Iowa- a lot of pork, vegetables, and more sweet than spice. I wish I had taken a picture but recently I have been failing on the whole photography thing. With facebook it's too easy just to wait and get the photos off of what other people post.
Justin wanted to make up for it the next night by taking us to a place that was supposed to be like TGIFs but was actually the Japanese version of Hooters. Why he and his friend thought four girls would want to go to a place called BJs is beyond me, but if you are a guy and are in Nagoya, you might want to check it out. BJs is set up to look a lot like Coyote Ugly only with more seating. All of the Japanese waitresses are dressed in daisy dukes and small tops and are all about 5'8 and only 110 pounds. They were cute and they weren't too flirty or cheesey (although that could be due to the fact that we were a bunch of girls). Of course, the highlight was when the "featured" waitress came out in an even skimpier outfit and did a pole dance. I will give her credit- the pole reached from the bar up to the ceiling/second floor and she went to the top. We laughed about it and clapped along but I wouldn't go again.
Probably the best meal, though, was something we found by accident. Adam was trying to take us to a cheap pizza place but when we got there it was closed. We decided to wander to find something else and stumbled upon a Hawaii place that had a good decor and AMAZING avocado burgers (the tuna/rice/tomato/avocado salad also looked amazing, but I was on vacation). I did get a picture of it as I wanted to make Motoaki jealous (I know, I know, what a witch...).
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Bieber Fever!
(written on May 19)
So living in Japan has its perks and one of those is that I can miss out on some of the annoying trends that come to America. Though Japan has a lot of annoying ones itself, I can usually avoid them by not watching certain TV channels and by not understanding the language. But recently one of those trends has found its way to me.
This year I got a new co-worker who is a young girl fresh out of college. And I mean FRESH. Very nervous about the whole job and a little naive. I haven't gotten to the point where I think of myself as "old" yet (oh the advantage of marrying someone older) but next to this girl, I am. One of the sure tell signs is her obsession with American Pop Idols. And not just any pop (after all, I love Gaga), but Disney Pop. As in she'll come up to me all excited and ask if I know the show "Hannah Montana" which has just premiered on a Japanese channel. I feel bad because I know she just wants to be friends and is looking for a way to connect with "the American" but, well, I am not 13 years old and even when I was, I left that sort of thing (Hannah Montana, the Jonas Brothers) up to Maggie (aka Mrs Lance Bass). But I try to be nice to and humor and bring up the few teeny songs/TV shows I do know (Glee) while trying to slip in something a little more mature like "Mad Men."
Recently this coworker has discovered Justin Bieber and in a big way. On Wednesday she came in all excited to tell me that he was "In JAPAN!!!!" I asked, "Oh, so you are going to see him?" (cause why else bring it up) and she was like, "Oh, no, he is in Tokyo. But he arrived this morning and I can see him on the news tonight." I smiled politely but didn't comment further.
Then last night I was going through magazines that needed to go to the recycling center and I found my Vanity Fair that had done a cover article on Justin Bieber. So I thought, what the heck, I'll give it to her. It will start up a friendship and improve her English (have you read Vanity Fair? it can improve anyone's English as there are words in there I don't know!).
So this morning to make it a surprise I slipped it on her desk while she was out (in Japanese schools all of the teachers desks are in one big office room and hers is next to mind). She came back in the room and at first didn't see it, but when she did, man did she scream. A big 14 year old just spotted the cast of Twilight scream. She realised it was from me and started gushing all over about it.
Now maybe I am sounding mean. After all, we all have different things we like and I get just as excited about seeing certain books in the book store or seeing Dr Pepper. But I kind of also believe that certain things should be kept out of the workplace. Thus, I got a little nervous/embarrassed that she was getting so excited in front of all of the other teachers. The day hadn't quite started yet and a lot of teachers were up milling around the coffee pot,etc and of course they had to come over and see what the excitement was about.
Then, to my horror, they all started getting just as excited. I am talking 30yr old/ 40yr old adult professionals. They started saying that they should use the school's color printer to make copies of the spread in Vanity Fair for the other teachers since I only had one copy of the mag. Haha- the best part was when they asked the male English teacher who is VERY macho to come help translate some of the words (apparently my Japanese/English ability isn't up to the task of the Bieber just yet). To my utter shock he actually knew who Justin Bieber was, but he made some comment about it being, "a silly 17 year old boy," and walked away before translating.
AND PS I will admit to liking the Justin Bieber video with Usher and the dance crews (see below). But that is strictly for the dancing, not his hair cut.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOI4OF7iIr4
So living in Japan has its perks and one of those is that I can miss out on some of the annoying trends that come to America. Though Japan has a lot of annoying ones itself, I can usually avoid them by not watching certain TV channels and by not understanding the language. But recently one of those trends has found its way to me.
This year I got a new co-worker who is a young girl fresh out of college. And I mean FRESH. Very nervous about the whole job and a little naive. I haven't gotten to the point where I think of myself as "old" yet (oh the advantage of marrying someone older) but next to this girl, I am. One of the sure tell signs is her obsession with American Pop Idols. And not just any pop (after all, I love Gaga), but Disney Pop. As in she'll come up to me all excited and ask if I know the show "Hannah Montana" which has just premiered on a Japanese channel. I feel bad because I know she just wants to be friends and is looking for a way to connect with "the American" but, well, I am not 13 years old and even when I was, I left that sort of thing (Hannah Montana, the Jonas Brothers) up to Maggie (aka Mrs Lance Bass). But I try to be nice to and humor and bring up the few teeny songs/TV shows I do know (Glee) while trying to slip in something a little more mature like "Mad Men."
Recently this coworker has discovered Justin Bieber and in a big way. On Wednesday she came in all excited to tell me that he was "In JAPAN!!!!" I asked, "Oh, so you are going to see him?" (cause why else bring it up) and she was like, "Oh, no, he is in Tokyo. But he arrived this morning and I can see him on the news tonight." I smiled politely but didn't comment further.
Then last night I was going through magazines that needed to go to the recycling center and I found my Vanity Fair that had done a cover article on Justin Bieber. So I thought, what the heck, I'll give it to her. It will start up a friendship and improve her English (have you read Vanity Fair? it can improve anyone's English as there are words in there I don't know!).
So this morning to make it a surprise I slipped it on her desk while she was out (in Japanese schools all of the teachers desks are in one big office room and hers is next to mind). She came back in the room and at first didn't see it, but when she did, man did she scream. A big 14 year old just spotted the cast of Twilight scream. She realised it was from me and started gushing all over about it.
Now maybe I am sounding mean. After all, we all have different things we like and I get just as excited about seeing certain books in the book store or seeing Dr Pepper. But I kind of also believe that certain things should be kept out of the workplace. Thus, I got a little nervous/embarrassed that she was getting so excited in front of all of the other teachers. The day hadn't quite started yet and a lot of teachers were up milling around the coffee pot,etc and of course they had to come over and see what the excitement was about.
Then, to my horror, they all started getting just as excited. I am talking 30yr old/ 40yr old adult professionals. They started saying that they should use the school's color printer to make copies of the spread in Vanity Fair for the other teachers since I only had one copy of the mag. Haha- the best part was when they asked the male English teacher who is VERY macho to come help translate some of the words (apparently my Japanese/English ability isn't up to the task of the Bieber just yet). To my utter shock he actually knew who Justin Bieber was, but he made some comment about it being, "a silly 17 year old boy," and walked away before translating.
AND PS I will admit to liking the Justin Bieber video with Usher and the dance crews (see below). But that is strictly for the dancing, not his hair cut.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOI4OF7iIr4
Dinner with the Fujiwara's
(written on May 18)
Motoaki and I have finally decided to become grown-ups and are going to start planning meals weekly so as to save money, time, and our waistlines. I came home on Tuesday night to find nothing to eat in the house. Well, we had food but nothing that really went together as a meal and nothing that was healthy. It was a little late to go to the store and I was TIRED so I ended up eating peanut butter and jelly and he had cup of noodle.
This pissed me off because I have been trying to eat healthier. I have recently started keeping track of my weight on my smart phone with an ap that logs what I eat/drink and how much I work out. I then fill in a weight loss goal and it tells me how I can alter my life-style to meet my goal (aka today you ate too many carbs- lighten the carb intake or excercize 30 more minutes).
I'm usually pretty good with my lunches but I am horrible with dinner because I am tired and don't care. Cooking takes too much effort. And Motoaki likes to cook, but he cooks like a man- lots of red meat, lots of use of the fry pan, etc. In looking at the weight logging I had been doing on my phone, it became clear that I needed to take action to figure out how we can be smart about eating and the best way to do that I figure is to set a plan and stick to it. I figure that if we plan out what we are going to be eating, we won't spend 30 minutes deciding what to eat each night and just cook. A lot of times one of us waits for the other to get home to decided what to eat. Then we have to go to the store to get the ingrediants. Then, in the store we (or especially Motoaki) fall to the temptaion of pre-packaged meals like fired chicken, potato salad, etc It leads to us eating crap most nights.
SOOOO...Anyway, after finishing my sandwich I pulled out a fresh notebook (I have a bad weakness for buying them whenever I go to LOFT, but that's another blog) and told him we needed to make a list of what to eat the next three days. I also pulled out the cookbooks I have received as presents and the one Japanese one that is called "quick and easy
" and we decided on stuff that looked simple/healthy/delicious.
Today I went to the grocery store to put in my plan in action. This was easier said (thought) than done. First off, people in Japan go to the grocery store WAY more often than people in the US. This is largely due to the fact that
a) they eat fresh food more often (fish, raw egg, moyashi- a kind of bean sprout that seems to spoil quickly, etc)
b) a love people live with extended family so they have more time- mom might work every day but grandma/grandpa might be free to do the shopping
c) they don't have space in their kitchens to store food
Because they go to the store more often, they buy less when they do go. But we just don't have time to do that. Not to mention that we spend more than we should because we just buy random things. By making a plan each week we can plan to put excess stuff to use (aka, if I can't buy only one carrot because they are sold in packs of four, I can use two for one meal and use two in another meal). SO the shopping carts are REALLY small compared to what I have gotten used to in America (think Walmart). So there was the whole problem of being able to get all the stuff and get it through the store.
Another problem was that the Japanese food Motoaki selected had a lot of seasonings/spices that I hadn't used before. He had told me what they were, but I only knew them in Hiragana (あいうえお） and a LOT of stuff was written in kanji (辣豆瓣酱). I could have easily asked some of the staff to help but I really wanted to force myself to be independant. So what could have taken 2 minutes took 30.
A few of my students who finished Jr High last year and who are in high school now ran into me and a lot of jokes were made about the bulk in my basket, but I stayed strong. But I was happy with the food I got and it worked as last night when I came home we had beef mixed with bean sprouts, salad, and pineapple for dinner. Not the healthiest thing, but still a step up from PB&J and cup of noodle. We'll see if it sticks...
Motoaki and I have finally decided to become grown-ups and are going to start planning meals weekly so as to save money, time, and our waistlines. I came home on Tuesday night to find nothing to eat in the house. Well, we had food but nothing that really went together as a meal and nothing that was healthy. It was a little late to go to the store and I was TIRED so I ended up eating peanut butter and jelly and he had cup of noodle.
This pissed me off because I have been trying to eat healthier. I have recently started keeping track of my weight on my smart phone with an ap that logs what I eat/drink and how much I work out. I then fill in a weight loss goal and it tells me how I can alter my life-style to meet my goal (aka today you ate too many carbs- lighten the carb intake or excercize 30 more minutes).
I'm usually pretty good with my lunches but I am horrible with dinner because I am tired and don't care. Cooking takes too much effort. And Motoaki likes to cook, but he cooks like a man- lots of red meat, lots of use of the fry pan, etc. In looking at the weight logging I had been doing on my phone, it became clear that I needed to take action to figure out how we can be smart about eating and the best way to do that I figure is to set a plan and stick to it. I figure that if we plan out what we are going to be eating, we won't spend 30 minutes deciding what to eat each night and just cook. A lot of times one of us waits for the other to get home to decided what to eat. Then we have to go to the store to get the ingrediants. Then, in the store we (or especially Motoaki) fall to the temptaion of pre-packaged meals like fired chicken, potato salad, etc It leads to us eating crap most nights.
SOOOO...Anyway, after finishing my sandwich I pulled out a fresh notebook (I have a bad weakness for buying them whenever I go to LOFT, but that's another blog) and told him we needed to make a list of what to eat the next three days. I also pulled out the cookbooks I have received as presents and the one Japanese one that is called "quick and easy
" and we decided on stuff that looked simple/healthy/delicious.
Today I went to the grocery store to put in my plan in action. This was easier said (thought) than done. First off, people in Japan go to the grocery store WAY more often than people in the US. This is largely due to the fact that
a) they eat fresh food more often (fish, raw egg, moyashi- a kind of bean sprout that seems to spoil quickly, etc)
b) a love people live with extended family so they have more time- mom might work every day but grandma/grandpa might be free to do the shopping
c) they don't have space in their kitchens to store food
Because they go to the store more often, they buy less when they do go. But we just don't have time to do that. Not to mention that we spend more than we should because we just buy random things. By making a plan each week we can plan to put excess stuff to use (aka, if I can't buy only one carrot because they are sold in packs of four, I can use two for one meal and use two in another meal). SO the shopping carts are REALLY small compared to what I have gotten used to in America (think Walmart). So there was the whole problem of being able to get all the stuff and get it through the store.
Another problem was that the Japanese food Motoaki selected had a lot of seasonings/spices that I hadn't used before. He had told me what they were, but I only knew them in Hiragana (あいうえお） and a LOT of stuff was written in kanji (辣豆瓣酱). I could have easily asked some of the staff to help but I really wanted to force myself to be independant. So what could have taken 2 minutes took 30.
A few of my students who finished Jr High last year and who are in high school now ran into me and a lot of jokes were made about the bulk in my basket, but I stayed strong. But I was happy with the food I got and it worked as last night when I came home we had beef mixed with bean sprouts, salad, and pineapple for dinner. Not the healthiest thing, but still a step up from PB&J and cup of noodle. We'll see if it sticks...
The Easiest Job in the World
(Written May 13) OK, so my job is not always easy. A lot of time being an English teacher in Japan can be stressful due to a huge lack of communication (I am the only non-Japanese person in the school), lack of discipline (Japanese students can't be held back, flunked, kicked out of class, given detention, etc), and just general craziness (the whole kid factor being thrown in). But every once in awhile there comes a day like today when my only responsibility is to show up.
Today was a sports tournament day and so we didn't have classes. Since club is mandatory (as far as I can tell although there might be a few kids who get out of it) all of the kids belong to something and so it is possible to have a day devoted purely to club. This is arranged with the other schools so that all of the sports teams in the local area can get in a couple of games in the day. Our school offers badminton, soccer, baseball, volleyball, table tennis, and track for sports. The other clubs are brass band, art, home ec, and computer/shop/robotics club. The sports teams all go to a designated school and the non-sports clubs stay in the building and do special projects/practice.
Now in America, this would be nice because this would mean that then evenings would be free for students to study, have family time, pursue other hobbies, etc AKA By having the game during the day it wouldn't interrupt with other family/church/community stuff going on. But in Japan where students have to go to club every night, every weekend, and often on holidays anyway, it doesn't make much sense for them to miss class to go to a sports tournament. That whole idea that Japanese kids go to school a lot more than western kids is junk. They go to the actual school, but they aren't always necessarily studying.
But let's forget about the negatives and focus on the positives. Having no class today rocked because...
1) I majorly overslept today which on a normal day would result in a total break-down for me. I think it has something to do with my family always being on the go when I was younger, but the one thing I can't handle is not having time to get ready. In high school I often got up at 5am in order to be ready to be at school at 7. I don't wear make-up and I am not too concerned with fashion, but I do need to air dry my hair and I do like to take my time showering, brushing my teeth, making my lunch, watching the news, etc. This means that I am usually up by 6:45 in order to leave the house by 7:50. Today I woke up at 7:36 and freaked out- until I realized that I didn't have any classes today. Which in turn meant that a) only the janitorial staff/principal/other random staff members see my hair so it didn't matter, b) I didn't have to make my lunch because we wouldn't be eating with students and I could take a break to go to the local bento (lunch box) shop to buy something, and c) I could leave the house later than usual since I didn't need to prep for the day's lessons.
2) I was free to catch up on all of the blogs I read, all of the emails I have been putting off, all of the news in America (which seems to be getting crazier and crazier not that Japan has ANY room to talk), the book I am currently reading (The Power of One- sounds like a silly self-help novel but it is actually about a boy growing up in South Africa in the 1930s-40s), etc. This in addition to doing things like leisurely plan my next week's demo lesson for training, my upcoming elementary lessons, etc Seriously, this is one of the reasons I took this job. Some teachers get frustrated about having to come to work despite there being no work, but for me it gives me a structured environment to get shit done. If I had been given the day off I would have no doubt spent it watching TV or shopping.
3) I was able to study/do my Japanese homework seriously and slowly rather than skimming through it like I usually do. This is a major bonus because tonight I am going to sit down and formally meet with my Japanese teacher + Motoaki at the Kumon (tutoring school) I go to discuss my current track and future plans. More on that later, but it would have been embarrassing if I had showed up with nothing finished or a bunch of sloppily done work.
4) Probably the best thing, though, was that, since there were no classes, the cooking club had the whole day to plan and prepare a surprise meal for the staff that were in the office today (as I said, janitors, secretaries, librarians, me). So not only did I not have to make my lunch, but I didn't even have to but it after all! And they actually made stuff that I like and you can't really go wrong with. (As much as I support the students and their efforts, the home ec club has come up with some SHADY variations on tried and true recipes). Yeah, it is definitely days like today that I thank the Shinto Gods that I chose being an ALT (assistant language teacher) over being a private school teacher.
Today was a sports tournament day and so we didn't have classes. Since club is mandatory (as far as I can tell although there might be a few kids who get out of it) all of the kids belong to something and so it is possible to have a day devoted purely to club. This is arranged with the other schools so that all of the sports teams in the local area can get in a couple of games in the day. Our school offers badminton, soccer, baseball, volleyball, table tennis, and track for sports. The other clubs are brass band, art, home ec, and computer/shop/robotics club. The sports teams all go to a designated school and the non-sports clubs stay in the building and do special projects/practice.
Now in America, this would be nice because this would mean that then evenings would be free for students to study, have family time, pursue other hobbies, etc AKA By having the game during the day it wouldn't interrupt with other family/church/community stuff going on. But in Japan where students have to go to club every night, every weekend, and often on holidays anyway, it doesn't make much sense for them to miss class to go to a sports tournament. That whole idea that Japanese kids go to school a lot more than western kids is junk. They go to the actual school, but they aren't always necessarily studying.
But let's forget about the negatives and focus on the positives. Having no class today rocked because...
1) I majorly overslept today which on a normal day would result in a total break-down for me. I think it has something to do with my family always being on the go when I was younger, but the one thing I can't handle is not having time to get ready. In high school I often got up at 5am in order to be ready to be at school at 7. I don't wear make-up and I am not too concerned with fashion, but I do need to air dry my hair and I do like to take my time showering, brushing my teeth, making my lunch, watching the news, etc. This means that I am usually up by 6:45 in order to leave the house by 7:50. Today I woke up at 7:36 and freaked out- until I realized that I didn't have any classes today. Which in turn meant that a) only the janitorial staff/principal/other random staff members see my hair so it didn't matter, b) I didn't have to make my lunch because we wouldn't be eating with students and I could take a break to go to the local bento (lunch box) shop to buy something, and c) I could leave the house later than usual since I didn't need to prep for the day's lessons.
2) I was free to catch up on all of the blogs I read, all of the emails I have been putting off, all of the news in America (which seems to be getting crazier and crazier not that Japan has ANY room to talk), the book I am currently reading (The Power of One- sounds like a silly self-help novel but it is actually about a boy growing up in South Africa in the 1930s-40s), etc. This in addition to doing things like leisurely plan my next week's demo lesson for training, my upcoming elementary lessons, etc Seriously, this is one of the reasons I took this job. Some teachers get frustrated about having to come to work despite there being no work, but for me it gives me a structured environment to get shit done. If I had been given the day off I would have no doubt spent it watching TV or shopping.
3) I was able to study/do my Japanese homework seriously and slowly rather than skimming through it like I usually do. This is a major bonus because tonight I am going to sit down and formally meet with my Japanese teacher + Motoaki at the Kumon (tutoring school) I go to discuss my current track and future plans. More on that later, but it would have been embarrassing if I had showed up with nothing finished or a bunch of sloppily done work.
4) Probably the best thing, though, was that, since there were no classes, the cooking club had the whole day to plan and prepare a surprise meal for the staff that were in the office today (as I said, janitors, secretaries, librarians, me). So not only did I not have to make my lunch, but I didn't even have to but it after all! And they actually made stuff that I like and you can't really go wrong with. (As much as I support the students and their efforts, the home ec club has come up with some SHADY variations on tried and true recipes). Yeah, it is definitely days like today that I thank the Shinto Gods that I chose being an ALT (assistant language teacher) over being a private school teacher.
Burlesque
I wrote this on May 12th but just created the blog now.
After a long week of battling a cough and working overtime, I took last night off and watched Burlesque (2010 Cher and Christina Auguleria) with Motoaki. His sister had rented it and since his office is next to the rental shop (there is a small rental shop in our town but to get to the good stuff we have to drive 30 minutes to the next town over), she asked him to return it in the morning. This happens a lot which is great because a) she has decent taste in movies, b) she has an unbiased taste in movies (aka she makes choices I might not make but end up enjoying anyway), and c) she is a working, single girl who doesn't spend much on other things (lives at home like most single women in America) and thus doesn't mind spending money on the "new releases" that Motoaki and I usually will wait to go on sale before renting. AKA she foots the bill and we enjoy the spoils. Why don't we watch them with her? Well, that is another post entirely but the gist of it is that she is a nurse with crazy working hours and so she is most likely watching these movies at like 4 am.
Anyway, to the point... I had heard about this movie and also had read some bad reviews (I read Roger Ebert every Friday at work when I drink my coffee) but was still interested anyway. I don't think Motoaki had any idea what it would be about but he soon got interested once he saw the club scenes with scantily clad women (he is not an oaf but he is human). I loved the dancing, enjoyed the music, but overall was disappointed in the lost potential. I personally thought that a lot of the background stories (the love, alcoholism, etc) were a bit forced and that there wasn't much time spent getting to know the characters so we didn't really care what happened to them. It made me a bit sad that what could have been amazing, given the talent (Cher, Christina, Alan Cumming who was barely used at all, etc), was so "typical."
Watching of course got me thinking about similar movies like Chicago and Moulin Rouge. Those movies were both successful and wildly populer despite having less talent (excuse me but Catherine Zeta-Jones/Richard Gere and Nicole Kidman/Ewan Mcgregor are NO Christina Auguleria/Alan Cumming/Cher). I will say that I was plesantly surprised by Kristen Bell. I knew she could act but who knew that she could dance like that? Another completely odd thing was the choice of Dianna Agron (aka Glee's Quinn) to be Natalie, Jack's fiance, a part that didn't involve any singing or dancing. Or did I miss that??? And I was a little disappointed to see Stanley Tucci and Peter Gallagher typecast (if you have seen The Devil Wears Prada or Center Stage). Not that they weren't perfect in their roles, I just felt a little bored in watching the same performance (ok, so maybe I am stretching on the the Peter Gallagher connection).
I guess that I was just disappointed to fell that, while I will definitely buy the cd (which I hardly ever do- last time I wanted a soundtrack was The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou and maybe Juno and anything directed by Sofia Coppola who has a bad habit of having less than great movies but amazing choice in music), I really couldn't see myself buying the movie. Unlike a b movie such as Coyote Ugly, which had a similar story line, albeit less talent, but which I was absolutely in love with.
In a funny side note Motoaki asked me at one point if I thought the main girl, Ali, was really singing. I was like, "Of course, that's Christina Augleria." And he was like, "Oh!" Although he knows who she is, he had no idea that it was her playing the part. He has recently become obsessed with American talents for singing after watching Glee and finding out that all of the cast are using their real voices. This is largely due to the fact that one of the current "it" girl groups in Japan, AKB48 (48 becuase they have 48 members, although they are split into 3 teams so you don't always see them together), aren't very good at singing and SUCK at dancing.
See video below...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
And they can dance a bit, but nothing that I couldn't do or that any small school Jr. High Drill team couldn't do...
Note: Sorry if you were expecting something else from my blog, but this IS my life!
I will say that watching Burlesque definitely made me regret not having taken dance classes so seriously.
After a long week of battling a cough and working overtime, I took last night off and watched Burlesque (2010 Cher and Christina Auguleria) with Motoaki. His sister had rented it and since his office is next to the rental shop (there is a small rental shop in our town but to get to the good stuff we have to drive 30 minutes to the next town over), she asked him to return it in the morning. This happens a lot which is great because a) she has decent taste in movies, b) she has an unbiased taste in movies (aka she makes choices I might not make but end up enjoying anyway), and c) she is a working, single girl who doesn't spend much on other things (lives at home like most single women in America) and thus doesn't mind spending money on the "new releases" that Motoaki and I usually will wait to go on sale before renting. AKA she foots the bill and we enjoy the spoils. Why don't we watch them with her? Well, that is another post entirely but the gist of it is that she is a nurse with crazy working hours and so she is most likely watching these movies at like 4 am.
Anyway, to the point... I had heard about this movie and also had read some bad reviews (I read Roger Ebert every Friday at work when I drink my coffee) but was still interested anyway. I don't think Motoaki had any idea what it would be about but he soon got interested once he saw the club scenes with scantily clad women (he is not an oaf but he is human). I loved the dancing, enjoyed the music, but overall was disappointed in the lost potential. I personally thought that a lot of the background stories (the love, alcoholism, etc) were a bit forced and that there wasn't much time spent getting to know the characters so we didn't really care what happened to them. It made me a bit sad that what could have been amazing, given the talent (Cher, Christina, Alan Cumming who was barely used at all, etc), was so "typical."
Watching of course got me thinking about similar movies like Chicago and Moulin Rouge. Those movies were both successful and wildly populer despite having less talent (excuse me but Catherine Zeta-Jones/Richard Gere and Nicole Kidman/Ewan Mcgregor are NO Christina Auguleria/Alan Cumming/Cher). I will say that I was plesantly surprised by Kristen Bell. I knew she could act but who knew that she could dance like that? Another completely odd thing was the choice of Dianna Agron (aka Glee's Quinn) to be Natalie, Jack's fiance, a part that didn't involve any singing or dancing. Or did I miss that??? And I was a little disappointed to see Stanley Tucci and Peter Gallagher typecast (if you have seen The Devil Wears Prada or Center Stage). Not that they weren't perfect in their roles, I just felt a little bored in watching the same performance (ok, so maybe I am stretching on the the Peter Gallagher connection).
I guess that I was just disappointed to fell that, while I will definitely buy the cd (which I hardly ever do- last time I wanted a soundtrack was The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou and maybe Juno and anything directed by Sofia Coppola who has a bad habit of having less than great movies but amazing choice in music), I really couldn't see myself buying the movie. Unlike a b movie such as Coyote Ugly, which had a similar story line, albeit less talent, but which I was absolutely in love with.
In a funny side note Motoaki asked me at one point if I thought the main girl, Ali, was really singing. I was like, "Of course, that's Christina Augleria." And he was like, "Oh!" Although he knows who she is, he had no idea that it was her playing the part. He has recently become obsessed with American talents for singing after watching Glee and finding out that all of the cast are using their real voices. This is largely due to the fact that one of the current "it" girl groups in Japan, AKB48 (48 becuase they have 48 members, although they are split into 3 teams so you don't always see them together), aren't very good at singing and SUCK at dancing.
See video below...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
And they can dance a bit, but nothing that I couldn't do or that any small school Jr. High Drill team couldn't do...
Note: Sorry if you were expecting something else from my blog, but this IS my life!
I will say that watching Burlesque definitely made me regret not having taken dance classes so seriously.
The First Post
WARNING: If you know me or live in Japan, this is a BORING post. Just a little "FYI" on who I am and what I do.
As for, "about me," I am in my late 20's, from America, and live in Okayama-ken, Japan. Though I won't give out all my details, it will be pretty obvious who I am if you know the area. Japan is small and the gaijin (non-Japanese) community is smaller.
I came here in 2005 and worked for an Eikawa (private English school) for three years. I then went home for six months in 2008 to give it a go in America one last time, and then moved back to Japan in 2009 to the same area. This was largely to do with my then boyfriend, now husband, who is Japanese. We were engaged in the winter of 2009 and got married during the summer of 2010. But we have basically been married since 2007.
I am an English teacher because that is what most non-Japanese people do in Japan. The catch is (or might be) that I love my job and am good at what I do. Teaching English is never boring (especially when teenagers and kindergartners are thrown in). It requires just enough effort to be busy but not enough to be totally tied with work.
In my free time I read, Read, READ and I watch movies. I also hang out with the other foreigners in the area, usually at restaurants or karaoke boxes. I try to study Japanese but usually it gets passed over for a good book or movie. I do attend classes and so am at an ok level, but nowhere near where I should be. I also recently joined a community choir which consists of about 50 30-80 year-olds. Everything is done in Japanese so I am always struggling to figure out what page we are on. Thank God for being an alto- I can usually just harmonize even if I don't know the words. I figure that is Japanese practice enough.
Whenever my husband gets free time, we usually drive to a big city to shop (he lived in Osaka for seven years so usually we head there) or go to the beach so he can surf and I can read. If we get enough time, we head out even further to Kyushu, Wakayama, Shikoku, or Tokyo. We speak in a crazy mixture of English/Japanese that only we usually understand due to a lack of grammar skills on both our parts, but it works. He is quiet and I am loud but when we are together our personalities swap and I am the quiet one and he is the loud one.
OK- that should about do it. If you have any more questions, ask away.
I have decided to start this blog as a way to keep in touch with family back at home as well as the friends I have all over the world. If you don't know me but want to read about the mundane details of life in Japan anyway, then go for it. I have been quite inspired after starting to read "married in Japan" blogs. It started with seeing Gaijin Housewife in Japan (http://
Just a note, if I sometimes complain about Japan it is merely a way of me blowing off steam. I love my husband and I love my life here.
As for, "about me," I am in my late 20's, from America, and live in Okayama-ken, Japan. Though I won't give out all my details, it will be pretty obvious who I am if you know the area. Japan is small and the gaijin (non-Japanese) community is smaller.
I came here in 2005 and worked for an Eikawa (private English school) for three years. I then went home for six months in 2008 to give it a go in America one last time, and then moved back to Japan in 2009 to the same area. This was largely to do with my then boyfriend, now husband, who is Japanese. We were engaged in the winter of 2009 and got married during the summer of 2010. But we have basically been married since 2007.
I am an English teacher because that is what most non-Japanese people do in Japan. The catch is (or might be) that I love my job and am good at what I do. Teaching English is never boring (especially when teenagers and kindergartners are thrown in). It requires just enough effort to be busy but not enough to be totally tied with work.
In my free time I read, Read, READ and I watch movies. I also hang out with the other foreigners in the area, usually at restaurants or karaoke boxes. I try to study Japanese but usually it gets passed over for a good book or movie. I do attend classes and so am at an ok level, but nowhere near where I should be. I also recently joined a community choir which consists of about 50 30-80 year-olds. Everything is done in Japanese so I am always struggling to figure out what page we are on. Thank God for being an alto- I can usually just harmonize even if I don't know the words. I figure that is Japanese practice enough.
Whenever my husband gets free time, we usually drive to a big city to shop (he lived in Osaka for seven years so usually we head there) or go to the beach so he can surf and I can read. If we get enough time, we head out even further to Kyushu, Wakayama, Shikoku, or Tokyo. We speak in a crazy mixture of English/Japanese that only we usually understand due to a lack of grammar skills on both our parts, but it works. He is quiet and I am loud but when we are together our personalities swap and I am the quiet one and he is the loud one.
OK- that should about do it. If you have any more questions, ask away.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)