Using Japanese?!

The past couple weeks in Kirishima 霧島 have been crazy awesome gong show of elementary fun!  That's right.  I've had nothing but elementary schools.  Japanese kids are some of the cutest I've ever seen.  I had plenty of practice using my Japanese at these schools because none of the teachers really knew any English.  I also got the hang of doing my self-introduction 自己紹介 (jikoushokai) half in English and half in Japanese.  I'm also playing futsol once a week in Kokubu, with almost all men, and now that my Japanese is getting better, and I'm starting to understand a lot more, I've been able to talk a bit with the guys.  I found out that all of the ones on my team that night were foresters, one lives in Kokubu, and I told them that I was an English teacher teaching at 18 schools in northern Kirishima, and that I lived in Makizono.

Now that I apparently am learning more Japanese, sometimes my instant reaction to a circumstance comes out in Japanese instead of English.  For example, a couple weeks ago, I was driving using my GPS and I ended up on some road I didn't know.  I blurted out 何だ！(nan da!) which means "What?!" in English.  Sometimes a small phrase such as "doko da" (where is this place <--rough translation) or Soo desu ka? ("Oh really?") will come out instead of its English equivalent.

So I can safely say that "I think I'm turning Japanese, I think I'm turning Japanese, I really think soooooo!"

Gifu, me loves you...

I spent the long weekend in Gifu and I have to say, just getting there was an adventurous task.  Earlier in the week, I booked my ticket, which took a few tries because I couldn't find the special confirmation number to pay for it at the コンビニ (convenience store).

After a freakishly busy week, and with a wallet full of cash, I was off to the airport on Friday to fly to Osaka.  I felt pretty technologically advanced because I could pull up the bar code for my boarding pass on my phone.  You scan the bar code and out pops your boarding pass like a receipt.  Next was a grueling flight.  At long last (which means one hour), the plane landed in Osaka.  Never before have I had to take a bus to an airport terminal.  It was quite something.  I then scuttled on over to get my train ticket, and proceeded to the platform for a ridiculous 2-hour train ride.  By the time I met up with my friend (who's from Victoria), it was about 11:30pm and I was dead tired.  However, I had to stay awake enough to communicate (or simply listen) to my talkative friend for the half an hour drive to her apartment.

We planned to go to Kyoto on Saturday, but I woke up late and we didn't get there till mid-afternoon, time enough to walk, see a temple, take the subway, and walk some more.  The temples and museums close at around 6pm, unfortunately, so we were left to walking, buying overpriced pizza, and visiting a craft store that sold various trinkets and other accessories.  My friend spent a long while admiring the expensive fans, while I browsed everything and then waited "patiently" for her to finish.  That was all we got to do in Kyoto, and we had an hour-long ordeal getting her car out of a closed parking lot back in Gifu.  Fun, fun.

Sunday was a temple-carrying festival, which mostly consisted of standing around, socializing, and drinking.  Despite how utterly pointless the festival seemed with all the standing around we did, it was a really good time.  About half the men there were drunk or close to being drunk by the end of it (our group leader was hammered half an hour into the two-hour festival).  I could tell this by how the shrines were carried in a zigzagged, wobbly fashion instead of a straight line.  The Japanese sure like their liquor.

Afterwards, we had an enkai (social party) with nomihodai (all you can drink) and appetizers.  It was a good opportunity for me to try using my (broken) Japanese.  Honestly, I enjoyed the festival much more than I enjoyed going to Kyoto.

The Boyfriend Question, Love Confessions, and Awkward Staring

I don't know how I'm gonna sum up three weeks in one update, but I'll give it a go.

These last three weeks have been eventful but not really.  Eventful because I've now been to all four of my main junior high schools and a kindergarten; not really because I've been teaching the same self-intro lesson  for every class.  I mentioned in my last update that Japanese students are very energetic.  Contrary to popular belief, Japan has its fair share of naughty, rowdy students that talk during class, sleep during class, and show a strong disinterest in learning certain subjects.  However, most of my students seem thrilled to have a foreigner in the classroom, and for mixed reasons.  The girls think I'm pretty, the boys find me beautiful, and this leads to some pretty interesting conversations (besides just favourite food and sports).

A common, and often personal question for foreigners, is "Do you have a boyfriend?"  Of course, I always answer, "No", and most students seem rather disappointed, like there's nothing more to talk about (which certainly makes me happy I'm single).  But one girl in particular had a rather hard time believing that I didn't have one.  She asked me twice in class, and even during lunch time, to which I replied with a definite "No".  Once she was convinced of this, she pointed to a boy that was sitting in our group and said, "He is a nice boy."  I simply replied with an, "oh, okay," and left it at that.

But wait, there's more.  One way to divert the boyfriend question if it makes you feel uncomfortable is to ask if the student has a boyfriend.  I wholly expected this one girl to feel embarrassed, but she enthusiastically stood up, ran over to the other side of the classroom, and pointed out a particular boy that she happened to be "dating".  This boy kept shaking his head and waving his hand for "No, no, no," but this one outgoing (and rather obnoxious) girl was persistent that she was indeed going out with this boy.  The next day, I had lunch with her best friend's class and this friend claimed she liked a tall boy in third year (about 10th grade in North America).  She, too, posed the boyfriend question.

So I've gotten a fair amount of boyfriend questions, but the fun doesn't stop there.  I mentioned before that many of the boys think I'm beautiful.  Most won't admit it, but there is the occasional loud-mouthed outgoing fellow in the classroom who feels a strong urge to voice his opinion.  Here's a couple of scenarios:

1. At Yokogawa - On my first day of teaching, one of the second graders (about grade 9), stood up and said, "Kellie-sensei, you are very pretty!"  Very flattering, but not for my JTE (Japanese Teacher of English, who conducts the majority of the English lessons).  She responded in Japanese with something along the lines of "Eeeeee?!  What about me?!"
2. At Mizobe - On my third day of classes, I took off my cowboy hat and one of the loud students in second grade said, "Cutie!!!"  He wanted to walk me back to the teacher's room, but my JTE wouldn't let him.
3. At Kirishima - Let's just say that I think the male students in second year were more interested in the fact that I was wearing a skirt than what I was talking about.  That was a pretty awkward class.
4. At Makizono - The love confession during lunch.  One of the boys in third year, who calls himself Mr. Crazy, asked if I liked him.  I replied with, "I like all of my students."  After a bit of chuckling and giggling from the entire class, he then said, "I love you."  The rest of the class who heard him, including me, laughed quite a bit at that statement, too.  Wittingly, I replied, "Thank you."  More laughing.  Mr. Crazy then asked me if I liked another boy who was sitting in a different group.  I replied again with, "I like all of my students."  I think he got the memo after that.

Okay, now that you've all had a good laugh, let's change gears a little.  And when I say a little, I mean a little.  As a foreigner, I obviously stand out.  This leads to almost everyone staring at me,doing double or even triple takes to make sure they did indeed see a foreigner in their midst.  Children and adults alike will stare at me as long as they have to to believe that I'm real.  Children and elderly people have no fear: they will continue to stare even when you look back at them.  For example, the first time I went to A-Z (a massive Walmart store), a kid no more than two years old was whining, sitting in a shopping cart (which, by the way, are small).  I walked passed him and he immediately stopped crying and stared at me.  I have to say, I felt quite exalted for shutting up someone's kid.  Other adults are a little more discreet.  Last weekend, Cory (the other Canadian ALT) and I took the train back from Kagoshima City to Kirishima.  On the train was a man in his twenty's and he constantly stared at me all the way back.  The only times he looked away was when I looked up at him, and he would quickly avert his gaze.  Cory joked that it's amazing he didn't burn a hole in my head with how intently he was staring.  Rather comical experience, but at the time, it was pretty awkward.

So there's my little update.  Hope you enjoyed the read because those were definitely some of the highlights of these past three weeks.  I may update later in the week again with news on Sport's Day and playing futsol with a bunch of men.  Stay tuned!

P.S. Sorry for the lack of photos, but there's a bit of a confidentiality thing with the schools and it wouldn't feel right putting them up on a public blog site.

Good Gosh Culture Shock! Garbage and Over-Packaging

Japan is all about efficiency right down to its garbage.  They sort and recycle everything!  So far, I have three bags: one for a vast assortment of plastic recycling, one for burnable garbage (whatever THAT means…), and one for non-burnable garbage (again, I really don’t know what constitutes as non-burnable).  On top of that, I have a box full of plastic bottles and a growing pile of cardboard.  And that pretty much sums up about half of the categories of separating garbage.

It doesn’t end at home, though.  At McDonald’s (yes, the worldwide food chain has actually made it around the world), there are different garbage cans and a place to dump the ice from your drink.  It may seem daunting to have to separate your trash at a fast food restaurant, but there are places, like the popular burger chain, Mos Burger, where you bring your tray to the employees and they deal with it for you.

Just about as ridiculous as the garbage system here is the immense use of plastic.  The Japanese are unknowingly, notorious for over-packaging.  When getting groceries, I not only have bags for my food, but bags within bags.  And those extra bags aren’t for the overpriced fruit!  A pack of four batteries looks pretty normal, but when you open it, there is another tight plastic wrapping around all of the batteries.  My fellow Canadian ALT bought a KitKat in which all of the chocolate sticks were individually wrapped.

In terms of longing for my home country, garbage and over-packaging are the two areas where I’m experiencing a rather comical side of negative culture shock.  I’m in euphoria for everything else, at least until I have to eat natto or fish heads for lunch.

Genki Kids!

Japanese kids are very genki (energetic)!  I met a lot of them when I went to my first school yesterday:  Yokogawa-chuo 横川中.  The opening ceremony was the strangest thing I’d ever witnessed.  I introduced myself first in Japanese.  After my initial Hajimemashite and a bow, the students were dead silent and bowed back.  I proceeded awkwardly with the rest of my self-intro.  Not a peep or facial expression from the students.  The rest of the ceremony was spent singing the Yokogawa song, giving a few speeches, and giving out awards.

Afterwards, I was technically supposed to go back to the Board of Education in Hayato, but my JTE (Japanese Teacher of English) asked if I would eat lunch with the students.  I agreed.

Students in elementary and junior high school eat lunch, which is provided from them, together and they all start at the same time with hands together in “prayer fashion” and a loud “Itadakimasu!”  Today’s lunch was a rice-soup-thing.  I really don’t know how else to describe it except for a massive bowl of rice and chicken soup.  We had various bowls: one big one of rice; another with soup broth, chicken and assorted veggies; and another with some shredded vegetable I had never seen before.  I watched the students as they put everything into the rice bowl and followed suite, and then…ate it with chopsticks?!  I have to tell you, I never thought it was possible to eat soupy rice with chopsticks, but somehow I managed to “ungracefully” shove it all into my mouth.  As if that wasn’t enough calories to fill me up, there was also a small carton of milk, a strong-tasting apple-flavoured Jello, and a small packet of cheese.  The packet of cheese looked like something you would see at a Chinese restaurant, like a soya sauce packet, but with cheese inside.

Overall, it was a fun experience and I look forward to more exciting lunches...as long as it’s not sashimi or some other raw creature.

Kind, Happy People

In Japan, it’s custom to give omiyage or gifts to the people taking care of you.  I gave my best gift to my supervisor.  One day, the two Brits and I got lost trying to get their apartments and our supervisor had to come rescue us even though he was insanely busy.  His assistant has also been helping us with getting us to our apartments, our cars, and bank accounts.  I also gave gifts to the Super Intendant (not sure how to spell it) and the Shacho, who’s like the guy in charge of our flour.

I must say, when you don’t know a language very well and you want to introduce yourself to people, it can be a bit nerve-wrecking.  Today was no different.  I went into town and bought little hand towels as omiyage for my various neighbors.  Because of my shyness, I only ended up going to one house.  Honestly, they were the cutest little elderly couple I’ve ever met.  Somehow, I manage to convey that I was Canadian and was here as an English teacher.  The lady there, in turn, couldn’t get over how cute I looked.  She was constantly saying, “Oh, you’re so cute and beautiful.  Oh, your eyes, oh your face,” that kinda thing.  It was quite entertaining, and she seemed like the sweetest lady ever.  She was even more excited when I offered the towel.  She and her husband gave me a couple of cucumbers in return and said that I could come over and visit if I wanted to.  Of course, I was very thankful, and after a lot of smiling, laughing, and excessive bowing, she led me back to the end of their driveway and said, “Be careful” as I left.  I’m really glad I met them first.  I didn’t get to meeting anyone else because I was a little overwhelmed and happily buzzing over the whole experience of having to use my broken Japanese as best I could.  That was probably the highlight of my week so far.

Driving and Not Crashing

I thought I would have a rough time with driving on the left side of the road, but I have to say, it’s not that bad.  The cars are very different here; they all look like boxes on wheels.  I have a white Honda in the shape of a cardboard box with a beak.  It’s really nice, but I must say, almost every car in Japan is gray or white, so I just so happened to temporarily lose my vehicle in a parking lot this morning.  The steering wheel is also on the other side of the car.  It’s like driving in a mirror.  The roads are very windy where I am and the speed limit is often no more than 50km/hr.  The slow speed works for me until I get to a straight stretch and feel compelled to go faster.  The roads are very narrow as well, especially more in the mountains where there’s only one lane and you wonder if you’re going to shmuck someone just around the corner.  Sharp corners have mirrors for seeing oncoming traffic so you don’t have to inch out and risk getting hit.  That’s one thing I wish Canada had.

Welcome to Makizono!

Unlike my fellow JETs in Kirishima, I must say I’m in the most beautiful location.  It’s a very scenic drive from Kokubu (which is the center of Kirishima) to Makizono (northern Kirishima).  The main road follows a narrow river valley for the most part and the buildings and shops through there are built right into the mountain side.  My apartment consists of two spacious rooms, a kitchen with no counter space, a toilet, a shower room, and a “laundry/sink/bathroom” room.  It’s much bigger than my fellow JETs’ in the city.  There is a bank, post office, and a small convenience store in my area, as well as elementary and junior high schools, at which I will be teaching.  I already have a new jogging route, but I have to go around 6pm because the weather is so hot here.

I guess my next topic should cover the weather.  It’s hot.  And not just your “oooo, nice weather, let’s get a tan” hot in Canada.  It’s 30 degrees and feels like 35 because of the humidity.  I really have to come to terms with my sweat here.  Today I went for a 10 min. walk and came back to my apartment drenched.  It’s a huge adjustment from Canada; even Vancouver seems dry compared to here.  It’s like a sauna outside every day.  Air Conditioning is my new best friend and I often rely on it, even in my car in the morning and evening.  It’ll be 28 degrees or so in the evening when it’s dark.  So who wants to come visit me first?  I have extra futons…

Week 1.5: The Blur

I honestly can’t fully remember what happened in my first week other than that we did stuff.  I would have written it down, but I was so exhausted after each day.  While the three other JETs in Kirishima were near the town center, I was a 35 min. drive out in Makizono, which complicated things as we didn’t get our cars right away and I was forced to stay at someone else’s apartment for five or so days.  We all got cell phones with Internet and bank accounts.  After the weekend, I finally got my car and was able to drive to my AWESOME apartment.  These past couple days, we have been driving around, finding our junior high schools.  I have four junior high schools and many elementary schools, for a total of 18 altogether.  It’s a lot, but I’m totally up for the challenge!  My predecessor left me a LOT of stuff to use including a bed, a printer, kitchen ware, books and activities, a little couch, and information about my area.  I’m really grateful she left me all that stuff.

Tokyo Orientation

Tokyo Orientation consisted of two days in a classy hotel in Shinjuku, Tokyo.  I met more people than I ever imagined I would meet, and there was so much going on that it was almost overwhelming.  I attended seminars covering topics such as life in Japan, culture shock, and team teaching in the classroom.  Some of those seminars were useful.  Others were not.  I think I heard the “Don’t do drugs; they’re illegal” bit at least ten times, while there were some interesting activities situated around giving directions (and I mean only giving directions.  You’d think they’d branch out and do another topic, but no).  I roomed with a fellow Christian girl named Sasha and we became good friends during those two days.  I also met other JETs going to Kirishima:  two Brits and a Canadian from Newfoundland.  We all clicked pretty well, so I think it’s going to be a good year.  After two days of continental breakfasts and lunches where the eggs tasted like they could’ve come from a can and undercooked bacon, and a heartfelt goodbye to my new friend who was going to a different prefecture, I was off to Kirishima with other Kagoshima JETs.

A Little Info On Kirishima

As the day of departure grows ever so near, I find that I'm losing sleep over my excitement and bewildered over where to start with my packing.  Last minute things are starting to pull together, such as my international driver's license and ordered yen.

It may be a bit before I get Internet there and/or figure out where the nearest Internet cafe is, so I thought I'd make another post with a bit of info on where I'm going.

Kirishima, in Kagoshima prefecture, is known for it's vast volcanic range and beautiful scenery.  I read somewhere that it's an amalgamation of about five cities that combined about five years ago.  The specific town I'm going to is called Makizono.  The population of Kirishima is about 120,000, but Makizono itself is only just over 9,000 or so.  Kirishima has a fascinating history as it is believed that the gods first came down to Mt. Takachiho, marking the beginning of the country of Japan.  Therefore, there are a lot of festivals surrounding this legend.

Japan - Red area is Kagoshima Prefecture

I've been keeping up everyday with the weather forecast in Kirishima.  It was 28 degrees Celsius and raining last week, but for a couple of days, the sun poked through and it's been about 31 degrees.  Add some insane humidity to that and you get what one Canadian thinks is a natural sauna.  It'll take a little getting used to.

I've taken a look at some of my predecessor's photos and it seems like the people there are at least a few inches shorter than me.

So there's a little bit about the area.  Kagoshima Prefecture apparently gets more rain than anywhere else in Japan.  Looks like I'll have to bring my umbrella and invest in some hard core gum boots.  I might even have to construct a little boat and a rain coat made out of garbage bags in case there are a few more typhoons than usual in the area.

All in all, looks like a great place to live and I'm looking forward to meeting all my students and coworkers.

Preparation

It's about two and a half weeks until I depart.  I have to say, it hasn't really hit me yet.  Sure, I haven't been sleeping properly and I think about Japan all the time, but the whole thing is still so unreal.  Living in Japan has been my dream since I was 13 and now that it's FINALLY coming to pass, it's hard to believe that it's really happening.  I've been working out a little to-do list to prepare for leaving.  Along with clothes, personal supplies, and money ordering, there are the bigger things such as paperwork, firing emails to and fro, and getting an International Driver's License.


Oh yeah!  Did I mention?  I'm going to be driving in Japan.  I'm sure there'll be tales of screaming ordeals, near-head-on almost-existent collisions and a fair bit of verbal road rage.


All in all, I'm mostly nervous about the weather and the food.  The weather because unlike the dry hot/cold seasonal weather we have in Canada, where I'm going, there'll be hot/cold-ish-sorta rain-ridden humid weather.  The food because I happen to be one of the pickiest adult eaters in the history of picky adult eaters.  No sashimi for me, thanks!  I'll stick to dead, cooked meat and a side of ramen.


Other than those two details, I'm excited about everything else.  I might just turn nocturnal by the time I arrive in Tokyo for orientation.