New Years Eve

After debating just how to see in the New Year, Carol, Dawn and I decided to go out on the town and then head up to the castle for the midnight countdown.

We went to an Indian restaurant for dinner, did New Year purikura, sang at karaoke and then went up to the castle. The last time I went to the castle for the countdown, everyone assembled in the park. Tonight there was no one in the park but there were groups of people assembled in and around the shrine.

Believing the celebrations had been moved this year, we wasted the last ten minutes of 2008 taking pictures and wondering when it would all start.

11:57……………11:58…………11:59………..

It seemed there would be no countdown this year and so when Carol’s phone clicked to midnight, we shouted “Happy New Year” and sang Auld Lang Syne. The Japanese people around us were obviously in a different time zone as they started to celebrate about a minute later.

It was all a bit of an anti-climax but we laughed it off and headed to the shrine to say our New Year prayers. It was getting pretty cold by now and I was thankful a few hundred people had gathered to get in line. It helped keep us warm but my feet and hands were already cold.

By 2am we had said our prayers, bought our trinkets and fortunes and wandered home in the cold. We had planned to wake up early and see the first sunrise of the year. When we get home, however, none of us could sleep because we were so cold. It took another hour and a long, hot shower before the shivers stopped.

When the alarm went off to wake us in time for the sunset, we were all too cold and sleepy and the weather was not inviting. I rolled over and went back to sleep!

Baby's First Bath

I remember how hard it was to get my budgie to take a bath so I was very surprised when Luna took one look at the one we bought her today, and jumped right in – so cute!

And as a treat after taking a long bath – she got to eat her favourite biscuit. I think I’m feeling very maternal towards baby Luna. Did I just call her baby Luna? Ha ha crazy!

A Busy Christmas Day

After looking forward to a nice relaxing Christmas day it actually turned out to be quite busy.

* For breakfast we had pancakes at Carol’s apartment and spoke to her family in Canada via webcam

* Then we drank Bucks Fizz and opened our presents in my apartment

* As Carol left to do another webcam, Dawn and I prepared lunch

* Dawn made mulled wine and I prepared the food

* We went to KFC to pick up the chicken for lunch (it has to be done when you live in Japan!)

* We had crackers with lunch, wore our hats, told jokes and ate and drank till we nearly burst

* Carol had a plane to catch after lunch so she left us and Dawn and I did a webcam with my family and then watched “I am Legend”

* After a quick nap we woke up at 5am to do webcam with Dawn’s family in Hawaii

Canada, UK and Hawaii in one day - so tired now…..time for a nice, long sleep!

Christmas Eve

If I hadn’t booked time off I would be working today and tomorrow as they don’t have time off for Christmas in Japan. However I don’t think I could ever bring myself to work on Christmas Day.

It felt just like Christmas Eve as lots of presents arrived. I had two boxes from home and dawn received a box from Hawaii which contained goodies for me too. I spent the evening wrapping presents and getting ready for tomorrow.

This is a little video I took as Carol, Dawn and I welcomed Christmas Day with a drink or two.
(Carol is so mean)

Christmas Decorations

Do you like my Christmas decorations? I suppose after listening to non-stop Christmas songs on Itunes while decorating, I couldn’t help but feel a little more Christmassy. I miss decorating the whole house at home though. I miss spending the whole of December making Christmas puddings and mince pies. I miss frantically driving around delivering last minute cards and presents. I’m glad I don’t have to worry about going anywhere this year though. I don’t think I could handle the chaos of Christmas travel and it will be nice to just relax, eat and sleep. Oh and clean up Luna’s poop!

Bah.....Humbug

Today was the last orphanage visit before Christmas and so we made snowflakes, played pass the parcel and gave each girl their Christmas presents before we left. They couldn’t wait to open them and even though the presents were simple things like sweets, socks and towels, the really liked them.

Even after doing Christmas lessons, writing cards, playing games and handing out presents, it still doesn’t feel like Christmas yet. Even though they have decorations around the city, I know they don’t celebrate Christmas and so it all feels a bit fake – like celebrating New Year in July or something. I hope the Christmas spirit kicks in soon….

Loony Luna

I will have a house visitor for the next few weeks. Carrie and David are heading back to the US for Christmas so I am going to look after Luna.

Yes it’s a boy bird but they gave it a girl’s name. I haven’t looked after a bird since my budgie, Joey, died. I had him for ten years but he hardly left his cage as my mum didn’t want him to fly around. Luna loves to be out of the cage and I’ve decided to just leave the cage door open until I put her in for the night.

She already loves to sit on my hand when I’m typing on the computer and lick her reflection on the microwave buttons. I think the next few weeks will be fun!

No Bloomin' Way

As part of my Christmas lessons I decided I wanted to show my students the Father Christmas movie I used to watch at home. I knew they wouldn’t be able to understand all of it but I thought they would enjoy it. I ordered a copy from Ebay but was disappointed to find that it was the American version and not the British one.

They completely ruined it! All of the humour and everything that makes the movie fun and special was gone. They took out anything to do with the word “bloomin” and any reference of drinking was also gone. It was completely boring and so I decided not to show it. Maybe I can get my hands on a British version for next year!

All Done!

Yay the test is done for another year. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be but I’m worried those words might come back and bite me. Either it didn’t seem as bad because I understood it or I just convinced myself it wasn’t that bad while not understanding a thing. Oh well I have to wait until the end of February to find out!

Testing Time

Tonight was my last Japanese class before the test. I was happy that my scores in the listening and vocabulary section had improved but the grammar section seems to be getting more difficult. I couldn’t help but feel dejected. It’s so strange though because I always get the most difficult questions right and get the simplest ones wrong!

ARGH – Japanese particles and grammar!

Sushi Surprise

Today Sara and Dai from Aberystwyth arrived in Kumamoto as part of their year round the world trip. It was crazy to see them after so long and ever weirder to hear Dai’s thick accent – it was such a reminder of Wales.

I had to go to work so they looked after themselves during the day and we went out at night. You might remember a few months ago I blogged about how my favourite sushi place had suddenly been knocked down. Tonight we went to see the new restaurant and we got a very pleasant surprise.
It had been totally revamped. Instead of writing your order on a piece of paper, every table had a touch-screen ordering system and the food was delivered to your table, not by a waiter, but by an automatic mini train that ran above the usual rotating belt.

Sara and Dai tried all kinds of weird and wonderful things (ones that I know better than to eat now) and I think they enjoyed it all. After dinner it was time to head home and talk about the good old days!

Thanksgiving

I still don’t understand exactly where this celebration came from but it has been a great part of my internationalization since moving to Japan.

We had such a great celebration last year so we decided to do it all over again. In the end 34 people decided they wanted in on the action too. After frantic email sending over the last two weeks, everyone knew what they were in charge of bringing (starter, main or dessert) and which apartment to take it to. We decided to have the starters in Carol’s, the main meal at Cherese’s and dessert at Kitty’s.

It was a little nerve-wracking as I ended up saying the blessing before we ate. Last year Minika did it and maybe because it was in her old apartment but I just felt like I wanted to say something. I find it funny that they let the British girl say grace for the American holiday but nobody seemed to mind.

This year I am thankful for my family and friends, my health and the fact that we all have a job given the way the economy is starting to go. I think everyone agreed with the last one and then the feast began!

Less than a month left.....

I’m at elementary school again for a few days and I today I had a new question. This almost never happens as the kids usually ask about the kind of food, colours and animals you like.

Today I was asked; “What dinosaur do you like?” I said the one with the long neck and drew it on the board as I obviously didn’t know the Japanese name.

The one good thing about elementary is that I usually finish about 3 hours earlier than I do at high school. As I was near Suizenji Park I decided to go and start my Christmas shopping.

It’s definitely harder keeping up with cards and presents when you have to allow for postage time. Oh well only 28 days left until Christmas Day! It’s all shopping and card writing from today!

Suprise!

This week my students have tests so I’m having a quiet week. Last week it was Hanakawa sensei’s birthday and her class wanted to give her a surprise celebration. Because I had the time I told them I would arrange it. I spent this morning decorating the international room and laying out a few snacks. The Chinese teacher, Taketomi sensei bought cakes and, after their last test of the day the students came up and waited.

She was in total shock. Apparently the girl who went to fetch her told her there was an emergency and she had to come quick. We ate the snacks, drank and even had time for a quick pass the parcel game! I think she enjoyed it.

What goes around.....

Japan is often known as a country which dislikes foreigners. It is true that compared to other developed countries there aren’t that many here, and, true it is very difficult to become a Japanese citizen. Luckily, apart from people who sometimes move if I sit next to them on the tram, I have had no real negative experiences.

Tonight Carol, dawn and I decided to head to Sligos in the nearby city of Uto. We had to catch the train but weren’t sure which one it was.

As a train pulled in to the station I asked a young Japanese man (in Japanese) if this was the train to Uto. He barely looked at me before saying he didn’t understand. I asked again and he told me plainly that he didn’t understand my Japanese. I’m not the best student but I know how to ask basic questions. I was polite, said thanks and walked away.

An older man who overheard kindly told me that this wasn’t the train and that I had to wait for the next one. That was kind of him so I smiled and said thank you. The three of us were just discussing what had happened when the older man came up to me again. He explained that the next train would be going in the opposite direction and so I actually had to catch the one after that, How sweet! He had gone to the trouble of making sure we knew exactly which train to catch.

As I sat on the train I wondered if the young man had simply not known and whether I was wrong to be initially angry at his response. These feelings were soon dashed as I saw him sitting on our train and twenty minutes later he got off at Uto. What an ass!

New Trailer!

The trailer for the new Harry Potter movie is out. I cannot contain my excitement but I am not happy with Warner Bros for making us wait until next summer to see it. Boo to big, greedy companies!

http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=CJ8dXUtxY4A

Family Reunion

I haven’t seen the Okada family for so long! I used to teach with Mr. Okada at Jyosei junior high school and I went his wife and three children when I visited their house a few times. Mr. Okada now works with Lauren and they were Kitty’s host family when she first arrived. Today the three of us paid them a visit to have a BBQ and catch up.

Kitty and the kids. Kaho (the youngest in the middle) can still eat like a horse and throw a temper tantrum like no other. Still, she is the cutest!

Class of '08

Congratulations Aska-chan!Tonight we went to dinner to celebrate Aska’s graduation from her high school in America. I don’t think I could get a diploma in my second language! I’m sure she will go on to bigger and better things – yay!

Keigo Kraziness!

Revising for JLPT is getting stressful. As I’m taking Level 3 this year I have to start learning keigo. This is basically polite Japanese. Just like English, the language you use depends on who you are talking to but, unlike English, the words are completely different!


To go: 行く (iku) (keigo) = いらっしゃる (irassharu)
To come: 来る kuru) (keigo) = おいでになる (oide ni naru)
To be: だ (da) / である (dearu) (keigo) = でいらっしゃる (deirassharu)
To eat: 食べる (taberu) (keigo) =召し上がる (meshiagaru)
To look: 見る (miru) (keigo) =ご覧になる (goran ni naru)
To know: 知る (shiru) (keigo) =ご存知である (gozonji dearu)
To say: 言う (iu) (keigo) = おっしゃる (ossharu)


Get it?? No, me neither! There isn’t even a pattern to follow!

One of the gang!

This afternoon the whole school went downtown to watch a play. It was, of course, in Japanese and I had absolutely no idea what was going on.

I know it was set in a tobacco shop and at one point a pregnant lady was smoking on stage! Anyway about half an hour in I fell asleep!

I was in the back with most of the teachers so the kids couldn’t see. I was horrified until I looked around and saw the other teachers were sleeping too. Now I feel like I really fit in!

Haiku Poems

My Year 12 students have been writing autumn haiku poems this week. Here are some of my favourites.

Carpets made of leaves
Nuts are relaxing there
Under the big tree

Empty bottle trees
The snow makes the town field white
Wind blows through my hands

Cold wintry wind
Cloud going to golden skies
Higher and higher

Autumn is over

Yearning for a kotatsu

Winter approaches

(A kotatsu is a table most Japanese people use during the cold months. It has a heater built underneath and then you put a big blanket over it. You can them sit under the table with the blanket and keep nice and warm!)

History in the making....

Some people live to see world wars, some watched man walk on the moon; I got to watch America elect its first African-American president. What a difference 40 years can make!
When Barack Obama was born, the thought of a black president would have been unbelievable; now it’s real!

I understand the American voting system but it is pretty ridiculous. When I looked at the electoral votes it seemed Obama won by a mile. He had 365 while McCain only had 173. However when you look at the actually number of people who voted for each candidate; it was a lot closer. America is too big for its own good :)

The election has caused a stir in Japan. The town of Obama has been holding election parties and teachers all over the country are teaching their children to say “Yes we can!”

Can he make a difference? It would take a lot to be worse than Bush! Good Luck Obama!

31-legged race?!?

I remember the 3-legged races at school. I was generally very scared to do them as I feared I would fall and hurt myself and I remember someone broke their arm the last time we had the race at school. Imagine my surprise then when I heard they had 31-legged races over here!

30 kids, 31 legs and they are good! It was terrifying watching the races because the kids were holding onto each other so if they fell (and some did), they would land on their faces! One team is chosen from each area and then in December there is an all-Japan final in Tokyo.

Here I am doing my best sports commentator impression, except I say “OH MY GOD” about twenty times.

And here's the result!

Halloween Party (3)

Tonight we had a joint Halloween party between my Japanese school and an English school in the city. When it comes to Halloween I’ve never been the most creative when it comes to putting a costume together. This year I decided I was going to make an effort!

A few months ago Lauren gave me a very cool Gryffindor jacket and, being the crazy fan that I am, I decided to dress up as Harry Potter! I had the jacket, glasses, face pen for the scar and even crazy star socks. All I needed was a black wig which turned out to be the most troublesome part. I couldn’t find a good one for less than 25 quid and I wasn’t going to pay that. I ended up paying a fiver for a bright blue wig, swapped my trousers for a skirt and hey presto.....

Harriet Potter! It was good enough to come second in the costume contest. (I lost out to a Japanese girl in a Cinderella costume – boo)

Halloween Party (2)

After the madness of last night it was time to do it all over again.

At lunchtime today I held a Halloween party at school. The 3 exchange students helped me decorate the room and get ready. (Thanks Wayne, Victoria and Julie)

Again we had a movie playing in the background while we all drank crazy punch, bobbed for apples and played the candy jar guess game. Last year about 20 kids came, this year around 60 squeezed into the room to see what we were all up to!

Halloween Party (1)

I did go to the hospital this morning. The Japanese health system is great but sometimes the machines look like they’re from the 60’s. Today was no different and they even used bent paper clips to show which was the left and right arm on the x-rays. Luckily there are no fractures, just bad bruising. I’m all strapped up and ready to go.

Tonight was the Halloween party at the orphanage. We only have 5 students so we invited the other children from the orphanage and we were happy that around 30 showed up. We all got there early to set up all the different activities we had planned.

We had a candy bag corner, fruit punch, grape bobbing, craft corner, pin the nose on the pumpkin, candy jar guessing game and a Halloween movie! Each time the kids completed an activity they had to shout “Trick-or-treat” to get candy. After about 45 minutes, everyone’s candy bags were full so we all sat down and watched the movie.
It felt so good doing something for all of them and at the end of the party they all wanted a little reminder of the night. They ran around pulling the smallest of decorations off the walls and asking if they could keep them. I guess we’d better strat planning the Christmas Party!

Obaachan Attack!

Hands down riding a bike is the most dangerous part about living in Japan. Today I was cycling down a small road just round the corner from my school when an old Japanese lady appeared out of nowhere. I didn’t even know what was happening until I was picking myself up off the floor. I went flying, scrapping my legs and hands, denting my basket and when I looked up, there was a grandma just stood there. She must’ve been made of stone! I did lots of bowing and apologizing and hobbled to school.

My elbow got worse as the day went on. I couldn’t bend it or lift my arm. I was a little worried as I fractured it a few years ago and the pain is just like it was then. Maybe it’s time for a trip to the hospital…..

English Rules!

(In my best grandma voice) I remember the good old days….. when I was at school and we were taught not to begin a sentence with the words and, but or because.

Due to the changes in our language this rule is being relaxed and is used in certain circumstances if it makes sense. However it’s very annoying when the students over here get away with doing it when their work makes no sense.

They don’t learn the difference between spoken English and written English. Even a lot of the teachers here don’t understand the rule or why so many ALT’s get mad over it.

I was on a one-woman mission to drill this into my students’ heads today. Not sure if they will remember it but I hope so!

Debate! Judge Rebecca Part 2

Some of the high schools in the city are SELHi schools; Super English Language High Schools. Their English programs are amazing and it shows in the ability and confidence of the students. Today I was asked to judge an English debate between some of these schools. They were debating whether the age of adulthood in Japan should be lowered to 18. An interesting topic as it affects them. We had a few knockout rounds before the big final and I was excited but nervous to be chosen as one of the three judges of the final.

I was blown away. It was an all Daiichi High School final and I swear they could beat me in a debate. Not only did they prepare their opening and closing statements all in English but they then had to think of questions and answers on the spot with the added pressure of time. It was a real boost to see just what they can achieve given support and time – well done everyone!

Judge Rebecca

My first two years in Japan were spent at junior high schools and October was one of the busiest times as everyone was busy practicing for the recitation contest. Basically two or three students from each year choose a chapter from their English book and have to recite it. I have spent many hours with many students perfecting pronunciation, intonation, rhythm and stress.

This year I was on the other side as I was asked to help judge the contest. It was hard work as we listened to about 70 teams recite their chosen chapters. It was clear that they’d all worked very hard and I wanted them all to get some recognition but unfortunately only the top seven teams were given awards.

As a bonus I also saw some old students and teachers from Sanwa, Jyosei and Tenmei – I still miss them!

Halloween Time Again!

As a break from all the exams they have to do I was allowed to do a fun Halloween class this week complete with candy for the winning teams. I had them do a true/false quiz, listen to Halloween songs and do Halloween puzzles.

I think they enjoyed the class but the best part was at the end as I handed out the candy to the winning team. The others were very jealous and so I “pretended” to find extra candy in my bag (put there on purpose) and then asked who wanted it. Obviously they all did and so the only way to resolve the issue was to throw it bouquet style and see who could catch it. That definitely got them jumping up and down.

Good or Bad?

The exchange rates are beginning to fall. Great for me – is it wrong of me to wish that they tumble and fall for about a year so I can send double the money home?!?

Good to be back!

I got to spend 3 days at elementary school this week.

It’s nice to be back with the little ones for a change!

Odd ramblings...

I’m a bag of germs today – cough, sniff, sneeze, sneeze, cough, sniff!

I need some of this!

Since moving to Japan I’ve definitely become more aware of world events. I keep an eye on news at home and also in America as whatever happens there seems to rule everything else. I have to say I’m getting a little nervous about the financial stuff they keep talking about. Time to keep your eyes on the pennies people!

Just Do It!

When I first moved to Japan I imagined all of my students would be motivated to learn English, their level would be high and we would talk about world politics and debate cultures and society. Unfortunately this wasn’t the case and even on a good day “How are you?” can be challenging for some of them.

However, since moving to high school you get the odd student who takes a chance and has the courage to come and talk. One of them is Yusaku; the student who went to America on an exchange program. Today we talked over the Japanese education system, the possibility of him moving to America to go to university and his future plans to become a politician and turn Japan on its head!

Fun times – I just hope he does it!

Happy Beer Day!

We had to go to the German bar in town and enjoy Oktoberfest!

The organiser of the evening was Jon - here he is enjoying his beer!

On the way home we also ran into a few drunk Japanese boys - one of whom was wearing this coat. We had to take a picture!

Rain & Pain

It has been raining solidly for two days!

I went to bodyjam and super-waist-shaper at the gym tonight!
Ouch!

Never too old to learn!

My year 11 students are making English brochures about different countries. As an example, I researched and made a brochure about Iceland. I choose it because it’s not a place they’ve probably ever thought about, which worked out well as I found lots of interesting stuff!

* Iceland is the 4th happiest country in the world.

* The famous foods of Iceland include boiled sheep heads and rotten shark. And yes I mean rotten as in left to rot for months before being eaten!

* Most people in Iceland believe in elves.

* They still keep to the ancient tradition of using patronyms rather than family names. Someone called Magnus Peturson is Magnus, son of Peter. If Magnus has a daughter, she might be called Margret Magnusdottir. Also women don’t change their names when they get married so, as often happens, a wife, husband, son and daughter of the same family can all have different surnames!

Cool stuff!

I <3 Hitsuyukan!

My students are so talented – I love the culture festival at school as each club (sport, music, culture) put on a show for the entire school. For anyone not in a club, they have the challenge of making food, snacks and drinks and selling them in the classrooms during the two hour lunch group. With a school as big as Hitsuyukan, and kids as talented as this lot, it’s no wonder the festival lasts two days!

http://public.fotki.com/supergenki/august-2008--aloha-/culture-festival/

New Gadgets!

I have toyed with the idea of buying a word tank for a few months so when an ALT decided to sell his fairly new one; I jumped at the chance. I have a feeling I will be spending a lot of time “playing” with it before I get the hang of it as all the instructions are in Japanese!



Still it looks pretty!

A Special Happy Birthday!

With Lots of Love xxx

Amakusa Roadtrip

What a fun day – I can’t believe I didn’t take my camera : (

Today we went kayaking with Carrie, David and their friend Shunsuke. It was the first time I had been since a year 7 school trip and so I wasn’t sure how well it would go. It turned out we would be sea kayaking in Amukusa and it was a great day.

David fell out of his canoe just after we’d set off but luckily he as the only one. I really enjoyed it and hope to go back as long as I don’t have to do any of the rolling overboard stuff. I can’t even jump in a pool without holding my nose.

After all that excitement we drove around Amakusa, finally settling for a curry lunch (best curry I have ever had) before heading to the beach for a swim and shell hunting. Carrie and I were having a secret competition for the best shells and I think I won!



Can’t wait to go again but winter is coming so we’ll have to wait for spring!

Warakimasen!

At last my students know how difficult it is to answer questions about your own language. For my 3-7 class today the students were given the task of teaching me Japanese in English. They were being marked on how well they made themselves understood and how well they could answer the questions I asked them.

Everyone could explain their given points easily enough but when I asked why things were said a certain way you saw the panic on their faces.

For example they taught me that in Japanese the verb to cook is ryouyi wo suru.
I asked how to say “I cooked curry” in Japanese.
My student answered “curry wo tsukurimashita” lit. “I made curry”
I asked her why they don’t say “curry wo ryouri wo surimashita”
The panic started!

They all agreed it was harder than they thought to explain their language but they had a lot of fun doing it!

Another Movie Review

It seems the last few weeks have been about catching up on recent movies. Tonight Dawn and I went out for dinner and then noticed that the cinema was showing special previews of Wanted. Needless to say we ended up watching it.

I know the movie is being criticized for glamorizing gun use and I would have to admit that the movie posters don’t do much to help their case. However the movie itself was entertaining (even if the train scene was unbelievable) and the final shoot out – very cool!

ARGH!!!!!

I am not having a good week. Sometimes people have no idea that the things they absent mindedly say can have a devastating effect on the people they say them too.

A Must See

The SATC movie is so good. When Aska asked me to go see it, I wasn’t expecting too much but I cried 3 times during the movie and the clothes are unreal. I loved the story and the ending was true to SATC style.

My favourite character in the movie was Charlotte “I curse the day you were born!” ha ha! Seriously if you’ve ever been in love, been hurt, or had a friend who’s been in love or been hurt, this film will bring back all those feelings.

Alternatively if you’re just in it to see the clothes – you will love the Vogue photo shoot scene.

Love it or Hate it?

Classes are going well this week. The chapter in the text book is about different food from around the world. As part of the “internationalization” aspect of my job, I decided to introduce the kids to Marmite! A few of the kids actually like it but most of them can’t believe we would eat something so horrible. I actually think a few of them, who didn’t listen and insisted on trying a large blob of it, will be scarred for life.

We have also been singing “My Heart Will Go On” as a warm up during classes and it is a lot more popular than I thought it would be. Everyone knows the song and most people enjoy trying to sing it. I even got a few boys to volunteer to be Jack and we had a Kate and Leo moment in front of the class as the song ended – a great laugh was had by all!

First Day Back

I’m not sure why they bother using the expression “summer holiday” in Japan.

After one day back at school, I quickly realized that the students and teachers haven’t really had a holiday at all. Most of them had to come to school everyday for classes and the only time they had off was a three-day break because of the Japanese festival of Obon.

Hopes of returning to refreshed and eager students were quashed as most of them were falling asleep in the opening ceremony – oh well!

One great piece of news from the summer is that my school’s Taiko Team (Japanese drumming) is officially the number one team in Japan. After winning the Kumamoto championships they went to Tokyo to compete during the summer and returned victorious. After practicing every day for 4 hours I know they deserve it!

Unfortunately all the other clips I have of them are too big to upload and I only have this one!

Year 4 - Bring It On!

I am officially ready for the new term at school. I bought a new mattress so I get a good nights sleep before work. I also bought a brand new red bike seeing as the brakes on the old one don’t work. I can’t wait to show it off!

As a treat before school Dawn and I went to the cinema tonight to watch The Dark Knight. I was sure that people were only talking up Heath ledger’s performance because of his untimely death. I am happy to admit I was wrong and he played such a dark, disturbing, evil Joker that it took me a long time to fall asleep. For those that haven’t seen it yet – go!

Welcome To Kumamoto

I can’t believe that this is my fourth BOE Welcome Party in Japan.

After our final meeting today, where we officially received our new contracts for the next year, everyone went home to get ready for the party.

As usual the official party was a huge success with food and drink readily available. The second party was at karaoke and even our bosses came to see what all the fuss was about. This is me and one of my supervisors - Hideo!

A great time was had by all and I have many drunken pictures to prove it (you know where to find them!)

Long Time No See!

Two high school friends are currently doing an amazing world tour. Luckily for me they had time to do a tour of Japan and find time to come to Kumamoto for a few days.

While I was saying bye to Micchan, Beth and Esther had a great day on Sakurajima and, seeing as tonight was their last night, I got a few people together for a farewell dinner. It was a great time to try Kumamoto specials such as raw horsemeat and lotus roots.

I hope they enjoyed their trip and I know they still have an amazing trip ahead of them. Have fun girls!

The Last Goodbye :(

I went down to Kagoshima today to say a final farewell to Micchan.
It was always going to be sad but we passed a good few hours talking about the last few weeks and what we had missed.

We had time for a ride on the ferris wheel, purikura, a good lunch and a tearful goodbye.

I can’t explain how said I am to have said goodbye to my best friend and possibly the closest thing to a sister I’ll ever know. It was sad to say goodbye and the rest of my time in Japan, whether short or long, won’t be the same.

But it’s not all bad – I still have to visit her in SF – that will be a good reunion!