ALTer Ego

Hong Kong - Last Segment: Thursday, Friday, Saturday/Sunday

2010-06-17T19:14:00.000+09:00

Thursday

Woke up early to have a quick, on-the-run breakfast with Stan’s Aunt as she ushered us towards the stadium in Yuen Long. The heat was at its highest…. and I broke out in a sweat just walking to the stadium. We prayed for the rain to fall as we sat in the “VIP” section of the stands (with hundreds of other very important people…) just trying not to move or use any energy. Stan’s family had gotten tickets from the bank for this show and gave them to us, so we wanted to stick it out for as long as we could. There was a big festival all over China, and each area had its own parade and dragon show. It was very interesting watching all the massive dragons that the teams made. They each had their own team outfits and matching colours, and they danced around for the crowd (in the sweltering heat). We sat and cheered…. through 4 teams. Then we left. There were 38 teams in all!

We headed into Central for some Shanghai lunch, then caught the bus to Repulse Bay, which I had been mentioning as a destination since I first arrived. To my surprise, the whole area was actually a beach. Who knew? We were disappointed that we hadn’t brought our swimming gear. Our next destination was Stanley street. We just HAD to go to a place named after Stanley! LORD Stanley, even. We had fun with the street signs: Stanley Market, Stanley Promenade…. Blake Pier at Stanley. It was an interesting place to walk around, and I ended up FINALLY finding a pair of flats there. We concluded that Stanley Market definitely provides. We headed back into Central and TST to meet up with Stan’s friend Danny (another hot Cantonese guy playing for the wrong team). We had sushi dinner and sat around the pier watching the water and chatting. Later, Danny took us to his friend’s bar where we drank and played card games, listening to some chill music. The beer was good, but ended up being pretty damn expensive. We had to book it to TST station in time for the last train and had to RUN the last leg of the trip to make it on (sprained ankle and all!). Entering the station we only had two minutes to get to the platform. All I can say is thank god for the convenient Octopus card.

Friday

Because of our late night we had a very lazy day on Friday. Woke up late, went for lunch at Yoho, did some shopping… Overall, not a very productive day. At night we relaxed in the apartment drinking the yummy wine Stanley brought specially for me! Wild Vines, how I missed you :D When his cousins and Aunt returned, we had another competitive game of Hearts with Kenzo before bed.

Saturday/Sunday

My last real day in Hong Kong. I had a few things to buy for omiyage still, so Stan and I headed to a big mall in Mong Kok. We weren’t about to go there, but lucky we did, because I found exactly what I was looking for there. Stan and I even goofed around with another Purikura booth (though it was inferior to the one in Yuen Long!). After shopping, we met up with his cousins on the pier. While waiting for the light show to start, we relaxed with some drinks. The light show was pretty interesting to watch from across the water. The lights are choreographed to music, and the fog (pollution) in the sky gave the lights a smoky effect. We had a very late dinner at the famous Goose Restaurant in Central (my second time, and soooo delicious!) before heading into Lan Kwai Fong: party central. Stan’s cousin Kenzo treated us to a lot of drinks, and I officially spent ALL of my money. Every last HK dollar was gone. He spend even more money on drinks for himself and the bartender. In exchange Stan and I got the occasional free shot, including two shots of tequila from the bottle >_< Stan and I danced our butts off, and rocked the joint. We had to take a taxi all the way back to Yuen Long (very expensive), and didn’t get in till around 3. At this point I didn’t see a reason to sleep, since I would have to leave so early in the morning for my flight. So instead, Kenzo, Stan and I stayed up drinking water and playing Hearts. In the morning they escorted me to the airport, and saw me off.

Hong Kong was an awesome place to be. I think the biggest reason I had so much fun and enjoyed it so much was because of Stan. It was just so great to see him again. We fell into our groove as if we hadn’t spent the last 9 months apart. He knew what to eat, where to eat it, what to say. I followed along in his wake and it made my whole experience more enjoyable. I looooove the food of Hong Kong and am already willing to go back (and eat!).

(Blogger won't let me upload photos for some reason. When that changes, this post will get a more visual appeal)

Hong Kong - Segment 2: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday

2010-05-24T12:34:00.000+09:00

Sunday

Stan and I woke up early to make sure we were on time to meet Kait and her Aunt Cathy for "breakfast". In reality it was more like brunch, and Stan and I were surprisingly early... much earlier than them, and we proceeded to wait for about an hour, sitting in what we THOUGHT was the right restaurant, playing Tetris and not buying anything. I felt like one of the Filipino ladies that sit around outside on cardboard boxes on the weekend. When they arrived and we didn't see them, it dawned on us that maybe the fast-food looking shack we were waiting WASN'T the famous dim sum restaurant of Hong Kong. We promptly ran to meet them on the OTHER side of the government building we were in. We then had to wait to get a table (if Stan and I had only KNOWN we could have been waiting already), but it was definitely worth it. The restaurant was in a large, beautifully decorated hall the likes of which are used for grand weddings. It was a classic style dim sum restaurant, where waiters go by with carts of food and you pick and choose baskets of food you wish to sample. It was definitely the best dim sum I’ve ever had. All of the dishes we chose were delicious, and the desserts were the best part. Egg tarts, Chinese style donuts, mango puddings… all amazingly sweet and delicious. Of course, Cathy was sneaky again and while Kait, Stan and I were unaware she paid for the whole bill! This woman must be loaded.

After lunch we grabbed the Disney Resort train line heading to Ngong Pong 360 and the giant Buddha. We waved at the Disney Resort as we passed by it, no one really interested in getting off for a picture. The Ngong Pong area hosts a gigantic shopping area sitting at the base of a large lake, with the ocean on one side and rolling green mountains on the other side. To get up to the Giant Buddha statue and the Ngong Pong village you can either walk the long pathway through the mountains, or take a cable car up to the top. Naturally, we opted for the cable car, and even splurged a bit for the “Crystal cabin” which gave us a view of the lake and forest beneath our feet as we went up and up. Like any touristy area, Ngong Pong village was a collection of restaurants, photo opportunities, and cheaply made souvenirs. We walked it only briefly before heading towards the giant statue, sitting atop a tall flight of steps.

Cathy was an incredible wealth of information, and she also urged Stanley to explain to me some of the stories of Buddhism. It was all very interesting, and she was very enthusiastic about the whole experience. Before heading down to the bottom (we couldn’t miss the last cabin car down!) we walked along to the Heart Sutra podiums as well, where the verses of the Heart Sutra are written on wooden podiums and aligned into an infinity symbol. We barely made the last car, and we were late to our reservation at another fantastic restaurant. It was also Kait’s last night (since she was heading back to Canada earlier than expected, unfortunately), so for dessert we went to the Mandarin Oriental Hotel’s very classy café. We each chose a cake and devoured them so eagerly you’d think we hadn’t just eaten a huge, expensive meal. We said goodbye to Kait and wished her a safe trip home that night before heading back to Yuen Long. Stan and I continued to stay up and we talked well into the wee hours of the morning, sharing experiences, and dreams and countless stories.

Monday

Due to the nights storytelling, we slept in rather late. We met up with Stan’s uncle and aunt for lunch at the nearby vegetarian restaurant. His uncle then walked with us for a bit around Yuen Long, taking Stanley to the bank, taking us out for dessert and pointing out some good shops nearby. In light of the afternoon heat, we decided we’d “slutify” ourselves in tank tops and shorts, and head out to the Wetlands in the north-eastern part of the Yuen Long area. It took a lot of effort to get there, including a few light rail transfers. We finally made it though, and headed in to buy our tickets. The woman at the booth greets me and says they close at 5, so they don’t admit people after 4. I say that’s just fine, and try to hand her my money. She gives me a blank stare and repeats they don’t admit people after 4. Stan and I finally look at a clock and can’t believe it’s already 4:30 in the afternoon. Where the hell did the day go!? We missed the wetlands!? We were crushed… All we could do was take a picture outside the front gates. Who needs some crummy wetlands, anyways.

We held our heads high and marched out… both secretly hurting on the inside. We headed back to Yuen Long to de-slutify and grab some dinner. Our search for a place with free internet landed us in a very nice Japanese restaurant. Great food and free internet, we would definitely be back. We ended the night early though, preparing to be up at a decent time the next day for Ocean Park.

Tuesday

The weather was incredibly humid. Stan and I wore as little clothing as possible while still being socially acceptable. We went into central to grab the shuttle bus to the park. It was a bright, sunny day, and we alternated between air conditioning and humidity all day (probably the reason for our headaches at the end of the day).

First on our list of “rides” was the Ocean Express, underwater carrier. Well, we THOUGHT it was a ride. It was not. It was a shuttle from one side of the park to the other. With some fancy lights, and televisions on the ceiling. Stan and I were highly disappointed. Since we were prematurely on the other side of the park, we decided to check it out. I opted for “Raging River”, since it looked like the LEAST lame of the rides. It really was like an extremely lamer version of Wonderland’s White Water Canyon. It was also like an extremely cheaper version… and then lack of seatbelts or safety harnesses of any kind seemed to worry Stan. We made it out alive though, and only a little more wet for wear.

We made it in time for the Dolphin and Seal show, though we got lost quite a few times on the way there. The park and its corresponding map were very confusing. After the show we spent some time trying to find the Jelly fish exhibit, but stumbled into the aquarium instead. The tank was quite big, but after seeing the aquarium in Okinawa, this one was not very impressive. We ate lunch on the Terrace Café which offered a great view of the ocean and a cool, breezy break from the humidity. I had the burger there, which was easily the best burger I’ve had since coming to Japan (still not QUITE the same as home though!).

Leaving the terrace we stumbled upon the Jelly fish exhibit and rocked out in the technicolor rave rooms for a while. After the Jellyfish came the roller coaster. Yes, THE roller coaster, cause there’s only one. It was not worth the wait, and we kept expecting it to be good, only to be disappointed (Aaaaah?... awwww…. ) when there were no big drops. Having finished with that side of the park, we headed back down to the other side, via our own private cable car. To me this was one of the best things we did at the park. It offered an amazing view of the ocean, a cool breeze, and our privacy led to crazy antics and picture taking of course.

Checked out the bird show (since we happened to be right on time), where we spotted a lamer version of ourselves, and the similarities were eerie. We saved the Panda exhibits for last before heading back into Central after a long day. We treated ourselves to Milk Toast (om NOM NOM NOM) and milk tea, then headed back to Yuen Long to have dinner with Stan’s aunt and cousin at a nearby vegetarian restaurant. It became quite apparent that both Stan and I were significantly burnt from being out all day. We bought some preventative aloe vera, used our 20 minutes of daily McD’s wi-fi, showered and turned in.

Wednesday

We woke up early to have breakfast with another of Stan’s aunts (who speaks English the best of all of them apparently). We left them all to chat and headed out to Diamond Hill in Kowloon to visit the Chi Lin Nunnery and Nan Lian Garden. The area was very beautiful, and I especially like the architecture of the nunnery.

It didn’t take us long to walk the entire garden, though, so we headed back to the Hollywood Shopping Centre! They had a Uniqlo, (a popular store chain in Japan) where we spent most of our time. After we had enough of shopping we headed back to Yuen Long and were just in time to meet Stan’s other cousin (Gaboh’s brother) who had just arrived, Kenzo (hawwwwt ~). We went to the temple where Stan’s aunts and uncles were to hang out a bit before dinner. The tea they offered us was VERY expensive (at roughly $1,000 CAD it was definitely the most expensive tea I’ve ever had!), and I started to get full on pork jerky and cookies. We had dinner with (nearly) all of Stan’s mother’s family, and later went to Stan’s cousin’s apartment to meet his kids and wife. They were adorable, and I didn’t understand a word they said, but they were so full of energy. When we got back to the apartment in Yuen Long, I showed Kenzo and Stan how to play hearts, then whooped their asses before heading to bed.

Hong Kong - Segment 1: Wed, Thurs, Fri, Sat

2010-05-13T10:55:00.000+09:00

I'm going to record the adventure that was Hong Kong, but I'll be doing it in segments because there is so much to tell! This is segment 1: Wednesday to Saturday

Wednesday

Having finished my morning responsibilities, I snuck out from Tarukawa just after lunch (by snuck out, I mean I didn’t use a half day of nenkyuu…) and hurried home to put the final touches on my already over-packed luggage. Everything seemed in order, so I started the trek to the airport… in pouring rain. My umbrella didn’t last two minutes out in the wind, as it was almost immediately ripped from hands and destroyed. I think wind and rain (and the combination of both) if one of my biggest pet peeves, and it always put me in the foulest of moods. It continued to rain all the way to the airport, eventually turning into snow as an appropriate farewell from Hokkaido.

For the first time in a long time, I found myself once again surrounded by people whose language I couldn’t comprehend in the slightest. Listening to the sing-songy sharp dialect of Cantonese and Mandarin, it actually made me miss the Japanese I had become so accustomed to hearing. I actually had to SEARCH for a Japanese person to talk to, and ask for advice, a couple standing in line ahead of me. The same couple I chatted with inside the terminal, and who also sat in front of me on the plane. I must say, I was impressed with the service Cathay Pacific provided. This was my first time flying with them, but they were all very courteous, the food was decent, and the variety of entertainment they had available was great. Of course in my row, there was a Japanese man on my far right, and a Cantonese man to my immediate right, so it was interesting listening to the stewardess switch between all three languages while offering drinks.

The flight went by relatively quickly and before I knew it, I was running to give Stan a huge hug after arriving at Hong Kong airport. I was so happy to see him, and it was amazing how quickly we fell into our usual groove as though no time had passed between our last meeting. He got me set up with an Octopus Card (a card used for practically every form of transportation and even at some restaurants and convenience stores), which I would use countless times over the trip. We headed to Yuen Long where Stan’s apartment in, and the long bus ride gave us a chance to catch up on anything we’d missed in each other’s lives for the past 8 months (surprisingly little it seemed). After making a quick stop at the apartment to drop my gear, we went for a walk around Yuen Long, looking at all the night stalls peddling grilled meat, bubble teas, meat buns, and tofu pudding. We each grabbed a tofu pudding (one of many I would eat in Hong Kong) and sat in a nearby park enjoying the warmth of the night.

Thursday

The heat and humidity of Hong Kong was like a slap in the face after coming from the cool April weather of Hokkaido. It’s the kind of heat that makes you want to crawl into an air conditioned mall and do nothing but shop the day away. Ten minutes after stepping out the door, you want to turn back around and have another shower. We sucked it up though, and I actually relished in the heat, finally feeling warm again after 6 months of winter. After catching lunch at a Vegetarian dim sum restaurant, we headed into Tsim Sha Tsui (TST) to check out the Space Museum, walk along the Avenue of Stars (Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee!), check out the view of the bay, and leech free government internet.

While at the Museum we decided to check out the “Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure” playing in the Stanley Ho (ahaha…) IMAX theatre. Terrible acting aside, it was pretty interesting to see some of the prehistoric invertebrates I studied in school (like the giant shelled Ammonites). It’s hard to imagine the size of some of these animals, though they try and help you visualize… All I could think of was “Damn nature, you scary!”

Afterwards we met with Kait and her sister Steph (after wandering around TST and East TST for god knows how long) for Okonomiyaki dinner. Couldn’t believe my first dinner in Hong Kong was at a Japanese restaurant, but I love okonomiyaki, so I wasn’t about to complain. It ended up down-pouring on us as we walked around, desperately trying to find this place. Thankfully, Stan and I had bought umbrellas that morning (7-11, thank you very much). I carried that umbrella around in my bag the entire trip, and this was one of the only times I had to use it (thankfully). The rain died a little after dinner, so Stan, Kait and I walked along Granville and Nathan road, stopping here and there to do some shopping. To top off the night we went to a “healthy” Chinese dessert place, another frequent hang out for us.

Friday

The storm from Thursday night made for some awesome weather today. It was beautiful and sunny all day, with only a hint of the humidity from the days before. Stan and I stayed in the Yuen Long area until Stan’s cousin showed up from the airport and we could let her in. Thankfully she showed up earlier than expected, so we all had lunch together (same veggie restaurant!) before Stan and I headed into TST to catch the Star Ferry over to Hong Kong Island. We met up with Kait and her aunt who were wandering around in the very large IFC business and shopping centre. We found them shopping at the very lovely Lane Crawford, which I took credit for immediately. “Yup, my place right there. Discounts for everyone.”

We decided to head up to Victoria Peak to get the famous view of Hong Kong. Timing it just right, we were able to get both a day view, and a night view. Being one of the more famous places on Hong Kong Island, it was quite packed with tourists, but I think we got quite lucky with our timing and wait times. We were able to pass the time in lines by discussing the finer points of language, me explaining to Stan why I hate Japanese keigo (polite speech), while some Japanese tourists smiled politely nearby. Having had our fill of the view, we headed back down into Central, waiting to meet Kait’s aunt for dinner. Luckily we found an H and M store we all enjoyed passing the time in. So much so that we were a BIT late for dinner, at the very famous Yung Kee restaurant; THE restaurant to go to in Hong Kong. They’re known for their famous roasted goose dish. It was amaaaaazing. I love duck, but now I love goose even more. It gets so busy in this place that even at 9:30 it was still packed to the rim with people. We had to book our goose ahead of time, and boy was it worth it. The whole meal was lovely, and Kait’s aunt was kind enough to treat all of us (and boy this place was expensive >_<).

Since it was nearby, Kait’s aunt led us into the Lan Kwai Fong area after dinner. It is the party district of Hong Kong, a u-shaped street lined with nothing but bars and restaurants. That late on a Friday night of course the place was PACKED. People were spilled out of the bars and mingling in the streets, like one giant block party. There were just as many foreigners as locals (if not more), and it became hard to make our way through the thick crowd. Stan and I both agreed Lan Kwai Fong was the place to BE on a weekend, and we would definitely be back. We weren’t decked out in our party gear though, and so headed home for the night, not wanting to miss the last train to Yuen Long.

Saturday

A rather lazy day. Snoozed a little later and hung around Yuen Long for lunch. I wasn’t aware Yoshinoya (a cheap Japanese “fast food” restaurant) had made the jump to other parts of Asia, and we decided to check it out. Definitely not the same as in Japan, and it left me a little disappointed. Headed into central once again to meet Kait and her aunt for milk tea at another famous restaurant in HK. The milk tea was delicious, but what stole the show was the Milk Toast. It’s a toasted bun with condensed milk and butter drizzled over the top and it is one of the most delicious things on the planet. I am craving one right now. Second to the Milk toast was the French toast, an artery clogging block of pure heaven with a slab of butter right on top. My god…

We decided to walk off our snack (though no amount of walking will ever rid me of the calories, I’m sure) while doing some shopping (back to H and M) in and around the Central area. We also headed into Mong Kok, which is THE place to shop in Hong Kong. We walked at least three blocks dedicated solely to shoes (pun intented!). Of course, just like Japan, it was impossible to find anything in my size, and the search for a pair of flats continued the whole trip. Feeling we earned a little dessert, we headed back with Kaitlin to her area of Hong Kong, and ate again… like the fat pigs we are. It was a trek back for Stan and I to Yuen Long, but it was worth the company, and worth the dessert.

新学期: The New School Year

2010-04-09T10:08:00.000+09:00

Well, April in Japan means the official start of the new school year. Unlike Western society, which begins its school year in September after a long 2-month break, Japan begins it's school year in April after a short two week break. In most pleaces in Japan this coincides with the blooming of Sakura (Cherry blossom) trees, and it's a large part of the entrance ceremonies. Of course, here in Hokkaido it's still to fucking cold for any kind of blooming (getting better though), and the trees around here are still bare. There are still traces of snow on the ground (especially on the mountains), but warmer sunnier days are slowly working to change the terrain into something worthy of a coming Spring. Yesterday, first year students coming into the school were welcomed with a entrance ceremony, which resembled the graduation ceremony, but with far fewer tears and singing.

I was asked to go on stage with the rest of the first year teachers (and the support staff) to be introduced to the new first year students (and their parents). Thankfully this only required me bowing on cue, not performing a short speech like was initially suggested. Still didn't prevent me from being nervous... so many chances to fuck-up in front of the whole school.

April in Japan also brings a shift in the staff of any large company, school, government sections, what have you. Bringing in new people every year ensures a fresh flow of ideas. It was unfortunate that I lost a few of my favourite teachers (three of them from one school), and some BoE people as well. I'm sure in time I'll get to like these new teachers as well. I have a new English teacher to work with this year, as Mrs. Fukumoto retired. I also have TWO new supervisors to replace Takese-san who left the BoE to go... somewhere else O_o. Our BoE became quite a bit smaller actually, and the sections are completely shuffled around. My desk is now situated behind Tadashi, all the easier to bug him :D Also, there's a computer at my desk now! Internet access at the BoE, what I always craved. Apparently I share the computer with Ma-chan (one of my fav BoE people), but I'm only there one day out of the week in the afternoon anyways. New teachers also means Welcome parties! We already had a Kansougeikai (Welcome/Goodbye party) for the BoE, and this weekend there will be a welcome party with Taru-chuu (fav school).

This month I'm unusually strapped for cash as well. I'll be living a poor man's budget until pay day. Recent purchases include a ticket home ($1200), a new bed ($230), a ticket to Hong Kong ($680).... and various enkais and nights out. So I should really be eating nothing but my 80yen ($0.80) curry and rice. Luckily I'll get paid before I leave for Hong Kong and will have time to throw another couple of hundred home to cover the rest of the Toronto plane ticket price and an OSAP payment. Really there's nothing physically wrong with the bed I have now. It's a single bed, though and I miss my double. It was incredibly hard to find something as cheap as $200. Like... REALLY hard. I wish IKEA found it's way up to the north of Japan, as they have the perfect double bed (an almost exact replica of the one I have at home), for a very cheap price. In the end I had to settle for a floor bed (the frame sits elevated only a couple inches off the ground, because I was afraid to buy a pipe bed and be annoyed by the squeaky springs (like the bunk bed Heather and I had in Okinawa, my GAWD... if I BREATHED loudly the bed would squeak shrilly).

I also didn't like the thought of how many JETs have slept on this mattress.... With that metality as well, I'm doing a huge spring cleaning tonight when I get home. Tatami mats are coming up, and I'm vacuuming EVERYwhere... plus cleaning underneath the tub *shudder*.... Here's hoping I don't have to add vomit to my list of things I need to clean.

- Lindsay out

Spring Break

2010-03-26T09:56:00.000+09:00

Well, it's time for the bi-monthly update. This time of year finds me saying goodbye to the third year JHS students as they move onward and upwards (well, for most) to their first year of SHS. It gives me some serious satisfaction to get rid of a few of them, though to be honest, I never see the third years all that much. Coming in halfway through the year they always seemed to be bogged down in some sort of exam period, or testing... or swine flu. Anyways, the Japanese school year finished on March 24th, and will start up again on April 8th (I believe), which leaves a two-week Spring vacation. Of course, this is Japan, so even though the school is on break, it's all just a facade, and everyone still comes in to work and join school clubs.

Normally, I would be forced to spend my two weeks (since I didn't have the nekyuu for a vacation) at the BoE, rotting away at my desk for 8 hours. Instead, after some advice from Perry, I decided to ask if I could be placed in one of my schools for the duration of the break. ANY school (save for Minami-chuu) would have been better than the BoE. I really like the people at my BoE, and I have fun joking around with Aoyama there from time to time, but everyone there has work to do. The socializing is down to a minimum, and really with the language barrier it doesn't get much past small talk anyways. The biggest deal breaker for me, though, is the lack of internet. Hell, if I had the internet at the BoE, I could entertain myself for DAYS. So, I asked my supervisor to please find it in his heart to send me AWAY somewhere for the break. Honestly, what is the difference between me sitting at a desk in the BoE and me sitting at a desk in one of my schools. It's basically the same thing, save for building relationships with teachers I work with and possibly interacting with students from time to time. And yes, a lengthy time spent wondering the inter-webs.

Aside from the end of the school year, not much has happened in the last while. Still truckin' on. It hasn't been a very exciting ed-of-winter, namely because my ankle is still FUBAR'ed, and it has kept me from joining in on the snowboard getaway weekends. So, my time is spent more quietly, around Ishikari and the like. Hopefully this weekend, I'll get some of the excitement back as I and a few of the boys head into Susukino. Unfortunately, Nick is copping out due to financial issues. I can't blame him though, as I know that if I had just finished an epic long weekend in Niseko, my funds would be tight too. Hell, my funds are already tight after purchasing my ticket to China. I can't wait for Golden Week to swing around, so I can be reunited with friends! Stan and Kait will be spending a month in Hong Kong (hopefully part of that time will also be in Hokkaido), and I'm going to meet them there for a few weeks of fun. With that dent though, it left me living to the end of my paycheck this month so I could send another grand home. When it comes time for me to go home in the summer, it's going to be one costly trip. I wouldn't miss it for the world though :D

- Lindsay out

Lindsay Comes to Power, Furano, and the ending school year

2010-03-05T12:57:00.000+09:00

Well, it's been a while since I've written. Much has happened in that time, and I have arisen to POWER...... in the HAJET council :D The newest members of the council (including myself and a few of my friends) were officially put on the council during the Furano meeting a few weeks ago. I was elected Treasurer, which right off the bat had me working collecting money for the meeting/hotel/enkai fee on Saturday. Our hotel in Furano sat at the base of the gorgeous ski hill, and I was really looking forward to hitting the slopes again for my second time. Unfortunately, my Ugg boots had different plans for me, and I ended up spraining my ankle on the Friday night (I MAY have been drinking....). Saturday royally sucked, as everyone else went out to the hill, I sat in the room watching Olympic curling, eating some ice cream. Luckily I was looking forward to the enkai that night, so I just relaxed and took it easy. Over all it was still a fun weekend, even though I left early on Sunday (because really what else was there for me to do there if I wasn't snowboarding?). With the money I saved on the slopes I decided to buy myself a board! This will cut the costs of going to the hill roughly in half. Perry, Small and myself tried to go again last weekend, but there was a warm front that hit Hokkaido. It made for terrible conditions on the hills. Not to mention, we were all pretty tired from Saturday night, and not really in any condition to snowboard. This coming weekend, Heather, Nick, Mark, Small and I will try once again at Teine (near Ishikari). This week has brought a lot of fluffy new snow, so I'm hoping the ski will be in perfect condition!

Currently, I'm at my last JHS of the school year. There's only about two weeks left and then the kids are done for the year (resuming in mid April). The 3年生 become High school students, and we get a new wave of 1年生 students coming in. It's a time of the year where teachers are transferred to new schools, offices change employees, and I have nothing to do with my time. I have a very light schedule in the next few weeks, since most students are doing testing, and eagerly anticipating the break. I'm curious to see which teachers will be missing when I head to my next school. I silently hope for some transfers and pray that I don't lose some of the people I've come to like.

- Lindsay out

Mounting the Board

2010-02-17T14:48:00.001+09:00

So this past weekend I finally learned to do something I’ve wanted to try for a long time: snowboarding. When I was a kid I never learned how to ski or snowboard, so the experience was something completely new to me. I’m kind of glad I didn’t learn how to ski (something about Mallorie and my mom both hating it, didn’t motivate my dad to try with me)… it’s not really something that seemed overly interesting to me, but I didn’t even know what I was missing with snowboarding. I’m so thankful for the friends I’ve made here in Hokkaido, because they push me to get out and try things I wouldn’t do on my own. They’re a big support system for me here, and I can understand why people like my predecessor (a recluse and anti-socialite) find it hard to live here if you don’t have friends. If I didn’t have these great people setting little fires at my heels, I don’t know if I’d be having nearly as much fun.

Friday night I left from Ishikari to intercept with Heather and Rebecca, and we drove in to Niseko to meet the rest of the group: Nick, Perry and Rosalind. If I hadn’t had to pick them up, I could have made it to Niseko a couple of hours earlier, but it was nice to have company on the 2.5 hour drive instead. It was a tough drive, being tired from work and trying to navigate through a blizzard. We arrived alive though, and I was thankful to relax with a beer in the warm common room of the youth hostel. We were all united then, at this little tucked away hostel that Nick and Mark found on a previous weekend. We even had a new edition to the group, Andy, an Australian staying in Nick and Perry’s room. He is an experienced boarder (and instructor) and was willing to impart a few words of wisdom over the weekend.

We were up early Saturday morning, ready to head to the slopes. The hostel provided both breakfast and dinner (a steal at what we paid for two nights), and even shuttles you to and from the slopes. Upon arriving, we rented our gear, got suited up and headed outdoors. We were originally going to take the first lesson (the ladies and I), but found out it was full. Nick and Perry decided to take us out anyways for some learning the hard way. My biggest challenge right off the bat was getting up. I couldn’t do it. Just couldn’t get up from a sit down position. I’ll chalk it up to weight dynamics, and lack of muscle… Thankfully, Perry and Nick weren’t going to let that get in the way. They hauled me up in the practice area, showed me how to stand and strap in instead, gave me another way of getting up (from my stomach, and doing a push-up; much easier), and gave me lots of tips. When we finally got up to an actual slope, Nick stuck with me all the way down, hauling my sorry ass up every time I fell. I could get up from my stomach, but I didn’t yet know how to turn and keep going once I was up. I was really thankful for him making sure I finished the hill. We only had time to get down once, and then it was time for our lesson (it took us a realllly long time the first run).

The lessons only provide a Japanese speaking instructor (she had one or two words of English; I was kinda surprised considering we were in the Aussie capital of Hokkaido), but luckily Heather was there to translate anything important. A good snowboard instructor should be able to teach without words, I’m told. I informed her I wanted to work on getting up successfully. She said there were people who weren’t able to get up facing forward, and she helped me master getting up from my stomach. We had enough time to be shown the basics, and make it down the hill once. I was a little disappointed we didn’t learn about going toe side, because I know I’ll need a good grasp on that to be a better boarder. I still felt the lessons were worth the money; in any case, they helped to raise my confidence. I did fall quite a bit, mostly on my bum (though on my front a couple of times that really knocked the wind out of me). I was a hurting unit when we got back to the hostel, and was thankful for the onsen visit. Sitting in an onsen while the snow falls softly on your head… it’s absolute bliss. Winter onsen visits are a big part of my love for Hokkaido.

The next morning it was tough to get out of bed. I had been in a lot of pain after climbing Rishiri Mountain in September with the boys. My body had cried out in such protest, I didn’t think I’d ever walk normal again. That was the lower half of my body though, and this time it was almost the opposite, with my neck and shoulders aching… as well as my bum and knees, of course. It was hard to ignore Nick’s genki optimism though, and he had us all convinced that we had to go out to the hill again. I had my doubts about how my body would handle it, but I knew I didn’t want to miss out on a second day of snowboarding. Sunday brought with it a fresh layer of snow from the storm during the night. I had heard a lot about how snow in Hokkaido is the best for skiing and snowboarding. Powder snow this and Powder snow that… I didn’t really understand the hype, until I fell repeatedly into it. Powder snow is so light and fluffy, and forgiving. Falling on the second day wasn’t nearly as painful as Saturday… it was almost fun. When you go down you send a huge spray of snow up, and plunk down into the soft, fluffy white cushion. It snowed quite a bit on the Sunday, but after saying goodbye to the other girls, Nick, Perry and I rode the gondola up again several times. Nick and Perry both seemed impressed with my gusto for the gondola, especially being a noob. We had enough time after the hill to stop in for a second onsen visit (my body really needed it), and dinner at Café Kaku (our favourite Pizza restaurant in Kutchan); the perfect end to a great weekend. I’m excited to hit the slopes again this weekend in Furano, where the HAJET winter “meeting” is being held. It involves free hotel and travel costs, and hanging out with other JETs, with only about 60 minutes of actual work. This is also when I’ll find out if I’m to be sworn in as treasurer for the HAJET council. The decision won’t really phase me either way, but it will mean the difference between my involvement in HAJET events. Vote for me, I’ll keep your 円 safe, Hokkaido.

- Lindsay Out

P.S. The pics in this post are all stolen from Nick. I didn't turn my camera on even once

On Leaving Tarukawa

2010-02-12T17:23:00.000+09:00

Well, this week I’ve once again finished my time at Tarukawa. It’s easily my favourite school out of the five. The staff are all very friendly, and always willing to talk to me. The teachers I work with are great, they know how to use me in the classroom and I feel like we make a real team. The students (notably the 2nd years) are excited about speaking English and about talking to me. The whole school just has a very welcoming atmosphere, from the Principal all the way down to the ofice lady. It’s also the only Junior High school that I’ve been out with the teachers. Normally if there’s an enkai at other schools, I don’t hear about it, and I’ve never gotten an invite. The grade 8 teachers at Tarukawa (the ones I sit with all day), are all a bit younger and much more laid back. I was so happy to be invited to go out with them, not once, but twice. They are a fun bunch of people, let me tell ya.

If I could choose one school to be at, that would be it. Alas, that is not an option for me, as a one-shot ALT. it’s my duty to visit ALL the schools in Ishikari, no matter how brief, or how insignificant my time there. It’s easy to come back to a school like Tarukawa when you walk in, and they’re expecting you, even clearing off your desk BEFORE you come in. All of my other schools have stuff piled on my desk while I’m away, and that’s fine, but coming in on a Monday (or in this case Friday) morning, to see that they couldn’t clear your desk for you, like they weren’t prepared for you at all…. Bah.

Anyways, this is just Friday morning, tired, away from Tarukawa mumble. Tonight I’ll be heading to Niseko for a weekend of friends, onsens, snow… and snowboarding. I’ll have all the updates when I get back, assuming I still have function in all parts of my body (I expect to be sore, but let’s hope I don’t break anything)

Lindsay Out

Yuki Matsuri (Snow Festival)

2010-02-09T21:52:00.002+09:00

This past weekend was the biggest gathering of non-JET foreigners I'd seen since being here in Japan. Each year, the Sapporo Snow Festival brings in over 2 million people, so you gotta assume some of them are going to be non-Japanese... I guess :D I know a lot of JETs from other parts of Japan treked it up to our frozen ice-land of Hokkaido. The weather for the weekend showed them exactly what we live through up here.

Friday night, Nick and I headed to the Sapporo Beer Factory to have an enkai for charity. That's right, getting drunk for the children is only part of my humanity work here. Genghis Khan is one of my favourite "all you can eat" cuisines. Accompany that with a constant flow of Sapporo beer, and you have one hell of a meal. It's always great to see some familiar faces I haven't seen in a while, and to have the opportunity to meet NEW people. Being with a group of foreigners though, the second party saw us being whisked away to the ever popular Gaijin Bar: TK6. Nick and I both hold a special place in hell for TK6... yet we always seem to end up there, ushered in by other foreigners. I think my hatred stems from everyone else's adoration for the bar. I just don't GET it. It's a shitty little dive, that is always crowded and not big enough to contain the huge group we flock in. That being said, the staff speak English, and I don't actually know a better place to go, bar-wise; though I haven't really looked.

We turned in relatively early (for us anyways), as Nick was planning on being into Sapporo for 8am the next morning. I was too, until we got back and I fell into my comfy, comfy bed. That's alright, he's been through the ropes before and knows how to make it to Sapporo on his own from my apartment. I didn't even hear the front door close ~

Saturday, I ended up rolling into Sapporo around 1, after doing some shopping in Ishikari. The first thing I ran into on my way to Odori was some of my JHS students. It was a weird kind of moment. We all kind of stopped dead in the middle of the sidewalk and stared at each other for a couple of seconds... then they said "harro" and were off. I continued walking until I saw a big crowd out front the Clock Tower (a prety common thing), who seemed to be watching a group of people. Turns out that group was about 5 people, two of whom are the most famous comedians in Japan. I was able to snap a quick picture of Hama-chan (from Downtown), and it proved invaluable for impressing all the people at work with. It also gave me something to regale my students with on Monday morning.

It was interesting walking around Odori park, though it was very cold. Some of the sculptures were much bigger than I imagined. Every couple of chome (blocks), they had one massive sculpture. I was most impressed by the detail on the Moruyama Zoo sculpture, but most impressed by the size of the Chibi-Maruko sculpture. Eventually it got too cold to take anymore pictures. I ran into a few fellow JETs snacking on some of the international food on display, but I had seen the whole of Odori and intended to check out the Susukino sculptures. The weather turned pretty nasty, though, and I ended up walking the underground shops instead, looking for some boots that would fit my massive foreigner feet.

I killed the afternoon shopping and eating, waiting to meet with Nick, Tadashi, the Marks (two of them), Sonomi and Atsushi. Eventually we all came together in Susukino, having dinner and enjoying some good conversation. Dinner, drinking and karaoke (pretty much how all my nights out go). We managed to make it into Asabu on the last train, and even in time for the last bus to Ishikari (though we split a cab between four of us anyways). I housed Mark and Nick at my apartment, and we went into Sapporo again the next morning. I was able to find some boots in my size (huzzah!) at the snowboarding shop Nick dropped his board off at. I couldn't believe how expensive all the snowboarding gear is; I'll cherish my cheap, second hand stuff.

Next weekend, some other JETs and I will be trying our hands (or feet, rather) at snowboarding in Niseko (one of the biggest snow hills around this side of Hokkaido). I told myself this was one of the things I would try while I'm out here. You can't live in Hokkaido and not enjoy some sort of winter sport. Being a Canadian, my normal sport of choice would be hockey (to watch, anyways). I'm still able to skate here (not too far from my house, though it still kills me inside that Ishikari doesn't have its own rink; even the smallest towns in Canada have a skating rink). I hear how amazing the snow here is for snowboarding though, and I have no doubt that when I get the hang of it I'll thoroughly enjoy it. There's a ski hill fairly close to me, in Teine. You never know, I might be buying my own board, soon (heh... wish me luck I don't break the other wrist).

- Lindsay out

Hantoshi - Half a Year

2010-02-04T10:01:00.006+09:00

It’s really hard to believe 6 months has gone by already. 6 MONTHS; half a YEAR, and halfway through my contract. To be honest time here has really flown by. I don’t think the reality of the situation EVER really sunk in. I’m still in the sort of dreamy “Wow, I’m in Japan” phase that I was in when I stepped off the plane in Tokyo so many months ago. In a way, Japan is like any other place to live and work in. With the kind of routine you roll yourself into, daily life becomes as easy as if you were back in the West, not facing problems with communication, or isolation. I just find it easy to live out here. With support from new friends, and living in a decent-sized city, I’ve fallen into a definite comfort zone in Ishikari. It’s become a mini-Mississauga in my mind, sitting close to the mini-Toronto that is Sapporo. The decision to sign on for another year came fairly easily. I love and miss my family and friends back home. A LOT. Yet, even with that weighing heavy on my mind, this year just went by too fast not to sign on for a second. Fuelling my decision was all the friends I’ve made who are re-contracting, and all the locals who have expressed happiness in my decision. There are so many things on this side of the world I’ve yet to experience; still so much I want to learn, see and do.

This weekend coming up marks the biggest event in Hokkaido, the Yuki Matsuri (Snow Festival). JETs from all over Hokkaido (and Japan!) will be coming into my neck of the woods, Sapporo, to see the amazing ice sculptures put on display in Susukino and Odori Park. I’m hoping to see a few familiar Toronto JET faces over the weekend; maybe even get a little mini-reunion in the works. I will have pictures and an update after the weekend, I’m sure. The lovely people at Tarukawa JHS have fitted me with an internet connection at my desk now. I will have much more time for internet browsing…. And I’m sure my studying will suffer greatly >_<
Lindsay Out

沖縄

2010-01-14T18:01:00.012+09:00

Back from my trip to Okinawa, I can now say I’ve been to the absolute north and the absolute south of Japan. There’s something comforting in that; almost like I really am making use of my time here, and I have more of an adventurous spirit than I thought.

Day 1:
I left my house on a cold, snowy Tuesday morning. I thought I was leaving myself enough time to make it to the airport. With domestic flights in Japan check-in is 30 minutes prior, and boarding is only 10 minutes prior. I figured leaving at 9 would give me plenty of time for my 11:30 flight. Well hell it’s a good thing I left when I did; any later and I would surely have missed my flight. I had to run the last leg of the airport to the boarding gate and made it with 2 minutes to spare. Thank goodness for the helpful young JAL attendant who led me in front of so many people waiting in line. Luckily I made it on time and was on my way to the sunny south.
Japanese people always amaze me in their ability to sleep everywhere, no matter how short the trip or how uncomfortable the position. I believe by the time we achieved total lift-off nearly every single person on the plane was asleep. I looked around the cabin at a sea of bobbing heads, catching as much sleep as possible before landing in 福岡 (Fukuoka). It’s the same on the trains, or even in the teacher’s room. I’ve seen a woman sleep sitting upright in her chair.
Instead of sleeping, I turned my eyes to the window. I booked a window seat for all my flights, and was thankful for it. I love gazing out of the window throughout the whole flying experience. Flying above the clouds, they look like a huge bowl of fluffy white mashed potatoes. I just want to spread a little butter here and there and dig in. The landing itself is a wondrous experience, looking out onto a new land for the first time with a birds-eye view; my first look at Shikoku and of Fukuoka. I had a short transfer here and met Heather here, already partway through her own big trip, to join me in Okinawa. As we left Fukuoka airport, I noticed a crow on the side of the runway, furiously bobbing his body up and down, up and down. He seemed to be bowing to us as we left in such typical Japanese fashion “ありがとうございます” (Thanks for coming!).
After arriving in 那覇 (Naha), in the heart of Okinawa, we checked into our hotel and went out to explore 国際通り (Kokusai-dori), Naha’s main street, stretching for roughly two kilometres through downtown Naha. It’s lined with restaurants, souvenir shops, department stores, bars, hotels… you name it!

There are even a few covered side streets that branch off and offer more of everything already seen on Kokusai-dori. What seemed to stand out a lot in Okinawa is the number of シーサー (Shisa; lion dogs) statues in front of every building and on top of every household. I had seen these statues around Hokkaido, here and there, usually in front of shrines or temples. I wasn’t aware that the statues came from Okinawan mythology, so it makes sense that they are much more prominent down there. The Shisa are a traditional Ryukyuan (old kingdom of Okinawa) decoration, almost always found in pairs, which resemble a cross between a lion and a dog. They’re used as wards, believed to protect from various evils. When found in pairs, the Shisa on the left traditionally has a closed mouth (to keep in good spirits), and the one on the right an open mouth (to ward off evil spirits).

These weren’t the only statues lining Kokusai-dori though. It seemed like every single shop along Kokusai had its own collection of random, western statues; a Buzz Lightyear here, a Ronald McDonald there. It left me wondering where in the hell they got so many of these character statues? One store literally had an entire second floor dedicated to the storage of these statues. Were they for sale? Where do you even buy something like that to make such a collection? We spent nearly every evening walking Kokusai-dori, and still found something new every time.
Day 2:
huge cave. It’s filled with stalagmite and stalactites, and overall was pretty interesting to look at. It’s amazing how these things form naturally.

After the cave is a grove-like area with flowers and fruits from Okinawa. Try the mango-vanilla swirl ice cream, it’s delicious! The best part of the whole park is the Eisa performance. The dancers were so energetic and you could tell they just loved what they were doing. The men dance with and beat on large Taiko drums while the girls beat smaller drums or play the clicky-clacky things (can’t remember what they’re called). At one point in the performance one of the dancers goes on a Taiko-drum solo, beating on the massive Taiko drum they had. They also showcase a large Shisa puppet (manned by two dancers), which is really fun to watch. Lastly, we went to the Habu museum; named so after the extremely venomous Habu snake which lives in Okinawa. The museum was interesting, and the snake show was entertaining. It would help if I could understand more Japanese, but Heather was quietly whispering some of the funnier points into my ear. It was a good opportunity to see some deadly snakes, get our picture taken with a big snake, and cozy up to a smaller snake. I was inspecting a giant crab thingy in its case when one of the snake handlers thought it would be fun to drape a snake over my neck. At first I assumed it was Heather laying one of the toy snakes on me, until it started moving. I dunno what kind of reaction he was expecting though, cause I love snakes :D

Upon getting back into Naha, we decided to check out “Yogurt Land”, a giant frozen yogurt place we passed the night before. To me, this is a really ingenious franchise. It’s a self-serve frozen yogurt bar. You choose your cup size (big or enormous), and take your pick of the 13 or 14 flavours from dispensers along the wall (some will also give you a mix of two flavours). Lastly, you top it off with every piece of candy or fruit imaginable. The price of your dessert is dependent on the weight of your cup. I managed to rack up 750円 worth of dessert, and Heather was about the same.

Day 3:

Very windy. I wasn’t dressed in winter clothing (like most people in Okinawa, even though it’s stayed in the 15-20° range), and the people on the bus were extremely impressed (and baffled) by my “strength against the cold”. The cape provided a beautiful view of the ocean and surrounding cliffs. Lunch was nearby, and the view from our window seats overlooked the beach, with the cliffs in the distance.

The biggest part of the tour was the Churaumi Aquarium, the world’s second largest aquarium. The place is absolutely massive, and the aquarium is only a small fraction of the whole Ocean Expo Park. The aquarium is made up of four floors, which hold attractions of deep sea creatures, sharks, corals, tropical fish, etc. The first area holds the “touch tank” with various shallow sea creatures (starfish, sea cucumbers). It was actually a lot of animals I had seen before, in my invertebrate Zoology labs and classes. I kept exclaiming to Heather “I know what he looks like on the inside”, probably to the point where she started to ignore me. From there on you pass numerous tanks each displaying unique types of fishes, or sea-creatures. It was actually really interesting to pass so many of the invertebrates I’d dissected. School can be useful! The main tank called “Kuroshio Sea” holds 1,981,290 gallons of water, and features the world’s second largest acrylic glass panel (8.2 m by 22.5 m), with a thickness of 60 cm. They had a chunk of this glass on display to show you how thick it was; it was as thick as my whole body! Inside the tank are whale sharks (absolutely enormous), manta ray (the eagle manta rays are the biggest and they are massive), many other fish species (tuna, etc.), and 80 species of coral. It was a sight to see, let me tell ya. We stuck around for the shark feeding, as well.

These sharks just open their mouths and inhale anything within a couple feet of them, like a big vacuum. We had just enough time left to check out the turtle and manatee tanks nearby, before heading back to the bus and onto….

Pineapple Park; it’s a giant park, dedicated to showcasing the miracle that is pineapple birth. I was so excited as we drove in and I saw the pineapple cars lined up for people to tour the park in, only to be let down when I realized we wouldn’t have time to drive them. Instead we got the ADD version of the tour, done in speedy Japanese (Heather whispering facts every so often), ending with pineapple wine tasting (so delicious, how did I ever drink anything else), and a romp through the very long pineapple omiyage shop. They offer all-you-can-eat pineapple near the end, but at this time of year they’re a little bitter. The shop offered every pineapple concoction you could imagine, cookies, cakes, pies, booze… I had to buy some wine to take back, for, uh… souvenirs. I had a hard time letting go of the fact that I didn’t get to drive a pineapple car.

Day 4:
Today was a very sombre day in the trip; quite depressing, but eye opening. We headed south to the Peace Memorial, dedicated to the honour of soldiers and civilians who lost their lives in the Battle of Okinawa. I think I’ll do a separate blog about the battle and Japan’s role in WWII, because I found it all very interesting. Okinawa was the largest land invasion of the Pacific campaign and the last major campaign of the Pacific War. More ships were used, more troops put ashore, more supplies transported, more bombs dropped, more naval guns fired against shore targets than any other operation in the Pacific. More people lost their lives during the Battle of Okinawa than all those killed during the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The death toll was devastating, compounded by the fact that nearly half the Japanese casualties were Okinawan civilians. The assault was known as the testu no bo – the “storm of steel” – as naval ships rained bullets onto the island constantly; firing 3800 tons of shells in the first 24 hours. Following the horrid story, we walked through the peace memorial museum, learning gruesome detail after detail. I found the first-hand accounts to be extremely moving; the fear and the sadness in the writings really touched me. As if this wasn’t enough, Heather and I moved onto the Himeyuri Monument next. This monument was dedicated to the young girls commissioned as nurses during the war. It follows the activities and fates of a group of female high school students formed into a nursing unit for the Japanese army. During the nearly three month long battle, the Himeyuri students were on the front lines performing surgery and other gruesome, back-breaking duties. Before the end of the battle, at least 80% of the 222 students and 18 teachers had been killed. There are still some survivors alive today, and they tell their story at the monument and other places.

It was all truly terrible and saddening. We left the south with a heavy heart, haunted by the stories of terrible battles that went on before our time. It makes me so thankful to live in the time that I do, free of war and the horrible things that come with it.

Day 5:
A complete turnaround from the day before, Saturday blessed us with amazing weather, and we basked in the warmth of the Okinawa sun. We were off in the early morning to se Shuri-jo (a large castle that has been restored after being almost completely destroyed during WWII). It was a beautifully constructed castle from the Ryūkyū Kingdom, so there is a lot of Chinese influence in the design and architecture. Not far from there we also walked around Shikina-en (royal gardens and villas where the royals relaxed and the host site for royals coming in from China). The garden itself resembles Japanese stylings, but the building and bridges are uniquely Ryūkyūan.

So that we could savour the weather we were expected to have the next day, I suggested we push our visit to Nakagusuku (Naka castle) into Saturday afternoon. It was a lot more difficult to get to than we imagined, but it turned out to be worth it. The castle itself is a ruin, now, and to me resembled a lot of the castles I had seen in Ireland, so many years ago. It has no classical components of most Japanese castles I’ve seen; it’s made completely of stone rather than wood.

It was an interesting side trip and the view from atop the stone wall was absolutely amazing. From here we also stumbled upon several abandoned houses in a deep wooded area. We half expected to be encounter by a large Totoro (I was more expecting a Habu snake…), on our quest to find the large odd building in the distance. We gave up, however when the trail turned really muddy. Instead we headed back to Futenma; a 3km hike. The weather was great all day, but we did enough walking that day to take a toll on my feet. We treated ourselves with yakiniku buffet. We had to have already worked off the calories we assured ourselves.

Day 6:
Fully expecting nothing but sun today, we headed into Chatan and straight to Sunset Beach. Te clouds were too heavy today though and it wasn’t nearly as warm as Saturday. Determined, I brought my swimsuit with me anyways (I knew there was a big onsen-pool if I really felt the urge to swim). The beach was fairly deserted; Okinawans find it way too cold for anything whenever the temperature dips below 25° it seems. All the women in my BoE told me I wouldn’t be able to swim in the sea in January. I was set against proving them wrong. I put on half of my swim suit and got in for some picture taking. If there hadn’t been a sign nearby that said “No swimming”, then I would have jumped right in, much to the surprise of the Okinawans sitting on the sidelines in their winter jackets. The day wasn’t made for swimming though, so Heather and I turned instead to explore “American Village”.

American Village is a large area of stores and restaurants that cater to the high number of Americans living in Okinawa on the bases. It was all very strange. Walking around this area I felt as if I suddenly walked into a large bubble that took me out of Japan and into some weird hybrid mix between Japan and America. There were almost as many foreigners as there were Japanese. A lot of the clothing shops boasted all-American products and clothes, and all the restaurants boasted all-American food. It was an interesting place to walk around for an afternoon; I especially enjoyed the huge vintage clothing shops. Of course I had to grab an A&W burger meal while I was there. It was definitely the closest thing to back home that I’ve tasted since I’ve been in Japan. We took a ride on the giant Ferris Wheel as well, and took in the size of the surrounding area.

Day 7:
Heather caught an early flight out in the morning, so I was left to my own devices for two days. I had tripled checked the weather, and it was supposed to only rain in the afternoon. I thought I’d take my chances and try a beach out on one of the small islands of Okinawa. Tokashiki was the closest one (1 hour by ferry, ½ hour by marine liner), so I hopped on the ferry and headed out. Even before we left I was approached by a young man with great English. I think it’s something about lone foreign travellers that Japanese people find so interesting and unthreatening. He was on his way to Tokashiki to visit the clinic there, and talk about getting a job there when he was finished medical school. The prefecture paid for his schooling (as a scholarship), so it was his duty to give back (apparently that involved living on a small, scarcely populated island for an undetermined number of years). We small talked for a while, before I was also approached by Tomiyama, a ship engineer living away from home on the island while he worked there. He knew a few English sentences, and told me how great he though Canada was. I beamed with pride :D

While standing by the rail and looking out into the ocean, the mean on the same level as me all suddenly rushed over to my side, peering at something I couldn’t see. “They all say Go-ji-ra” Tomiyama said. I look to the distance and see a whale surfacing and diving, blowing up the water around him. I couldn’t help but laugh to myself… “oh, a whale” I said. Tomiyama whispered to me so the other men couldn’t hear: “It’s not really Gojira”.

Tomiyama bids me farewell and “Kiotsukete” (take care, be careful) as we step onto the island. Not sure what exactly I should do with myself, I head to the information office first. It’s filled with a few helpful maps, and the woman there tells me Aharen beach is an hour walk from here; 4.8 km of walking. The weather was unbelievably sunny and bright. I thought the walk couldn’t be so bad. About halfway there you run into another beach, Tokashiku Beach. I was torn about which beach was better. In the end I figured the map made Aharen beach look so much better… but couldn’t really say why. I decided to keep on trucking. I think that no matter which beach I chose I would have been pleasantly surprised.

Aharen was completely deserted except for me and the occasional photographer that came along. A whole stretch of beach all to myself, and it was absolutely gorgeous. Clear blue water sitting atop a cream coloured beach. Of course, as soon as I arrived, the clouds came in and covered the sun. I cursed my luck, but waited it out for a little while and the sun came back in all its brilliance. I swam in the sea and lay on the beach for what seemed like days, but unfortunately was only a short while. The walk back would be long, and I had to be back in time for the ferry.

I gathered my things and headed back up the road the way I came. With my luck the woman who had passed me in her van (as a lot of cars did…) on my walk over slowed down and offered me a ride back to the port. She chatted happily about the weather, the crows and the JET who lived on the island. I had no one idea any one was living out here, but it seemed like an awesome place to live (although I don’t know if I’d like to live there in the summer…). I had enough time now to grab some late lunch at the local restaurant and enjoy my last bit of time on the island.
As I walked back to the hostel I noticed I was getting a few more looks than usual. As a foreigner in Japan you usually get a few looks, but this was more than that. I caught glimpses in the windows I walked past to see why people were so curious today. I thought my face looked quite red, and figured I looked a bit burned. It wasn’t until I got into the hostel and checked into my room that I really noticed how red my face was. Really red. Incredibly red. It looked like I was dying from oxygen deprivation. My face had never been this red before. I tried to hide myself in the dark of the night, but I still nearly died from embarrassment just walking about. I got into the nearest pharmacy to load up on aloe vera and other such cures before spending the rest of the night hiding in my room. My face felt like it was on fire.

Day 8:
My last full day in Okinawa. My face looked a little better, but was still quite red. I decided I couldn’t spend the whole day in the room, so I headed out to see Fukushū en (Fukushu Gardens) in the heart of Naha. The garden was originally constructed to celebrate the sister city relationship between Naha and Fuzhou in China. It contains many of the elements essential to the design of a traditional Chinese garden.

It is walled, divided into sections, features much asymmetry, and water in the form of a single pond which extends into most sections of the garden. Oh yeah, and it’s absolutely stunning. The people of Naha are so lucky to have a place of such tranquil relaxation. There are two areas in the park where a staircase made of rocks leads to a large, flat rock overlooking the entire park; a perfect spot for meditation and reflection. It was one of my favourite spots of all the places we visited.

I decided to spend the afternoon walking around American Village again. It was very windy and quite cool though, so I ended up sitting in a Starbucks for 3 hours, sipping on a Vanilla Frappucino and reading the last of “Out of Africa” which Eriko-sensei urged me to read. It was a real chore to read it though, as I didn’t find it all that interesting. I managed to finish it though, and afterwards stopped into the theatre to see “Michael Jackson’s: This Is It”. Movie theatre atmosphere is one of those things I miss, and since movie theatres in Japan are so expensive I very rarely get the chance to be part of an audience again. The price was very decent here though (pretty much the same as in Canada), and the concession stands are way cheaper in Japan. I guess that’s why the movie ticket price is so high. In the end, I think you end up spending the same amount of money on a theatre outing. I got back into Naha late and packed my things to head home the next morning. I was sad to say goodbye to Okinawa (though I wish the weather had been just a bit nicer), with its sun, beaches and unique culture. Back to the snowy north, back home.

明けまして　おめでとう !

2010-01-04T19:03:00.006+09:00

And a Happy New Year’s to all those in Canada. We’re into a brand new year here, welcome to 2010. New Year’s is a very big time of the year for Japanese people; lots of visits with relatives, and of course lots of drinking. Me and my fellow JETs weren’t about to be outdone on New Year’s Eve, and we headed into Susukino (the main area for nightlife in Sapporo). I had a hotel right in the heart of Susukino, single room for the night being cheaper than a taxi ride home to Ishikari. Hotel room fees are one of the things I love about Japan. I paid 3500円 for my single room (upgraded to a double bed, since they had extras) for one night. It’s just dirt cheap. The way it SHOULD be. It makes staying in Susukino after a night of partying much more affordable than it ever was to stay in Toronto after such a night. Especially when getting your own room. The reason for this is because the subway lines and busses only run till about midnight. The business man caught in the city can afford to stay for the night, instead of paying lots of money for a taxi ride. I had yet to stay in the business-man aimed capsule hotels (where you are paying for a cube to sleep I in basically, that comes with a panel TV and restroom facilities in the building), but some day I will. They’re more aimed towards men though (hence, business men), and can sometimes be more expensive if you’re a woman. The second cheapest type of accommodation would be a Love Hotel, and seedy areas are teeming with them. Again, I have yet to experience one, but maybe one of these days Nick and I will pose as a desperate couple and stay in one. Apparently most of the rooms are themed. Ferguson had a very interesting section on Love Hotels in his book (Hitching Rides), and most of them involve no actual face-to-face interaction with a worker of any kind, but instead are automated to keep anonymity.

So I met with Johnny W. (a JET who lives north of me in Nayaro), and his brother Rob who flew in from Canada THAT day. Poor guy was so tired. We went out for dinner and all you can drink to prepare ourselves for the rest of the evening. We split up for a while and got ready in our respective hotels. We met up around 10:30 to walk the block to Club Booty. This is my second time to the club, since I had been once before with Nick (joined later by Emily and Johnny). The second floor is a lounge area and bar, full of coaches and comfy chairs and two bars. The first floor is a small dance floo, DJ booth and another bar. We paid 3000 円 for 飲み放題 (all you can drink) for the entire night. The飲み放題in Japan still boggles my mind. It’s such a cheap option for people like me who always end up spending so much money on alcohol at an overpriced club or restaurant. I stayed at the club for at least 6 hours, so my money was WELL spent. It was a fun night. There were a lot of other foreigners in the club, and the DJ (also the proprietor; a Frenchman) did the big countdown. I danced my butt off and had a fantastic time. I don’t think I’ve ever had so many offers to dance in one night. I turned ‘em all down though. I think near the end of the night the men were getting kind of desperate... ‘cause that’s when they all started pouncing! I went back to the hotel at 5-ish, and crashed for only a few hours before I had to check out of the hotel.

New Year’s day was spent resting and watching a bunch of movies. I had to get myself into the right condition for the next night. Tadashi and I were going to meet up downtown to join his friends for a drink. I had already met his friend 富樫 (Togashi) a few times, and for the first time I met 篤志 (Atsushi). All three of them were in University together. Luckily, Atsushi’s father is an English teacher, so his English was actually pretty good! He tried really hard for my sake, too :D We grabbed a bite to eat, and then sad goodbye to Togashi early (he was driving that night, so couldn’t stick around to go drinking). We started out at an 居酒屋 (Izakaya) and had some good conversations. Atsushi is also an elementary school teacher, working in Sapporo (like Togashi). The three of us went onto do Karaoke at the ツリーラカラオケ (Thriller Karaoke), a large, horror themed Karaoke place I had spotted earlier in the evening.

We sung and talked the night away. Atsushi had to get up for snowboarding very early the next day, so we left him off the hook as Tadashi and I went to crash Togashi’s place. He was still up, and had been drinking in his apartment, so he was in good form when we stumbled in! We sat around drinking and talking some more, before it was decided that we would sleep over at Togashi’s. It’s definitely been a while since I had to crash at a friend’s place, and it was a lot of fun. Not so much fun when I had to wake up after 4 hours sleep to make it home in time to talk with my grandparents, but… the night itself was a lot of fun. I always loved sleepovers! Togashi was such a gentleman, making up a futon for me with sheets and a big comfy blanket and pillow; giving me the whole living room to myself. Tadashi was given a sheet and a pillow… and the space on the floor next to Togashi’s bed.The next morning, he was even kind enough to drive us back into Ishikari!
Today I’m at work, for a day of relaxation I guess… and tomorrow I leave for Okinawa! Time just flew past, I tell ya. When I come back it’ll be back to school and back to work, but this week will be a blast :D In less than a day I’ll be on the sunny shores of Naha, soaking up the last bit of warmth and sunshine that still exist in Japan in January. So long snow, hello tan!
Lindsay out.

Christmas with the Jonezes

2009-12-28T22:03:00.002+09:00

This year was the first Christmas spent away from home. To be honest, it didn’t really feel like Christmas day at all when it came. I think what really makes Christmas for me is the anticipation of all the fattening Christmas dinners, and enjoying the company of family. There was no major shopping done before Christmas, no 8 am Christmas morning stocking opening, no yummy dip to put on my bagel… The day was just lacking in too many things to really be what I consider Christmas. It was really just like any other day, but with some bonus presents on the side. That being said, I’m glad I didn’t have to spend it like any other day, and was invited to Christmas dinner and festivities in 古平 with Nick and his family. Nick’s brother and father flew in on the 24^th, just in time to spend Christmas all together. It was great to meet Craig and Jim after hearing so much about them from Nick. Of course they’re equally as laid back, and there was a good vibe in the group. Sonomi came up from Aomori as well, and it was great to see her again. She’ll be spending most of the break in Sapporo with her father (who flew in from Canada) and her Grandmother (who lives in Sapporo).

After some Christmas greetings with the family in the morning, I dropped by the 教育委員会 (BoE) to drop off the handmade Christmas cards I laboured over for so many days at work. Then it was off to 古平, a two hour drive away. It was an interesting ride along the North-West coast line. The roads weren’t too bad, and the route offered a beautiful view of the ocean nearly the entire way. I arrived just in time to head back out again to an 温泉 (onsen) in Shakotan. It was the first time for Jim and Craig in Japan, so their first time in an onsen as well. Craig took to it just as easily as his brother; no doubt Nick would live in an onsen if he had his way. It was the middle of a workday in Japan still, so we had practically the whole place to ourselves… just the way I like it :D Afterwards we came back to the Jones mansion for a heated game of Katan. I had never played this game before, since Nick always forgets to bring it with him when he and Mark come to Sapporo, but it was a pretty interesting and fun game. It reminded me a bit of Risk, in the strategy and negotiating involved, but it really is a completely different concept; worth checking out.

We were invited to dinner at あさの先生’s house (a JTE of Nick’s). The food she had made was both amazing in quantity and flavour. We were so full by the end you had to roll us out the door. You can never avoid the Christmas fattening :D It was the most untraditional Christmas dinner I’ve ever had, but Sushi and Okonomiyaki are traditional dishes in Japan, and I have to remember where I am sometimes. After the dinner, I made it back in time to skype with my mom and Mallorie (and Bailey!) on their Christmas morning. I also brought my gifts with me, so we could open stuff together. Thanks again for the gifts!

Saturday morning we headed into Sapporo so the travelers could check out the city. We didn’t end up getting in till around 1 o’clock though, after dropping Sonomi at her Grandmother’s. We had only a little time to walk around the 駅 (station), where we ran into Kevin Bailey (came down from Wakkanai to catch his train to Tokyo!), head down to すすきの (Susukino), grab some dinner at our favourite spot (The Taj Mahal) and head back to the theatre in the 駅 to see Avatar 3D. The price of movie tickets in Japan is outrageous, honestly. We each paid 2100¥ (roughly $22 CAD) to see the movie with the 3D option. I’ll say, the movie was really awesome and I really enjoyed it, but holy hell… it better be worth it for 2100 ¥. The movie was brilliant though; beautiful to look at and the story wasn’t half bad in my opinion.

Sunday I headed back down to the N-W coast; a bit further this time, all the way down to 倶知安 (Kutchan), where there is a rather popular pizza place run by a Caucasian monk from Philadelphia. The pizza they make there is awesome, and I especially like their dessert the “Matcha Parfait”. Soooo good! The food and the company were worth the 2 hour drive. On the way home, I took a new mystery route because I didn’t feel like driving through Yoichi and Otaru again, stopping at all the lights. It turned out to be a very interesting choice. While the other route takes me along the ocean and through the port towns, this route took me straight through the mountains. The roads were pretty clear for the first two-thirds of the trip, and I was practically the only person on this highway. The best part about it (besides the gorgeous scenery) was that the markers along the road identified it as the メプル (maple) highway, and each sign had a maple leaf on it.

I was following the Canadian highway in my opinion ~ Near the end it got a bit slicker, crowded, and very bendy! I think both routes take the same amount of time in the winter, but the Canadian highway would probably be faster in the summer. It was just a spectacular drive, quiet and beautifully white. Driving on the road felt like driving on some small piece of Canada in the heart of Hokkaido.

- Lindsay Out

Christmas Time Update

2009-12-21T15:46:00.003+09:00

Sooo… it’s been a while since my last update, I know. To be honest, I don’t consider my life to be that exciting, and I’m not an elegant enough writer to turn my daily events into something worth reading (like Nick’s blog…. the dude makes trash sorting interesting). However, it has been brought to my attention that there are some people out there interested in the mundane. As such, I have an update for you. I won’t start with promises of full-on updates starting now, ‘cause we all know that isn’t gonna happen.

Anywhooo, quite a bit has happened in the last few months, I guess. Since October I’ve gotten myself a car; the Daihatsu Terios (テリオス) which I love. It cost me a paycheck, but it’s an invaluable asset. For the sheer convenience of getting to school, or having the freedom to go where I want, when I want, it was worth every penny. Of course, having a car adds quite a few extra expenses into my life (gas, maintenance, insurance, what have you), and I noticed more this month how fast 26万 can go by. I need to remember the enormous OSAP debt waiting for me at home to keep me from making any frivolous purchases…. and I have made a few. Especially since now we’re in the winter (read: freezing) season here in Hokkaido, my heating bills run me another 2万 a month. It doesn’t matter how much or how little heat I use though, so I will always use as much as I need to be totally warm in my apartment.

Within the past two months I finished up the rotation of all my Junior high school, and went back to the very first of them, 花川南中学校. I’d say it’s definitely the least favourite of my schools… something about the atmosphere of the staff room just isn’t as friendly as the other schools. The students are generally okay, with only a few buggers in each grade. Currently I’m back at 石狩中学校 until Thursday this week, then I’ll be on holidays until the New Year (and by holidays I mean I go to work at the BoE instead of a JHS). This school gives me a lot of downtime, and the use of a laptop on my desk, so I had a lot of time to make cards for friends, family, and the people in my BoE. I spent a lot of time on those suckers, but it felt good to do something with holiday spirit, and it will feel good to share a bit of Christmas with the people in my office. Christmas is only 4 days away at this point, but it’s not the same as being at home. Christmas isn’t a national holiday in Japan. I have the day booked off though using some ねんきゅう (paid leave), otherwise I’d have to work. I’ll be skypeing with my Dad, Trish, and that side of the family on Christmas Eve (my Christmas morning), then with my Mom and Sis Christmas morning (my Christmas night). They sent me a box full of wrapped presents, so I’d have something to open on Christmas :D d’awww. The Japanese tradition around Christmas doesn’t involve much gift giving (a small percentage of the people do; most amp up festivities on New Year’s instead), but they do like cake. You can buy クリスマス　ケーキ (Christmas Cake) virtually anywhere, and it’s damn delicious. I’ve been listening to Christmas carols at work to help me get in the spirit, but as the song goes: ‘’They’re singing Deck the Halls, but it’s not like Christmas at all’’. I’m surprised I’m not sick of the carols yet, but I guess it’s because I didn’t start hearing them in November like back home, and they don’t play them everywhere here. It will be hard being away from my family and friends for the holiday, especially since it’s such a big family time of the year for us, but… I know we’ll all be thinking about each other. <3

This past weekend, was a fun one. Seems like every other weekend here is a party weekend. I absolutely love the people of my BoE and am always happy to go out drinking with them. They try really hard to make me feel included, and having Tadashi to interpret when needed is a nice bonus. I feel like I’m understanding a lot more though, and I’m able to communicate on my own without Tadashi’s interpreter skills sometimes. I had an hour and a half long conversation on Sunday with the librarian (after reading books to children) who speaks no English, and it was a lot of fun. It’s partly due to everyone’s willingness to communicate with me, and an equal effort trying to understand me. Quite a few times the people in the office have professed a desire to talk with me, and they’re glad I study Japanese and try so hard. One of my main motivations for studying Japanese is to understand conversations that happen around me, and one day I know I’ll get there. I do feel like my Japanese has increased a lot since I’ve been here. Unfortunately I don’t think a lot of that is due to the CLAIR Japanese textbooks I signed up for in the beginning, so I will be ditching them and going back to my trusty Japanese for Busy People, coupled with みんなの日本語 (Japanese for Everyone) that my two Japanese teachers seem to like to use. I did a big review session these past few days trying to understand concepts that were whipped by in the CLAIR books, and I found a few helpful online guides. I’ll have plenty of time next week to study while I spend a week at the BoE before I leave for Okinawa on the 5^th (can’t wait!).

I’ll end this earlier than planned, but I want everyone from home to know I’ll be thinking of them on Christmas Day (well, I think of them a lot more than just that :P), and the whole holiday season. I miss you all very much

- Lindsay out

On Work and Influenza

2009-10-19T08:16:00.002+09:00

Well, it seems as though Japan is no exception to the worldwide outbreak of swine flu. I’ll be happy when the government health officials start releasing the vaccine, so Japanese people (and the world alike) can go back to being efficient working machines like always. As it is right now, many of the teachers and students walk around with doctors’ masks on, in an effort to stop spreading the flu to others, or from catching it themselves. I refuse to wear one of these masks… I can’t imagine how ridiculous I’d look and I think my immune system is strong enough to withstand being within 10 feet of everyday people. As a backlash of the outbreak, many of the schools in Japan will send whole grades of students home under quarantine, or close the school completely. Last week I started at a new school (Hanakawachuu; school #4 if we’re keeping count) and was there for barely three hours before the school shut down. Too many of the students were out sick to continue with lessons normally. The JHS I was at before that (Hanakawakitachuu) had no second graders for the last week I was there.

As you can imagine, this cuts my workload down quite a bit. If there are no students, there’s no one for me to teach, and therefore NOTHING for me to do. After being sent away from HanakawaJHS, I spent my day (and the rest of the week) at the Board of Education. Don’t get me wrong, I really like the people there, but there is absolutely nothing of value for me to do there. There’s no internet connection, no work to be done. I sit at my desk and I’m advised to study Japanese, read a book… anything to keep me busy. I was even told to use my iPhone for entertainment. It just seems like a real waste of time and government money. I’m not complaining about the fact that I get paid to sit and do nothing. Honestly, this is one of the easiest jobs I’ve ever had. I feel like a lazy Western slob though. I would much prefer to have some soul crushingly, stressful WORK to do and have my day fly by (well… I say that now… and it’s the boredom talking). I don’t know how Japanese people can manage to look so busy while sitting at their desk with nothing to do. When Tadashi tells me it was a “slow day at the office”, I find it hard to believe him, since people always seem to be doing SOMEthing.

I have yet to master the art of “busyness”. Give me some more time here though, and I’m sure I could look busy even with my eyes closed.

- Lindsay out.

Hokkaido Roadtrippin'

2009-10-01T18:08:00.012+09:00

So Silver Week has come and gone, and I’m happy to say I did something memorable with my 9 days of vacation (two of which I spent Nenkyuu on). For those who don’t know, Silver Week is a week in Japan where there are a bundle of holidays all in one week. In this case, the Mon, Tues and Wed were recognized holidays in Japan. Add in two days of paid leave on the Thurs/Fri and you’re looking at a sweet nine days of vacation. There’s a similar week in the spring known as Golden Week, which has one extra holiday thrown in there. Naturally both these weeks are very busy times, as most people take the opportunity to travel. We ALTs being intrepid adventurers were no exception.

Now, initially we had a very epic and complicated jam-packed week planned, courtesy of Nick. The initial plan was to see all four points of Hokkaido. We would meet Sonomi, coming up from Aomori on the main island, in Hakodate. From there we would travel along the western coast up to and past Sapporo on our way to Wakkanai. After hitting the northern most point on the main island (Cape Soya), we would head east to Shiretoko and possibly hit Lake Toya on our way back to the west coast. There were, however, a few flaws in the plan. Someone forgot to point out to Nick beforehand that the speed limit in Japan is rarely ever over 50km/hr unless one is travelling on a toll highway (which can get very expensive), so 9 days is cutting it pretty tight. Secondly, the whole plan had been resting very heavily on Nick’s car-to-be... which never came to be. Unfortunately, his car was だめだめ which translates roughly to “rusted out piece of crap”. This was a big hiccup in the plan. Though we decided to rent a car, trying to find an available rental car during Silver Week in Hokkaido is damn near impossible. So the plan was almost scrapped, but with some convincing we turned it into the Three Points Hokkaido Tour.

Saturday I weighed myself down with all my luggage for the first 4 days of the trip (tent, sleeping bag, clothes…) and caught the bus to Teine Station. From there I hopped on the train to Otaru, transferred there to Yoichi, met up with Nick and headed to Kazowa. Here we met up with Mark, and David (a 2^nd year ALT) who graciously offered to drive us down to Lake Onuma. The first trek of our trip included crashing the Southeast welcome party (even though none of us live in the southeast…). I was happy we got to go to at least one HAJET welcome party (makes me feel like I got my $50 membership’s worth), and this was the last one. The ride went down went surprisingly fast. We loaded up on food (burgers at a joint run by a Canadian girl and her Japanese husband) and liquor in Kutchan before heading dow to the campsite at Lake Onuma. We only got slightly lost and eventually we were among the foreign bubble once again. Lake Onuma is a gorgeous location for camping. Camping in Japan is different though. Instead of having your own private site, it’s just one big free for all. You set up a tent on the stretch of land wherever you can find the room. Of course lakefront property is always in high demand. We drank, sat around the fire, socialized, got silly, ate delicious burgers, auctioned for baked goods, and crashed in my tent.

The next morning we were up bright and early. The sun here broils you until you just HAVE to get up. It rises at like 4:30, so it’s always crazy hot by 7:30. Terrible. We packed up our gear and the tent (well, more like I packed up the tent while Nick staved off his hangover by napping on the grass -_-), and hopped back in David’s car to mooch another ride, this time into Hakodate. We bid goodbye to David after dropping our gear off at the train station, wandering the morning market, and grabbing a bite to eat at a local ラーメン (Ramen) restaurant. We were basically killing time until Sonomi’s train came in from Aomori. Once we gained the fourth member of our team, we threw ourselves at the mercy of Wesley (one of the ALTs in Hakodate) for a place to sleep that night. Luckily he was willing to comply and even came around with us to show us some areas of Hakodate, including the very famous view of the skyline. It was a little chilly at the top of the mountain, and we were feeling an onsen visit by the end. We managed to get the tram to the onsen district, and followed two Japanese women around for like 30 minutes trying to find an onsen open that late. They managed to bring us to the world’s smallest and hottest friggin onsen. It was just one small hot bath, with no windows open or air circulation of any kind, so your head just swims from the heat. It was my second onsen experience, and definitely my least favourite. We took a cab back to Wesley’s and chatted ourselves into the night before crashing.

The next morning definitely offered one of my weirdest experiences in Japan to date. While walking back from a bakery on our way to Wesley’s apartment, we were confronted by a mysterious man in yellow. He was wearing a yellow one-piece with a red scarf-and-hat combo, complete with a necklace of Pokemon themed bubble gum. He introduced himself as the “Vanquisher of Stress” and implored us tell him our stresses. He asked each of us in turn (though I was on film duty, and didn’t step up to the plate) to SLAP him, thus transferring our stress to him. We just couldn’t say no to him. Mark, Sonomi, and Nick (who definitely packed the hardest hit) let the man have it, while his friends filmed.

Apparently it was a video project for their University school festival. I hope Wes emailed them and found out when it was so he could go watch it. We all walked away a little happier. We spent the rest of the morning exploring the Ainu (indigenous people of Hokkaido) museum, before going to a restaurant Mark’s JTE recommended for the best 塩ラーメン (Salt ramen) which Hakodate is known for. This “restaurant” was an open ended shack crammed between two bigger shops. I’m glad I ordered and started eating my ラーメン before I had a chance to actually look around the place. It had to be the dirtiest place I’ve ever eaten in. Roaches were literally crawling like two feet away from me on the television. You could see them all over the walls and even chilling on a colander in the sink. Of course the ラーメン was delicious (for some reason it always is from places like that), and the added protein (read: roach flavouring) was added free of charge!

After the roach fest, we bid goodbye to Wesley and caught our ($85) train ride to Sapporo. We were gonna kick it in Sapporo and Ishikari for two nights before the second half of the trip. We got into Sapporo in the evening, so decided to head right to Ishikari. It’s no fun walking around Sapporo with so much stuff weighing you down. We went out to つばはち (Tsubahachi) a chain restaurant that is very popular in my town. The building that houses the restaurant is absolutely massive. This is the same restaurant my BoE chooses for their enkais, and also where my welcome party was held. It has three large sections to it: small group restaurant, large group rooms and a Karaoke area as well. It’s one of my favourite places; lots of good memories. It was nice to sleep in my bed again after sleeping on the ground for a few nights.

The next morning we headed in Sapporo. Sonomi had a date to meet her Grandmother, who lived nearby. The boys and I wandered around a few shops, before meeting Perry (an ALT from the Yoichi area). Mark found his skinny tie heaven and Nick acquired a very stylish jacket (dubbed the “cowboy jacket”). We met Perry in Odori park ad headed back to the station to meet Sonomi before heading to the Sapporo Beer Factory. It was a very interesting tour and I definitely enjoyed the kiddy explanation of how beer is made (via adorable monkey faeries) over the actual process. We stopped for a beer sampler, but couldn’t stop there… we headed for Jenghis Kahn in the restaurant on-site. The all you can drink/eat deal gets me everytime. I just can’t say no to Jenghis Kahn. Ever. I also can’t say no to karaoke, and we headed there for the にじかい (second party). Unfortunately, we were partying so hardy we missed the last bus out of Sapporo bound for Ishikari (by like 10 minutes…). I called my Mr. Dependable, Tadashi, who told us to take the subway line to 麻布 , and then he showed up to give us a ride. Of course I felt insanely guilty that he had to waste his time picking us up. Don’t worry though; I gave him a big bottle of ice wine for thanks!

We pulled into Wakkanai later that evening (roughly a 6/7 hour drive), and settled ourselves into a Youth hostel recommended to us by Lonely Planet. This was like no hostel I’d ever seen or imagined. In my head, a reservation at a youth hostel is a reservation for a bed (shared in a room with other people and normally with other travelers) and a communal bathroom area. Apparently, Japanese don’t know what a youth hostel is. Instead, compliant with the Japanese level of customer service, they offer whole mini apartments. Honestly, this was nicer than some hotel rooms I’ve stayed in. I will admit, that the price was a bit higher than I would expect to pay at a sketchy hostel (4200 ¥), but maybe that explains the accommodations we got. We had a tatami room able to sleep a small army, with a small kitchen, television, internet and our own shower/laundry/bathroom facilities. What a lucky find. We almost didn’t want to leave in the morning.

But Thursday morning did call for more adventure as we headed to the ferry terminal to catch the ferry to Rishiri island. Unfortunately we missed the earliest ferry by about 10 minutes, which meant an hour less of climb time, but we were all too excited to let it phase us. It was the fastest ferry I’ve ever been on, I’ll tell you that. We cut through the water a record speed on our way to the island, with Mt. Rishiri growing bigger and bigger every second. We had to hurry with the little time we had, so we grabbed a cab to our campsite, and quickly threw up the tent, repacked our bags, signed some waivers and headed to conquer Mt. Rishiri. It was a tough climb. Damn tough. Incredibly tough…. But I did better than I thought I would. I warned the guys from the get-go that I was definitely not as fit as either of them, and they had to keep that in the back of their minds when setting a climbing pace and break schedule. Unfortunately we started climbing later than we would have liked. It’s a predicted 6 hours to the top and 4 hours back down. We started at 11-ish though, which only gave us about 7 hours of daylight instead of the needed 10 hours. We were determined though, and tackled as much as we could. I was determined to keep up with the boys, and I even surprised myself. For some reason the words “Alright, guys, I’m done, I’ll see you at the bottom” never left my lips, though I thought about saying it every time I saw the next steep hill. Eventually I gritted through it enough (though I fell behind a bit obviously) to make it to the top of the second highest peak. At 1200 m up, this was the 8^th way-point out of 10. By this time it was 3:00, and we couldn’t afford to waste the daylight going up anymore. Climbing own in the dark would be way too dangerous. We made pretty good time on the way up, only 4 hours instead of the typical 6. We were satisfied to leave Rishiri with its pride intact. “Alright Rishiri, you can have that little bit”

My legs shook and wobbled the entire way down. My shoes were not made for climbing a rocky mountain slope and my feet let me know it, loud and clear. We chased the setting sun down the entire time and made perfect time once we hit the bottom. We were relieved not to have to traverse the steep slippery slopes in the dark. By the time night set we were on flat ground, headed back to the camp. We made it back only 10 minutes after our predicted time (6:30)! After asking our kindly camp caretaker how far it was to the nearest onsen, we were shocked and thrilled to find there was one right across the road from the camp site. It was like music to my ears. This was definitely my best onsen experience. The facility was huge, had an outdoor section and there was barely anyone else in it. I had the outdoor bath all to myself for at least a half hour. Staring up at the stars above Rishiri while soaking in the hot water as a cool breeze plays across my forehead. Bliss. It was definitely exactly what my body needed.

We woke up early after a windy night of little sleep. For some reason the wind just wanted to rip right through the tent, and it made a very noisy job of it. I hope up to a body in the process of complete revolt. The lower half of my body was sore and stiff… and pretty much hated me. I definitely pushed it past my current physical fitness, and probably tore every muscle in my thighs and calves. I wouldn’t walk right for three days. We packed up our stuff and headed down to catch the ferry back to Wakkanai. From there we jumped back in the car and headed to Cape Soya, the northernmost point on the main islands of Japan. From there you can see Russia in the distance, but the area was sort of a let-down after the brilliance of Rishiri. It was a good excuse to buy some おみやげ (souvenirs), and see the random collection of monuments and buildings they had there.

After we'd had our fill of Soya we headed back down the coast on our way to Sapporo. First, we'd make a stop in Tomamae, though, where we had an Onsen Hotel booked for our last night, in celebration of Nick's birthday. He just gets ollllder and older :P The hotel was awesome. A little more expensive than we expected. It was 11000¥ each (~$120 Canadian), but that incuded dinner & breakfast, plus 24-hour onsen acces. The hotel was really nice, and it was a great place to spend our last night. The room was a full tatami room with a treehouse sleeping area. Let me repeat that: the sleeping area was elevated above the room in a small square treehouse-like nook. How awesome is that?? Very awesome, obviously. The dinner was amazing, and we had fun walking around in our fancy yukatas (Japanese style robes). The onsen was massive, though there were many more people than in Rishiri. It was still a good onsen experience. For once, I stayed longer than the boys. I had the outdoor bath to myself for quite a bit, and as I was sitting there, half in an half out of the water, trying to cool down, I hear some familiar music playing through the onsen. Now where have I heard this music before... Uh yah, disney tunes. Doesn't getting any better than relaxing in a natural hot bath, listening to the orchestrated version of "I Can Show You the World" and "Can You Feel the Love Tonight". We were all pretty drained after the dip in the onsen, but we tried to party for Nick's birthday. We grabbed some drinks from the local Seicomart, and even had a makeshift cake (aka three cupcakes), complete with candles. I'm sure Nick ejoyed his present very much. The magazine was hand selcted by Mark and I. Very classy.

The next morning we made our way (slowly) back to Sapporo. We tried to find a mysterious waterfall we had seen on a map at one of the roadside attractions we passed. The trip took us about an hour out of our way (wasting around 3 hours in total), and proved very difficult. For some reason this waterfall was not mentioned on any other sign or map, except for the first one we had seen. This made it very difficult to find... and I definitely started to doubt it's existence. We tried a few paths at a small pull off we found in the road where the waterfall should be. Mark stumbled onto what we assumed was private property because a hidden camera in a tree took his picture. That gave us all the willies... reminded me too much of Deliverance for some reason. We gave up the search, eventually, and slumped back to the car, defeated. After that, I was just looking to get home.... Which we did, eventually, about 4 hours later. Dropped the car off in Sapporo and said goodbye to the boys. I stayed in Sapporo for a little bit, and did some shopping, but I headed in early, glad to be home again. It was all an adventure worthy of Silver Week, and we couldn't have asked for better weather, or company.

A Touch of the Flu

2009-09-16T15:58:00.002+09:00

I've had a bit of a head cold for the past few days. It started on Friday with a tickle in my throat... and now it's a runny/stuffy nose and a dry hack. It seemed like it was going away on Tuesday morning, but today I was all stuffed up at work and constantly had the "hem-hems" to clear my throat. I guess it showed that I wasn't feeling 100% because the teachers at my JHS insisted I go home and get better after lunch. I was done my classes for that day, and the kids were working on stuff for the School Festival coming up October 3rd.

I don't think I really needed to go home, but I'm thankful for it. I would have been bored at my desk anyways. Word was passed to my BoE, and I got a few worried mails, suggesting I go to a hospital... But really, it's just a small cold, nothing to call in about. Laura came to the pharmacy with me on Sunday night to get some medicine. I can't tell if it works or not. It's supposed to make me drowsy so I only take it before bed anyways. I was told not to go again tomorrow if I don't feel well, but I'll probably go anyways.

What happened to the stories about how hard it is to take sick days in Japan? I guess because I went in and made an effort to plow through the sickness they took pity on me... ? I think I just need to get more rest. I definitely stayed up too late last night. I was busy trying to book a car for this upcoming Silver Week vacation. A few of us Toronto JETs are truckin' around Hokkaido on a crazy 4-points tour. Unfortunately Nick's car fell through, but here's hoping we can get something in time. Damn near everything is booked solid.

What the hell to do with the rest of my evening... Rest and drink water ~

- Lindsay out

Furubira Festival

2009-09-14T21:40:00.005+09:00

Headed down to Furbira this past weekend to visit Nick for his town's only festival. Got there early Friday night, just in time for him to look like Mr. Popularity when we ran into practically everyone he knew at the Seico mart. He also took this opportunity to play Moth Hunter and help out the terrified Seico female employees by killing the "deadly" (yet very big) moth that had gotten inside. This thing was pretty massive, almost like a small bird. Massive, but clearly harmless. It took him atleast 10 minutes to get the thing (while I stood at the side holding the baggage, as usual). Of course, by this time a second moth had gotten in. This time a man came out of nowhere, and he seemed to be the true moth hunter. He came in with a giant net and rubber boots on; he definitely meant business. It took him... maybe 30 seconds. He hit that moth once and it was OUT. Not like Nick's moth which suffered for a little while after withstanding a few blows.

Went back to Nick's mansion of an apartment and got the 5 cent tour. It's really a big apartment for one perso, and I was a little jealous, but then I remember that I pay 30,000 yen less a month than he does. That helps keep me happy. We spent the rest of the night just shooting the shit and throwing back a few beers. Also went out for a night time tour of Furbira and some star gazing on an abandoned tractor. I don't see the stars in Ishikari, probably because we're too close to Sapporo :( Furubira is only about 4,000 people though, and isn't near any huge city like Sapporo. The stars that night were awesome.

The next morning we headed to the community pool where Nick was supposed to meet some of his elementary school kids for the morning. I joined them in the pool and we spent two hours goofing off with some cute Japanese 4th graders. It was tiring, but lots of fun. Afterwards, we got our shit together and met Mark on the bus, on our way to Shakotan and Cape Kamui.

We passed Shakotan to check out the view at Cape Kamui, which proved to be just as gorgeous as we heard. We only had 45 minutes to make it out the farthest point. We did get out all the way, but with only 15 mins to get back and catch the very last bus back to Shakotan. I am sooo out of shape, and I was dying in jeans and a black t-shirt. We made it to the bus, only a little worse for wear. It was definitely worth the view; the water was an amazing teal-blue that my pictures don't do justice at all.

After catching the bus back to Shakotan we pre-emptively got off outfront some small restaurants and hotels. While trying to decide where to eat, we were hailed by a Canadian traveller, who thought we needed advice on the area (not that he had any, but he was staying at the Ryokan we were in front of). We chatted for a good 40 minutes (the part about his job kind of bored me... he was a fire fighter, turned safety board person... don't ask). We were looking for the Shakotan Onsen, and asked a local. Turns out we got off much too early, but the Canadian (Linley) offered to give us a lift, and so we followed to local who offered to give us directions.

The onsen was definitely a ... unique experience. I'm not overly comfortable with nudity at the best of times, let alone in a completely public setting. Hell, women changing in the pool changing rooms used to make me uncomfortable as a kid. I think the reason I was able to go through with it is because I knew absolutely not a soul there. Mark and Nick were in the men's side obviously, and I was the only girl, so I didn't get the awkward pleasure of going in with someone. It was definitely better that way, and it will be a good long while before I feel like making it personal. All in all though, I'm glad I did it, and the bathes were so relaxing. I stayed for a little over an hour and I was beat red by the time I got out. I even had time to grab a beer and some food while waiting for Mark and Nick to finish up on their side.

Catching the bus back to Furubira we came in just in time for the best part of the festival: the huge bonfire. It's a very controlled huge bonfire, fed with lots of papers and straws that they keep adding to make it bigger. Meanwhile, a man in an Oni (demon) mask stand by menacingly, calling for it to be bigger, bigger! Eventually the same crazy man takes slow wide steps through said blazing fire. He does this about three or four times, and then walks off stage anti-climactically. Next a team of two under a dragon costume start playing with the fire and going through it themselves. It was a very interesting ceremony, but it was over much too quickly. Afterwards, we hung around and talked with Nick's high school and junior high students. He's the only ALT and teaches every student in the town, so everyone pretty much knows him. We chit chatted until Steph arrived from Muroran, and then we retired to the apartment for drinking and Labyrinth (ohh, David Bowie... dance magic!).

Sunday morning I had to gather my stuff a little early and catch the bus/train combo to Sapporo to meet Laura (ALT from Atsuta), Akemi Ito (who I work with from time to time) and Akemi's husband Hiroki. We were all on our way to see a Pottery Exhibition put on by a common aquaintance of ours. She was hosting a huge pottery show which had 40 American potters attending and exhbitioning as well. It was a very interesting way to spend an aftrnoon and I felt very cultures afterwards :P

Akemi and Hiroki invited us back to their home for Jenghis Kahn dinner (how could I possibly say no, it's soooo good). I ate way too much, but I had to be polite. They bought so much meat, and beer... I definitely gained a couple pounds that night.

Unfortunately I had a cold develop on Friday night, so I was ready for bed early Sunday night. It seems to be on it's way out now (I hope... ?), but it makes everything a little less enjoyable >_<. Gotta kick it fast before the 4 points roadtrip on Friday ~

- Lindsay out

Jigoku (Hades) Festival

2009-09-14T20:50:00.010+09:00

This weekend happened a while ago, but I'm updating the blog mostly in order.

August 28th I met Nick in Sapporo to catch the train into Tomakomai, where we transfered there to Higashi-Muroran. The whole trip ended up taking about 4.5 hours, but it was half the price for twice the time. We were staying with Stephanie who lives there, and was kind enough to meet us at the station. The stories about her pred (an all the crap her pred left), made me appreciate my clean, empty apartment a little more.

Saturday morning we grabbed a quick (but delicious) breakfast at a local ぱんや (bakery) in Higashi-Muroran. Then, it was off to Noboribetsu where they were holding their annual じごく　(Hades) Festival.

The streets of Noboribetsu's main street was jam packed with vendors peddling all kinds of delicious edibles. We ate so much that day... and would gladly have kept eating. Steph, Nick and I wandered around, taking in the area and waiting for Mark to join our group. We took a short detour up the world's smallest chair lift. Only $2 for a ride to the top... of the bottom of the Bear Park. Then it was another $20 to get into the Bear Park. We didn't feel a great need to see a bunch of caged くま, so we hung around at the top for a while.

When Mark got in we headed up in seach of the natural onsens (hot bath) that Noboribetsu is famous for. We took in the view of Hell Valley, and hiked up to the natural foot bath (hot spring river).

We made it back in time to see a very crowded Nooribetsu. The street was filled with so many people, and there was a distinct excitement in the air. The teiko players drummed, and the float teams carried the giant demon statues that they made first down the steep street, and then up it! Mark and Nick made fast friends with the biggest team and ended up moseying into the group and helped them carry it both ways; good job, boys.

Tokyo Orientation: Wednesday

2009-09-14T20:39:00.002+09:00

I woke up on Wed feeling not so hot… I thought maybe some breakfast would be a good idea, just to get some food in my system. Turns out to be not such a great idea, I’ll find out later. Gathered up all my stuff and meet the other Hokkaido JETs to board the bus to Haneda airport. The bus ride is terribly long considering my condition. I sat next to Nicholas and tried not to focus on anything… We were about 2 minutes from getting off the bus, and I could hold it any longer.

“Nick. There is a plastic bag with my shoes in it. Get it.”

Blegh… I’m really surprised I managed to keep it all together. I was wearing my suit, and I managed to not get a drop on me. It will forever be known as the ninja barf, and Nicholas is never to speak of it again. Eggs were a bad choice.

After that I was feeling better for a while. We checked in, and waited around for about an hour for our flight. It was a pretty big plane for a domestic flight (another Boeing 777), and of course we were at the very back. Nicholas bought me some drink which I will refer to as “Miracle water”. It’s kind of like a Gatorade in that it has electrolytes and what not. It made me feel instantly better within one minute of drinking it. It lasted until the take off. Take off in this plane was really interesting because the television screens display a pilot’s-eye-view of everything. By this point I was feeling pretty low again… and thank god for the water proof bags they give you. All the miracle water was gone again… so I had to replenish with some apple juice (りんご　ジュ－ス), and I managed to keep it down. The flight as pretty short (especially when you compare it to the 13-hr flight from Toronto).

After collecting my luggage I was whisked away out the main doors without a chance to say goodbye to everyone. Five of us at a time were taken to a room where all the supervisors were waiting. I was met by three people, one of whom spoke English (thankfully), Momoko-san (she works on the second floor of the same building as me). They took me out to lunch, and we drove to Ishikari city hall to meet my co-workers at the BoE. Afterwards I was taken to the apartment with all my luggage, then grocery shopping and to the 100¥ store to get some necessities. This was the first of MANY trips to those stores for me. It’s conveniently located right across the street from my apartment complex. In the evening, I was left to my own devices, which meant moving all the furniture from the small room, into the bigger, much cooler room I now call my bedroom.

- Lindsay out

Tokyo Orientation: Tuesday

2009-08-22T09:53:00.011+09:00

Breakfast at the hotel is so delicious. I don’t know how they make their scrambled eggs, but they come out more like a whipped egg thing. Plus there was lots of fruit, meat, bread… it was definitely the best hotel breakfast I’ve ever had. Those eggs rival Mike’s cheesy-dilly-eggs (but yours are better, Mike ;P ). I was able to make it through the ALT Panel discussion, but it was all stuff I had heard before, and it was only mildly interesting. Curiously, I didn’t see Nicholas at all that morning, but I’ll find out why later.

Lunchtime came, but I decided to get changed and leave the hotel. I was anxious to climb the Municipal Building near the hotel, since they have a free observation deck at the top. Apparently on a clear day you can even see Mt. Fuji. I ran into a few more JETs at the top, but they were still in formal gear, so I assumed they were being good little JETs and returning after the lunch break was over. The view from the top of the observatory is pretty amazing.

I wasn’t able to see Mt. Fuji though. There was a restaurant and two big shops (stands) up there as well. Lots of adorable nick knacks… how did I control myself? I found these especially entertaining:

Look familiar? Not only are they recognizable Disney characters, they also connect together and tap their little feet to the tune of several music options! Jeee, where have I seen that before…? :D

After I’d had my fill of the view from this tower I tried to find a second tower that had shops and another free observatory at the top, Minamofo (??) building, a couple of blocks away. I had a hard time navigating my way there for some reason, but finally got myself turned in the right direction. The view from the top was similar to the municipal building and still pretty cool all the same. At the base of the tower there’s a small restaurant that I decided to grab lunch at. I’m still not sure what exactly I ordered, but it was delicious. The ordering system is a machine where you put your money in and get a ticket in return, then hand the ticket to the chef. There were only three options that had a picture, so I went with one of those. Deep fried pork on rice, and some noodle dish. Deeeelicious!

I was feeling full, and ready to see more of Shinjuku. I didn’t want to travel too far, because I knew I had to be back at the hotel for my prefectural meeting in a few hours. Fairly close to the hotel was Shinjuku-chou (新宿－長) park. I’m glad I decided to check it out because it’s a very beautiful park, and very interesting too. As soon as you cross the border between street and park theirs is an immediate difference in noise level. It gets MUCH louder in the park, because of all the Cicadae bugs. The first thing I spotted in the park was an area that seemed to be dedicated to exercise equipment. All brightly coloured like the jungle gym sets of my childhood, complete with instructions on how to use each one.

The park was huge, and fun to explore. One thing I noticed though is how many homeless men there were in the park. I never saw any in the city, and I guess this is where they spend most of their time. Some other features of the park were the big waterfall, the wading pool, and the awesome playground sets (way better than what we had as kids).

I made it back in time to the hotel to relax for a bit and take in one of the last workshops of that afternoon “Japanese Etiquette for Beginners”… mmm boring. Prefectural meeting I ran into Nicholas to find out that he was extremely hung over and slept through pretty much the whole morning (no wonder I didn’t see him), but he did make it out to see the municipal building as well. Found out some important info for the next day, and joined Nicholas, Brian and Mark at the top floor of the Keio for more sightseeing at high altitudes. Said goodbye to the boys (they were heading to the Canadian Embassy get together; thank god I didn’t go I heard it was excruciating), and got ready to meet some people I know from an online forum (ITIL).
There were about 7 of us to start (5 of us were first years), one of whom is a CIR (so his Japanese is very good). We ventured all the way to Kabuchiko (red light district) where they knew of an English pub called “The Hub”. I enjoyed the awesome 1-litre beer for only 1000￥(is that cheap? How many liters are in a pint?). We were joined by another veteran JET from the forum, and then we headed off to a nearby Karaoke bar. While we were there we were joined by three more first-year JETs and Tyler, the administrator of the ITIL forum. Everyone was singing their hearts out, and I belted out “Part of Your World” (87%, wut wut).

Unfortunately at some point in the evening, after returning from the bathroom, I got my finger caught in the door to the Karaoke room. It hurt like a son of a bitch, and it looked like I had a huge, deep gouge out of my finger. It instantly swelled to about twice its size. Even now it’s still swollen and a bit bruised, but it gets better every day. At that point I was pretty much ready to go. I had an early start time on Wed, and I just finished drinking 3 more glasses of beer on an empty stomach. Luckily Ben was ready to go as well, and he led us back to the Hotel (thank god cause I would have been so lost on my own). We stopped at a Lawson’s (Convenience store) where I got some late-night Onigiri (rice balls). Then off to the hotel and bed (I should have sobered up first, and I really should have drank a lot of water)

Me (inspecting my finger): Hey, Ben, how do you say band-aid in Japanese?
Ben: バンド　エード　(bando ehhdo)…
Me: … oh… *fail* =_=

ALTer Ego

Hong Kong - Last Segment: Thursday, Friday, Saturday/Sunday

Hong Kong - Segment 2: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday

Hong Kong - Segment 1: Wed, Thurs, Fri, Sat

新学期: The New School Year

Spring Break

Lindsay Comes to Power, Furano, and the ending school year

Mounting the Board

On Leaving Tarukawa

Yuki Matsuri (Snow Festival)

Hantoshi - Half a Year

沖縄

明けまして おめでとう !

Christmas with the Jonezes

Christmas Time Update

On Work and Influenza

Hokkaido Roadtrippin'

A Touch of the Flu

Furubira Festival

Jigoku (Hades) Festival

Tokyo Orientation: Wednesday

Tokyo Orientation: Tuesday

明けまして　おめでとう !