Japan, Week 9

9 - Week of Work

This week, I had a great deal of work to do. Reading, essays, lesson planning, typing up all the class observations and practices I've completed thus far... there was a lot of it. So unfortunately, as it doesn't make for great reading, almost all I did this week was go to lessons and do a lot of work. However, luckily for my readers and my sanity, there was a small diversion planned for Friday night, in the form of a party for a special guy's Birthday. Travelling thousands of miles and having your first teaching experience in front of Japanese university students can give you a bond with someone, and as such another uni friend and I wanted to give Ryan a 20th to remember.

Chocolate cornflake cakes were made, origami was folded, and we got unnecessarily dressed up for the setting (I-House). But hey, it was a party. It was a welcome end to a difficult week, which would become slightly less taxing over the weekend.

Birthday boy and Birthday cakes 

Saturday we got up early considering the lateness of the hour the party ended the night before, and headed to Nagoya. All worth it of course; Iron Man 3 isn't in my usually preferred genre of film, but for some reason this trilogy has nestled in my heart. Possibly has something to do with my adoration of Gwyneth Paltrow and the perfection of Robert Downey Jr when he's feeling whimsical. Further goodness was poured into the day by the arrival of an unexpected package, which turned out to contain sugar, sugar, earrings, and chocolate. Housemates. They're worth having. Thanks, Vee ^__^

EXCITING BOX

Saturday afternoon and evening was, more work! Sunday was another one of those memory-days. Like when a film is made and everyone knows it's going to be a classic, hiking through a Japanese forest on a gorgeous day, listening to frogs which sound like birds, and almost vertical paths laid out ahead of you, I will remember. Apparently we walked about 13 miles of hilly, hilly path in 5 hours, and as long as I can keep ahead of the work, I want this to be a weekly activity.

Hikers, and our Japanese guide Kazu

That's all for this week. Strange, I was so much busier than this post suggests! But I don't think it would be too interesting for you, dear readers, if I started typing my homework up on here.

Until next week!

Yours,
Abby

Check out my tumblr for all my photos: http://abbyinjapan.tumblr.com/

Japan: Week 8, Part II

8 - Family in Nagoya and Kyoto

I left I-House early on Friday morning to get to Nagoya, from where we would catch the shinkansen to Kyoto. A little too early perhaps, I forgot my camera! I don't mind so much, I can fairly easily store the memories, but it will mean for this post I use photos from the 'net for illustrative purposes, you understand.

The shinkansen takes forty minutes to make its way from Nagoya to Kyoto, and we headed for our next hostel. It turned out to be a little further than we'd thought, but it was never a problem on successive journeys to and from the station when we didn't have suitcases to drag around.

After we'd checked into traditional-style Ryokan Ohto, we went for a walk in Gion, the Geisha district. It's closer to the city centre than I'd ever realised, having always taken the bus or train there, and we proved that the only way to explore a new place has to be on foot. As is the custom, we did a lot of shopping in Gion!

On Saturday we took the tourist route with our hop-on-hop-off bus passes. We started with Kinkaku-Ji, the most photographed landmark in all of Japan, with good reason:

Kinkaku-Ji

Together with Nijo Castle, and a few other sight-seeing locations, this was my fourth visit to the spot. However, this in no way negatively affected my experience. I had a lot I could tell my family, and I was still noticing new things.

Nijo Castle

It was wonderful to go somewhere new to me also, though. Nishiki Market is a hugely tall covered walkway with a roof of patterned stained glass, with infinite stalls to look at as you and a hundred other Japanese and foreigners alike make your way down the narrow path. There was a lot of food on sale, both ingredients and stalls for take-away skewers, as well as the normal tourist purchases, clothing, and necessities for Japanese life. For dinner that night we went for a Japanese 'curry', which contains absolutely no spice whatsoever; perfect for myself and the little sister.

We had a tough time deciding where to go for our last day in Kyoto, but as the weather was going to be beautiful, decided on Arashiyama. Named for the mountain it lies at the foot of, Arashiyama is an area famous for its bamboo groves. We alighted first at Tenryu-Ji Temple, a World Cultural Heritage Site with beautiful gardens, leading directly into the bamboo.

Tenryu-Ji 

Thus we ventured forth into Bamboo Avenue for the incomparable experience of walking down a path lined with shoots upon shoots of bamboo which I'd judge to be about 25 feet tall. My day was made when we came across a postcard artist who'd sold me postcards back in 2008, and was still in the exact same spot. He was so delighted when I explained (in Japanese) who I was that he pulled me into a hug; something hitherto I've not experienced in Japan.

After that it was time for us to make our long way back to the hotel so I could pack up my things and return to the station. I bade farewell to Mum and Claire, as they would have one last night in Kyoto, go to Tokyo and stay one night there, and then fly on Tuesday morning.

I've never known anything like showing my family round Japan. Sharing something I know so well which is almost unknown to them, is strange and beautiful and stressful and heart-warming. Their visit here will be another of my favourite memories upon leaving Japan, and I know they've enjoyed themselves, too.

This week is a return to normality for me; catching up on work, going on a hike, all normal Japanesey-type things. We're crossing the half-way mark too at this point, strange... It has gone quickly, but with the amount of work I'll have to do it's not like the second half will slip by without me noticing.

Thanks for reading thus far, it does mean a lot to me :)

Yours,
Abby

Japan: Week 8, Part I

8 - Family in Nagoya and Kyoto

This week I realised that I had been somewhat blind to the delights and intrigues available almost on my doorstep. Going to Kyoto, planning trips to Osaka, getting excited about visiting Tokyo with my family, and I had somewhat neglected to explore Nagoya itself, the city in who's outskirts I currently reside. In my defence, it is quite a trek; the journey from my front door to Nagoya station takes an hour. However, it is a relatively cheap journey, and I'm glad that exploring the city earlier in the week has caused me to see that I should spend every available moment there until I have exhausted its finite but grand number of attractions.

Unfortunately we can't all take time off school whenever we feel like it (Don't worry Claire, I'm joking :D) so I had to go to lessons on Monday. But on Tuesday I finish quite early, so I went and had a terrific time in Nagoya with Claire and mum.

Claire, being protected from evil spirits by a lion

We visited the large and impressive Osu Kannon Temple, which has been moved three times since its being built in 1324, because first an emperor, then a feudal Lord, just decided they wanted to.

We then walked back through the city to the station area, where some impressive architecture is located. The asymmetric towers of the station itself, the spiral Gakuen Tower, and Midland Square, Japan's fifth largest skyscraper.

Gakuen Tower

We climbed it, of course (or rather, took the very fancy elevator on the outside of the building) and admired the night view of Nagoya from the 46th floor, including Nagoya Castle, tennis on roof-tops, and thousands of lights as far as the eye could see.

Before heading back to I-House, I was treated to pizza and plenty of catch-up news.

Wednesday was my first teaching to a real class, ever. I was nervous beforehand but it went well considering how terribly it could have gone. I was teaching a group of incredibly receptive first years a listening class about clothes, and the response I got from them at times left me buzzing for hours afterwards. The

teacher observing us confirmed what we'd experienced; once we got over the nerves we were flying, and he thought we'd all improve to a really high standard by the end of the term. From now on we'll be teaching once a week, with the next being tomorrow, teaching a reading class 'Dracula'!

Thursday was the resuming of Golden Week for the Japanese, and the weather obliged by being gorgeous so that my family and I could have enjoy a splendid day for admiring Nagoya Castle.

A replica of one of the mythical dolphins adorning the roof of the Castle

I was glad of my tour of a few weeks prior; I felt like quite the tour guide pointing out aspects of interest around the site. We had enough time to go back and see I-House and my room, and in the true style of students of I-House, went for dinner at the sushi restaurant directly opposite, Hamazushi. From what I could tell from the pile of plates at the end (incomparable though, to the amount Japanese people are able to ingest) Mum and Claire enjoyed their first experience of genuine Japanese conveyor belt sushi.

On Friday we caught the shinkansen to Kyoto, and details of the weekend will be posted in Part II! The reason being, this post's already fairly substantial, I've had an exhausting (though excellent) few days, and I have to teach in the morning! (An insight into the future...?)

Check back for the stories from Kyoto later in the week. Spoiler alert: We did everything and it was great.

Yours,

Abby

Japan: Week 7

7 - Family in Tokyo

One of the greatest privileges is introducing people you love to a thing which you love, and have them love it, too. A portion of my family are currently in Japan, and it's one of the most exciting things in the world. This is my third visit to the country, and not so much of it takes me by surprise any more. It's still wonderful, and charming, and exciting, but all those feelings are different when it's not for the first time. Comfort and familiarity are valuable, but seeing such an incomparable place through another's eyes, as they take it in for the first time, that's a feeling which means a lot.

It's Golden Week in Japan, the fortnight containing a string of bank holidays, and one of the busiest times of the year for domestic travel. This was the time we chose for my mother and little sister to come to Japan and pay me a visit, as well as doing a bit of sight-seeing. It was busy, but I think it only added to the atmosphere, and as the weather was perfection incarnate, we just took it slow and rolled with the crowds.

So, you'll want to know what we did! Absolutely nothing of interest happened at the beginning of the week, I  just had to make sure I was on top of all my work so I could enjoy the weekend. On Friday morning I left I-House to make the 4 hour journey to a certain Tokyo hostel.

Empty, sunny bus. Set a good precedent for the weekend.

Given that it's about 250 miles, and I was travelling by public transport, that's pretty good. Most of the credit goes to our dear friend the Shinkansen.

So as soon as I'd achieved Tokyo, and hugged and kissed and marvelled at the tiny size of mum and Claire's room, we had a picnic lunch in the roof garden of the hostel (Great thing about Tokyo - they make use of every available space) and set out to explore.

On the right there is Kaminarimon, gracing the front of many a 'Guide to Tokyo'

First was Kaminarimon, 'Lightning Gate', and the temple it leads to, Senso-Ji. This was one of the things I was talking about. Temples, and the abundance of red, and Japanese architecture in general, are not surprising to me any more. It gave me a glow to see others light up in reaction to them so completely.

Claire, and a pagoda

Another new feeling was meeting up with an old friend out of context. A very dear girl in my life happens to be studying in Tokyo at the moment, and we met up on the Saturday.

The family, and Yuna

We went on a cruise down the River Sumida, enjoying the glorious sunshine (especially the two who had come from England...) and catching up on news. After we'd been deposited in a lovely park, we wandered to Tokyo Station for our free walking tour leading us to the Imperial Palace Gardens. These were a sight worth seeing, surrounded as the serene landscape was by the hustle and bustle of central Tokyo.

On Saturday evening we went out for a pancake/omelette dish called Okonomiyaki because it is delicious, and because you get to cook it on your table. Japanese cuisine > All other cuisine.

Today we packed up and visited the Sky Tree as our last activity in Tokyo, although the Shinkansen does count as an activity in itself in reality.

Tokyo Skytree. Is tall.

We headed back to Nagoya on the fastest mode of transport readily available, and because this was turning out to be just the perfect weekend, also ate Obento (traditional Japanese 'lunch boxes') and saw Mount Fuji out the window, against a postcard-blue backdrop of sky.

Shinkansen speeding into the station.

Lunch!

Fuji-San

Now my mother and sister are tucked up in a hotel in Nagoya, to have fun and get their breath back while I study hard again this week, and we head off for more Japanese sights next weekend. Until then, I'm going to extremely enjoy wearing all my summer clothes which the beauties brought for me from Home.

Yours,

Abby

                                                  

Japan: Week 6

6 - School

I don't have that many lessons, just five 1.5 hour classes spread over Monday - Wednesday, and then an observation and a teaching practice every week. It feels a lot like 6th form again with the same four students in each class, and most of them discussion-based. However, I feel a trend might have been set when we were given homework from each lesson, and although you do get a whole week to complete it, there is the necessary reading to go on top of it... But it'll be okay. I knew it would be hard work here.

I also had my two weekly sessions in the Language Lounge. With some Japanese students it is literally like an English lesson, which is fabulous practice for me, and others are so competent that I was discussing with them why British girls think Japanese girls are so beautiful and vice versa, which was eye-opening and just generally fantastic. I also get to have bi-weekly conversations with the girls on the frisbee team, and it's obvious that in amongst the students is where I'll be doing the majority of learning about this country. We talk about what we eat, what we do in our spare time, and I get to see how they interact with me and each other.

Everyone, go to all the countries.

A very cool place I did go to was a second-hand shop, where the downstairs was just full of books and mostly comics, and even had a little foreign books section!

One of those things you never know you need until, all of a sudden, you find out about them. Harry Potter set, in Japanese... The upstairs was possibly even cooler, row upon row of clothes, as well as shoes, bags, games, and crockery! This wasn't a jumble sale either, everything was in brand new condition, in original sets and packaging. Japan does many things so well.

My week was finished off in the perfect way by a trip to a very nearby onsen. My skin is glowing from the hot baths, the showers and the saunas, and my girly senses are tingling from the gossip shared. Many trips will be taken there for relaxation purposes, I think.

So I'm afraid I don't have any ridiculous sight-seeing tales to tell from this week, but next week will be different. One of the few times Japanese employees can have some well-deserved time off is Golden Week, two long weekends in a row at the end of April/beginning of May when people go on domestic holidays, often to onsen! My week will be no different, getting a bit of travelling done myself, and expect to see mentions of some special guests who are coming to visit!

Yours,
Abby

Japan: Week 5

5 - It all begins

This week I had a small insight into what term-time's going to be like. On Tuesday, the four of us TEFL students met up with the teachers we'll be working with for lunch, at an adorable restaurant close to the university. It's a bright blue shuttered house, back from the road a little with an elaborate front garden with a stone path, complete with archway. The couple live upstairs, and the restaurant is downstairs. Lunch was delicious (even the sea-snail) and I was surprised how easy it was to relax into conversation. Afterwards we went back to uni to receive the timetables of lessons we'll be observing, and lessons we'll be teaching (!!). Thankfully we have just a couple of weeks to prepare ourselves for teaching, but our first observation was on Thursday.

'Observation' is a term used lightly. Although there was a teacher taking charge of the class, we were put into four groups with one British student as a team leader, and were very interactive with the students. I experienced trying to explain and define really quite difficult English terms, and having everyone look to you when they didn't understand something. Daunting, but will no doubt be practice I'll be grateful of once I have to start taking classes of my own.

I also signed up to be a tutor for Language Lounge sessions; rooms where students can go to learn a language from native speakers, and no other language is allowed to be spoken in the room. I feel any practice I can have at this teaching thing will only do good.

Something to make me very happy indeed was my first frisbee training session in Japan. Nagoya University is split into several colleges; I'm currently studying with Nagoya University of Foreign Studies. Well, Nagoya University of Arts and Sciences is located very close by, and students often join each other's cross-curricular activities.

So when I spotted NUAS students recruiting for frisbee, I positively squealed with excitement and promised to train with them, 5.30 - 8 pm on Wednesdays and Fridays. The rules are the same and I've got the head-start on height, so it was pure relief to get back outside, running after a plastic disk, doing something I really know how to do, and not have to worry about the correct grammar structures to use whilst doing it.

This weekend I've taken a bit of a break and relaxed, including a trip to Aichi Arts Centre which I've been promising to myself from pretty early on. This Saturday there was a concert given by 'Rainbow Chorus' and as far as we could tell, would be of traditional Japanese songs and Nursery Rhymes. There was definitely one I picked out quite a lot from, on the subject of a bicycle.

Music never needs to be fully understood though. The way a choir moves just a little as they breathe, the way voices fill a concert hall, and the feeling a conductor puts into their direction is not restricted by a language barrier. It was relaxing and enjoyable. In addition to all that, when a concert invites you to sing along with the final piece, thoughtfully providing music and lyrics on the back of your programme, it's always going to get my vote.

Lessons start in earnest tomorrow, wish me luck!

Yours,

Abby

Japan: Week 4

4 - Takayama

Sakura never lasts long in Japan. You can't blame it really, it's got to make its way up the length of the country in one short season, after all. No wonder the delicate flowers will be swept away by one heavy rainfall. Therefore, this week I went to a few places where the blossoms would be in abundance to make the most of their gorgeous presence.

A place called Irigaike Park is located just a ten minute walk away from my accommodation. It was ridiculously windy, but this only drew more attention to the beautiful scenery, as the boughs waved and tries to draw attention, as if it were needed.

There were a lot of people outside enjoying the sunshine if not the wind speed, and I confess my heart still melts at the sight of tiny Japanese tots, especially when they're old enough to stare with huge, round eyes at my foreign appearance, and young enough to ignore their parents' attempts to teach them etiquette.

Another group caught my eye also. At first I only noticed the young couple sitting on the park bench enjoying ice cream, the characteristics of Down's Syndrome standing out to someone as emotionally invested as myself, and then I saw the young man in the wheelchair, and a carer standing with another small group of young adults a little further off. It could've been any mencap outing in England. Tears came to my eyes momentarily; here in a country who's gender equality laws leave a little something to be desired, and which created the proverb "The nail which sticks out get hits down", I worried what the stance on disability might be. I was reassured.

The next job was to seek out some formal clothes. We were invited on a Freshers Camp with the new Global Business students to a place called Tayakama, I think as a point of interest and a chance for them to practice English, and also because on a Teaching English course we won't have all that many trip opportunities. We were told we'd be staying in a very posh hotel, and had to dress for the dinner which would be provided! This panicked us to a certain extent, but shopping in Nagoya is never dull, and we picked up suitable clothing.

The camp itself was interesting. While I understood barely a word of the seminars, the teachers had photo powerpoints and they seemed to be telling the students about where in the world this degree could take them. Seminars were followed by a presentation on British table manners, amusing but accurate. Also, necessary to students who may grow up to be entertained by Western business partners. Practice was also essential, of course. This meant that the day finished with a delicious Western-style supper. Welcome, after a lot of Japanese food these past weeks.

As you know, I visited the onsen as a beautifully relaxing end to the day. I'll point out that it wasn't even strange to be bathing with girls I'd met only hours before, and who I will no doubt see around the university. New experiences.

The next day contained a trip to a place in Gifu prefecture called Shirakawa-Go, a world heritage site with buildings almost unique to the area, as many were destroyed in World War II.  It also had mountains, paddy fields, and snakes. I was sincerely grateful to be taken to a place as wonderful as this. I love to see so much scenery which just doesn't exist in England.

To finish off the week, today I went to a festival event at Iwasaki Castle, also close to where I live. They had a whole timetable of entertainment which I believe was from the local area, including a wind band and a cheerleading troupe. They had stalls of food and games and of course, the Castle in all its splendour itself.

The sakura is mostly gone from this area now, but I'm glad I had the opportunity to see it a lot in both Nagoya and Kyoto. Now that's quite a lot of travelling, if only lessons would start...

Yours,

Abby