ハロルド in Japan

Survey and tourism

2011-11-19T10:16:00.008-05:00

My friends who run a fan website (w-inds. worldwide) for Japanese musical group w-inds. wrote a post with a survey for those of us who were in Japan during the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami back in March, earlier this year.

Their post is regarding tourism in Japan and how it has been affected since the disaster. w-inds. worldwide wants to help out by spreading awareness about the issue (declining tourism) and to inform people that Japan is still a safe country to travel to. I want to help them with this task.

I filled out the survey, and I would like to share my responses with you all. Below the Word of the Day is a link to their website, followed by the survey with my responses.

Also, for those of you who haven't yet come to Japan, please fill out the second survey on their website. It'll help out with their project. Thank you!

Word of the day: アンケート "anke-to", which means "questionnaire" or "survey."

http://windsworldwide.com/?p=1013

Why did you decide to come to Japan?: It has always been a dream of mine. Since I was a kid, I've been interested in Japanese culture, from history to modern society. Currently, I am here teaching English while improving my Japanese language ability. One of my goals while I am here is to further my skills in Japanese.

How long did you stay?: I have been here for about 15 and a half months straight. I haven't left the country, even during the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami.

What did you enjoy the most about your time in Japan?: I am enjoying my lifestyle! I eat delicious food, drive my favorite car, and have a great job. I've made good friends, and I have fun every day. I am enjoying studying the language as well as learning about the differences between my culture and Japanese culture.

What, if anything, would you change about your time in Japan?: Time flies by too fast. As does money. But one can argue that I am making the most of my time here by investing the time and money into having as many experiences in Japan as I can. After all, I can make money when I return home.

Would you come to Japan again in the future?: Of course! Japan has become my other "second home" (so, my third home?). After my job is complete here, I will certainly make a return in the future.

Would you recommend traveling to Japan to a friend?: Absolutely! I recommend it all the time, whether it's to visit me or just to enjoy everything Japan has to offer.

Do you have any travel tips or advice (cheap airfare, hotels) to give to future travelers?: Use as many online resources as you can. While traveling in Japan and booking hotels, I frequently use websites such as Rakuten Travel (http://travel.rakuten.co.jp/) and Hostel World (http://www.hostelworld.com/). The best way to travel long distances in Japan, in my opinion, is the Shinkansen bullet train. Although it is more expensive than highway bus travel, the amount of time saved is priceless, especially for those only visiting for a few weeks.

Additional Comments: I live in Miyagi Prefecture, the prefecture closest to the epicenter of the earthquake (which was off the coast). And I can say that Japan is surely and steadily recovering from the disaster. There has been progress with clearing the tsunami-affected areas of debris, and there are rebuilding/replanting projects in the works. Life in Japan returned to normal just months after the earthquake. There is no reason for tourists to worry about traveling here, even to Miyagi.

Happy Halloween!!!

2011-10-31T23:44:00.006-04:00

Great weekend! Hung out with some friends, got dressed up as Neo, went to a party, good times. Maybe I'll post a couple pictures of my costume...

Word of the day: 仮装　「かそう」　"kasou", which means "costume."

Productive Day

2011-10-03T11:10:00.004-04:00

Today was quite productive! Even though at work, I had no classes to teach, because it was test day. But I did give the Listening portion of the test; I hope my students did alright. I wrote the script myself (using the text book example as a base), but made it a little more difficult. Well, here's hoping! I also managed to work through most of my taxes. I should be able to submit it this week! And for those of you who think it's overdue, well, it isn't. For those of us who live abroad, we're given an automatic extension for the due date, and we can also file another form to extend it further (which is necessary in order to fulfill the strange "330 days present in foreign country" rule).

When I got home, I cleaned up my living room, put some things away on my book shelves, cleaned my yoga mat, sweeped the floor (actually, wiped it with a wet floor wipe), and worked out! Working out felt great (and terrible) since I hadn't done it in 2 weeks! And 8 weeks before that! I started P90X back in May, got to day 60, and had to drop it for a while 'cause of all my traveling. 75 days had passed before I had finally started it back up again (today). I started on day 61, where I left off, because I intend to finish this and move on to the 60 day Insanity Workout. It's unfortunate that I took such a long break from P90X, 'cause now all my results are messed up. The before/after shots won't make any sense. Really, I should probably start P90X over completely, but I really want to check out Insanity. Of course, I do have the option of just moving onto Insanity after I restart P90X from the beginning. Just a thought.

After working out, I did the laundry, bleached a towel and karate bag, and made myself a delicious Korean dish called bibimbap! Mmmmm, soooooo goooood. Just thinking about it makes me hungry again. Good thing I have leftovers. ;-) During dinner, I watched an episode of Breaking Bad. My brother was right; definitely a great series! After dinner, I washed the dishes, ripped open 25 milk and juice cartons for recycling, cleaned up some of my kitchen area, hung my laundry, brushed my teeth, and took a shower. And finally, after getting dressed, here I am writing a blog post!

Goodnight world!

Word of the day: 積極的　「せっきょくてき」　"sekkyokuteki," which means "proactive." It's a good word. :-)

TGS and Oktoberfest

2011-09-27T02:39:00.006-04:00

So, I realized today after class, that it doesn't really make sense to write old posts first before updating people on what I've been up to more recently. 'Cause if I did that, then I would NEVER catch up, and I would ALWAYS just be updating! So, instead, I've decided to update the blog more regularly, with current news and recent events, while going back and finishing the other blog posts that I had started way back when. Especially the disaster stuff.

Just a week and a half ago, Tokyo Game Show was held in Chiba, Japan (not actually/technically Tokyo, but close enough). TGS is the largest video game convention in Japan. And as such, it is the place where a lot of game developers and publishers like to announce news and reveal new things about their products. The big hit for the weekend was the PlayStation Vita, Sony's new handheld, the successor of the PSP.

I was one of the lucky ones, along with my two college buddies with whom I attended TGS, to get my hands on a PSVita. It was a sleek device, showing off PS3 graphics on such a small and gorgeous machine. I was expecting the back touchpad to feel something like that found on a laptop, but it was actually smooth and glossy, not unlike the glass screen on a cell phone.

I played Michael Jackson: The Experience. Why? 'Cause we had played it earlier on the PS3 Move, and it was DAMN FUN. I was curious as to how a full-body dance game would transfer over to a touch-screen handheld experience. Taking a lesson from Osu! Tatakae Ouendan, there are a lot of finger swipes across the screen to the beat of the song, as well as other movements. Finger dancing, if you will.

The highlight of TGS for me was getting to play Street Fighter X Tekken months before its official release! Incredibly fun; and a completely different game from Street Fighter, Tekken, or any of the Versus games. Aesthetically, it looks quite similar to Street Fighter IV, but plays more like, say, Marvel VS Capcom 3 without super jumps. But with a SF4 button layout. Anyway, for a fan of both series, a matchup like this is like a dream come true.

At TGS, there were also a lot of cosplayers. Some really EXCELLENT ones! I'll try to post an album at some point. My friend and I were lucky enough to get tickets to the cosplay show in the evening, where some of the best cosplay I had EVER seen went on stage to act out a skit and/or pose. Pretty damn awesome. I wish I had a better camera.

The remainder of my Tokyo trip consisted of hanging out with my friends in the evenings, eating some good food and drinking some good beer. We actually hit up a Hooters to see how different it was to those in the States. Gotta say, as happy as we were to enjoy some wings (it had been too long!) and Philly Cheesesteak (also been too long!), we were kind of disappointed about the servers. Not that they weren't attractive ("maa maa" as some would say), but just that they were surprisingly cold and unfriendly. Well, afterwards, we went to karaoke and even busted out some free-style between lyrics (or sometimes replacing lyrics entirely, haha).

Speaking of drinking, last week, Oktoberfest was celebrated in Sendai! Having been super busy and completely forgetting about it until the last day (Sunday), I finally managed to make my way out there. There were many food booths serving things like German sausage, potatoes, and even sauerkraut! Now THAT took me back to my days in eastern Pennsylvania. And there was even a Hofbrau booth! I bought their Oktoberfest beer and even bought a glass beer mug! A mug with "HB" written on it. Feels like it was made just for me. ;-)

Word of the day: 久しぶり　「ひさしぶり」　"hisashiburi." I have used this word at least twice already, in previous posts, even titling one of my posts with it! This word basically means "It's been a while," often in the phrase "Ohisashiburi desu ne!" which means the same thing but is more polite.

The second First Day

2011-08-01T12:08:00.004-04:00

It's the first day of the second year. And what a tiring, fun, awesome day. The first day of Tokyo Orientation for the newbies, and an incredible experience. I remember the first day of orientation for me, one year ago. It was like a dream. And at the same time, it didn't feel like Japan. But this time, I was on the "other side," being a senior member and guiding the way for all the younglings. Funny to call them that, as some of them are certainly older than me, and some with prior experiences in Japan.

Orientation was tiring. We had shifts at odd hours; early morning, late at night. But it was damn fun, even when we just wanted to sleep! In fact, those times might have been the most fun, 'cause we were tired and everything was amusing to us. The "shifts" I refer to are times that we are stationed to the Information Desk or Hospitality Center. The Hosp Center was arguably more amusing, as we were allowed to doodle on the portraits of all of the Orientation Assistants and Coordinators. I put my art skills to use and turned one of my friends into Kakashi from Naruto, and another friend into Super Saiyan Goku! Hilarity ensued.

There were a surprising amount of Filipinos there (as Assistants/Coordinators). Five and a half, I think. And perhaps some of the best parts about the orientation were meal times: free all-you-can-eat breakfasts in the hotel (Western breakfast, how I've missed you so!), and some sweet eateries around Shinjuku. Some meals worth mentioning: Burger King Whopper, it had been too long; kaitenzushi (conveyor belt sushi), always fun; ten-don (no, not tendons, the connective tissue between muscle and bone), but literally "heaven ricebowl," or rather, " shrimp tempura ricebowl." Sooooooo good.

Here's to more adventures!

Word of the day: 天丼　「てんどん」　"ten-don," explained above.

The last day of the first year

2011-07-31T08:12:00.007-04:00

Holy crap. I can't believe 12 months went by already. So quickly. And so much has happened in that time. Numerous trips to Kyoto to see my girlfriend, parties in Sendai and around Miyagi, going to Hokkaido, Tokyo, Disney, Osaka, Kobe, Universal Studios, and evacuating from Miyagi due to the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. I also managed to buy the car of my dreams, and just last week I managed to earn my Japanese Driver's License!

I have made tons of new friends here, foreigners and Japanese people, (college) students and working adults, English teachers and government employees. I've eaten the best foods Japan has to offer, from Hokkaido ramen to Hiroshima okonomiyaki. Osaka takoyaki to Matsushima sushi. Even Kobe beef. What a great time.

So I'm here in Tokyo right now as an orientation assistant. It's incredibly invigorating to meet the new JETs and help out with showing them the ropes. There is a lot of wisdom I can share with them, and there is still a lot more to learn. Time for another run through a year in the JET Program! Round 2, FIGHT!

Word of the day: つづく「続く」 "tsudzuku," which means, "to continue" and is often at the end of a television serious to indicate the continuation of a story. Analogous to the phrase, "To be continued."

Quick Update

2011-05-16T09:27:00.003-04:00

I finally published an old post that I started ages ago. There are actually MANY posts that I started, but didn't finish. I will be finishing them up like this, and updating this specific post accordingly, posting links as the posts get finished. Enjoy!

Month of Goodness (February)

I'm alive and well.

2011-03-31T12:15:00.002-04:00

As I'm sure all of you heard by now, Japan has been dealing with many issues as of late: a nuclear reactor that can't seem to stabilize, a tsunami that wiped out towns on the east coast, and the largest earthquake in Japanese history, which started all of the problems. All that aside, I'm actually doing quite well.

As I write this, I am in a hostel in Kyoto, on the early morning of April Fool's Day, after having just gotten back from Osaka. At the moment I am on special leave from work, as things are getting back to normal in my town. My supervisor told me today that utilities and food supplies are all back to normal, but gasoline stations still have many long lines. He expects that even that will be normal by next week, when I'm scheduled to return.

I have many unpublished posts which I've started over the past couple months but haven't yet finished. I really must publish my post regarding my "adventures" in March, as it has certainly been the most dramatic, filled with fear, grief, sadness, relief, and even joy. So as I publish posts over the next few weeks, I'll make sure to include a link to the post, as it'll have a date in the past because of when I started the post. But anyway, for now it's time to sleep.

Goodnight.

Word of the day: 安心「あんしん」 "anshin" which means "relief."

A month of goodness

2011-02-16T20:30:00.010-05:00

I am a terrible, terrible person. Not only have I not updated my blog in forever, but I have also not been to karate class since my last blog post! I tried going last night actually, but it seems class was canceled. The lights were out, and no one showed up for the 20 minutes that I waited there, besides a parent and his two kids who were also waiting. I hope it wasn't just that class started late. :-/

Okay, so, many, many things happened over this past month! My friend Oreo came to visit (I don't actually call him that; though it's possible that I called him that 10 years ago). Anyway, he is an old friend whom I hadn't seen since last summer (or earlier?) I think. We traveled quite a bit of places in Miyagi.

I met up with him on a Thursday. I was in Sendai that day for a work-related conference. Unfortunately, the last bus leaves pretty early, so we decided to save our Sendai festivities for later. On the following day, we went skiing! It was my first time, but Oreo is an expert, so he was showing me the ropes. For those who know anything about skiing: I spent most of my time in pizza. It was quite fun, but since I'm not any good, I was just stuck practicing the basics. I really need to learn how to properly stop (the turn-sideways version, not the falling over version).

Then on Saturday, we drove over to the local onsen and took a dip. There, we were talking with a couple naked old guys. Apparently, the hot spring that the water comes from is one kilometer down! Pretty awesome. After the onsen, I took us to a local steakhouse. They have amazing beef curry there, so we ordered that. Afterward, we hit up Sendai to check out their night life. Unfortunately, because of the season (read: effing cold), it was pretty dead. But we still walked around a bit and found a quaint little restaurant/bar place. The hosts were amusingly nice to us. We kept asking for their recommendations so they gladly said, "Leave it to us!" Though there was a point when they were trying to figure out what my background was. I overheard them say "Chinese [person]." But then they also said something like, "his Japanese is good!" Haha

On Sunday, I drove us up to Naruko Onsen, where we once again took a dip in the natural hot springs (fresh smell of sulfur and other minerals, yay!) and also saw some of the beautiful scenery. The mountains in that area had gotten hit with a lot of snow, so that in itself was pretty nice to see. Pretty slippery though. We also bought a bunch of small little omiyage for people. I got a set of chop sticks made out of cherry blossom wood!

On Monday, we went to Matsushima. But instead of walking along the long red bridge to one of the islands, we hopped on a boat and got a chance to see a bunch of the islands! It was a really fun ride. Of course I played, "I'm on a Boat!" by The Lonely Island. There were seagulls following the ship, and it was really amusing seeing them dive into the water as people threw shrimp chips/fries at them. I got some sweet video of that. Ah, and before we boarded the ship, we also visited some temple grounds and also ate some fresh Matsushima sushi! We had oysters, fatty tuna (YUM), and Sendai beef! Yes, that's right, BEEF SUSHI. It was surprisingly delicious.

The following day, I took Oreo to work with me, at the Elementary School, where he sat in on class and even answered a few questions. At night, we went out to karaoke with some friends, which was incredibly fun, but I wasn't able to hold my liquor very well. Hah, I'm so weak! On Wednesday, I took him to the Jr High in the morning, and he was quite a hit! He did a great job interacting with the students and forcing them to speak English to him without them being able to fall back on Japanese (like they do with me, because I am able to understand most of what they say). In the afternoon, he came with me to the other elementary school and even helped me teach class! It was really fun. On Thursday night, we went to a friend's house where she hosted a hot pot party. The people who came were all either English speakers or people who wanted to learn/improve their English, so it was good for Oreo to be there.

THE CAR STORY

Okay so the big car story takes place on that same Thursday. Oreo had intended to drive to the same mountain we went to in order to go skiing again. The route is very simple, so he knew how to get there, and I had let him practice in my car a few times so he was used to driving in Japan. Well, he drove to the mountain, and as he approached the top, the engine was dying, so he pulled into the first ski lodge (he wanted to go to the second one). When he finally parked, the engine had died.

He gave me a call and told me that there were three employees trying to help him with the car, but none of them could speak English and he can't speak Japanese so they were using hand drawn pictures to communicate. Eventually, after some discussion with me, my coworkers and those employees, Oreo decided to drive back to town. The car was able to start, but it just sounded weak, he said. Luckily, he made it back okay with no problems.

After school, one of my JTE's called his car man to come and take a look at my car. He arrived in a tow truck and took it away! The next day (Friday), he took apart my engine and tried to see what was wrong with it. He said that whatever problem it was was only fixable by replacing the entire engine. Knowing that it wasn't worth it, I said that I'll look for another car. He put the engine back together, and the car runs, but it feels weak. There is definitely less power than before, and the car will probably die in the near future. I can still drive it places, but I am trying my best to get my "poor man's dream car" (Toyota Celica GT-Four) as soon as possible. I need to find out how to get rid of this car, too.

It was a wonderful time, and all of the seemingly bad things are actually pieces of good fortune in disguise.

Word of the Day: 旅行「りょこう」 "ryokou" which means "trip" or "travel."

Words of Wisdom

2011-01-18T04:36:00.005-05:00

I learned a very interesting new phrase. 吾唯足知。「われただたるをしる。」 "Ware tada taru (wo) shiru." Its meaning is very similar to the phrase, "Be happy with what you have." (Literally, it says, "I know just enough.") Another way to put it is, "What I have is all I need." The most interesting thing about this phrase is that it can be written with just one 口 in the middle of the four other radicals, so that it looks something like this, found at Ryoanji (Temple), in Kyoto.

I had Karate practice last night. My body is so sore! Anyway, this time,　there were more students, so we actually had a more formal class. Interestingly enough, the other students were in 2nd, 4th, and 5th grades, and all at least Brown Belts. Hah! Wonderful. :-) At the end of class, we recited the Dojo-Kun, which is basically the school's motto or rules. Well, it's actually more like a "code of honor." There are five things, and each is numbered "1." because each is just as important as the other.

訓
一。　人格感性に努むること。
一。　誠の道を守ること。
一。　努力の精神を養うこと。
一。　礼儀を重んずること。
一。　血気の勇を戒むること。

Next time, I will explain them all. :-) But for now, I must take care of quite a few things, as tomorrow is the mid-year conference, a friend from the US is visiting this Thursday, I have to submit my test on (by?) Thursday, and I also have to submit my contract renewal yes/no sheet. So much to do, so little time!

Phrase of the day: 吾唯足知。

First Karate Practice

2011-01-10T08:02:00.003-05:00

I just got back from my first Karate practice here in Japan. And after over a decade of training in so many different styles, I couldn't help but think of a line from that mediocre movie starring Jackie Chan and Jet Li, The Forbidden Kingdom: "How can you fill your cup, if it's already full? Empty your cup." [Note: according to my friend Clint, who studies Kung Fu and Chinese Culture/History, the saying is actually quite old, so I need not worry. :-) Thanks, buddy!]

In that scene, the protagonist, whom I shall refer to as "Idiot," was discussing Kung Fu with Jackie. But every time Jackie would mention something, Idiot would say, "Oh yeah, yeah! I know that!" and proceed to annoy Jackie. Jackie told Idiot to fill his cup, which was clearly full. Idiot said, "I can't." To which Jackie replied with the above quote.

In order for Idiot to properly learn from Jackie and Jet, he must forget everything he thought he knew. I felt a little bit like Idiot during the practice. After years of practicing a martial art in a certain stance, it's difficult to train in a stance that is only similar to that stance, but not the same. To learn the nuances of a new style, one must (I must) unlearn habits acquired from previous training. Many martial artists would agree that it's actually more difficult learning a brand new style of martial art after building years of experience versus someone starting a martial art for the first time with no prior experience.

To break it down, what happened tonight was that my years of experience practicing American Kenpo Karate made it difficult for me to properly perform the Japanese Karate Kyokai Shotokan versions of techniques. I kept reverting back to the Kenpo style that has been ingrained into my body's muscle memory. It happened when I was practicing basic punches and kicks in basic stances, and it even occurred when I performed kata. At my home dojo in the US, my master adjusted the traditional Japanese kata to better fit the form of our style, and it works very well for its purpose. But it makes it difficult to learn the original versions. The good thing, though, is that it provides a good foundation, as I already know the basic movements; I must merely learn the differences between the details. But that might end up being harder anyway, haha.

In case you were curious, let me mention some of the differences that I experienced tonight. The forward stance. In Kenpo, it's more shallow. But in Shotokan, not only is it deeper; it changes depending on whether you're blocking or striking. At least, for the downward block and reverse punch. Whereas, in Kenpo, you merely have to change your arm placement and maintain the same stance. For things like middle inward block or rising block, as well, there were slight differences in the trajectory of the hands and movement of the arms. Slight, but enough to be incorrect.

So anyway, it was still a good time. I enjoyed it. I forgot to mention that another thing that made practice difficult was the language barrier. I simply never had the opportunity to learn any specific martial arts jargon in class, nor any words that would be used in the description of techniques. I'll describe more about Karate in a later post and about the history of this style versus the "other" Shotokan style. And I'm not talking about the one featured in Street Fighter.

Word of the Day: 空手道　「からてどう」　"karatedou", or "The way of the empty hand."

Coming of Age Day

2011-01-10T03:49:00.002-05:00

Happy Coming of Age Day! Not really sure how to say that in Japanese, or if there even is a way to say it. (Much like we don't say Happy Labor Day! in the US.) But Coming of Age Day is called 成人の日　「せいじんのひ」 "Seijin no Hi" in Japanese. Anyway, on this day, everyone who became a legal adult (age 20, in Japan) since last year's Coming of Age Day is allowed to get all dressed up and celebrate! This usually entails dressing up in a kimono (or suit and tie for the guys) and going to a shrine to bow, pray, and do the usual. I didn't go out today, seeing as how my Coming of Age was over half a decade ago (damn, I feel old saying that!).

Two days ago was the "cutting of the New Year's rice cake," or the 鏡開き　「かがみびらき」　"Kagami Biraki." This literally means "Opening the Mirror." It's because the mochi (rice cake) resembles the shape of a mirror. Or so I've been told. This ceremony was held in the 桜花館　「おうかかん」 "Oukakan", also known as the 武道館　「ぶどうかん」　"Budoukan": the Martial Arts Hall. (FYI, the Budoukan in town is named the Oukakan.) At the event were some traditional blessings and prayers, the first martial arts practices for the three major clubs, and eating of mochi! Yay!

I met the Karate Master. He came up right to me as soon as the ceremonial stuff was over (and before training) and we talked martial arts. It was strange though; one of the first things he did was to ask me which martial arts group I wanted to join. He seemed very eager to take me in as one of his students. And it seemed as though he had already heard of me and already knew of my desire to enroll in a local martial arts academy. After some discussion, I found out that the first practice of the year (after the Kagami Biraki) is tonight. At 7 PM. So, in less than an hour, I'll be out there! Oh boy. Wish me luck!

Oh, yeah, after the practice, we ate mochi soup! It was delicious! But they made me get seconds, and they filled the second bowl completely (and with a ton of mochi). I sat next to the Karate Master and he looked over at me, laughing when I looked like I was struggling finishing it all. After I was done, he said, "You must be tired!" (お疲れ様でした。　It's said at the end of a work day. Haha.)

Word of the day: 頑張ります！　「がんばります！」　"Ganbarimasu!" It means, "I'll do my best!"

Word of the Year

2011-01-06T02:15:00.002-05:00

I learned today, at Dictionary.com that the "Word of the Year" for 2010 was "epic."

What an utter disappointment. Well, at least it wasn't a surprise. I've heard this word used so often this past year or two that it's even become a part of my normal lexicon. It's annoying when words aren't used properly, but even I'm guilty of such crimes ("awesome"). But to hear that "epic" is the new "awesome" is...I don't know...a tad bit annoying. Perhaps because it's used primarily by the younger generation; like they're trying too hard to be cool or something. Anyway, I try to look at it the same way I look at Time Magazine's Person of the Year: the winner was chosen as a result of a combination of things, from popularity (person), usage (word), or otherwise something of a representation of a major event or occurrence that year. In Mark Zuckerberg's case, he was simply the biggest douche of 2010. Well, more like 2004. "Epic" was something like that. Just not nearly as bad.

On a related note, the kanji 暑 was chosen as the "Kanji of the Year" for 2010 here in Japan. It means "hot/heat," and describes the ridic heat in 2010. I personally would have chosen 高, as it means "high/tall," and can be used to describe both the weather and the high value of the Yen.

Kanji of the day: 帰 from 帰る　「かえる」 "kaeru," which means "to return (home)." 'Cause that's what I'm about to do! Peace out!

Long Time Gone

2011-01-05T18:53:00.006-05:00

So, it's been almost two months since I've published a legitimate blog post. For this, I sincerely apologize. I can come up with many explanations for why I haven't posted anything in a while, but it would best be said with these words: 申し訳ございません。 It is pronounced "moushiwake gozaimasen," and it means "I have no excuses," both literally and figuratively. Well, more literally, it means "there are no excuses," and the speech pattern is very humble. [My linguistic side just never seems to shut up.]

Anyway, I actually started a few blog posts in the past and never published them. I've taken hundreds of pictures in just these past couple months alone, and I want to show them to you. All of them! But I can't. So I wanted to show you a select few. And I will; I just have to pick them out. Ideally, I would intersperse the blog posts I wrote with various pictures relevant to the text. But I may instead just publish a post with a bunch of pictures. Or upload some to an online photo album (why can't any of them be user friendly?).

Anyway, when I publish the older posts, you'll probably have to scroll down to that month (November, December) to read them. I'll make a new post each time I publish and old one just to inform you of the update.

Time to write!

UPDATE: November 23rd's post!

UPDATE: Thanksgiving post!

UPDATE: The December Issue!

UPDATE: Happy New Year!

Word of the day: 合いたかった　「あいたかった」 "aitakatta," which means, "I miss you." Literally, "I wanted to see/meet you."

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T10:49:00.002-05:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Phrase of the day: 明けましておめでとうございます！「あけましておめでとうございます！」 "Akemashite omedetou gozaimasu!" You can guess what it means. :-) Literally, it means "Congratulations for opening!" or something along those lines.

The December Issue

2010-12-31T09:42:00.004-05:00

Unfortunately, I didn't start any blogs in the middle of December and save it for later like I did the November ones. Except for this one, on December 31st, minutes before the end of 2010 and the beginning of 2011. So I'll use this space here to summarize my December activities.

December is a wonderful month; my favorite month of the year. In December are my favorite holiday, long breaks from school or work, a festive atmosphere, shopping sales at nearly every store, opportunities to spend time with friends and family, and my birthday. There are many reasons to love December. But also many reasons to dislike it: it's probably the most expensive month, it has the shortest day of the year (Winter Solstice), and it's when the cold really starts kicking in. But I like to think the good outweighs the bad, so I still like it. Maybe that's the optimist in me speaking.

Anyway, the month was really fun! For my birthday, some of my coworkers and I went out to Sendai to a really nice restaurant. We ate amazingly delicious food, and they surprised me with a cake! Everyone in the restaurant clapped for me; it was so nice. ^_^ I was surprised to see American-style sushi rolls there, as well. You know, the kind that has the rice outside the seaweed wrapper rather than inside. Because the rice is outside, the roll is usually larger, so you can fit more ingredients in it. Traditional Japanese sushi rolls usually only have one ingredient. The following week, another friend took me out to Sendai (near the nice restaurant) to a cozy American-style diner/deli. The specialty? Burgers. I happily feasted on a large burger and onion rings. And a milk shake. Rock on.

While in Sendai, I saw "光のページェント", or "Pageant of Light." A street in Sendai gets all of its trees completely lit up with white Christmas lights. Looks beautiful! I'll post a picture in an update.

The first snowfall occurred! Not too different from the US. But the scenery is different. Again, pictures later.

A friend and I stuffed ourselves at a kaitenzushi place. 13 plates each! That's 27 pieces (one tray had 3 rather than 2), and a bowl of soup! Insanity.

A co-worker invited me to his house to have lunch. I happily accepted of course! He is the youngest employee at the Junior High. The funny thing is that he had actually invited me over in November, but he never set a date, so I just let it slide until he brought it up again. Sometime earlier in December, he mentioned that his sister kept asking when I was going to come over; I had forgotten that one of my students was his sister. O.o Anyway, when I finally came over, his mother had prepared a wonderful lunch, with which I stuffed myself silly. We played some Mario on their Wii, then went outside to play catch. It had been years since I had last thrown a ball, but despite my lack of practice, it was still really fun. His sister had a wicked throw. (She's on the baseball team!) His other sister couldn't catch (or throw) very well, but it was still fun. Their family gave me quite a bit of food to take home; yummy, delicious, homemade Japanese food. I am drooling just thinking about it.

So in December, because it is the end of the year, there are many "End of the Year Parties," known as 忘年会　「ぼうねんかい」 "bounenkai." Literally, it means "forget year meeting." So I guess you're supposed to party all night and drink until you forget all the bad things that happened that year? Or maybe it's a party so you don't forget? Anyway, every school and every organization and every company seems to hold one. Being involved with so many groups here, I was of course invited to a bunch, but unfortunately due to lack of funds, I could only attend...four, or so.

The first was a very small, private party, with the same people who threw me a birthday party, plus one more person. It was mad fun, and we held it at a restaurant in Sendai that Shoe and I have grown to love (and frequent recently). The next one was held by an international organization in a neighboring town, where I met new friends and ate yummy home-made food. There was so much there that I took food home to last me a couple days!

The biggest 忘年会 that I went to was held by the junior high school. We went to Naruko Onsen, which is a city in the north famous for its hot springs! Naturally, we stayed overnight to eat, drink, and bath in the hot springs. And let me tell you, that water is damn hot. For some reason, even though I was born in the tropics, my body has a tendency to be able to handle colder temperatures much better than hotter temperatures. In any case, I still took a dip, in both the inside bath and the outside bath. The outside bath was amaaaaaaaaazing. Unfortunately, it was so windy, that the steam that rose from the hot bath was quickly blown away. But for the moments that it lingered, it had a wonderful atmosphere. Minus the sulfuric smell of the natural hot spring. And the naked old men.

After the 忘年会 were all over, my vacation started! Winter break was a BLAST. My girlfriend came up from Kyoto to visit me, and seeing her always makes me happy. We did some shopping in Sendai, where she got a vest, and where I had purchased a vest just a couple weeks earlier. We also checked out Sendai's 光のページェント, this time, walking down the entire street rather than driving through it.

Christmas was a good time. My girlfriend got me a much-needed soft, beautiful scarf, and I got her many socks and stockings. And an iPod case. And Utada Hikaru's new album. And a cute leather papillon keychain. And something else, I think, but I can't recall it at the moment. Oh, right, a Christmas Cake for us to share. This brings me to a side note.

For some reason, Christmas is really improperly/incorrectly represented in Japan; it's extremely misunderstood. I thought it was bad enough in the US, but I've grown to accept its commercialization, mainly because I enjoy the atmosphere, the "Santa side," and because I'm not religious. But Japan. Oh, Japan. According to my friend Ken, Christmas in Japan is about love. But not the way it is in the US, where it's about the love shared between families and friends; no, here in Japan, it's about the love between couples, not unlike Valentine's Day. And on Christmas in Japan, the dinner usually includes a big chicken dinner from KFC (lol) and a Christmas Cake. Now conveniently, this way of celebration worked out for my girlfriend and me, where none of our family members are in Japan, so it was best to spend it with one another. But rather than grab KFC, my girlfriend wanted to cook dinner for me.

And boy did she prepare a feast! It included home-made karaage chicken, her specialty home-made macaroni and cheese, and fresh broccoli and asparagus. My contribution was a tray of appetizers, the cake, and a bottle of chardonnay. I have to emphasize "home-made" with my girlfriend's dishes, because it was a much larger endeavor than the easy Kraft Mac 'n Cheese or preparing fried chicken.

Later that evening, we watched Elf. Good times. Later than week, we watched that wretched Tekken movie. And I thought Dragonball: Evolution was bad. Well, okay, both movies are just as bad as the other. Any of the Street Fighter movies can be thrown in with that pile of worthless crap. So, to get enjoyment from the movie? My girlfriend and I turned it into a drinking game: take a drink whenever something non-canonical or nonsensical comes up. I was actually starting to run out of drink, so we had to slow it down (haha).

My friend Nana-chan came to visit before the end of the year. So the three of us had lots of fun, spending time with my friend Shoe or Ken, going to various places to shop, watching tons of movies, going out to karaoke, and even taking a dip in the local onsen for the first time! On New Year's Eve, we went to Shiogama Shrine, which sits at the top of a 220-step staircase, and with hundreds (thousands?) of Japanese people, we participated in the annual bowing and prayers during this time. I was happy to do so. I also bought a couple charms; one for health, and one that was in the shape of a giant arrow. I didn't know charms could be so bad-ass.

December 31: I am at Shiogama Shrine to check out how the New Year celebration is done in Japan!

Phrase of the day: 良いお年を！「よいおとしを！」 "Yoi otoshi wo!" It's a phrase said at the end of the year, which literally means, "(Have) a good year!"

Thanksgiving

2010-11-30T08:35:00.002-05:00

Oh, Thanksgiving. So, poor planning resulted in a small two-person fun-fest what was supposed to be a 4-5 person pot luck. To be honest, it was probably better off as a two-person fun-fest; mainly because the two of us couldn't cook very well. Nor did we have anything prepared 'til late at night, so if there were any other guests present, they'd probably be pretty pissed off.

So, my buddy John invited me and a few other ALTs to his place the weekend after Thanksgiving for some festivities. He ordered a hefty amount of turkey meat that we would cook (bake?) and we had planned to hit up the supermarket for ingredients for other Thanksgiving dishes: mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, corn-on-the-cob. The image in our minds was a grand feast.

Instead, we got a grand laugh.

First off, the turkey meat we had, while very little compared to a normal turkey, was still pretty damn huge for the two of us. He ordered enough meat for 5 people; heavy helpings each (so more like 8-10 people). So with just the two of us, we decided to use a little less than half of the meat. Well, with a big hunk of meat and no oven, how were we supposed to cook it? Oh, right, with the microwave.

So, the fascinating thing about Japanese microwaves is that they are part microwave and part oven. I don't really know how the oven part works; maybe just like any other oven? I imagine the microwave parts would get destroyed with that sort of heat. But apparently not, 'cause that's what it was designed to do. So yeah, we used the microwave as an oven. Neither of us really knew what we were doing, so we used our best judgment and thought things out. The turkey turned out well cooked; not burned, but a bit dry. But at least it wasn't raw. Objective completed!

At the supermarket, it was surprisingly difficult to find certain ingredients. Like corn. Eventually we found it...frozen... and not on the cob. John was disappointed. He was looking forward to it quite a bit. We bought the frozen corn anyway, but didn't end up eating it 'cause we were stuffed from the other dishes.

John made the mashed potatoes and I made the stuffing. And DAMN was it good! We didn't have any stock for the stuffing, so John suggested using the soup from a can of Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup. What a wonderful suggestion, 'cause it tasted damn awesome. I just wish I cut the bread cubes and celery bits a little smaller. The mashed potatoes turned out pretty well, too! But what didn't was the gravy.

We had never made gravy ourselves before, so we scoured the internet for some recipes. The main idea was to use the turkey runoff as the base for the gravy, add some salt and spices to flavor it, and add flour to thicken it up. Weeelllll, we added too much flour, so it basically tasted like uncooked pancake batter. So, after using some of the gravy for the turkey, we cooked the batter and made a "gravy pancake."

We also decided to make Yaki-Campbells. It's like Yakisoba, but instead of frying soba noodles, we fried the remaining contents of the can of chicken noodle soup. Nice. What a feast.

Word of the day: 感謝祭「かんしゃさい」 "kanshasai," which means "Thanksgiving (Day)."

Fall Leaves

2010-11-23T20:09:00.004-05:00

The leaves in autumn
Fall ever so gracefully.
A beautiful sight.

秋の葉は
淑やか落ちて
美しい。

So, the leaves have been gradually changing over the past month. It starts in northern Japan, and sweeps the country towards the south, like a shock wave. This means that the leaves changed color up here before Kyoto. That also means that I had the opportunity to see beautiful mountainside views of the leaves up here, then to travel down to Kyoto and see them again! So I did. I took so many pictures! I will post some up here for you all to enjoy. Actually, I went to three different sites. The first was after the Fall Festival, a few weeks ago. Then after that, (a week or two later), I went to Naruko with Shoe to check out the leaves there. Gorgeous. Then this past weekend, I went to Kyoto again! My girlfriend and I visited Arashi Yama (literally, "Storm Mountain") and saw the beautiful leaves, next to the beautiful river, with beautiful geisha tending to their clients. It was quite a beautiful weekend.

My girlfriend and I were both recovering from a cough/cold, so we couldn't do too much, but we still explored and did everything we could. Some fun activities include:

1) Going to a ninja themed restaurant!
2) Participating in tea ceremony!
3) Eating awesome delicious huge fresh sushi with an old college buddy!
4) Winning Evangelion figurines from an impossibly difficult UFO catcher with said buddy! (Actually he did all the work, haha.)
5) Watching a master flower arranger arrange flowers!
6) Watching a kyougen play! (old-style comedy play)
7) Watching a dance performed by two beautiful geiko!
8) Watching a bunraku (puppet) performance!

It was definitely my most event-filled trip to Kyoto thus far. I will try to post pictures...somehow. Can't do it right now, 'cause this computer I'm using at work is just too old for that!

Word of the day: 美しい　「うつくしい」 "utsukushii," which means "beautiful."

Ninja Post

2010-11-16T19:15:00.004-05:00

I have lots of news! Well, not lots, actually. Just a little. And as per usual, I shall write things in reverse chronological order. And in a numbered outline format. 'Cause it's annoying. :-)

1) I got my reappointment contract today. It's due on February 4th, but my supervisor (Supes) asked that I decide by January 20th. Way to make a difficult decision even more difficult. >_<

2) I am in the Osaki City newspaper! Osaki is the large city north of me; it's not actually a "city" per se; more like a district or county. 'Cause there are many towns and an actual city in Osaki. But yeah, a photographer came one day after I was teaching the Kindergarten class, and the other teachers told me to join in the picture! So I did! I'll try to take a picture of it and post it up, if I can.

3) It is cold. Like, really cold. It was 3°C this morning. BRRRRR!!! It sucks. I miss insulation badly. My heaters heat really well, and I thought I got used to the smell, but I was wrong. Well, I should put it this way; when the heaters are running, it smells fine. But when the heaters are either starting or stopping, they ventilate themselves, so the fumes get all spread out. It's especially annoying when I turn off my bedroom heater before I go to sleep.

4) There are a bunch of games that have been released (or are coming out soon) that I really want to buy. But they're hard to get, 'cause I have to import them from the US. But that means I have to buy a PS3. And that also means I have to connect it to my SDTV. Which finally means I have to find the time to play it.

5) I have a hard enough time finding the motivation to study, let alone properly manage my schedule. Well, I've been keeping up with all of my normal responsibilities; just not studying Japanese. Maybe it's because of how the text book is set up? You know: really annoyingly.

6) So, my car broke down the other day. Well, not exactly. But over the past two or three weeks, it had been giving me a slight bit of trouble. It wouldn't start right away; I would turn the key, and the engine would chug a couple times before it started. It was a sign that I needed a new battery. So I asked my friends about it that weekend; how to go about getting a new battery, and possibly an oil change. I had a feeling the oil needed to be changed. Well, one day, I was driving towards a convenience store about 3 kilometers south. When I got to about 2.5, I noticed the car started acting funny; something felt weird. Well, when I pulled into the parking lot, the car was slowly choking, and finally it just DIED, two feet before I was completely in the spot. So, I put it in park, pulled the handbrake, and stepped outside. I had a feeling something was wrong with the oil. I don't know how I knew this, but I knew I had to check it. So I went inside, bought a towel to use as a rag, some work gloves, and some food (which was my original intent). I went back outside to my car, popped the hood, and began the procedures. When I checked the dipstick for the oil level, my heart dropped. There was barely enough oil to touch the dip stick, let alone the minimum level that should be in the car. So, I had to fill it up. Thankfully, my predecessor left a container of engine oil in the trunk, in case something like this should happen (Thank you!); I guess it was foreseen? Or it happened before? Anyway, I was trying to open the container. For about five minutes. No matter how I turned the cap, it wouldn't open. Finally, I mustered up the courage to ask a passersby. The guy was like, "Here, do this," and he touched the cap. With a *pop!* it magically opened. Feeling like an idiot, I thanked him and took it back. I emptied the container, and filled the oil up so that it was right in the middle of the appropriate level according to the dipstick. It really must have been foreseen. So, after letting the car run for a few minutes, the engine sounded normal again, and I drove safely home.

7) One day, I couldn't even start my car. "Dammit! Effin' battery!" I shouted. I stepped out of the car, bowed to a neighbor as he was throwing out the trash, and said, "My car won't..." I couldn't think of how to say it, so I went Filipino-style, "My car won't open." He asked, "Is it locked? Did you use your key?" And I was showing him that it wouldn't start. I demonstrated. We agreed that it was the battery. So, he waved to a guy in a truck that was driving by. They looked like old friends; the first guy told the truck guy what the problem was, so the truck guy drove off to find the jumper cables. Eventually, he came back, and my neighbor helped me get my car started. Having arrived at work a couple minutes late (I called as soon as I couldn't start my car), I explained the situation, and one of my JTE's called his mechanic to come in and change out the battery. That day. In the school parking lot. What nice guys! And what great service!

8) Kyoto soon. :-)

Word of the day: 面倒くさい　「めんどうくさい」　"mendou-kusai," which means "troublesome" or "annoying." I added the hyphen because it is actually a root word, mendou, which itself means "an annoyance" or "a troublesome (thing)," and "kusai," which means "reeks of". "Kusai" can be used to say, "smelly" or "stinky." Like, "Gross, man, that stinks! くさい！"

Remember, Remember

2010-11-09T21:30:00.010-05:00

So, it's November. I won't be the guy who posts the Guy Fawkes Night rhyme here because he thinks it's cool just 'cause he saw it in V for Vendetta. No. Not me. Instead, I'll link it here. And for the sake of battling ignorance, I want to point out that it is a national holiday in Great Britain because Guy Fawkes (and his crew) FAILED. Just keep that in mind next time you're cosplaying as V. :-)

So, speaking of cosplaying, I wish I had some sort of costume for Halloween. I mean, I dressed up as this on Halloween night, but I couldn't go trick-or-treating with it, haha.

The night before, I was invited to a dinner/drinking party (nomihodai) with a friend I met through JET and her friends who live in Sendai. It was nice meeting and greeting a new crew, but I felt completely underdressed. She failed to tell me that it was a costume party until I was on the bus! Oh well. I had my new hat on me, so I just said I was Michael Jackson. If I had a vest, I could have gone as Daichi Miura! Oh well...

Speaking of which, I'm trying to learn this song and the corresponding dance for the next time I do karaoke. It's called "The Answer."

And speaking of dancing, a new gaming peripheral for the Xbox 360 was released called the Kinect. It's a pretty remarkable piece of hardware. It's basically a camera with three separate lenses (or rather, three separate cameras), with the technology to track your every movement and apply them to the game. So essentially, the Kinect takes the best parts of the Nintendo Wii controller and the Sony Playstation Eye and puts them together. No need to hold anything (like the Wiimote) because it uses a camera (like the Eye), but the player's movements and actions control the game like a normal hand-held controller. For example, if you're playing a tennis game, just swing your arm as if you were holding a tennis racket, and the game will register the swing. Badabing, no more need for a controller! Now clearly, this sort of setup only allows for very specific types of games, but the possibilities are nigh endless. Just no fighting games...or RPGs... But yeah, check out this sweet dance video, courtesy of Justin from The Rumble Pack!

So these past two weeks have been pretty standard fare. The usual schedule; nothing really crazy. A lady from the Community Center came to me today to discuss a little of the eikaiwa; but it hasn't been decided yet when it's actually going to start. She just mentioned some things like holiday activities.

Oh, another thing I wanted to mention was that today was the last day of Judo for my students. I was sad to hear that because I wanted to join my 3rd Year Homeroom 1 class for one of their classes. I had actually helped a couple times before by showing them how to roll properly. Well, the 3-1 class had their final Judo practice last Friday. So I was invited to the final Judo class for the whole school. It was today, with the 3rd Year Homeroom 2 class. Ohhh boy was that fun!

I had matches with three students, two of whom are taller than me, and the other is my height. One of the kids is actually the tallest person in the school; probably the entire town! So, I used his height to my advantage and did my favorite throw: morote seoinage, which is an over-the-shoulder throw. That technique won me the match. Against the first kid, I used an ogoshi, in which I throw the opponent over my hip by grabbing his neck with my arm and pulling him over. Against the third kid, the one who was my height (maybe shorter), I did a similar throw, but instead of having my arm around his neck, it was around his back (under his arm, rather than over it). Again, it won me the match. What was amusing was watching them struggle trying to throw me for the first 60 seconds. I let them waste energy. :-) The only problem with all of this is that afterward, my lower back was sore from all of the twisting and using muscles that haven't been used in so long!

Lastly, I'll mention that my next post will be about the Aki Matsuri this past Sunday and the subsequent scenery-viewing. I'll post some nice pictures. ^_^

Anyway, time to hit the sack.

Word of the day: 踊る　「おどる」　"odoru," which means "to dance." Well, it means "I/he/she/you/it/they dance(s)". 踊り　「おどり」　"odori" is "a dance."

COLD

2010-10-27T09:35:00.002-04:00

WHY IS IT SO COLD HERE!??!

So, two days ago, a massive cold overtook Japan from north to south. It snowed in Hokkaido! It even snowed on a mountain nearby! And it's even cold in Kyoto! :-(

Speaking of Kyoto...so, I was there last weekend! It was fun to visit my girlfriend. On Friday, we saw the Jidai Matsuri, which was surprisingly short. It was just a parade of people in various attire from the olden days to pre-modern days. Later that evening, my girlfriend and I went to Gion, where the Geisha roam the streets. We saw one, actually! She was a Maiko, an apprentice geisha.

Finally, that night, my girlfriend had a small pot luck dinner, where she invited three of her Japanese friends over, and the four of them each had some sort of dish to share. My girl made her awesomely cheesey mac-and-cheese. There was also chirashi-zushi, hot cakes, and Ritz crackers. *nice* We also watched The Hunchback of Notre Dame; fun times.

On Saturday, I got to eat ramen at what as become my favorite ramen shop. SOOOOO GOOOOOOD. Then later that evening, we hit up Fushimi Inari, which is the famous shrine with hundreds of torii gates along the trails that lead up the mountain. My girlfriend and I walked the ENTIRE LENGTH of the trail! It took THREE HOURS. And it was COLD. And DARK. It was really, really creepy and surprisingly scary at some points. Plus, there are families that live up there, who tend to the various shrines. So sometimes we could hear them make sounds, which, in the dead of night, is damn frightening. Anyway, the whole trip with breathtaking. It was amazing. And near the top, there was a beautiful view of western Kyoto.

So yeah, Kyoto was awesome. And the cold is not.

Yesterday, Shoe came over and taught me how to use the kerosene heater. We cleaned them up (I have two) and turned them on. It is surprisingly efficient. It heats up instantly, heats the room up quickly, and is relatively inexpensive compared to the electric heaters. But the problems are that the kerosene smell is awful and the room must be ventilated every hour to insure that the toxic fumes (carbon monoxide) don't kill me. But in ventilating the room, the heat escapes. To deal with this problem, I was told that if you just keep the window a little open, the room is both ventilated and keeps the heat from escaping too quickly. Nice. But man...the smell sucks. And so does the cold.

Word of the day: 灯油　「とうゆ」　"touyu," or "kerosene."

So busy!

2010-10-18T04:19:00.005-04:00

Wow, I've been so busy these past couple weeks! My time at the Junior High has been spent helping my students prepare for the Culture Festival that happened this past weekend. It was basically a collection of performances by the students; mostly musical. Some danced, some played an instrument, all of them sang; it was a good time. I was the camera man. At one point, I was recording video using both the school's digital camcorder and my own iPhone. Hah! Hilarious. And kinda difficult.

And this week, both of my elementary schools are throwing a show with singing, dancing, and acting performances, too! I saw the dress rehearsal today; I was impressed by their ability to remember all of those lines! Especially the ones who were doing rapid-fire paragraph-long speeches as comic relief. They were also wearing various types of clothes, from school uniforms to kimono, to farmers' clothing. It was very interesting. Oh, and the fifth graders did a taiko drum performance followed by yosakoi dancing. Rock on!

Ah, Yosakoi. So, there was a yosakoi festival last week in Sendai. It was splendid. I will post a video here so you know what yosakoi is; or better yet, just do a search on google and youtube so you can read info and watch some dances. It's awesome.

This week, I just got my JET Programme Japanese Language Course Textbook and Workbook. Being placed into the advanced level, I have been given text books whose lessons are in Japanese. This will provide good reading practice and introductions to a wealth of new vocabulary. What sucks is that the first few lessons will be super tough, 'cause I'll have to stop every 30 seconds to look up a word I don't know that's in the lesson. >.< The workbook I was given has 504 kanji; most of which I've never learned before, or even seen. This is gonna be a challenge! I need to figure out how to pace myself for this. Let's break it down.

The course is split up into six textbooks, each distributed one month apart, from October 18 to March 17. We are given about a month and a half to complete each book, take a 50-question multiple choice test, and mail the test to the language center. The lessons in the book are designed to be completed on a daily basis over a span of four weeks; each lesson is four pages long, and there are five lessons per week, for a total of 20 lessons per book. So, it's already established that I'll be doing 4 pages of lessons per day. But what's unclear is the kanji workbook.

The kanji workbook was designed for self-study, and it is not included in the test. There are 504 kanji that the book gives. So if I split it up as evenly as possible, that means 84 kanji per month, or 21 kanji per week. Which means 4-5 kanji per lesson. That's not bad. I think.

The thing is, this is the breakdown for the kanji if I want to study them in the traditional fashion. But I've observed that it's much easier to forget kanji when it's learned in this way, and Heisig's method seems to actually work; it works in both remembering the meaning and how to write the kanji. So, I think I'll supplement my JET kanji studies with lessons from Heisig. This ends up doubling the amount of kanji I learn per day, and I'll go through 1000 by next April. But actually...I had this crazy idea in my head that I could get through all 1945 joyo kanji by this time, next year. Which, I guess is possible, if I maintain that pace of 42 kanji/week. Damn, that's 8-9 kanji a day. Back in college, we had 13 kanji a week, or so. Then again, I usually didn't study until the night before for an hour, and I managed to remember them. Alright, it's doable. I just have to bust my ass. :-)

Let me end this post by circling back to the topic I opened with: festivals. There is a massive Jidai Matsuri in Kyoto this weekend. Actually, it's this Friday. And I REALLY WANT TO SEE IT. So that means I'll be calling off work for the first time this week. Neat. I'm also excited to see my girlfriend. She's planning a little get-together/movie night with some friends, so I'll get to meet them and watch a good ol' Disney movie. We'll also check out another temple this weekend. It'll be great!

Side note: please read the comments of my previous post to find out what I learned about the milk here in Japan!

Word of the Day: 忙しい　「いそがしい」 "isogashii," which means "busy."

October already?

2010-10-07T05:12:00.008-04:00

I can't believe I've already been living in Japan for over two months! It really doesn't feel like that. It feels more like...a couple weeks. I was expecting that my language ability would be spectacular by now. But really, it still feels like it's plateaued, though I know that I've gained a few things, like new vocabulary, a bit of new grammar, some local dialect, and new kanji. So I guess I have improved a bit. But I suppose I'm just frustrated about not being able to understand everything that people are saying around me, or even directly to me.

Today, one of the teachers was asking the other teachers what he should do or where he should go for this three-day weekend. After some discussion, he was excited to have decided to go to Tokyo Tower. But besides those main parts, I couldn't understand what they were talking about. And just a few minutes ago, I got back from the convenience store, having purchased some food. When I was buying the siopao (a Chinese pork bun; I forget what they call them here), the clerk was asking me something. I had no idea what she said. The only thing I caught was the "-masu ka" at the end of the sentence, indicating that it was a question. So I quickly explained that "I had just moved to Japan (so my language skills suck)...", so she said "ah" and pulled out a plastic bag. I didn't even hear the word for bag (fukuro)! Maybe she was asking something along the lines of, "For here or to go?"

Then there's my students...I don't understand half of what they say. Especially the little ones, 'cause they mumble or they're so quiet or they're asking me something using little-kid vocabulary. Don't talk about bugs, ask me something about the embassy or the library! Speaking of students, I keep forgetting that one of my junior high kids (3rd year, so, equivalent to a 9th grader in the US) lived in the US for five years! The reason I keep forgetting is because whenever I see her, she rarely ever speaks English to me. Even when I grade her homework, she is always one of the top students, but not significantly better or more creative than the others.

Change of topic; I've discovered something that's baffling, amazing, and after further thought, a little troubling: I can drink the milk here. For those who don't know, I suffer from adult-type hypolactasia, also known as lactase non-persistence. Or, in layman's terms, lactose intolerance. Because I am lactose intolerant, I cannot drink a normal glass of milk without having intestinal discomfort. I won't go into detail, but lactose intolerance SUCKS. Especially because I love milk and dairy products: ice cream, cream sauces, cheese, milk-based drinks (including my awesome White Filipino). It's not very severe, so I can actually enjoy the foods without too much of an issue, but it's when I drink a glass of milk that I really feel the effects of lactose intolerance. So, to get around this problem, I take lactase enzyme supplements when I eat or drink dairy products. They work fantastically well.

At school, in both the JHS and ES, milk is provided as the drink that accompanies the school lunch. I made sure to pack a two-month supply of lactase enzymes in my suitcase before I moved to Japan. Welllll, it's been two months, and my supply is incredibly low. So I searched online if it was possible to buy lactase enzymes (or Lactaid brand milk) in Japan; and I even looked at various stores, including a large pharmacy (like a big CVS or Rite Aid), but it was a no go. One of the things I found online, though, was that someone had mentioned that a friend of theirs who was lactose intolerant didn't have problems in Japan. I pondered this. And I needed a solution to my problem of running out of lactase enzymes. I wanted to test it. So, I did.

I drank a tall glass of milk, into which I added this coffee mix (turning it into "coffee milk," a delicious drink you can find at any convenience store or supermarket). After having finished it, I didn't feel a thing! Normally, I would feel the effects within 15 minutes of drinking it; sometimes even before I finished the drink. But no, nothing. So, I tested it again the next day, and drank another coffee milk drink from a carton. Again, no issues. Hmm... Okay, the best way to test it is to use the real, pure, genuine milk that we get at school. During my first week of eating school lunch, I actually had to run to the bathroom after having drank the milk, even though I took a lactase enzyme tablet. The stuff was so thick that I could swear it's cream. (Japan loves its whole milk.) So, the day of reckoning came.

Two days ago, I drank the carton of milk at the ES. I accidentally left my lactase in my bag downstairs, too, so I had to drink it straight. I was a little nervous, because I had to teach classes in the afternoon. I didn't want to feel discomfort or have to run to the bathroom during class. Well, thankfully, the test provided good results! Again, I didn't experience any problems! I was happily surprised (or rather, relieved for the lack of "surprise"). I tested it again today, at the JHS. Again, good news.

So what's the deal? Why am I lactose intolerant in the US, but seemingly, not in Japan? What's the difference between the milk in the US versus the milk in Japan? Is it 'cause it's so damn creamy? No, that can't be it... Oh, I know.

The milk in the US is pasteurized.

What does this have to do with anything? And how can stopping a drink from being made safer possibly improve its drinkability? Well, I heard from my Canadian and American friends this past weekend that the milk here in Japan is not pasteurized. Having heard this, I was a little troubled. I know of a man in Pittsburgh who was hospitalized because his family drank a batch of bad unpasteurized milk. Not that it had "gone bad," but rather, it still contained microbes which were responsible for making his entire family get sick. So, I am well aware of the dangers of unpasteurized milk. For those who don't know, the process involves heating the milk to a certain temperature to kill all of the bacteria and other microbes that might be inside. Well, if milk is left unpasteurized, placed into a milk carton, and is consumed by someone, then that person is also drinking whatever microbes may still be present in the milk.

Now, keep in mind that not all microbes are bad. We use bacteria to make many products, including yogurt. So I speculated that perhaps the milk here in Japan contains a certain microbe that metabolizes the lactase sugar in the milk and produces very little or no bad waste products that would make us experience discomfort. If it metabolizes the lactase, then the bacteria in our intestines can't use the lactase. Normally, if the bacteria in our intestines eats lactose, the process of metabolizing it produces waste products that lead to the symptoms of lactose intolerance. But lactic acid bacteria will turn the lactose into fatty acids and other useful things without creating any troublesome products. So yeah...I'm thinking that perhaps because the milk in Japan is not pasteurized (so I've been told), then maybe it contains the wonderful lactic acid bacteria that allows me to drink milk without any gastrointestinal problems! Yay!

Now, this is all just speculation, and the only proof I have to back this up are my own experiences. There is no true scientific evidence. And I still believe that the risks of drinking unpasteurized milk outweighs the satisfaction, and if I had a choice, I would rather drink pasteurized milk with a tablet of lactase enzymes.

Speaking of scientific evidence (and such), I want to wish Richard Heck, Eiichi Negishi, and Akira Suzuki a huge congratulations for winning the 2010 Nobel Prize in Chemistry today! Dr. Heck lives in the Philippines (Professor Emeritus, Univ. of Delaware), and the two other winners are Japanese; one is from Purdue University and the other is from Hokkaido University.

Word of the day: 牛乳　「ぎゅうにゅう」　"gyuunyuu," or "milk." Literally, "cow milk."

Lesson Planning and Teaching

2010-10-05T20:08:00.006-04:00

Well, 'tis been a while since we last chatted! Or rather, since I wasn't too lazy to write a new post. Also, it's October! I've lived here for two months already! I can't believe it! A few things that have happened recently are that I bought a track suit, and I wore it for the first time two days ago when I went jogging. Well, I also wore it over the weekend to sleep in (just the pants). Today I am wearing them again because the kids at the nursery school are "training" for their field day this weekend. I will also teach in these clothes at the other elementary school today.

This may sound strange to you. You know, wearing a track suit at school. In the US, we would only see gym teachers and the like wearing track suits. Everyone else was usually in business casual or business formal. But in Japan...ho ho...no, that isn't the case. Nearly everyone at the elementary schools wear track suits (even one of the school advisers who sits next to the vice principal!) and even at the junior high, the teachers change into their track suits as soon as they get there in the morning, or some time around lunch. I found it interesting. And kind of strange. Strange, because the vice principal at the elementary school allows us to wear track suits, but he doesn't allow us to wear jeans. What's the deal with that? Some dressed up in dark-wash jeans with a polo shirt and a blazer looks far more "proper" than someone in a track suit. Blows my mind. And thinking about it kinda pisses me off, 'cause I really want to wear the above-mentioned outfit at school, haha.

Anyway, I got a request and dedication. The request was to make this blog post about teaching. So like, lesson planning, teaching methods, and what I actually DO at school. Aaaaaaand, this post is dedicated to all of the people teaching English, from American English teachers teaching English in the US, to English teachers teaching English as a foreign/second language in non-English-speaking nations.

So what do I do as an ALT? Well, one must first consider my title as an ALT: Assistant Language Teacher. I am an assistant. Therefore, the bulk of the work is (supposed to be) done by the JTE, or Japanese Teacher of English. A concept known as "Team Teaching" is emphasized at my schools. In Team Teaching, the JTE, ALT, and home room teacher all work together to teach the students the lesson. But depending on the school, the roles of everyone may differ drastically. The difference may occur at different school systems, or even within the same school district.

For example, a friend of mine who is also a fellow ALT is responsible for creating the lesson plan and presenting it at one of his many elementary schools. But at another one of his schools, the homeroom teacher barely uses him; the teacher even plays a CD (with recorded voices/readings) while the ALT is there! I have observed that there is a JTE at the junior high and high schools, but not necessarily at the elementary schools.

So, what's my case like? Well, I teach at four locations currently; soon to be five. My base school is a junior high (which I'll refer to as JHS), where I teach three days a week. On my other two days, I visit two elementary schools (which I'll call ES1 and ES2) and a nursery school (NS) every other week. I was told two months ago that I'll be holding weekly (or biweekly?) eikaiwa "English conversation classes" in October. Not sure when that starts, to be honest.

So, at the JHS, there are three grade levels, 1, 2, and 3. These grade levels are equivalent to 7th, 8th, and 9th grades in the US, respectively. At the ES's, it is K-6, like the US. There are two JTE's at my JHS; one for 1st and 3rd grade, and one for 2nd grade. Though sometimes, all three of us will Team Teach together; actually, this only happened once, so I'm not sure when it will happen again (it was on a Monday, and nearly all of the Monday schedules have been messed up over the past two months due to holidays or special weekend events that cause Monday classes to be canceled). Because Mondays are messed up, I have only had the opportunity to work with the 2nd grade JTE a few times. That said, I can't really describe how he uses me in class...besides this: he hasn't discussed with me any real lesson plans. Every time I was in class with him thus far, we had a simple activity were I wasn't really needed. Like...making name cards with an English introduction. Or...playing computer games/typing games with the special needs kids. Or...watching a DVD with them. Anyway, I digress.

I work pretty closely with the other JHS JTE. He has me produce the "Mr. Harold version" of text book conversations/paragraphs for both the 1st years and 3rd years. Then he passes them out in class and has them translate my English sentences into Japanese! It's great practice. Oftentimes, I'll use interesting or difficult vocabulary that forces them to look up the words. He believes that because I wrote the sentences, the students will be more motivated to translate it to see what I wrote. Oh, and he also makes them write their own versions in English for homework, which I review and grade. It's actually kind of fun to see what they write. The first years have a tendency towritelikethis,forgettingtoleaveaspace or sometimes putting s p a c e s i n t o o m a n y p l a c e s. It makes it really difficult to read. Then there are the misspellings and confusions of one letter for another. Like r and n. One of my kids wrote "hambungen." Anyway, so I make new stuff like that every week. And we follow the "New Horizon" series of English text books pretty closely, with two new pages a week. It sounds slow, but the books are only a few lessons each, so the timing is actually decent. Plus, more time allows them to grasp the new material better. Theoretically.

Now the ES's. My situation with the ES's is very, very different from most ALTs'. And I am very grateful, 'cause it saves me TONS of time, though the lessons themselves are kind of silly. So at ES1, there is a JTE (again, there is not always a JTE at a Japanese ES), an ATE (Assistant Teacher of English) and an ALT (me). The three of us work together with the home room teacher to teach the lesson plan which was prepared by the JTE. The lessons are based on a ridiculous/hilarious series called "Eigo Noto" 「英語ノート」. (Noto, or nooto, is actually short for notebook.) Please watch this awesome video to see how hilarious it is:

So anyway, back to what I do. Basically, the JTE, ATE, and I take turns at going over various parts of the lesson plan. A note about the ATE: this position is extremely uncommon in schools, I think. Especially for someone like him; he lived in the US for 10 years, so he is pretty fluent.

At the beginning of each ES lesson, we do the usual introduction of "Hello/Good morning/Good afternoon" and asking the day, date, weather, and year. Then the ATE and I start the lesson by having a short dialogue and asking the students what we were talking about. Then we proceed with the lesson using their text books, large picture cards, and the Eigo Noto interactive computer program on a touch-screen television. Usually, I say the new vocabulary words and have the students repeat what I say. Sometimes we play games, but most of the time, we're following whatever is up next in the Eigo Noto lesson plans.

One thing that I don't think is helpful about Eigo Noto are the "chants." For some reason, there are weird chants/mini songs from the lessons. If you watch the video above, you'll hear a chant with, "What's this? What's this? It's a pen, it's a pen, it's a pen," and the students have to repeat it or sing along.

At ES2, the ATE and I teach the lesson with the homeroom teacher (the JTE stays at ES1). At the Nursery school, I basically just sing songs and play games with the kids (who are adorable, by the way). And at the eikaiwa that starts this month, I will prepare everything; lessons and activities. I'm a little nervous about it, because working with adults is faaaaaaaaaaar different from working with kids. I was a "Talk Time" leader back at college, which is similar to an eikaiwa, but I believe my students back then were a bit more seasoned with English than whoever might show up this time around. I also heard that the eikaiwa isn't a very popular activity for the townspeople; it's offered at the town center, though, so hopefully more people will find out about it and be interested. I'm also the first male ALT this town has ever had. So maybe this little change will bring in more people? Here's hoping!

Word of the day: 授業　「じゅぎょう」 "jugyou," which means "lesson" or "class."

Interviewee

2010-09-28T21:55:00.005-04:00

Note: I want to point out that I updated my previous post with pictures from Kyoto! Check 'em out! And on with the show...

I was asked by a friend of mine who is also a fellow JET ALT to be "Mr. October," as she put it. This entails being the interviewee of a few fun questions and writing an article for a publication that will be read by junior high students and teachers across Miyagi Prefecture. At the end of this post, I will paste my article. I wrote it very quickly, and didn't even bother editing it, so I apologize for its first-draft-iness. Also, you've already read about the various things I discuss because I included them in a previous post. It's about the differences I've observed between Japan and the U.S. So I apologize for lack of originality, too. But I guess it's my own work, so technically, it's original; just a rehash. Anyway...

I'm contemplating putting my answers to the interview here or not. It's kind of silly, but I put a lot of time into some of my answers. Alright sure, I'll post the interview up as well after this post. Interview first, article second.

This past week since I got back from Kyoto has been interesting. First of all, my school schedule has been crazy because of national holidays and a school event. So I've had the past two Mondays off. And I had last Thursday off as well. On Wednesday night, some elementary school teachers and I went out to Sendai (or nearby) for some fun food and drinks. I must say, they can sure drink! We went to two locations; the first was a very nice restaurant with unique and delicious food. It was so good that Shoe and I decided to go back a few nights later! That, and so he could see the cute waitress again, haha. The other place we went to was a small bar; it had a "California" theme, so there was a lot of beach merchandise there hanging on the walls.

When Shoe and I went to that first location this past weekend, I discovered a new drink that I like. It's called カシス. I looked it up, and found out that it's a vermouth made from a fruit called cassis, or blackcurrant as it's called in English. Yum.

On Friday, I went out with some guys from the town hall. We went bowling! Ahh, good times. I still suck, though. On Saturday, there was a huge inter-school sports fest between my town's junior high school, and three neighboring town's junior high schools. I'm really proud of my students; we won quite a few major events! First, we won the tennis match (girls), then we won the soccer game (boys), and finally, we won the baseball game! I also got to watch kendo, judo, and ping pong, which my students did fairly well at an individual level. (One of the girls got second place in kendo! I'm not too sure how the girls did in judo, but the only girls who do judo around here are from my school anyway, and there are only three of them. Lastly, I saw one of the girls on the ping pong team get 2nd place in the finals. Great!)

Because the teachers had to attend the various events (cheering and some coaching), and almost all of the students were participating (all 1st and 2nd years, 3rd years came to watch), school was closed on Monday. So yeah! Busy week!

It has also gotten annoyingly colder lately. Ugh, I wish the weather would go back up to 75 and just STAY THERE. It hasn't been 75 for a few weeks now. And because it has gotten colder, I decided to buy something which will assist me in keeping warm while jogging outside: a track suit! Now I can join all the other teachers in Japan, hahaha. For some reason, everyone wears a track suit...

So yeah, those are the updates so far. Nothing too crazy. The next thing I have to figure out is how to get a credit card here. I keep getting denied because it was apparently common for foreigners to get a credit card, buy something big with it, then return to their home country without paying for it. Damn thieves! Because of them, I can't get a credit card! ::grumble grumble::

Word of the day: 質問　「しつもん」　"shitsumon," which means "question."

==========================================
How long have you lived there? I’ve lived here for just two months!
Something that’s famous in your town: Kappa
How many schools do you work with? Four

Is this your first time in Japan? Yes, unless you include the 2-hour layover at Narita a few years ago, but I don’t. :-)
In Japan, where have you traveled? So far, I have been to Tokyo, Kyoto, and Sendai.
Have you traveled outside of Japan? Yes! I love to travel. I was born in the Philippines, and I’ve been to a few countries in Europe, including France, Italy, Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium, and Great Britain.
Where would you like to travel (inside and outside Japan)? I want to explore Japan, from Okinawa to Hokkaido. I want to see famous sites and see all of the main islands. I want to visit many countries, including South Korea, China, Australia, New Zealand, Spain, and many others.
Aside from Japanese, have you ever studied another language? Yes, I’ve studied Spanish for four years, in junior and senior high school.

What was your favorite subject in junior high school? In junior high, my favorite subject was probably algebra.
What was your favorite subject in high school? In high school, my favorite subject was chemistry.
What was your major in college? My major was chemistry, and my minor was Japanese.
What kind of jobs did you have before joining the JET Program? I’ve held various office positions, including administrative assistant and administrative support. I worked in the educational division of a large medical center. I have also worked at a fast-food sandwich restaurant and even a seasonal plant nursery (garden).
What do you want to be when you grow up? Eventually, I want to be a doctor.

What’s your favorite thing about yourself? (I left this blank; didn't want to seem narcissistic.)
What’s your least favorite thing about yourself? (I also left this blank; too many to pick from! Haha)
What qualities do you like in a significant other? As much beauty on the inside as on the outside.

Do you have a cell phone? Yes
If you do, what company and color is it? It is offered by SoftBank, and it is black.

Which do you prefer?
Bed / futon: Bed
Bath/ shower: Shower
Rice / bread: Rice
Pen / pencil: Pencil
City / Countryside: City
Train / Car: Car

Favorites:
Animal: Tiger
Color: Blue
Ice cream flavor: Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Drink: Milk Tea
Place: the video game arcade (or specific location? Hawaii)
Activity: playing video games
TV show:
Anime: Mononoke-hime
Manga: Hajime no Ippo and Naruto
Movie: The Matrix and The Truman Show
Type of music: Rock
Musician(s)/group: Linkin Park, Weezer

Song:
Book: The Da Vinci Code (I haven't read a novel in a while; this and Angels & Demons are the latest two that I read, and I liked this one better)
Magazine: EGM (Electronic Gaming Monthly)
Children’s story: The Dragonslayers by Bruce Coville
JHS textbook lesson: (I've only gone through two so far, haha.)
English word: (couldn't think of any; I do say "awesome" an awful lot...perhaps too much)

J-word: 風林火山　「ふうりんかざん」 “fuurinkazan." From Wikipedia: Fūrinkazan (風林火山), literally "Wind, Forest, Fire and Mountain", was the battle standard used by the Sengoku period daimyo Takeda Shingen, quoting chapter 7 of Sun Tzu's The Art of War: "Move as swift as a wind, stay as silent as forest, attack as fierce as fire, undefeatable defense like a mountain."

Kana/Kanji: 　時　「とき」　"toki" which means "time." (I chose this for a few reasons. I enjoy writing it; it's fun. It's very similar to samurai, which is 侍. The common radical is 寺 which means temple. And in the writing of temple, you can see earth in the top section [earth is my element, though I speculate that I might have some water as well]. Time is something that I enjoy having; I always take my time in doing things; and I feel like I'm always chasing after it. Perhaps time is my favorite word or concept.)
Flower/plant: Rosa andeli, also known as “Double Delight”
Snack: Pillows (a Filipino snack)
Sport: Boxing
Season: Spring
Holiday: Christmas
Fruit: Coconut
Piece of clothing: A nice, button-down shirt
Sushi: Toro (Fatty Tuna)

Common questions: (feel free to add and answer your own)
Can you use hashi? Yes! (Hashi is chopsticks)
Do you like sushi/sashimi? Absolutely!
Can you eat natto? Um...I tried...
Can you speak Japanese? Some.
Can you read kana/kanji? I can read hiragana, katakana, and about 450 kanji...theoretically.
Are you a strong drinker? Unfortunately, no! I get sleepy very quickly, haha!
Are your meals bigger in your home country? It depends on the meal. I’ve actually had many meals in Japan that I almost couldn’t finish!
You must love meat...? That is correct. I love beef and pork!
Did you eat rice before coming to Japan? Lots of it!
What do you have for breakfast? It depends on the day. Sometimes cereal and milk, sometimes toast with eggs and sausage or bacon, or sometimes a rice dish.

Name at least two things you dislike/hate about Japan. This summer was super humid, and the cold weather arrived too soon! I wish there were screens on all of my windows. I also miss central air heating and cooling.
Name at least two things you like/love about Japan. The food here is wonderful, and the people are very nice. I also love the combination of Japan’s rich history and culture with its leadership in modern technology. I also love the Shinkansen! It is wonderful to be able to travel from one side of the country to the other in just a
few hours without having to get on an airplane.
Name at least two things you dislike/hate about your home country. There are always political arguments on TV and other media (radio, internet, etc.). The vehicles there are too big; like SUVs. I hate SUVs. Also, people can be very mean or rude sometimes; clerks are not as polite as those in Japan.
Name at least two things you like/love about your home country. I enjoy the freedom in everything, from product choices to job choices. I also like how diverse the US is, including the people and the locations: California is very different from New York; they are so far away and quite different, but both places are very
fun.

Tell us about your family/family members. My mother, father, brother, sister-in-law, and grandparents all live in Pennsylvania. My mother is a biology professor at a university and my father is a nurse. My brother is older than me, so I learned many things from him while we were growing up, and we have very similar interests, like movies and video games.

Anything else? :-) I was born in the Philippines, and both of my parents are Filipino. But people have often mistaken me for being Japanese. This occurred in the US, in the Philippines, and even in Japan; I was surprised that Japanese people thought I was Japanese! It makes me wonder, how many Filipinos are in Japan? Also, I
studied many styles of martial arts in the US, including Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Filipino, and American styles. I would like to study more martial arts here and compare the differences in styles, especially comparing how Japanese martial arts are taught in Japan versus in America.

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Differences Between Japan and the United States

Since arriving in Japan, I have noticed quite a few things that surprised me which are different than the United States. On my first night here, I went to dinner with other ALTs at a Japanese-style restaurant in Shinjuku. The five of us were taken to a table that had tatami seats and space beneath the table for our legs. My friend was about to step into the seating area, but he was quickly yelled at by the waiter and told to take off his shoes. We all took off our shoes and sat down at our seats. This surprised me a little, because in the U.S., we never take off our shoes at a restaurant, especially a nice one. In fact, we are not allowed to take off our shoes at some restaurants! There is a saying that is common in restaurants: “No shirt, no shoes, no service.”
I also noticed that smoking is very common in Japan, both outside and inside of buildings. I was surprised by this at the video game arcade. In the U.S., it is rare that a video game arcade allows smoking inside because there are so many kids there (and kids are not allowed to buy tobacco).
Another interesting difference is driving. In the U.S., we drive on the right side of the road, but in Japan, people drive on the left side of the road. This means that the steering wheel is also on the opposite side (left side in the U.S., right side in Japan). But that’s not all! When people park in Japan, they put their car in reverse, and they back-up into their parking spot. That way, in the parking lot, the cars face away from each other. But in the U.S., everyone always pulls into their parking spot head-first! That makes the cars in the parking lot face each other!
When you eat at a restaurant in Japan, you only have to pay for the price of the meal. But in the U.S., if you eat at a restaurant where you are served by a waiter/waitress, you are expected to also pay a tip to the waiter/waitress! This is because waiters/waitresses have a different payment system in the U.S.; most of their money comes from tips rather than salary/wage. This forces the servers in the U.S. to be more polite, because then they will make more money! But in Japan, servers are always polite no matter what, which is very nice.
When I first got to my apartment, I noticed many differences in the household. The first thing I noticed was that there was a faucet on the back of my toilet! Toilets in the U.S. don’t have a faucet. Instead, there is always a sink in the bathroom. I also noticed that the shower room is a separate room from the toilet, which is also separate from the sink. In an American-style bathroom, if there is a bathtub, there is also a toilet and a sink in the bathroom. Another difference I noticed right away was that the shower area was separate from the bath. Usually, people in the U.S. shower right in the bathtub, which is usually twice the length as Japanese bathtubs. This is because people in the U.S. like to lie down in the bathtub. They also clean themselves while taking a bath (or afterwards), rather than showering first, then entering the bath like in Japan.
Another thing I noticed was that I don’t have a dryer. In Japan, we hang our clothes to dry after washing. In the U.S., we throw our clothes into the dryer to dry them, and then we fold them after taking them out. People usually put fabric softener into the dryer to make the clothes soft. They also use the dryer to remove lint from clothing.
The trash system is similar to the U.S., but is a little more complicated. People in the U.S. usually just throw the entire PET bottle (just called a plastic bottle) into the recycling bin. Sometimes, they will remove the cap and throw it in the trash. There is no separate プラ container for wrappers and such. Most of that stuff usually gets thrown into the trash. People also don’t usually burn trash in the U.S.; it is taken to a garbage facility and is taken care of there (by being crushed, burned, or allowed to decay). The things that are recycled in the U.S. are still recycled the same way, like newspapers, glass bottles, aluminum cans, cardboard, paper, and things like that.
These are just a few interesting differences. I’m sure I’ll find more during my stay here in Japan!

Kyoto and Video Games [Update]

2010-09-21T20:21:00.009-04:00

I've discovered something on Japanese keyboards! There is a way to make it behave like an American keyboard! What I mean is that the keys change to the American counterparts, so even if a certain character/symbol is written on the Japanese key, it will type the American key. For example, the Japanese keyboard has a colon (:) where the apostrophe key is on the American keyboard. So normally, when I press this key with my right pinky finger, I type a colon. But when I do this trick, I get an apostrophe! The trick is pressing the following keystroke: Alt + Shift. This keystroke is normally used on American keyboards to change language inputs; it's what I use to switch between Japanese and English on my laptop and desktop computers in the US. Normally, there is a designated key to do that on Japanese keyboards, so pressing the key maintains the Japanese layout of characters and punctuation. But not with this keystroke trick! Bwahaha! I don't have to type Shift + 7 for apostrophes anymore!

/endcelebration

So! This past week has been SUPER DUPER busy, which is why I haven't been able to post an update. It's unfortunate, because I wish I could recall all of the things that have happened since my last post (which itself was quickly written). I am currently typing this at the Yakuba, so I will update this post later with pictures.

First off, I'll mention this quick gaming news that blew my mind. Tekken Tag Tournament 2 was announced!!! Click that link for the article and an epic trailer! This announcement helps fighting game fans like myself to envision the next two or so years of fighting games from Namco and Capcom. There's Marvel Versus Capcom 3, Street Fighter X Tekken, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, and Tekken X Street Fighter. MVC2 and TTT are two of my favorite fighting games of all time, so hearing that both of their sequels are being planned/developed makes me very happy. ^_^ Also, the TTT2 announcement was made at Tokyo Game Show (TGS), which was this past weekend. I would have LOVED to go, and it's so cheap, too (Just ￥1200 per day or ￥1000 in advance; that's about $14.14 and $11.78, respectively, at the current exchange rate)! But I wasn't able to go because of something else more important:

I was in Kyoto this past weekend with my girlfriend! :-D I wasn't able to see her for two months prior; it was so wonderful to spend time with her again. I took an overnight bus from Sendai to Kyoto; it was an 11.5 hour ride. Not very comfortable; or rather, the seats were comfy compared to American buses; it was roomy, and the seats reclined pretty far back. And there was decent leg room. But there was no bathroom on the bus! The nice thing about that is that there is no foul smell that sometimes plagues the rear of American buses. But the problem is that the driver has to pull over every 3 hours to give people a 15 minute potty/smoking/stretching break. This wouldn't be such a big deal if he didn't turn on the lights whenever he stopped. So yeah, suffice it to say, but I didn't have restful sleep that night, even though I attempted to sleep for the entire duration of the ride. Another plus is that I was able to be in Kyoto by 7 in the morning, and the price was way cheaper than the Shinkansen (approx $82 vs $236).

Kyoto is amazing. I can easily see why it would be the "most favorite city in the world" for many of my friends. I'll definitely be taking more trips there; and it may become the same thing for me. The areas I went to were mostly suburban in feeling, even though it was in the city. There were lots of famous temples there: I went to see Ryouanji Temple with the famous rock garden, and Kinkajuji Temple, the famous golden temple. Very beautiful places.

We had lots of adventures in Kyoto. On the first day, we went to Ryouanji. It's kinda funny; when my girlfriend and I got there, we ran into some other students living in the same dorm, and when we walked into the temple grounds, we were greeted by a group of Japanese college students who wanted to give foreigners tours of the temple. We obliged and had enjoyable conversations in English and Japanese. It was funny because the Japanese people were speaking English, and we Americans would respond in Japanese. After the tour, we left the grounds, and found a dessert shop where they served green tea/vanilla twist soft ice cream! It was sooooooooooo good. After that, we found a conveyor belt sushi restaurant (kaitenzushi). I'm guessing that the ice cream filled us up a bit, because we only managed to eat 11 (or so?) little plates of sushi, one soup, and two drinks. All for just ￥1700 (like $20)! After that, we checked out her campus. It's a really nice campus; very localized. No need to travel far between classes like on Pitt's campus. But the catch is that housing is a little far (only a little).

In the evening of the first night, we met up with an old friend of mine with whom I studied Japanese back at Pitt. It was nice to see him again and meet his girlfriend, who had surprisingly good English (she studied abroad in the US for a year). I was happy that I had the opportunity to check out downtown. Now, if you know me, you would know that I love going to cities and exploring stores, arcades, malls, and busy areas like that. When we got off the bus to downtown, the closest place was a 6-floor Namco arcade! Unfortunately, we didn't have any time to check it out, but I'll definitely hit it up next time. Instead, we walked around the izakaya area, with lots of bars and restaurants, looking for a place to dine. We ended up finding a place, that strangely enough, played Black Eyed Peas the whole time we were there. Maybe they thought we were BEP. We kinda looked it. Anyway, the place had tiny booths with cave-like aesthetics. But the food and drink was good, and the company was better, so I was happy. Later, we went to an area under a bridge and next to a river. The place was bustling with people: foreigners and Japanese people; lots and lots of couples. That's apparently where my friend and his girlfriend had met. It's cute 'cause along the riverbank, couples are sitting side-by-side, evenly spaced.

The next day, we grabbed some ramen for lunch. MMMMMMMMM SOOOOOOOOO GOOD! I can still remember how good it was. The place was called Ramen Kyoto Tengu. And for just ￥700, you can get a delicious bowl of ramen that looks like this:

Kinkakuji was gorgeous. Just look at the pictures! Unfortunately, it started to rain when we arrived, so I couldn't get any shots of the temple's reflection in the water, but it was beautiful nonetheless. After seeing the temple, my girlfriend and I enjoyed a tea ceremony with a sweet snack. I'm not sure what to call the building we had the ceremony at, but it was one room with tatami mats and something like a shrine at one end and a kitchen in the corner at the other end. Afterward, we did some bell ringing, candle-lighting, and other luck/fortune-cultivating activities. I bought various keychains and omiyage at the gift shop nearby. When we left, we were looking for green tea ice cream (actually matcha ice cream), but the temple's gift shops had already closed the ice cream section. :-( So we left and found some at a nearby touristy shop. :-)

It was a three-day-weekend, so I was able to stay for two nights. I left on Monday, so I had to take the Shinkansen back. The ride was interesting; in fact, the entire commute was interesting. We walked from the dorm to the nearest train station, which took us directly to Kyoto Station. There, I bought tickets from Kyoto to Sendai, which requires a transfer at Tokyo Station. But before I left, my girlfriend and I grabbed a quick lunch at a local cold-udon/cold-soba place. Not as good as the ramen the other day, but still pretty decent. What was neat was that we paid for it using a vending-machine-like thing. After lunch, we had a tearful goodbye. I reminded her (and had to remind myself) that I'll see her again in a few weeks. We also broke the unspoken rule of "no public affection in Japan." Well, if PDA is illegal here, then call me a criminal.

I then headed to the platform where I looked for the unreserved seats, in cars 1-3. Sweet, I found it; but dammit, it's full! So full that a whole bunch of people were standing for the entire duration of the trip to Tokyo. Including me. The ride itself was a little over two hours (two and a half maybe? Something like that). Actually, correction; I got to sit down for the last fifteen minutes or so, when some people left at the stop before Tokyo Station. I sat next to a lady who was kind enough to show me where I would go to make my transfer to the Tohoku-bound trains. The second leg of my trip was much nicer; I managed to get my own seat, and when the guy left at the first stop, I had an entire bench to myself! Good deal. A friend of mine was picking me up, and he asked me to continue past Sendai into the next town, which required another transfer. It wasn't a problem and only cost about $8.

One thing I noticed while I was in Kyoto and on the Shinkansen: girls in Japan sure love moccasins. I don't know what the deal is with that. But Japanese girls can seem to make even the ugliest outfits look cute.

Oh, and lastly, I finally bought a Nintendo DSi! My best friend has been telling me to get a DS for the past five years. Better late than never! Hahaha

Word of the day: 自由席　「じゆうせき」 "jiyuuseki," which means "unreserved seat."

Quick updates

2010-09-14T09:54:00.002-04:00

So, I really have to go to bed. Like now. But I wanted to post some quick updates:

1) My girlfriend is currently on an airplane, headed in my direction! Very nice. Can't wait to see her again. ^_^

2) I just bought a Nintendo DSi today! Not for the sake of gaming; on the contrary: to study! Which, I guess for some people (::cough::nerds::cough::) is fun. I got it to study and practice kanji. And I got this insane Shonen Jump video game that crams multiple Jump manga series into one fighting game. Just imagine people from Dragonball, Naruto, Bleach, One Piece, and a dozen other series all fighting each other. Seemed like a fun $20.

3) The speech contest was today! We didn't win, but I'm still very proud of my students for mustering up the courage to speak in a foreign language in front of a crowd of strangers (and competitors). That takes guts. And now, to learn from my mistakes and prepare for the next one...

4) The iPhone has really crappy battery life. With my LG Secret, I only had to charge it within one day if I was using the video camera a lot. But the iPhone...I am honestly disappointed with its battery life. And I even close the apps after I exit them. (To do this, you have to double-click the home button to make a bottom menu show up that lists icons of the 4 most recent apps used. Then hold your finger over one of the icons until they shake. Then click the red circle with the minus sign to close the app. This method is paramount to proper usage of 3rd-generation iPods and iPhones; otherwise, it'll seem like they're slow and sluggish.)

5) One of my students somehow fell on the stairs and was knocked unconscious; he was immediately taken to the local hospital. I hear he is doing fine. Though, seeing him passed out on the stairs made me feel so...powerless. For one, I don't have an updated first-aid certification, and I also don't know any Japanese medical terminology (or how to say, "Move!" or "Make room for him!"). Based on how he was lying, my guess is that he slipped or tripped. I don't think it was a result of roughhousing, but it might be due to students' tendencies to haphazardly run around the school. Anyway, he'll be back tomorrow, which I was glad to hear.

6) This past weekend was pretty fun. I went to Shiogama, to an island, with other guys from the Town Hall for some overnight festivities. And by that, I mean drinking with middle-aged (and older) folks. It was pretty enjoyable, actually. I had sea pineapple for the first time. The seafood was fresh, and pretty damn good. The sea urchin was surprisingly tasty.

Word of the day: 早く「はやく」　"hayaku," which means "quickly."

Japanese Studies

2010-09-09T21:39:00.003-04:00

As I sit here and settle into my new surroundings, I begin to realize that I revert back to my 'usual' behaviors as I would have in the U.S. What does this entail? Well, basically coming home from work, and becoming a hermit; spending lots of time on my computer, surfing the internet or telling all of my friends what I've been up to; you know, via social networking or even this blog. But what frightens me the most is that when I do all of this, like e-mailing people, and chatting, or surfing the web, is that all of it is in English. Very little do I actually come across Japanese online, or when I communicate with my friends. Oftentimes because what I want to say is most easily said in English; oftentimes I do not even HAVE the words in Japanese to say what I want to say. Especially in a blog post or an e-mail or a message or chit-chat.

That said, if I spend so much time using English, and so much time inside my apartment not interacting with those around me, I am afraid that my level of Japanese will regress. So, it is up to me to make sure that that doesn't happen. It is my duty to insure that I continue my progress with Japanese and not fall into yet another Gaijin Trap.

So, my methods for continuing my studies of Japanese are multifold: 1) Speak in Japanese as much as possible, with friends, co-workers, and even students [as long as it isn't affecting their learning of English]; 2) Immersion, which includes Japanese television, Japanese music, and hearing Japanese conversations in school and around town; 3) Formal studying of the language, including reading, writing, looking up unknown kanji, and learning new kanji.

The third one in particular is something that I need to work on more, as it has been quite sporadic. The amount of time I spend studying kanji daily is irregular, and I don't do a good job reviewing kanji that I recently learned. This will change, with the upcoming JET Japanese Courses that I enrolled in. According to the multiple practice tests I took, I should be enrolled in the Advanced Level (which is above Beginner and Intermediate). There are only these three levels. I'm a little anxious about it, because I only know about 400-something kanji (they recommend 500, I think; or was it 600?), and and the entire textbook is supposedly in Japanese. There are also a few grammar points that I am expected to know already but have never formally studied; but thankfully, there aren't too many. Lastly, I haven't completely mastered other bits of grammar which I have formally learned. But I guess all that comes with time, anyway.

To study kanji, I will attempt a two-pronged attack: use the infamous and highly controversial Heisig method, which entails learning the characters by parts and creating a "story" for each character, and supplement the stories with the traditional method of learning new kanji (see new kanji, learn readings and meanings, read example sentences, and practice writing it). According to Heisig, though, this should not be done; learning the stories will apparently be counterproductive to learning the kanji the traditional way. I am not sure why this would be true, but since he was the developer of this method, I am assuming that he is correct. So, my plan is to first use Heisig's method and go through the entire Book 1. Then rather than go to Book 2 (which is where he teaches how to actually pronounce/read the character), I will go through the traditional method using either the Kotoba! iPhone app or the Essential Kanji book.

Or maybe I could try the traditional method using the app, then Heisig, then the book? Anyway, just throwing around some ideas. I will leave you with this sweet video that I saw on TV today:

Helicopter Fishing - The best video clips are right here

Word of the day: 言葉 or 詞 or 辞　「ことば」 "kotoba," which means language, words, or speech.
Second word of the day: 国語「こくご」　"kokugo," which is what the Japanese language course is called in Japan (like "English Class" in the US). "Kokugo" literally means "country language."

Hilariously Beautiful

2010-09-07T06:56:00.008-04:00

So I've been teaching for a full week, now. Well, that's not entirely true, since a good chunk of my lessons last week (actually, all of the ones in the junior high school) consisted simply of a self-introduction presentation, which itself is composed of over a hundred pictures that describe some aspect of my background: where I'm from, where I was born, where I went to school, what my college town looks like, what my hobbies are, what I like to eat; easy stuff. The difficult classes have been in the elementary schools; one class in particular is very unenthusiastic. I've been told that they're quite a smart class; I reckon it's their smarts that is creating this lack of motivation. Hopefully I'll come up with something to get them to be more 元気 "genki" (energetic).

I came across a HILARIOUS video today; actually, a friend of mine, who is also a JET ALT, posted it on her facebook wall. The video contains audio from a book series called 英語ノート　"Eigo Noto," which is the text book series that is used to teach English to elementary school students. Anyway, this video takes the audio from various lessons and remixes it a bit with the theme of male-female relationships (Read: How to pick up women). Really hilarious. Here it is:

Ah, so, before I watched that video, I actually had quite a bit of stuff in my head that I wanted to post about! But I laughed so hard that those thoughts fell out of my head. So! That means I'll treat you to another video. But this one is not funny at all. No. Instead, it is beautiful. I'll post it here, but I recommend going to the actual website to view it in HD and full screen.

Hayaku: A Time Lapse Journey Through Japan from Brad Kremer on Vimeo.

I don't recall if I mentioned this in a previous post, but here is another important difference between Japan and the US: in the US, there is a janitor (or team of them) to clean up the entire school grounds. In Japan, there are none. At best, there is a mechanic or handyman, but he is not expected to clean up the classrooms or hallways. Nope. Who then? The students! Haha!

Is it wrong of me to laugh? Well, I suppose it's not technically funny; at least, not until you see the looks on their faces when you tell them that in the US, students don't have to clean the classrooms. It's fascinating, really. Oh, and there is no cafeteria. The students all eat in their classrooms; and again, they are responsible for bringing the crates and boxes of food into the classrooms to serve to their classmates. I can see that Japan makes sure to teach the kids how to be active members in society at an early age. I think it's great for them! If only the brats in the US were made to serve and clean, too, maybe we wouldn't have so many problems with laziness. Or obesity! Anyway, I digress...

I was shown how to fill up my gas tank today. And not just going to the Full Serve and saying "Regular Mantan Onegaishimasu" (which has them fill up your tank with "regular" octane gasoline). I'm talkin', goin' to the Self Serve gas station, hitting buttons with kanji on the screen, paying by cash, and pumping the gas myself. I'm happy to have been able to learn that. Now, the reason I learned to fill up my tank today wasn't just because my tank is only 1/4th full, but also because I was doing some Dimensional Analysis today (it must have been all the Breaking Bad that I've been watching that made me want to do it, haha).

What, may you ask, is Dimensional Analysis? Well, it is the branch (or merely, aspect) of science and math that is used for unit conversion. It's one of the simplest, and yet one of the most important, basic lessons of science. Failure to properly convert units can lead to disastrous results.

Anyway, the Dimensional Analysis I did today was about trying to figure out the cost of gasoline here in Japan (which is in Yen per Liter) and converting it into the units we use in the US (Dollars per Gallon). I knew the gas here was more expensive; I just wanted to know how much.

So, using my recently acquired iPhone, unit conversion apps, and exchange rates, I quickly wrote down this formula:

(Current price in the US in $/G) divided by (volume conversion factor in liters per gallon) times (exchange rate in Y/$)

The formula leads to a conversion of US prices into Yen per Liter. Substituting the current price (at the time) of $2.57/gallon in Pennslyvania, I got 57.16 Yen/L.

Hmm, 57.16...WOW. That's CHEAP. At least, compared to the price I saw at the pump today! The price at the pump was 125 Yen/L!!! That's more than double the cost!!! In fact, using the conversion factor I calculated (22.24203522 ¥gal/$L), it comes out to $5.62/gallon! DAMN THAT'S EXPENSIVE!!! Gas is 2.2 times more expensive in Japan than the US!!! Blows my mind.

Also, seeing that I filled up about 3/4th of my tank today, and seeing that the price was only about 2000 Yen, I can guesstimate that my tank is only about 21 liters, or five and a half gallons. Crazy small! My dinky little sedan back in the US was only 13 gallons, and it was a compact (or sub-compact) car. Well, I guess with an engine size of less than 600 cc's, I don't need to worry about using too much gasoline in the first place.

Lastly, I'd like to say that I've been keeping an eye on the US-Japan exchange rate pretty closely for the past few months. And just now, I saw it finally plummet to below 84 yen/dollar. It's currently 83.89262, according to the MSN Money desktop gadget. That's soooooooo baaaaaaaaaaad! Just three years ago it was around 123. That means Americans could go to Japan and feel slightly wealthier. Currently, the opposite is true. That's great news for me because I'm making money over here! But terrible news for people just arriving (girlfriend, other friends) or people who want to visit me (family, friends). Check out this 10-year chart on XE.com for more numbers. (In 2002 it was 134!!! I wish I went to Japan back then!!!)

Word of the day: 満タン　[まんたん」　"mantan," or "full tank." Literally.

Activities

2010-09-05T06:53:00.013-04:00

Japan is interesting. I don't know if it's just small towns like this one, if larger cities are included, or if it's just this town in particular; but damn, do people love events! I've been living in Japan for about a month now, and already, I've attended two town-wide events with hundreds of attendees! The first was the Kappa Festival, which I mentioned in a blog entry last month. Today's even was the Field Day.

Yeah, Field Day. Remember Field Day? Way back in elementary school, when the school district would all come together to old a massive athletics event with relay races and whatnot? Well, this one is TOWN WIDE, with participants not limited to just students! In fact, some events are designed specifically for adults, and many events (all, maybe?) are separated by age group. At one point, I saw 6 groups of a dozen senior citizens all throwing colored rubber balls into a reed basket 15 feet in the air. Not an easy task. And seeing this made me realize something: how physical activity is such an important aspect of Japanese culture. It's not just "important;" rather, it's "normal." It's just a regular, everyday thing. There are many farmers in town; they're always outside working, laboring, on their land. In offices, there are morning exercises; people warm up in sync to elevator music. It's amazing, really.

Anyway, it was neat to see the whole town participating in competitive activities. Everyone was split up into neighborhoods. When I first arrived, the Field Day event was already half-way through (I overslept; oops). And of course, I ran into my students on the way there (I walked) and was greeted by more upon my arrival. I didn't know where to go at first, so I hung out at the judges tent, where I saw two guys from the Board of Education (my superiors). [Side note: one of the guys is known simply as "Kachou," which basically means "section chief."] I grabbed a grape Fanta (remember, it's called "juice" here) and a "caramel milk crepe" and ate it at the judges tent. After a while, I met a friend of my JET predecessor who is learning English. She talked to me about some sort of "English club" that was established in a neighboring city by my pred; I'll attend this week's meeting. :-) After that brief conversation, she had to leave, and I went off to join my neighborhood. Again, I ran into some students; but they actually live in my neighborhood! It was fun cheering with them (or for them, in some cases) and cheering with their families. The Field Day ended with a big relay race.

Everyone was leaving, so I decided to grab some food before the stands were closed; I managed to get a box of tako yaki (octopus balls) and some okonomiyaki wrapped around some chop sticks. Okonomiyaki is like...well, like a crepe, but with a bunch of things thrown into it while it's cooked; kind of like an omelette would be made. Anyway, I just hung out at home afterward, watching some Breaking Bad (good series, by the way; I recommend it). As I went outside to the vending machine to grab some oolong tea, some elementary (or nursery?) school students said hello to me. Then the kuchou (president of the neighborhood...or something)　showed up and told me that our neighborhood won! Yay!

So yeah, this weekend was both eventful (literally) and uneventful (figuratively) at the same time. Saturday was especially boring. Such that I learned the phrase to exclaim my boredom and text it to two friends. Unfortunately, both people I texted were busy. :-( Oh well, I spent the time watching Breaking Bad (actually started it yesterday) and cooking some awesome udon. I made the soup myself this time, too! Just some soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, and seasoned salt that I brought from the U.S. Seasoned salt makes everything taste better. Even victory.

Oh! I almost forgot to mention! I finally got my iPhone! Yay! I was thinking about making a "Cell phones in Japan Part 3," but I'm not really sure it's necessary. There isn't much more I can say about Japanese cell phones. Except that the majority of them use infrared to transmit the owner's account info (name, number, e-mail, picture) to someone else. It's so much more convenient than having to type it in! Unfortunately, iPhones don't have infrared; I'd have to buy a special dongle for that. But they do have bluetooth! And WiFi! Which means that I can download an app called "Bump" that'll let me "bump" my phone with another iPhone user (who also has the app) and exchange info that way. Yay apps.

Oh, another cool thing about Japanese phones is that they have a QR Code reader that can read these black and white square codes. These codes usually have websites, but I found an app that allows one to create a QR Code that contains phone info. Here is an example of a QR Code that happens to contain a link for this blog:

Cool, huh? So yeah, cell phones read those. I got an app to read them, as well. Lastly, I'll say that I finally worked out a little (weight lifting, calisthenics) in a loooooooooong time. It must have been all that exercise I saw today. And this epic video.

Phrase of the day: 退屈だな。「たいくつだな。」　"Taikutsu da na." "I'm bored."

A gift for those of you who got to the end of this post:

Harold's Japan Picture Gallery

What'd he say?

2010-08-29T23:59:00.003-04:00

Touhoku-ben. A very interesting dialect.　One of my Japanese Language professors told me that it's probably the most difficult hougen (dialect) in Japan. Having done some research, and talking to people here about it, it indeed is something unique. It's also pejoratively called "zuzu-ben" because many different sounds in standard Japanese are all pronounced "zu" in Touhoku-ben. In case you didn't know, Touhoku is the north eastern region of Japan (tou = east, hoku = north). Apparently, some of the different provinces here have slightly different hougen, so one might call the dialect here "Miyagi-ben," or "Shikama-ben," depending on how spread out the usage is of a particular hougen.

One afternoon (early evening) after work, I was hanging around after school, and upon seeing a stranger I said, "Konnichi wa," and he replied, "Oban desu." Oban desu? Did I mishear him? I heard "Oban desu" during the Obon festival, too; I thought they were saying "Obon desu." I went home and looked up "oban" on Jim Breen's WWWJDIC: Online Japanese Dictionary Service, and according to Jim Breen, "oban" means "old maid; frump; hag." So, was that guy calling me an old hag? Or was he saying, "Watch out for that old hag behind you!" to warn me that I might get attacked by a crazy old Japanese lady? No, of course not. He must have said something in a Miyagi/Touhoku dialect. Jim Breen's website is a pretty expansive resource filled with tons of words; but it must not have any hougen in it. So I thought about it for a bit..."Konban wa" is the usual saying for "good evening," which literally means "as for this evening." So I realized that his saying "oban desu" is something similar: the prefix "o" has the role of making the word polite or making it refer to "yours". So literally, he said "it is the night/evening."

At school the other day, someone was showing me how to get lunch ourselves, and he said "jubun." I knew what he meant..."jibun" means "oneself." And "jubun" means...well, nothing, in standard Japanese. But again, hougen rears its (not so ugly) head.

There are other　interesting words or phrases or conjugations that I've come across as well. These will be the words of the day:

1) The conjugation 「ーあいん」 "-ain" which is equivalent to the 「てください」　"te kudasai" conjugations, which are requests. For example, 食べてください "tabete kudasai" becomes 食べらいん. Basically, the final "u" sound of any verbal is dropped, and replaced with "-ain." Note that it is a very irregular conjugation; usually, "ru" verbals like 食べる　"taberu" or 寝る "neru" drop the final "ru" when conjugating. But in Touhoku-ben, you only drop the final "u". So, verbals like 飲む "nomu" or tsukuru 作る "tsukuru" become 飲まいん "nomain" and 作らいん "tsukurain," respectively.

2) んだよねぇ。 "ndayonee." Hahaha, yes, this dialect has words that start with ん　"n," which in standard Japanese, is only ever in the MIDDLE or at the END of a word. Anyday, "ndayone" means something like そうですねぇ　"sou desu nee," which itself is difficult to translate. Basically, an English equivalent could be "Yeah, it's like that, isn't it."

3) はらくっつい。 "Hara kuttsui." This means the same thing as おなかがいっぱい "onaka ga ippai," or "I'm full." I learned this last night, actually, when I went out with some friends to grab some "Tantanmen," which is a Chinese noodle dish. We were stuffed, so I said "ippai" and another guy responded with an energetic "hara kuttsui!" Good times. :-)

Fun side note--after dinner, we stopped by a convenient store ("combini") and grabbed some halo-halo, a Filipino dessert. It wasn't real halo-halo, but it came pretty close. I was happy to see some Filipino influence here, even if it was just that small thing. ^_^

Party, Dance, Sing, Drive, Teach!

2010-08-26T02:10:00.021-04:00

Ohisashiburi desu ne! It's been a while! So much time has passed since my last post that I'm kind of ashamed of myself. Okay, well, not really, but I do feel bad that so much has happened without me updating you. Ideally, I wish I could have posted every day or every other day, but since that didn't happen, I'll do my best to fill you all in!

The last major thing that happened with the Miyagi JET community was a welcome party. A welcome party in Japan entails lots of beer, drinking food (think appetizers or tapas), and lots of socializing. It was great fun! I got to meet up with friends I had met at orientation again, as well as make new friends nearby. Before the party, there was also a little walking tour around a strip-mall area near Sendai Station. There, I saw a Subway, McDonald's, and a Mister Donut. And even a giant Pikachu. Now, some people seem to think that Mister Donut is a Japanese company. This is not true. It just happens to be very active in Japan, the Philippines, and other Asian countries. Now, technically, the Mister Donut in Japan is managed by a Japanese company, but that just means they have the right to franchise it from the American base company.

Anyway, following the epic kanpai's and festivities, the parties continued at karaoke bars. We had to split up into smaller groups because no bar would have a room to fit 60 of us. Plus, that gave people the opportunity to sing more songs. The first song I sang was a Japanese song by the Korean Group Tohoshinki 「東方神起」 (as they are known in Japan) or Dong Bang Shin Gi in Korea. They are also known as DBSK, TVXQ, or WWJD. If anyone has heard of the group, they could guess what song I sang: どうして君を好きになってしまったんだろう。 That's, "Dou shite kimi wo suki ni natte shimattan darou?" as in, "Why did I have to end up falling completely in love with you?" Yes, ridiculous title. And also ridiculous music video; only because it completely accentuates the drama that is Korean Soap Opera. I also managed to find some fun American songs, like "Say it Ain't So" by Weezer, "Dream On" by Aerosmith, and "The Real Slim Shady" by Eminem (Haha).

After karaoke, we bounced into a night club! Now, clubs in Pennsylvania close at 2 AM. Pretty lame. Except Zen, which is awesome enough to be open 'til 3 or 3:30 AM. Rockin'. Anyway, this club in Japan is open until 5 AM! And this particular club is foreigner-friendly. The first guy we met who works there spoke *perfect English*. People in our group were surprised, and wondered how. I speculated that he lived in the US for a while. He revealed that he lived in Canada for 10 years. Close.

Anyway, it was fun gettin' my grove on and bustin' out those moves I learned in college. I was apparently interesting enough to catch the attention of a few Japanese women there, who of course thought I was Japanese. I was hoping that my dancing with the American crowd would help show that I, too, am American, but I guess not! In any case, I was tired by 2 AM, but I hung around until 3:15 to keep my friends company.

Once we left the club, the last task we had to complete was to find a place to stay. Unfortunately the Rakuten Eagles baseball game was that same day, so all of the hotels in Sendai were booked. This includes hostels, ryokans (Japanese Inns), and probably capsules as well. I was worried that even my last resort wouldn't work: spend the night at an internet cafe. Luckily, the first internet cafe I checked still had space! It was perhaps my most uncomfortable night of sleep I've had in a very, very long time. Perhaps ever! And I was completely sober by then, too! Anyway, I rented a booth for 6 hours, slept for 5, and woke up around 9:15 to catch the 10 AM bus back to my place. I was back in my room by 11:30. What an adventure.

All this week, I have been successfully driving around the area! My first attempt at the wheel was last Thursday. My friend Shoe took me to a driving practice area. Though, for a driving practice, it's a pretty terrible location; it's right next to a river! With no guard rails! Such is driving in Japan. There are no guard rails to keep people from driving into the 3 feet deep gutters or off a 5 foot cliff into a local stream. But anyway, all is well, and I managed to not screw up yet. I've even managed to back up into my parking spot! Next thing I gotta figure out is how to fill up my gas tank.

I've also been at the Junior High this week. The opening ceremony was today! I had to give a brief two-minute speech. My speech was composed of 9 lines of English with a line Japanese after each English line to translate what I said. I composed the whole thing myself, and I had one of the JTE's (Japanese Teacher of English) take a look at it for me. And in the process, I learned a new phrase！ It is today's word of the day. :-)

At the Junior High, I have been helping out one particular student who is participating in an English speech contest. She has to memorize a 3-minute speech and present it to an audience. She had already memorized it by the time I met her, so I was working mainly on her pronunciation. Most Japanese people have a problem differentiating certain sounds from one another: l vs r, s vs th, v vs b. So I came up with some lines for my student to practice, including some well known tongue twisters:

Does she see those things that sing the thrilling songs?
She sells seashells by the seashore.
Peter Piper picked a pack of pickled peppers.
Let's roar like lions that are roaming the wilderness.
Ralph left the rowdy crowd in the clouds by rolling on the floor.

I hope those sentences weren't too mean. She's actually been doing well! In the meanwhile, when I'm not training her, I am working on my introductory presentation for my English class. This includes pictures I found from the net, as well as pictures of my college campus that my girlfriend managed to take for me. Thanks, sweetie!

I have also been cooking a bit! I successfully cooked my first two Japanese meals! The first was Curry Udon, and the second was Unagi with rice and vegetables cooked in my own combination of sauces (oyster sauce, soy sauce, and canola oil).

Word of the day: 全力　「ぜんりょく」　"zenryoku", or "all of one's power." This is useful in the phrase, 「全力を尽くします」 "zenryoku wo tsukushimasu," which essentially means, "do something to the best of one's ability." Literally, it means to "exhaust (or devote) all of one's strength." I used it for the following line: "I will try my best to teach you English." 「英語を教えることに全力を尽くします。」

Pictures

2010-08-18T01:25:00.007-04:00

I've created a Flickr account! And it was really annoying trying to figure out how to actually SHARE the photos I took.

Anyway, I created a Flickr Group, with its own web address for all of you to look at the fun pictures I uploaded! The URL is http://www.flickr.com/groups/harorudoinjapan/

This is a PRIVATE GROUP. This means you'll have to request permission to access it. I'm not entirely sure what it entails, but I assume you have to create an account. This is to maintain privacy of my photos of course. Personally, I think it was a lot easier to do this on photobucket. So if it becomes too annoying for people, then I'll switch over there.

But yeah, if you want permission, please send me an e-mail or message at any of the addresses/social sites that you may have, or send it to this generic one I made when I was thirteen and don't really use it for anything: GokuHB@yahoo.com. In your e-mail/message, please include the e-mail address to which you would like the invitation to be sent. Or if you already have a Flickr, please give me the e-mail address of your Flickr account (not just the user name, 'cause I had problems with it all day).

Word of the day:　写真　「しゃしん」　"shashin," or "photograph."

Cell phones in Japan, Part 2

2010-08-16T00:33:00.011-04:00

This is Part 2, the continuation of Japanese cell phone discussion/monologue from earlier. Also keep in mind that I posted a blog earlier today, as well, about the end of the Obon celebrations.

I have a cell phone! Yay! Now I can text people and make emergency phone calls!

Okay, so, after a whole lot of thinking; more thinking than I really wanted to do with cell phones, I decided to get an iPhone. Yeah, yeah, I know, I know, "jumping on the bandwagon." Whatever. But actually, no, I'm not quite jumping on the bandwagon. My opinion of Apple is still the same: I don't approve of some of their business practices, and Apple as a whole I don't really like. But just because I don't like the company doesn't mean that I automatically have to hate all of their products; no, that's just cynicism. And that's also unfair. That said, I think Apple's hardware is fantastic; and their software works very well for their hardware. But once you start throwing Apple software on Windows PCs or non-Apple software on Apple hardware, the results are often less than desirable. Oh yeah, and iTunes sucks. :-P

But anyway, back to the iPhone. I actually was highly considering going with the HTC Desire, also offered by SoftBank. Unfortunately, the wait is super long, and I also don't get the sweet discount on the Packet Plan. The phone itself is also a lot more expensive than the iPhone (either 16GB or 32GB). So, given that the SoftBank store I went to just got an order of 32GB phones, I chose this one because I'll be able to get it sooner! It's only about $5 more a month than the 16GB, so it sounds like a good deal to me. And I can unlock the phone and use it in the US, too (Bwa ha ha! Screw you AT&T!).

Because I won't get my iPhone for another few weeks, I decided to get a Pre-Paid plan and cheapee phone from SoftBank, as well. The phone was normally about 7000 yen, but I got it discounted to just 2000-something yen. Nice! The Pre-Paid plan is actually really good for those planning on being in Japan but only needing to text people and not make phone calls. Basically, the way the plan works is that you can buy a 3000 yen or 5000 yen card, which is about $34 and $57, respectively. With this card, you can make phone calls at the super expensive rate of 9 yen/6 seconds. That's a dollar a minute! It's a terrible price, but you just need to save it for emergencies. For only 300 yen, you can also buy unlimited texting for 30 days (called e-mail in Japan) to any provider: SoftBank, AU, Docomo, even to PC e-mail! Pretty sweet. And really super inexpensive. Apparently, if you also have more money on your card by the end of 30 days, it automatically renews. I'm not sure if it continually renews every month, though. So if you're interested in a full year's worth of Pre-Paid, you'd have to ask the store directly. More info here:

http://mb.softbank.jp/en/prepaid_service/
http://mb.softbank.jp/en/prepaid_service/unlimited_mail.html
http://mb.softbank.jp/en/prepaid_service/prepaid_plan.html

So why an iPhone? The screen is gorgeous. The pixel resolution is 326 ppi (pixels per inch). What does this mean? The pixel resolution is SHARPER THAN A MAGAZINE (300 dpi). Apple advertised that the resolution is so good that the human eye can't distinguish individual pixels, hence the naming of the display to "Retina display." Of course this is just the usual PRing that any company would do, but that doesn't change the fact that this is an amazing piece of hardware. The 640 x 960 resolution is like having two standard definition televisions (like the one in my apartment) stacked on top of one another! This phone has twice the resolution of my TV!

Also, the apps are amazing as well; nearly anything I would need an app for is available. And that's the kicker. I need to get some sort of electronic kanji dictionary. I will buy a real denshi jisho at some point, and I will also buy the Nintendo DS version (Kanji sono mama). But I won't always be carrying around a denshi jisho or a DS. So it would be extremely convenient to have it on my phone, because I would always be walking around with it. So the iPhone 4 kind of solves that problem as well. Additionally, because it's so easy to jailbreak and unlock the phone now, I can easily take it to the States!

Now, I really don't like iTunes. And I never liked QuickTime. Which is why I use QuickTime Alternative or QuickTime Lite anytime I need to play .mov files. And luckily, I've been using Winamp for over a decade now, and it has support for iPod/iPhone management! But there are also other iTunes alternatives. I will probably still need iTunes to download updates to my phone though. :-/ There are apparently ways to update the phone without it, but I haven't had enough time or experience with iPods/iPhones to have enough confidence to really mess with a device that I just bought.

If there are any questions that anyone has, feel free to leave it in the comments and I'll try to address it in my own comment or in a later post! You can also e-mail it to me if you don't want it published/publicized.

Second word of the day: アプリケーション "apurikeeshon", or "application." You know, like for phones. :-P

Obon's End

2010-08-16T00:18:00.004-04:00

Well, today is the last day of Obon! Also known as Gozan no Okuribi (五山送り火), or literally, five mountain sending off (funeral) fire. In Kyoto, they light a giant 大 in the side of a mountain. That's pretty amazing, and I would love to see it for myself! Actually, there are a few more kanji on there as well. Just go to www.google.com and you'll see what I mean. Or check out the wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gozan_no_Okuribi

Yesterday, I spent the entire day doing laundry and cleaning up my apartment. Actually not quite done yet, as I'm trying to figure out what to do about all of the paper that I've gotten from the two orientations. So much stuff to read through! I've gotten through a lot of it, but I believe the majority of it is really just for reference. But yeah, doing laundry in Japan is quite different in the US. I'll proceed to describe various other differences here that I've found amuzing or interesting (or even troublesome).

My apartment does NOT have a dryer. This means that once I'm done washing my clothes, I immediately put my clothes on hangers and put them somewhere to dry. My predecessor put a bar in one of the bedrooms for just that purpose. She usually used this bar during the winter and used a bar outside on the back patio to hang stuff when it wasn't cold out. But I found that hanging them inside was more convenient, because my shirt closet is in that same room. Also, the washer took quite a bit of time to figure out how to use. I had to look up the kanji that I didn't know and then make a vague interpretation of what the washer actually did with that particular setting. For example, one of the words was about flooding, so I figured that it had to do with re-filling the tank. There was also "drying," but the washer doesn't *actually* dry anything.

Another interesting thing is the trash system. In the US, we only have trash or recycling; and only recycling requires separation of stuff. But hoooooo, in Japan, even trash needs to be separated. When I was at a government institution last week for Miyagi orientation, there were four distinct trash bins for different stuff. Trash can be...er...MUST be separated into burnable trash and non-burnable trash. In other words, paper & organic waste versus plastic waste. But then you have lots of plastic bottles for drinks, known as PET bottles in Japan. To discard a PET bottle, you must first remove the cap and the plastic label and put those into the plastic/non-burnable trash. Then you may put the PET bottle into its designated container. Things like glass and aluminum have their own things as well, but in a public place, I think there are places for any sort of bottle-shaped trash. If you think about it, it's not really all that different from the recycling system that we have in the US. But the difference is that typically, the recycling and sorting happens at home, whereas here in Japan, it's public. I definitely think that it's for the better. I've also heard that if you don't separate the trash out properly, it gets returned to your doorstep!

Driving. Everything about driving here just seems *backwards*! The steering wheel is on the right, which Americans normally refer to as "passenger side." You must drive on the left side of the road and stay in the left lane. I believe passing on highways occurs on the right lane. The lane switch also means that left turns are now easy, whereas right turns are now more difficult. But see, I already knew about all that, so I wasn't surprised or shocked or anything. What seems the most "backwards" here is parking: everyone backs into their spot in a parking lot!!! This blows my mind, because in the US, nearly everyone goes head first into their parking spot, so all the cars face each other. But in Japan, all of the cars face away from each other! I haven't seen anyone load a ton of groceries in their cars like this yet. I'm sure to be amused when it happens.

Hmm, that's another thing. I've seen people buy lots of stuff; but the mentality of having abundant amounts of things is just different here in Japan. In the US, we like having a lot of a lot of stuff (yes, I meant to use "a lot of" twice). We go to places like Sam's Club or Costco or Walmart and stock up on things we use often, like toilet paper, paper towels, drinks, food, what have you. But in Japan...it's just not like that. I mean, people DO do that, but oftentimes, people are more inclined to buy smaller amounts of things because that's all that they need. I will share a story that I heard at Tokyo Orientation about this:

A JET participant (whom I'll refer to as "the JET") went shopping with a Japanese friend at the grocery store. For a long time now, the JET had been shopping at that store. There was a 1L (liter) beverage being sold for 80 yen. And every day, it was that price. There was also a .5L size being sold for 60 yen. But when the JET and her friend had gone shopping, the 1L drink was on sale for 50 yen, less than the price of the smaller one! The friend wanted to buy this drink, so she picked up the smaller .5L bottle and was about to go pay for it. This blew the JET's mind. "Why are you getting the smaller one??? You can get the larger one for a cheaper price!!!" "Because I only want this size." (I might have told the story a bit incorrectly; the two sizes might have both been 50 yen when it was on sale. But the point I'm trying to make is the same.)

Miyagi Orientation was last Wednesday to Friday; it might be a while before I see fellow JETs again. Orientation was fun; but the facility felt like a dormitory. Males and Females were separated by floor. And there were public restrooms rather than each room having its own bathroom. And there was also a public shower room (with private showers) but also a public bath. With public stools. And public sitting area. After two full days of getting to know people, a few of the guys fought their insecurities and went into the bath. And let me tell you, that was quite hot. But I hear that real onsen's have much, much hotter water. It felt good though. But I couldn't sit there for too long, because I was starting to get light-headed. Still a neat experience. I look forward to going to a real onsen one day; my supervisor said that he'll take me to one. Apparently our area is known for its many onsens. There's even one in town!

Word of the day: ごみ箱「ごみばこ」　"gomibako" or "garbage can." Gomi, or trash, is also often written in the katakana form: ゴミ

Obon

2010-08-13T22:58:00.002-04:00

Friday the Thirteenth, 8/13/2010 9:43 PM

I don’t know if it’s the beer talking, but the Obon festival was actually pretty fun! Obon is a festival that celebrates one’s deceased ancestors in Japan. It is from August 13 until August 16. The dates might differ every year, but I’m not sure. Maybe it’s always over a weekend from Friday to Monday? Anyway, today, my supervisor invited me to come to the Buddhist Temple in town an hour after work to meet him and join him in the event. I am very grateful that he had offered me that opportunity.

When I got to the temple, my supervisor (whom I will now refer to as Supes) and his wife were already on the grounds. When I got there, I greeted them with a bow and a “konnichi wa.” The first thing I noticed were the hanging paper lamps along the path that lead to the temple from the street. The second thing I noticed was the smell of burning incense. Supes was holding a bundle, still yet to be lit. He and his wife led be to the torii gate, where there stood an area to light the incense. Families were talking and walking by one another, even under the gate. One of Supes’wife’s friends greeted her and then asked if I was their son (haha). Their son and daughter are actually around my age, so it was an honest mistake. Supes and his wife led me behind the temple where their family’s grave was, and they proceeded to show me the proper procedure for praying and leaving the incense on the grave. They even let me leave some incense and pay my respects! I was grateful. And as odd as it sounds, I really wanted to take a picture of the temple; the graves were masterly handcrafted, and the temple itself is a beautiful building. But of course, to maintain respectfulness, I refrained from even asking.

After the short ceremony, their son showed up, and I was able to go through introductions in both English in Japanese. We walked under the torii gate again, but this time, a huge crowd of people were lined up in six lines. Everyone was lining up to walk up to the head monk and pay more respects to the temple. Again, I was given the privilege to participate in this endeavor. When it was my turn, I bowed with my hands together, grabbed some of the…burnable stuff (I don’t really know what it’s called; maybe it’s powdered incense?)…and I held it up to my head, put it in the fire, and bowed the same way again. Then, we went straight to the line for free food.

Actually, the food wasn’t quite free, as they were asked to give 3000 Yen (about $35) for food and drinks earlier. Supes and his wife had it strategically planned: he had me follow him to grab three beers (their son had just left, so he wasn’t going to dine with us), and his wife went off to the food line. When we sat down, there was already a bowl of noodles and some amazingly sweet corn on the cob waiting for me. I believe the beer was Asahi brand, as that is what the cup was. And I don’t know if it’s because of all the Asahi I had at orientation, but this beer was actually pretty good! And of course, with Japanese custom, they gave me a full glass before I even finished my first (usually they fill up your glass before it gets dry, but at this event, we could only grab cups of beer rather than pour it ourselves; afterall, it was draught). There was another bowl of food; this time, it was a bowl of seafood soup, which contained a mixed fish patty, various vegetables, seaweed, and a hardboiled egg. And I also had the pleasure of meeting a few of my fifth grade students, who were sitting next to us! Their English was surprisingly good; I was pleased.

Dinner was surprisingly enjoyable. It consisted mostly of Supes, his wife, and I chitchatting over beers, but it was still a good time. There was also a bonfire of hay that was lit in a central area between tents, near where everyone was lined up. Upon Supes’ urging, I took a few pictures of it, and even recorded some video during dinner. When we were done eating, they told me to grab the last cup of beer and take it home, along with the last bowl of noodles. I was concerned, because it is illegal to walk around in the US holding an open alcoholic beverage. Not a problem here, though! So, I did as they asked; we parted ways, and I walked back to my neighborhood in the dark, holding a cup of beer and a bowl (more like an uncovered plastic Tupperware container) of noodles.

So there you have it! Obon!

Word of the day: お寺　「おてら」 “otera,” which means “temple.” The word is actually just 寺　「てら」　“tera,” but the 「お」 “o” is added for respect. The same is done with works like “sake” and “shoyu,” which are sure to be words of the day later. :-)

Cell phones in Japan, Part 1

2010-08-10T21:15:00.005-04:00

I FINALLY GOT MY GAIKOKUJIN TOUROKUSHO! That means I can buy a phone! :-D

Here is a post about phones. I have included an except from an e-mail that I sent to my lovely girlfriend. I do not have the time right now to really get into detail. But here's a basic gist of things.

Refer to these links for more details:
http://mb.softbank.jp/en/
http://www.au.kddi.com/english
http://www.nttdocomo.co.jp/english/ (I don't really mention Docomo, as I am not really interested in their plans. Their phones are amazing, though.)

This is Part 1, and I will definitely make a Part 2 later.

E-mail:

Okay, so the phone thing. Get ready, this is going to be a little complicated. I will post this stuff on my blog as well, but the detail may be a little different.

So you know there are three major cell phone companies in Japan (Willcom is actually another one, a 4th one, but I haven't looked into them at all). And when you get a phone, you get two ways to get in touch with people: a phone number, and an e-mail address. The phone number can be used with making phone calls. The e-mail address is used for sending e-mails. Okay, that makes sense; but what is strange is what the e-mails *really* are.

There are two types of messaging; SMS (Short Message Service) and MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service). SMS is what we use in the US and refer to as "texting". As soon as you try to send anything besides text, like a picture or music, it becomes an MMS file.

In Japan, SMS is rarely used, and is actually not compatible across providers. So everyone in Japan uses "e-mail", which is actually a form of MMS. The difference is that in the US, you use the cell phone number for everything, from phone calls to SMS to MMS. But in Japan, you have to use an e-mail address for MMS. To use SMS, it appears that you can use either a phone number (if you're with SoftBank) or an e-mail address.

You are going to get a simple, free, Japanese phone, right? In which case, you will use the phone number you get for only phone calls. And you will use the e-mail address you get (which you can decide the name of) to make text/e-mail messages.

If I get an iPhone, you can send messages to my whatevernameIpick@softbank.ne.jp or name@i.softbank.jp addresses. I believe the first one is SMS and the second one is MMS.

When you buy a phone, you will have many kinds of plans available. I will try to explain the plans from SoftBank that I recommend.

White Plan, ￥９８０: In the white plan, you can make a phonecall to SoftBank phones for free, between 1 AM and 9 PM. But at night, from 9 PM to 1 AM, there is a ￥２１ for every 30 seconds you call someone. This is UBER expensive. $.45/minute is ridiculous. And if you call other brands like AU or Docomo, at any time of the day, it costs that same price. I would also mention video calls, but it's expensive and we won't really be doing it, so I'll skip that.

If you like making phone calls after 9 PM, then you can go with Double White, which is twice as expensive per month, but twice as cheap per minute.

S! Basic Pack, ￥３１５: The S! Basic Pack is the MMS E-mail service that SoftBank provides.

And if you have the money, Unlimited Packet Discount, ￥１，０２９－￥４，４１０: The charge is dependent on the amount of packets (internet/mail) you use. If you do not have this plan, then you will be charged for each e-mail you send to a non-SoftBank customer. Kinda sucks. But with the S! Basic Pack, you can send e-mails for free to SoftBank customers. So You will need some sort of Unlimited Packet Discount plan if you intend to be sending lots of mail to non-SoftBank friends.

Lastly, there is a Basic Option Package, ￥４９８: While not necessary, it has fun little things like Lost Phone Search if you lose your phone, or Secure Remote Lock, which can also lock your phone. There is also an addressbook backup, more voice mail, and Call Waiting (yeah, normally there is no call waiting in Japan). But no one really calls anyway, haha.

Total: ￥１，２９５, without being able to e-mail people for free or having call waiting. This price includes a very basic stuff; mainly just being able to call SoftBank during the day and early evening, and being able to mail using MMS.

Let's look at AU now. AU has an excellent mail plan.

Plan E Simple, ￥７８０ or ￥１，５６０: You have to apply for the Everybody Discount to get the cheaper price. But that's a very nice price. In this Plan E Simple, there are no Free Calls, but you can call anyone for ￥２１ per 30 seconds. It's like the White Plan from SoftBank, but actually not as good. The only reason you would choose Plan E Simple is because you HAVE to pick a plan, and it is the cheapest.

Mail/EZ Web, ￥３１５: EZ Win E-mail is FREE to send and receive e-mails. But they mentioned C-mail, which costs ￥３．１５/mail. Not really sure what c-mail is.

GUN-GUN Mail (ガンガンメール) and GUN-GUN Talk (ガンガントーク), http://www.au.kddi.com/english/ryokin_waribiki/ryokin/gangan_mail/index.html Gun-gun mail, which we would normally romanize as Gan-gan, is the combination of the two above plans. BUT! It's awesome because you can add three AU phone numbers that you "call often". You can call these three numbers at any time of the day, 24 hours, for only ￥３９０/month! And C-Mail is also free to anyone (whatever that is)! Haha

Total: 1,485, which includes the Everybody Discount. This is the ガンガン Mail and Talk plans, with Plan E Simple. It's nice 'cause you can e-mail anyone you want from any phone company. And you can also call those three numbers at any time of the day.

/endEmail

So there you have it, folks. Two courses of action that I'm trying to decide upon. The current situation is that I have a temporary number and e-mail for a prepaid plan. I got this for the sake of waiting for an iPhone ('cause for some reason it takes FOREVER to get an iPhone). But after looking at AU's awesome GUN-GUN plan, I'm highly considering it.

Til next time!

Word of the day: 携帯電話　「けいたいでんわ」 "keitai denwa", or "cell phone".

Celebration

2010-08-09T01:52:00.003-04:00

Sunday, 8/8/2010 10:46 PM

I just took a bath. And by that, I mean that I took a shower as I normally would, but instead of drying up and stepping out of the shower, I hopped into the tub adjacent to the shower area. And I just sat there, pruning, and enjoying the water. Not really sure what a bath is about, besides relaxing, but the bath tubs in Japan are tiny. Say, about 3x3x3 feet cubed. That said, it’s kind of hard to relax in there the way you could the ones in the U.S. But it’s not impossible. And it still felt good; especially after such a hot day! Everyday it’s been ridiculously hot here. But I found it interesting, because usually, when I spend a lot of time under the sun, a sensitive part on my elbows gets burned (I know, right?). But today, I just got *really tanned* and thankfully not burned. But since I was wearing the necklace my girlfriend gave me, I now have a healthy necklace tan to match my watch tan and bracelet tan. Rock on.

So this weekend was filled with a lot of celebrations, hence the title of this post. On Friday night, I went out with two co-workers and another friend of theirs. We’re all about the same age, so it was pretty fun! There was no need to stay reserved and overtly polite like I would for my mentors here. We went to a family restaurant; no alcohol there, but instead, they have all-you-can-drink soda, tea, and soup. Yes, all-you-can-drink soup. From a dispenser that is not unlike a cappuccino machine. It was kind of strange…but quite tasty! And even more peculiar were the burgers there: in Japan, there are two (at least?) types of burgers: there’s the ハムバーガー “hamubaagaa,” which is just like a normal American hamburger you could order at McDonald’s or wherever. Then, there’s the ハムバーグ “hamubaagu,” which is Romanized as “hamburg,” like the city. And the hamburg is JUST the burger patty on a plate, without a bun. In fact, it was served with rice (there is actually a choice to order bread instead of rice, but it is not a hamburger bun). And the hamburg I ordered had cheese inside! And it had the option of being served with two different types of sauces: a tomato sauce, or a French-style dark sauce whose name escapes me. Anyway, great meal, and a wonderful time getting to know new friends.

Hamburg, on left, served with shrimp:

On Saturday was the Tanabata Matsuri, which took place in Sendai. That festival is a celebration that involves long, colorful lamp-like decorations made of paper. We JET ALTs in Miyagi used that festival as a reason to meet up; unfortunately, the two others I met up with had missed the first group of people (composed of two), and others who seemingly went by themselves or with their supervisor. Though, considering that none of us has a cell phone and only one or two have internet access at their apartments, that’s a pretty decent turnout for lack of communication.

Anyway, having met up with two others, we walked around and checked out the stores nearby the Sendai Station. I found a variety of interesting stores, including a place that rents out DVDs, CDs, and manga. I also went to a thin, but tall (10-11 floors) shopping mall, filled with women’s clothes. I had to go to the basement floor to really find any clothing for men. And damn, they were right: since I’m a Medium in the U.S., I’m a Large in Japan. And even the Large looks like it’ll barely fit; people here are so skinny! (But not everyone, obviously.) But yeah, so many guys are skinny as a twig. And some women are surprisingly tall. But I digress.

We also found a Starbucks! Caramel Frappuccino still tastes good here! If anything, I think it might actually be better here…hmm. And finally, I went shopping at a Japanese Hyaku-en store (Dollar Store)! I bought some gift bags/boxes for my omiyage, and I also got new house sandals. Afterwards, we went to an electronics store that had a huge phone section; one of the JETs I was with managed to get her phone that day. She ended up picking AU, probably because she heard they were the ones willing to allow a foreigner to start services with them without having the Alien Registration Card on their person (but required the passport, and a verbal confirmation that the card was ordered or being processed). I’ll make another post later, after I investigate more about Japanese phones this week.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t stay in Sendai much longer because the return bus was leaving at 5 PM. This means that I had to miss the celebrations, which were mostly at night. But at least I got to explore the area and get a feel for how the bus system works. Now I gotta figure out how the Shinkansen works. :-)

Here's that toilet I mentioned in last week's post:

Continued at 1:56 PM, Monday 8/9/2010

Later that evening, I called up a co-worker (the guy who took me to the hamburg place), and he took me to an internet café. This store is just chockfull of fun. Besides renting a computer in a private booth, you can rent out a game room, where you can sit and play games. You can also rent manga, or go to the arcade which has all the games on free credits. There are also a bunch of billiards/pool tables, darts, free ice cream/drinks. All for just about $5/hr or $10/4hr.

On Sunday was the Kappa Matsuri. Kappa is a sea sprite, or sea monster. Literally, its name is spelled “river child”, or 河童. Kappa is the mascot of this town (and you see him everywhere, even in neighboring towns!), so naturally there is a festival to celebrate him. The festival was really interesting; there were a bunch of tents setup in front of the Town Hall, where various foods were served like foot long hot dog franks, tako yaki (octopus meatballs), delicious slices of beef, and snow cones, perfect for this hot weather. There was also a stage, with various performances like dancing, singing, taiko drums, and even dancing by toddlers. There was even a couple from the Caribbean who came and did a drumming performance. The opening act was a singer from Tokyo who sang a few songs he wrote. I liked his music enough to buy a CD; I introduced myself as having come from America, so he autographed the CD with “I’m glad to see you!”

After the performances, there was a big Kappa Dance that involved nearly the entire town parading through the street doing simple choreography in sync. And of course I danced with them! As if I even had a choice! Afterwards, I was introduced to my neighborhood; as the Kappa Dance was performed with each neighborhood split up. After the festival was over, a kid who had just graduated high school came up to me and started talking. One of the first things he asked was if I had a girlfriend. I was warned at the Tokyo Orientation that people tend to be very nosy here, and they will ask all sorts of questions, which could be as intimate as asking about physical measurements. Having forgotten the advice to say “himitsu” or “secret,” I simply said, “yes, I have a girlfriend.” To which he replied with more questions; I quickly changed the subject by turning the question around on him and proceeding to talk about Japan life. The conversation quickly subsided, and everyone went home.

After a hard day's work, what better to drink than this?

After getting home, I was tinkering around with the washing machine, trying to translate the various labels and buttons on it so that I don’t end up destroying my clothes or my apartment. A few minutes into that, my doorbell rings. Lo and behold, it’s the president of my community! He was inviting me to come out to one of the centrally located buildings, where people were gathering. When I got there, I was quickly shown a place on the tatami mat to sit, with food and drink offered upon my sitting. I had sat down next to the older lady who had shown me how to do the Kappa dance. Now, I know how pushy people can get when they’re offering things to eat and drink; but this lady took it to the next level! Having kindly accepted the food, I ate some and drank some, and before I even drank 1/4 of my glass, she quickly filled it up. And again. And again. Even after I said I was okay! And she also grabbed a second plate for me to put more food on, without checking if I wanted to eat it. Hahaha, good times. I felt bad because I had gotten quite full very quickly, so I couldn’t quite finish everything. She then packed up a bunch of the food for me to take home. And gave me orange Fanta, which they’ve referred to as “Juice” ever since I’ve arrived here.

I took some pictures of the festivities this weekend, but unfortunately, I won’t be able to upload them in a while because I still don’t have internet access at home. It was suggested to me to create a Flickr account for such a purpose.

Word of the day: 祭り「まつり」 “matsuri,” or “festival.”

Living in Japan

2010-08-06T02:04:00.006-04:00

Only in Japan, do you get a traffic sign with a picture of a samurai.

8/5/2010 9:52 PM

I have lived in my new apartment for a full day already. Of course, a great deal of that day was spent at work. I’ve perhaps spent twice as much time at work than sleeping. But being that it’s still the beginning of my term, I haven’t really done too much in terms of “work.” And of course, it is still summer vacation for the kids, so there are no lesson plans to be made. But there has been a lot of paperwork, and quite a bit more to go.

The paperwork I still have yet to take care of is my contract. Quite a troublesome thing, especially considering how important a document it is. I also have to open up a Japanese bank account (or two). I was advised to open one to accept direct deposits, and to open another to make it easy to do other services like wire transfers and perhaps remote purchases. Not sure why I can’t just do everything with one account, unless the banks are just that limited.

Unfortunately, I am still jetlagged. I was told (by many, actually) that I may be jetlagged for even up to a week and a half. Ugh. It’s weird, too, because besides affecting my wakefulness and energy levels, it also affects my appetite. As Shoe said today (the guy who is nigh native-fluent in English), “When I was jetlagged, I was tired, but not sleepy. I was hungry, but I didn’t want to eat anything.” Well said, Shoe. [Note: it is pronounced like you think it is; like the English word for the things you wear on your feet.]

Shoe took me around town. Well, technically, around multiple towns, and even a city. We’ve been looking around for various electronics stores, from which I’ll purchase a cell phone and plan. And perhaps a Nintendo DSi (though, I am leaning more towards getting one at a used dealer, as Japanese used merchandise is pristine compared to the American counterparts). I will probably wait ‘til after my first paycheck, though, before I invest in a DSi and the game/program called Kanji sono mama, which I will use as a tool to help me learn and practice kanji.

I met with an NTT representative today to discuss my internet access. He had informed me that there was some problem with my situation, so he couldn’t give me my internet access today. Part of the problem was that he wanted to give me a choice to choose what provider/plan I want to go with, and I’m guessing that there was also a problem with “transferring” a current service, so I was forced to apply for a brand new connection. It wouldn’t be such a big deal if I didn’t have to wait for so long to get access. He said “about one week,” which would push it back to next Wednesday or Thursday. But I have orientation in Sendai from Wednesday to Friday, so that isn’t going to happen. Hopefully, I’ll have it by the Saturday after that.

No point fretting about things out of my control! And I appreciate that he was trying to be helpful by giving me a choice. And hopefully, I’ll have my Alien Registration Card by that time as well, so that I can apply for a cell phone/plan. I’m really, really leaning towards SoftBank, as I’ve mentioned earlier. But I can’t help but feel like I’m interested in that particular phone for extremely shallow reasons. That said, the iPhone4 has really amazing functionality, and there are actually a decent number of Japanese people who have one (which means that it seems to be doing well to be able to compete against such devices with 8.1 megapixel cameras and beautiful screens that can turn sideways (but keeping the keypad vertical). The phone I’m interested in has those features, in addition to Wi-Fi capabilities and a design popular for Japanese phones (long, thin flip-phone).

I brought my laptop into work today in order to attempt to connect it to the internet. But I couldn’t figure out how to connect it, no matter what I did! I changed LAN Settings and whatnot to no avail. So I had to use the crappy Windows 2000 computer at my desk, which barely runs. But at least I can still check my e-mails, facebook crap, and update my blog. But only at work. Which also means that I won’t get to do any real immediate responses or use Skype. Oh well…just wait for 10 days. :-)

Continued at 10:57 AM, 8/6/2010, on a BOE Computer.

The Sendai Orientation is coming up really quickly! Once again, I’ll be donning epic business clothes, suit and tie, for three days straight. But in this wicked weather; it sounds so awful! I’m really hoping that the place we’re going to is well air-conditioned. I wonder what kinds of things will go on during this orientation?

I haven’t been given any specific work to do yet, as my classes won’t start for another few weeks, and there is nothing I need to take care of specifically, except for the following: Write an intro paragraph about myself to the community in English (which they will translate into Japanese later) to be published in a local magazine. I asked if I could write it in Japanese, and they said it was okay (after they said “sugoi” [awesome/cool/amazing]).

I must say, there have been very interesting differences about certain daily-life situations and daily-use items. I haven’t had a problem adjusting to them, thankfully; and it’s not so much difficult as it is different. For one thing, the keyboard I’m typing on right now is a Japanese keyboard. The layout is different, of course. It’s still qwerty, but all the punctuation is relocated! And the spacebar has been reduced to the width of two and a half keys to make room for three additional keys on the bottom that deal with kana and kanji. All of the keys have both letters (alphabet) and hiragana, but I haven’t figured out how to use them just yet. So far, I’ve just been typing kana phonetically, which works. But yeah, it’s really weird having to type an apostrophe by pressing Shift+7. It’s a good thing that period and comma are still the same. But colon and semicolon are on different keys, and the double quotation marks are Shift+2. And + is Shift+semicolon. Crazy, right???

Another hilarious/awesome difference is the toilet in my apartment. It’s not one of the typical toilets that you hear about, like the ones in hotels that shoot water at your butt. No, instead, its extra faucet is actually BEHIND the toilet, right on top of the reservoir of water that is used to flush the toilet. What’s it for you may ask? To wash your hands! It’s pretty damn clever if I say so myself. The plumbing around the toilet is routed so that the clean water that normally fills the tank (which later fills the bowl) is first made available to be used to wash your hands. Then, the water gets drained INTO the tank, so that it could be used for the next flush. You’re never touching dirty water, and you get to recycle the water that you just washed your hands with by using it to flush the toilet! Amazing.

So there is no central heating or cooling in Japan. This means stationary air conditioners and kerosene heaters are very popular. And no central water heating unit either, so you have to use individual water heaters for each faucet. This is actually a pretty good setup, as it saves energy and money not having to heat water when you don’t need it. It’s just interesting having to set up your shower by lighting a fire. :-)

Also, the trash system here is really interesting. It seems that there are two types of trash: combustible and noncombustible. And this is different from recycling as well, I believe. When the trash guys take the combustible stuff, they take it away and burn it. Not really sure about the process, like what happens to the remains or even the energy gained from burning it. But knowing Japan, I’m sure they do something with it. Though, it’s interesting to have a country that is so obsessed with efficiency and getting the most out of everything, yet whose citizens leave the car on when they run into a store to grab something (or in my case, introduce me to all of the teachers in an elementary school).

The typical Japanese office setup is like this: imagine a small classroom with a big desk in the middle, with room to fit 4 people with computers and printers in the middle. Then, put another desk facing the big desk. At this smaller desk sits the guy in charge of that section. This is the typical setup, and I’ll be damned if I see a different setup in Japan. Thus far, every single group of employees I was introduced to had their desks arranged in a similar fashion; no cubicles here! This setup, I feel like, almost forces intimacy between employees. Not only that; it also forces productivity. The lack of privacy tends to make us less inclined to goof off (at least for me! haha).

It’s fun pointing out the differences between cultures. But it’s when the differences start to bother me when there’s a problem; that indicates a decline into “Stage 2” of culture shock. Hopefully, if and when this happens, it doesn’t last long!

Word of the day:

Arrival

2010-08-05T03:23:00.003-04:00

8/4/2010 7:32 PM

I have arrived in Miyagi Prefecture! As I sit here typing this blog post inside my apartment, I can hear the air conditioner working its hardest to keep the place cool, I can see the various news around Japan on the television, and I can smell the sweet aroma of the delicious food that my supervisor's wife was kind enough to prepare for me. Beside my tray of food is a letter from my girlfriend that arrived even before I did. (Isn’t she so sweet!??!? I love her! ^_^)

As I look around the room, I get a true sense of seclusion. As I look outside the windows, I get a true sense of the countryside. As I look around the neighborhood, I get a true sense of community. As I traverse through the country, I get a true sense of Japan. Yes, I finally feel like I'm here.

When I was at the JET Orientation in Tokyo, which took place in Keio Plaza Hotel in the Shinjuku district, I never quite felt like I was actually in Japan. It was more like I was walking around on a huge movie set, where all of the actors were speaking Japanese, but all of the extras were speaking English (or maybe vice versa). But something about it felt surreal, like I wasn't really here yet. When I was walking around Shinjuku by myself two nights ago, I did get the feeling of finally being in Japan, but it was a brief excursion in an unknown area at night with bright lights and loud signs, not unlike cities in the U.S.

But then I just went back to the hotel, and it was like stepping back into the U.S. Nearly everyone around me spoke English again, and Japanese was used only by those who had studied it or used it for an extensive amount of time. But I'm in the countryside now. I cannot step back. I cannot escape the challenges laid out before me. In fact, as I write this blog post right now, I do not have internet access. I hope to post this within the next day or two (hence my inclusion of a date and time at the beginning of the post). [Edit: Unfortunately, it turns out that I won't have internet access until about the middle of the month; so like, 10 days-ish. Doh.]

The challenges I speak of revolve all around communication; the very reason I'm here in Japan. Communication is both my duty and my goal. It is my responsibility as a teacher and my desire as a student of language. My purpose is to teach communication of English to my students, and the purpose of my living in Japan is to learn communication of Japanese. My challenges will follow me wherever I go; when I'm at work, when I'm at a store, when I'm on the phone, when I'm tending to my bills, and even when I'm just at home, not even watching television.

Today, I am grateful that one of the teachers who had lived in the U.S. for a few years was gracious enough to come with my advisor to meet me today and act as an interpreter. I did my best to use Japanese as much as I could, but too many times, my supervisor used words that I had never learned. And situations came up where I wanted to describe something, but I either did not have the vocabulary, or a complete understanding of the sentence structure to use it with confidence. In time, I will be able to understand him and also convey my thoughts with ease; I just hope and pray that that day comes very, very soon.

This morning, I had to say goodbye to JET participants I had met earlier this week. The goodbyes were not quite "sad," so much as they were simply filled with a tone of doubt; a feeling of uncertainty for what may lie before us. Most of the JETs are being placed in similar areas as me: out in the countryside, where English is barely used; and when it is, it is broken and almost incomprehensible. But some JETs I had met are actually going to be located in cities, with other JETs within a short driving distance. It seems as though the JETs placed out in the countryside have studied some Japanese, while those that hadn't were placed in the cities. Indeed, this makes sense, but I wonder about how people who cannot read Japanese will do when they have to travel about from school to school, or from town to town when they want to travel. It baffles me somewhat, that someone would have the guts to jump into a foreign country with a less-than-shallow grasp of the language. But for that I commend them. To any of those friends reading this: がんばれ！

Those of us going to Miyagi Prefecture were lead by the JET CIR (Coordinator of International Relations) from the hotel to the subway, which we rode to the shinkansen (bullet train) station. Carrying my two heavy messenger bags, I walked with the rest of my group (also carrying heavy items) through the station. We purchased a few snacks and drinks (I got Coka-Cola, coffee milk called Doutor Café au lait, some OJ, and a sandwich). The shinkansen ride was very quick and very smooth; the most comfortable way to travel such a far distance. The ride from Tokyo to Sendai City only took two hours, and costs only around $100. Definitely the way to travel, if I need to go south quickly. But my concerns are 1) How should I get to the Sendai Shinkansen Station and where would I park and 2) How do I navigate around the Stations themselves?

The reason I pose #2 is because the stations are seemingly more complicated than other stations in other countries I've been to. But that might be just because I was trying to read only the Japanese. Then again, there was barely any English on the signs. In any case, when we got to the Miyagi Board of Education office, we were quickly led to a room where we met the representatives of our prefecture. The meeting was simply composed of a few short introductory speeches; it wasn't even long enough for me to finish my drink of water. After the meeting, we swiftly grabbed our bags and went off with our supervisors. We didn't even have time to say goodbye to anyone. :-(

I was taken to a tonkatsu (fried pork) restaurant in Sendai. I ordered katsudon, which I occasionally order in the U.S. And hooooo boy was it delicious. After the food, we drove to the town where I'll be living and working. We went to the Board of Education, where I was introduced to everyone in the building (literally) and where I filled out various paperwork. The age range of the employees seemed to be extremely large, but it seems as though I am the youngest person there (though I could be wrong). A few of the office workers look like they might be in their early-mid 20's, but you never know, as us Asians tend to look younger than our actual age.
After the BOE, I was taken to my new apartment. At first, I got the same impression as when I moved into my very first apartment in Pittsburgh: wow, it seems small. But right now, as I sit and look around, it really doesn't seem that small. In fact, it seems quite large, especially for a Japanese apartment. I am lucky enough to have two bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen, and a bathroom/washroom. I think the apartment seemed small at first because the doors were closed, and the door ways are shorter than those in the U.S. And certain things around the apartment are smaller than the usual American size, like the fridge, desk, couches, TV, kitchen area; mostly everything around me, really. But it's suitable for just one or two people.
After looking around the apartment and trying to figure out the shower, I was taken to a local K-Mart/Wal-Mart-style supermarket called AEON. I didn't really need to buy much; just food, drinks, and paper towels/tissue. I'm grateful that my supervisor and the other teacher were willing to take me there, especially because it was after the normal work day had already ended.

When we returned, I was greeted by certain people from the BOE again, as well as the president of my neighborhood (I didn't know such a thing existed!); unfortunately, I was already told to change into casual clothes before we went shopping, so when I met him, I wasn't quite dressed properly. It didn't seem like such a big deal though, 'cause the guy was donning a white tank top, khaki shorts, and smoking a cigarette.

After we had brought in everything and everyone had left, I sat down and started to read the letter than my girlfriend had sent me. As I was reading it, someone had rang the doorbell; it was my supervisor again, but this time he brought his wife (I think it was his wife; he never really said), who was carrying a tray of warm food she had prepared herself. I'm not sure if it's because they felt bad for what I would have had to eat that night (some pre-made bento boxes from AEON), or because my supervisor noticed that I didn't have a microwave (I was wondering where it was, too), or simply out of generosity or Japanese custom. Whatever the reason, I was happy to accept the food.

My first day in the countryside has been long and arduous. From the metropolis of Tokyo to a quaint little village. It's a monstrous change in life-style; especially this first day, where I cannot even drive just yet, because the luggage that contains my IDP has yet to arrive from Tokyo. (I was told it would arrive tomorrow, so it's not a surprise. It's just a little hassle to walk to work; but thankfully it's not far, and I can take pictures along the way if I leave early enough.) But I look forward to the challenges that face me, because when it's over, I'll have grown up quite a bit, with a wealth of new experiences.

So yeah, I made it! I have finally arrived in the real Japan.

Word of the day: 田舎　「いなか」 "inaka," or, "countryside." Literally, "rice paddy" and "hut" or "house."

Second day of orientation

2010-08-03T08:25:00.003-04:00

Well, more seminars today. A lot of things were just repetitions from things earlier in the day or from yesterday. Which is actually good, because those are important things. Some of the topics we covered today included driving, lesson planning, communicating with our co-workers and community, our activities in Japan, safety, food, drug laws, learning Japanese...lots of topics.

Also, I don't recall if I had mentioned it last night, but on my way back to the hotel from the Shinjuku arcades, I finally used a vending machine and bought some Kirin Milk Tea. Delicious. [Note: This is not my own picture.]

Tonight, we had to ship any last bit of luggage to our designated prefectures to reduce the amount of luggage we actually have to carry with us. I've managed to take it down to just two messenger bags; let's just hope I didn't ship anything that I will need with me immediately on my person!

So yeah, clearly not too much happened today. The most exciting thing is perhaps going back out to Shinjuku with fellow JET ALTs who departed from Washington, D.C. with me. I had beef udon. And maaaaaaaaaaan was it good! The noodles were seemingly hand-made, as they were imperfectly rolled. And it made it oh so good.

Alright, I gotta pack up my last bit of stuff and get to bed. Good night, Japan! Good morning, USA!

Word of the day: 自動販売機　「じどうはんばいき」　"jidouhanbaiki," or vending machine. Literally, it means "automatic selling machine."

First day of orientation

2010-08-02T10:12:00.004-04:00

So I've completed my first day of JET Orientation. Fun time! Except I was exhausted ALL DAY. It wasn't until I took a 10 minute nap at around 9 PM that I got a second wind and decided to go out. I went out because a fellow JET ALT said to a friend I just met, "When's the next time you're going to be in Tokyo?" With those words in mind, I dressed up and headed out. I tried to see if he was still in his room, but he had already left (probably while I was sleeping). I simply set out to look around the neighborhood a bit, and I saw plenty of bright neon lights everywhere and tons of things to buy. One of the electronics stores I went to had an eyesore of signs plastered all over the walls. It was like the store was yelling at me to purchase something. Things that piqued my interest in that store were phones and denshi jisho (you know, electronic dictionaries). Didn't buy anything of course. In fact, I didn't spend any money...

...until I got to the arcade. :-D I saw a Sega arcade which I almost thought was a pachinko parlor (because earlier I saw a pachinko parlor which I thought was an arcade). When I walked in and looked around, I was surprised at how small it was; but I believe there were multiple floors. I'm not sure exactly because I chose to stay on the ground floor; maybe I'll check out the rest tomorrow. In any case, I played Initial D Stage 5. If anyone else has played this series, they'll know that in each iteration, there is a new physics engine, and this one definitely had a new one. I couldn't get the turns or drifting right at all. Oh well, I still won.

Then, I walked around more, saw some more fun stores, and another arcade. And this one was where I spent quite a while in; maybe almost an hour. I lost track of time because I was too busy schooling other gaikokujin (foreigners) in Street Fighter IV. Got 5 wins and no losses! Then proceeded to beat the game. All on one credit. Win. :-D Tekken 6 was there, too. And I would have played it if someone else was; and if I had more time.

The orientation itself was very interesting and valuable. Apparently *everyone* in the JET Programme (and by extension, anyone who moves to Japan to stay for an extended period of time) will experience Culture Shock. I can agree with this statement, because Culture Shock (a.k.a. Cultural Fatigue) is something that happens on a personal level, and it's something that is very difficult to describe but easy to understand if one has experienced it. The speaker explained that Culture Shock (which I'll abbreviate as CS from now on in this post) is something that occurs in four stages very gradually. Which is why it makes more sense to call it Fatigue than Shock. It's something that builds up and wears you down. The four stages are basically 1) Excitation/Happiness/Euphoria 2) Sadness/Anger/Depression 3) Recovery 4) Assimilation. I won't go into detail about what each one means, but it's basically a roller coaster, where #'s 1 and 3 are high, 2 is low, and 4 is back to normal again. Some people get stuck in Stage 2, and that is the problem with CS; the person suffering from it has to go through Stage 3, or else will suffer during the entire duration of his or her stay in Japan.

The other seminars I heard dealt with teaching at multiple schools, cooking/eating out, and adult conversation classes, which I will apparently be doing. I also continued networking, mingling, and meeting more people! Overall a very exhausting, but equally fun day.

Word of the day: 時差ぼけ　「じさぼけ」　"jisaboke," or "jet-lag." The first character, as I've mentioned before, means "time," while the second character means "difference."

I'M IN JAPAN

2010-08-01T09:41:00.003-04:00

やっと日本に来ましたよ～～～～！！！
見て見て！日本語しか話せません！

Just kidding! But yeah, I'm finally here in Tokyo! I'm staying at this huge hotel in Shinjuku. And a couple friends and I went to eat at a restaurant. Pretty awesome. REAL SUSHI. IN JAPAN. The sushi was huge. And inexpensive. Awesome. And we ate in a mini tatami room. Well not really; it was just like a normal table/booth, but the seats were tatami mats, and it was in something like a secluded room. I also had Asahi Beer on draft. And the other food (fried chicken, fried octopus) was also delicious. Yum.

Anyway, not much to update with, except that I barely slept on the flight, so I'm really beat. And I watched three movies: Iron Man 2 (again), Post Grad, and Date Night. All fantastic movies. Post Grad in particular was nice because I could relate to the protagonist experiencing post-graduation frustrations.

Gotta get sleep! Big day tomorrow!

Word of the day: 寿司　「すし」　"sushi." 'Nuff said.

Almost there!

2010-07-30T23:41:00.003-04:00

Ahhh! It's my last night here in the U.S. before I go to Japan! I'll only be getting a few hours of sleep tonight, seeing as how I have to be at the airport by 7:15 AM. Guh. And I also need to buy a few small gifts (read: key chains) at the airport.

Today was filled with JET orientation fun. It was really long, but very informative. And it's kind of pointless to post about my day today. So I'll briefly mention a few topics that were covered: etiquette, omiyage, culture shock.

Anyway! Gotta prepare for tomorrow morning and get to bed. Next time I post, I'll be in Japan! Wooh!

Word of the day: 出発　「しゅっぱつ」　"shuppatsu," which means "departure." Literally, "exit" and "departure" (the concept, as opposed to the word, which is the compound here). Another compound word, 発着　「はっちゃく」　"hacchaku" (or hatchaku; or hattyaku; many romanizations) means "departures and arrivals." You can guess which one is arrivals. :-)

Really should be going to sleep

2010-07-30T01:09:00.003-04:00

The title of this post speaks the truth. I really should be going to sleep right now. So I'll keep this one short. Well, sorta.

But anyway, I'm here in Washington, D.C., at a good friend's place. It's technically the morning of Friday, but let's just pretend it's still Thursday night, 'cause it's only 1 AM-ish. So anyway, I stayed up incredibly late last night finishing up packing. Well, almost finishing up packing, 'cause really, I finished it up this morning. I got all of my last shopping finished. But I can't help but think that a small token from the U.S. in the form of my favorite candy bar will serve as a sufficient form of omiyage (gift). Let's hope so. Maybe I'll be able to find a few keychains or something for the VIPs.

Yesterday was quite hectic. I recycled three old computers, a CRT monitor, two keyboards, and two mice. Or is it mouses ('cause it's referring to the computer peripheral rather than the animal)? In any case, it was quite tiresome. And the dude in the store, an older-than-middle-aged man didn't seem very happy with his job. If I owned a store and was surrounded with computer eye candy all day, I don't think I'd be as apathetic as he was. But then again, maybe he's got a lot of stuff to deal with at the moment of which I'm simply not aware.

Afterward, I wanted to stop by Barnes & Noble to pick up a book called Essential Kanji. It's quite useful. Many learners of Japanese have this book, including my girlfriend; and she's not the only one who has recommended it to me. That said, GO BUY A COPY! There's an alternative book I found at the store as well called Japanese Kanji & Kana. Both of these books contain the 2000 kanji (1945 actually) that Japanese high school graduates are expected to know, as well as another couple hundred of kanji found in names. Both introduce kanji in a similar manner, teaching compound words using only kanji previously introduced in the book. Very clever. And it includes the stroke order so that you can learn to properly write the word as well. Nice! The biggest difference was that they were arranged in a different order, and the second book seems to have more of a history about where the characters came from; not 100% sure on this 'cause I only spent a few minutes in the store looking at it. And even less time on the book that I actually bought (the first one). I only meant to spend a few minutes there...I ended up spending two hours there! It's so fun to just go around to each section that you like and peruse the books there.

Today was...actually kind of sad. It was filled with a lot of lifting and reweighing of the bags to insure that they upheld the 50 lb restriction. And with my lack of sleep (only about 4 hours), I was incredibly tired. Pair the physical exhaustion with stress, and my emotions were heightened. I got kind of emotional as the time approached for me to leave. It started when my brother, his wife, and I were having lunch with my grandparents at a local country buffet. Because it was the last time we would eat a meal together for a long time. When we got home, I quickly grabbed the last bit of my stuff, and my brother and I proceeded to load the vehicle. Saying goodbye to my grandparents was the hardest part. My grandmother was telling me good luck and God bless and some really emotional words. I'll leave them out of this post; it's too sad to type. I gave them hugs and then entered the car with my brother and his wife. When we pulled away, I had to hold back the emotion as I waved goodbye.

Tomorrow is my last full day in the U.S. until I go to Japan. Pre-Departure Orientation. Am I excited? I think anxiety is a better word to describe it. But tomorrow is the easy part. It's time to look ahead.

Word of the day: 祖父母「そふぼ」 "sofubo," which means "grandparents." Literally, the characters mean "ancestor father mother".

SFXT/TXSF

2010-07-24T23:52:00.009-04:00

Comic-Con is going on right now, and two amazingly awesome announcements have been made! 1) Capcom is currently collaborating with Namco to develop a game called Street Fighter X Tekken [note: the X is pronounced "cross"] which uses the Street Fighter IV engine!!! and 2) Namco is making Tekken X Street Fighter which will run on the Tekken 6 (or 7) game engine!!! AHHHH!!! I've been waiting over a decade for something like this to happen! I've been a huge fan of the Street Fighter series since I was 5 years old. Yes, five. I still recall trying to teach my classmates in Kindergarten how to throw a Hadoken (fireball) with Ryu. They didn't seem to understand. :-) And I've been playing Tekken since 1998, when Tekken 3 was released on the PSX [for you young'uns, that's the original abbreviation for the PS1]. Ahh, good times, good times.

Trailer:

It's interesting because Capcom is currently working on Marvel VS Capcom 3, which I've been waiting for literally a decade, since MVC2 was released in the arcades. This only means that we won't see SFXT until probably at least a year after MVC3's release, which is scheduled for Spring 2011. Namco is currently working on Tekken 7, but I'm expecting TXSF to be released before that, to be honest. Though, they should be working on Tekken Tag 2, if anything. Tekken Tag Tournament is the favorite of many hard-core Tekken gamers, simply because the tag feature was just that fun!

And apparently the guy who played Human Torch in the Fantastic 4 movie, Chris Evans, has been cast to play as Captain America in the upcoming Captain America and The Avengers movies. For me, that's a big no-no. Both characters he portrays are Marvel characters! That means they can't ever have a movie with both characters in it 'cause it would just be too unbelievable! Unless they recast Human Torch of course. I have the same feelings about Ryan Reynolds playing Deadpool and Green Lantern. Sure, the two characters belong in different universes/companies (Lantern is DC, while Deadpool is Marvel), but it's just...weird. It'd be like if Christian Bale also played Superman. Or Wolverine. It just wouldn't work out.

Anyway, not too much on my end. Finishing up packing, bought the last of my stuff (except postcards, which I might buy at Pitt if I visit one last time), and trying to take care of a few familial errands here and there. Like renewing my AAA membership! Sure, it's the American Automobile Association, but they apparently also have international services! Hopefully I won't be needing them, but just in case! And this weekend was nice because I got to spend time with my best friends from high school. We're all moving on in life, but I'm glad that we've managed to meet up and share stories before the next step. I mentioned at dinner that in 10 years, we'll be just like the guys in the movie "Grown Ups".

Anyway, gotta go! So much to do, so little time!

Word of the day: 大人　「おとな」　"otona," which means "adult." It literally says "big person." It can also be pronounced 「だいにん」 "dainin" for the same meaning. Note, however, that if you pronounce it 「だいじん」 "daijin," it means "man of substance or virtue; gentleman" or "giant."

It's been one week since you looked at me

2010-07-22T23:29:00.004-04:00

It's been a week already!??!?!?!?! Where'd the time go???? And there's a week left!??! Holy crap!!!

Okay, so I got all my shopping done. Well, 99% of it anyway. I might pick up some post cards and perhaps load up on deodorant. Oh, and contact lense solution. Speaking of which, I just bought a year's worth of contact lenses to bring over, but I'm worried about my prescription having changed slightly from when I requested my Yakken Shoumei and now. Hopefully, they won't care...I also had to update my glasses. Luckily, I was able to keep my sexy frames, but unfortunately, they centered the clearest part of the lenses in the middle of the lense! For most glasses, this wouldn't be a problem, but the way that these glasses sit on my nose, I'm usually looking through the upper half of the lenses rather than directly in the center. Now I'll have to push up the glasses closer to my face and hope that they don't drop down my nose. No glasses-falling-down-my-nose sophisticate look for me!

So what's left? You guessed it. Actually packing. That doesn't mean I haven't started. Oh, I've started. It's just a matter of getting the things you want into the bags they need to be in. I will be able to take a total of four bags: two pieces of luggage, one carry-on luggage, and a laptop messenger bag. That said, I'll be stuffing everything I can into my lap top bag that fits! Probably all my electronics stuff (read: PSP). I will reserve my largest suitcase for clothes that I won't need for the first few days, as I will be in Tokyo for orientation and am planning on using my carry-on suitcase for the duration of my stay there (three days or so). I should be able to fit a suit or two and daily necessities into it. But "clothes for five days" as they recommended? Maybe I'll throw a few shirts into my laptop bag, haha!

As for as for slightly smaller of the two check-in suitcases, I will stuff my toiletries and other daily necessities into it, and any remaining clothes. Not really sure about all the things I need to bring, to be honest. I mean, really, I should be able to buy anything I need while I'm there. So, just bring clothes, shoes, bathroom stuff to last a couple months, gift items, money, JET stuff, Yakkan Shoumei, International Driving Permit, emergency medical stuff, laptop, cell phone, and personal stuff like a book or two, contacts/glasses, writing utensils, sketchbook, artwork by my girlfriend...what am I forgetting?

Since time is winding down, I've been trying to plan how to see my best friend and my girlfriend one last time before I head off to the Land of the Rising Sun. This weekend will hopefully be spent seeing both (separately of course, in different cities), filled with games (Metal Gear!) and movies (Inception!).

Speaking of games, it was leaked that Thor (Marvel) and Amaterasu (Capcom) will be in MVC3. That's pretty awesomesauce. A friend of mine was saying, though, that to have them in the game is a bit of a stretch, seeing as how they are both gods, and everyone else is a mere mortal. "It's easier to suspend disbelief," he said, for fights between, say, Deadpool and Ryu, but Deadpool would never go against someone as powerful as Thor. But hey, who said you can't make fights even, right? It's unusual for someone like The Hulk to lose against some flat-top in the military (Guile) with no particular abilities except to shoot slow-moving Sonic Booms from his hands [does that even make any sense?], but it can happen in these games! I can't wait.

Word of the day: 一週間　「いっしゅうかん」　"isshuukan," or "one week." Literally, the characters are "one," "week," and "interval". The "interval" character can also be pronounced 「あいだ」 "aida", and it implies a duration of time. But it can be used as a suffix (pronounced 「かん」　"kan") to a time word to change the meaning to specify an amount of time rather than the time itself. For example, １時 means "1 o'clock", but １時間 means "1 hour."

Two weeks too late

2010-07-15T22:33:00.006-04:00

Hah! When I said "tomorrow," what I really meant was "in two weeks." Musta been a typo. :-P But remember what I said about not being good at updating blogs? Yeah. Exactly.

SO! Today is July 15. Today marks the official "holy crap it's halfway through the month of July which means I'll be in Japan in about two weeks" day. Today is also the release of the Motorola Droid X; fitting, since I've spent a lot of time yesterday and today trying to decipher the various cell phone plans in Japan. None of the three companies seem to agree on how phone plans are laid out. That, or I just don't understand them (quite likely). In the beginning, I was leaning towards Docomo. For two reasons: 1) my girlfriend and I each got a $50 off coupon for them from Kinokuniya Bookstore in NYC, and 2) they have this phone called the docomo PRIME series F-06B. And hoooooooollllllyyyyyyy crap this phone is sexy. LOOK! THE SCREEN TURNS SIDEWAYS AFTER IT SLIDES OPEN! But Docomo's plans are all really expensive, and they don't seem to have an affordable "free/unlimited texting" plan. To make things more difficult, texting in Japan is apparently called e-mail. At least, SMS messaging with SoftBank is called e-mail. Or S! Mail. Or something. Anyway, I'll try to work it all out tomorrow. While I finish unpacking. Ugh.

I've been so busy over the past two weeks. I've had to pack up my stuff from my old apartment and move back into my parent's place temporarily until Japan. But this means packing, unpacking, and packing again! Ugh, and packing is my #1 least favorite activity. At least for activities that seemingly have to be done at least once a year.

One of the very important things I've had to take care of was purchasing Japanese money. Yes, I said purchasing. BECAUSE IT'S NOT FREE. I was under the impression that my bank would never charge me a fee, and therefore, converting money into foreign currency doesn't cost any more than the current exchange rate. And right, they don't charge a fee. Instead, they mess with the exchange rate that's used. Those punks! I checked the exchange rate on www.xe.com 20 minutes before I got to the bank. According to XE, I should have been given 88 JPY for every 1 USD. But with the exchange rate the bank gave me, I only got 81 JPY for 1 USD! That's 8% less!!! What a ripoff! Ugh, but 仕方がない as they say in Japan. Apparently, getting ripped off by your local bank is still cheaper than getting ripped off at the airport. That said, I'll try to make a note of what the exchange rate is at both the departing and arrival airport.

These past two weeks have been really hectic. I have been busy packing and moving, yes. But most of all, I've been trying to meet up with old friends to say our last goodbyes. Well not really; I'm sure I'll see them again. :-) Still, I'm finally spending more than three months away from Pittsburgh in over seven years. It's heartwrenching. And I'm glad I was able to see some of my friends before I left. I should try and make a trip out to my dojo and see my martial arts master.

While I've been at home, I've spent some time with my family. We've also done a lot of pre-flight shopping. You know, like new pieces of luggage, travel goodies, and whatnot. I even got bright neon-green tags so that I can easily differentiate my luggage from the thousands of others traveling with me to Japan! Fantastic idea. I hope. And I must say, there have been some really annoying restrictions for carryon luggage. I have been limited to a size that most luggage brands (like Samsonite) don't make! What a hassle. But anyway, I should be grateful that I found any bag about that size at all.

Now on to games. There have been some new Marvel VS Capcom 3 exhibition match videos from this year's EVO. Here they are, 'cause they're awesomely, fantastically amazing:
Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_O6xkbLr0A
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fcag-p4Nuqs
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwtJeA2zrdQ
I also finally beat MGS: Peace Walker! Wonderful game! Absolutely great! Highly recommended for any PSP owner, and a good reason to get one. What's amusing is that new missions are unlocked after beating the game, and certain things (items, weapons, and epilogue) are unavailable until you "beat" the game. Though really, maybe I never beat the game at all, and there's another, better ending? We'll find out. And I look forward to playing the missions in co-op mode with my brother and best friend.

I was thinking about making a vlog (video log), and maybe doing it not unlike sxephil. (Watch him, he's hilarious!) What do you guys think? All two of you? Just kidding, I know I have more readers than that. All five of you. :-)

Phrase of the day: 仕方がない「しかたがない」 "shikata ga nai." It means, basically, "it can't be helped."

One month left!!!

2010-07-01T21:59:00.004-04:00

July 1st! Holy crap! In exactly one month, I'll be in Japan!

So much to do so little time. Preparations have been underway and I've been doing what I can to minimize the stuff I'll have to bring back home before I go to Japan. Like sell my 35" TV. So far, two friends are interested! In just a couple hours! Yay social networking. :-)

Also, The Last Airbender, M. Night Shyamalan's latest film, was released today. And it's worse than I actually thought it'd be. Anyway, this article has a bit of Shyamalan addressing the racism issue. But personally, he completely fails to see what the issue *actually* is. He keeps saying that the movie isn't racist because of the diverse cast and the fact that *he* directed it; that *his* name and Dev Patel's name and Noah Ringer's name are on the movie. But that isn't the point. The point is that a movie based on Asian culture (mostly Chinese, but also Japanese, Inuit, Tibetan) features non-Asians as the stars. To make matters worse, he cast most of the antagonists as Indian. Great, so now all of the dark-skinned people in the movie are bad-guys. This movie should have been a chance for Asian American actors to take steps in Hollywood. But it looks like things haven't really changed. It's "Kung Fu" all over again.

The movie was sub-par at best. The things that ruined the movie, even if the actors were Asian, were the bad acting, terrible dialogue/script, and atrocious pacing. The only saving graces were its special effects and okay martial arts. So, if you can get passed the bad acting part, it might be a decent movie. Or just disregard the acting by reminding yourself that it's just a kid's movie (which isn't a good excuse for bad acting).

/minirant

Anyway, so yeah. Moving along...

I've been discussing the meaning of people's names with my friends over the past few days. "Harold" means basically "leader of an army." My most favorite translation was "heroic leader." So how would I translate this into kanji to be used as my name (as a friend had suggested for my name stamp)? "Hero"?

More updates tomorrow. It's late! G'night!

Word of the day: 英雄　「えいゆう」　"eiyuu" which means "hero" or "great man".

Ohisashiburi!

2010-06-25T12:49:00.002-04:00

It's been a while! Well, a week or so since I last wrote anything, and even longer than that since I've written anything really meaty. This week, I've been spending my time seeing a lot of old friends and spending time with my girlfriend. I've also been studying/practicing Japanese, and putting quite a bit of time into Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker. My best friend was right: "Let me warn you. Once you start, you can't put it down." IT'S SO TRUE! What a fantastic game. And I can even envision a potential sequal to this game, which would tie it into the rest of the MGS games that star Solid Snake; it would basically be a remake of Metal Gear (the very first game, on the MSX2 and NES).

Last weekend I saw Toy Story 3 with my girlfriend. AMAZING! Well, perhaps not "amazing," but definitely a good movie! It certainly belongs in the "good sequels" category. Speaking of movies, though..."The Last Airbender" comes out next week. Everything about the movie seems really cool...EXCEPT THE CASTING CALL! But anyway, I won't rant about that today. I just request that you don't support the movie.

I realized recently that I never made a post about *why* I'm going to Japan. So I'll say that now, while it's still June. Going to Japan was something I've always wanted to do, since I was a teenager. I never knew that study-abroad was possible as a high school student. Then, again, my high school wasn't really fortunate enough to have big exchange programs (we've had a few exchange students here and there, though), so I never really knew about the opportunities. Anyway, I went to college, and I studied Japanese. Quite a few; rather...a bunch of friends of mine studied abroad there during our junior year. I really wanted to. I did. But I knew it would set me back academically, so I was thinking that maybe I would just limit it to one semester. But in the end, I never went through with it because I didn't want to push med school back. Well...I pushed med school back anyway because I wasn't (and still am not) 100% sure that that's what's right for me. So anyway! I worked at a hospital for a couple years and was trying to figure out what I should do next. After having met my girlfriend, and talking to other friends about it, I decided that I should try to go to Japan again! I had heard about various ways to get there, but teaching English seemed like the best thing. Plus, it would give me teaching experience and allow me to decide if being a professor and teaching classes is something I wanted to do. Long story short, I applied to the JET Programme, and here I am! Keep in mind that I also looked into other private companies, such as Altia Central or AEONet, but luckily, I got accepted as a JET ALT (Assistant Language Teacher) and didn't have to continue with other application processes.

I got a package in the mail today; it's a copy of a documentary I helped my friend make! It's a documentary about me as a martial artist. It was her class project, and she ended up submitting it to a local film festival! I hear the audience responded positively. :-) I'll do what I can to convert it into a video file and post it on Youtube or something.

I've also been trying to decide which phone service to get while I'm over there. Docomo, AU, or SoftBank? SoftBank is apparently pretty popular with the foreigners because they are the only ones with the iPhone. While I like the iPhone's capabilities, I would rather have a Japanese phone 'cause I'm in Japan. I can always get an iPhone when I come back to the states.

Lastly, should I be called ハロルド先生 or バギノン先生? (first name, or last name?) The last name garners more respect, but the first name garners "coolness points".

Word of the day: 先生　「せんせい」　"sensei." It is the suffix for "teacher". The word for a teacher is a different word: 教師「きょうし」　"kyoushi", though one can still refer to one's teacher as his or her "sensei."

Exponential

2010-06-16T01:55:00.005-04:00

I've noticed that my posts have been growing exponentially. Well here is a post to disrupt that trend. :-)

Also, E3 has arrived! It started today (well, technically yesterday, but I'm writing as if it were still Tuesday). I didn't get to watch it because I was traveling back to Pittsburgh. And there is way too much awesome news, so I recommend you check out the official E3 website for more info.

Or check this out, which is perhaps the most exciting news/trailer for me. :-D

[Update 6/16/2010]: These MVC3 videos are also amazing:

http://www.gametrailers.com/video/e3-2010-marvel-vs/101755

http://www.gametrailers.com/video/e3-2010-marvel-vs/101757

http://www.gametrailers.com/video/e3-2010-marvel-vs/101759

http://www.gametrailers.com/video/e3-2010-marvel-vs/101739

Word of the day: 雷電　「らいでん」　"raiden". That's pronounced "rye-den" for you English speakers, not "ray-din". Well, technically, it's "rah-ee-deh-n," if you were enunciating each mora, but that's not how you pronounce Japanese words in real-time conversational speed. Anyway, it means "thunder and lightning." Literally. That 電　「でん」　"den" is the same den found in words like "electronics," "electric train," and "electricity."

Kung Fu Kid and Portable Games

2010-06-13T20:29:00.007-04:00

I just got back from seeing "The Karate Kid" with my brother and his wife. Fun times. Good movie!

A year or two ago, when I first heard that there was a remake in the works for "The Karate Kid" starring Will Smith's kid and Jackie Chan, I flipped out. Well, not really, but I was disgusted with the concept that Jackie Chan should replace Pat Morita as the new Mr. Miyagi. And I was also upset that Jackie Chan would have anything to do with "karate," as he has always performed and represented Chinese martial arts (kung fu) and not Japanese martial arts (karate). So this concept just blew my mind and got me upset.

As time passed on and the movie was in production, I kind of forgot about it. Whenever it was brought up, I usually just dismissed it as something ridiculous. Then I saw a trailer, and I had mixed feelings (mostly confusion). In the trailer, you can clearly see kung fu as the martial art featured in the movie. Jackie also clearly says "I will teach you 'real kung fu.'" Not a lick of karate. Anywhere (at least in the trailer). So, my opinion changed to, "The movie could be good, but IT'S NOT KARATE! THEY SHOULD CHANGE THE TITLE."

So I went in there today with that mentality. That the movie could be good (and probably would be), and to try my damnednest to forget the title. Luckily, I didn't have to. By the end of the film, I feel that the movie has made up for the fact that it was called "The Karate Kid" in the US. (In Japan and China, it's called "The Kung Fu Kid" [note: I still think they should have called it "The Kung Fu Kid" here in the states]. In South Korea, it's called "Best Kid.") This 2010 remake of the 1984 movie of the same title pays lots of homage to the original in many ways, from the story telling to the teacher's antics. But the main reason why I think the movie makes up for its incorrect title is a key line in the movie: Dre's mom says something about him wanting to practice "karate," and he snaps back, "it's not karate!". Her next response indicates the common misconception people have about kung fu, karate, and the naming of martial arts. "Kung fu, karate..." something or other.

The filmmakers undoubtedly wanted to cash in on using a recognizable title, so they opted for "The Karate Kid" even though they considered "The Kung Fu Kid." Plus, the movie really does fit in as part of the "Karate Kid" series; without mention of "kid" in the title, movie critics would be calling out the film for its blatant ripoffs of the original. Even the last sequence was...nevermind, I won't spoil it. :-)

This movie did have a few annoying quirks. Jaden plays a prepubescent kid with an attitude. Sure, lots of kids that age are like that. But that doesn't mean I have to like it. The kid is disrespectful and rude at times, and he doesn't improve by much by the end of the movie. Too many times, the audience (at least I did) feels that Dre should be more respectful to his teacher at that point; but I guess it's good that he didn't do such a quick "I'm a good boy all of a sudden" kinda deal, to maintain the realism.

I'm very satisfied with this movie. It's a good movie, and I would recommend it as a movie for parents to take their kids (12 and up) to see. Jackie and Jaden do excellent jobs with surprisingly good acting. It's a feel good movie and a modern martial arts movie for kids. Watching it reminded me of my childhood and how I grew up watching movies like 3 Ninjas, Sidekicks, and Surf Ninjas. And of course TMNT. Anyway, go watch this movie. It's good. And also don't forget that "karate" is a Japanese martial art and they should have changed the title anyway. Oh well.

The other thing I wanted to mention briefly, which I should have made a post about yesterday, are portable games. I mentioned in my last post that I was playing with my aunt's Nintendo DSi XL. Well since then, I had been playing Picross 3D and Tetris on her DSi, and Crisis Core, Patapon 2, and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker on my PSP. And I must say, I've made great use out of that PSP, having played games like Patapon, Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops, Kingdom of Paradise, and Final Fantasy Tactics. And with the re-release of a bunch of PSX (or PSone for you young'uns) games on the PSN to play on the PSP, Sony's hand-held is a pretty awesome system.

I'm gonna take this baby with me to Japan, and the various games I have for it. It'll do well to help pass the time while I travel. Now the question is, will Sony reveal anything at E3 this week? Nintendo is bound to steal the show with their 3DS. Can't wait to see!

Word of the day: 功夫「カンフー」　"kanfuu", or kung fu. Also pronounced 「くふう」 "kufuu", but that's actually a different word with the same spelling and different meaning (skill, art, labor, or effort, in Chinese).

IDP and NDS

2010-06-11T19:21:00.005-04:00

I have my International Driving Permit! Yay! Now I can legally drive in all these countries! Sweet.

I still have to send in the paperwork for my Visa, but that's very quick, I hear. And tomorrow, I'll send in the forms to get the Yakkan Shomei, so I can bring my contact lenses to Japan. Maybe I should just get laser eye surgery and not worry about this stuff again...contacts, glasses, blurry vision. Hmm.

I finally worked things out with my predecessor, who has been extremely helpful with the transition, regarding the purchasing of her things (car, appliances, household stuff). I'll have to show the same kindness to my successor when the time comes.

So I've been contemplating purchasing a Nintendo DS. I couldn't decide which version (original, Lite, DSi, DSi XL) to get, so I asked my best friend, who recommended a DSi or DSi XL. After some thought, I decided that the DSi XL would be nice for the larger, easier-to-read screen. After all, I've been playing the PSP for so long, that I've gotten quite used to its large size and weight. (I looked at my friend's DS Lite and it seemed so dinky!) Anyway, my aunt was asking me about my PSP, and she had mentioned wanting to get one to play while on the airplane. She then mentioned Tetris. "Ahhh, okay, you want a Nintendo DS then, not a PSP." So off to the mall we went! And we came back with a DSi XL, a couple puzzle games, and Tetris. Nice.

I played it a bit, and I must say; the pen stylus is REALLY nice. But I'm starting to think that the DSi XL's screen, because it's so big, and because the resolution is still the same as a regular DS...doesn't really make the games look very nice. All you techheads would know that a greater pixel resolution over a small area looks much nicer (like the new iPhone 4, for example). So now I'm leaning towards a DSi. But then there's news about the Nintendo 3DS! E3 is coming up, and more info about it will be revealed then. I will definitely wait to hear more about the up and coming system before I make any purchases. It's supposed to be backwards compatible anyway, so that's good news for me. :-)

So why do I want a DS so badly all of a sudden? Well, quite a few reasons actually. But mainly because of the great number of kanji trainers and kanji dictionaries that exist on it. I need a denshi jisho (electronic dictionary) anyway, and I'm a gamer; I might as well get a DS! Plus, I can finally play the definitive version of one of the greatest games of all time, Chrono Trigger, and the plethora of other fantastic titles on it.

Word of the day: 旅行　「りょこう」　"ryokou." It means "travel" or "trip."　It's often used when describing a family vacation somewhere.

Japan Preparations

2010-06-07T18:14:00.005-04:00

So it's Monday. About a week after I started this "blogging" business. Well, I guess technically, it's been 7 years or so. But anyway.

I have taken care of quite a few things for my preparations in Japan. Just three things left, really: 1) Get an International Driver's Permit, 2) Take care of visa stuff, and 3) Take care of prescription medication stuff, like contact lenses.

For #1, it's not a big deal; I just have to go to the local AAA and fill out a form. And yes, that means I get to drive in Japan legally! Woot! #2, I have to mail a form. #3 is the slightly annoying stuff, as it requires an updated prescription, which requires a visit to the doctor, along with a few forms to fill out (detailed description of meds), and more mailing stuff. Oh, and you have to get it all approved, so there is that slight chance of spending hundreds of dollars on medicine and then having it rejected. If that happens, the medicine must be mailed to Japan on a monthly basis, as no more than a month's supply of medicine can be imported without the approval form (known as a Yakkan Shomei).

Lastly, I am in somewhat of a dilemma. Well not really; it's just a matter of making a decision with regard to the purchase of my predecessor's things. Apparently, it seems customary to do so. The only thing is that I hate to jump into a purchase without really knowing what I'm buying. I've requested a list of the things (and hopefully a description of the status or age of the items). One of the things is a car. Hmm. Since I plan on being in Japan for an extended time (read: longer than a summer vacation), I intend on buying my "Cheap Dream Car."

You know, the car that is within a reasonable price range, and you know you want to get it, but you just don't have it yet. So it's still a "dream" car, as opposed to something in your driveway already. That car is a Toyota Celica GT-Four, from the '94-'98 models. Thing is a beauty. It's like Toyota's version of a Subaru Impreza WRX STi [car buffs should note that I intentionally referred to the car's old-school logo, as I don't really like the new models] or Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution. In fact, the GT-Four has gone head-to-head against those two in rally races. Nice. Want.

I think I'll start ending my posts with a random Japanese word/definition.

Word of the day: 零　「れい」 "rei." It means "zero," though in Japan, usually they just say 「ゼロ」 "zero." Another way to refer to a "zero" character is 〇　「まる」 "maru," as you might have seen with how years are printed in the newspaper: ２〇１〇; also pronounced 「ゼロ」 "zero" when in this format.

Patiently Waiting

2010-06-01T18:33:00.005-04:00

Well, today is June 1, 2010. This means I have two months left here in the US before I venture off to explore Japan! Due to popular demand, I have been forced to create this blog to record my various antics. It'll serve as an easy means to convey my stories to people all at once. I'll do my best to update this blog. I'm not very good with updating blogs or websites. Anyone remember my first website, back on Geocities? Then the one on Angelfire? Yeah? No. I'd be super impressed if *anyone* remembers it, but anyway, the point is that I'm not very good at updating things [proof is on my first blog, on Xanga]. Or writing. Because it takes me FOREVER to write something half-decent. And because I hate spending lots of time typing stuff, my posts here will likely have terrible writing and will be annoying to read. Have fun! :-)

So yeah, as I was saying, I'll be departing for Japan on July 31. So you better give your hugs and kisses before then! Keep in mind that this blog will contain only my adventures in Japan. Should I decide to write about things of a deeper nature (my contemplations about life, for example), I'll probably be posting that in a separate blog (maybe that Xanga one; hah!), if I decide to post it at all. Or I'll save it for material for whenever I decide to write my book. Thanks for taking the time to read this, and I hope you enjoy the ridiculous content that I'll be posting in the coming months!