tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23439756244128468052024-03-13T23:48:21.367+09:00Semester in JapanOn January 29, 2009 I will be leaving with two other Spring Arbor students to spend a semester in Japan. While we're there, we will be living and working in a Japanese kindergarten classroom, learning basic Japanese, and visting homes and cities. I hope you enjoy reading my blog and hearing my exciting (and probably embarressing) stories as I try to integrate myself into Japanese culture!Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-26215145235919512752009-04-18T20:54:00.003+09:002009-04-18T22:01:22.417+09:00Easter WeekendLast weekend was Easter, but we didn't celebrate too much because Easter isn't very big in Japan. The stores weren't stocked weeks in advance with pastel decorations and chocolate bunnies the way they are in the U.S. Christians are so rare in Japan, so this holiday is overlooked and people still go to work and stores are still open. I was missing my Easter basket, but my mom assured me that I have one waiting for me when I get home. I hope that is still true and it is still full of candy!<br /><br />Saturday was very relaxing, hot and sunny. I biked into town and bought fabric and some souvenirs. My mom makes beautiful quilts and she offered to make me a Japan quilt when I get back. I picked out a couple different styles, a few just floral and others with popular Japanese cartoon characters on it. It's going to be so cute! When I came back to the school, I took my iPod and some blankets up to the roof of the school and laid in the sun for a while.<br /><br />For dinner, we were asked to go to Planet Hollywood with Katsuko-sensei (Minako and Keiko's aunt who works at the school) and her family. Katsuko's daughter, Satoko, works at the restaurant but it is closing down this week so it would be the family's last time going. We took the train into Tokyo and met Satoko their and had a big old fatty American feast! The family decided to get some of everything so everyone could try samples of different dishes, so there was a ton of food. Satoko ordered the works; appetizers of all sorts, hamburgers, fries, baby back ribs, salad, and ice cream sundaes for dessert. I'd forgotten how huge American portions are! <br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenGokWIq6I/AAAAAAAAAZo/SwxORYmnscQ/s1600-h/DSCN1457-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326006434595908514" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 228px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenGokWIq6I/AAAAAAAAAZo/SwxORYmnscQ/s320/DSCN1457-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Spider-man was sneaking around and came over to shake our hands!<br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenGoSvwRaI/AAAAAAAAAZg/jFp1r6sW15Q/s1600-h/DSCN1464-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326006429871523234" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 136px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenGoSvwRaI/AAAAAAAAAZg/jFp1r6sW15Q/s320/DSCN1464-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Here's the whole group: Mike, Lori, Satoko's friend Mai, Katsuko, Satoko, Katsuko's husband, me, and Satoko's sister-in-law and brother.</div><div> </div><div>I wanted the children at church to be able to get a taste of Easter so I made three little Easter baskets for the Nishimura grandchildren, Naomi, Yui, and Nozomu.<br /></div><div> </div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenGoZbnvJI/AAAAAAAAAZY/d-IwGAqWiD0/s1600-h/DSCN1470-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326006431666125970" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenGoZbnvJI/AAAAAAAAAZY/d-IwGAqWiD0/s320/DSCN1470-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenGoKOSzfI/AAAAAAAAAZQ/T4zO9YgWLrU/s1600-h/DSCN1473-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326006427583696370" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 170px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenGoKOSzfI/AAAAAAAAAZQ/T4zO9YgWLrU/s320/DSCN1473-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>I bought a bag of chocolates and gave them each a few and filled three baskets with that grass stuff and made little tags. I had some gifts I brought from home that I still hadn't given away so I gave them each a different one; a dry eraser clock for Naomi, flash cards for Nozomu, and markers for Yui. I thought the kids would be really excited to get them but their response was a little anti-climatic. One was asleep, one dumped everything out of the basket and started pulling the grass apart, and the other handed it to her mother and walked away. They all are under three years old, so I guess this was probably appropriate. At least I had fun making them!</div><div> </div><div>Minako and Keiko had promised to make one trip to Tokyo with us, so we headed to an area called Roppongi after church let out. It was nice going with them because we didn't have to worry about asking for directions or studying a map for the whole trip! We first went to an art museum.</div><div> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFw2k_iuI/AAAAAAAAAZI/l_l4qq61nDw/s1600-h/DSCN1476-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326005477417388770" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFw2k_iuI/AAAAAAAAAZI/l_l4qq61nDw/s320/DSCN1476-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFwjXARPI/AAAAAAAAAZA/JY7TdK-khlc/s1600-h/DSCN1481-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326005472258442482" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFwjXARPI/AAAAAAAAAZA/JY7TdK-khlc/s320/DSCN1481-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>This tree outside the museum was filled with pink frisbees! I think it was part of the contemporary art exhibit.<br /></div><div> </div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFwX9LhZI/AAAAAAAAAY4/SFkvRo99oNk/s1600-h/DSCN1482-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326005469197338002" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFwX9LhZI/AAAAAAAAAY4/SFkvRo99oNk/s320/DSCN1482-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFv_FLFuI/AAAAAAAAAYw/MkhVWXnLe8E/s1600-h/DSCN1484-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326005462519977698" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 243px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFv_FLFuI/AAAAAAAAAYw/MkhVWXnLe8E/s320/DSCN1484-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFvnJ0sZI/AAAAAAAAAYo/wUtOeysjJac/s1600-h/DSCN1485-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326005456097030546" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFvnJ0sZI/AAAAAAAAAYo/wUtOeysjJac/s320/DSCN1485-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFKTNllaI/AAAAAAAAAYg/6zhV7ED3wBY/s1600-h/DSCN1487-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326004815088948642" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 208px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFKTNllaI/AAAAAAAAAYg/6zhV7ED3wBY/s320/DSCN1487-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>The museum was beautiful on the inside. I went to both of the exhibits on this poster. I really enjoyed the Artist File because it was contemporary art. It had photography, paintings, sculptures, and even movies.<br /></div><div> </div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFKPKzQsI/AAAAAAAAAYY/h_1CHJwBUXg/s1600-h/DSCN1490-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326004814003520194" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFKPKzQsI/AAAAAAAAAYY/h_1CHJwBUXg/s320/DSCN1490-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFJ6Cb0LI/AAAAAAAAAYQ/vDGOaW58XKA/s1600-h/DSCN1502-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326004808331284658" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 218px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFJ6Cb0LI/AAAAAAAAAYQ/vDGOaW58XKA/s320/DSCN1502-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>After the museum, we headed over to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner. My mom collects their pins, so I promised to pick her up one from Tokyo. We had a yummy dinner of fajitas and talked about American rock music with Keiko and Minako.<br /></div><div> </div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFJvhi6PI/AAAAAAAAAYI/rFAFLG-YBH8/s1600-h/DSCN1508-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326004805508983026" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 195px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFJvhi6PI/AAAAAAAAAYI/rFAFLG-YBH8/s320/DSCN1508-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFJa6ivMI/AAAAAAAAAYA/7ohyvMMu4mw/s1600-h/DSCN1512-1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326004799976684738" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 281px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SenFJa6ivMI/AAAAAAAAAYA/7ohyvMMu4mw/s320/DSCN1512-1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-32073870200423824622009-04-08T20:16:00.009+09:002009-04-08T21:50:31.143+09:00Fun times near Mt. Fuji!This weekend, Mike, Lori and I got a little break from the kindergarten and traveled down to Shizuoka to see Mt. Fuji. We planned to stay with Brianna Danese, a former Spring Arbor student who now teaches English in Japan. Before meeting her on Saturday night, we stopped by the Imperial Palace in Tokyo for a day trip. The grounds inside the Palace were open free of charge to the public and most of what we saw were gardens. The cherry blossoms were in full bloom and looked b-e-autiful!<br /><br /><div><div><br /></div><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyI6agIX1I/AAAAAAAAAXw/P1BbhJe-GdE/s1600-h/DSCN13331.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322279396772962130" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 167px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyI6agIX1I/AAAAAAAAAXw/P1BbhJe-GdE/s320/DSCN13331.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><div></div><div>Here's the view of the Palace from the sidewalk. On our way there, we were passed by a bunch of sweaty runners- I think there was a race going on through the downtown.<br /></div><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIzIqB1sI/AAAAAAAAAXo/PzO83GwvsXU/s1600-h/DSCN13371.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322279271723554498" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 178px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIzIqB1sI/AAAAAAAAAXo/PzO83GwvsXU/s320/DSCN13371.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /></div><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIy1G8Q_I/AAAAAAAAAXg/gmvOAG1ryrk/s1600-h/DSCN13401.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322279266476114930" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 146px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIy1G8Q_I/AAAAAAAAAXg/gmvOAG1ryrk/s320/DSCN13401.JPG" border="0" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIy45XR4I/AAAAAAAAAXY/4MonSV7jDnA/s1600-h/DSCN13441.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322279267492906882" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 245px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIy45XR4I/AAAAAAAAAXY/4MonSV7jDnA/s320/DSCN13441.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Japanese maples and sakura (cherry blossoms)! I'm not sure if this was a church or a temple, but it sure looked cool.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIyQki5UI/AAAAAAAAAXI/MYvB6cLeAco/s1600-h/DSCN13611.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322279256668169538" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 150px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIyQki5UI/AAAAAAAAAXI/MYvB6cLeAco/s320/DSCN13611.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIbgu15dI/AAAAAAAAAXA/9D3RLs9gOak/s1600-h/DSCN13861.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322278865869333970" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIbgu15dI/AAAAAAAAAXA/9D3RLs9gOak/s320/DSCN13861.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><div>Nijubashi Bridge<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIyrZjdJI/AAAAAAAAAXQ/9eB6zyDIzgM/s1600-h/DSCN13581.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322279263869826194" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 306px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIyrZjdJI/AAAAAAAAAXQ/9eB6zyDIzgM/s320/DSCN13581.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><div>After looking around the Palace gardens, we headed out to find lunch. We found Dear Soup, which sounded so perfect to me because soup is a food so dear to my heart! We had to order right away before sitting down and I pointed to a red soup with lots of vegetables in it. The waiter told me it was Minestrone, and I was a little disappointed because I was hoping to be adventurous and try something else, especially when Lori told me she had ordered squash curry. But it turned out to be wonderful and my tummy was completely satisfied.</div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyLvPS-UTI/AAAAAAAAAX4/Qdkj9dbOAVc/s1600-h/DSCN13791.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322282503321309490" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 266px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyLvPS-UTI/AAAAAAAAAX4/Qdkj9dbOAVc/s320/DSCN13791.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>We had to leave for Shizuoka mid-afternoon because it took us three hours to get there by bus. I actually really enjoyed the long bus ride. I finished reading <em>Pride and Prejudice</em> (there was a copy of it in our room at the school) and listened to music and watched the scenery of Japan roll past. </div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div>We met Brianna in Shizuoka and had to take a train to her town of Fujieda. Brianna and I have only talked through e-mail, so none of us had met her before meeting her at the station. She turned out to be a wonderful host and we had a great time talking to her about her job and experience in Japan. She went on the same trip we did when she was at Spring Arbor, so she knows the Nishimura family and the school and some of the things we are experiencing each day. It was fun talking about weird quirks of the Japanese culture, random English words around Japan, and things we miss about home. </div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div>Her apartment in Fujieda was tiny-typical Japanese style- so we all had to squish inside. The place was about the size of a dorm room and fit a shower, bathroom, kitchen with a sink and stove top, and a loft for sleeping. It was actually really cute and I was trying to picture myself living in one if I happened to come back to teach in Japan in the future. Brianna hasn't eaten dinner, so she took us to a Mexican restaurant (hooray! my favorite!) in downtown Fujieda. I was in heaven as I ate my burrito. We've eaten great food while being here, but I miss Mexican food so much!</div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div>On Sunday morning, we went to Brianna's church after a delicious french toast and bacon (basically ham in Japan) breakfast, which was in both English and Japanese. It was nice being able to sing and understand a sermon again! I had forgotten that it was Palm Sunday and Easter in next Sunday! Easter and Christmas are not big in Japan since such a small percentage of the people practice Christianity (Minako told us that people work on Christmas. What?!?) The congregation of her church was pretty big and very friendly. I was able to talk with some people and explain what we were doing here. </div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div>After church, we met two of Brianna's students, Youske and Kanichi, who drove us to Mt. Fuji. Brianna teaches English for a company called Aeon, rather than a school. She has students ranging from kids to an elderly woman. Youske and Kanichi (both men) were in their twenties and spoke English very well. Mike and I rode in Youske's car. It was fun getting to know him and probably especially nice for Mike because he's around girls ALL the time. On our way, we picked up Michiko, Brianna's manager. She was a riot. She kept laughing at me because I usually get sleepy on long car rides and would laugh when I closed my eyes for a minute or two.</div><div></div><div></div><div>We drove to a special lookout point for Mt. Fuji, but it was overcast on Sunday so we didn't see it until later and even then we only saw the snowy peak of it. It was a bummer, but we decided to have fun anyway!!! We all got tasty treats at the gift shop across from the lookout. I order Milk flavored ice cream (I think that's what the Japanese consider Vanilla) and Lori and Youske got these yummy looking crepes. Lori kept calling it a "splurge" but it was only a little bit more expensive and not that big, so Mike and I made fun of her. </div><div></div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIbV0sawI/AAAAAAAAAWw/AF_TCpvB-b8/s1600-h/DSCN13891.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322278862941088514" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 197px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIbV0sawI/AAAAAAAAAWw/AF_TCpvB-b8/s320/DSCN13891.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>I liked this cow. </div><div><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIbk1pqmI/AAAAAAAAAW4/EiekWmDIyMI/s1600-h/DSCN13881.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322278866971634274" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 276px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIbk1pqmI/AAAAAAAAAW4/EiekWmDIyMI/s320/DSCN13881.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>The "Splurge"</div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div>Michiko knew of a park with the Shiraito Falls so we checked that out since Mt. Fuji was a bust! </div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIbPH229I/AAAAAAAAAWo/--Dzi2szShM/s1600-h/DSCN13921.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322278861142416338" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIbPH229I/AAAAAAAAAWo/--Dzi2szShM/s320/DSCN13921.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>The water was so clear and blue. Too chilly to swim though! Youske told me the water isn't from a lake, but from the snow that melts from Mt. Fuji.</div><div></div><div></div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIa2-mrJI/AAAAAAAAAWg/jlVVqN3N-UI/s1600-h/DSCN14031.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322278854661155986" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyIa2-mrJI/AAAAAAAAAWg/jlVVqN3N-UI/s320/DSCN14031.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /> </div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyH71-pwtI/AAAAAAAAAWY/c56fFYg0-Tw/s1600-h/DSCN14201.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322278321816978130" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 229px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyH71-pwtI/AAAAAAAAAWY/c56fFYg0-Tw/s320/DSCN14201.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Lori, Mike and I with Michiko, Youske, and Kanichi<br /></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyH7lWqwvI/AAAAAAAAAWQ/CE3oc0X3TRA/s1600-h/DSCN14211.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322278317354304242" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyH7lWqwvI/AAAAAAAAAWQ/CE3oc0X3TRA/s320/DSCN14211.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Our wonderful host, Brianna!<br /><br /></div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyH7dKCpiI/AAAAAAAAAWI/OwNAbeV0mkY/s1600-h/DSCN14271.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322278315153860130" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyH7dKCpiI/AAAAAAAAAWI/OwNAbeV0mkY/s320/DSCN14271.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Mike with a creepy mannequin.</div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div>Lori, Mike and I have been wanting to try Japanese karaoke since it is so popular, so we ended up going with our new friends. Michiko told us she was a VIP member of a karaoke place (HA!) so we went there. Japanese karaoke is quite different from karaoke in the U.S. because you don't sing to a bar full of people. Instead, you get a private room for your party compete with the karaoke machine and a big screen TV and huge books full of songs (English and Japanese songs). Michiko got us going with by singing first, but then I think everyone else was a bit shy. In the end, we sang together for most of the songs as loud and obnoxiously as we could. It was great. Our best was probably either our love ballad of "My Heart Will Go On" by Celine Dion, our back-to-back singings of "L-O-V-E" by Nat King Cole (Mike accidentally pushed some button to make it play twice) or Michiko's demanding choice of "Womanizer" by Britney Spears.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyH7A12g6I/AAAAAAAAAWA/FHvHR-7oRWk/s1600-h/DSCN14381.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322278307552986018" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 130px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyH7A12g6I/AAAAAAAAAWA/FHvHR-7oRWk/s320/DSCN14381.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyH7CBLlvI/AAAAAAAAAV4/OeCcIVZY33o/s1600-h/DSCN14391.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322278307868940018" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 224px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdyH7CBLlvI/AAAAAAAAAV4/OeCcIVZY33o/s320/DSCN14391.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>After karaoke, we headed over to a conveyor-belt sushi restaurant and feasted on raw fish. Yum! Kanichi sat with Lori, Mike, and I and kept picking out things that I probably wouldn't think to order on my own, like eel. Salmon and tuna are still my favorites though. We said goodbye to Michko, Youske, and Kanichi after dinner and driving back to Fujieda. It was great to meet them and we had such a fun time getting to know them too!</div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div>On Monday morning, we left Brianna's apartment and headed back to school. It took us most of the day to get back home because we had the long bus ride and then the train ride from Tokyo to the local station. The skies were a lot clearer on Monday, but we passed Mt. Fuji and still could only see the very top. I guess it has to be very very clear to be able to see it from where we were. Once we got to Tokyo, we had to ride the subway a few stations to get on the line that would take us back to school. It was around rush hour time and it was so packed in the subway! The three of us took up a little extra space because we had our bags from the weekend, but I was practically hugging the woman next to me. My friend John showed me this video of subway "pushers" in Tokyo who pushed people onto the subway during rush hour. I didn't believe it when I saw it because it looked so ridiculous, but now I'm sure the pushers exist! This weekend was so fun for so many reasons and may have been my favorite of our trips so far!<br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-10423947877680169592009-04-07T19:53:00.004+09:002009-04-07T20:16:20.336+09:00Bowling!On Friday night, the teachers from the kindergarten took us bowling after work. We don't really get to hang out with them outside of school, so I was pretty excited to go. We first had dinner at the food court at the Big Hop before going. The three new teachers for this coming school year were all very eager to help us. They asked us tons of questions to practice their English and helped us order our food. I'm not sure if they knew that we've been here for 2 1/2 months already and have been getting our own food this whole time! They were so helpful that they wouldn't even let us carry out own trays or and got us plenty of water refills. It was nice, but a little <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">overwhelming</span>. I ordered a bowl of noodles with some vegetables and broth and a side of tempura. One of the teachers got a box of taco <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">yaki</span> (octopus balls- remember way back at the beginning of the trip when we helped make these?) so I had a few of those too. <div><div><div><div> </div><div>The only <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">noticeable</span> thing about bowling in Japan is the shoes! We had to put a little bit of money into a vending machine and pushed to the button for our shoe size and then they fell out the bottom! They were actually cute and I was hoping we could keep them, but sadly we had to give them back when we were done.</div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdszRz5iQBI/AAAAAAAAAU4/n4cwHDjWlVc/s1600-h/DSCN13292.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321903765750693906" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdszRz5iQBI/AAAAAAAAAU4/n4cwHDjWlVc/s320/DSCN13292.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>I'm not a very good bowler, but the teachers weren't either so the scores were pretty low across the board. We had four teams of 4 teachers and played two games. I started off <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">ok</span>, but I did terrible my second game. My parents play in a bowling league and I think they'd be embarrassed of me if I wrote my scores, so I'll just say that they weren't that great! My team ended up in third place overall, so we bought the second place team ice cream. It was lots of fun though and everyone got really into in; we were all cheering loud and being obnoxious-totally different from what the teachers are like at school! Here's my team looking really fierce!</div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdszSOCGZsI/AAAAAAAAAVA/0uXpLmNkNxQ/s1600-h/DSCN13301.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321903772765939394" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 250px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdszSOCGZsI/AAAAAAAAAVA/0uXpLmNkNxQ/s320/DSCN13301.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdszRWzgGcI/AAAAAAAAAUw/YTYjQtR3Zck/s1600-h/RSCN13781.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321903757940758978" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdszRWzgGcI/AAAAAAAAAUw/YTYjQtR3Zck/s320/RSCN13781.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdszRWzgGcI/AAAAAAAAAUw/YTYjQtR3Zck/s1600-h/RSCN13781.JPG"></a></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdszRWzgGcI/AAAAAAAAAUw/YTYjQtR3Zck/s1600-h/RSCN13781.JPG"></a> </div></div></div></div><br /><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdszSknNOoI/AAAAAAAAAVI/65bNcdG6pek/s1600-h/DSCN13311.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321903778827156098" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdszSknNOoI/AAAAAAAAAVI/65bNcdG6pek/s320/DSCN13311.JPG" border="0" /></a></p>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-92151991311742050832009-04-07T09:51:00.006+09:002009-04-07T10:57:13.105+09:00Kyoto-Day 2Our second day in Kyoto had been pretty much planned for us; we were scheduled for a tour (in English) of some of the major sites the city had to offer. We headed down to the lobby and met two other families from our hotel. I thought this was going to be the whole tour group, but then we ended up picking up a bus load of people as we headed over to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Nijo</span> Castle. Our tour guide was this tiny little woman who was so cute! I can't remember her name now though. Like with Yoko when I went to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Kamakura</span>, it was nice having this woman with us to explain the history of what we were seeing especially in Kyoto because history is such a big part of the city. Our first stop was <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Nijo</span> Castle. We had gone there the night before to see the trees lit up, but today we were able to inside the buildings and walk around the grounds a little bit more. <div><div> </div><div>Most of what we saw inside the buildings were living quarters for the Shogun who lived there so many years ago. The floors were squeaky and sounded like birds chirping. They were built this way to prevent sneak attacks on the Shogun living inside from enemies. How clever! We couldn't take pictures of the inside, but there were several large rooms for sleeping, meeting, and and storing weapons.</div><div> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqnZFIXQ6I/AAAAAAAAAUg/UaNdZa4EUkI/s1600-h/DSCN1225.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321749959007486882" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 286px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqnZFIXQ6I/AAAAAAAAAUg/UaNdZa4EUkI/s320/DSCN1225.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>The Castle had areas of pretty gardens and ponds all around it.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqm_yFY-iI/AAAAAAAAAUY/nObHZeXPAGs/s1600-h/DSCN1231.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321749524398012962" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqm_yFY-iI/AAAAAAAAAUY/nObHZeXPAGs/s320/DSCN1231.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Here's the moat that I just had to get a picture of! We had just a couple <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">miuntes</span> to walk around the outside of the castle after the tour of the inside, so we ran over here to see if the trees and blossomed overnight, but they hadn't.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqnZLrFMDI/AAAAAAAAAUo/ZGoQfRmuqXM/s1600-h/DSCN1235.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321749960763715634" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 254px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqnZLrFMDI/AAAAAAAAAUo/ZGoQfRmuqXM/s320/DSCN1235.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Our next stop was the Golden Pavilion. It was a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">shirne</span> and sure was golden! It was really the only major thing to take pictures of at this stop, so I took about ten pictures of the shrine at every angle! I took some others too of the flowers and trees around it, and of this crane we saw in the water.</div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqm_4NkVwI/AAAAAAAAAUQ/prC6YujzgAQ/s1600-h/DSCN1239.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321749526042924802" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqm_4NkVwI/AAAAAAAAAUQ/prC6YujzgAQ/s320/DSCN1239.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /> </div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqm_3B0OFI/AAAAAAAAAUI/m4uCsxx70zg/s1600-h/DSCN1250.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321749525725198418" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 206px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqm_3B0OFI/AAAAAAAAAUI/m4uCsxx70zg/s320/DSCN1250.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /> </div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqm_nDMTOI/AAAAAAAAAUA/ETSI_ECLODQ/s1600-h/DSCN1264.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321749521436003554" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqm_nDMTOI/AAAAAAAAAUA/ETSI_ECLODQ/s320/DSCN1264.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Our final stop of the tour was the Imperial Palace. It used to be the home of the emperor before he moved his Palace over to Tokyo. <br /></div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqm_kgZ_sI/AAAAAAAAAT4/X7DPxFxPmnI/s1600-h/DSCN1266.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321749520753229506" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqm_kgZ_sI/AAAAAAAAAT4/X7DPxFxPmnI/s320/DSCN1266.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqmpmc8VvI/AAAAAAAAATw/fkxz_hFghJY/s1600-h/DSCN1267.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321749143318451954" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqmpmc8VvI/AAAAAAAAATw/fkxz_hFghJY/s320/DSCN1267.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmpE4at1I/AAAAAAAAATo/PG8dVSeksn0/s1600-h/DSCN1268.jpg"></a><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> </div><div><br /> </div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmpEmfakI/AAAAAAAAATg/9yXpYzM2iZw/s1600-h/DSCN1268.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321749134231693890" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 219px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmpEmfakI/AAAAAAAAATg/9yXpYzM2iZw/s320/DSCN1268.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>These were the doors that were inside some of the rooms in the Palace. I think I heard that they're the originals and have been keep in such good condition all these years.<br /></div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmpFZfpGI/AAAAAAAAATY/o5ygUxj7f4U/s1600-h/DSCN1275.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321749134445618274" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmpFZfpGI/AAAAAAAAATY/o5ygUxj7f4U/s320/DSCN1275.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>More orange! It did look a little out of place here with all of the brown and gray of the other buildings.<br /><br /></div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqmo0msCII/AAAAAAAAATQ/vE1m9Llqb-8/s1600-h/DSCN1284.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321749129937553538" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 229px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sdqmo0msCII/AAAAAAAAATQ/vE1m9Llqb-8/s320/DSCN1284.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmQ9NzUxI/AAAAAAAAATI/P-1YMEreQN4/s1600-h/DSCN1287.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321748719932232466" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 182px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmQ9NzUxI/AAAAAAAAATI/P-1YMEreQN4/s320/DSCN1287.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmQrs3HJI/AAAAAAAAATA/udlqGmQYSUs/s1600-h/DSCN1292.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321748715230665874" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 259px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmQrs3HJI/AAAAAAAAATA/udlqGmQYSUs/s320/DSCN1292.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Here's a tree with pretty blossoms!<br /></div><div>Our tour ended around noon so we had lunch on our own. We had about an hour and a half until we could take a shuttle bus back to our hotel, so we search for a little while before finding this little cafe. The waiter saw us looking and the menu and ran outside to tell us about a great lunch deal he had for us, all for just 500 yen (like $5)! <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmQThOqKI/AAAAAAAAASw/XbKtxloyltM/s1600-h/DSCN1297.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321748708739426466" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmQThOqKI/AAAAAAAAASw/XbKtxloyltM/s320/DSCN1297.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmQUPtGJI/AAAAAAAAAS4/YuBbUzg1x9U/s1600-h/DSCN1296.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321748708934359186" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 149px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmQUPtGJI/AAAAAAAAAS4/YuBbUzg1x9U/s320/DSCN1296.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div>It actually did turn out to be a really good deal. We each got a small cup of either coffee or tea with a muffin on one plate and then another plate with squash soup, bananas, a croissant, raisin bread, a hard boiled egg, and a pickled plum. It was delicious! We talked to the waiter for a while and learned that he had lived in Ann Arbor a few years ago! Crazy! </div><div> </div><div>After lunch we walked around the area before catching the bus back. I had to go to the bathroom but nothing seemed to be open or looked like they would have one for public use. Finally, we found this run-down looking building that was huge and would for sure have a bathroom. My first guess was that the building was a homeless shelter or some kind of disaster relief shelter. It was in pretty bad shape and there were piles of clothes and garbage everywhere and posters all over the walls. A girl about our age saw us come in and showed Lori and I where a bathroom was. Mike talked to her while he waited for us and learned that she had lived in Grand Rapids for a year and had gone to Calvin College during that time. Another crazy coincidence! </div><div> </div><div>We took the shuttle bus back to our hotel and grabbed our bags to head back to school. Coming back, we took the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Shinkansen</span> again. I stayed awake for most of the trip and we saw this great view of Mt. Fuji! It's huge! <a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmQHmEDcI/AAAAAAAAASo/gcbG--8REsw/s1600-h/DSCN1303.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5321748705538477506" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 124px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdqmQHmEDcI/AAAAAAAAASo/gcbG--8REsw/s320/DSCN1303.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-88444118118660245252009-03-31T21:47:00.007+09:002009-03-31T23:22:14.981+09:00Kyoto-Day 1<div>This weekend, the three of us took a trip to Kyoto. This trip was required as part of our Japan trip, so most of it had already been paid for. Kyoto, in central Japan, is about 3 hours away from where we are in Chiba. It used to be the capital of Japan before the Emperor moved over this way to Tokyo. The city still has a lot of historical sites and traditions.<br /><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div>To get there we got to ride the Shinkansen or the "bullet train"as its usually called because of how fast it is (over 500 mph according to Wikipedia!). We woke up very early on Thursday morning so Keiko could take us to the train station. I was happy that Keiko came with us to help us buy tickets for the Shinkansen because I probably would have been extra confused with it being so early and so we didn't have to bike to the station. For breakfast, Keiko offered to buy us sandwiches at the train station. The sandwiches at the shop she picked out did not look appetizing at all, but we are were polite and picked out something. To our surprise and relief they were actually really good! Mine was sort of a barbecue pork sandwich, which probably isn't a great breakfast, but it hit the spot anyway. </div><div><br /><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div>The ride on the Shinkansen was very smooth so it didn't feel like it was going as fast as it supposedly was. It felt like an airplane ride; it was smooth and there were tray tables, a drink/snack cart, reclining seats, etc. I slept for most of the ride and finished reading <em>The Hiding Place, </em>which is a moving piece of Holocaust literature for all you readers out there! Here's the speedy little train!</div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIVF9ihtJI/AAAAAAAAASY/Q5No9lhFSgE/s1600-h/DSCN1041.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319337302040884370" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 167px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIVF9ihtJI/AAAAAAAAASY/Q5No9lhFSgE/s320/DSCN1041.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><div><em><br /></div></em><div><br /><br /></div><div><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div>We arrived in Kyoto mid-morning and set off walking to our hotel. It took us a little longer than it should have to find it because we went out the wrong side of the train stations (oops!) and there aren't very many street signs in Japan. We weren't able to check in until 1:30, so we left our bags there and set off to find some lunch. Mike, Lori and I poked around some of the streets close by and finally found a small sushi place on a side street. It was owned by a man and his wife and had pictures and flags from countries all over the world on it. Our lunch was delicious; the man didn't give us menus but offered us a platter of several different kinds of fish over rice and rice and fish rolled up in seaweed, a large bowl of steaming soup, and a cup of tea- all for about 700 yen! (close to $7). When we paid for our food, the woman open a box of chocolates and offered us each one. How nice! </div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div>We explored the area close to our hotel for a while and then heading back to the hotel to check in at 1:30. The room was probably a family suite because there were three beds in it; a queen sized and two twins so we each had our own. The mattress on my bed at school is not that soft, so I knew I was going to have a wonderful nights' sleep on this bed once evening came. We were each given a robe and complimentary green tea, along with many other free sample items in the bathroom, like hair ties, Q-tips, toothbrushes and toothpaste. Sweet service!</div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div>Around mid-afternoon, we walked to the nearest Subway station and rode over to Kiyomizu Temple. We had to hike up a huge hill and then several flights of stairs until we finally reached the temple area. Here are some pictures from the grounds area of the temple:<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdImtyJpCII/AAAAAAAAASg/g2YsfBIt0pg/s1600-h/DSCN1141.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319356677876156546" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdImtyJpCII/AAAAAAAAASg/g2YsfBIt0pg/s320/DSCN1141.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRiA10DOI/AAAAAAAAASA/KVS_HE3Gjv0/s1600-h/DSCN1134.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319333385916910818" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 290px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRiA10DOI/AAAAAAAAASA/KVS_HE3Gjv0/s320/DSCN1134.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div>There were lots of bright orange buildings around Kyoto. The orange means something....I think it's prosperity? Possibly. </div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRiJd4aTI/AAAAAAAAAR4/mWfGLQ-K9fo/s1600-h/DSCN1138.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319333388232452402" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRiJd4aTI/AAAAAAAAAR4/mWfGLQ-K9fo/s320/DSCN1138.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRiBKplmI/AAAAAAAAARw/yZabjkLjLdE/s1600-h/DSCN1142.jpg"></a><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /></div><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRh7RCs8I/AAAAAAAAARo/bFn4I7JGuf0/s1600-h/DSCN1142.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319333384420504514" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 248px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRh7RCs8I/AAAAAAAAARo/bFn4I7JGuf0/s320/DSCN1142.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><div> </div><div>I thought these ladies might have been geishas, but they didn't have white painted faces. We tried looking for geishas later in the evening. I saw a few but was never quick enough with my camera to get a picture!</div><br /><div></div><div>Once we reached the very top of the temple, we paid a small amount to walk around farther and see the view. It was getting close to sunset time, so we hoped we'd see some beautiful colors but it was a little too cloudy. The view of the city and the trees below us was unforgettable however. Here's some pictures!<br /></div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRMvISNbI/AAAAAAAAARg/CyoKgFCe1SI/s1600-h/DSCN1161.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319333020385293746" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 298px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRMvISNbI/AAAAAAAAARg/CyoKgFCe1SI/s320/DSCN1161.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><div> </div><div>The only cherry blossom tree in the bunch!<br /></div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRMTQ3l7I/AAAAAAAAARY/uiDH9MDvKWQ/s1600-h/DSCN1175.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319333012905105330" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 190px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRMTQ3l7I/AAAAAAAAARY/uiDH9MDvKWQ/s320/DSCN1175.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRMbpkgKI/AAAAAAAAARQ/7wydxfcKWTE/s1600-h/DSCN1178.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319333015156195490" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 219px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRMbpkgKI/AAAAAAAAARQ/7wydxfcKWTE/s320/DSCN1178.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /><br /></div><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRMB-WURI/AAAAAAAAARI/_8u3iGURwHg/s1600-h/DSCN1182.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319333008264024338" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 186px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRMB-WURI/AAAAAAAAARI/_8u3iGURwHg/s320/DSCN1182.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><div>We stayed at Kiyomizu Temple for a while just taking pictures and enjoying the view until the sun had gone down. We wandered to a more downtown area of Kyoto and decided on an Indian restaurant for dinner. I've come to love curry while I've been here, so I ate plenty of a vegetable kind along with a huge piece on nan. It's a delicious triangular-shaped bread that's soft, doughy and perfect for dipping in curry. Yum!<br /></div><div>After dinner, we took a cab over to Nijo Castle to see the "Spring Light-Up." I've never ridden in a cab before and I wasn't sure I could flag one down, but all I had to do was raise my arm as one drove past us! The Spring Light-Up was something we had read about on a Kyoto website and really wanted to see. Cherry blossoms are starting to come out right now and around the Castle they are lit up at night. We were coming back to the Castle the next day during the day time with our tour, so we didn't look around the buildings too much. There was one area where several little tents were set up and were serving Japanese sweets and drinks, and had full benches of happy customers. We didn't buy anything, but it did look good! And the set up of tents was very cute.</div><br /><div></div><div>We walked for a bit until we found the garden where the trees were. Even though the blossoms weren't in full bloom, they still looked beautiful with the sparkling white lights around them. There are some things in nature that make me stop and realize how lovely God's creation is, and these trees were one of these things (even though they were lit up with man-made lights). It was very romantic and magical. Too bad I was strolling around the park with Mike and Lori instead of some good looking boy :). I tried several things on my camera, but I couldn't get a single good picture of the trees. I think Mike was able to get some on his though. While we were walking through the garden, there was a clearing in the trees that went to a moat around the castle. I realized then how much I really like castles and I made a mental note to come back to that spot to get a picture tomorrow when it was daytime! </div><br /><div></div><div>On our way out, we heard music playing from one of the buildings and found three women playing these instruments. They all had long fingernails, which might have been special attachments, but looked real. I couldn't tell what the instruments were, but they had strings and sounded like harps. We stayed for a couple songs and enjoyed the peaceful melodies. <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRMAO_kCI/AAAAAAAAARA/8e3NlAr4GF4/s1600-h/DSCN1209.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319333007796965410" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 262px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SdIRMAO_kCI/AAAAAAAAARA/8e3NlAr4GF4/s320/DSCN1209.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><div> </div><div>After the Castle, we got back on the Subway and exited at the station near our hotel. We were hoping to find a small dessert and something to drink, which we found as soon as we exited the Subway station. Inside, we had to take our shoes off and then were seated at a regular table. We looked around the restaurant and saw the traditional Japanese tables were you sit on the floor and asked if we could have one of those instead. The waiter agreed and I gave him a really overly enthusiastic "thank you." I think I've done that a lot while being here. It's kind of obnoxious. </div><br /><div></div><div>Lori and I ordered a dessert, but we a bit surprised at what it was when we got it. Lori thought from the picture that it might be green tea ice cream with chocolate sauce and marshmallows. It was green tea ice cream, but the "chocolate" was a sweet bean sauce that's very popular in desserts and the "marshmallows" we some kind of white blob that tasted like rice. It wasn't too bad, just not what we expected! We headed back to our hotel to get some rest for the second day of our trip. We had gotten up so early that morning, walked around for hours, and stayed up late that night; I think we all were exhausted. We stayed up for bit and talked, until I couldn't resist my comfy bed and blankets anymore. </div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-31604863225254984692009-03-28T20:45:00.005+09:002009-03-28T22:00:39.616+09:00When Fears Come TrueSo the three of us have been practicing with the women's Gospel Choir with the moms of kids at the school since we got here and our first concert was last Saturday. I've enjoyed it for the most part. Practices are a nice break from the school day and I've enjoyed singing even though most songs are in Japanese and I don't know what I'm singing. My friend Stacy, who went on this trip last year, had warned me of getting asked to sing a solo at a concert. I thought we had lucked out because as it got closer and closer to the concert, we still hadn't been asked.<br /><br />However, my fear came true when the director asked us at the final practice if one of us would sing a verse of "Amazing Grace," one of the few songs in English we'd be performing at the concert. Lori and I quickly volunteered Mike to do it because he actually has musical talent and has sung in a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">micronphone</span> before. Being the good guy that he is, he agreed to, so I hoped for a second that I was safe from singing. But then she asked if Lori and I would sing together on the second verse, which seemed better than a solo except this verse was in Japanese. We had to agree. There was no way out of it. <br /><br />Now this really might not seem like a big deal because its just one verse and would probably take only 30 seconds of humiliation tops. But singing in public with my real singing voice ranks pretty high on my fears list. I often sing for my friends or to the kids in my "fake voice" which is also bad but bad on purpose. Lori and I practiced our part several times the night before the concert. Lori wasn't looking forward to singing either, but she actually seems like she has some musical knowledge. She tried to give me some direction, which I was thankful for. We just couldn't get one note to sound quite right because it was so high (the note for "me" in "...that saved a wretch like me"). I couldn't wait to have the solo behind me and enjoy the rest of the concert singing with the mommies.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Minako</span> took some pictures of the concert. Here's our shining moments!<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc4OQOKpNoI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/Qf0Q_lyqTWY/s1600-h/DSCN1027.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318203881814570626" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 290px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc4OQOKpNoI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/Qf0Q_lyqTWY/s320/DSCN1027.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc4OQOKpNoI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/Qf0Q_lyqTWY/s1600-h/DSCN1027.jpg"></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Here's Lori and I over in the alto section singing "This is the Day," another one in English<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc4OPjBZzII/AAAAAAAAAQw/daTikIeAILk/s1600-h/DSCN1034.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318203870233087106" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 251px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc4OPjBZzII/AAAAAAAAAQw/daTikIeAILk/s320/DSCN1034.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Mike doing his solo part in amazing grace. He sounded really good! He's the only boy in the choir!<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc4OPvdt_DI/AAAAAAAAAQo/_N_lxBq60gk/s1600-h/DSCN1042.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318203873573076018" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 225px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc4OPvdt_DI/AAAAAAAAAQo/_N_lxBq60gk/s320/DSCN1042.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />And finally, Lori and I doing our duet! I'm not sure how we actually sounded; people told us we did good but I think they were just being nice. I actually wasn't as nervous as I thought I'd be, but it was a relief to have it done with!<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc4OPm4cgiI/AAAAAAAAAQg/jaVGwaQTYV4/s1600-h/DSCN1052.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318203871269257762" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 158px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc4OPm4cgiI/AAAAAAAAAQg/jaVGwaQTYV4/s320/DSCN1052.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Here's the whole choir. We have to hold our music so we can read the Japanese, so it gets a little awkward when the director adds in sign <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">langauge</span> and clapping. For some of the songs we practiced more, I've been able to pick up on the words, but others not so much. <br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc4OPez-lvI/AAAAAAAAAQY/MgDLRQ34ixA/s1600-h/DSCN1063.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318203869103036146" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 196px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc4OPez-lvI/AAAAAAAAAQY/MgDLRQ34ixA/s320/DSCN1063.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>We did a couple songs with the kids in the audience. The kids have choir with the director during the week too. </div><div> </div><div>I think we're all done with concerts for the rest of our trip, but we might start practices back up after Spring Break. Looking back, I'm glad I could face this fear with Lori and praise God at the same time. To Him, our singing was beautiful! </div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-81782991174975294532009-03-28T11:42:00.007+09:002009-03-28T13:47:00.030+09:00Kamakura TourI haven't blogged in a while! We've been pretty busy lately, even though the kids are off for Spring Break. We have a new change of schedules that gives us a lot of morning free time, but I've been finishing up work for my online classes and haven't done much with all the pretty pictures I took. My online classes end tomorrow and I'm so glad about that. I was taking two, Intro to Economics and Geography of China, India and Japan, along with our Japanese <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">langauge</span> class and the class for the trip itself. Neither class has been too stressful; actually both have been really interesting and useful during my trip, but it will just be nice to be done with them and the same type of assignments each week. Having less than a month left, Lori and I made this paper chain a couple nights ago to count down the rest of our well enjoyed trip. It's made from origami paper (of course!)<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2mFW0_jnI/AAAAAAAAAQI/V1L2UCR-K4Q/s1600-h/DSCN1312.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318089345951829618" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2mFW0_jnI/AAAAAAAAAQI/V1L2UCR-K4Q/s320/DSCN1312.jpg" border="0" /></a> <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2mFhZdSZI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/1t4Dzdh8Cvc/s1600-h/DSCN1309.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318089348789127570" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 245px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2mFhZdSZI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/1t4Dzdh8Cvc/s320/DSCN1309.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Last Friday, the 20<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">th</span>, was a holiday so there was no school. I decided to take a trip but Lori and Mike had planned on staying back so I was going to be all by myself. I wasn't sure where to go though, so I talked to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Keiko</span> about some ideas. We've been to Tokyo and big city areas a lot, so I decided I wanted to go to something on the more historical side. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Keiko</span> suggested <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Kamakura</span>, which is south of Tokyo and close to the ocean. She helped me plan out some sites to see and even found me a tour guide for the morning. I was thankful for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Keiko's</span> help, but I wasn't sure I wanted a tour guide or if I could really afford one. Fortunately, the tour was free except for the fees for transportation which I would have had to pay for anyway. </div><div> </div><div><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Keiko</span> had set me up with a 9:30 am tour, so I had to get up at the crack of dawn to meet Yoko, my tour guide at the station in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Kamakura</span>. It took about two hours by train and I was lucky I didn't really have much confusion getting there. Once I got off the train to meet Yoko, it was pouring rain! I felt horrible about making this poor woman get up early to show me around in the storm, but she was very cheerful and excited to see me regardless. Yoko was probably in her <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">fourties</span> and was from the next town over, so she knew <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Kamakura</span> very well. It was just her and I on the tour, so she was able to tell me a lot about <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Kamakura</span> and its history and I could <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">aks</span> questions too. </div><div> </div><div>Our first stop was <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Hasedera</span> Temple. It was a Buddhist temple, made for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Kannon</span>, the Goddess of Mercy. Some of the statues were similar to those Lori, Mike and I saw in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Asakusa</span>. The gardens around the temple were beautiful I tried to get some good pictures, but since it was raining so hard I didn't want Yoko to have to stop and wait for me too much. </div><div><br /> </div><p align="center"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2P9fM2atI/AAAAAAAAAPo/d9Hoqsf1MxE/s1600-h/DSCN0919.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318065021504613074" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2P9fM2atI/AAAAAAAAAPo/d9Hoqsf1MxE/s320/DSCN0919.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>The garden was full of little ponds and bridges. The ponds had cute little goldfish in them too!<br /></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2P9QOqQ_I/AAAAAAAAAPg/d3DCmwmBZP8/s1600-h/DSCN0921.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318065017485673458" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 195px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2P9QOqQ_I/AAAAAAAAAPg/d3DCmwmBZP8/s320/DSCN0921.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>The cherry blossoms were starting to come out here! I can tell they're going to be beautiful when they're in full bloom.<br /></div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2P9OEasnI/AAAAAAAAAPY/PQIK8vz_H0E/s1600-h/DSCN0922.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318065016905839218" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 306px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2P9OEasnI/AAAAAAAAAPY/PQIK8vz_H0E/s320/DSCN0922.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2P9Lq0POI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/_iQCb6JC8PI/s1600-h/DSCN0923.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318065016261590242" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2P9Lq0POI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/_iQCb6JC8PI/s320/DSCN0923.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div>Magnolias in full bloom. We've seen a couple of these trees close by the school too.</div><br /><div>Yoko was so friendly and we ended up having a good time together. It was nice having her with me because I learned so much about what I was seeing and more about Buddhist practices. I don't know a whole lot about Buddhism, but I know there are thousands of gods that people worship. This is not an easy thing to grasp, but I try to keep an open mind when viewing them temples and shrines. One of the shrines inside this temple was for children, but especially for children that had died as a result of abortion or miscarriages.</div><br /><div>Here, people could write in prayers and hopes on wooden cards for these children. <a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2Pxpx3F2I/AAAAAAAAAPA/nx2A7HCk-FQ/s1600-h/DSCN0930.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064818185770850" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2Pxpx3F2I/AAAAAAAAAPA/nx2A7HCk-FQ/s320/DSCN0930.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PxlJn0nI/AAAAAAAAAPI/b1uo_Csxkqk/s1600-h/DSCN0924.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064816943256178" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 217px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PxlJn0nI/AAAAAAAAAPI/b1uo_Csxkqk/s320/DSCN0924.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div>The statue here is the protector of the children. His staff is suppose to help him travel the world and allow him to heal children and mothers who have lost children. All around him were flowers and smaller statues of the same man.</div><br /><div>Yoko and I walked up several flights of stairs to where the giant statue of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Kannon</span> was. I wasn't allowed to take pictures once I was inside, but it was so big that I probably would have gotten a very accurate picture anyway. Yoko told me about a Buddhist legend that was said to be the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">orgin</span> of the statue. She told me that supposedly a monk found a tree large enough to make two statues of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">Kannon</span>; the lower half is in Nara's <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">Hasedera</span> Temple and the upper half was thrown into the sea. Fifteen years later, it washed up on shore near <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">Kamakura</span>, was found by the locals, and so the temple for it was built. It was interesting, but Yoko didn't seem like she believed it either. </div><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PxTPN5QI/AAAAAAAAAO4/MttjxvsPGZg/s1600-h/DSCN0936.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064812134884610" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 207px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PxTPN5QI/AAAAAAAAAO4/MttjxvsPGZg/s320/DSCN0936.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div> </div><div>At the top of the mountain, Yoko and I stopped at a small cafe that had a look out of the Pacific Ocean. We had a yummy little treat of green tea and Japanese sweets, and chatted for a little bit about my trip and the tours she does. She was nice enough to give me a few <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">souveneers</span>; a few origami paper cranes and little key chains that were shells covered in scraps of old kimonos. </div><br /><div>As we made our way back down, we stopped inside a few more of the temple's sites. Yoko showed me <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">Benten</span>-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">kutsu</span> Cave filled with the Seven Lucky Gods of Japan. The tunnels of the cave were so low; I had to bend over quite a bit and I'm not even tall! I wish I could have gotten pictures because it was actually pretty cool inside, but it was started to get crowded as the skies were clearing up. Yoko also showed me a building for copying the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">Sutra</span>, which she said was becoming a more popular thing to do. I got this picture from outside, but I kind of look like a creep because it has my shadow in it!<br /></div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PxUFeJmI/AAAAAAAAAOw/ZPn9qbO_X4g/s1600-h/DSCN0948.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064812362442338" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PxUFeJmI/AAAAAAAAAOw/ZPn9qbO_X4g/s320/DSCN0948.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div> </div><div>Our next stop was <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">Daibutsu</span>, or the Great Buddha, which is one of Japan's national treasures. It is 34 feet tall and made of bronze. I got to go inside it for 20 yen (about 20 cents), but it was much better looking on the outside.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PxAeGRpI/AAAAAAAAAOo/tpKBXPjEkmE/s1600-h/DSCN0960.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064807097026194" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 263px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PxAeGRpI/AAAAAAAAAOo/tpKBXPjEkmE/s320/DSCN0960.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2Pb_otZoI/AAAAAAAAAOg/hqZ5eNIa_ik/s1600-h/DSCN0969.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064446095844994" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2Pb_otZoI/AAAAAAAAAOg/hqZ5eNIa_ik/s320/DSCN0969.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PbwQJCuI/AAAAAAAAAOY/V_AQRzG9Q4A/s1600-h/DSCN0970.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064441966267106" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 257px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PbwQJCuI/AAAAAAAAAOY/V_AQRzG9Q4A/s320/DSCN0970.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div> </div><div>What would a Great Buddha be without great big sandals for his feet?!? Yoko told me these were donated by an elementary school class. After visiting Buddha, they noticed his feet were bear and wanted to give his something to walk around in. </div><br /><div>After <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">Daibustu</span>, Yoko had to leave so I was on my own for the rest of the day. By this time the weather was completely cleared up; it was sunny and probably about 65 degrees. It was after 12, so I decided to find some lunch. I was able to find a small little restaurant that served huge bowls of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">ramen</span> noodles (which are 100 times better than the stuff at home that you can heat up in the microwave). The only open table in the restaurant was one in the back where an older woman was seated. She didn't try talking to me at first, so I pulled out a book until my food came. It was delicious, full of vegetables, shrimp, <a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PbQ7tb5I/AAAAAAAAAOI/8jUWxkXrxlA/s1600-h/DSCN0974.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064433559072658" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 248px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PbQ7tb5I/AAAAAAAAAOI/8jUWxkXrxlA/s320/DSCN0974.jpg" border="0" /></a>and noodles. </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>Once I was eating the woman at the table with me got a calculator and punched out "82" and then showed it to me. At first I panicked, wonder what I was going to have to pay $82 for, but then she pointed to herself with a big smile on her face. She was telling me that she was 82 years old, and proud of it! I wrote out that I was from America and 21 years old. Then I told her my soup was good. I think she was actually the mother of the one waitress in the store.<br /></div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2Pbv-DTqI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/Ps3G2j1F83o/s1600-h/DSCN0973.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064441890393762" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2Pbv-DTqI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/Ps3G2j1F83o/s320/DSCN0973.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>After lunch I decided to head over to the coast since it had gotten to nice out. On my way over, I saw this basket of Home Depot bags. What are those doing over here?<br /></div><div>It felt so nice to walk on the beach. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">Yuigahama</span> Beach was definitely not the prettiest beach I've seen (there was lots of trash and washed up seaweed on it) but it sure felt good to walk with my feet in the sand and water. It was way too cold for swimming, but there were lots of guys trying to surf. I don't think the waves were quite big enough for that either though. <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2mFOoYW6I/AAAAAAAAAPw/aNMxrvGpJKI/s1600-h/DSCN1005.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318089343751445410" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 142px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2mFOoYW6I/AAAAAAAAAPw/aNMxrvGpJKI/s320/DSCN1005.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>I walked quite a ways down along the beach, just relaxing in the sunshine and ocean water :).<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2Pa5bEcCI/AAAAAAAAAOA/oHHLvENdols/s1600-h/DSCN0979.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064427248152610" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2Pa5bEcCI/AAAAAAAAAOA/oHHLvENdols/s320/DSCN0979.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> </div><div><br /><br /> </div><div><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PJ8ijcRI/AAAAAAAAAN4/u0rJgKyBKxw/s1600-h/DSCN0995.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064136027074834" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 206px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PJ8ijcRI/AAAAAAAAAN4/u0rJgKyBKxw/s320/DSCN0995.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><div>I stopped to ask a woman if she could take a picture of me and the water and her daughter join me. The woman spoke English really well so we talked for a while about my trip. It was her daughter's first time seeing the ocean and she was running and and having a great time splashing in the waves. This little girl had just had her kindergarten graduation ceremony from a Christian school; I had to do a double take to make sure she wasn't one of ours!</div><div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PJp28F4I/AAAAAAAAANw/VlzC7sS2gC0/s1600-h/DSCN1004.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064131012302722" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 283px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PJp28F4I/AAAAAAAAANw/VlzC7sS2gC0/s320/DSCN1004.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I didn't want to leave the beach, but I thought I'd better check out a couple other places before heading back to the train station. I headed over to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">Tsurugaoka</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">Hachimangu</span> Shrine, which was packed with people. It reminded me <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_30">alot</span> of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_31">Asukusa</span> Temple because the street leading up to it was full of little huts and shops on both sides and was so narrow and because the inside of the temple was pretty similar. I didn't end up staying to long at the Shrine; I was getting tried from waking up so early and from walking around. I climbed to the top of the Shrine, which was up on a mountain and had another great view of the coast. <br /><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PJjigU2I/AAAAAAAAANo/8JhhKtSQNF4/s1600-h/DSCN1015.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064129315984226" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PJjigU2I/AAAAAAAAANo/8JhhKtSQNF4/s320/DSCN1015.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div>This was the only tree in the area that had blossoms on it. People were packed around it taking pictures! They really do love these cherry blossoms!<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PJTJx70I/AAAAAAAAANg/WSVDP2ZJstc/s1600-h/DSCN1017.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064124917313346" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 258px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PJTJx70I/AAAAAAAAANg/WSVDP2ZJstc/s320/DSCN1017.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />The first building is the gate and the one farther was the temple on the mountain.<br /><br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PI0uey9I/AAAAAAAAANY/BNzJJaIElI8/s1600-h/DSCN1022.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318064116749749202" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 210px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2PI0uey9I/AAAAAAAAANY/BNzJJaIElI8/s320/DSCN1022.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>There were several people feeding pigeons at the Shrine. I decided to skip this cultural experience. Instead, I bought these cookies that look like pigeons! Yum!<br /><br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2mFBiVzSI/AAAAAAAAAP4/4hwarAPSmV4/s1600-h/DSCN1308.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318089340236451106" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 310px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2mFBiVzSI/AAAAAAAAAP4/4hwarAPSmV4/s320/DSCN1308.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2mFWXmGjI/AAAAAAAAAQA/q8erWJ_Jz2w/s1600-h/DSCN1313.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318089345828526642" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sc2mFWXmGjI/AAAAAAAAAQA/q8erWJ_Jz2w/s320/DSCN1313.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-1625793950776720612009-03-21T17:45:00.005+09:002009-03-21T18:18:10.686+09:00American Night<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSprGgpddI/AAAAAAAAANQ/4VJdSx0ik70/s1600-h/DSCN0909.jpg"></a>On Wednesday night, Lori, Mike and I hosted "American Night" for the teachers at the school. Outside of visiting their classrooms everyday, we really haven't had much of a chance to spend time with the teachers because they are so busy all the time! We were excited to get a chance to hang out with them. <br /><br />The three of us had planned out a menu and did the grocery shopping beforehand. Lori and I had both wanted to try unique family recipes, but due to lack of finding necessary ingredients, we decided on tacos for the main dish. Yes I know, tacos are not really American but they are my favorite food and I'm American, so it all works out :). We also wanted to make <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">s'mores</span> and strawberry shortcake for dessert and were more successful at finding these ingredients. <br /><br />After work, we headed into our tiny kitchen to start cooking. Most of the teachers were <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">eager</span> to help us cook and it was a challenge trying to find jobs and supplies for everyone! We stuck a couple of teachers on the job of making the biscuits for the strawberry shortcake, since all the directions were in Japanese. We had just enough cutting boards and knives for teachers to cut up taco toppings and the strawberries. After these jobs were done, we had runners carry the food us to the classroom where we were going to have the party. Finally, after about an hour and a half of cramping and chaos, we were ready to eat! Here's some of the yummy food we had! <br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSpcDA5EZI/AAAAAAAAAMY/PinlX3HstR0/s1600-h/DSCN0898.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315559759514505618" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSpcDA5EZI/AAAAAAAAAMY/PinlX3HstR0/s320/DSCN0898.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Lori and I with three teachers getting the tacos ready in the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">kitchen</span>. We decided to use <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">croissant</span> rolls and tortillas instead of spending extra money on hard shells. Pretty good!<br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSpcc0jOHI/AAAAAAAAAMo/Jb8Ti4vsvD0/s1600-h/DSCN0901.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315559766442063986" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 277px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSpcc0jOHI/AAAAAAAAAMo/Jb8Ti4vsvD0/s320/DSCN0901.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSpco6TrMI/AAAAAAAAAMw/s-54N1yOA4w/s1600-h/DSCN0902.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315559769687436482" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 272px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSpco6TrMI/AAAAAAAAAMw/s-54N1yOA4w/s320/DSCN0902.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Mike's guacamole was so good and was a big hit! Tortilla chips were also expensive, so we served it will <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">flavored</span> potato chips and Doritos.<br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSpcZ6O4nI/AAAAAAAAAMg/GH7pw9QxqZs/s1600-h/DSCN0899.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315559765660590706" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSpcZ6O4nI/AAAAAAAAAMg/GH7pw9QxqZs/s320/DSCN0899.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Here are two more teachers getting the biscuits ready for strawberry shortcake. Most of the teachers are pretty close to our age, like 21- 25 years ole. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Osuka</span>, the teacher on the right, is the oldest and she's been at the kindergarten for about 15 years already! Still looks pretty young to me!<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSprIj-l_I/AAAAAAAAANI/km3ZQQdG55I/s1600-h/DSCN0906.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315560018701883378" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 318px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSprIj-l_I/AAAAAAAAANI/km3ZQQdG55I/s320/DSCN0906.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Here's <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Tamaki</span> and I with the yummy strawberry shortcake! <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Tamaki</span> is one of my favorite teachers. She's always so energetic and excited, and can pull of that great hairstyle! And her class was full of some of my favorite students, so I loved visiting it for lunch.<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315559769509708018" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 161px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSpcoP7wPI/AAAAAAAAAM4/m1nvx_bjeXE/s320/DSCN0903.jpg" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSpq-3wm6I/AAAAAAAAANA/1BfoF2leERs/s1600-h/DSCN0904.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5315560016100498338" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 263px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/ScSpq-3wm6I/AAAAAAAAANA/1BfoF2leERs/s320/DSCN0904.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div> </div><div>While we were eating, we watched the movie "Enchanted." The three of us were trying to pick a movie to rent and I thought of this one because Disney seems to be pretty popular in Japan and it is still a fairly new movie. Lori and Mike had never seen it, and I'm not sure Mike was too thrilled about getting it! We watched it with Japanese subtitles, and I think the teachers enjoyed it while Lori, Mike and I had fun laughing at the cheesy jokes and lines.</div><div> </div><div>Afterward, we tried to insist on doing the dishes and letting the teachers go home and get some rest before work the next day, but they ended up helping us with the cleaning. They are just so nice! The night was a lot of fun and I hope they had as good of a time as we did. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-46685053923253800732009-03-13T21:28:00.005+09:002009-03-13T22:38:21.369+09:00Graduation DayIn Japan, schools are year round and early April marks the start of a new school year. Wednesday was Graduation Day at the kindergarten! The school has three grade levels of students, so only the oldest group ( 5 and 6 year <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">olds</span>) are leaving. Since they have been at the school for three years now, this group, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Shion</span> as they are referred to, has had experiences with other Spring Arbor students coming in and out. Because of this, the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Shions</span> get that we can't understand them and have been able to try different ways of communicating with us. It was a little sad to see these kids go because Mike, Lori and I have enjoyed playing with them on the playground, eating lunch in their classes and teaching them English in exchange for Japanese words.<br /><br />We had gotten the impression that Graduation was going to be a pretty big deal, as many parents often show us for smaller assemblies with video cameras and such. The <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Shions</span> and their teachers had been practicing for weeks on their march in and different songs and prayers they were to recite. Lori, Mike and I had a few roles in the ceremony. Our first and most nerve racking was to read a Bible verse in front of the crowd, first in English than Japanese. Now, I really don't get nervous speaking in front of people, but in Japanese in a bit different. For those of you who have been keeping up on my blogs, you'll know that I have had the best record of speaking Japanese in front of a crowd! I practiced several times beforehand, but my heart was pumping quite fast as the ceremony approached.<br /><br />The kids looked so cute in their little caps and gowns! Here's a few pictures I got before the ceremony... <br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSeCWKGHI/AAAAAAAAAMI/D78J2U2EGcs/s1600-h/DSCN0792.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312649386416281714" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 278px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSeCWKGHI/AAAAAAAAAMI/D78J2U2EGcs/s320/DSCN0792.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSeJpTFGI/AAAAAAAAAMQ/NC_1yA26cbk/s1600-h/DSCN0804.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312649388375610466" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 284px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSeJpTFGI/AAAAAAAAAMQ/NC_1yA26cbk/s320/DSCN0804.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSPOwfCvI/AAAAAAAAAMA/PWXGzT7asYk/s1600-h/DSCN0796.jpg"></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSOxmG6hI/AAAAAAAAALw/frJAsjIeNWw/s1600-h/DSCN0797.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312649124221741586" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSOxmG6hI/AAAAAAAAALw/frJAsjIeNWw/s320/DSCN0797.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSO-QjgXI/AAAAAAAAAL4/9SqOwBEjbTQ/s1600-h/DSCN0795.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312649127621001586" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSO-QjgXI/AAAAAAAAAL4/9SqOwBEjbTQ/s320/DSCN0795.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSOnFo8XI/AAAAAAAAALg/E5TCHX1yg6k/s1600-h/DSCN0807.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312649121401205106" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 271px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSOnFo8XI/AAAAAAAAALg/E5TCHX1yg6k/s320/DSCN0807.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSO33JIDI/AAAAAAAAALo/UWXxOiN81eU/s1600-h/DSCN0800.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312649125903802418" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 256px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpSO33JIDI/AAAAAAAAALo/UWXxOiN81eU/s320/DSCN0800.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Kaiya</span>, the boy on the left hugging his friend, is one of our favorites. He always hides when I try to take pictures of him, so I was happy to get one where his arms aren't covering his face!</div><div><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpR-7vjBcI/AAAAAAAAALQ/ja7y8weFmng/s1600-h/DSCN0814.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312648852067780034" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpR-7vjBcI/AAAAAAAAALQ/ja7y8weFmng/s320/DSCN0814.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpR-57AVRI/AAAAAAAAALY/rZmfl3ixuiA/s1600-h/DSCN0811.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312648851578967314" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 248px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpR-57AVRI/AAAAAAAAALY/rZmfl3ixuiA/s320/DSCN0811.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div>Some of the moms were excited to take pictures of us with their kids. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Sayaka</span>, the girl doing the peace with me, is another favorite. <br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpR-kWiAnI/AAAAAAAAALI/B_mPltmIg2I/s1600-h/DSCN0819.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312648845788840562" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 309px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpR-kWiAnI/AAAAAAAAALI/B_mPltmIg2I/s320/DSCN0819.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><p align="center"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpR-kWiAnI/AAAAAAAAALI/B_mPltmIg2I/s1600-h/DSCN0819.jpg"></a> </p><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpR-n2M5OI/AAAAAAAAALA/Yipw64SaUxQ/s1600-h/DSCN0822.jpg"></a><div><br />The ceremony started with the traditional graduation song to march in with. In their hands, the students held branches with leaves on them. I'm not positive of the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">significance</span>, but in our copy of the program it said that the buds are eaten as a vegetable in Japan's spring season. So maybe the two are related. The ceremony was held in the outside dome, which was just big enough to fit about 100 graduating students and their families. Parents were dressed up (a very moms had traditional kimonos on!) and there were video cameras everywhere. It was definitely a big deal. Mike said it reminded him of the movie "Best in Show," except for children instead of dogs! Of course, if I had an adorable Japanese child, I would want pictures and videos full of him or her dressed in an <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">over-sized</span> cap and gown too.</div><div> </div><div>The Bible readings went very well for all three of us. We had been told to speak slowly, which was no trouble when speaking in Japanese. Lori and I had verses from 1 John and Mike's was from Isaiah. I haven't been that nervous in a long time! About halfway through (which wasn't that far because it was only one verse), I started feeling really good about myself and began cheering myself on in my head. I didn't dare look up from my paper at the audience, though. I was really relieved when it was done and I could go back to my seat and enjoy the ceremony. However, I should keep in mind though that many of the parents are not Christians, so even giving them one Bible verse is something I should look forward to, not be scared by. </div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpR-mHSE8I/AAAAAAAAAK4/ERoptoChccU/s1600-h/DSCN0827.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312648846261752770" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 288px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbpR-mHSE8I/AAAAAAAAAK4/ERoptoChccU/s320/DSCN0827.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> </div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> </div><div>After our reading, the students recited the Lord's Prayer and then <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">received</span> their diplomas (or maybe they were just certificates). Then the real fun began when the students sang and danced to "Bless the Lord." Here's a short clip of it that I took on my camera: </div><div><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dx_fK01L5_NWcVdRhHlTt0jt_XocmRTrynILINMMmhIog3k5aZaEAT0k7UztOqGf8OhL31gn2z4PJS1xkVBnw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br /></div><div>After the ceremony, our second job was to sing with the Gospel choir at the tea ceremony. The tea ceremony was kind of like a reception, but since we were warming up I didn't get a chance to see, or try, what was being offered. Gospel choir has been going fairly well. I haven't been asked to sing a solo yet, which was something I was warned about by my friend Stacy who came on this trip last year. There are a couple of songs that I know most of the words to, I just don't know what I'm saying. Others I feel totally lost. The first song we had to sing was one of these. It's a very fast song, so I'm proud of myself when I can just keep track of where everyone else is. The second is one is a bit slower, so that was nice. The final song we sang with the kids. There were many moms in the choir, teachers, and parents in the audience getting teary eyed when we sang this song. Mike was curious about what the song's words were and if that's what was making everyone so sappy, or if it was just the spirit of graduation.</div><div> </div><div>Monday starts Spring Break, which is three weeks of no school. The teachers still work, so its really not a break at all! But when we start school up again in April, there will be new students coming in. <br /><br /></div><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-79042366576977337122009-03-12T20:36:00.003+09:002009-03-12T21:47:38.616+09:00Yokohama!<div><div align="left"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0krgNAaI/AAAAAAAAAKg/FspNBxJuXcc/s1600-h/DSCN0682.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312264671473762722" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 222px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0krgNAaI/AAAAAAAAAKg/FspNBxJuXcc/s320/DSCN0682.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><div align="left">This weekend was our first trip to somewhere other than Tokyo. A woman at the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Nishimura's</span> church, who speaks wonderful English, has been asking us for a few weeks now if we had visited Yokohama yet. So we felt it was time to check this city out. Tokyo has been great, but it was nice to mix it up a little and get a change of scenery. Yokohama is also a large city, not as huge as Tokyo, but still big. </div><br /><div align="left">We decided to sleep in and head out in the afternoon. I can't sleep in. I really never have been a good sleeper-inner. I just like the idea that I <em>can </em>sleep if I want to. I still ended up waking up at the same time I do every morning though. But I did get a little homework done and reading too. After making a brunch of banana pancakes and pizza-yes, weird and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">carbo</span> loaded but yet delicious combination- we biked to the train station. It's <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">definitely</span> getting warmer here! Saturday was beautiful; around 60 degrees and sunny. </div><br /><div align="left">We had heard Chinatown was a popular tourist area of Yokohama, so we planned to go there but left the rest of the time for whatever we found when we got there. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Minako</span> gave us plans to get through the train and subway stations, but never having been to Yokohama herself, her directions didn't take us to the station that led us to Chinatown. We exited at the station she suggested, walked around for a while and didn't find a whole lot. We did get some pictures of buildings and bridges though. <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0kXxotbI/AAAAAAAAAKY/0ZSMc3vs3gQ/s1600-h/DSCN0684.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312264666178172338" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 263px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0kXxotbI/AAAAAAAAAKY/0ZSMc3vs3gQ/s320/DSCN0684.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div align="left"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0kTTLAoI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/VPj4FMV2GyE/s1600-h/DSCN0690.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312264664976654978" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 276px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0kTTLAoI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/VPj4FMV2GyE/s320/DSCN0690.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><br /><br /><div align="left"></div><br /><br /><div align="left"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0kTTLAoI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/VPj4FMV2GyE/s1600-h/DSCN0690.jpg"></a> </div><br /><br /><div align="left"></div><br /><br /><div align="left"></div><br /><br /><div align="left"></div><br /><br /><div align="left"></div><br /><br /><div align="left"></div><br /><br /><div align="left"></div><br /><p align="left"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0YL3hCTI/AAAAAAAAAKI/o0Pg4VhDF9E/s1600-h/DSCN0695.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312264456823179570" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 269px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0YL3hCTI/AAAAAAAAAKI/o0Pg4VhDF9E/s320/DSCN0695.jpg" border="0" /></a></p><br /><br /><div align="left"></div><br /><br /><div align="left"></div><br /><div align="left">Finally, we decided we should ask someone for help. Lori took charge, telling Mike and I to wait right where we were as she marched up to an older man to ask for help. Way to go Lori! The man was very helpful and his broken English told us to get back on the subway for a few more stops. When we got off at the new station in Yokohama, we found a huge stadium and park right away. </div><div align="left"> </div><div align="left"><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0XvhQaUI/AAAAAAAAAKA/RnuQ9Rx_9S0/s1600-h/DSCN0701.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312264449213622594" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 216px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0XvhQaUI/AAAAAAAAAKA/RnuQ9Rx_9S0/s320/DSCN0701.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><br /><br /><div><br />The park was filled with people, especially families with younger kids. There are so many parks in Japan! I love it! </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /> </div><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj55PSJbII/AAAAAAAAAKo/XdKYAM8nVuw/s1600-h/DSCN0707.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312270522234006658" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 238px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj55PSJbII/AAAAAAAAAKo/XdKYAM8nVuw/s320/DSCN0707.jpg" border="0" /></a>This park had an area with lots of fountains. This was one of them.<br /><div><br /><br /><br /><div><br /> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0XVd_XSI/AAAAAAAAAJ4/UqcCS4VbU3o/s1600-h/DSCN0715.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312264442220600610" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0XVd_XSI/AAAAAAAAAJ4/UqcCS4VbU3o/s320/DSCN0715.jpg" border="0" /></a>We had to walk a little ways to get to Chinatown area. I saw this cute billboard! Mike took a picture of Lori and I standing in front of the two larger people on the right side. They're holding a flower. I think it was for a building company. <br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj55egkSxI/AAAAAAAAAKw/5akdlKKfR6M/s1600-h/DSCN0719.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312270526321019666" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj55egkSxI/AAAAAAAAAKw/5akdlKKfR6M/s320/DSCN0719.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Chinatown is really just an area with about 100 Chinese restaurants- all with pretty much the same food and prices! We decided it was necessary to get food at one of the restaurants and started scanning the menus, hoping to find a really really good deal. While Lori and I were reading over the menu of one place, the owner came out and started pointing out lower priced items on the menu and telling us to come in. We told him we were looking at lots of places, so maybe we'd be back. He looked really disappointed, and Lori and I both thought that he must not get <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">a lot</span> of business. We went across the street to look at another place's menu, which did have some things a bit different and better looking. But the guy from the first place was still outside watching us, with sad puppy dog eyes. We talked it over with Mike and we finally decided we'd go to the first man's <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">restaurant</span>, since he looked like he really wanted us to come in. </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>When we got inside, there was only one other family there but it was still pretty early in the afternoon. The owner sat us down at a huge table, probably for a family or big party. The three of us decided to order a large dinner for two deal, which had several dishes of appetizers, main courses and fruit. We figured it would be plenty of food for the three of us. However, when we tried to order, we had a difficult time explaining to the waitress that we just waited one dinner for three people. Finally, the owner came over along with the rest of the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">restaurant</span> staff and told us that we would have to pay extra if we wanted to order that item since it was only for two people. We then tried asking if we could order two of the smaller two person dinners, which would be food for four people and the owner agreed to this.<br /><br />We thought everything was fine and dandy, until the waitress started bring out the food. First, she brought us a bowl of soup that was just the perfect size for two people. Then, she brought out a plate that had two pot stickers on it. Then a two person sized portion of chicken. We kept hoping that we'd get the first meal and then she'd start over again for the second dinner. But when she brought out just two cups of fruit and the bill, we knew something was up. We had been charged for two dinners, yet we were only given one. I called the owner over and tried to explain our complaints the best I could, but his English was good enough to tell us that the dinner was only for two people, so we had to pay the price for a second. And one person couldn't order a dinner for two one their own. Funny that he didn't try explain that to us when we ordered! We had been scammed. On the positive side of things, we did get to try several different dishes and since we ordered the smaller dinners it didn't cost that much per person. But it still wasn't much food for dinner and we got scammed! To make matters more annoying, the restaurant had filled up quite a bit while we had been there so clearly the owner wasn't in need of business from us. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Grrr</span>. </div><div><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0XdA839I/AAAAAAAAAJw/T5ty5332z5o/s1600-h/DSCN0723.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312264444246286290" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0XdA839I/AAAAAAAAAJw/T5ty5332z5o/s320/DSCN0723.jpg" border="0" /></a>After the restaurant, we walked around the packed streets of Chinatown for a while. I tried not to look at the menus of other restaurants for fear I might see a good deal that we could have had instead had we only waited a little bit longer. Since we were still a little hungry, we decided to grab a small treat from one of the many carts on the street. We found this shop selling these big rolls with meat and veggies inside. The line was long, so we knew it must be good! It sure was. The bread was hot and doughy and the inside goodies were delicious. <br /><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0XbS6UuI/AAAAAAAAAJo/7CQb58LRCJA/s1600-h/DSCN0738.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312264443784745698" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 278px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sbj0XbS6UuI/AAAAAAAAAJo/7CQb58LRCJA/s320/DSCN0738.jpg" border="0" /></a>Other than food places, Chinatown has some <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">souvenir</span> stores and the China Museum, which has more food and <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">souvenirs</span>. There was one store filled with panda bear <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">collectables</span> and another with everything Hello Kitty. </div><div> </div><div>After a while, Chinatown was kind of exhausting so we walked around other parts of Yokohama for a while. It was dark by this point, but it was exciting to see some of the nightlife atmosphere of the city. For not having much of a plan for what we wanted to see and do, I enjoyed seeing Yokohama and just having a laid back day. Our trips to Tokyo have been fun, but we plan several stops and it seems like we've been rushing from one place to the next. I liked being able to just see what was in the city, even if it wasn't always something that would be a big tourist attraction. <br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-62828082667719272062009-03-06T10:46:00.004+09:002009-03-06T12:52:26.491+09:00Happy Birthday to Me!I love my birthday. I get really excited for it and starting counting down several weeks in advance. On my 18th birthday, my Grandma Moore sent me a card where she recalled that when I was little I used to run around telling people that my birthday was March 4th! I still do that! Anyway, I was extra super excited for my birthday this year because I turned 21 in Japan! As many family members and friends have told me in cards and messages, not many people can say that they celebrated a birthday while visiting another country!<br /><div><div><div><div><div> </div><div>The day before my birthday was the kindergarten's birthday parade for the March birthday kids. Keiko had asked if I would like to be a part of the parade (of course!) but I still had to wear the embarrassing flag costume like the other teachers. I asked if I could wear the princess costume that the Birthday Fairy wears, but she said no. I still got to do the flower shower for the kids and had one of my own and I had to sing a little song in the microphone. I was told I'd be singing the song that the oldest group of kids sing, but the music started playing for the youngest kids when it was my turn so I was caught a little off guard! The song has the audience say your name and then say something that translates to "where are you? come here!" and then I was supposed to answer back with "here I am!" I'm not exactly sure if what I said in the microphone was right! The kids liked it though!<br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5309914885015204450" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbCbdGzj8mI/AAAAAAAAAI4/Q7HNW_YmSm4/s320/DSCN0681.JPG" border="0" />My actaul birthday started out with my making the decision not to get up early and go running, but rather to sleep in and enjoy my day by being lazy. As I was coming back up to our room after taking a shower, Lori met me on the stairs and asked if I wanted to eat breakfast with her. I could tell she was planning something because she had a goofy little smile on her face. I went back downstairs to the kitchen where she had put balloons on the door- only these balloons had rabbit faces on them and little ears! Lori had made me a lovely little card the night before and gave me a tasty pastry treat to enjoy for breakfast. Yum!</div><br /><div>Throughout the day I received lots of happy birthdays from teachers. They had posted Happy Birthday posters throughout the office and one on our room door too. After school, I had to do two lessons of English for two groups of teachers. As a thank you for teaching English, the teachers usually give us some Japanese junk food, so I got several different snacks along with <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbCbbUQwkSI/AAAAAAAAAIY/MOS5riPFtuA/s1600-h/DSCN0629.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5309914854267588898" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbCbbUQwkSI/AAAAAAAAAIY/MOS5riPFtuA/s320/DSCN0629.JPG" border="0" /></a>the Happy Birthday song (it's the same song we sing in the U.S., except the Japanese people can't say their r's very well, so it sounds like Happy Basday). At the after school program, I showed this little boy, Kaiya, how to fly like Superman and he loved it. My mom used to do this with my sister and I when we were little and I used to do it with my neighbors Kourtney and Brady when they were a bit younger. If you've never done Superman, you lay on your back and puts your feet in the air while the kid rests his or her stomach on your feet and holds onto your hands. If you have good balance with the kid, they you can let go of their hands so they can "fly"! </div><div> </div><div>For dinner, Minako and the rest of the Nishimura family took Mike, Lori and I out to dinner. Minako had asked where I wanted to go, but I </div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbCdMQxUjZI/AAAAAAAAAJA/ZYJbRMMN_9c/s1600-h/DSCN0635.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5309916794655640978" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbCdMQxUjZI/AAAAAAAAAJA/ZYJbRMMN_9c/s320/DSCN0635.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div>told her to pick since she'd have a better idea of what places are the best. She chose an Italian restaurant called Fracasso where I ate waaaaaayyyy to much food. I'm not going to go into details about how much I ate for dinner and dessert because I'm too embarrassed but I'll just say that there was a lot of melted cheese and chocolate cake involved. I was delicious however. I think I was pushing my limit though of the excuse "It's my birthday! I'm in Japan! I can do whatever I want!" At dinner Minako gave me a gift bag filled with a couple little presents and a card signed by all the teachers. How sweet!</div><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbCbbvh_kfI/AAAAAAAAAIg/SjV3lLttAZk/s1600-h/DSCN0630.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5309914861587632626" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbCbbvh_kfI/AAAAAAAAAIg/SjV3lLttAZk/s320/DSCN0630.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div></div>Keiko's daughter, Yui brought us these display carrots at the restaurant. Yum!<br /><br /><br /><div>So, all in all, good birthday. I sort of felt like I had two days of birthday celebration because of the time difference. I was half way through celebrating here, but back home my birthday was just beginning! Thanks everyone for the birthday messages on Facebook and Skype. I also got a few cards in the mail that I really appreciated. Both of my Grandmas and Grandpas sent me cards (thanks for the surprise confetti shower, G'ma Moore!) and from my mom and dad and from Mr. and Mrs. Worpel (Lori's mom and dad). My sister, Jen, is going to have her baby any day now and her due date was set for March 4th. I wasn't sure how I felt about sharing my birthday, since I already do with one of my best friends, Julie Daniel (which is kind a of a special bond we have). However, little baby Sophie hasn't come yet, so I am free to from sharing more birthday attention. Pretty soon though, my darling sister and Kevin will be parents! <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbCbcDqUpoI/AAAAAAAAAIo/r-1O3oYj3nM/s1600-h/DSCN0631.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5309914866991277698" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SbCbcDqUpoI/AAAAAAAAAIo/r-1O3oYj3nM/s320/DSCN0631.JPG" border="0" /></a>Hooray! Tomorrow we are going to Yokohama, so we can explore a new area of Japan! </div><br />Here's Mike with his new best friend, Dr. Shin! And more carrots too.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-19936098898521617732009-03-03T22:02:00.004+09:002009-03-03T22:41:19.599+09:00Panda Bear Feast!<div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308946502039685746" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sa0qtzGgynI/AAAAAAAAAHg/yTU90_vXExU/s320/DSCN0559.jpg" border="0" /> As promised, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Minako</span> took us to a real authentic Japanese sushi place last week for a special dinner treat! We went to a place that was conveyor belt style, which was completely new to me. In the middle of the restaurant, there was a kitchen area where two chefs were preparing all sorts of goodies wrapped up in seaweed. Mike, Lori, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Minako</span> and I sat at a bar-like table that wrapped around this little kitchen area, so it was easy for us to see what was being made. The plates of food rotated around on the conveyor belt; if something looked good, you were supposed to just grab it right off the belt! <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Minako</span> knew we liked sushi, but she is not a fan of it herself so she was able to order different cooked fish instead. Lori and I shared several dishes and I enjoyed everything I tried! Some of my favorites though were tuna (which was just over rice), a seafood salad with octopus pieces and vegetables wrapped in seaweed, and salmon (again, over rice). Lori and I tried fish eggs too, which were bright orange! Each plate was a <a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sa0quFw2NNI/AAAAAAAAAHo/Kj7MS5cPGY4/s1600-h/DSCN0561.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308946507049088210" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sa0quFw2NNI/AAAAAAAAAHo/Kj7MS5cPGY4/s320/DSCN0561.jpg" border="0" /></a>different color and represented a price, so it was easy for the waitress to add up add the different items we grabbed off the belt. My knowledge of sushi isn't that expansive, but I don't think this place ranked on the very high-class end. However, I thought it was delicious...and in the end, raw fish is raw fish, right?<br /><div></div><br /><div>Here's <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Minako</span> looking cute, with the ice cream cone she had after dinner. Mike and I ordered a piece of chocolate cake and Lori tried a piece of cheesecake made from tofu.</div><br /><div><br /><div><br /><br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sa0quSwsuxI/AAAAAAAAAHw/xxmwdmdIxLI/s1600-h/DSCN0576.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308946510538128146" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sa0quSwsuxI/AAAAAAAAAHw/xxmwdmdIxLI/s320/DSCN0576.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />On Saturday, we decided to explore the area around the school a little bit instead of heading into Tokyo again. We'd like to travel every weekend, but we also want to make our money last the whole trip and wait to see some places when the weather gets a bit warmer. We took our bicycles out and tried out different areas we haven't seen yet. Down one street, we stumbled across this path which opened up to a huge bamboo forest. There were trees everywhere! We saw houses not too far away, so it may have actually been <span style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffff00">a</span> backyard. What a wonderful backyard it would be! I could have spent hours in there, just exploring little paths and looking up at the trees. We walked around a while to take pictures and I snuck away from the other two to explore a little of the forest on my own. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>There was another clump of trees, except these were closer together, and I found a trail that led me right to the middle of the <a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sa0quQn8pxI/AAAAAAAAAH4/1spDL-04HGk/s1600-h/DSCN0585.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308946509964551954" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sa0quQn8pxI/AAAAAAAAAH4/1spDL-04HGk/s320/DSCN0585.jpg" border="0" /></a>clump. The wind was blowing just a little, but since the trees are so light, they were swaying back and forth and making a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">creeeeeking</span> sound like they were going to fall over right on top of me! Lori had said earlier that she likes exploring new places by herself because no one else is the world is seeing what you're seeing, so its really special to you! That's kind of how I felt being among these towering trees just by myself. </div><div> </div><div>The path ended at a clearing where there were a few houses. Most were traditional Japanese style home, but one was a huge log cabin. It was three stories tall and had palm trees lining its property. It looked a little out of place next to the others<br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sa0q0Tjk2oI/AAAAAAAAAII/3EvWGqfVlSc/s1600-h/DSCN0596.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5308946613830736514" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sa0q0Tjk2oI/AAAAAAAAAII/3EvWGqfVlSc/s320/DSCN0596.jpg" border="0" /></a></div></div><div><div>When I came back from my adventure, Lori and I picked these lovely flowers (they're everywhere, but I just can't get over how pink and pretty they are!) off the ground and decided to pose with them. Mike loves his new camera and took lots of pictures with us and these flowers on his camera, but I had him take a couple for me too! </div><div> </div><div> <br /><br /></div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sa0q0Tjk2oI/AAAAAAAAAII/3EvWGqfVlSc/s1600-h/DSCN0596.jpg"></a> </div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sa0xYfSShEI/AAAAAAAAAIQ/whczHdIdqIo/s1600-h/DSCN0595.jpg"></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/Sa0q0Tjk2oI/AAAAAAAAAII/3EvWGqfVlSc/s1600-h/DSCN0596.jpg"></a></div><br /><div> </div></div></div></div></div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-29163128681404650272009-02-24T09:13:00.008+09:002009-02-24T11:16:37.975+09:00Dead Fish and Trendy Kids<div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div>On Saturday, we decided to take another trip into the Tokyo area by train and subway. We had planned earlier in the week to visit <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Tsujiki</span> Fish Market and found that most of the activity starts very early in the morning. Lori and I woke up at 4:00 am so we could be ready to meet Mike at 5 to bike to the train station. I didn't have much of an appetite at this early hour, so I just grabbed a piece of toast. It was probably a good thing I didn't eat much because our meals for the day were a little off schedule. </div><br /><div>The <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Tsujiki</span> Fish Market is one of the biggest in Asia and it provides most of Japan's fish supply and for other countries too. Over Thanksgiving, my sister and Kevin brought over a puzzle with pictures from the "1000 Places to See Before You Die" book and this market was one of them. It wasn't a pretty place by any means, but it <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">definitely</span> was worth seeing. When we got off the subway at the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Tsujiki</span> station, Lori and I thought for sure we could faintly smell fish. We didn't <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM-8PiFzAI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/kChLoXt70P4/s1600-h/inside+market+2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306153990655167490" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM-8PiFzAI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/kChLoXt70P4/s320/inside+market+2.jpg" border="0" /></a>have to walk to far to find the market. We first made our way down a very streets, which was a little shopping area with stops selling everything from vegetables and fruits to big knives to pottery. What we really wanted to find was the area with all the fish! The streets around the market were mass chaos; we had to constantly be looking all around because there were trucks, men driving carts full of stuff, people on bicycles, and people walking everywhere! I think we came close to getting run over several times. </div><div> </div><div>Lori, Mike and I finally found the inside of the market where all the fish we being prepared to be sold. It was huge! There was only a little bit of room to walk, and most people inside knew exactly where they wanted to go to buy their fish. I think we were so overwhelmed by the size and the amount of dead fish all around us; I felt a little out of place trying to take pictures and watch the workers chop off fish heads :). We saw all different kinds of things and it would have been cool to buy some fish for dinner, but since we would be walking around all day we thought it <a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM-8B6HtWI/AAAAAAAAAGY/WT6CHExir28/s1600-h/chopping+fish.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306153986997859682" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 236px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM-8B6HtWI/AAAAAAAAAGY/WT6CHExir28/s320/chopping+fish.jpg" border="0" /></a>would probably go bad if we did.</div><br /><div>It was only a little after 9 am when we got outside of the fish area and were making our way back to the outside market. We were a little hungry and thought it would be good to at least try some kind of snack being sold. When we were walking around the outside market, we had seen small restaurants with lots of people already waiting to go inside. We really didn't want to wait too long to go inside, but Lori found one of these restaurants with only a few people inside sat down immediately. The inside was very small and had a bar-like table with stools for us to sit on. There was a small kitchen in the back too. The owner greeted us warmly and offered us two choices of food- <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">sashimi</span> or <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">yakitori</span>. Mike and I ordered <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">sashimi</span> and Lori got chicken <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">yakitori</span>. </div><br /><div>There were a few other customers there too, but the waiter paid us <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">a lot</span> of attention. While we waited for our food, he gave us Japanese lessons that were very useful. He wrote down different phrases like, "How do I get to...?" and "I want to order..." and "separate checks, please!" It was very helpful and hopefully we can practice using the phrases. The food was delicious. My <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">sashimi</span> <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM-8QEUIyI/AAAAAAAAAGo/kdDqo9TQgGk/s1600-h/breakfast.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306153990798713634" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 350px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 220px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM-8QEUIyI/AAAAAAAAAGo/kdDqo9TQgGk/s320/breakfast.jpg" border="0" /></a>included a serving of raw tuna, raw salmon, shrimp, and a prawn that I had to take out of the shell. My meal also had a bowl of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">miso</span> soup (soup with tofu and seaweed), a bowl of white rice, and hot tea. Mike had told me earlier that <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM-8SWIHNI/AAAAAAAAAGw/ewg5sMdV16E/s1600-h/breakfast+2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306153991410293970" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 133px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 86px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM-8SWIHNI/AAAAAAAAAGw/ewg5sMdV16E/s320/breakfast+2.jpg" border="0" /></a>he liked to mix <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">wasabi</span> with soy sauce to dip the raw fish in, so I tried that with mine and it was great.</div><br /><div>The waiter, J.J., was very friendly and talked with us the whole time we were there. It was nice to get to know him, but I felt a little bad for the other customers. When we were getting ready to leave, he took our picture to put on his restaurant wall, which was covered with pictures of Americans who had come in. J.J. also asked us to sign a guest book. It was a little funny. I got a picture with him too.</div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM-8VzxkgI/AAAAAAAAAGg/ET5L7GCfQX4/s1600-h/waiter.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306153992339952130" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 223px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM-8VzxkgI/AAAAAAAAAGg/ET5L7GCfQX4/s320/waiter.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />After <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Tsujiki</span>, we had planned to go to another area for a few hours, but first wanted to stop at the area near Tokyo Tower to visit the coffee shop that had been closed last time we went. We when got there, it was closed again, but a sign said it would open at 11 am, which was in only 30 minutes. We walked around for a little while taking pictures and exploring. We found a staircase that led up to a garden area with a shrine. I tried talking to a woman there who lived right next to the shrine. She spoke a little English and told me it was a Shinto shrine. I could tell she was trying hard to talk to Lori and I. I sometimes feel bad that <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM_-yn_HxI/AAAAAAAAAHI/UQHliG9riXQ/s1600-h/shrine.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306155133946502930" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM_-yn_HxI/AAAAAAAAAHI/UQHliG9riXQ/s320/shrine.jpg" border="0" /></a>the people I've met try so hard make me comfortable by speaking English. They never expect me to know Japanese, even though I'm the one visiting their country. </div><div> </div><div>She showed us another staircase that led down to a huge Buddhist temple. After walking up huge flights of stairs, the we looked inside at the sanctuary. It looked more like an auditorium with big statues at the front. There were a few people inside praying and I think there was a tape recording of someone speaking playing. I didn't see anyone talking, so I'm guessing that's what it was.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaNPdyJHTaI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/kYYdEey78Sw/s1600-h/huge+temple.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306172159067377058" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 261px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 159px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaNPdyJHTaI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/kYYdEey78Sw/s320/huge+temple.jpg" border="0" /></a> <a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM_-0HpJ-I/AAAAAAAAAG4/rRVPqL45C0E/s1600-h/temple.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306155134347716578" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaM_-0HpJ-I/AAAAAAAAAG4/rRVPqL45C0E/s320/temple.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><br /><div><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /></div><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> </div></div><div></div><br /><div>After looking around a bit, we made our way back over to the coffee shop, which sadly was still closed. There was another one across the street, which didn't look as good as the one we hoped to go to but we tried it anyway. I ordered another delicious hot chocolate while Mike and Lori got their coffees. This shop did have big windows over looking the street, so we could people watch for a little bit. We saw a little boy who kept falling down and then "an intense jogger who kept throwing his head back in exhausting and heaving in huge breaths when he got stopped by traffic" (Lori and I made this description up together just now). </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Our next stop was <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Shibuya</span>, which we had heard was a site of new fashions and trends for younger people. When we left the subway station and got up to the main streets, we found they were packed with people and full of towering buildings with TV screens playing ads. It was, <a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaNTORXKkLI/AAAAAAAAAHY/aiwIPCigRyk/s1600-h/shibuya+3.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306176290616414386" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaNTORXKkLI/AAAAAAAAAHY/aiwIPCigRyk/s320/shibuya+3.jpg" border="0" /></a>again, overwhelming, as most Tokyo sites have been. I think we were all excited to do a bit of shopping, but we soon realized that the stores and clothes were a bit out of our price range. I didn't think to take pictures inside the stores, I guess I assumed that probably would be frowned upon, but I wish I had. I was hoping to see some kids wearing outrageous outfits like I've seen in this book my friend Kay has when she came to Japan, but I didn't see anything too crazy. Just lots of kids wearing really stylish outfits. Everyone in Japan is really stylish, I've discovered, even the moms at school. One girl fashion trend Lori and I like here that's popular is longer shorts with big pockets with colorful tights underneath. The girls here usually wear winter boots with it too. We are hoping to find an inexpensive version of these shorts and tights to bring back to America! Boo ya in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Shibuya</span>! </div><div> </div><div>At about 3 pm, we were hungry again for lunch/dinner, so we found a buffet to eat at. I was really excited because the ad for the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">restaurant</span>, Los <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">Cabos</span>, had a picture of taco salad (yes I know, not Japanese at all but it is my favorite). However, we became victim to false advertising, as there were not tacos at all! The restaurant did make up for it though by having an extensive dessert table, complete with ice cream sundaes, honey toast (toast stacks with honey on top) and a chocolate fountain and fruit. YUM. I tried to justify eating <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">a lot</span> of dessert with the fact that I our "breakfast snack" of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">sashimi</span> was probably really healthy.</div><div> </div><div>We came back to school kind of early, since we had started our day at the crack of dawn. It was another good trip. A woman at church was telling us about Yokohama, another city south of Chiba, which sounded like a fun place to visit. When I was in high school, we had an exchange student stay with us for a month who was from Yokohama, so it might be nice to check that out. We also got an invite from Brianna <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">Danese</span>, a girl who went to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">SAU</span> and now works here in Japan teaching English, to come visit here place near Mt. Fuji (Hi Brianna! She reads this blog) And in a few weeks during "Spring Break" we have a scheduled trip to Kyoto, which is supposed to be beautiful! There is still more of Tokyo to see, but I'm excited to explore other parts of Japan too, so I'm really looking forward to some of these other trips. </div><div> </div><div> </div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-11399954888235033222009-02-23T21:49:00.002+09:002009-02-23T22:44:12.880+09:00School Days<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaKb5itU89I/AAAAAAAAAGI/WkoCkOcQjeQ/s1600-h/Lori+reading.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5305974723867636690" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 266px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaKb5itU89I/AAAAAAAAAGI/WkoCkOcQjeQ/s320/Lori+reading.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />After spending a couple weeks at the kindergarten, it is easy to see why any kid would enjoy coming to school here. Every day, kids run happily off the bus and in through the gates to the playground or their classes, giving us "high touches" as they go. Every day is filled with singing and dancing and of course playing on that amazing playground. Lori and I sometimes wonder if the kids actually do any learning, since our room shares a wall with a class that's always so noisy. <br /><br />Each day of school is a bit different for us and for the kids too. On Mondays, Lori, Mike and I have two short English lessons with a small group (about 8) of kids from the three year old class. My first group is great. When I talk, they are quiet and listen. When I want them to participate, they are loud and energetic. The second group is smart too, but a little harder to control. They get up and look out the window <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">a lot</span>. There's one little boy who will just randomly run up to me with a big smile and then hand me something (he's in the picture with me holding "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" book when you scroll down) and another girl who always has to be first in line or first to get a sticker. After lunch, we have "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Genkide</span> Go-Go," which is dance time. All the students and teachers gather under the dome and we dance to different songs. Lori, Mike and I are supposed to teach a new song and <a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaKb5hCCVsI/AAAAAAAAAGA/W641sQr14M4/s1600-h/hug.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5305974723417626306" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 254px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaKb5hCCVsI/AAAAAAAAAGA/W641sQr14M4/s320/hug.jpg" border="0" /></a>dance every month, so this month's is the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Macarena</span>. I think I might have written earlier about how I am just saying all the moves into the microphone for this dance. I think today was the last time we had to do the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Macarena</span>, thankfully.<br /><br />Tuesdays and Fridays are <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Kumon</span> days. We each have an hour time shift to go and work with individual students on their English homework and afterward we work on our Japanese homework. I work with two boys, Yuma and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Hiroto</span>, who are both very good at English but both get antsy. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Kumon</span> is the brand of books that we are learning language from. We have small books and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">CDs</span> so we can practice writing and speaking. I was telling my friend Megan in an<br />e-mail that the hardest part of learning Japanese compared to when I learned Spanish in high school is we have to learn a new character and the sound it makes. In Spanish, the letters looked the same but only the sounds were different. <br /><br />On Wednesdays, we rotate in assisting either the gym teachers or two English teachers in the classes. I worked with the gym teachers my first week and had a blast, and last week I worked with Rori, a Canadian woman. She and the other teacher, Robert, have been working at the school for almost a year. It was nice seeing how someone else who speaks English runs the class. Rori did a good job of acting out everything she wanted the students to do and it was fun assisting her with games. She was pretty sarcastic too, so it was funny catching her comments <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaKb5Wq1reI/AAAAAAAAAF4/Qu8o5pyOJMA/s1600-h/caterpillar.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5305974720635973090" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaKb5Wq1reI/AAAAAAAAAF4/Qu8o5pyOJMA/s320/caterpillar.jpg" border="0" /></a>and being able to laugh at them. Most of our English classes require us using flashcards, which is helpful but also frustrating for me. I'd like to try to use other ways of teaching, so I often feel like my creative talents are not being put to good use. There are only so many flashcard activities I can think of! Thursday are our day off for the most part. I think we're supposed to clean, but that usually gets forgotten :) Next Thursday will be another birthday parade and also the day after my birthday!<br /><br />We also go to a different classroom everyday and eat lunch with the students. Sometimes after lunch we are supposed to teach a different letter of the English alphabet. Lunches have been...interesting, I guess is a good word. Some days we'll have yummy thinks like shrimp or mango slices or rolls with cream in the middle or chicken stir-fry and rice. Other days, I won't always know what something is when I put it into my mouth! I opened my lunch one day to find little sardines staring at me!<br /><br />Each week, we help at a different after school program. I've now been to all of them, so I can now honestly say that each one has it's ups and downs. I am back in the nursery with the Little Angels (or Little Devils as we sometimes call them) and today I got beat up by some five year old boys. I guess I kind of started it- I lightly tossed a ball at a little boy's head and he and his friends decided the appropriate response would be to kick me in the shins and pull my lovely hair. It is funny to watch the kids do weird things too. They can't sit still and will just show you stuff and s<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaKb5aMCvLI/AAAAAAAAAFw/qAG28lU83iA/s1600-h/boys+reading.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5305974721580547250" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 234px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SaKb5aMCvLI/AAAAAAAAAFw/qAG28lU83iA/s320/boys+reading.jpg" border="0" /></a>mile like its the coolest thing ever. I find myself giving <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">a lot</span> of thumbs ups. The after school program with junior high kids worried me at first because no one wanted to play with me. They just did their homework and laughed when I tried to say the few Japanese words I know to them. Then I decided to bring in the Lisa Frank coloring book I found in the room Lori and I share. Boy, did that make me popular! I had so many 11 year old girls wanting to color unicorns and tiger cubs and golden <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">retriever</span> puppies with me. <br /><br />I hope that I can learn more names of students. I know a couple and it will be easy to learn more as I get better at reading characters. I already have a couple favorite kids though and teachers who's classes I enjoy visiting.Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-63375387901711463302009-02-17T09:07:00.006+09:002009-02-17T09:44:48.023+09:00A Day at the Park<div><div><div>Valentine's Day, I was <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">surprised</span> to find out, is a big deal here. In Japan, the girls are the ones who are supposed to be giving gifts and valentines to boys, instead of the other way around. In any case, Lori, Mike and I were showered with chocolate on Friday because there was no school on the actual Valentine's Day. Lori and I have been saying how much we've been snacking since being here. I think its the combination of having so many new things to try and not being able to read the nutrition labels. To us, this says that since we can't read them, all the calories and fat and sugar just disappear!<br /><br />It's been fairly cold since we got here, probably <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">somewhere</span> in the 50's everyday. On Friday night, the wind was blowing like crazy but it was very warm outside. It must have blown away the cold because Saturday was incredibly warm. I woke up and put on my usual running clothes (pants, under armour, and a long sleeved shirt) just as Lori was getting back from her run. She told me to change my clothes because I would be way to warm. I put on a t-shirt, and I'm glad I did because it was probably about 70 degrees. The sun was shining. It was perfect running weather. I couldn't stop smiling for the first couple minutes of my run! I explored some different paths and I think I ended up near a landfill at one point, but it felt so good to be outside that I didn't really care.<br /></div><div>Lori, Mike and I decided that we wanted to enjoy the sunshine as much as we could so we headed to a park on our bikes. The part was across the street from Big Hop Mall and was already filled with people. We brought a few blankets to set on the grass; the grass was very dry and very yellow. Right now I'm reading <em>Home</em>, a memoir of Julie Andrew's early years growing up with her family and her career on stage. I think she's so charming and fascinating, so I've enjoyed reading her stories whenever I have time and Saturday gave me lots of time to do just that. We were seated on a hill and below us was a flat area where a father and daughter were playing <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">frisbee</span> and several mothers and fathers were out with their children or walking their dogs. Along the paths of the park, people were eating their lunches. I think everyone wanted to enjoy the beautiful day.</div><div><br /></div><div>I took a couple pictures, but it was so bright outside so they're not terrific.</div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZoG4SI7L9I/AAAAAAAAAFQ/SU8b3KQbHlw/s1600-h/lori+by+tree.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303559075193892818" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZoG4SI7L9I/AAAAAAAAAFQ/SU8b3KQbHlw/s320/lori+by+tree.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div>Lori sitting and sketching. That's my bike next to the tree.</div><div><br /><br /></div><div></div><div><br /><br /></div><div></div><div><br /><br /></div><div></div><div><br /> </div><div><br /> </div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZoHQde4AFI/AAAAAAAAAFY/dewu7_XgGm4/s1600-h/park+1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303559490555609170" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 250px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 185px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZoHQde4AFI/AAAAAAAAAFY/dewu7_XgGm4/s320/park+1.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div><br /><br /></div><div></div><div><br /><br /></div><div>The grass was pretty yellow and dry. We sat father up on the hill to the right and people were playing down here below.</div><div><br /><br /></div><div></div><div><br /> </div><div></div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZoHqaniO1I/AAAAAAAAAFg/g2gM6DEG3jI/s1600-h/trees+2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303559936463223634" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZoHqaniO1I/AAAAAAAAAFg/g2gM6DEG3jI/s320/trees+2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><div></div><div><br /><br /></div><div>There were lots of trees and nice sidewalks</div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZoIBMHzLoI/AAAAAAAAAFo/4ot3axL9tuM/s1600-h/ass.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303560327709011586" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZoIBMHzLoI/AAAAAAAAAFo/4ot3axL9tuM/s320/ass.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div></div><div><br /></div><div>This was near the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">restaurant</span> we ate at for lunch. We all took pictures riding the donkey!</div></div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-2680063587175546042009-02-12T09:30:00.005+09:002009-02-12T11:04:27.029+09:00Foundation DayYesterday was National Foundation Day, which meant no school for the teachers and kids. This holiday, we were told is similar to our Independence Day, except there are no fireworks and hot dog picnics. Just a day to remember the foundation of the nation!<br /><br />As far as sleeping in goes, I didn't quite use the morning to my advantage because I still woke up at about the same time. We decided we make scrambled eggs and toast later but I was pretty hungry when I got up. We have limited breakfast supply, so I heated up a few pieces of frozen squash- something I had bought last week and we've never wanted to make it because, let's face it, how many people like squash on its own? I read for a while and then went for a nice long run outside.<br /><br />Over the years, I have come to love running more and more. I like it because it is not only a physical exercise, but also a mental one too. It requires so much concentration to stay focus, to tell yourself to keep going just a bit farther and faster. I've been able to explore <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Inzai</span>-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Shi</span> a bit from my runs. There's <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">a lot</span> of farm and country sides where we're staying, but then a main road with wide sidewalks is not too far either. Simple things like big sidewalks on main roads, I think, help promote Japan's healthy lifestyle. Bikers and walkers are seen much more. Families have one car, rather than 2 or 3.<br /><br />Lori and I went to Gospel Choir practice when I got back from running. We thought we might not have practice today because of the holiday or if we did, it would be later in the afternoon. I had just enough time to shower, but not eat breakfast or drink much water so I felt a bit weak during practice. It was fun to sing again though. The woman next to me kindly wrote in the sounds for each character again and I have a couple lines from songs down now. The director is this tiny little woman who, like most women here, is very trendy and fashionable. When she talks, she gets a very excited expression on her face and you can tell she's very passionate about music and the words of the gospel songs we sing. I am almost happy that I can't understand what she's saying; I like to image that everything she says sweet and encouraging.<br /><br />Lori, Mike and I decided to go to Big Hop Mall on our bikes to eat a later lunch. As soon as we got there however, I felt awful. My head hurt and I could tell I had little patience to be walking around a mall aimlessly. Rather than forcing Lori and Mike to put up with my crabbiness, I decided to bike back to the school on my own. When I got back, I attempted to do some homework for my online classes, but I ended up getting more annoyed so I decided to take a nap. Two hours later, I woke up feeling much better and made some soup mix my sister and Kevin gave me to bring, and finished my homework. <br /><br />We had been invited to dinner at the house of a woman who works in the office of the school that night, so I'm glad I felt better and refreshed. Her daughter and three friends were coming along too. I was excited to see the inside of an actual house too. When we arrived, the daughter and her friends (I've been so awful with names, sorry!) were so welcoming and excited to talk to us about our experience. We've been spending most of our time with five year <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">olds</span> or older adults, so it was finally nice to be able to hang out with people our age. <br /><br />The daughter and her friends were 25 years old and had gone to college in the U.S. to study abroad. The daughter and one pretty attractive male friend spoke English very well, so we could easily talk about their experience in the U.S and their first <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">impressions</span> of our country. They said they liked "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">doggie</span> bags" at restaurants because we get huge portions and can take the leftovers home. The daughter had told us about her experience in a speech class when she first arrived and having to do an impromptu speech. She knew very little English at the time, so that must have been awful. Poor girl! They told us about places they had visited too; the guy friend had visited San Francisco and we could tell he had trouble describing it!<br /><br />For dinner, the daughter prepared <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">takoyaki</span>, which means octopus balls. She prepared these <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">in front</span> of us. First she poured a pancake-like batter into a fryer that had little holders in it. Hard to describe, but picture an egg carton when it is flipped open. Next, she placed chopped octopus, a Japanese potato, pickled ginger and onions into the batter as it was cooking. After a couple minutes, she took a long toothpick and scooped the batter and mix-ins to flip the ball so the top could cook inside the holders of the fryer. She kept rotating the balls until they were cooked all the way through and took them out of the fryer and onto a plate. She then drizzled on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">okonomiyaki</span> sauce (dark brown and kind of like <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">teriaki)</span>, a mayonnaise dressing and fish shavings. They were delicious. I don't think that is a recipe that we can copy for our dinners at the school though :).<br /><br />For dessert we had a large brownie and ice cream sundae that they daughter made at the restaurant she works at, Planet Hollywood. And lots of green tea too. We had so much fun talking and laughing with the daughter and her friends and hopefully we can meet up with them again sometime soon. We gave them gift we brought from home; I gave them bags of puppy chow, Mike gave chocolate covered pecans, and Lori gave Mackinaw Island fudge. They all loved chocolate- so the gifts went over well.Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-21316039760080999932009-02-10T09:36:00.010+09:002009-02-10T20:00:52.818+09:00A Day in TokyoOur first week was very exhausting and overwhelming, with the start of our online classes and Japanese lessons and trying to remember where to be at what time each day. Lori, Mike and I were all excited for the weekend because it provided a break for us from school and also gave us the chance to check out the exciting city of Tokyo! Earlier in the week, Keiko helped us plan out a course of a few places to stop and what to see at each location. This was helpful because Tokyo is huge and we would not be able to see everything in just a day.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />We got an early start, leaving the school on our bikes for the train station just a little after 9:30 am. We biked about 15 minutes to the train station at the Big Hop Mall, where Keiko was waiting for us to help buy tickets for the train and subway. She reviewed the course of the day with us, showing on a map where we needed to get off and where we needed to change subways. I was a bit nervous because I'm not great terrific with directions; I have come to accept getting lost as just a part of my trip when I'm driving somewhere new. I have also never been on a subway, let alone in a foreign country.<br /><br /><br />Our first stop was Asakusa, about 45 min. by train. We wanted to see a temple, but first we had to pass through the Kaminarimon Gate, which was on a street corner and was packed with people taking pictures. On the other side, we made our was through the Nakamise Shopping Arcade, which was kind of like a flee market that had food, toys, clothes, masks and other souviners for sale. It took us probably 10 minutes to walk from one end to the other, because it was long and because there were so many people. At the end, we reached the Hozo-mon Gate. I read that the Gate is used to store the treasures of the temples and had burned down a couple times and had been restored. Outside of the temple, the Senso-ji Temple, there was a hug well with steam coming out of it. People were waving the steam onto their faces. We decided not to try; the temple was a Buddhist one and we weren't really sure if the steam waving was a religious practice. Minako later told us that people belive the steam has healing powers, so they were cleansing themselves.<br /><br /><br /><br />We took several pictures of the inside and outside of the temple. There were alot of people prayer or tying prayers to a stand of some kind. My favorite part of the temple was the ceiling; it had huge panels painted with flowers and different gods. I had an older man ask if he could take my picture, which is guess is common for Americans. We asked him if he could tell us anything about the temple because his English was fairly good, but he said he couldn't. I read in my tour book that the temple was built in honor of three fishermen who found a small image of the Goddess of Mercy, Kannon, in their fishing net. This makes sense because the temple is also called the Askusa Kannon Temple.<br /><br /><br /><br />We walked around Asakusa for a while taking pictures. There were lots of garden areas and Buddha statues. For lunch, we decided to try to find something cheap because we wanted to have a nice dinner. We saw this little restaurant, if you could even call it that, under a blue tarp. There were tables set up for people to sit at and everyone looked up at us as we poked our heads in. The waitresses waved us in but couldn't speak any English, so we walked out. We all agreed though that it could be a fun experience so we went back. We walked aroud with the waitress and pointed to bowls in front of customers that looked good and nodded. The soup we order had pieces of beef and vegetables, but there was a lot of fat still on the meat and the broth was a bit greasy. It was a laughable experience, however.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDZc1pFP6I/AAAAAAAAADY/fQDiDbG-r_M/s1600-h/Market.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300975850874027938" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDZc1pFP6I/AAAAAAAAADY/fQDiDbG-r_M/s320/Market.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />The market with the temple in the back<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDZcyQLK6I/AAAAAAAAADQ/6avLzxviEQU/s1600-h/temple+2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300975849964252066" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 313px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDZcyQLK6I/AAAAAAAAADQ/6avLzxviEQU/s320/temple+2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Senso-ji Temple<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDeZtFgLVI/AAAAAAAAAD4/AQ4j4u6r38I/s1600-h/ceiling+of+temple.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300981294595845458" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDeZtFgLVI/AAAAAAAAAD4/AQ4j4u6r38I/s320/ceiling+of+temple.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Ceiling of the temple<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDZc3j2e0I/AAAAAAAAADI/N5xtQou71xI/s1600-h/gate.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300975851388959554" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDZc3j2e0I/AAAAAAAAADI/N5xtQou71xI/s320/gate.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Hozo-mon Gate<br /><div></div><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDeIE4MUJI/AAAAAAAAADw/lcN5f1sEaTk/s1600-h/steam+shower.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300980991744823442" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDeIE4MUJI/AAAAAAAAADw/lcN5f1sEaTk/s320/steam+shower.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />People waving steam for healing powers<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDe2ljwksI/AAAAAAAAAEA/62hy2V2-sHw/s1600-h/lunch+in+tent.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300981790791471810" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDe2ljwksI/AAAAAAAAAEA/62hy2V2-sHw/s320/lunch+in+tent.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Lunch under the tarp tent<br /><br /><br />Our next stop was Ueno, which we got to by subway. After we exited the station, we came out to a large busy street lined with people waiting to cross. We walked along the streets for a bit, but then entered Ueno Park. Although there was nothing on the trees that made a bridge over the paths in the park, Minako told us later that the trees would be filled with cherry blossoms in the spring. We might have to take a trip back to see them. The park was big and very open. We passed by a women on a unicycle, a little league baseball game, and animals made from wire and some white material to make a collection called "Happy Island." Our plan in Ueno was to visit an art museum, but it ended up costing a lot more than we anticipated so we decided not to. We did see the gift shop and a display of miniature trees before walking around the park some more. I also saw that there was a Children's Literature Museum, so I wouldn't mind going back to see that, but we wanted to make it to Tokyo Tower and were all very hungry.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDhqm-cfNI/AAAAAAAAAEQ/0jf2L36d-hA/s1600-h/happy+island.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300984883548290258" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 216px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 144px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDhqm-cfNI/AAAAAAAAAEQ/0jf2L36d-hA/s320/happy+island.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Happy Island Monkeys<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDhOYhd58I/AAAAAAAAAEI/XnYyjURdJ3Q/s1600-h/Ueno+park.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300984398632314818" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 232px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 164px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZDhOYhd58I/AAAAAAAAAEI/XnYyjURdJ3Q/s320/Ueno+park.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Ueno Park<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZFEnfKP3qI/AAAAAAAAAEg/WzkTBunRF-c/s1600-h/Ueno+street.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301093681561853602" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 263px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZFEnfKP3qI/AAAAAAAAAEg/WzkTBunRF-c/s320/Ueno+street.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Street in Ueno<br /><br /><br />We decided to head to Tokyo Tower, our final stop and have dinner at a restaurant close by the tower. From Ueno Park we walked back to the station and made it inside, but we found that our tickets would not let us get down to any of the tracks to wait for the subway. We ignored the problem for while because we had found a nice looking cafe inside the station and we planning on stopping there for coffee and cocoa on our way out. We walked around for a while, feeling confused and lost. When we finally arrived at the cafe, the waitress informed us that there was no room, so we had walked in circles for nothing and now had to find someway to get out of the station. Of course, we couldn't understand why our tickets wouldn't let us through and it was hard to understand any signs; we had been relying on the colors of each course to direct us from place to place. Lori, all along, said that we should just try to ask for help, but I think Mike and I were determined to get us to the tracks on our own, or at least I was. Finally I caved, and we tried to explain the problem to the man at the information desk and he seemed to understand because he waved us through without asking questions. Good one, Stephanie.<br /><br /><br />We arrived in the Tokyo Tower, and to our surprise it was very empty. It was mid-afternoon and this area had a lot of office buildings in it. We walked the streets for about ten minutes making our way towards the tower and looking for places to eat. We stumbled across a small cafe that was below ground. A friendly man greeted us, but explained that they didn't serve dinner, but showed us a delicious looking apple pie. My mouth was watering, and I'm not even a huge fan of apple pie. We told him we'd come back for dessert and coffee after seeing the tower and eating dinner.<br /><br /><br />The Tokyo Tower reminded me of the Eiffel Tower in that they are both shaped somewhat like isosceles triangles. The Tokyo Tower is red and white and definitely stood out. Mike, Lori and I walked over to it, and found that it was quite expensive to go up inside and that all of the people we expected to be walking the streets were there waiting in line to go up. We opted not to go; we later asked Minako if we should have, and she responded without hesitation that its not worth it and there are other buildings that are taller and have better views. I probably would have been cool to go just to see what the view was like, but Minako told us of another place to go to get a great view of the city that's cheaper and no wait.<br /><br /><br />For dinner, we unanimously decided on Bajamar, an upstairs cafe where we got to sit on the floor with padded seats and pillows. The inside was beautiful, decorated with murals of trees and flowers and a big fish tank. We all ordered a Margarita Pizza and what a great choice that was. The pizza had such a thin crust, yet it was soft and doughy. It was topped with cheese and pesto sauce. We probably finished our food in ten minutes, because it was so good and we were so hungry. To our disappointment though, when we arrived back at the cafe for coffee and pie, it was closed! The owner apologized and seemed truly sorry that he couldn't sell us any pie. We promised to go back if we were in the area again.<br /><br /><br />Taking the subway back to the school, we had to change courses once and the new course's station was a block away from the one we had left. We spotted a cafe on our way to the new station and walked in to hear jazz music pouring out the doors. Again, we unanimously agreed on staying and it turned into another good choice. I relaxed in a plush chair, listened to some jazz music, sipped on the best hot chocolate I've ever had (it was thick and creamy, topped with whipped cream and chocolate sauce. Obviously bad for me too.), and enjoyed a tiny, yet delicious, piece of taramisu.<br /><br /><br />When we arrived back at the school, we were exhausted and my feet hurt a bit from walking so much. Minako told us she was impressed and proud that we didn't get lost and made it back safe.<br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZFYWR1-6GI/AAAAAAAAAEo/EpOYvClwj5M/s1600-h/Tokyo+tower+1.jpg"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZFYWR1-6GI/AAAAAAAAAEo/EpOYvClwj5M/s1600-h/Tokyo+tower+1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301115376161974370" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZFYWR1-6GI/AAAAAAAAAEo/EpOYvClwj5M/s320/Tokyo+tower+1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Tokyo Tower<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZFYz0P0CEI/AAAAAAAAAEw/mEJ9AndJkJw/s1600-h/bajamar.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301115883613325378" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZFYz0P0CEI/AAAAAAAAAEw/mEJ9AndJkJw/s320/bajamar.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Bajarmar Restaurant- our table was straight back on the floor.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZFZ4qsScKI/AAAAAAAAAFA/lk27gMl88C0/s1600-h/decora+b%26w.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301117066459377826" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZFZ4qsScKI/AAAAAAAAAFA/lk27gMl88C0/s320/decora+b%26w.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Cafe Decora, home of delicious hot cocoa and wonderful jazz beats!<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZFabIpE7PI/AAAAAAAAAFI/6fLDFOv8KyI/s1600-h/human+pile.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301117658614525170" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 305px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SZFabIpE7PI/AAAAAAAAAFI/6fLDFOv8KyI/s320/human+pile.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />We couldn't resist taking this lady's picture. She was fast asleep and didn't notice :)Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-30521014303979962262009-02-08T21:22:00.002+09:002009-02-08T21:52:22.553+09:00Birthday ParadeBirthdays, I've discovered, are a big deal in Japan. I think this is good, because you are really celebrating people and their special day! I love my birthday and enjoy telling everyone when my birthday is getting close (less than a month, by the way), so I'm loving the big birthday celebrations.<br /><br />On Thursday, we had a birthday parade for all of the students who had a birthday in February. The teachers set up little plastic chairs at one side of the dome with pom poms underneath. Every student who had a February birthday sat in the special chairs, and joined their classmates in singing and dancing. Keiko had asked Mike, Lori and I if we could teach an American dance to the students. We finally decided on the Macarena, which is silly because its name is not even English, but the steps are easy and we all knew it. Keiko thought it would be a good idea for one of us to call out the steps while the other two do the dance and have the kids follow. I ended up shouting the steps into the microphone for the kids, calling out "Right, Left, Flip, Flip, Shoulder, Shoulder, Head, Head, Waist, Waist, Butt, Butt, Wiggle, Turn and Clap!" I felt obnixious. I think the kids were a bit confused by it so not many followed and we ended up doing just 8 repeats of the steps.<br /><br />The teachers have very special roles in the birthday parades and special outfits too. By outfits, I mean two flags (smaller ones) pinned together creating arm and head holes. My flags had a giant cake on them. We also have to wear those big floppy hats, like ones from <span style="font-style: italic;">The Cat and the Hat. </span>Since this was our first parade, Keiko decided to give us hats that had red, white and blue stars and strips instead. The whole outfit was ridiculous, but the kids had fun. By the way, I did not take a picture of this outfit so don't even ask.<br /><br />The teachers also give the birthday kids a "flower shower." We took big stuffed flowers and waved them over the kids while singing a happy song and then each kid yelled something in the microphone. Even the more timid looking kids were not afraid to yell- I was impressed. We also got to bang on big drums during other songs, which despite my lack of musical ability, was enjoyable. I really loved the parade and I'm sure the birthday kids felt so special too. What's great about a year round school is that every kid will have a chance to be in a birthday chair!Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-63057515043033550762009-02-06T07:16:00.009+09:002009-02-06T09:40:30.694+09:00Finally, Pictures!<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtuEhNX2xI/AAAAAAAAADA/ZPw9pVtJGHU/s1600-h/DSCN0248.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299450410444512018" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtuEhNX2xI/AAAAAAAAADA/ZPw9pVtJGHU/s320/DSCN0248.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Ok here are some pictures for you enjoyment! They're a little bit out of order, sorry!<br /><br /><br />Here we are with the Nishimura family:<br />Mike, me, Lori, Keiko's husband<br />(left to right) Minako, Dr. Shin, his wife Keiko, and little Yugi (Yuki? still not sure)<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtuEQzQ1xI/AAAAAAAAAC4/YKMruL_AJlc/s1600-h/with+Keiko.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299450406040033042" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 273px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtuEQzQ1xI/AAAAAAAAAC4/YKMruL_AJlc/s320/with+Keiko.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Here's Lori and I with Keiko. She's kind of like our "mom" here and makes sure we get to the right places on time. We ask her about a million questions each day.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtuESBwD2I/AAAAAAAAACw/WstlXbrjM6c/s1600-h/Naomi.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299450406369234786" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 221px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtuESBwD2I/AAAAAAAAACw/WstlXbrjM6c/s320/Naomi.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />This is Naomi. She goes to the nursery I've been helping at after school. Her mom works at the kindergarten, so she's come back with Mike and I somedays.<br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /> </div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtuEK2V9bI/AAAAAAAAACo/kaxsd6Gjwfc/s1600-h/Me+and+Little+angels.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299450404442338738" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtuEK2V9bI/AAAAAAAAACo/kaxsd6Gjwfc/s320/Me+and+Little+angels.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Here I am with Naomi and another little girl from the nursery. So cute!!<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /> </div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtuEEsKpdI/AAAAAAAAACg/BnHAz4m4gWE/s1600-h/Little+Angels+1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299450402789041618" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 200px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtuEEsKpdI/AAAAAAAAACg/BnHAz4m4gWE/s320/Little+Angels+1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />Here's lots of cuties. They love doing the peace sign for pictures. This was at the nursery, but most of these kids go to the kindergarten during the day too<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /><br /> </div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtqa6OyQGI/AAAAAAAAACY/Di3gze23OSE/s1600-h/An+Pan+Man.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299446397071933538" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 183px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtqa6OyQGI/AAAAAAAAACY/Di3gze23OSE/s320/An+Pan+Man.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />This is one my aprons we have to wear at school. The cartoon is AnPanMan, a favorite for the kids.<br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /> </div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtqanSrhPI/AAAAAAAAACQ/kaZW-HSlB1Q/s1600-h/DSCN0304.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299446391987995890" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtqanSrhPI/AAAAAAAAACQ/kaZW-HSlB1Q/s320/DSCN0304.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Two boys from the school, again with the peace sign.<br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /><br /> </div><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtqadb02cI/AAAAAAAAACI/IGLmoRZehnk/s1600-h/DSCN0299.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299446389342001602" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtqadb02cI/AAAAAAAAACI/IGLmoRZehnk/s320/DSCN0299.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Here's one playground structure the kids love playing on. Some if it looks like it would be scary for little kids, like climbing up the ladder to the rocketship, but they are such daredevils!<br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div><br /><br /> </div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtqZ4JHXgI/AAAAAAAAACA/i3dPuGK2j_Q/s1600-h/DSCN0297.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299446379331411458" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtqZ4JHXgI/AAAAAAAAACA/i3dPuGK2j_Q/s320/DSCN0297.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Here's the dome. Gym class and assemblies are held under here and we use it to play soccer (more like keep-away) with the kids.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtqZ-lgL0I/AAAAAAAAAB4/2Pob6Sqt1fw/s1600-h/DSCN0295.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299446381061091138" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtqZ-lgL0I/AAAAAAAAAB4/2Pob6Sqt1fw/s320/DSCN0295.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />This might be my favorite playground structure. It's a big friendly dinosaur! And it has a soccer ball!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtps7S9AYI/AAAAAAAAABw/SFKOqVW7ab8/s1600-h/DSCN0294.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299445607083868546" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtps7S9AYI/AAAAAAAAABw/SFKOqVW7ab8/s320/DSCN0294.JPG" border="0" /></a>The bottom part of this building is a classroom where Lori, Mike and I practice listening to Japanese words. we also work with the kids on English here and have our Gospel Choir practice. Half of the upstairs is the room I share with Lori. The other half is a classroom, so we get to hear little kiddies learn during the day.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div> </div><div> </div><div> <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtpsGcZoXI/AAAAAAAAABg/UAnJGBaBYWE/s1600-h/DSCN0293.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299445592896414066" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtpsGcZoXI/AAAAAAAAABg/UAnJGBaBYWE/s320/DSCN0293.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div>Here's the inside</div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtpsbZZ98I/AAAAAAAAABo/xKe9XIDr5eY/s1600-h/DSCN0301.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299445598520997826" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtpsbZZ98I/AAAAAAAAABo/xKe9XIDr5eY/s320/DSCN0301.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div>This is the front of the school. The upstairs is where Mike's room is. He was locked our one night and had to climb up there to get in!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtpr8BROII/AAAAAAAAABY/1L5d8dNAzUc/s1600-h/DSCN0292.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299445590098262146" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtpr8BROII/AAAAAAAAABY/1L5d8dNAzUc/s320/DSCN0292.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />Here's part of our room! Have a nice little desk and some comfy couches and lots of drawer space. We have a small half bath, and we have to go downstairs to take a shower, make food and do laundry<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtprkxMmaI/AAAAAAAAABQ/8jP1yjC1404/s1600-h/Beds.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299445583856834978" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/__NguuFyp9Kk/SYtprkxMmaI/AAAAAAAAABQ/8jP1yjC1404/s320/Beds.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Here's our beds. Lori has the bottom bunk that looks like a puppet show theater and I have the top that looks like a baby crib!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />I'll be taking lots more of kids and our trips as time goes on, which I'll post too. We're going to Tokyo this weekend, so I'm sure I'll have lots from that trip too.<br /><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-5685220401892081302009-02-04T19:31:00.005+09:002009-02-04T20:19:20.569+09:00Gym Class and Gospel ChoirGrowing up, I always loved gym class and recess. In elementary school I played soccer with boys at recess and joined in for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">dodgeball</span> in middle school gym when other girls would stand in a big clump and scream and run when the ball would come near them. In high school, when gym class was seen as an annoyance, I secretly loved it and I remember getting mad when my class tennis partner sat down on the court and refused to play. Even though I'm awful at tennis, I still wanted to do something!<br /><br />Knowing this about myself, it's no surprise that I love running around with the kids here on recess. It's very tiring, yes, but I love climbing up play structures, going down slides and running around like I'm five years old. Today I took my turn helping out with the weekly PE class. The teachers were two hilarious guys that the students loved. During class, we played some form of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">dodgeball</span> where me and the two guys were on the outside of the dome (the playground has this great big covered area with a surface that's like an indoor soccer field) and were trying to hit kids with a ball. At first, I tried going easy on the kids but the two guys were whipping the ball at the kids so I started doing that too (except my way of whipping balls at kids probably doesn't hurt because I can't throw that well). I ended up hitting a poor little boy on the top of the head, but instead of feeling bad for the kid the teachers roared with laughter and starting doing a dance and chanting in Japanese! I didn't get it but I laughed anyway and so did the little boy.<br /><br />Part of our duties as guest teachers at the school is to be a part of a gospel choir along with mothers of the students, and today was our first practice. When Lori, Mike and I walked in, we were immediately asked if we were altos or sopranos and in Mike's case, bass or tenor. Now, to some of you this probably seems like an easy question, but for me it was like she was still speaking Japanese. I haven't been in choir since 7<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">th</span> grade when we dressed up like boys and sang songs from "Footloose!" Although I like singing in church or in the car by myself, I really don't know how to sing as far as keys and things like that go. Music is a foreign <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">language</span> to me. <br /><br />I ended up going with Sopranos. The first song we sang was in English, but then we moved into Japanese songs. This wasn't too bad because the lady next to me was kind enough to write out the sounds for each character so I could sound out the song. But the the director decided it would be fun to add sign language to one of the songs and then I was lost. All at once, I tried to hold my music, sing notes that were somewhat similar to my soprano neighbors, sound out the words, watch the director, and copy the sign language. I was a mess. Despite this, I actually enjoyed singing with the group and felt pretty sweet by the end.<br /><br />Mike and I are still taking out turn at the church's after-school programs. I am in the nursery (kids under 5) and he is with 6-11 year <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">olds</span>. Today I taught the little ones the "Hokey <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Pokey</span>" and took lots of pictures of them. There's not a whole lot for me to do because there are four other helpers and they can actually understand the kids, so today I brought along some of my Japanese language homework and made flashcards. A couple of the kids sat with me and would say the word in English and then in Japanese. They are so smart and know so many words in both languages for being so young. When I was done making the cards, one little girl held them up and started quizzing me! She would correct my pronunciation of Japanese and together we made up motions to help me remember the words.Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-47212386850386247072009-02-02T19:30:00.003+09:002009-02-02T20:22:26.895+09:00Lost in TranslationI am currently 0 for 2 in saying the phrase <em><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">yoroshiku</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">onegai</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">shimasu</span> </em>in front of a Japanese church <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">congregation</span>. Back in the fall, we went to Japanese church in Ann Arbor for our orientation class and I butchered this phrase (its used when you introduce yourself) after Lori and Mike said it perfectly. Then yesterday, I did the same thing! Fortunately, the Japanese are very loving and thought it was funny. Or maybe they thought I was an idiot and were just <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">pitying</span> me. <br /><br />The service was all in Japanese, except for Dr. Shin's sermon which went back and forth between English and Japanese. Even though I couldn't understand the majority of the service, it was still wonderful to see God's word being spread across the globe! Afterward, there was a potluck lunch where we introduced ourselves and talked about our first impressions of Japan and the people. We all could say with sincerity that we've had a great time so far and have felt so welcomed by everyone we've met.<br /> <br />Today was our first day working with the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">kindergartners</span>. Boy, was it exhausting! We started the school day at 8:45, but I was up at 4:45 am again and ended up going for a run once the sun finally rose. As students came in with their parents, we greeted them while we swept the street, which was a bit silly since the streets were spotless to begin with. Lori, Mike and I are supposed to rotate in classes helping teach English, but the English teacher couldn't make it today so we mostly just played on the playground with the students at recess time. Here are some playtime highlights for the day:<br /><br />1. We tried to play Duck, Duck, Goose but this one little boy would just follow the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">ducker</span> around and pat everyone on the head and then run around when it wasn't his turn.<br />2. The kids would just chat like crazy in Japanese and ask us questions, but we had no idea what they were saying!<br />3. Lori tried to make conversation with the students, but they would just turn to each other and laugh at her.<br />4. Mike was surrounded by a group of girls jumping up and down. I told Lori that Mike was "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">pimpin</span>' it."<br />5. Mike got farted on by one of the many little girls wrapped around his legs. Poor guy couldn't get away from the smell fast enough.<br />6. At lunch, I went to a class and was taught Japanese by the kids I ate with. They would say the name of each food and I tried to say it back. They'd have to correct me and sound out each syllable until I got it right. Then when I said it back in English, they would get it on the first try. It was very humbling.<br />7. A couple of the girls were fascinated by my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">blonde</span> hair and enjoyed pulling it and braiding it and holding it up to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">theirs</span> to compare colors.<br />8. The school has assemblies every Monday where the teachers and students sing and dance to songs. Mike, Lori and I tried (and probably looked really awful) to copy the dance moves. We also got about 100 high fives afterward.<br />9. There was one little girl, probably about 3 years old, who just giggled at eveything we said to her. At one point, Lori and I were with her and a few other girls just jumping up and down laughing and yelling "Ahahaha!"<br /><br />After school, Mike and I went to Dr. Shin's church. Mike helped out in a kids club for 6-11 year <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">olds</span> and I went to the nursery to help with kids under 5. Lori stayed at the school and helped with another <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">after school</span> program. In the nursery, I mostly just played more with kids and showed them flashcards of the alphabet. I couldn't believe that 20 kids under 5 were <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">silent</span> and payed such close attention for a whole 15 <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">minutes</span> as I showed them the cards. It was amazing! <br /><br />Even though we interacted with so many kids and teachers today, the only understandable conversations we had were with each other!Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-31915856675835376442009-02-01T07:04:00.003+09:002009-02-01T07:49:23.033+09:00Japanese FoodSo I think I am starting to feel the effects of <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">jet lag</span>. On Saturday morning, I woke up at 2am after going to bed at 9 the night before, but I was able to fall back to sleep after having a short conversation with Lori that she doesn't remember. I woke up later at 6am and couldn't fall back to sleep, so I ended up doing P<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">ilates</span> in the classroom downstairs. I was hoping someone would walk in on my when I was doing some crazy position, but then I remember that most people were probably sleeping. Today I woke up at 4:45 am and ended up watching a movie on my computer, but last night I was exhausted by 8 pm. <br /><br />Yesterday was our first brush with real Japanese food. We were picked up by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Minako</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Keiko</span> and went to a mall to go grocery shopping and then eat at the food court. At the mall, I noticed the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">mannequins</span> had cartoon-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">ish</span> faces; they have huge eyes and wigs on but they still don't really look like people. Again, I'll post a picture of these soon. At the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">grocery</span> store, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Justco</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Keiko</span> took us around and pointed out somethings and then let us go free. She gave us a weekly food allowance-money from the initial cost we paid for the trip- which was 3000 yen, or about $30. When she and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Minako</span> left us, Lori, Mike and I felt a bit lost. After about ten minutes, I had a bag of frozen squash and some yogurt in my cart. In the end, we got a pretty good variety of foods for breakfast and dinner with the help of the two girls. We also got some delicious samples of beef and tofu with <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">veggies</span> and also milk! I was actually chased down by the woman handing out milk samples and then she <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">thrust</span> a coupon in my hand, smiled, and scurried away. It was wonderful.<br /><br />At the food court, Mike and I both got Curry Rice (White Rice with a curry sauce, meat, and veggies mixed in it), Noodle soup with seaweed, tempura, and this potato patty that was very good. Everything was delicious but there was so much to eat. Lori got this sort of vegetable pancake with dried tuna (it was kind of flaky), which she didn't like very much. <br /><br />In Japan, it is totally appropriate and even encouraged to sip your soup loudly and slurp up long noodles without cutting them. The sipping loudly lets the cook know that you are enjoying the food. I think we should bring this habit to the U.S. I had a great time slurping my noodles in public, but I did get quite a bit of broth in my hair. We had the afternoon to come back to the school and rest, which none of us did.<br /><br />For dinner, we went to the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Nishimura's</span> apartment, on the 18<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">th</span> floor of a 22 story building. On sunny days, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Minako</span> told us they can see Mt. Fuji, but it was dark and rainy so no Mt. Fuji viewing for us. Dr. Shin and his wife, also named <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Keiko</span>, are the parents of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">Minako</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">Keiko</span> and Dr. Shin started the kindergarten several years ago. Lori told me beforehand that "Dr. Shin" sounded a bit intimidating, but he was exactly the opposite. He asked us tons of questions and made witty jokes the whole evening. His wife <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">Keiko</span> was pretty quiet, but had prepared a delicious dinner for us. The meal was cooked right in front of us over two burners, one with beef and the other with pork. We help add a soy sauce, vegetables (mushrooms and cabbage) and tofu. It was delicious and so easy to make! We bought most of the ingredients at the grocery store so maybe we can try to re-create it. <br /><br />After dinner, Lori, Mike and I gave small gifts to everyone because its nice to do that when you meet people for the first time. I gave Dr. Shin and his wife two jars of Michigan cherry jam (for those of you who are family, it was from <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">Brownwood</span> :). <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">Keiko</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">Minako</span> got boxes of Pop-Tarts, which I had heard they loved. I gave bracelets my mom made to mom <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">Keiko</span>, daughter <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">Keiko</span>, and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">Minako</span> and flashcards of letters to daughter <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">Keiko's</span> daughter, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">Yuki</span> (or maybe <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">Yugi</span>?) who is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">SOOOO</span> cute! Sorry if the daughter-mom-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">Keiko</span> bit was confusing!<br /><br />As I said I was exhausted at 8 when we came home, but Lori, Mike and I played cards in Mike's room for a while and Mike took ugly pictures of us with his camera.<br /><br />Today is sunny! There was an earthquake rumble that woke Lori up at 7am, but I was already up and was terrified. It lasted about 30 seconds, but then stopped so we are <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_30">ok</span>! Today we are going to Dr. Shin's church and to a welcome party potluck afterwards.Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2343975624412846805.post-82388760646342406802009-01-31T14:25:00.004+09:002009-01-31T15:05:06.350+09:00Living in a Trash-free WorldHello everyone! Greetings from Japan! For those of you who don't know much about my trip, I am spending the next three months in Japan. I am here with two other Spring Arbor students, Lori and Mike. We will be living and helping out in a kindergarten class at a Christian school during the week, but we have the weekends to ourselves to explore different sites in Japan. I hope you enjoy reading about my adventures. I promise I will do my best to keep you updated on my trip and I hope you all will leave me some comments in return!<br /><br />So where to begin?!? I met Lori and Mike at the Detroit airport on Thursday morning with our parents. We all had lunch at this restaurant inside a hotel with huge fake bamboo plants that went almost to the ceiling and served ketchup in little bowls. I almost got ran over by a security guard who was riding this "stand-up motorized scooter" (Lori's name for it). He had to lean forward for it to drive; it reminded me of something from Star Wars.<br /><br />Anyway, the flight was about thirteen hours I think, but I honestly lost count after about five hours. I talked to the lady sitting next to me who was going to teach at a Christian school (sound familiar?) in Korea. Then I watched Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 and an episode of Flight of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Conchords</span> (the one about Sally and the Robot Song) and ate a lot of food. Lori, Mike, and I also loved looking at the pictures from our good-bye party at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">SAU</span>, so thanks for those!!! I slept only about 3 hours total, so I was fairly tired when we landed.<br /><br />We were greeted when we got off the plane by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Minako</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Keiko</span>, both teachers at the kindergarten. They were both so excited to see us and I was really excited too because they had a sign with our names on it, so we looked really special. The ride from the airport to the school was only about 45 minutes, but we got a good idea of what the land looks like. Riding on the opposite side of the street was <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">definitely</span> a change. The roads are narrow and I thought we were going to crash into other cars or drive off the road about ten times, but alas we did not. The buildings are pretty close together and there are lots of farms. I was really excited because....<br /><br />There is absolutely NO trash on the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">ground</span>!! It's amazing! Most of you know that I hate trash and non-recycling and I love when the Earth is clean. The best part is that there aren't even trash cans every couple of feet either- everyone just picks up after themselves! I was blown away. Lori and Mike sadly weren't as impressed as I was.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Minako</span> drove us to mall close by the school to get something quick to eat. We went to Subway (silly, yes), but Japanese Subways have sandwich choices like <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Avocado</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Shrimp</span>, Egg, and even Herb Dog (a hot dog with herbs on it!). Then we drove to the kindergarten. It's so adorable and colorful and fun, with the sweetest playground ever. Fun for the kids, but I will <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">definitely</span> enjoy it too. Mike has his own room on one side and Lori and I are sharing a room above the classrooms. I promise I will post pictures, but I am having some technical difficulties uploading my pictures. Then you can see the school and scenery and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">trash-less</span> streets for yourself!Stephaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02118610250959178367noreply@blogger.com12