My day

Alright, well, it’s 9:42 and past my 9:30 bedtime (ah, the lingering effects of jetlag!), but I have, have, have to write about my day because it was a good one!

First of all, I woke up and I was COLD! Can you believe it?! I usually sweat all day, every day, but today, I was cold.

Secondly, I had a lovely, awkward conversation with my desk mates at lunch. They speak very little English, but more than I speak Japanese. They’re really nice and it was a really nice conversation.

Thirdly, I had a full day of classes. I really enjoy it when that happens. The alternative is sitting in the staff room all day reading books and checking papers. That’s fine every so often, but teaching and being around students is infinitely better.

Forth, I got a cash card and lots of money today! That’s bound to make anyone happy, right?

Last, every Friday afternoon is spent learning culture enrichment activities. I think this is a really, super cool idea. They have some kind of martial arts for the males, and probably more things but I’m not allowed, and for females they have koto practice (the koto is basically a 13-stringed, horizontal guitar. If you know “Sakura”, it’s the instrument usually used to play that piece.) and last week I was allowed to try to play! I don’t know Japanese numbers, but another English Sensei is learning koto also, and wrote in numbers in my sheet music.  It was AWESOME!

Another activity for females that I tried today was the tea ceremony! They’ve been learning and practicing for three weeks and they still haven’t learned much of it. It is SO detailed! How you walk and when. How you pick up anything and where you put it. Where you look. How you chew. There are rules for all of it! The main office secretary taught the lesson and it seemed like we were transported through time-she was wearing a kimono and she had special socks to wear with her wooden sandals and her hair was all tucked under and she was wearing special makeup. She was hardly recognizable! We practiced offering and receiving food on the tatami mats in the library (I got to be on the receiving end-thank goodness, or I’m sure I would have spilled something!), then we moved to a tatami mat meeting room where we learned how to pour and make and clean up tea. It was incredible to watch! There are so many rules and procedures that you’d have to remember and rehearse, and I’m sure I don’t know half of them. And all the while you have to sit up straight while sitting on your knees-something that I had a great deal of trouble with! Try sitting like that sometime and time yourself. I bet I couldn’t last 30 minutes, but the Sensei was probably sitting like that for about two hours. YIKES! Anyway, the whole lesson was just fascinating. I really enjoyed watching the students get into it. Most were wholeheartedly focused and dedicated. It was neat.

Okay, one last amazing thing from my day-I went grocery shopping. I’ve been before, but the other times I was either accompanied and had help, or I just purchased things that I recognized and knew how to eat. This time, I chanced a couple of things! I bought some fruit that looked delicious but was absolutely disgusting, and everything else has been pretty safe so far. I checked out a Japanese cookbook written in English from the library, so I’m hoping to get into that soon. The first thing the cookbook says is that to taste a country’s food is to experience their culture. I think I absolutely agree.

It’s now 10:11 here, so I’m off to bed! By the way, if you’re interested in Skype conversations, I don’t have internet yet, but someone from the board of education is getting me all hooked up. So download Skype if you haven’t already and add me!

Take care, all of you! And email me updates about what’s going on with you!