Hajimete!

Hello, all! I am awfully unsuccessful with regular blog posts, don’t you agree? Sometimes I write everyday and other times (most of the time) I don’t write for two weeks then give you more news than anyone would ever want to read! By the way, there is a “follower” feature on this webpage, and I think that if you sign up to be a follower, you will get email notifications when I post something…I think. If you’re interested, check it out and let me know! If you are not interested in being a follower…I’ll try not to cry.

It’s been sometime, so I think it’s necessary to have a catch-up post. I’ve done a lot of stuff and I want to tell you all about it!

Since I wrote last, I’ve been to another birthday party (for an ALT), gone to several more band rehearsals (we’re performing on November 8th at the “Karaimo” festival/sweet potato festival), and today I observed for an hour at Ozu High School. It was really interesting to visit another school and see what things are like. Not shockingly different than Junior High, but very interesting. There’s also an ALT that works there and it was fun to see the way she interacted with students.

Japan is an amazing place. I can do and see things that are normal for Japanese, but they’re a first for me! I have new experiences everyday. I suppose that should be the way to live no matter what country I live in-I should always discover and explore and experience new things…but it’s just very easy to do in Japan. ; )

Some of the first(s)-hajimete, I’ve experienced: I’ve worn my first kimono (at an ancient Japanese palace no less), taught my first (and second) Eikaiwa (Adult English Conversation class), attended my first Junior High English recitation contest (my school did not win the big prize, but I was so proud of them anyway!! They did a really great job and I think they learned a lot in the process), and experienced my first harvest festival celebration. Another teacher at my school invited me to her family’s celebration-we had a ton of food (have you noticed a trend in how much I eat when I visit other people?), talked and laughed and I got to hold the cutest baby in Japan. He is a roley-poley if ever I’ve seen one and he was very easy to hold. : ) Also, I’ve eaten some firsts-basashi (raw horse meat), octopus, fried frog legs (they were supposed to taste just like chicken…I think they taste more like frogs), crab innards (they were green and slightly gritty), and probably even more that I just can’t remember. I think I would have turned up my nose at these things in America, or at least had second thoughts before eating them. Well, I was a little hesitant about the crab innards, but everything else was oishi! (delicious!)

And, in the near future I’ll hopefully have some more firsts! Saturday, as you all know, is Halloween! What is Halloween like in Japan, you ask? Soon we shall all know. On Sunday I’m going to a culture festival in the city. What does a culture festival entail? I have no idea. But there is beauty in the unknown, right? And Japan is a very beautiful place.