Let's Get Polictical, Political!

(That was to the tune of Olivia Newton John's "Physical". Did you get it??)
I'm going to take a bit of a detour from my usual commentary today, so if you're simply looking for whimsy world observations, come back another day. Usually, I avoid political-type blogging because I don't want to polarize my audience and I don't really feel the need to broadcast my opinions on the Web (even though I'm happy to share if you ask). I'm making an exception today because I feel so strongly about this issue, I need to speak up. ("It is a sin to be silent when it is your duty to protest" -Abraham Lincoln)

California's Proposition 8 - A Civil Rights Issue - Vote NO


Next month, as many of you know, the California ballot will contain initiative Proposition 8, titled "Eliminates Right of Same-Sex Couples to Marry" - a measure to AMEND the California state constitution to state:
Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.
If passed, the constitution will be amended, and all Californians (particularly thousands of same-sex couples) will STRIPPED of the right to equality under the law.

I understand and respect that there are varying opinions on gay marriage, especially those coming from a religious standpoint. Let me assure you, the marriage practices of religious institutions (aka your church) have not and will not change based on state law. If your church opposes same-sex marriage, they are under no obligation by law to perform those marriage ceremonies.

This is NOT specifically a gay rights issue. This is a CIVIL RIGHTS issue. Presently, in California, ALL couples (homo- and hetero-sexual couples alike) are afforded the equal right to marriage. By passing Prop 8, we will be ELIMINATING that right - as the title says. In the almost 250 years of our country's history (and 160 of California's), our constitutions have been amended several times -- and those amendments were used to EXPAND and PROTECT the rights of the individual. You are familiar with so many of them - including the first ten, aptly named The Bill of Rights - the right for non-whites to vote; the right for women to vote; the right for blacks and Native Americans to be counted as whole people; etc. We have expanded the rights of the individual to protect and defend minorities. That is what America is about, is it not?

Regardless how you feel about homosexuality, how do you feel about being treated equally under the law? How do you feel about discrimination? What if, next year, there was a proposition to Eliminate the Right for Interracial Marriage? Would you vote for that? Would you TAKE AWAY the right for a couple to get married purely because they happen to be of different races or ethnicity? Would you not care because you're not an interracial couple?

This is about basic civil and human rights. All people should receive the same treatment by the law. Discrimination is simply wrong. Separate is NOT equal.

It is so important that we vote "no" on Prop 8 and protect the civil rights of ALL Californians. We should never disregard the rights of the minority for the whims of the majority. There's this saying (spuriously attributed to Thomas Jefferson), "A democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where 51% of the people may take away the rights of the other 49%"

Let's not be that mob. Let's be real, patriotic Americans and do our duty to protect the rights of the individual.

Protect civil rights. Vote No on Prop 8.

Goooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllllllll!!!!

It's Saturday afternoon - my first Sasturday I'm actually spending in SF! Ross, the visiting Australian (Stephen's friend), has been staying with me since Wednesday, but he's off today to continue his US tour. I was a bit hesitant when Stephen called me two weeks ago and begged asked me host Ross for a few days. I mean, who wouldn't be when it comes to letting some guy you never met crash in your tiny apartment for three/four days? But, as it turned out, Ross and I got along quite well and I had a really enjoyable time during his visit. He mostly went off on his own for various touristy activities (shopping in Union Square, Alcatraz, Pier 39, cable car ride, etc.), but the bit of time we spent together was fun.

Yesterday, I took him to the Sutro Baths, where we walked along the headlands to Land's End for a view of the Golden Gate Bridge.

After that, we walked back to the Baths, and had lunch/dinner (it was 4pm) at Louis' Diner. It was built in 1937 (according to the LONG story on the back of the menu), and the interior doesn't look like it's been updated since! Kind of funky, but it was Ross's first "American diner." He asked where the jukebox was... :D Since he was going for the all-American experience, he decided on the Chili Burger (an open-faced burger with heaps of chili con carne, and cheese and onions to top it off - it looked DISGUSTING~! - but probably tasted great), which came with fries, and a rootbeer float! Apparently, they don't have rootbeer in Australia, so this was his first try. I suppose it was a success, though I think he liked the ice cream better than the rootbeer.

Anyway, totally bloated and sleepy, we continued our quest to "view the Golden Gate Bridge" by driving aimlessly in the direction of the bridge until I miraculously guided us exactly where we wanted to go: Fort Point. We took some more pictures with the bridge and hit the gift shop. (I took a really good one of him with the bridge! I should be a pro photographer!)

It was a nice visit, and I enjoyed showing him around SF a bit, even though I don't know it that well myself.

Now Ross is gone, and with nothing but the lingering scent of products for men (after-shave/deodorant/hair gel, etc), I find my apartment feeling empty. I'm at a loss for what to do. It's Saturday, I should go out and do something, but I'm not sure where to go or what to do.

It's too cloudy/cold to read in the park... my Berkeley friends are busy/in Berkeley... my brother and Holly have gone camping... hm...

Goals for the near future:

1. Make a list of things to do in SF.

2. Make friends in the city.

If you have any tips of things to do, leave a comment!

...maybe I'll go upstairs and play with the kitties...

Fuji Photos!

My photos from the Mt. Fuji climb are now posted!

Check them out in this slide show:


Or, click here to see the album.

One Month Later...

Hi, I sort of fell off the blogosphere there for a while.

A lot has happened in a month, so I have an excuse! (not a very good one)
Well, as you might have gathered, I'm back in California...

Travelwise, my return went very smoothly - no delays or mishaps. My friends saw me off at the Akita airport, I flew to Tokyo (domestic), took a bus to Narita (Tokyo international airport), and flew back sitting next to my friend Lisa (who was studying in Tokyo for the year). My parents met me at SFO and we went first thing to sign the lease on my apartment in SF (and see my brother)!. Then it was back to Chico for two and a half weeks of R&R - mostly spent watching Michael Phelps win gold medals and wishing Shawn Johnson won more. Oh, I also went to Lake Almanor my first weekend with friends, which was great. On Aug 22nd, I went to orientation at SF State, and officially moved into my apartment. The weekend before we went on a MAJOR Ikea shopping spree and built furniture, so when I moved on the 22nd it was all ready to go.

Let's see, Ilana came down from Portland for some business in SF so she was my first non-family house guest and we had a really nice time exploring my new neighborhood together. (Good luck in France, Ilz!) The next day (8/26), I officially started my grad school career! I also made a trip over to Berkeley that week to reunite with some buddies.

Then, for Labor Day Weekend, I flew down to visit Sally in Camarillo, which was a blast. We hung out on the beach (Zuma Beach, in Malibu - apparently it's well-known? Looked like Bay Watch to me!) and got to see some wild dolphins playing in the water. We also went to Solvang, a bit north of Santa Barbara. Have you been there? It's quite cool! It's this little Danish colony/theme-town (like Epcot, but better!), so it was really neat and we went to the Hans Christian Andersen "Museum" (more a collection of his books, but still cool!). Since Solvang is also conveniently located practically on top of Mission Santa Inez (the 19th and best preserved in the state!), I convinced Sally to have a look at it with me (she doesn't enjoy Calif mission history - crazy, I knoooow! But she didn't grow up in CA and have to build a model mission in 4th grade, so it's okay). The gardens were really pretty.

Anyway, back in SF, last week was busy with classes (haha not really) and hanging out with former roommate Jean Louise in Berkeley (she was up visiting from LA). Good times! :D And after a weekend in Chico watching my students test for second degree black belts, now it's another week in SF. But, still no time to settle, because I'm due back in Chico on Saturday for Megan V's wedding!!

I wasn't kidding when I said I've been busy!!! In a month I've been in Akita, Tokyo, SF, Chico, Lake Almanor/Chester, SF, Chico, SF, Berkeley (3X), Camarillo, Malibu, Solvang, SF, Chico, SF...

On the SF apartment:
It's a "Studio Plus" -which means I have and area that can close off to be my bedroom with additional room for sitting/dining areas, plus kitchen and bathroom- in one of those cute looking "San Francisco" houses, located in the Inner Sunset district (one block from Golden Gate Park!). It's conveniently located in the same building as my brother's apartment... actually, directly below his! The neighborhood is great - safe, friendly, lots of restaurants/shops nearby, close to the park, etc. Also, it's a simple commute to school, as I just have to ride the train to 19th AVE and catch a bus to SF State. On a good day when the connections work out, it takes about 25-30min. The apartment itself was recently renovated so everything's clean, nice, hardwood floors, etc. I think I'm really lucky to live in such a great place. I still don't quite feel like I live here yet, but as you've seen, I haven't spent much time here, either! Hopefully I'll get settled in soon and I'm looking forward to enjoying SF life.

On graduate school:
I'm working toward a master's in Japanese at SF State. This semester, I'm taking three classes (full-time load), which all meet only one a week. That means I only have class from 4-7pm M/T/Th! But don't get too many ideas, the classes are pretty difficult and it seems like I'm going to have a lot of homework-type things to keep me busy. The classes are: Second Language Acquisition, Translation Workshop, and Consecutive Interpretation. They're pretty interesting, and the professors are really top-notch, but each class is challenging in different ways. Also, I am looking for a part-time job though, to fill up my days AND hopefully, my pockets (a little anyway, SF life isn't cheap!!!).


So, that's the update! My journey in Japan has come to a close - for now, anyway. ;) As much as I would like to give you all one lasting summary/opinion/etc on my life for the last year, there's no way I can put it into words.
Life isn't meant to be summarized anyway... I'm still living it! :)

I'll try to get some pictures posted up soon. I have ones from my Fuji climb and good-byes, etc. that I'd like to share with you all, so check back here for updates.

Also, I think I'll keep up this blog (no promises to posting frequency though!) with the adventures of my new experience living in SF. So, if you'd like, stay tuned! :D


Take care, and thanks for experiencing a taste of Japan with me.

I'm Alive!

I just realized I never updated this and thought perhaps you might be worried I'm still lost somewhere on Mt. Fuji. Worry not! We made the climb (got the the top at 4am to watch the sunrise), stood around freezing on the top for a while, and then basically slid back down. It was looooooong and difficult, but we did it! It was totally worth it. The sunrise was AMAZING! Pictures coming soon!

We bussed back to Shinijuku, hung out for a little while and I managed to lose my contacts. They were in a case and I accidentally left them somewhere... oh, and I wear hard lenses, so I only have ONE pair (plus my old pair for back-ups, but one of the lenses is damaged so it hurts). Long story short, I'm wearing glasses till I get a chance to see my doctor in Chico. Anyway, I had dinner with my friend Marie who moved to Tokyo in April. It was nice to see her, but sad to say goodbye. I'll definitely see her again (she wants to work/school in CA in a year or two), so it's okay.

Then we finally made it home at 1am. Which means I was out and about for 43 hours straight. AND I climbed to the highest point in Japan! Very cool!

The rest of the week was a series of goodbye parties and late nights packing. Lots of pictures from those, too (not the packing part), so wait excitedly!

Last night (Sunday) I finished packing/boxing up everything, and today I sent it all off. I mailed 4 packages (a poster tube, 1 small amazon.com box, a big envelope, and a medium sized box) via Japan Post (the post office) and it cost about $150. It sounds like a lot, but I really think it's a good deal. Those things were heavy! I hope everything arrives okay. My favorite lady at the post office, Kawamura-san, helped me get everything packaged and ready, and I trust her to make everything alright. Next I shipped my two big suitcases straight to Narita Int'l Airport, so I don't have to deal with them when I change from the domestic airport (Haneda) and I can just walk up to the check-in counter and they'll have my bags (COOL!). It cost about $35, but I think it's totally worth it.

Now that that's all done, and the stuff for my carry-on bags is set, the only thing left is to clean my house! I've been working on it little by little, but it's really hot and humid, so I have to keep taking breaks (like right now) to sit under the AC in the livingroom. I want to finish tonight (it's 6:40pm so that's totally possible), so when the board of education people come tomorrow to "help me clean" and pick up the garbage bags they can be in and out in a flash. Tomorrow's my last day!!!! Right now I have planned to get a haircut at 10, meet the BOE people and get them out asap, cancel my cell phone service, get dressed in my yukata, and go to Kanto Festival in Akita City with all my friends!

Wednesday morning, I'm leaving here at about 10:40am and a bunch of my friends are seeing me off at the airport. Nice! I'll probably cry.

I'm really going to miss it here!!!!!
But, I'm also excited to go home. Wish I could have both! =/

Here We Go!

We're having dinner at the 5th station (Subway!) and going to head out at 8pm!

Great views already!

Subway!

We scouted out a Subway in Shinjuku and I just paid 1300Y ($12) for a footlong Subway Club. You may be thinking, "That's a dollar an inch! Ridiculous!" and you'd be right.

But it was stuffed with meat and veggies AND delicious! Plus, now I have a delicious 6" sub for midnight snack! :D

And we're off!

We're on the shinkansen to tokyo! I remembered my camera this time! Things are going much more smoothly this time - but I'm on guard, don't worry. :)

More updates later!

101 Dalmations (and posts - not Posts)

So we went back at 12 for our train only to find they were now stopped until 2pm, which means we'd definetly miss our bus and wouldn't make it to Fuji until really late. Plus, there's no guarantee it would actually go at 2.

We decided to postpone our trip to Monday. We were able to change our tickets and get the bus reserved to Mon. No sweat.

It's not an adventure without bumps, I said to Christian this morning. Too true.

Fuji climb attempt #2 - coming Mon!

What's an adventure without snags?

Thanks to the earthquake last night, all the shinkansen from Akita are stopped until 12pm! We were supposed to arrive in Tokyo at 12!! uh oh...

We got our tix changed to leave Akita on the noon train, which puts us in Tokyo at 4:08pm - which means will probably won't make it to Shinjuku for our bus to Mt. Fuji at 4:50pm. Maaaaybe if everything magically works out...

We're working on a backup plan as I write. Worry not! :)

p.s. this the 100th post on this blog! cheers!

Shake, Shake, Shaking - Shshshaking!

I felt another earthquake tonight. I was lying in bed trying to sleep and it went all shaky like last time. Not as violent this time, but still enough to scare me out of bed. I got up and sat in the doorway until the shaking stopped.

I checked the news to make sure there wasn't going to be another one, and they said to relax (also, no tsunami warning). Apparently the epicenter was in Aomori (neighbors to the north) and a 6.8M or something. I'll have more details tomorrow (but I won't post them because I'm climbing Mt. Fuji!!!!).

Anyway, no worries here, and I hope everything is alright everywhere else. Good night.

TWO WEEKS!!!

I'm leaving in two weeks and I'm kind of (totally) freaking out.
Of course I'm excited to go home and see everyone, but it's really hard to feel that in the midst of saying goodbye to all these really great people!!

TWO! WEEKS! That's such a short time!!!! I'm not ready!!! (emotionally or practically - though, I did start packing today)

Here are pictures from this weekend:

Party Weekend!

Last day!

Tomorrow (well, today now) is my last teaching day in Japan! (for now) I finish at Yama-chuu with four classes in the morning, and then a farewell ceremony in the afternoon. I'm really happy with the speech I wrote because I said a lot of things to the students I've always wanted to say but haven't had the chance (or guts) to. I hope I can deliver it all right. I haven't really practiced. I'll work on it in between classes tomorrow.

I can't believe in about 14 hours, I will be finished!!* It's been a tumultuous year, but an outstanding one!! More on all of this later.


(*I still have 'work' for two more weeks - it will consist of going to the board of education and sitting at my desk all day reading/writing letters/studying)

Where have you been??

Sorry bloggy buddies, I haven't been very good about updating this lately. I'm still here, alive and well! There are two main reasons why I haven't been keeping this updated, and neither are very good excuses (but true!). 1. I have been SUPER busy the last three weeks, and will be for at least another week. 2. I've been doing/experiencing so many things, I have waaay too much to write about, and when I get overwhelmed with a task like trying to record it all, I procrastinate. Sorry.

I was going to recap the whole thing now, but that will take too long, so I'll do it in installments over the next little while. Here's the first one:

Sally's Visit
If you don't know who Sally is, you should - she's a good friend from Berkeley (now lives in southern California), and she's been one of my biggest supporters and closest friends (someone I talk to everyday) since I've been in Japan. This summer, she was lucky enough to be able to come to Japan for about a month to visit with her grandparents, and she spent about 6 days of that vacation up here, with me. The following are some highlights from that visit.

-Akita Castle
After meeting Sally at the train station, and a little Starbucks time, I took her on a tour of Senshu Park and the Akita castle ruins. Nothing super exciting, but the park was pretty and it was nice to talk and walk around. We had dinner and headed home to relax and watch Gilmore Girls dvds. Great!
-school
The first full day she was here, we went to Shimoiwakawa Elementary School, and since it was my last visit to the school, we played games in class and did A LOT of running around at recess. (More on school good-byes in the next post)

-karaoke!!
From about 10:30pm-2:30am, we sang everything from Grease's "Summer Nights" to J-Pop, to Mandy Moore, to My Chemical Romance, with my friend Moto and his friend. Exhausting, but soooooo much fun!!

-Oga Peninsula tour
We visited the Namahage Museum, and had a picnic by the lighthouse while enjoying views of the Sea of Japan.

-BBQ!
That night, there was a big BBQ at Christy's house, so Sally and I went and I was able to introduce her to most of my friends. She met Yuta and Tsuru - the guys with whom I always go bowling/play sports/karaoke, etc -, and all of my (and Christy's) English conversation class family. Sally got on especially well with my high school student/friend Izumi, and they decided to wear yukata together the next day to the dance festival.

-Yatose Modern Dance Festival (Akita City)
I don't think I've mentioned it on here, but I returned to dancing with the macarena ladies back in April, and Christy and I practiced with them twice a week to prepare for the Yatose Festival. It was a pretty big, two-day festival (we only danced on Sunday though) with teams from all over, 155 in total. We preformed our dance five times throughout the day in our silly costumes, crazy make-up, and ridiculous hair. Sally, Izumi, and Moto hung out together watching performances and I joined them every time I had a break. It was a long, tiring day, but SO much fun!!! Dancing for crowds of people was great, and having Sally there watching made me put even more into it! In the end, our team earned second place in both the Viewer's Choice and the over all competition!! So great!! After we all changed back into normal clothes, we had dinner together and headed home. Sally and I watched a movie and stayed up late, despite being wicked tired (well, we did that EVERY night she was here!).

-Tazawako, Kakunodate, and mountain driving
We got up early, and headed out on a crazy backroads drive through the mountains down to Tazawako. The mountains were beautiful, and with Sally being a great DJ/co-pilot (feeding me snacks and water as well as reading the map!), the the two+ hour drive went by quickly. We drove around Lake Tazawa, stopping for pictures and souvenirs at all the appropriate places. It was a gorgeous day and the lake was craaaaazy blue! Next we headed to Kakunodate, where we ate lunch at a great little cafe, toured a samurai house, and ended up in a park outside a museum. Neither of us felt like visiting the museum, so we sat in the park, napped on the benches, and took lots of silly pictures.It was a really relaxing afternoon. For the return trip, Sally opted for an even longer mountain route home, so we drove through the pretty pretty mountains on the border of Akita and Iwate. It was great. When we cut back west toward the coast and my house, we drove on this tiiiiiny windy road with NO traffic on it. It was slow going, but we had fun. Parts were a little scary, because there was construction going on, and we'd drive past it to see that part of the road had collapsed/landslid down... Luckily, we arrived home safely (even though I had to stop the car at one point because we were laughing so hard, I couldn't drive). We stayed up REALLY late again.

-train station
Sadly, the last day had come. We drove to the station in the morning, leaving enough time to take purikura (those little sticker pictures), which turned out great. Saying good bye was sad, though. We had SOOOOO much fun in such a short amount of time, when I got home, everything felt so quiet and empty.

-the aftermath
You can't tell from these terse descriptions (or maybe you can), but we played waaaay hard while Sally was here. There wasn't a lot of sleep combined with a LOT of activity. The day after Sally left, I went back to school (exhausted and sore all over), but about halfway through, I started to get reeeeally shiver-y and I almost fainted. I finished my classes for the day in the morning, so the rest of the day I sat at my desk going from shivering cold to sweating hot. I definitely had a fever. I finally made it to the end of the day (I had refused the teachers' offers to go home early and stuck it out), and I passed out for a few hours. I woke up, and since it was Wednesday, my autopilot kicked in and I went to Ikawa eikaiwa. Everyone in class was saying I didn't look well and they too, decided I had a fever. My friend/student Hisashi is a pharmacist, and after class he offered to take me to get some medicine. He set me up with some fever reducers, and one sleep-inducing muscle relaxant. I got home, took the medicine, and slept aaaaaall night. The next day, the fever was gone, the soreness was gone, and I was just little tired. Besides the tiredness I was fine, and recovered fully in the next few days. I don't know if I caught some strange flu or what, but my theory is that I just totally, totally exhausted myself during Sally's visit and my body needed to recoup. hahaha not many people can claim they've played so much they gave themselves a fever!! :D

I went to school on the fourth of July for the very first time in my life today.
I also didn't watch/use fireworks for probably the first time on a fourth of July.
I didn't even see an American flag!
Nor did I hear any of those uber patriotic slightly red-necky country tunes (a la God Bless the USA or whatever that song's called).

Buuuuuut, I'm okay with it. In fact, I didn't realize any of this until just now, and it's 11:27pm. Oh well.

Happy Birthday, America!

Shake, Rattle, and Roll!

Earthquake!! Well, first, let me say I'm totally fine, there's no damage to my house or anywhere in my immediate area, so don't worry!

As you may (or may not) know, there was a 7.2 magnitude earthquake in northern Japan this morning. The epicenter was right across the southeast border of Akita in Iwate Prefecture. It seems most of the shock went further southeast, so up to the northwest, where I live, the shaking was less severe. On this map, you can assume I live pretty much where the little "Akita" box is indicating Akita City. As you can see, while the news articles mention the shaking in big city Sendai and even in Tokyo, I'm a lot closer to the epicenter than them.

It occurred at 8:44am, and being Saturday morning, I was still asleep. I woke up to my whole bed vibrating and shaking, and the walls rattling and making noises. It took me a second to figure out what was going on. My bed is in a room where two "walls" are non-safety-glass sliding doors, so my first thought was I should get away from those. I jumped out of bed and did what I'm sure was a cartoon-y, arms-flailing run to the next room where I stood in a doorway, because I remember that's what I was taught in elementary school (kudos for all the earthquake safety lessons, CA public schools!). Anyway, the shaking stopped after a few seconds (this whole ordeal was probably less than a minute, but it felt long), and aside from some papers and books sliding off my desk and table, there was no damage.

Click here to see a video posted by the BBC showing the quake and some of the damage.

It was definitely bigger and shakier (and scarier, to be frank) than any earthquake I've felt before (in Berkeley). Oh, plus, after it ended, I thought I better turn on the TV and make sure there wasn't a tsunami warning, because Akitans always tell me about how earthquakes cause dangerous tsunamis and give me all kinds of scary examples - in the 1980s, a post-quake tsunami killed several people on the Akita coast, including a foreign missionary lady, so I think they think foreigners should be extra careful. Thankfully, no tsunami warning this time. My house is probably not really in danger of a tsunami anyway, but how would I know, I'm from Chico.

From what I'm reading and seeing on the news, there have been four deaths, numerous injuries and missing people. :( Rescue workers are on the job though, so hopefully people will be found an helped. Thankfully, there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of structural damage, and though landslides have blocked/destroyed some roads, the trains are running fine. Some areas lost power when the nuclear plant preventively shut-down, but I believe it's mostly been restored now.

I had plans to go hiking tomorrow with some Japanese friends, but due to recent rainfall and this quake, the landslide danger is too great, so we're going bowling instead. Safety first!

Alright, that's it for the earthquake update. Thanks to those of you who called or emailed to check on me. I appreciate your concern and I'm really happy to report that I'm A-OK. :)

Reverse/Re-entry Culture Shock

Most of you have heard of “Culture Shock” – the emotional ups and downs of living in and adapting to a foreign culture (I think it’s less about the culture itself and more about how you deal with a different lifestyle. There are phases and the lengths/severities vary by person and experience. If you weren’t aware of it before, you’re probably more familiar with it from reading this blog. I am a poster child for Culture Shock! I covered every little down-tick and up-tick, and every phase on the Culture Shock graph to a T. In fact, you could probably predict my current mental state based on the Culture Shock timeline (currently, I’m in the “I love Japan and don’t want to say goodbye!” phase).

However, I’ve found that, unless they’ve experienced living abroad and its after effects themselves, most people haven’t heard of Reverse Culture Shock (or Re-entry Shock), so I thought now might be a good time to fill you in.


-Nearly two-thirds of JET alumni say they experienced some kind of Re-entry Shock.-

...so, what is it? Responses vary, but...


[excerpt from Living Abroad by Cathy Tsang-Feign http://www.psychinternational.com/abroad/abroad10.htm]

Re-entry Shock – Fitting right in to the “home” circle and returning to “normal” life doesn’t happen overnight. The fact is, a returnee will feel very different from everyone around. This will make him or her feel delighted and special on one hand, but on the other hand it brings confusion and a sense of isolation.

For example, the returnee may be eager to point out that “I’ve just returned from a year in Japan!” By doing so, he or she knows s/he can draw others’ attention and reassures him/herself that s/he is unique, interesting, and different. It’s easy to overdo it, though. Excessive comments like, “I forgot that’s how they do things here! ha ha” to cashiers or servers, for example.

*In a questionnaire given by CLAIR [aka the organization that hires JETs] every year to JET alumni, many state they no longer feel they have a lot in common with people back home. This is a symptom of reverse culture shock. According to many JETs, everybody will inevitably ask, “So how was Japan?” That’s a difficult question. Can you encompass your entire JET experience in a 10-second reply?

*Many JETs say even close friends and family aren’t so interested in what happened “over there”. They often say, when asked about Japan, you get a half a minute into talking about it before the listeners eyes glaze over. Many listeners can’t relate, even if they’re really close. Most people want to hear, “It was great!” and then be done with it, while you want to share what you have been through and how you have grown.
[*credit to The After JET Preparation Guide, 2004 Edition, prepared by CLAIR]

Family and friends will demonstrate interest in the retunee’s adventures, anecdotes, and little comparative comments, but only for as long as their attention span can tolerate. At a family dinner, a returnee may find that the relatives are not nearly as fascinated at hearing about the temples in Kyoto, as they are in hearing Auntie Martha describe Uncle Joe’s hernia operation. To many returnees, this apparent disinterest is a great surprise. It is also a disappointment that leads to feeling disoriented and isolated.

In some cases, returned expatriates carry their feeling of being special too far. They may tend to pick on friends and people in general for being narrow-minded about the world, or unsophisticated. They will repeatedly draw comparisons between home and Japan. For example, saying at restaurants: “This isn’t real sushi,” or constantly remarking, “You know how cheap this would be in Japan?” Such commentary will eventually anoty and bore others, who will take it as showing off. These actions will keep people at a distance and make it difficult to readjust to the old circle.

Most people are oblivious to whatever changes may have on inside a person from living abroad. For the most part, friends and family believe that you still think and act the way they do, as if you’d never left. The returnee may therefore feel inhibited from saying or doing anything that could appear “show-off-y”. He or she may be reluctant to discuss any feelings of disappointment or disorientation at being back, for fear nobody will understand.

Faced with the day-to-day routine, they often begin to long for the favorable lifestyle once enjoyed in the foreign land. The travel, climate, cultural experiences, mingling with an international group of expatriates, as well as the social status and “special treatment” they usually received are missed. A returnee may begin to think back to “the good old days” or refuse/resent readjusting to the lifestyle of the home country.

Given time, returned expatriates will re-familiarize themselves with their home environment and appreciate what is there. They finally accept what they have given up in the foreign society and are happy to settle down. Remember, this will be a gradual process rather than a distinct stage that the person goes through.

A Few Ways to Reduce Re-entry Shock (what I’m doing)
-Expect and prepare for it. (that’s today’s blog)
-Keep family and friends informed while overseas so they have a frame of reference for your stories later. (I try to do that with this blog and posting lots of pictures, and I think I stay in pretty good touch with friends/family via phone, email, IM, Facebook, etc.)
-Keep busy, be active, get involved - don’t just sit around. (No matter what, I’m going to start school, so I’ll be busy with that, and I definitely plan to get back into karate and hopefully, yosakoi, too.)
-Find sympathetic friends who have returned from living abroad and can relate to your re-entry shock. (I’ve got a bunch of friends who have studied abroad, including Erin, who’s been doing the whole culture shock thing with me all year, and will be living close-by)
-Keep in touch with Japanese language/culture/food (That’s what I’ll be studying, plus I’ll be a skip away from Japan Town in SF, plus, thanks to my NSU days, I have plenty of friends to help me out with this)


Who knows how I will react when I return to California. I may be totally fine, or it may take me a while to adjust, so please be patient, and try to be aware that I may be going through this.

Oh, and you have two months, so PLEASE think of something other than “How was Japan?” to ask me when I get back. If you don’t, I’m telling you now, my answer will be, “It was a great experience.”

Two Months...

As of yesterday, I officially have two months left in Japan. My flight leaves Tokyo at 6p.m. August 6th.

TWO MONTHS!!!!

That is such a short amount of time!!! Yesterday, we had the Akita JET Prefectural Conference. The Returners, like me, when to seminars on tax and pension withdrawal information, good-bye speeches, and reverse culture shock. Then we took one last group picture, and parted ways. It was a surprisingly emotional day for me. Or, the range of emotions was surprising - stressed about tax forms and bureaucracy, sad/nostalgic about saying goodbyes, nervous about re-entry shock, excited for things at home, happy/sad to JET people I don't see often and probably won't see again, etc. It was all pretty exhausting, I guess, because when I got home at 5:30, I passed out on the couch until almost 8!! And then went to bed at midnight.

I've got to squeeze in as much play time as possible the next two months, so tonight I'm off for a cake date at a bakery with Maureen, and then to the movies with a Japanese friend. Tomorrow, I'm going to a taiko festival in Noshiro to see the Namahage Taiko team and some of the JETs play. :D

I <3 Japan

Not that that really needs to be said at this point, but it's true. It seems like everyday I grow to love it even more.

Generally speaking, I love the geography (both 田舎 and 都会), the history, the culture, the tradition, the language, and, of course, the people! I can break it down to even simpler, daily things, too. Things like traditional style houses and the smell of tatami floors, untranslatable phrases like 懐かしい and 'KY', melon flavored soda, jingly keitai straps, the old ladies selling ice cream, heated toilet seats (and clean public restrooms!), the yellow hats pre-schoolers wear, Japanese-accented English, and a thousand more.

Of course, there are times living here when cultural differences are frustrating, or when I don't enjoy my lifestyle. There are plenty of things that annoy me (smoking in restaurants or inefficient bureaucracies, for example)...
But that's true of anywhere.

Even though my Japanese will never be good enough, and I may never learn to love natto, and no matter how annoyed, frustrated, or homesick I get, it doesn't change the simple fact - I love Japan.
It's true.


With only two months left here, the excitement of being home with my family and friends is growing exponentially, but, at the same time, so is my love and appreciation for all things "Japanese". As divisive and stressful as that is for me, I'm trying to just relax and enjoy it all.

I do take comfort in reassuring myself that when I go home in August I certainly won't be saying "good-bye".
I'll be back. Soon...
because it's love!

Thank you for teaching us gently

Today is my LAST day at Hachiryu JHS, and even though I've visited this school the least of the three junior highs (started here mid-Nov), saying goodbye is SAD!! Since I'm going to be in town until August, it came as a surprise to everyone that I would finish at this school so early. The English teachers told the vice principal it was my last day and they quickly arranged to have a whole school assembly after lunch.

I just got back from it. The principal gave a speech about how great it was to have me, and how I'm going off to do good things, it was really cute. Then two 3rd graders (9th grade) gave a little speech in English where one boy would talk and the other would repeat key phrases, saying things like "We are very sad to say goodbye. Thanks for teaching us English. Your classes were always interesting (interesting!) and fun (fun!) and comfortable (comfortable!) and exciting (exciting!). Thank you for teaching us gently." and then with double thumbs up, "Good luck!" SO CUTE! and funny!

Then a girl came up and gave me a BEAUTIFUL bouquet of roses and pretty pink flowers. I gave my little speech in English (it was really simple so I think they understood most, if not all, of it). Then one of the funny boys from before did a "translation" which basically consisted of him putting on a funny girly voice and translating a couple of the main things I said. Everyone laughed. :D He's cute!

And then they clapped, and I waved, and the end!


Oh, and in the 2nd grade English class this morning, the teacher told them it was my last day at the end of class. So a bunch of kids came up to say thank you or shake my hand, etc. Two boys came up separately to tell me, "You are very beautiful." One boy (who's a big character in class) said, "I love you!" and then pulled the other teacher over, asked her something, and then came back and said "Will you marry me??" hahahaha I told him, "Sorry, I have to go to America." He said, "OK! See you again!" and went off with his laughing friends.

Cute, cute, cute. I'm going to miss these kids!!!! :(

Okinawa Pics

The pictures are up! I sorted through them this time, so there's only a little under 300 from a week vacation... I think that's pretty good!

Enjoy! (click the pic below to get to the album)

Okinawan Magic

vacation

I'm having SUCH a good time!! So far I've visited Shuri Castle and war memorials, went snorkling in a coral reef, done karaoke, seen a trad Okinawan music show, explored an aquarium and an old-time village, rode in a pineapple car at the pineapple park, did a little shopping, and today I went to two karate training sessions! You'll see all the pics later.

This has just been so amazing thus far. Training with all these 9th degree black belts and the grandmaster is just cool!! and I'm really glad I'm here now (rather than when I was in high school) because my Japanese and knowledge of J culture is at a point now where I can really appreciate this experience. I'm kinda proud of how well I've done, too. Apparently, karate is like riding a bike. :)

I'm looking forward to filling you all in!! <3

Okinawa!

the trip is just getting started, but here's an update so far!

i got here at 1130, went to bed, got up to go the fish market at 330 and then went on an inpromptue tour of naha on the back of my karate instructor's (rented) motocycle. fun, but i didnt get back to bed til 6, slept till 830 and then felt funky because odd sleep patterns don't agree with me... but it's okay. the group made plans to meet in the lobby at 12:30 so i decided to spend my morning exploring International St. I ended up spending too much money on souvenirs - i like too many people! oh well. we all went to some gardens, took lots of pics and then went out to lunch at Charlie's Tacos - yuuum!

now im off to see the famous shuri castle!

Welcome Back!

Thanks! I do, in fact, officially have a steady, working, wonderful DSL connection at home again! That means after three months (exactly! no joke!), I have the ability to call people whenever I want, email, blog, post photos, read/listen to news in ENGLISH, watch American TV, etc!! It's a good thing!!! :D I will say, after living three months without it, I don't really find the internet as entertaining as I once did, but that's probably a good thing.

Anywho, I've posted and captioned photos from cherry blossom season and from my recent road trip. Yesterday, I went to the Sport Day at one of my elementary school, but I haven't transferred the pictures to my computer yet, so I'll get those up soon. In the meantime, enjoy these:

Cherry Blossoms

Aomori Road Trip

Now that I'm back in the realm of communication, call me! Oh, but I'm leaving for Okinawa for a week on Thursday, so I'll talk to you when I get back! :D

Village Grounds

Seriously, this hot chocolate is amazingly magic! Even 5 months after Sarah packed me a ziplock full to take here, it stills has its miraculous healing properties. I love it!!

If you're in Berkeley, go get some!

Driving in the Dark

so... I magically had internet for about an hour yesterday, and then it mysteriously disappeared again! I don't know what's wrong, don't ask. There's a technician coming to my house Friday afternoon. Cross your fingers or something.

For a fun change of pace, let's talk about how my headlights mysteriously died driving home from the city tonight. There was a burning plasticy smell, then they flickered a bit and went out. I think the wiring burned or something because the parking lights and high beams work just fine (thankfully, so I made it home okay despite blinding all the other drivers with my brights). It's not the battery, alternator, or bulb, either, hence the wiring guess. My old supervisor's husband has a body shop so I'm going to contact them tomorrow. Hopefully I can get it fixed quickly (and cheaply).

I think I have bad luck, or disaster-inducing hands.

Oh well, I'm going to Okinawa next Thurs! warm weather, beach, and karate... can't wait! and June will contain lots of excitement as well.

It'll all work out. :)

PS. Congratulations to all my graduating friends!!

Panda :(

I forgot I saw on the news Saturday that the Giant Panda at the Ueno Zoo died. Remember the post from early April and how excited about the panda I was? I think this panda made a lot of people like me happy. We'll miss him!

Save Cal's East Asian Languages & Cultures Program Petition

Please take a few min to review and sign this petition:

http://petition.berkeley.edu

Due to the state education budget cuts, UC Berkeley is planning to cut the East Asian Languages and Cultures department in half! This will drastically downsize the Chinese and Japanese classes, and effectively decimate the Korean program. We cannot allow this! As one of the finest university East Asian departments in the world, these cuts will have a HUGE affect on scholarship, international relations, and business!

You can read more details at the website above. PLEASE please please sign the petition - you dont have to be a student or an alumni, anyone can sign!!

None of these silly adventures I write about would be possible without the education and experience I gained from Cal's East Asian Lang and Cult Dept. If you enjoy these, sign the petition.

It's really really important to me.

Thanks!

Road Trip: Day 2 (cont)

Hirosaki... after an adventure finding our hostel that included getting the car stuck in a narrow alley-ish street and having to do some tricky backing up manuevering, we checked in and the headed to Hirosaki Park. Former castle grounds, this park has over a thousand sakura trees and so it's hugely popular for flower-viewing. Thankfully (or unfortunately), most of the blossoms were finished so the crowds weren't that bad. The castle gaurd tower (the only remaining ruin - and i think it was rebuit) was pretty anticlimactic, especially since my last castle visit was Himeji, but the items on display inside were cool. Walking through the park we ran into Rob and Sherwin, two Akita JETs who also happened to be in town. They were looking for a place to stay so we directed them to our hostel. Then we all went out in search of dinner. We wandered ALL over town looking for this mythical Mexican restaurant for a good hour+. I was starting to doubt its existance, but then! At last! We
found Jalepen~o! It's a tiiiiny place with one cook, one server, and from the speed of the food, probably one burner. It took almost TWO HOURS to make tacos, nachos, and fajitas for 7 people!! And each person's order came out at a waaay different times! As a restaurant it basically failed. The food was good though! So, I was happy. I think I've lowered my standards. haha Anyway, we made it back to the hostel and I went to sleep!

Today it's off to Mt. Iwaki and the Aomori coast (Sea of Japan side)!

Road Trip: Day 2

After a nice breakfast of toasted English muffins at Nick's, we headed of to our last Akita destination - Lake Towada! It was only a half hour drive so we arrived before all the tour buses and were able to the view for about 10min - then a tour bus from Sendai pulled up! haha, but even with people around the lake and surrounding mountains are gorgeous! We drove partway around, stopping for coffee (water for me!) at a marina cafe, and at the statue of the maidens of the lake. The statue was not very pretty and really not that exciting. What really got me was the shrine for them. It was up a hill, and then you can take an even higher mountain path (which was really stairs) for a good view and another shrine. At the top of this area, there are two sections of iron ladders down the other side to the edge of the lake. You wont understand until you see pictures how high and steep and scary it is. Since it's all that defying death for just a nice view, none of the other girls want
edto go. I went. Going down was freeeeaky! one slip and you'd be splat on the ground below - i held on and didnt slip. :) At the bottom I was all happy to be there, but the climb back up was looooong and tiring. All in all the view wasn't that cool but the scary ladder experience was a blast on its own! :)

Next we continued to Oirase Gorge (I think I'm spelling that wrong), which is a not that amazing river canyon near the lake. The cool thing was how beautiful and full the river was thanks to all the runoff! We went for a walk along the river with hundreds of tourists and took lots of pictures of the pretty waterfalls. We also ran into some older americans - teaches at an American school on the base in Iwate - and they wanted to talk to us forever. weird.

Next we had a long, windy drive over the mountains to Aomori Prefecture. I got a little carsick so I had to close my eyes and miss out on a lot of scenery. :(

We made it to Hirosaki...

Im going to bed, so the rest will have to wait!

Road Trip - Day 1

I left my humble abode at 7:07 this morning, picked up Christy, then Paula and Ann in the city, and we were on our way! We drove east to Kakunodate and arrive just before 10. We met Maggie (and her visiting friend, Leslie, who we explored Sado Island with on our road trip in Sept) and decided to go to a cafe. We had a lovely little brunch and chatted over cafe au laits (except I drank water). Back on the road, we headed toward Lake Tazawa (see my trips there in Sept and Jan with my sis). Oh we stopped on the way at this honey shop. They have a bazillion kinds of honey and honey products (from jam to lotion!). I decided to try out the popular treat - fresh fruit of your choice blended into ice cream and topped with honey. I got strawberry, banana, and orange ice cream blend with a little lemon honey on top! Crazy good!

At the lake, we decided to rent a paddleboat and toodle around. Oh yeah, it was waaay hot today- 30deg midday in the mountains! so we paddleboated for a half hour in a rocketship-shaped boat.

Then we continued our drive north in the mountains along the Akita-Iwate border taking dozens of photos because it was SO beautiful! Ridiculously beautiful. Our next stop was Hachimantai (it's a volcano!), where we went for a short hike around the sulfur pits and mudpots at the top. They were pretty cool (hot, actually) and smelly. It was fun because there's still patches of snow in that area, but the day was so warm we were hot walking around in T-shirts! The volcanic wonders were neat, but not as expansive as the stuff at Mt Lassen and it kind of made me miss CA in a nice way. The girls were really stoked about it though, because apparently Chicago, Dublin, and Johannesburg don't have volcanoes nearby and had never seen the sulfur/mud before. They kept asking me all kinds of questions that made me wish I'd paid more attention on those Lassen fieldtrips! :P

After mooore driving, we got to Kazuno, our destination for the night. We picked up some groceries, rented a movie and made ourselves at home at Nick's (Christy's bf, but he's out of town) apartment. We cooked a nice dinner and relaxed - now it's time for bed!

It's a small world! (pt 2)

Tonight I went to a BBQ at a friend of friend's house. It turns out the host, Moto, studied at UC Davis for 3 months and then lived/worked in Williams for a year and a half!! And he'd been to Chico numerous times! Small world!! So he's a rice farmer and he said he was working for a rice farm in Williams doing ag science and quality control stuff. He brought out his laptop and showed me pictures. He had pictures of Chico's new downtown plaza thing! It was sooo weird (but cool) to be looking at pictures of Chico with an Akitan local and talk about the Thursday Night Market and Sierra Nevada.

Oh! And even mooore small world, we were both at SF JapanTown's Cherry Blossom Festival on the same day last year! Raaaandom.

That was a fun BBQ!

I've been patient...

Now I'm angry. Like, if I were a cartoon character, steam would be coming out of my ears. So, since the new modem they sent did nothing, they're going to come out and check the line again, but apparently EVERYONE is on vacation until the 6th so they're not coming until the 8th!! That is a week and a half away! and they said if that doesn't fix it, to call again... which gives me no confidence that it will. Okay, I get that it's Golden Week but seriously!!! Only Tuesday is an official holiday this week and it's not my fault they didn't get it connected right the first time OR that this should have been resolved in FEBRUARY!!!!!! before the snow melted, before the sakura, and before Golden Week!! (#^O^#)

whew. I'm just SO frustrated that this is taking so long! We're coming up on three months! There's no reason for there to be so many problems either, and it's not really anyone's fault, just a bad series of events. I try not to let it get to me (I'm calm again), but it's doubly compounded because I'm getting frustrated that people don't understand why not having internet is so upsetting. It's not because I can't read up on the latest celebrity gossip or spend hours stalking people on Facebook. I don't care about any of that frivolous time-consuming stuff anymore.

It's about losing my main links to family and friends! My email capability has been limited to the endurance of my thumbs (typing onthe cell phone like now) and with no Skype, I can't make international phone calls (and I can't find calling cards). That means I can't reach any of my support system (and by "system" I mean people), and if I were still in Berkeley, that would be okay, I could manage only talking to my mom once every two weeks. But I'm not in Berkeley, and living abroad is stressful in so many ways you probably only get if you've experienced it - that support system is a lifeline. It's a necessity! Without it, I feel so stranded, frustrated, and lonely. THAT's why I'm desperate for the internet.

Now, I should mention that I have a couple of rockstar friends who are keeping me from going over the edge by making an effort to stay connected- Sally, who email/"chat"s with me for hours everyday, Erin, who calls me from England and lets me rant about the latest internet non-developments, and Val, who leaves me crazy/long voicemails on Skype so when I check it once a week or so I have a good laugh at her latest exploits. And here in Akita, there's Christy, who lets me borrow her internet whenever I ask. I'm really grateful for them and the effort they make for me.

I'm sorry if it seems like all I do is lament this internet thing, but I hope you can understand that it's not just lack of internet- it's being cut off from my lifelines.

---
Okay, I don't like being so negative, so on a more upbeat note, I'm going on a roadtrip this weekend! It's a 4-day weekend, so Christy, Paula, Ann (a city JET from S. Africa), and I are heading north! We're going over to Iwate and up through Aomori to Hirosaki and then down along the scenic Aomori/Akita coast. I'll keep you posted!

The lead story on the Akita news tonight was thatsome fish died mysteriously. They're testing the water and will have the results tomorrow. the end.

even the enterprise record (www.chicoer.com) prints bigger stories than that (sometimes)! haha

and then I turn on the TV and see Full House dubbed in Japanese. :D

think positively, right?

gimme a break, gimme a break, break me off a piece of that...

internet! okay get this in the latest episode of katie's tragic attempts to get connected, today, my supervisor can't help me, so he asks the cute young new guy in the office. After work, the guy comes over to call yahoo for me, but my dang phone is dead even though it's been on the charger for days! I think it's just old and reached the end of its life (it kept dying when i was talking to erin), but dead phone means we can't call today! GIVE ME A BREAK!! Seriously. Well, new guy stayed for a while a checked every possible thing so now we really know it's yahoo's problem.

And so, I'll get a new phone tonight and we'll try again tomorrow.

But seriously! I'm a good person, I don't drink or smoke or swear or consume caffeine, I play with little kids, I help out my friends, I always return dvds on time, I drive the speed limit, etc. I've got to have tons of good karma built up somewhere!! Why can't I get a break?? :(

life is annoying.

I left my heart in San Francisco...

...and it looks like I'll have plenty of time to get it back!

My acceptance letter for San Francisco State's graduate Japanese program came in the mail today! I actually found out online last week, but the letter makes it official. :) I only applied to this one school, so it's a good thing I got in! Actually though, they have the perfect program for what I want to do - an MA in Japanese with an emphasis in Teaching Japanese as a Foreign Language. And the fact that I get to be back in the Bay excites me to no end!

So that's the big news, otherwise... the cherry blossoms are blooming here now so it's pretty and I've been doing lots of flower viewing. Oh, I was on the news! Christy and I were at a sakura festival in Akita City walking around enjoying the flowers when this guy with a camera spotted us. He whipped around and started filming us (like "wow foreigners!") and then followed us (we were walking to meet some friends). Finally he asks us what we think about the sakura and Christy goes "tanoshii〜!" (fun!) so I say "utsukushii〜!" (beautiful!) and we walk away. The next day EVERYONE said "I saw you on the news!!" hahaha. great, I probably looked like a big dork! Well no one taped it so I'll never know. Oh well.

I posted up all my travel pics using the school's internet, but I didn't have time to caption them, so if you are partial to captions don't look at them yet.

I think I might have internet again sometime in the nearish future, but I've been thinking that for 2 months so I wouldn't trust me if I were you.

k that's all for this update! Only 3months left! Wooowzers.

Denny's!!

I forgot to write that we went to Denny's for ice cream after the park. I was sooo excited for my first Denny's in Japan (they only have them in Tokyo) and I had a chocolate sundae.

I have to say, I was rather disappointed at how Japanified the menu was! Gone were all the American classics - Grand Slam breakfast combos, burgers, milkshakes, etc. - and instead I found the typical Japanese "family restaurant" style foods like japan-flavored pastas and cheap steak meals. I'm sure the food is all good and tasty, it's just not smothered-and-covered-hash-browns-American-style-Denny's good. (seriously, Denny's with no breakfast combos is just... Gusto)

But, to be fair, I ordered an American Clubhouse Sandwich to-go and just ate it on the train. Even after carting it around for 3hrs it was still a darn good club sandwich! :) Oh and my ice cream sundae was awesome! It had what I think are called cocoa puffs in it for crunch!! Nice touch, Denny's Japan! :P

Work Hard/Play Hard!

whew! another busy day of adventure! I met Marie, found a place to store my duffle bag, and set off. Yokohama China Town (中華街 - chuukagai) has all fun shops as SF's without the huge hills, which I feel is a plus! We walked around enjoying the general splendor and then wandered down an alley to find the おもしろ水族館 (Interesting Aquarium). It was, indeed, quite interesting! They had all kinds of weird fish and even a section for "babies" (baby fish aren't called babies though, right? What are they called? Hatchlings? At some stage they're called fries, I think...) Anyway, there was a show thing for feeding the babyfish. It was really for kids, but the two guys doing it were so funny, we watched anyway. :)

We ate waaaay too much food at a (duh) Chinese restaurant - I had fried rice and pot stickers. After some more wandering and realizing all the shops were selling souvenirs (including Panda World and Hello Kitty From Japan), we decided to check out the famous Yamashita Park.

The park is right on the bay (I waved towards CA!) and really pretty. Lots of flowers and fountains and kids. We could see the landmark Yokohama ferris wheel, but didn't have time to ride it (plus I'd rather go at night).

We rode back to Tokyo and I saw Marie off. Now I'm waiting for my train to Akita! Good weekend. Good trip.

I'm exhausted. I travel hard. Love it!

Yokohama

I left Lisa's dorm around 9:30 for my next adventure - an hour and twenty min train ride to Yokohama. Surprisingly for me, I've managed both the transfers without incident AND have been able to sit down! I love Japan and its rail network - so convenient and easy!

Anyway, I'm meeting my friend Marie in Yokohama and we're going to explore its Chinatown. Lisa even found a site last night that ranks the fried rice at all the restaurants so I have the name of one of the good ones. I love fried rice!

Zoo

Giant Panda!!!

and a lot of other animals, including a few Lisa and i agreed appeared made up (look up a pic of an Okapi). But it's such a nice day! So sunny! I ate a melon snowcone - yum :)

whew!

glad to have survived that! good thing it wasn't summer, i might have died! lol good tokyo experience.

to the ueno zoo!

Claustrophobia

the train was late allowing hords of people to line up and shove onto an already packed train. sardines would feel over packed!

Earthquake!

we just felt one while eating dinner! the building swayed and everyone went "whoa!" I think it was a moderately big one... anyway everything' s fine. it was nothing for a berkeley vet like me :)

Happy Birthday, Alex!

I just rode a ride called Flying Pirates (one of those rocking boat rides) and had a great laugh when I heard someone call it "Frying Pilates"(sounded like "pilots").

That would be a very different ride indeed!

としまえん!

Today I'm doing a little hanami (flower viewing) at Toshimaen Amusement Park while I ride all kinds of rollercoasters and such. The weather here is so warm and sunny! It's a perfect day for riding rides. :) I'm with my Berk. friends Annie and Lisa and two of their friends from the dorm. tons of fun!

Hokkaido Potato: Butter and Corn flavor

I just ate butter and corn flavored potato chips. Now before I came to Japan, I would have been right there with yougoing "butter? corn? on a chip?" but after 8 months here, it seems perfectly sane. Look at this:
butter+baked potato=tasty
butter+corn on the cob=tasty
corn+baked potato=the best side dishcombo ever

therefore, it only makes sense that
potato+butter+corn=delicious snacking :)

duh. America needs to get more on board with corn. It's great. Don't we grow a very large portion of the world's corn? I've never seen a cornfield in Japan, yet they put it in everything! Like pizza - it's fantastic. I think we need to stop turning American corn into biofuel nonsense and start putting it on pizza! And potato chip flavorings. :P

Mountains

I'm on the shinkansen (bullet train) to Tokyo now, crossing the big ole mountain range that runs down the middle of northern Japan (look at a map). It's really pretty! The other times I've been through here it's been dark and/or SNOWING, so it's nice to see the pretty mountains, mostly melted snow, gushing creeks, etc. by daylight. :)

It was sprinkling when I left Akita, but I hear it's "sunny as can be" (quoting Lisa) in Tokyo so I'm looking forward to it!

Oh, and randomly, when I was on the local train to Akita City, Izumi, the adorable high school girl who comes to Christy's Eng conv class (and a lot of times i drive her), happened to get onto my car. That was a nice surprise and i got to talk to her for the rest of the ride - she's so good at English! Even when I spoke Japanese she responded in English! Good for her. :)

Anyway, the trip's off to a great start!

Super new super!

I met my new supervisor today, and he seems great! He's nice AND friendly! He told me all about his two kids, showed me their pictures, and we talked about how I've taught their classes and they liked me. :) The best part is he doesn't seem shy or intimidated by me (which really, why should he be). My last supervisor guy was REALLY nice, but he was shy around me (I think because he didn't speak any English - not that I ever speak English with the Board of Ed people - or I'm a foreigner, a young American woman at that). Anyway, he never talked to me except when necessary, which made me shy, too. But the new guy, Mr. Narita, has already talked to me more this morning than Mr. Tanaka did in 8 months! I think this will work out nicely!

In other news, I'm going to Tokyo Thurs afternoon to spend the weekend reciting poetry under the cherry blossoms. Well, kinda. I'm staying with my friend Lisa who's studying abroad there from Cal and I do plan to see the blossoms, but I probably won't recite poetry. Probably. ;)

I know I still have to update on the Hiroshima leg of my trip and post my 600 photos, but still no internet at home (or work, since I'm at the BOE for 2wks). Hopefully the modem will come soon!

Miss you!

セーラちゃん(^O^)/読んでくれてありがとう! <3

It's a small world afterall...

I met a man from Chico today! He was the JET in Christy's town like 13 years ago and he came back to visit with his family. I met him tonight and it turns out he was born and raised in Chico! His mother works/ed at Chico State, he went to Chico High (and gave me a hard time about being a PV alum), and most Chico-y of all, he asked me if I missed "amonds" - and started the infamous "amond"/"almond" argument when I replied that I very much miss the "almonds".

It was soooo weird to have such a "Chico" debate here in Akita! It really is a small world! :)

now it's a headless bunny!

I forgot to say I'm watching Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (dubbed in Japanese) on TV. It's pretty fun - better than my other option (dubbed Titanic). It's a hoppin' Sat in Akita! :P

Choco!

You know your mom loves you when she sends you a chocolate Easter bunny even when you're 22 and living in Japan! Plus it's the good, solid kind from Shubert's... and the big size, too! That's a lot of love. :)

internetless :(

now theyre saying the internet is going to take another week or 10 days! apparently the electronics store where i signed up forgot to put in the order!! so ive been waiting for nothing for 5 weeks! im so mad and frustrated i really cant think about or ill explode. gah!!!!!! (>_<)

Bye Bye, Hiroshima!

I'm waiting for my flight back to Akita now. Sorry I sort of stopped blogging a few days ago. First, my phone battery died and then my travels and visiting Ryuta didn't leave me with much free time! Anyway, I'll fill in the details later.

Six (+) prefectures in six days has been great and I was able to see/experience SO much, but I'm also looking forward to my own bed! I'm on the tail end of this cold and pretty tired. Thankfully, I have the rest of the week to recover, as I'll be sitting at the Board of Ed doing nothing everyday - except planning my next trip! :)

on missing trains

The bad thing about Japan is that all subways and trains are ontime 99.9% of the time, so one minute of indecision - what platform was it? how much is the ticket? - will cause you to run down the stairs just as the train pulls away. It's a sad feeling. In America, everything is slow, so that moment of indecision will cost you nothing. You'll probably be early.

But the great thing about Japan is that the trains are 99.9% of the time on time, so when you miss the train you almost accidentally got there early enough for, the one you were planning for will come 15min later. Plus, this time you'll be early enough to get a seat. :)

Departing Osaka (GREAT Mexican food for dinner last night and slept in a capsule hotel) for Himeji (big castle).

that would have been bad!

i got on the train and then realized i forgot to get my bag from the locker! i had to jump of and run back to get it. twenty min til the next train - glad to have all my belongings tho!

Nara

I've only been here for 2hrs and I've already decided I have to live here.

tourism

I just got off the train and went to the tourist derk to get a map. I was all ready to ask in Japanese and the lady started speaking English to me! That never happens in Akita! She gave me a map and directions to the main sites and was really helpful! Being a touristy tourist in these cities is fun. :)

Memoirs of a Kyoto Trip

My time in Kyoto has come to a close and I'm exhausted! I spent most of the yesterday around the Gion district (aka the geisha area). It's one of the older districts so it's full cool alleyways and shops and shrines.

The rain cleared up just as I arrived so I met up with Juls, dropped my stuff at the hostel and went geisha hunting! Just kidding! We went Buddha-hunting is more like it, as we went from temple to temple. We went to one with a giant buddha statue and got a stick of insense with the entrance fee (a mere 200\!). We took pictures of each other adding our incense sticks to the big pot thing and while I was posing, I burned a hole in the sleeve of my jacket from an incense stick. Real smart. Then we got to go inside the big Buddha, which I thought was neat (how many of you can say you've been IN Buddha?)

We also went to Kiyomizu Temple. It's very famous- built on stilts on a hill so there's a great view and it has magic fortune-bringing spring water you can drink (I did!).

Famished and feeling sick, we headed back to the station for a late lunch (Italian) and a break. But we didn't rest long! We caught a train to the Inari Shrine.

It's famous for the hundreds (maybe thousands) of orangey red torii gates that line a path winding way up Inari Mountain. We hiked the path for a good hour up to the top of the mountain so we had an amazing view of Kyoto. Walking through these gates immersed in the woods and mountains was an amazing experience. I love how in Japan, even amid booming urban centers like Tokyo and Kyoto, you can find these fantastic natural sceneries.

After all this hiking, I was exhausted and feeling sicker, but I kept up my spirits and caught a subway to Sanjo (sort of a nightlife area) to meet my Berkeley friend Chris for dinner. It was great seeing him for the first time since Sept (last trip to Kyoto) and we went to this tasty Thai place. I had some spicey chicken and basil dish that cleared my sinuses. Oh, you might not know, but as a rule, whenever I travel to a bigger city, I try to eat as much international food as possible because we don't have many options in Akita. Anyway, after dinner, we took some purikura and said goodbye. We might meet for dinner in Osaka tonight if the timing works out.

Off to bed at the hostel, where I slept on the bottom bunk in a room with 8 beds (only 4 decent backpacking travelers + me though). It was clean and convenient - and cheap (2500Y).

Today Juls and I checked out, had waffles (yes!!) a place in the station. Then we bought 500Y unlimited ride bus passes from the cute old lady in a tiny booth and went to Heian Shrine. It has an AMAZING garden that will be even more fantastic in about a week when the cherry blossoms bloom. It sucks we're just a bit too early, but I'm hopingto catch them in Hiroshima.

Anyway, after a lunch at starbucks, I'm on the train to Nara! bye for now. (^-^)/

Good Morning!

Greetings from somewhere near Fukui (look it up)! It's about 7:30am and I've been on this train since about 10:30 last night. I had a bunk and managed to sleep most of the night (maybe 6 or 7hrs) but there was a lot of tossing and turning. Trains are bumpy!

Anyway, I'm reclining in my bunk and watching the countryside slip by. Japan is SO beautiful! I think most Americans think of Japan and picture the craziness of Tokyo (or some samurai tea house). Let me tell you, Tokyo and the other cities have some magic, but most of the country isn't like that. It's full of rice fields and beautiful mountains, modern houses built with traditional archetectural details and train tracks that stetch endlessly in both directions. I'm a country-loving kid so I'm sure I'm a little bias, but the Japanese countryside impresses me WAY more than the Tokyo public transit system (which is pretty amazing in its own right).

I love traveling by train!

行ってきまーす！

I haven't updated this in a while because I still have no internet at home (it's been 4 weeks), and tonight I'm leaving on a five day trip in southern Japan. I'm taking the night train to Kyoto, spending Thursday there, Friday in Nara and Osaka, Saturday in Himeji --> Hiroshima, and Sunday-Tuesday in the Hiroshima area.

I'm really excited! I'm traveling with a fellow Akita JET and I'll be meeting up with Berkeley friends in Kyoto and Hiroshima. I bought an extra 1GB memory card (for only like $18!) to supplement the 1GB card I already have, so be prepared for looooots of pictures upon my return - assuming I have the internet capability to post them!

Anyway, I just wanted to give you a quick update on what I'll be up to the next couple of days. I think this trip I'm going to try something different with the blogging. Instead of one long post when I get back, I think I'll try to post as I go via cell phone (I'm a really fast thumb typer since it's been my main source of email/internet for a month). We'll see how it goes!

Aside from the no internet thing (I'm still waiting for them to send me a new modem), everything's going well here. I hope you're all healthy and happy! Happy St. Patrick's Day and Happy Easter! :) (neither are celebrated here)

Alright, off I go! (^^)/

Spring Sensor

Spring is here! I can tell! Even thoughit snowed this morning, the birds are back, and the rice fields are starting to poke out of the snow... I can just tell. :)

Other good news: I got my computer back. They replaced the logic board - whatever that means. It works and my laptop is super clean! No grease smudges or crumbs... :)

But still no internet until the new modem arrives. boo. oh well.

Spring!!

R.I.P. Terrible Week (2/15-2/22)

I've been holding off on this update for two reasons 1. I haven't had internet access in over a week, and 2. I wanted time to put all things in perspective (the bad stuff doesn't seem so bad once it's over). Let's fill you in on all the little things that made it one disastrous week!

Alright, ignoring my Starbucks phone blog, the last thing I updated you all on was my visits to the bamboo fight and snow huts, yeah? Well, I think I mentioned somewhere in there that I was sick and that standing out in the snow was probably not a smart idea.

It wasn't. I got sicker. I mean, nothing major, just a really bad cold that lasted a good 10 days or so. But it was bad timing, like everything that week. You see, according to the Culture Shock Depression Graph (which is probably not called that), about halfway through your international stay you face a major downward spiral of homesickness, and last week, almost exactly six months, was definitely a homesick one. But see with the bad timing that makes it a terrible week, I was sick, too, and nothing makes you miss home more than being alone and sick.

Not to mention, it was cold and snowy, and I didn't think I could take another day of it (but I did)! Physically I was a mess - sick, cold, tired, kind of hungry (because I wasn't feel well enough to shop or cook) - and emotionally I was worse. The teachers at school and my English conversation students were all concerned - telling me I didn't look well, asking if I wanted to lie down, did I have a fever, etc. And then unpleasant things started to happen.

For one, while I was deliriously teaching the conversation class, my internet died. I came home from class and could no longer get online! Being sick and tired, I didn't even bother dealing with it and just went to bed. The next day I still couldn't connect so I decided to try buying a new LAN cable and see if that fixed the problem (it didn't). I figured it must be a problem with the modem, so the next day (Thursday) I asked my supervisor if she could help me call Yahoo!BB (my internet provider). She was busy and said she'd help me the next day, but I got the info to call on my own and fully intended to call after work. Unfortunately, the cold got the better of me and I fell asleep at 5pm. So finally on Friday, we go to my house, my supervisor calls Yahoo, everything's going fine, they decide it's a problem with the modem and they'll send me a new one, problem solved in less than a week. Then my supervisor asks them if they can change the name on the account (it's still in my predecessor's name even though I pay the bills every month). Well, YahooBB is very by the book and once they figured out the situation (i.e. my predecessor no longer lives in Japan), they said we'll have to cancel the service and reactivate in my name - which could take three weeks. GREAT!! (sarcastic) But there's nothing to be done so we cancel and decide to meet the next day to reactivate it, which we did. Keep in mind the internet is my lifeline, not just my entertainment. It's how I stay connected to the US both personally (e-mail, phone calls via Skype, etc.) and in general (reading the news, watching The Daily Show, etc.), so without it I feel really cutoff. [For the not-so-exciting conclusion to my computer problems, please scroll down. For now I will continue with Terrible Week.]

So now I'm sick, sad, and truly isolated, when I get more bad news. Oh, this little bit's also going to reveal a decision I committed to almost a month ago but hadn't announced to you all yet - I'm not recontracting, which means I'll be returning to America in August (more on that later). Other quick background info: My town is poor. It's made up of three smaller towns that merged in 2006 as a way to pool their funds - as a result, they went from having three JETs to two (me and a guy named Stephen). Well, on Thursday, my supervisor (she's the nice lady who helps me with EVERYTHING and goes with me when I visit elementary schools) tells me that when I go home in August, the town (mayor/town elders?) decided not to get a replacement. Which means the area once covered by three JETs (now by two) will now fall to just one (Stephen) - i.e. the students will see waaaaay less of their foreign English teacher. So I feel really, really bad about that (believe it or not, the students actually like having us come to class - it makes English seem worthwhile), but to top it off, my supervisor continues to tell me that as a result of all this, she's getting fired in April. Her job is to support the JETs, and seeing as I'm leaving and Stephen has been here for 4 years and speaks Japanese (i.e. doesn't need support) they decided to reallocate her salary elsewhere. So by leaving, I'm not only disappointing hundreds of students and teachers, but I'm also getting my supervisor (and friend) fired!! Looking at it rationally, I realize that it doesn't have so much to do with me, as it would have happened eventually (i.e. next year) because the town really doesn't have the money, and to be honest, JETs are expensive. But it still feels like it's my fault and last week I felt sure the whole community was going to be mad at me when they found out (they probably won't know for another month or two), not to mention my poor supervisor is totally sad about losing this job (but being very careful to never make me feel like it's my fault because she's sweet like that).

By Friday, I was barely holding it together. I was sure I'd hit the bottom, and almost happy to think it could only get better. But then it got worse. I turned on my heater Friday evening, only to have it read "Error". I couldn't figure out what was wrong until I realized I must have run out of kerosene. I should have thought to check the tank gauge outside earlier in the week, but with the sickness and everything else, it didn't even occur to me. So no gas = no heat = no hot water = no shower. NOW I was at the bottom of the bottom.

...and that's was turning point. I was either going to start sobbing or laughing hysterically. I started laughing. It really couldn't get worse - sick, sad, isolated, disappointing and cold! I just sat there staring at my heater blink "error", shaking my head, and laughing. If you had seen me, you might have thought I lost my marbles! But no, it was just a sign that my attitude was changing. Finally, I arranged to have more kerosene delivered the next morning, set up my tiny electric heater in my bedroom, and decided to go out to dinner.

I called up Christy and Paula and we went out for really great Indian food in the city. I spent the rest of the weekend relaxing and recuperating. And that was the end of Terrible Week.

To make up for it (and because I'm bored out of my mind with no internet), I've been really good to myself this week. I went to Starbucks twice (Sunday and Monday), I reread "The Little Prince", I rewatched season seven of Gilmore Girls, I rented and watched three Audrey Hebrun movies ("Sabrina", "Funny Face", and "Paris When it Sizzles"), I wrote my personal statement for grad school apps, I wrote an essay in Japanese for my correspondence course, I read one and a half novels, and I cooked a healthy, tasty dinner every night. Things are definitely looking up and working out.

That is, except for the computer situation.
[Not-so-exciting conclusion:]
I brought my computer to school on Monday (a school where I have internet access, unlike last week's), but when I plugged in the ethernet, I had no connection! That's when I realized my mysterious internet problems at home were not, in fact, internet problems, but rather a problem with my computer! I called Apple's (in Japan) English support line, told them what was going on and they decided it must be a hardware problem so they would need to take it in to be fixed. And whether it's because of Apple's great customer service or the fact that I'm in Japan, I was told someone would come to my house to pick up the computer on Wednesday (at a time of my choosing). Which all went well - except the repairman couldn't find my house (I don't blame him, my street's not on most maps), so he called me saying he was at the convenience store down the street, and after some failed attempts of me giving directions and him going "huh? I don't understand", I just met him there and he followed me back to my house (he needed to know where it was so he can drop it off again when it's fixed). Anyway, I don't exactly know when it will be fixed (I'm hoping a week?), but I have to wait for my new modem to come anyway, so in the meantime I've rented lots of movies and started a new book! Oh, and this weekend Christy most generously lent me her house/internet/computer while she's away, so I'm able to write this blog (and get work done tomorrow).


Okay, sorry that was so long, but I wanted to fill you in on what's been going on around here! Be well!

Starbucks

This is my first time blogging from my phone so we'll see how it goes!

I'm at the mall right now because I have no internet at home (I'll write about that another time.), so I decided to come here to watch a movie. While I wait for the movie, I'm hanging out in Starbucks, which is what prompted this blog.

Since moving to Japan, I've become hooked on Starbucks! Now that may not sound so unusual, since there are probably millions of people around the world who could make that statement, but you have to take into account that I don't like the taste of coffee and I can't drink anything with caffeine, then an addiction to Starbucks might start sounding a little strange. I'm actually at a loss for what to order when I go there. I used to love the chai lattes, but too many caffeine-induced nightmares have unfortunately nixed those. I do like hot chocolate, so sometimes I order that, but Starbucks' hot chocolate is powdery and awful world-wide, and therefore not so enjoyable. Basically, as far as drinks go, my best bet is water. Sad!

So why am I addicted? Or to what? It's the atmosphere, the experience. When I was at Berkeley, there was a FABULOUS cafe right below my apartment (www.villagegrounds.com) and a bazillion other local cafes so I pretty much never went to Starbucks. In Chico, I went occasionally with friends or my parents. Now, I usually go once a week (on Mondays) even though it's an hour away. Why? Because there's something comforting about it. About how the decor and music and cups are the same no matter where you are in the world. About how the people who work there are always friendly and cheerful in their green aprons. About the food and desserts that always taste fresh and strangely American. I don't know... I just love going. For the hour or two I sit there with bad hot chocolate and a tasty cookie in one of those typical "comfy chairs" (that aren't very comfy) I feel normal. Like I'm not in a foreign country thousands of miles from home, but rather right down the street.

Sometimes living here can be overwhelming in a number of ways, but with a little time reading in a Starbucks, I feel refreshed and ready to start tackling the world again. I think it's a good thing. It keeps me sane (as long as I avoid caffeine! lol).

Anyway, just thought I'd share my thoughts! Time for the movie. I'm going to see that one with Natalie Portman and a magical toy store - except it's dubbed in Japanese so that ought to be interesting! :)

Bye for now!