I've been in Japan for just over a month now, and life has been crazy busy for the better part of that month. On top of work and floundering my way through trying to learn Japanese, I've been trying to explore as much as possible. I've made friends with my coworkers, and Paco is finally here. Miyoko (friend and ex-student) is also back home here in Nagoya, so my social calendar has been busier than usual. And, of course, the travel destination list, the food-I-must-try list, and the foods-I-must-learn-to-make-perfectly-because-how-will-I-ever-survive-without-this-after-Japan list are all getting longer and longer by the second.
So let's start with the update on work before I get myself too deep into the tales of adventures. Work is...well...work. My job here couldn't be more different than my job in Australia. I've gone from multicultural, multilingual classrooms filled with students of all ages living in an English speaking country to a class of 18-year old Japanese girls that only use English in my 40-minute class (and that's a generous time estimate as some don't even feel the need to use English in English class ha!) Speaking of 40 minutes, I now live life in 40 minute increments, repeating the same lesson six times per day, whereas previously, I had one 3 hour class and one 2 hour class a day. This may be the most shocking difference actually. I often wonder how the students could possibly soak in anything in 40 minutes. We also don't teach grammar, which baffles me. How do they become independent users of English without any structural knowledge??!! Another big transition for me has been the lack of technology. I've gone from a workplace where there was an emphasis on technology (working TVs in every classroom, laptops for each teacher, WiFi throughout the building) to what feels like the Stone Age. I do have a TV in my room, but there is no way to actually use it, and there are two desktops to share between the four teachers in my department. This isn't actually a big deal though since no one is hogging the computer to make PowerPoints or elaborate online games because oh wait we teach in the Stone Ages where we don't have access to WiFi at work. I am so thankful that I do have two double-sided whiteboards instead of chalk though...Really, it's not all that bad. I enjoy working with my coworkers, and it's pretty easy work. My campus is nice, and the cafeteria serves some pretty tasty (and cheap!) bento lunch too!!!
Speaking of food...I cannot get enough Japanese food!!! There are so many intriguing restaurants to choose from, so many new ingredients to discover and experiment with in the kitchen, and so many dishes and varieties of those dishes to taste test. I'm like a soy sauce marinated slab of tofu, soaked to the max with thoughts of Japanese food. Nagoya gets a bad rap, gets bullied a little by the other cities, but the local foods here are quite delicious! Red miso (as opposed to white miso that is normally found in soups and sauces) transforms regular Japanese food into a Nagoyan specialty. Among these specialties are:
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| Tebasaki. Sweet soy and sesame glazed wings. |
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| Baby's-bottom-smooth grilled tofu with red miso glaze |
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| Extra chewy Udon in red miso broth |
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| Miso Katsu. Fried pork cutlet with red miso sauce. |
I'm not so sure if I should admit that I'm becoming somewhat of a tebasaki connoisseur...BUT, my favorite specialty so far has got to be Hitsumabushi, grilled eel with that special Nagoyan sauce, served with all the fixings, like dashi, nori seaweed, clear eel broth, shredded green onions, freshly grated wasabi, and veggies pickled in sake. A bit on the expensive side but oh so worth it.
What a great meal and a great day. That's Miyoko on the right, and she graciously played tour guide for Paco and I last weekend. She tooks us around the famous Nagoya castle and it's neighboring park. Luckily, we went to the castle just in time...we were able to go inside the castle to the observation deck and museum on the last day before it closed for renovation. (Although, 'renovation' may not be the correct term because they're actually going to try to make it look older...!)
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| Touring Nagoya Castle |
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| The view from the top of Nagoya Castle |
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| Paco having a go at throwing Shuriken |
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| Beautiful artwork on sliding doors |
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| The Japanese really love their flowers and gardens! |
Besides the castle, I've visited three shrines, one at the beach, one of the most important in Japan (Atsuta Shrine), and one in our neighborhood we stumbled upon during am early morning run (yes, I must have lost my mind running in the morning). A coworker and I visited a cat cafe last weekend over the Golden Week holiday, and if you haven't seen my flicker albums of the (literally) breathtaking hike I went on and the wisteria festival I attended, here's the link to my Flickr feed.
Konan Wisteria Festival https://flic.kr/s/aHsmgX7FJi
Hiking Mt. Kamagatake - Gozaisho Loop https://flic.kr/s/aHsmizz5ru
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| Shrine at the beach! |
Otherwise, life here in Japan is really good!
しあわせ! I've seen some interesting fashion going on lately, especially with my students, like loose, lace-up denim pants and jackets, layers upon layers of longsleeves even thought it's 75 degrees and there's not space enough for a even one more sesame seed on the train, and lace socks OVER pantyhose with platform sandals. My language abilities aren't progressing as fast as I'd like them to, but I can finally speak enough Japanese to scrape by. I'm still a bumbling gaijin, but I can actually order a particular thing at a restaurant now, even though chef's choice is still a preferred method. I can read the labels on some of the items in the super market, and my Japanese cooking skills are blossoming as a result. On occasion, I can understand what someone has said to me, and I might even be able to reply. I've managed the post office, the koban ("police box" for my lost - and found - wallet, yikes), and the municipal office in Japanese, so definitely an improvement from when I stepped off the plane! Best of all, Paco's here now, so my partner in crime has finally joined my rusty biker gang, ready at a moment's notice for the next adventure.
私のブログを読んでいただきありがとうございます。
So let's start with the update on work before I get myself too deep into the tales of adventures. Work is...well...work. My job here couldn't be more different than my job in Australia. I've gone from multicultural, multilingual classrooms filled with students of all ages living in an English speaking country to a class of 18-year old Japanese girls that only use English in my 40-minute class (and that's a generous time estimate as some don't even feel the need to use English in English class ha!) Speaking of 40 minutes, I now live life in 40 minute increments, repeating the same lesson six times per day, whereas previously, I had one 3 hour class and one 2 hour class a day. This may be the most shocking difference actually. I often wonder how the students could possibly soak in anything in 40 minutes. We also don't teach grammar, which baffles me. How do they become independent users of English without any structural knowledge??!! Another big transition for me has been the lack of technology. I've gone from a workplace where there was an emphasis on technology (working TVs in every classroom, laptops for each teacher, WiFi throughout the building) to what feels like the Stone Age. I do have a TV in my room, but there is no way to actually use it, and there are two desktops to share between the four teachers in my department. This isn't actually a big deal though since no one is hogging the computer to make PowerPoints or elaborate online games because oh wait we teach in the Stone Ages where we don't have access to WiFi at work. I am so thankful that I do have two double-sided whiteboards instead of chalk though...Really, it's not all that bad. I enjoy working with my coworkers, and it's pretty easy work. My campus is nice, and the cafeteria serves some pretty tasty (and cheap!) bento lunch too!!!
Otherwise, life here in Japan is really good!しあわせ! I've seen some interesting fashion going on lately, especially with my students, like loose, lace-up denim pants and jackets, layers upon layers of longsleeves even thought it's 75 degrees and there's not space enough for a even one more sesame seed on the train, and lace socks OVER pantyhose with platform sandals. My language abilities aren't progressing as fast as I'd like them to, but I can finally speak enough Japanese to scrape by. I'm still a bumbling gaijin, but I can actually order a particular thing at a restaurant now, even though chef's choice is still a preferred method. I can read the labels on some of the items in the super market, and my Japanese cooking skills are blossoming as a result. On occasion, I can understand what someone has said to me, and I might even be able to reply. I've managed the post office, the koban ("police box" for my lost - and found - wallet, yikes), and the municipal office in Japanese, so definitely an improvement from when I stepped off the plane! Best of all, Paco's here now, so my partner in crime has finally joined my rusty biker gang, ready at a moment's notice for the next adventure.
