Last weekend was a blur, spent mostly (as always) at Sanjo. Friday night we met for karaoke. Saturday, Fig and I did some shopping (wherein I spent too much money, but buying things I mostly needed, like cardigans) and then met my buddies for yet more karaoke. We like to sing and all, but we're beginning to run out of songs! We did manage to discover that we have almost the perfect range of voices to perform songs by the B-52's, though I'm not sure if that's awesome or scary. (Probably awesome. The way he sings, Alex Rogals pretty much IS the male B-52. It's hilarious.)
On Sunday, instead of sleeping in (as is always tempting), I got up even earlier than usual and hauled my sleepy self to the park next to my school by 8 a.m., where a crowd was congregating! The crowd was actually a tour group taking buses up to the town of Miyama for an 8km (roughly 5 mile) hike. Parenthetically, Miyama is famed for its abundance of thatched-roof houses, preserving a more traditionally rustic Japanese aesthetic. We managed a few photos during rest stops before and after the hike.
Anyway, I and my coworker, Kristin, had been invited along by Sumiko, the lovely Japanese woman who teaches us tea ceremony and calligraphy on Wednesdays. (For FREE.) There were about 130 people all together, most of them middle aged women. We divided into groups and tackled the mountain trail -- which contained a few feats of questionable safety -- with gusto! It was by far the coldest day since I've arrived in Japan, not to mention damp, but we had a good time. It felt nice to really get out and do something, and by that I mean something that didn't involve eating or shopping or neon lights. I was really tired by the time we got back to Sonobe just after five o'clock, but it was a good kind of tired. The weariness of productivity.
On the downside, since I was too busy this weekend to clean, my apartment is a mess. A really big mess. All I've managed so far is half of the dishes. Bad Anna!
This week at school has been speech contest, speech contest, and more speech contest. We judged speeches for six and a half periods on Monday and four yesterday, managing around 150 speeches altogether, I think. I am SO SO TIRED of speeches. Twelve more to go on Friday, but otherwise we can put this stage behind us! (Alas, the specter of the contest will live on, because next is the school contest, then the area contest, then prefectural contest...assuming our students get that far, of course.) Once we've picked out two kids to represent our whole school in the area contest, apparently Kristin and I will be spending a LOT of time at lunch and after school prepping them. And I mean a LOT. Ah, well. C'est la vie!
In other news, I just noticed that the decently young music teacher that sits across from Kristin is wearing a pastel pink sweater vest today. Tee hee!
The next big thing on our plates is an event called SELHi (Super English Learning Highschool) Open Class. Since we are one of the aforementioned SELHis, we have to have an open-house school on a Saturday for teachers from other schools and representatives from the Kyoto Prefectural Board of Education to come and observe our classes. It's a little nerve-wracking, especially since in I and Kristin's cases they'll be observing our most difficult and recalcitrant students. (Figures.)
Showing posts with label karaoke. Show all posts
Showing posts with label karaoke. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Slam dunk!
My presentation went really well. Most of my feedback was along the lines of, "You've pretty much got it. You'll do fine." Boy, I hope they're right!
Moreover, the seminar was kind of fun. We got to pretend to be students in each others' lesson presentations, and I luckily got seated next to Sean in all the workshops and lectures! I swear, that kid is a trip. We were having a grand old time. Plus, one of the two recontracting JETs that worked with me and Sean on our lesson plans was this amazingly energetic and entertaining individual named Mark Miller, this big black Canadian guy with boundless enthusiasm.
After the Tuesday session, a group of us went and got kaitenzushi in Sanjo, and then explored a giant arcade for awhile. (In our business clothes.) After Wednesday's session, which ended at noonish, I grabbed lunch with Liz, Joanna, and Mike, and we took a turn through the Imperial Gardens. (Though they're really more like a park than real gardens. Still nice, though!)
There were plans for karaoke in the evening, so I wandered back to Sanjo to kill time until people were done with their various errands (or for the unlucky city kids who had to go back to school, until they got off from work). Funnily enough, I ran into Phil, Neil, and Alex Ma at the Sanjo Book-off (a really large used book chain), so we wandered around together. After awhile Neil went home and Alex went to Sean's for a bit, so Phil and I just shopped around Sanjo and grabbed dinner for several hours until it was karaoke time. I bought several things, including: a pair of earrings, two more punny stamps, a book about post-atom bomb Nagasaki, a Gackt CD, and some really helpful looking kanji flashcards.
At 8ish Phil and I finally met up with the gang and headed to a nearby karaoke place. Said gang consisted of us, Sean, Alex, Alex, Mike, Mike's friend TJ, Amy (our prefectural advisor), and Amy's fiancee Chris. Much silliness, perhaps most notably "Total Eclipse of the Heart." Anyway, we had a fun time, and a nice end to the Kyoto Seminar.
Today is back to work, and finally some real productivity!
Moreover, the seminar was kind of fun. We got to pretend to be students in each others' lesson presentations, and I luckily got seated next to Sean in all the workshops and lectures! I swear, that kid is a trip. We were having a grand old time. Plus, one of the two recontracting JETs that worked with me and Sean on our lesson plans was this amazingly energetic and entertaining individual named Mark Miller, this big black Canadian guy with boundless enthusiasm.
After the Tuesday session, a group of us went and got kaitenzushi in Sanjo, and then explored a giant arcade for awhile. (In our business clothes.) After Wednesday's session, which ended at noonish, I grabbed lunch with Liz, Joanna, and Mike, and we took a turn through the Imperial Gardens. (Though they're really more like a park than real gardens. Still nice, though!)
There were plans for karaoke in the evening, so I wandered back to Sanjo to kill time until people were done with their various errands (or for the unlucky city kids who had to go back to school, until they got off from work). Funnily enough, I ran into Phil, Neil, and Alex Ma at the Sanjo Book-off (a really large used book chain), so we wandered around together. After awhile Neil went home and Alex went to Sean's for a bit, so Phil and I just shopped around Sanjo and grabbed dinner for several hours until it was karaoke time. I bought several things, including: a pair of earrings, two more punny stamps, a book about post-atom bomb Nagasaki, a Gackt CD, and some really helpful looking kanji flashcards.
At 8ish Phil and I finally met up with the gang and headed to a nearby karaoke place. Said gang consisted of us, Sean, Alex, Alex, Mike, Mike's friend TJ, Amy (our prefectural advisor), and Amy's fiancee Chris. Much silliness, perhaps most notably "Total Eclipse of the Heart." Anyway, we had a fun time, and a nice end to the Kyoto Seminar.
Today is back to work, and finally some real productivity!
Friday, August 8, 2008
Kyoto Orientation
Was largely a success. Much cozier that Tokyo Orientation, having, oh...17 or 18 people, as opposed to 1000. Also, the information sessions tended to be less, shall we say, sleepy.
Upon arrival Wednesday we checked into our rooms and had a brief meeting about how the orientation would proceed, and then that was it. One large group went out to dinner, but I opted to go on a shopping expedition with Nelis, Lerato (the sweet South African girl who lives in Arashiyama) and my orientation roommate, Elizabeth. We headed via subway to the same shopping district Lerato and I had been to together for kaitenzushi with our respective predecessors, at Sanjo. There is a whole set of roofed shopping arcades; a whole network of streets, really.
The excursion was kind of fun, but there were a few downsides. A) On our way to the subway station, we got caught in a massive, MASSIVE downpour. By the time we finally reached the underground (which was some way off), we were all wet to the skin. B) Elizabeth, while a nice enough girl, is a little bit...socially unaware. I won't go into detail, but let's just say that by the end of the evening, all three of us were thoroughly frustrated with her. (Only I couldn't escape, since we shared a room!)
On the upside, I did manage to pick up a shiny new camera, as my dear old Charlie outright refused to take any pictures in Tokyo. It even matches my phone! *geek out*
On Thursday we had time-consuming welcome and appointment ceremonies, some decently useful lectures, and this time, I elected to go out with the main group, while Nelis and Lerato escaped on their own to try and buy laptops, and Elizabeth (who is evidently a picky eater) elected to just hang out by herself.
So about fifteen of us, plus prefectural supervisors, all piled down to an izakaya, where we spent a good two or two and a half hours just eating and chatting! I really like the prefectural JETs here in Kyoto, and am so glad I got the chance to bond with them! We had so much fun!
In fact, afterwards, my new pal Phil (who is from Boulder, CO, and is now posted in Kameoka, just a few stops from my town) suggested that we go do some karaoke! I was game, so we grabbed anyone who wanted to come, and headed out! The party ended up as myself, Phil, and five other guys, all of us piling into a subway train back to Sanjo. (It's the place to be, if you hadn't guessed.)
The other five guys were: Alex (from NY/LA), more different Alex (from Illinois), Sean, Mike, and Neil (who I met in Tokyo). They were all super nice and fun to hang out with, and I was really glad I decided to tag along. We sort of haphazardly exchanged contact information; I'll be sure to get it in more detail at our next seminar, in two weeks!
After singing such classics as Aerosmith, Metallica, 3 Doors Down, Soft Cell, Journey, and the Spice Girls, we managed to make it back to the Kyoto Rubino Hotel (our accommodations) in one piece, and all split off to bed. I had a bit of trouble, seeing as Elizabeth had gone to bed and turned out all the lights (ignoring the same courtesy of a lighted room that I had given her the night before), but at length I got into pajamas and off to dream land.
This morning was something of an early day, and it was all I could do to get up, showered, packed, and breakfasted before our 8:45 round up. We had a few more information sessions, this time put on by current JETs, and at last were released. Some people had to go back to work, but some of us luckier ones decided to make the most of our trip into town! I, Nelis, and Lerato were joined by Phil, his (and our) neighbor in Kameoka, Liz, and a blonde named Kate. We grabbed a quick convenience store lunch and then went to see Nijo Castle! (Or, Nijo-jo.)
I'd actually been to the castle before with my host parents when I studied abroad, but it was still amazing. (And I think there were a few bits I missed the first time?) Anyway, I took lots of pictures which will get posted someday soon.
After that, it was just the long ride home, and an afternoon trying to recover. We were all exhausted by the time we got back! Still, not a bad trip at all!
karaoke: Yes, this originated in Japan. In Japanese, it literally means "empty orchestra." Also, in Japan, you can usually go to an establishment of "karaoke boxes," which means you and your friends get a private room and two microphones with which to sing, so the rest of humanity doesn't have to be subjected.
Upon arrival Wednesday we checked into our rooms and had a brief meeting about how the orientation would proceed, and then that was it. One large group went out to dinner, but I opted to go on a shopping expedition with Nelis, Lerato (the sweet South African girl who lives in Arashiyama) and my orientation roommate, Elizabeth. We headed via subway to the same shopping district Lerato and I had been to together for kaitenzushi with our respective predecessors, at Sanjo. There is a whole set of roofed shopping arcades; a whole network of streets, really.
The excursion was kind of fun, but there were a few downsides. A) On our way to the subway station, we got caught in a massive, MASSIVE downpour. By the time we finally reached the underground (which was some way off), we were all wet to the skin. B) Elizabeth, while a nice enough girl, is a little bit...socially unaware. I won't go into detail, but let's just say that by the end of the evening, all three of us were thoroughly frustrated with her. (Only I couldn't escape, since we shared a room!)
On the upside, I did manage to pick up a shiny new camera, as my dear old Charlie outright refused to take any pictures in Tokyo. It even matches my phone! *geek out*
On Thursday we had time-consuming welcome and appointment ceremonies, some decently useful lectures, and this time, I elected to go out with the main group, while Nelis and Lerato escaped on their own to try and buy laptops, and Elizabeth (who is evidently a picky eater) elected to just hang out by herself.
So about fifteen of us, plus prefectural supervisors, all piled down to an izakaya, where we spent a good two or two and a half hours just eating and chatting! I really like the prefectural JETs here in Kyoto, and am so glad I got the chance to bond with them! We had so much fun!
In fact, afterwards, my new pal Phil (who is from Boulder, CO, and is now posted in Kameoka, just a few stops from my town) suggested that we go do some karaoke! I was game, so we grabbed anyone who wanted to come, and headed out! The party ended up as myself, Phil, and five other guys, all of us piling into a subway train back to Sanjo. (It's the place to be, if you hadn't guessed.)
The other five guys were: Alex (from NY/LA), more different Alex (from Illinois), Sean, Mike, and Neil (who I met in Tokyo). They were all super nice and fun to hang out with, and I was really glad I decided to tag along. We sort of haphazardly exchanged contact information; I'll be sure to get it in more detail at our next seminar, in two weeks!
After singing such classics as Aerosmith, Metallica, 3 Doors Down, Soft Cell, Journey, and the Spice Girls, we managed to make it back to the Kyoto Rubino Hotel (our accommodations) in one piece, and all split off to bed. I had a bit of trouble, seeing as Elizabeth had gone to bed and turned out all the lights (ignoring the same courtesy of a lighted room that I had given her the night before), but at length I got into pajamas and off to dream land.
This morning was something of an early day, and it was all I could do to get up, showered, packed, and breakfasted before our 8:45 round up. We had a few more information sessions, this time put on by current JETs, and at last were released. Some people had to go back to work, but some of us luckier ones decided to make the most of our trip into town! I, Nelis, and Lerato were joined by Phil, his (and our) neighbor in Kameoka, Liz, and a blonde named Kate. We grabbed a quick convenience store lunch and then went to see Nijo Castle! (Or, Nijo-jo.)
I'd actually been to the castle before with my host parents when I studied abroad, but it was still amazing. (And I think there were a few bits I missed the first time?) Anyway, I took lots of pictures which will get posted someday soon.
After that, it was just the long ride home, and an afternoon trying to recover. We were all exhausted by the time we got back! Still, not a bad trip at all!
karaoke: Yes, this originated in Japan. In Japanese, it literally means "empty orchestra." Also, in Japan, you can usually go to an establishment of "karaoke boxes," which means you and your friends get a private room and two microphones with which to sing, so the rest of humanity doesn't have to be subjected.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Tokyo!
So. We're here! It was a long and grueling trip, but we made it. Somehow.
As I wrote out this story, I discovered that a lot of Japanese words had drifted in, which not everyone may be familiar. So, for your reading pleasure, all words in bold are defined at the end of the post. :P
Friday afternoon was the mandatory pre-departure orientation, after which Fig and I went with my parents to our last dinner in America: delicious Lebanese food at Mezza. Then it was all packing all the time at my house, with only a brief one and a half our interlude in which we stepped out to say goodbye to a bunch of my friends.
We packed until all hours. I took a brief thirty-minute power-nap at 3:30, and then took a shower and finished getting my biz together. We were out of my house by 5:30 (a.m.), and at the airport by 6.
Checking in didn't take long, so we spent a good two or two hours sitting at the gate with our group of sixtyish JETs, all just chatting about the trip. Two-hour plane ride to Detroit, a three hour layover, and lunch at a place called the Jose Cuervo Tequileria. Goodbye, Mexican food.
Then the exhausting and uncomfortable twelve hour trip to Narita airport. I sat between two other jets; a 27-year-old guy named Jacob, and a black chick named Christine. We chatted a bit, I did something like eleven crosswords, watched two episodes of Dexter on my laptop, and tried unsuccessfully to take a nap.
Finally, sleep-deprived and slightly crazed, we landed. Breezed with surprising ease through customs, picked up our luggage, and were escorted by a veritable fleet of current JETs to a bunch of buses. We shipped our big luggage on to our host organizations and took our carry-ons with us to the buses, which then loaded up and proceeded on the two-hour drive to our hotel in Tokyo.
The Keio Plaza Hotel is a four-star, super-fance building in the middle of Shinjuku, a popular district on the west of Tokyo. Our room is really nice, with all manner of amenities, from a heated toilet seat (that automatically runs water when you sit down...boy, did that surprise me), to free hairbrushes, toothbrushes, slippers, and more! (The slippers, of course, have already disappeared into our suitcases.)
My roommate turned out to be Briana, a girl from Atlanta whom I just happened to know already. (We got in touch over the Atlanta JET forums online, and went to dinner with John and two other guys in June.) After briefly settling in, we met Fig, John, our friend Mari Christmas from the orientation, and a couple other kids in the lobby. The whole massive group of us caravaned into the Shinjuku surrounds, seeking dinner. We settled on a quick and cheap noodle joint, where I got curry udon better than any I ever faked in the states. Mmmm!
Then back to the hotel, where Fig and I met a different girl named Mari, who was a friend of ours at Wittenberg, and happens to live just south of Tokyo in Yokohama City. We went to a nearby izakaya called Watami, and had a few drinks. I learned that "blue apple" and apple-mango are both delicious flavors. Mari kindly picked up the tab, as a dual-purpose "Welcome to Japan!" and "Thank you for always treating me in Ohio!" gesture.
At long last, we stumbled back to Keio and our beds. It was by then 11:30 here, which would be 10:30 a.m. Atlanta time. (Meaning that I had been more or less awake for almost 48 hours.) I and roommate Briana watched the last bit of a Mythbusters knock-off show, and then finally, sleep!
Today was lots of sitting around listening to people talk. We were shepherded into a decently sized rooms, and divided to sit amongst the other JETs in our prefecture. The chairs were really uncomfortable and really close together, so we were hot and our bottoms began to hurt very quickly. On the upside, many of the presenters were pretty funny, so at least the morning sessions were interesting.
Lunch was a fairly nice affair, apart from the somewhat unpleasant faux-beef made from soybeans, and I met a very nice French girl. She suggested, quite cleverly I thought, that when approached by some undesirable (read: desperate host), you simply reply in nonsense Japanese. Her example: "Nihongo o tabemasen!" ("I don't eat Japanese language!") That way, they really think you have no idea how to say anything. If you try English, on the other hand, they'll probably just try to speak to you in that. The other option being to speak in an entirely third language. Upon reflection, I was pleased to realize that I can probably say that I don't speak Japanese in Polish.
The afternoon session was less entertaining, though the panelist from South Africa was pretty adorable. Already I was getting sleepy, and on several occasions closed my eyes because they felt sore. At last we were released, and after stopping by the AJET Information Center and being bombarded with free objects and flyers, Fig and I wandered about in the Shinjuku streets for a bit. I bought a cute little pocket notebook to write down anything important, we ogled some cameras, and bought a snack of onigiri.
Dinner was a crowded sort of a reception, with a welcome toast and more meeting of the prefectural JETs. I've met several very nice people in Kyoto-fu so far: Neil from New York, a guy from Canada whose name I forget, Liz who may or may not be from Colorado, Crystal from...somewhere, a cute guy from Scotland who has a very nice accent, and Todd, the guy in charge of us newbies, who has gauged earrings and recently married his Japanese girlfriend. (Shout-out to Reid: Todd is from St. Louis, and we had a nice chat about Ft. Leonard Wood, and why it was smart to be an MP!)
After dinner we finally changed out of our business clothes, and Fig and I set off into Shinjuku to meet our friend Alicia from Wittenberg, who has been living in Tokyo for two or three years. We were supposed to meet her at the station. Of course, we didn't realize until we were out in the streets getting not-quite-lost that there are something like four different train stations nearby with "Shinjuku" in the name, and we didn't know which one Alicia would be waiting at. After wandering for thirtyish minutes and making a few educated guesses, though, we finally found her! It was great to see her, and she's looking good. Tokyo (and a Japanese boyfriend) have really treated Alicia well.
We wandered into Kabuki-cho for karaoke, which was much fun. I had my first takoyaki of the trip, which made me a very happy Anna, indeed. As we left, Alicia and I were waiting for Fig outside the bathroom, and two Japanese teenagers in a karaoke booth were squatting on the floor and staring at us through the glass door. So I waved, and they waved back in great excitement, much to my and Alicia's amusement.
Afterwards, we moseyed a bit farther and stopped in an arcade to take purikura. Turns out the first machine was broken and wouldn't print, which was too bad (those pictures were cute!), but we got to use a different machine for free, and they turned out pretty cute. Fig and I dropped Alicia off at the train station, made promises to get in touch again today, and headed back to the hotel. On the way we coincidentally acquired John Neal and a drunk guy, who was a new JET looking for the hotel. His name was James, I think, and he was from Melbourne, AU.
When I got back to my room, Briana was hanging out with a very nice black guy from London, named Deji. He also had a great accent (there are a lot of them here!), and the three of us talked until 1:30 a.m. about politics and racism and the media in the US and Britain.
And that's about all so far! More orientation today, to be reported on later. :)
curry udon: thick wheat noodles usually served in soup; in this case, a spicy curry sauce specific to Japan
izakaya: sort of a Japanese tapas bar, where you order little plates of snacks to go with your drinks
host: a decently attractive young man who works at a host bar, where his only job is to sit and flirt with female customers, making them feel attractive and convincing them to keep ordering drinks (to spend money at their establishment, not for any creepier reasons)
onigiri: rice balls wrapped in crunchy (and delicious!) seaweed, usually with some kind of protein-based filling in the middle
Kabuki-cho: an area of Tokyo that abuts Shinjuku, and is known for its abundance of host and karaoke bars
takoyaki: delicious, delicious balls of fried dough that contain a bit of octopus inside, and are topped with a tangy sauce (among my top three favorite Japanese foods, fo' sho'!)
purikura: little photobooths that print out photo stickers, which you can decorate in a fashion somewhere between photoshop and mario paint
As I wrote out this story, I discovered that a lot of Japanese words had drifted in, which not everyone may be familiar. So, for your reading pleasure, all words in bold are defined at the end of the post. :P
Friday afternoon was the mandatory pre-departure orientation, after which Fig and I went with my parents to our last dinner in America: delicious Lebanese food at Mezza. Then it was all packing all the time at my house, with only a brief one and a half our interlude in which we stepped out to say goodbye to a bunch of my friends.
We packed until all hours. I took a brief thirty-minute power-nap at 3:30, and then took a shower and finished getting my biz together. We were out of my house by 5:30 (a.m.), and at the airport by 6.
Checking in didn't take long, so we spent a good two or two hours sitting at the gate with our group of sixtyish JETs, all just chatting about the trip. Two-hour plane ride to Detroit, a three hour layover, and lunch at a place called the Jose Cuervo Tequileria. Goodbye, Mexican food.
Then the exhausting and uncomfortable twelve hour trip to Narita airport. I sat between two other jets; a 27-year-old guy named Jacob, and a black chick named Christine. We chatted a bit, I did something like eleven crosswords, watched two episodes of Dexter on my laptop, and tried unsuccessfully to take a nap.
Finally, sleep-deprived and slightly crazed, we landed. Breezed with surprising ease through customs, picked up our luggage, and were escorted by a veritable fleet of current JETs to a bunch of buses. We shipped our big luggage on to our host organizations and took our carry-ons with us to the buses, which then loaded up and proceeded on the two-hour drive to our hotel in Tokyo.
The Keio Plaza Hotel is a four-star, super-fance building in the middle of Shinjuku, a popular district on the west of Tokyo. Our room is really nice, with all manner of amenities, from a heated toilet seat (that automatically runs water when you sit down...boy, did that surprise me), to free hairbrushes, toothbrushes, slippers, and more! (The slippers, of course, have already disappeared into our suitcases.)
My roommate turned out to be Briana, a girl from Atlanta whom I just happened to know already. (We got in touch over the Atlanta JET forums online, and went to dinner with John and two other guys in June.) After briefly settling in, we met Fig, John, our friend Mari Christmas from the orientation, and a couple other kids in the lobby. The whole massive group of us caravaned into the Shinjuku surrounds, seeking dinner. We settled on a quick and cheap noodle joint, where I got curry udon better than any I ever faked in the states. Mmmm!
Then back to the hotel, where Fig and I met a different girl named Mari, who was a friend of ours at Wittenberg, and happens to live just south of Tokyo in Yokohama City. We went to a nearby izakaya called Watami, and had a few drinks. I learned that "blue apple" and apple-mango are both delicious flavors. Mari kindly picked up the tab, as a dual-purpose "Welcome to Japan!" and "Thank you for always treating me in Ohio!" gesture.
At long last, we stumbled back to Keio and our beds. It was by then 11:30 here, which would be 10:30 a.m. Atlanta time. (Meaning that I had been more or less awake for almost 48 hours.) I and roommate Briana watched the last bit of a Mythbusters knock-off show, and then finally, sleep!
Today was lots of sitting around listening to people talk. We were shepherded into a decently sized rooms, and divided to sit amongst the other JETs in our prefecture. The chairs were really uncomfortable and really close together, so we were hot and our bottoms began to hurt very quickly. On the upside, many of the presenters were pretty funny, so at least the morning sessions were interesting.
Lunch was a fairly nice affair, apart from the somewhat unpleasant faux-beef made from soybeans, and I met a very nice French girl. She suggested, quite cleverly I thought, that when approached by some undesirable (read: desperate host), you simply reply in nonsense Japanese. Her example: "Nihongo o tabemasen!" ("I don't eat Japanese language!") That way, they really think you have no idea how to say anything. If you try English, on the other hand, they'll probably just try to speak to you in that. The other option being to speak in an entirely third language. Upon reflection, I was pleased to realize that I can probably say that I don't speak Japanese in Polish.
The afternoon session was less entertaining, though the panelist from South Africa was pretty adorable. Already I was getting sleepy, and on several occasions closed my eyes because they felt sore. At last we were released, and after stopping by the AJET Information Center and being bombarded with free objects and flyers, Fig and I wandered about in the Shinjuku streets for a bit. I bought a cute little pocket notebook to write down anything important, we ogled some cameras, and bought a snack of onigiri.
Dinner was a crowded sort of a reception, with a welcome toast and more meeting of the prefectural JETs. I've met several very nice people in Kyoto-fu so far: Neil from New York, a guy from Canada whose name I forget, Liz who may or may not be from Colorado, Crystal from...somewhere, a cute guy from Scotland who has a very nice accent, and Todd, the guy in charge of us newbies, who has gauged earrings and recently married his Japanese girlfriend. (Shout-out to Reid: Todd is from St. Louis, and we had a nice chat about Ft. Leonard Wood, and why it was smart to be an MP!)
After dinner we finally changed out of our business clothes, and Fig and I set off into Shinjuku to meet our friend Alicia from Wittenberg, who has been living in Tokyo for two or three years. We were supposed to meet her at the station. Of course, we didn't realize until we were out in the streets getting not-quite-lost that there are something like four different train stations nearby with "Shinjuku" in the name, and we didn't know which one Alicia would be waiting at. After wandering for thirtyish minutes and making a few educated guesses, though, we finally found her! It was great to see her, and she's looking good. Tokyo (and a Japanese boyfriend) have really treated Alicia well.
We wandered into Kabuki-cho for karaoke, which was much fun. I had my first takoyaki of the trip, which made me a very happy Anna, indeed. As we left, Alicia and I were waiting for Fig outside the bathroom, and two Japanese teenagers in a karaoke booth were squatting on the floor and staring at us through the glass door. So I waved, and they waved back in great excitement, much to my and Alicia's amusement.
Afterwards, we moseyed a bit farther and stopped in an arcade to take purikura. Turns out the first machine was broken and wouldn't print, which was too bad (those pictures were cute!), but we got to use a different machine for free, and they turned out pretty cute. Fig and I dropped Alicia off at the train station, made promises to get in touch again today, and headed back to the hotel. On the way we coincidentally acquired John Neal and a drunk guy, who was a new JET looking for the hotel. His name was James, I think, and he was from Melbourne, AU.
When I got back to my room, Briana was hanging out with a very nice black guy from London, named Deji. He also had a great accent (there are a lot of them here!), and the three of us talked until 1:30 a.m. about politics and racism and the media in the US and Britain.
And that's about all so far! More orientation today, to be reported on later. :)
curry udon: thick wheat noodles usually served in soup; in this case, a spicy curry sauce specific to Japan
izakaya: sort of a Japanese tapas bar, where you order little plates of snacks to go with your drinks
host: a decently attractive young man who works at a host bar, where his only job is to sit and flirt with female customers, making them feel attractive and convincing them to keep ordering drinks (to spend money at their establishment, not for any creepier reasons)
onigiri: rice balls wrapped in crunchy (and delicious!) seaweed, usually with some kind of protein-based filling in the middle
Kabuki-cho: an area of Tokyo that abuts Shinjuku, and is known for its abundance of host and karaoke bars
takoyaki: delicious, delicious balls of fried dough that contain a bit of octopus inside, and are topped with a tangy sauce (among my top three favorite Japanese foods, fo' sho'!)
purikura: little photobooths that print out photo stickers, which you can decorate in a fashion somewhere between photoshop and mario paint
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