Adventures in Nagoya

So long, Farewell...

2011-09-20T05:50:00.000-07:00

I've come to a decision, guys. This whole blogging thing just isn't doing it for me. I don't know if any of you original readers are even still out there, but if you couldn't tell, I just can't seem to get myself motivated to get on here and tell you about our life in Japan. Perhaps that is because it hasn't really been "our life in Japan" for some time. It's just life. And my every day encounters just don't seem worthy of a blog any more.

That is not to say that my life is not chock full of excitement. I guess these days I am just more interested in telling you my stories through pictures. And those are all up for you to see on facebook.

And this way, everything is right there in one place. You've got my silly statuses, my crazy pictures, and if I do get the urge to tell you a story that won't fit into a status update, I will just write a note.

So, if you're still curious about our life in Japan, and the ending to this long adventure, keep up with my facebook page. I'll see you on there!

Goodbye, blog. It's been... an experience.

Another Summer Over

2011-09-05T22:21:00.000-07:00

I guess summer is over. It passed by without much notice this year. It was one of the few in my life during which I had no break. It made the summer less special, but it was still bearable. It just kind of happened passively this time around. There were a few bright spots (a lovely birthday celebration, a short trip to Kamakura and Tokyo, another trip to Nara and Kyoto, and a great day at the water park), but it was a much less eventful summer than I’m used to.

I did have some time off from school. I had to work for my company’s private English school and go into office days (where we sit around pretending that we are working, because no one actually gave us any work) and go to meetings, but the pace and work load was greatly reduced. I found myself with massive amounts of free time.

And now, suddenly, I am finding myself with even more. I recently got ousted from my Japanese class, because the only other student went back to Ireland. And the one private English student I had is moving to the Czech Republic in a few days, so I won’t have to pull any more late nights after work or early Saturday mornings. And a medical condition that was sending me to the doctor’s office twice a month has cleared up, too! All of my obligations are magically melting away, and I’m loving it.

Now that I can just go home 99% of the time after work, I am much less stressed out. With fewer obligations, I’m enjoying just about everything more. Even chores don’t seem as tedious as they used to.
At the moment, I’m quite content. I am still waiting to hear whether or not I got into graduate school at University of Georgia. After that, I’ll have plenty of scholarship applications to occupy my time. Until then, there’s not a lot on my plate, and I’m going to enjoy it to the fullest!

I'm not like most Americans.

2011-06-27T22:15:00.000-07:00

One of my teachers and I had a strange conversation today. She told me she wanted to tell me something, but that she was afraid it might be too personal. She got a little nervous, and then admitted, "I've been thinking that you are probably from the suburbs. Is that right?"

"Well, yes. I grew up in seven different states, and I lived in a few bigger cities, but for the most part, I did grow up in the suburbs. Why do you mention it?"

"Well, I was noticing your personality is not like most Americans. You aren't as aggressive as typical Americans, and you're much quieter."

I'm not sure how this distinguishes me as a former suburbanite, but she did successfully identify my origins. She also said that I was easy going. A few months ago, I would have had to disagree, but I'm glad that my recent attempt to live in the present and stop worrying about the future and how little control over it I have has become evident to people I don't even express myself to very often.

This has been a very good year thus far, and I am looking forward to the rest of my final year in Japan.

You Get What You Wish For

2011-06-11T23:20:00.000-07:00

At the beginning of this week, I was feeling a bit tired, so I thought to myself, "I would never complain if forced to spend a week in bed because of some sickness. I would relish the chance to catch up on books and movies and such." Well, Friday, I finally succumbed to the sickness that had been laying dormant in my body since about Tuesday.

I somehow (barely) made it through the day at school. After a long, tedious journey to the doctor's, my suspicions of strep throat were confirmed. The doctor prescribed a variety of medicines, lots of vitamin C, and bed rest. Having recently had a change of heart about the marvels of modern medicine, I obediently took my pills, drank cups upon cups of o.j., and laid in bed as soon as I got home.

That was Friday night. I woke up Saturday morning feeling like even more of a zombie than I had the day before. I knew what I should do: spend the day in bed. Easy. Or so I thought. After about 5 hours of reading, watching, and listening to various things, I wanted nothing more to leave my bed. I wanted the energy to walk around, go somewhere, do something. I was even tempted to do the dishes. But when I stood up to walk to the bathroom, I realized that I was not yet ready for long bouts of standing.

Now, it is mid-day Sunday, and though I'm feeling more alive, I still can't spend great amounts of time on my feet. I can't WAIT to feel better. I just want to do normal things like stand or walk or make my own meals. But I'm really appreciating the fact that I have a lovely husband to take over the cooking duties. Though he won't tell me why his pancakes were twelve times better than mine.

Ohisashiburi!

2011-05-14T21:17:00.000-07:00

That means "Long time, no see," basically.

If you read my last post, you could probably tell that I wasn't in the most comfortable of places with my life in Japan. Hence, the 4 month gap in posts. (Well, most of that could be blamed on my America trip, which I will refrain from describing in detail here, since I saw most of my faithful readers. You can get the rest of the story by looking through the vast quantity of pictures from my trip.)

Since I last checked in in February, loads have happened. First and foremost, I finished my first year as an AET at my school. Every single student wrote me a goodbye note. I was impressed by certain students' English, and felt great pride. Other students, however, were obviously not paying attention during my intriguing lessons. I can tell, because these are some of the greatest comments I lifted from my notes:
"I was funed."
"A day in a week English class in game on really happy."
"Thank you for Dana."
"Dana is legend."
"I can't get you out of my mind."
"You from my heart forever with you."
"Your classes are my treasure."
"Why don't you live with me?"
"Your smile is saved the world. Rome was not built in a day."
"Became you're cute."
"You're usually cute."
"We are lion class."
"From now on, fine."

It was sad saying goodbye to my students, but I had a lot of fun working in my company's head office with my co-worker and now great friend, Kiyomi. We worked with our company's head of curriculum to create a brand new curriculum for a top secret future English school. It was great experience.

After a month and a half of that, I got to spend 5 weeks in America! So much fun. I'm so glad I got to see so many dear friends and have such great adventures (and go shopping for the first time since last spring).

When I got back to Japan, I had a week off with Dustin before going back to work. He planned a lovely treasure hunt full of clues leading me to various special places around Nagoya. The day included a trip to the art museum, a festival at the first Japanese garden we visited in Japan, and the fanciest 7 course vegetarian meal I have ever had. It was a very romantic one-year anniversary date.

This coming week, I'll be starting at my new junior high school for my last year in Japan. I'm still in the application process, but the plan is to spend 3 semesters getting my masters of gifted education at University of Georgia in Athens, GA starting Fall 2012!

Never at Home

2011-02-06T23:09:00.000-08:00

There's a Japanese proverb I recently learned that roughly translates to, "Wherever you are, if you are there long enough, it will be your home."

I cannot accept this. I've lived in a lot of places. I've lived in 7 different states in the United States. Eventually, I came to think of each place as home; even Washington state, where I only lived for 9 months. I lived in London for less than 5 months and eventually, it felt like home. I repeated the process with positive results in Pau, France.

But over two and a half years after moving to Japan, I feel as much a foreigner as I did the day I arrived. Perhaps it has to do with the concept of "foreigner" to begin with. From the moment I got to Japan, I was labeled a "foreigner." It was one of the first words I knew in Japanese, because children would point me out to their parents on the street, and other foreigners I met referred to themselves as such. I know that it is not always meant to be an insult, but when it is hammered into your head day after day that you are a foreigner, it's not too hard to feel out of place.

No matter how hard I try, I will never fit in in Japan. I tried pretty hard for a while. I quieted my opinions and did things I didn't necessarily agree with just to keep the peace and try to blend in. In fact, every day, I participate in an education system that is fundamentally opposed to my beliefs. I have my own quiet rebellions, and I try to slip my own educational philosophy in when I get a chance. But I am reminded that I'm not Japanese almost every moment of every day.

It's gotten more and more difficult to live in Japan. I know that I signed up for another year of this of my own accord, but seeing it approach is scary. I'm so thankful I'll have a month and half back in the States to breathe and reacquaint myself with myself. I know I need to have one more year here before I start grad school. For one, I need to actually get into grad school, and I don't have the luxury of being unemployed while chasing that dream. And two, I want to spend one more year with my husband before we're torn apart for a short period of time while we pursue studies that require us to be in different countries.

Life is getting harder and harder as I become more and more of an adult. Like the Japanese say, I'm just going to have to がまん (put up with it). Luckily, I'll only ahve to put up with Japan for another 42 days before I'm basking in the L.A. and then Florida sun for a while!

A Few Things

2011-01-15T03:46:00.000-08:00

There are a few things that I've been doing lately that have been on my mind.

I've been rewatching Dawson's Creek. I watched a few episodes here and there from the first few seasons as a pre-teen. But my vocabulary was no match for the show's teen cast back then. Now that I can understand what it is they are talking about, I have come to the conclusion that it's a very deep and interesting show. Glad I gave it another shot.

I've also been reading The Millennium Series (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, etc.). I just finished the last published book, and I must sing their praises. They are highly addicting and well worth a read. If you find satisfaction in seeing the bad guys get justice after hundreds of pages of suspense, they are exactly what you should read.

And lastly, I've been studying for the MAT. And nerdy nerd that I am, I am enjoying it. I love language, and these analogies are really tricky, but so interesting.

Japanese Calligraphy

2010-10-25T00:12:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, I took my first Japanese calligraphy class. I've been living in Japan for over two years now, and though I have partaken in many cultural traditions, shodo (Japanese calligraphy) is one that I've always wanted to try, but never had the chance to.

The moment I saw an ad for a shodo lesson in ENGLISH, I pounced. The class was to start at 3:00 and we were to meet in the teacher's apartment. I showed up just a wee bit early, as you are expected to do in Japan, and I was greeted by a posh, middle-aged Japanese woman with a smile on her face. And inside her very beautiful apartment was a table full of vases for ikebana (flower arranging) classes and lots and lots of paper for shodo. And I was the only one there.

She asked if I spoke Japanese, and when I told her I spoke a little, she began to speak in simple Japanese, and we continued to speak only Japanese for the next two hours. I didn't really have many preconceived notions about shodo. I had recently been told that it's a kind of meditation, so I thought the next two hours would be a peaceful break from the craziness that has been the rest of my life.

I sat down and was instructed to hold the brush straight up and in the middle of my breast bone and to keep my back straight, or the characters wouldn't look beautiful. I did this... most of the time, but it was surprisingly easy to forget about. And it was amazing how different the characters did look if I let my brush droop.

It was surprisingly hard work. I know how to write the characters for one through ten, and have since I was in the country for less than a year. But writing them in calligraphy was a whole new beast. I had to write each one over and over and over until I got it just right. She could tell if I accidently drew one stroke out of order. She could tell if I turned my brush at a 50 degree angle instead of a 45. It was tiring.

But we took lots of breaks and chatted amicably. It was a great Japanese conversation lesson! And once I got the hang of a certain character, I could see how it would someday be a type of meditation. But for now, I'm still concentrating with all my will. I will go back a few more times, so I can experience it a bit more in-depth, and so that I can also try out ikebana, but I did feel rather guilty at how much paper I was using. Every time I made a mistake and had to get a new paper, I was that much harder on myself. And even if my character was perfect, the teacher would draw the red circle that indicates perfection on a Japanese assignment right on top of my beauty, rendering it slightly useless as far as display goes. But like many other Japanese traditions, the point of shodo is not the product, but the act of doing it.

Oh, October!

2010-10-23T07:34:00.000-07:00

October has been... wow... just wow. It has been a roller coaster ride of a lifetime. It's been fun and hard and eye-opening and just... wow.

I have been working 10 hour days just to keep up with the demands of a certain coworker who wants to ensure that I understand she is my superior because she is a Japanese woman who has been working at our school for two years and will continue to work at our school long after I leave at the end of the school year. I guess I shouldn't have set such high standards for myself when I first arrived at my school, because now all of my coworkers think I'm more than capable of teaching all of the lessons we "co-teach" on my own. I'm glad to have all of this experience teaching, but man, I am doing A LOT of work for very little reward. Welcome to the real world, no?

Needless to say, I've been stressed. I tried lots of different de-stressors. I took baths, I talked and wrote out my feelings, I started doing meditation a lot more regularly and joined a meditation group, I even joined a local gym and started working out four times a week. I was feeling a lot more positive about my job and my life in Nagoya, but boy was I exhausted. What with the cleaning, cooking, working, and improving on my spiritual, mental, and physical health, I had pretty much zero free time. Dustin and I even sat down and worked out our schedules, so that we would be able to eat dinner together and see each other for a few hours of "date time" once a week. Dustin's been super-busy studying Japanese and watching lots of Gundam. ;)

Everything worked out for a few weeks. I had a schedule, I stuck to it minute by minute, and I was feeling better. Until I wasn't. One series of ailments followed the other. Migraines, potential kidney stones, and finally, the straw that broke the camel's back, a nasty flu. After the flu came, and stuck around for nearly a week, I finally took a day off from work. It was a much needed rest, but I was made to feel guilty about the day off, and will probably go into the office despite the 100 degree fever next time. There's no such thing as a substitute teacher in Japan (unless you are pregnant), so everyone else just has to pick up your slack when you are absent.

The flu and the day off happened last week. I was at half-steam this week, so I haven't gotten back on my schedule yet, but I now understand that I was pushing myself too hard, and can't do it all. There is just so much I feel I need to do and even more that I want to do, but there is no time for either. I don't know how to pack it all in, and it seems there isn't a lot I can drop. Dustin is trying his best to help with the cooking and cleaning, which is nice. But I know that something's got to give. And... I guess it's Japanese... for now. I know enough to communicate. And learning the volition form of "to buy" is really not one of my priorities right now. If I ever find myself with a spare 4 hours a week, I'll rejoin my class and the studying required to keep my head above water. But for now, I will just keep going with the level of Japanese I currently have and occasionally learn useful phrases from my students, such as "I feel like crap."

Despite the little bumps, October has been an amazingly awesome month. I am really growing to love Nagoya and all of the awesome people I've met here. I've seen so much amazing art at all of the museums in Nagoya this month. We went to a festival dressed in yukata, and I even got to take one home for myself. We've had a few game night/potlucks. I went on a meditation retreat in the woods with some really amazing people. I've been out to some fantastic restaurants, and even done a bit of karaoking. Dustin and I have had some lovely dates and we've had some great fun with new friends. It's been a busy, ridiculously fun month. But it was a bit expensive, and we're scraping the peanut butter jar on this our last weekend before pay day. Excepting my trip to Mexico to see my friend Sam get married, November is going to have to be much less eventful! And, let me tell you, I am a-okay with that. We've still got quite a bit of excitement planned for the remainder of October. But that'll have to wait for another time...

Culture Shocked

2010-09-13T21:20:00.000-07:00

I don't know how, but it's taken two years of living in Japan to fully feel the culture shock. Yes, my very first two months here were full of freak-outs and definite moments of "Where the hey am I?" After that initial mini-shock period, I fell into my routine and lived amongst the Japanese in moderate harmony... or so I thought.

Recently, I've been realizing more and more how little I fit in in Japan. Perhaps it's being an employee in the Japanese public school system and working closely every day with Japanese coworkers that has brought this to light. Of course, I've noticed the stares at my very presence, being a big, blonde foreigner, since the moment I stepped off the plane. But now, I'm realizing that I don't fit in ideologically as well.

During most monthly staff meetings, our boss presents us with some topic about Japanese life, society, or education system to discuss. It usually turns into a drawn-out debate that almost always comes down to this: One person says basically, "The way we do it in the West is better," and the other person (often Dustin) says, "Who's to say what 'best' is?" We've talked about the way bullying in Japan is accepted, because it ensures that the weird one is shown the only way to succeed is to be in harmony with the rest of society. We've debated the drill, drill, drill method of Japanese education as compared to the critical-thinking-heavy Western edcucation method. We've fought passionately about the positive and negative effects of Japan's preference for community versus individuality.

Every time we have these discussions, they are quite interesting and very eye-opening. Several of my co-workers have lived in Japan far longer than me and have many more insights than I have accumulated. One has even made his post-graduate work a focus on Japanese education, as compared to the West's system. I usually learn a lot or at least realize why I don't like some little aspect of Japan.

I know that my opinions cannot be separated from where I grew up, the ideals I was taught by my family and society, and the experiences I've had throughout my life. I know that I cannot possibly approach these issues from an unbiased point of view. I know that what I am about to say is not fair, but how could it possibly be?

I think that the way things are done in America is just a little better than the way things are done in Japan, for me at least. Whew, that was hard to say. I'm no xenophobe. I love other cultures. I love traveling. I'm so glad there are different countries with different philosophies, cuisines, sports, art scenes. The world would be terribly boring if there weren't.

But I prefer the individuality, free-thinking, and easy going West. I really appreciate the idea of harmony in a society, and even more so in a community, but I don't think it should come at the expense of the individual. America can never be as harmonious as Japan, because we are a nation of immigrants. We don't have a common culture and hertiage to hold us together. We will never feel like we're all in it together, and that's ok.

I also appreciate the strong work ethic the Japanese society instills in its citizens. People here are (for the most part) hard-working to the point of putting their career above all else. The Japanese are taught well how to be a good worker from the time they enter junior high school, and good workers they are. The Japanese are efficient and have achieved unbelievable successes in business and industry in a remarkably short period of time. They know how to work dilligently to achieve something amazing. BUT they often work so hard that their entire lives become their work, to the point that people are committing suicide when they lose their jobs, and people work to the point of exhaustion. The mental health system in Japan is virtually non-existant, but it's not hard to see that a large number of Japanese people are depressed. When work is all you have time for, it's not too surprising. The number of Japanese people passed out on the train before and after work lets you that this is an exhausted society. And having discussed this topic with some Japanese coworkers, I know the younger generation does not want to be a cog stuck in the machine with no choices, but not surprisingly, they feel like they don't have a choice.

So, I have come to terms with the fact that am not and never will be Japanese. And I've realized just why it is I haven't fallen in love with Japan the way Dustin has. I will never agree with so many Japanese ideals. And that is why I do not want to live here for the rest of my life, but I already knew that. I think I can stick it out for a little while and at least start some discussions about the differences until I leave.

Seoul-ful

2010-08-28T05:28:00.000-07:00

After my parents returned to the good ole U.S.A., I met up with Dustin in Seoul. We spent a week there visiting Brigitte and Ian, some dear friends from Springfield. We saw some temples, a palace, and even did a bit of relaxing.

On the first night, Brigitte and Ian took us out for some spicy Korean soup. We also tasted a Korean liquor that's made from another Korean liquor called makali, but I can't recall the name of this one. It was served up in a cute little honey pot. We also had our first of many many chances to try kimchi.

On day two, we conquered my To Do List in Seoul. We saw a bell ringing ceremony where there were a sampling of people in traditional Korean dress. We took a stroll along the river and ran into an international fair. We went to some interesting shops in an outdoor mall and stopped for a few coffee breaks.

My favorite part of the sightseeing was a trip to a temple that had three giant golden Buddhas. There were loads of Korean Buddhists going through a series of bows while a monk chanted. It would have been a peaceful experience if I hadn't felt like such a tourist on the outside looking in... and if I wasn't a bit preoccupied with the fact that I really had to pee and Korea is not too keen on public restrooms.

After a busy day of doing the tourist thing, we took it easy on Sunday. We met up with some of Brigitte's co-workers to see a Korean movie. I was quite pleased at the $6 price since movies in the theatre in Japan are closer to $16. The movie we saw is called Ajeossi (which means uncle in Korean, but is a word used for any middle aged man). In America, it's known as This Man, but in Korean its English title was The Man From Nowhere. It was an action flick, but I thought the cinematography was very good, and the story was suspenseful. I enjoyed it enough.

We watched another Korean movie that night with the same lead actor, but instead of a bad-ass murderer, he played a mentally-challenged (potential) murderer. This movie was called Mother. Its cinematography and storyline was even more amazing than This Man. Later in the week we watched a third Korean movie, Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance. It was at times disturbingly violent, but its cinematography and plot topped even Mother. I have concluded that there are a lot of interesting Korean films that most people probably don't know about, and they are well worth a look.

On Monday, we met up with my old roommate, Carolyn, who is teaching English in a town right outside of Seoul. We were meant to visit an arts festival, but the rain put a damper on that plan. Instead, we just strolled around the artsy district near Seoul's art college, Hongdik. There was interesting graffiti, loads of cool shops, and an abundance of tasty cafés. I had my first of two delicious burritos in Seoul. I wish they would bring Dos Tacos to Japan!

The next day, we met up with Brigitte for a burrito lunch at Dos Tacos for the second day, and I was equally as pleased. Dustin and I went back to Seoul National University area (where Brigitte and Ian live) to meet Ian and his friend for a game of Settlers of Catan at a nice little café where I had an orange marmalade tea. It was very sweet, but not nearly as sweet as the victory Ian must have felt after that intense game.

The next day, we slept in. I know that doesn't seem like a big deal, but it was the FIRST day of my 3 week vacation that I'd slept in. It was glorious. I didn't roll out of bed until 11! And when I did finally emerge, I was greeted with the most lovely of surprises. Ian and Brigitte had planned massages for Dustin and I at a Korean spa as a wedding gift. They were a little rougher than I'd have liked, but afterwards, my back felt divine. When the massages were finished, we got a chance to check out the various saunas and baths. Like the Japanese onsen, Korean baths are taken naked with others of the same sex. There were so many interesting baths to choose from. I went in the sea salt, massaging jets, ginseng, Japanese wood, extra hot, cold, and lavender ones. A very relaxing time.

After we'd spent a few hours at the spa, we met up with Brigitte and Ian for a farewell feast at an East Indian restaurant. Dustin and I love Indian food, but we aren't sure if we've ever been to an East Indian restaurant. It was different, but still tasty. After we stuffed ourselves silly, we went to a very cool lounge called Berlin. The hip art on the wall, great music, and interesting cocktails were reminiscent of the Mudlounge. It made me miss Springfield just a wee bit.

We had to say farewell to Brigitte at that point since she had work at 7:00 a.m. the next morning. Dustin, Ian, and I continued the night across the street in a hookah bar that was, surprisingly, playing electronica. Soon after Ian asked the server if he wouldn't mind turning the music down (we were the only ones in the bar at that point), the music suddenly changed to 90's pop. After a round of mint shisha and a cosmo that lasted hours, I was ready to head home. I didn't want my vacation to end, but I knew I had a big day of traveling ahead of me.

On our last day in Seoul, we went on a tour of Seoul National University, where Ian teaches English to Korean college students. The university is tucked amongst some mountains. The scenery is beautiful, but the walk is, well, a hike. This university has an abundance of stairs all around the campus just to get from building to building. We took quite the tour of campus, and it ended in the cafeteria, where I had my last spicy Korean meal.

It was a great week seeing old friends, but I was happy to get home to spend the last few days of vacation just doing nothing in my own apartment. Japan doesn't quite feel like home yet, but it was nice to come back after being away for so long. At least in Japan, I can understand about 25% of what people are saying to and about me.

As usual, you can check out more pictures by clicking the album link to the left. The album is "Seoul Searching."

Last Little Bits of my Japanese Holiday

2010-08-24T05:54:00.000-07:00

After we parted ways with Dustin in Kyoto, my parents and I headed to Hiroshima. Originally, we'd planned to see Hiroshima in a day and Miyajima (a little island near Hiroshima) on the next day. My dad was a wee bit tired of staying in the budget hotels I'd booked for us and fancied a nice hotel in Tokyo, so we cut the trip short to a mere two nights and one day in Hiroshima.

It turned out, Hiroshima was a bit smaller than I'd anticipated, and there wasn't too too much to see or do, so our new plan left just enough time for the basics. My parents were pretty tired of Japanese food, so we ate at Saizeriya, a Japanese fast food "Italian café," both nights we were in Hiroshima. It's one of my favorite restaurants in Japan, so there were no complaints from me.

For entertainment, we tried out a Spanish tapas bar, which was really chill and had excellent drinks, but my dad is a bar-hopper, and wanted to find an Irish pub. No luck there, but we did run into a karaoke bar. My parents were skeptical about singing alone in a tiny little room at first, but as soon as the Beatles' medley came on, they were in the zone. You can check out some pretty hilarious videos on facebook.

We did get a chance to go to Miyajima, too. We took the streetcar down to the port and hopped on the fairy to the tiny little island. Miyajima is famous for a tori gate that is off the shore. At low tide, you can walk out to the gate, but at high tide, it looks like the gate is floating in the middle of the sea. The whole island is said to have a holy aura, so the gate marks the entry to the island from the mainland. There were lots of wild deer on the island, too... and the world's biggest rice paddle.

We also went to the Peace Park and museum. We saw a building that has been left exactly how it was after the a-bomb exploded right above Hiroshima. It was shocking to see aerial photos of the complete and utter destruction after the bombing during WWII. There was literally nothing left of the town.

After Hiroshima, we headed to Tokyo. My dad footed the bill for the nicest hotel any of us has ever stayed at, the Hilton Tokyo in Shinjuku. It was swanky, but a lot less extravagant than I expected for a hotel that cost half my monthly rent (and rent's not cheap in Nagoya).

Dustin told my dad about all of the foreign bars in Roppongi. So, after an amazing meal of guac, margaritas, and other yummy Mexican food, I reluctantly hailed a cab and told the driver to take us to an Irish bar in Roppongi. The night did not start well when the bar tender told me a snake bite does not normally have cassis in it, so he only put in a splash. Well, when I was studying abroad in London, I distinctly remember a snake bite tasting much more like cassis than anything else, so... After being dragged to an "English pub" and a sports bar, I was more than ready to retire. Bar hopping is just not my thing.

The next day, I took my mom to Harajuku, where she bought me my first yukata (a summer kimono)! We saw some interesting sights and both got some cool and inexpensive goodies. We then feasted on falafel and hummus from Sinbad's. It was right next door to our hotel, so I just couldn't resist!

Later that night, I took my parents to the Ninja Akasaka restaurant. They put on quite a show. First, they took us down a dark and windy passage to complete the "ninja training." The food itself was a work of art with steam pouring mysteriously out of the pot and a fried piece of something in a ninja weapon shape. There was also a lot of "ninja magic," which of course I loved. Theme restaurants are so much fun!

It was a crazy busy trip, and I know I wore my parents out far more than I intended, but it was quite fun, and definitely an adventure to remember. There are loads of pictures of the trip in the albums to the left titled "insert witty album title here" and "Journey through Japan."

Just Call Me Ms. Tour Guide

2010-08-19T06:08:00.001-07:00

I picked up my parents last Thursday. We met Dustin in Nagoya, where we feasted on a smorgasbord of Japanese food, all of which my mom liked, some of which my dad stomached. We had an easy evening at home to help them transition to the Japanese lifestyle and time zone.

The next day, we started off running. Looking back, perhaps I should have slowed down the pace a bit more. Like I mentioned in my last post, I meticulously planned the week my parents were going to be here. I had us going from Narita airport to Yokohama, Yokohama to Nagoya, Nagoya to Kyoto, Kyoto to Hiroshima, and Hiroshima to Tokyo to Narita airport. We would spent a day or two in each place and see as much as we could. I feel tired even looking at it now.

We did a lot in Nagoya. First, we got a free tour from a little old man at Atsuta Shrine. He knew a lot about it, and wanted to tell us, so we followed him around. We also saw some Japanese gardens, attended the Nagoya Castle festival, met up with our one Japanese friend in Nagoya and her boyfriend, who is a coworker of ours, saw Osu Kannon temple, and visited the hundred-yen shop. I wore my parents out on the first day, and ended up dropping 90% of the proposed schedule on the second day. We spent more time in Mr. Donuts than I ever would have allowed had we been following my itinerary.

After Nagoya, we headed to Kyoto for the end of obon. A friend of mine from high school, John, lives near Osaka. Kyoto is between Osaka and Nagoya, so I suggested we meet up. John brought his girlfriend and the six of us set off for Kinkakuji, the Golden Temple. Dustin and I had seen this last year during our trip to Kyoto on Golden Week, but it’s such a sight that it’d be a shame to come all the way to Japan and then all the way to Kyoto and not see it.

I had spent hours planning what to do in each city, and booking cheap but not too cheap hotels, and planning the routes from the train stations to the hotels, and getting all these things printed out (Printing something in Japan is much more complicated than you could imagine.), BUT I hadn’t actually planned the exact routes to all of the places I wanted to visit. I knew Nagoya, so getting around there was no big deal. And I didn’t mind if it took me a little while to figure out where I was going when I was by myself, but with five other people in tow, I guess I should have planned better. We ended up taking the worst possible bus route to the Golden Temple. Two hours, two subway trains, and two buses later, we were there! It was a lot smaller than I’d remembered, but impressive nonetheless.

After that ordeal, and another 45 minute bus ride back to Kyoto Station, there was just enough time for an okonomiyaki (Japanese dish that’s somewhere between a cheese-less pizza and a pancake) lunch and a stroll on the Skywalk above Kyoto Station. It was good to see John and meet his girlfriend, but I wish we hadn’t wasted all that time being lost. The experience convinced my parents that their time and money was better spent on taxis. In the past week, I’ve taken more taxis than I have since I moved to Japan. I would feel posh if we weren’t being picked up at cheap hotels.

I booked a ryokan (traditional Japanese inn) for Kyoto, since Kyoto has such an old Japan flair. I wanted my parents to have the traditional Japanese travel experience. We checked in and prepared for our very Japanese meal. By that time, I’d discovered that the only Japanese food my dad was willing to eat was fried shrimp or shrimp tempura (which is also fried shrimp, but fried in a different batter). He’d nibbled on a few Japanese foods, but disliked them all. This dinner was going to be trouble. I knew before booking the ryokan that I wouldn’t like most of the food, but it’s a hotel experience unique to Japan, so I really wanted them to participate in it. I guess the fish in Florida is cooked too differently. I don’t think he ate a thing. Luckily, he’d gotten a back up meal from McDonald’s before we left Kyoto Station.

I did convince them to take a bath in the onsen… naked. They both had their respective baths all to themselves, since most of the other guests were at dinner, but at least they kind of sort of got that experience. I had lots of company when I took my bath. It was also my first summer dip in the onsen. More refreshing than I would have expected.

My dad was a bit put-off by the futon. I have to say, I was, too. They were less than amazing. Still, after I helped him put down all the layers, he agreed to give it a try. It was only for one night. Surprisingly, both he and my mom slept well and had no complaints the next day.

They were exhausted and wanted nothing more than a place to sit in the air conditioning and drink coffee. My mom had taken a spill down the stairs of the dimly-lit pedestrian bridge near our apartment a few nights earlier, so she was still recovering. She’s got quite a shiner. I convinced them to take a quick stroll down Sannen-zaka, an Edo-period street with all of these little antique, souvenir, and sweet shops. After about an hour there, they were even more exhausted. So, my parents went to Kyoto Station and chilled while Dustin and I strolled along the Philosopher’s Walk.

I had wanted so badly to go on the Philosopher’s Walk the last time we were in Kyoto, but we didn’t have time. It was worth the wait. After four crazy days showing my parents around Japan, a quiet walk down a peaceful path dotted with temples and shrines was exactly what I needed.

At the end of the Philosopher’s Walk was Ginkakuji, the Silver Temple. It was built by the grandson of the monk who’d built the Golden Temple. Surprisingly, it wasn’t silver. Both temples’ residents, when the temples were in operation, were of the Zen Buddhist sect. The Silver Temple was the epitome of zen. There was a great rock garden surrounding it. It was out in the middle of the forest. And if it weren’t for all of the tourists, it would have been oh so peaceful. A really nice place to be. Dustin and I had two hours by ourselves before we had to say goodbye until meeting up in South Korea, which will be a whole ‘nother vacation.

To be continued…

A Solo Journey

2010-08-19T05:58:00.000-07:00

My parents are visiting me in Japan. They left on Wednesday, August 11^th. When I looked at their flight itinerary, I focused in on August 11^th, and failed to notice that with the time change and the 14-hour flight, they were actually arriving on August 12^th. Oops.

So, the grand journey I’d planned through Japan with my parents begun with a bit of a hiccup. Instead of meeting my parents at the airport and exploring Yokohama together before heading to Nagoya, we’d be going straight to Nagoya. And I’d be exploring Yokohama on my own.

I had planned to go to Tokyo a day early, so I’d be in the area early on the day they arrived. I planned the trip with my parents meticulously, so I left my day in Tokyo a little more laid back. I’ve been to Tokyo about 4 times before, but there’s so much to do and see there.

This time, I decided to revisit places I’d been before with other people. I went to the Roppongi Hills Tower, because there was an art exhibit I wanted to see, Sensing Nature. Lucky for me, there was a dinosaur exhibit going on, too. It was about the transition from the dinosaur age to the triumph of mammals. I loved the giant plastic models. They looked just like children’s toy dinosaurs, only 20 times the size.

After my afternoon at the museum, I headed to this Lebanese restaurant Dustin and I had eaten at with his friend who lives in Tokyo. During that visit, I had the biggest craving for falafel, and after trying in vain to describe what falafel is to an unsuspecting tourist information employee, I finally found this restaurant using trusty Google Maps on the iPhone. Sinbad, the restaurant, is a bit pricier than any place where I’d normally dine, but boy was that falafel and hummus worth it. If only Tokyo had a Qdoba; then, it’d be the perfect city.

The next day, I headed over to Yokohama. I’d walked a lot in Tokyo, so I was a bit tired, but I had a long agenda in Yokohama, and I wasn’t going to miss a thing… or so I thought. I began the day looking for the famous Yokohama ferris wheel. It wasn’t too hard to find, since you can see it from nearly any point in the city. I started walking towards it, but as I approached it, I realized that it was rather sad and run-down looking. It was quite big, but not impressive enough to persuade me to ride it.

After the ferris wheel, I headed to Landmark Tower. I wanted to go up to see the view, because I’d read you can see all of Yokohama, much of Tokyo, and Mt. Fuji. Dustin swears I’ve seen Mt. Fuji, but if I did, the experience didn’t stick with me. The view from the top of Landmark Tower was quite similar to the one from the top of Roppongi Hills Tower. True, the Yokohama sights were closer and the Tokyo sights were farther. And the view of Mt. Fuji… non-existent. It was a foggy day on the mountain, so I couldn’t see it at all.

A symbol of Yokohama is a series of red brick warehouses that survived the fire bombs of WWII. I’d read that they were beautiful and historic and look exactly the same as they did when they were built about a hundred years ago. I’d also read that there were some quaint shops and cafés in the area. It’s not the first time Lonely Planet has misled me, and it probably won’t be the last, but boy was it different than I’d expected. There were two red brick warehouses alright. They looked historic enough from the outside, but the inside… Well, that was a mall. I don’t consider Lush a quaint shop. And a hamburger restaurant is not a café. I did find a cute Italian restaurant with the word “café” in its name, so I ate there and watched cute Japanese kids play in the biggest sandbox I’ve ever seen. They called it a beach, but it was basically a 15” x15” wooden container with sand in it, and some fountains nearby.

There was a very interesting art exhibit in one of the warehouses. Local artists submitted a selection of their works. The visitors to the exhibition got three poker chips. You could put a chip in a little tube for the three artists whose work you liked the most. It was hard to choose just three. I really enjoyed this artist’s green-tinted world view.

After that, I was pooped. I kept going and walked through Chinatown on the way to a park that was recommended to me by none other than Lonely Planet. It was right on the bay, so there was a nice view. I grabbed a mint-chocolate ice cream from the vending machine, snagged a bench, and failed to finish my ice cream before it melted all over my hands. After my sunburn became visible, I headed back to the hotel, and abandoned my plans for seeing a bit more of Yokohama.

It was lovely to have some time to myself. I haven’t had two solid days of “Dana time” since I can remember. It was a great bit of relaxation before the craziness that has been the rest of my vacation thus far. I enjoyed my first 48 hours alone, but by the 49^th, I was starting to miss Dustin a bit. Just a bit. I knew I was seeing him again soon, so I couldn’t miss him too much. I think I’ve gotten so used to having him around ALL the time that I get a little lonely without him. So, weekend getaways on my own are still a refreshing possibility. Traveling somewhere for 3 weeks by myself, like I did back when I was 21, probably out of the question.

Japanese Education System

2010-08-06T22:43:00.000-07:00

I've been working in the public school system since May, but I've only gotten a little glimpse of what the system looks like. During the last two weeks of endless meetings, I've learned a little more about the Japanese education system.

First of all, I do not know the full history of the Japanese public education system, so I am no expert. I can only repeat what has been told to me by coworkers who I assum did the proper research, and a few Japanese people with whom I have discussed their own experiences in the system.

After WWII, Japan overhauled their education system, and modeled it after America's school system. This little fact shocked me. What with the obligatory uniforms, fact-drilling, and the cold interactions between teachers and students, I could not see a strong connection between the two school systems. The most obvious difference between the two countries' schooling is the philosophy. In America, we aim to show students how to think critically to solve problems and figure out their world. Inquiry-based learning, the hot new educational philosophy when I was in university three years ago, goes so far as to say that students should be telling the teacher what they want to learn, and that's just what we should teach them. In Japan, the government has explicitly stated that the objective of the Japanese public school system is to create Japanese citizens who can function in Japanese society. In a nutshell, this means the Japanese government has determined a certain number of facts deemed important enough that everyone should know them. The teachers are armed with these facts, and expected to pour them into the brains of their little vessels.

Japanese education is not about learning critical thinking skills; it is about learning how to be Japanese. As Westerners who have grown up in a Western society that praises our Western ideals of individualism, free-thinking, and creativity, we look at that philosophy and declare, "By god, those poor robotic people." This was my first inclination as well. But after a few healthy debates with co-workers, I came to realize how nationalistic that opinion is. Just because I grew up in a society that values the individual over the group does not mean that moral system is the best one for all people. It has worked moderately well for America, but Japan has valued harmony for far longer than America has been in existence. And it's worked for them.

As an American, I feel a sense of sadness that these kids aren't taught to think for themselves at school, but by no means are the Japanese un-creative. Have you seen any anime or manga lately? They are certainly innovative. They've got the most advanced robotics in the world. They must be doing something right. Perhaps they aren't learning the crucial critical thinking skills they need at school, but they are learning them somewhere.

It is a shame that high school kids in their last semester of schooling drop out of academic life to study endless hours of college entrance exam test materials. And only 1/4 of those high school seniors will pass the test to get into their university of choice. And that vast majority of high school seniors (the ones who failed) will spend the next year or two studying to take that test again. Many of them will commit suicide when they don't pass the test, because to them, what they've worked for their whole lives, a coveted slot at the university all of the males from their family have attended, cannot be achieved. And those who do go on to college, will likely not learn a thing. They will skip most of their classes, having a friend sign their name on the attendance sheet in the lecture hall. They will spend their four years of college partying and relaxing, and they will still pass college with an excellent GPA, despite having barely studied. They will do this without guilt, because they know that as soon as they graduate and find a job, the rest of their life will be devoted to that company. They will be overworked and have no social life outside of late nights drinking with the boss. Between six years of being overworked in junior high and high school and the fifty years they spend working themselves to the bone for their company, the four years in college are probably their only vacation.

Not every Japanese person has the same experience. Many study quite diligently in university, because they are genuinely interested in the subject they've chosen to study. This is just the most common experience that has been described to me. I can't say whose education system is "better," but I am glad that I was educated in the U.S., and I think most people, even many Japanese, would agree that there is room for improvement in the Japanese public school system.

Lazy Days

2010-07-27T06:30:00.000-07:00

School has been out for about a week now. We've been having meetings and doing "office work," which entails going to a random Peppy classroom and "working." We have 7 hours to do whatever we please. So far, I have observed a lot of sleeping, a bit of basketball game watching, and the tiniest sliver of actual work being done. I haven't been able to be present at these office days for the full 7 hours though, because I am teaching lessons at various preschools.

I thought that these were preschools owned by our company, but apparently, our company is just contracted out to these normal everyday average preschools for bi-weekly lessons. I've been to three different schools and had three very different experiences. Before this week of craziness, I was keen on applying to work at some international preschools... Now, I'm not so sure.

I've taught preschool before. And I've been in many a kindergarten and 1st grade classroom... in the states. I loved these ages. They were my favorite! In a Missouri preschool, there's a limit to how many children one teacher can have in her care at one time. If they are under 5, one teacher can have up to 8 children. If they are over 5, one teacher can have 10 children in her care. Less than a year old, and one teacher can only be left with 4 at a time. I don't think those laws exist in Japan. And if they do, they are not well observed.

The first preschool I visited was very organized with groups of different aged children in different rooms. I taught 3 lessons to three different classes: the 2-3 year olds, the 3-almost 4 year olds, and the 4-5 year olds. In each class, there was one teacher looking after at least 20 preschoolers. AH! How do they do it all day every day? I was there to teach English for 30 minutes while they corralled the group and it was still pure madness. I don't think I could handle that many tiny people for an uninterrupted 8 hour day. There's at least 2 crying at any given point in the day... that alone could occupy your attention. But then you've got one trying to pull the stereo down by the chord and another playing a great tune on the piano and a few in corner taking off their clothes. Way too much for a single teacher. They must be truly remarkable (and remarkably underpaid) people.

The second preschool I visited was more of a home daycare. An older lady owns the daycare, which she probably lives above. She has one Japanese employee who speaks a dialect of English that most closes resembles a cynical surfer girl. When I arrived, I was surprised to see two babies already confined to cribs and left alone in a room while the owner talked to me in another part of the building. As children arrived, she dumped them into this room, which had a baby door and left them alone to play. As soon as she left me alone to write lesson plans, I took my work with me into the room where the children were, because I couldn't bare the thought that young children would be unsupervised at a daycare. I understand that children can't be observed 24 hours a day, but when a parent is paying someone to watch their children for 4-8 hours, it seems reasonable that they would expect someone to be with the kids.

At this daycare, children from about 8 months to 5 years old are all together in one medium sized room. There aren't too many kids. I would guess around twelve. During circle time, they all got these tiny little cushions to sit on, and amazingly, they all sat on them during the entire 30 minute circle time. I have got to learn how to do that! The teachers did not have to say a word to these (mostly) toddlers. They sat quietly and listened to my English lesson and very occasionally responded appropriately. Extremely adorable.

The last place I visited isn't exactly a preschool. It's more of a community center. Moms bring their kids here for any number of lessons. Obviously, my lesson was an English lesson. It was a cut and dry Peppy lesson, which brought back memories. The moms stayed and watched as five little kids had a really fun time in oversized chairs playing games that are meant to be played in a room twice the size with half the furniture. It was nice to interact with the parents. I don't ever see parents in my current job. They are way more grateful than their children, so it's nice to see that someone appreciates the effort you put into your work. Plus, it was a very enjoyable lesson filled with laughter. Those are the lessons I miss most from Peppy. Too bad I can't request an all preschool schedule.

Though the work load has been considerably lighter since Jr. High let out, it's been a tough week. Going to these preschools has made me realize I'm really not cut out for the Jr. High life. I'm much happier with younger kids. Anyone above 10 is intimidating. But I don't think I could handle a full-on Japanese preschool. Besides the crazy amount of kids left in one teacher's care, there's the language barrier. There's no way that could work. AND, every Japanese preschool teacher I've seen so far plays multiple songs on the piano and sings the words. Those are two things no preschooler would want me to do.

Soooo, I just don't know what to do next year. After the summer vacation ends, we're going to have to start thinking about whether or not we're going to renew our contracts as AETs. Dustin and I have already decided we should probably stay here another year since there still aren't loads of jobs back in the U.S. and he needs a few more chances at passing the Japanese proficiency test before he can decide whether applying to grad school in Japan or America is the right choice. I'm so torn between returning to Peppy and moving on and up to being a preschool teacher at an international school. I'm pretty sure I won't renew as an AET, but I just don't know whether or not to take the plunge into preschool here in Japan. I just don't know what I want for my future in Japan... I guess I've still got a few more months to decide. Time for a pros and cons list!

As for tomorrow, there'll be a visit to the fire station with one of the preschools. I could get used to that!

Is this supposed to be summer?

2010-07-12T05:27:00.000-07:00

A bit of a rant... so, they told me that June was the rainy season. Boy did it rain! But it's halfway into July and it is STILL rainy. No wonder Japan is full of unhappy people. Where the hey is the summer sun? One big draw of Nagoya was that it had far more sunny days per year than Nagaoka, but this is eerily similar to the last summer I spent in Japan. Merrrr...

And we left the windows open all day as we do everyday, because it's Japan and there's no need to worry about thieves, but there's great need to worry about stuffiness. So, we come home to find a very wet apartment. Apparently when it is both windy and rainy, our "wood" floors become soaked and turn a not so pretty color in funny looking patches. Hopefully, that will go away. And I hope my bunny slippers dry out and aren't too smelly to keep. I would miss them dearly.

Today was our last staff meeting of the first semester. First semester ends on Thursday and an endless array of staff meetings and other non-AET work goes on from there. I'm actually quite excited about the majority of the work. I'll be at a variety of kindergartens. It's right up my alley. I also get to spend a few days reading to children in a mall. Also right up my alley.

However, I was smacked with a six day work week... THIS week... only finding out about it today. Not a pleasant way to start your Monday. Summer break cannot come soon enough. I don't think I can ever work a job without summer break again!!!! How do you normal people do it?

Summertime Adventures

2010-07-09T18:27:00.001-07:00

We're still working in the daily grind, so it almost doesn't feel like it's really summer yet, but the heat reminds me that it is in fact the height of the season. We have finally managed to settle into our schedules, and though our weekends could probably better be utilized studying Japanese and exercising and all those wholesome things, we have been having some fun.

Last weekend, I had my 25th birthday. To celebrate, we went to see my favorite musical, The Phantom of the Opera... in Japanese. It was quite interesting. There was a different feel with all the characters as Japanese people, singing in Japanese, but it was very enjoyable. We even had a tiny, overpriced bottle of champagne during intermission.

After the show we had our first meal at a restaurant in a while, since we have virtually no money as a result of city taxes. I found this swanky looking Indian restaurant online, and made reservations for after the show. When we arrived, the restaurant was empty, and did not look nearly as fancy as the pictures I'd seen. Turns out I booked us a table at the smaller, toned down bistro. Luckily, they let us order off the proper restaurant's menu. So, we enjoyed some heavenly Indian food in a restaurant all to ourselves.

After such a lovely meal last weekend, we decided to go back to the eating out lifestyle, but only and absolutely only once a week. We also decided that it was best to give each other separate allowances, because as we have moved to this bigger city with more possibilities, we have realized that perhaps we don't value certain expenses equally. For instance, I'm not too keen on paying for Dustin's weekly trips to the arcade to play Lord of Vermillion or buying Lord of Vermillion playing cards and cases to put those playing cards into. And Dustin doesn't particularly want to support my book buying binges. So, we each have a monthly "Fun Money" allowance, and we can chose to spend that money however we want, separately or together.

Somehow, in the middle of the pay-month, Dustin's Fun Money has dwindled. To be fair, he did get me a watermelon, a bouquet of flowers, and a birthday card, but still... I think he's been making secret trips to the arcade. I still had most of mine before last night, but now I'm in the same boat as Dustin.

We decided to have another date night last night. On my birthday night, we'd passed a little kebab house that served falafel and had hookah, so we vowed to come back another time. That time ended up being Friday night. I was so looking forward to falafel! We decided to smoke the hookah first though.

When it came time to order, I asked the waitress for falafel. My heart dropped through my empty stomach when she said they didn't serve falafel anymore. But why would a kebab house that clearly has falafel on its sandwich board AND menu not serve falafel? She informed us that it isn't popular, so they don't serve it anymore. What?!?!? How can falafel not be popular? It is one of the most wonderful foods on this planet. Oh... because in Japanese you're advertising it as a vegetable hamburger... no wonder.

Thank God for the iPhone. I whipped mine out, searched for "falafel Nagoya" on Safari, found a nice Moroccan place called Casablanca, copy and pasted the address into Google Maps and realized we were only a 9 minute walk from the blessed falafel. In the end, we got to smoke our hookah, enjoy a nice walk on a beautiful night, and have a Moroccan feast of falafel, hummus, lentil salad, yummy homemade bread, some kind of sesame cake, and Moroccan mint tea. Delicious date, despite the offensive tea cozy.

p.s. I posted an album of a pictorial tour of our apartment on facebook. You can see it by clicking on the "Our Nagoya Apartment" link to the left. AND I added quite a few pictures to the "Summertime in Nagoya" album. I also started a blog about books I've read/am reading about Japan. I'm just starting out, so it's a bit sparse at the moment, but you can see the link to the left. And finally, I added a box of links to things I find on the internet that I share via Google Reader right below my Photos box. Whatever is in quotes below the link is what I have to say about it. Let me know if you're on Google Reader, too.

The Uniform Debate

2010-07-07T06:04:00.000-07:00

If you've ever seen even a clip from a Japanese anime show, most certainly it was set in a high school... and most certainly, those high school students were wearing uniforms. They are often, inexplicably, in the fashion of a sailor suit for the girls. No, Sailor Moon is not an exaggeration.

I remember going through the uniform debate in some civic minded high school class or another. Of course, as an American teenager who had just tried on individualism and decided she liked it very much, thank you, I couldn't fathom being forced to wear the same drab clothes every weekday. I didn't want to look like everyone else in my class. Back then, I wasn't nearly as keen on blending in as I've become after spending two years as the only white girl in a sea of Asians.

I wasn't always a uniform-hater. I actually had an extremely brief brush with uniforms. After my sister was the victim of a bit of bullying at school, my parents carted us off to the local private school for a tour. As an eight year old, I saw the uniforms worn by the upper-upper-middle class kids I saw at St. Something or Another as a symbol of the posh lifestyle I sometimes caught a glance of on TV. In the end, I'm glad my sister decided to stick it out in public school, and I got to see my best friend in 6th grade proudly wear her oversized Tweety Bird and Taz sweatshirts from Walmart to school everyday.

Anywho... back to Japan.... As the summer draws on and the heat causes much more frequent periods of zoning out in class, I've made some observations about uniforms, and I've decided I do not like them. Here is why:

1. A huge argument for uniforms is that they are an equalizer, putting all the kids, regardless of socioeconomic status, on the same level. False. You can still tell which kids are slightly neglected at home by their less-than-stark-white shirts (I've seen yellow to brown to flecked with green.), the name tags that have fallen off, the holey socks, and the unwashed hair.

2. It forces kids to grow up a little too fast. I noticed as the heat grows more and more intense, some of the boys are going "cool biz" and unbuttoning the top button of their button-down shirts. And under those shirts, I spy undershirts! But not just any undershirts; I see the super-amazing, but super-expensive cooling mesh undershirts that my own husband wears to keep cool in the summer months, but in a miniature size. These 12 year olds shouldn't have to worry about finding business wear to keep them cool. They should be able to wear shorts and a t-shirt to school and not run the risk of passing out from the sweltering heat.

3. It really, truly is boring. I'm no racist. I can see many many differences in the face of one Japanese person as compared to another. I recognize that not every Asian looks the same (Hey, that's a big step for about half of Americans.); however, once you put everyone in the same exact uniform, with the exact same hair color, with really similar hairstyles (especially the buzz cut popular for boys in the summer months), it is really hard to tell everyone apart. Of course there are other little details you can focus on, but looking out on that sea of navy, white, and black day after day gets really monotonous. Plus, you can't distinguish one of your 350 girls from another by the quirky t-shirts she probably wears in her free time. I don't get to see an important side of them.

So, I vote we scrap the whole uniform thing. You know those girls are insisting on multiple shopping trips a week anyhow. Who's going to see their new skirt if they can't put it on display at school?

Blowing Their Savings on Stationery

2010-06-30T02:55:00.000-07:00

When I was still teaching with Peppy, there was a section of one lesson that compared how various middle school students spent their pocket money. Not surprisingly, American teens tend to spent their allowance on sweets and snacks. Japanese teens tend to spend their money at the stationery store. "Really?" I thought, "Stationery? Who are they writing letters to?"

Now this was before I'd really explored the Japanese stationery store. I've had my fair share of love affairs with paper goods in other countries. When I studied in London, I found this amazing paper goods retailer on one of my many "adventures" (aka getting completely lost) and spent countless hours during the rest of my 4 months in the city trying (and failing) to find it again. In France, I spent over 50 euros the first time I went into a stationery store. The beautiful French notebooks, delicate sheets of paper, bright blue envelopes, and smooth gel pens were just so appealing. Back in an American superstore, I would always find myself drifting towards the school supply aisle no matter what I'd originally come into the store to buy. But in Japan, I've just had to ban myself from stationery stores altogether.

I've tried them a few times, but I always leave extremely disappointed. There's no way I can afford all of the things that I want. And I don't actually need any of it. And by the time I narrow my choice down to one or two things, I'm already having second thoughts about that other notebook I put back that I know I won't be able to enjoy the one I chose. See the thing about Japanese stationery stores is that not only do they have all these amazing notebooks, folders, organizing devices, and a million other things you didn't know could improve your office experience, IT'S ALL CUTE! Japan does cute like nowhere else, and I cannot resist. Going to the stationery store is not something I allow myself to do unless I legitimately need something, but when I do, boy is it a treat!

Anyhow... I can finally understand the real appeal of a stationery store to a moody teenager. In a Japanese junior high school, all of the girls wear the same plain white and navy sailor suit. All the boys wear the same boring white button-up shirt and black slacks. They all have the same slippers and the same socks. In my school, they aren't allowed to wear any kind of jewelry. They can only have natural hair colors, and no wild hair styles. There is very little you can do to distinguish yourself from your peers.

You can, however, put a cool pencil case on your desk. You can have a wacky pen. You can use an eraser shaped like a piece of pie. You can have the cutest notebook with a lazy bear named Rirakuma (relax bear). You can use a folder with your favorite band's picture on it. The things these kids buy at the stationery store are their way of expressing themselves.

And who do they write these letters to? Their friends of course... you know, the ones sitting right behind them, also not listening to your lesson on infinitives.

City Sounds

2010-06-26T03:49:00.000-07:00

Nagaoka was quiet. We lived at the corner of the two busiest streets in the city, and besides weekend nights, it was... quiet.

Nagoya has so many sounds: rain, police cars, motorcycles, political vans blaring their slogans, people shouting at their kids, cars honking their horns, old ladies gabbing with their friends, construction work on the warehouse nearby, and the two little boys who seem to be playing baseball in the street during every minute of the day.

p.s. I posted a new photo album of what we've been up to so far in Nagoya. Link is at the left: "Summertime in Nagoya."

You Mean I Have to Eat Lunch with Them???

2010-06-24T01:20:00.000-07:00

My boss thought it would be a good idea if all of the AETs (Assistant English Teachers) spent some quality time with the students at lunch. I spoke to my Japanese counterparts about this, and we decided to divide the weeks by grades. I would eat with the 2nd graders first, then the 3rd graders, and we'd save the 1st graders for last since they are monkeys (straight from the mouth of Takada Sensei).

Last week, I dined with the second graders. Now, my time with the third graders has come to an end. The two experiences were so different, I can hardly believe these kids are a mere year apart in age.

A little background info on lunch in Japanese schools: Usually, the lunchrooms are far too small to hold all of the students, so they eat in shifts. Our school happens to do shifts in a weekly rotation. Each week, a different grade eats in the lunchroom while the remaining students have lunch in their classrooms. They put their desks into groups and scarf down their lunch in 20 minutes. Some teachers make their students sit with the students that are seated around them; others let the students move their desks wherever they like in the room.

Eating with the third graders was terrifying. I felt like I was in junior high school again. The first awkward moment came with finding out where exactly I was supposed to be. I had to figure out which third grade classroom I was supposed to be in and who the homeroom teacher of that classroom was. Once I found out who was in charge of the class with whom I was eating that day, I had to ask them if it was ok to eat with their class (oh, the formalities of Japan). After getting the ok to join the class, I would walk into the classroom full of rambunctious teens, and suddenly, everyone was staring at me and my striped lunch bag in silence. I would then ask if it was ok to eat with them, and after they agreed to let me join them, I would stand awkwardly at the front of the classroom waiting for someone, anyone to ask me to sit with them. Usually, no one offered me a coveted spot in their lunch clique. Finally, I would ask the homeroom teacher who was absent, and take that seat. I would then sit down in that desk, a lone island in a sea of clumps of 4-6 desks. I would then wait nervously for some nearby collection of desks to ask me to join theirs. Luckily, someone always took pity and invited me in eventually.

After being let into some exclusive group or another, the real awkwardness began. I would pull out my lunch, open up my salad and proceed to stare at it intently as I ate. The girls (It was always girls who invited me in.) would be speaking whispered Japanese, which I had to assume was completely about me. In reality, it was probably only 75% about me. Most of what I heardwas along these lines, "What should I say?" "I don't know English." "How do you say yada yada in English?" "You ask a question." Though I would prefer to devote the 20 minutes to actually eating (20 minutes is barely enough time for me to finish my lunch in silence, much less while trying to hold a riveting conversation.), I try my hardest to engage my fellow diners in conversation. Usually, I start out by asking the girls who brought bentos, rather than buying school lunch, "Did you make your lunch yourself?," all the while knowing the answer will be, "No. Mother." It always is... I've asked about 30 girls so far, and every. single. one has responded in the same fashion. After exhausting all the interesting things one can say about lunches, the bell has usually rung and it's time to put the desks back into rows and get on with the day. Whew.

Now, second grade is a whole other animal. The second graders usually remember that I'm coming. The most excitable of the girls are waiting by the door for my arrival, and shout, "DANA!!! Sit here!" when I enter. They put my desk into place, and sometimes even double up on chairs, so I have a place to sit. When I pull out my lunch, they immediately take interest, and ask about every component of my lunchbox. I've created a near scandal in my junior high school with my carrots and peanut butter. There have been murmurs throughout the school about my strange dietary choices, and students now try to guess what I will pull out. I had to betray my own personal weirdness when an entire class interrogated me about my carrots and PB combo. "Does everyone in America eat raw carrots?" they asked. "Well, not everyone, but many people do." "Do many people in America eat raw carrots with peanut butter?" "Well... ummm... no... I don't think so." "Is it tasty?" "I think so." >< (disgusted face from the students)

Lunch is filled with an endless barrage of usually amusing questions, lots of giggling, and the occasional boy band calendar. The most famous boy band in Japan is called Arashi. Most junior high school girls have a favorite Arashi member. It would be smart of me to familiarize myself better with these Arashi members, because it seems to be the topic of choice for many of my second graders. When presented with a picture of Arashi and asked which one I liked, I chose the only one that didn't look like he himself could be in junior high, not knowing anything about him. The girls informed me he was the cool one. The owner of the picture then proclaimed her love for the one with orangish hair, and that started a conversation in Japanese I just couldn't follow.

When the bell rang while I was eating in the second grade classrooms, I would clean up, say my Goodbye's and Thank You's, and leave a room of girls saying, "Come back soon. Come again." and various other forms of those sentiments in English, Japanese, or a combination of the two. Eating with the second graders was nice.

I have no idea what eating with the first graders will be like. Most of them are 12, but you'd never know it. They remind me of the first graders in elementary school, who were 6, that I taught before moving to Japan. We'll see in a few weeks after the semester tests are done! Until then, I get a few days of eating my lunch alone at my desk. A few extremely rare moments to myself, yay! Let's just hope the janitor who sits across from me doesn't want to know the history of carrots and peanut butter in the U.S. We've already been through apples and peanut butter once before.

Being an adult is harder than I imagined...

2010-06-20T01:17:00.000-07:00

I know our generation is not the first who hasn't wanted to grow up, but I'd venture to say we're some of the worst Peter Pan wannabes. I don't fault any of my friends for staying in school until they are 30 or getting jobs that make them happy rather than make them money. I think it's a beautiful thing that people prefer to do what makes them smile rather than what makes them fit into others' idea of what a model citizen should be. I admire all of those people, but still, I've wanted to be a responsible adult with a solid job (that I loved) and someday a family.

But now that I have a reasonably well-paying job and the start of a family (just the husband, so far!), I'm finally realizing that adulthood is not all it's cracked up to be. I do like my job, but I also love my free time. Lately, however, free time has become quite the commodity. Last week, I had some kind of obligation after school every. single. day. Doctor appointments, dentist appointments, paying bills, mailing important documents, heading English Club, and attending Japanese lessons are just not my idea of relaxation. I know they are obligations that must be done, but must they be done every day?

Since Dustin and I are living abroad, we got an automatic 2 month extension on our taxes. So of course, we waited until June 13 to start them. We used the e-filing tool we found on the IRS website. We didn't know exactly which forms to fill out, but we researched online, and started the process. After myriad questions neither of us could answer and about two hours, we filled out the forms to the best of our abilities, hit the e-file button, and got an error message... urrrrgh. Luckily, we could print them out. Unluckily, we didn't have a printer. We got them printed out eventually, but it was quite the hassle. At least, I won't have to deal with taxes for another year, I thought.

And not two days later, we got our city tax bills. Now in America, you pay property tax if you own any property. So, if you are a renter, you don't pay property tax on your apartment; your landlord does. So those of us not quite financially secure enough to own property, don't have to fork over the big bucks. But in Japan, every single resident pays city taxes, instead of property taxes. Because of the timing of our arrival in Japan, we didn't have to pay city taxes the first year we were in Nagaoka. Boy, are we paying for it now. Apparently, Nagaoka thinks it's worth an extra $1,7000 a year in taxes (each) to live there. Oy! I hope (but doubt) Nagoya is cheaper.

So, Dustin and I are laying low for a while. There may be adventures in store, but they will have to be gratis. As much as it pains me, I have even agreed to give up my favorite treat, eating out. And that's pretty difficult since Nagoya is still new to us, and there are literally hundreds of restaurants that we haven't yet visited. And, I'm usually so exhausted by the time Friday night rolls around that eating out pretty much seems like the only option.

This weekend was pretty tame. It involved lots of home cooked Italian food and lots of Glee. There was a little bit of Japanese studying, but there should have been more. There was supposed to be a free French Jazz Festival by the port, but it was rained out... boo rainy season.

We're getting used to our new home. I can walk up the many many flights of stairs I must use daily without getting winded now. Riding the subway is like second nature. The rides are much shorter than the local train rides I was used to in Niigata, so the opportunity to read a book in a week or listen to all the NPR my heart desires is no longer there, but it's nice to have the whole city at your fingertips. Hopefully, we'll be in a position to explore it before we have to move away...

*I put up links to our wedding photos on the left, in case you aren't on facebook. I'll use this box to post links to any other photo albums I might make in the future, so check out the box when you visit to see if there are any new photos.

Never thought I' be a Jr. High School teacher, but...

2010-06-14T20:55:00.001-07:00

I've been teaching at my jr. high for about a month now. It has been one wild ride, but considering the good and the bad, I'd say it's been a success thus far. I have 20 classes of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade junior high school students. That translates to 7th, 8th, and 9th graders in the U.S. I teach each class once a week, with a varying degree of involvement in each class. I'm the lead teacher in most of my classes. However, the third graders are more concerned with learning the English they need to pass their high school entrance exams, so they get more grammar instruction, which needs to be in Japanese, which I obviously cannot do... so, I'm much more of an assistant in the majority of the third grade classes.

The introductions given to me by the students upon our first meetings set the tone for the following three weeks. All of the students had to stand up, and tell me their name and something they liked. For the third graders, I went a bit further and asked them what they didn't like as well. Most of the introductions went about like this, "I'm Yuki. I like baseball. I don't like math." There were a few that made me smile, such as "I'm Yusuke. I like beautiful girls. I don't like beautiful boys." and "I'm Ryo. I like you." There was about one student per class who came up with something witty, but most of the answers were pretty expected. I was happily surprised with how much English they already knew, but the students really like formulas where they can plug in the vocabulary they already know. One of the hardest things to get from a Japanese junior high school student is an original answer. They want choices. This I have learned well.

My classes have gone very well, for the most part. I play games, which keeps them engaged, but they are learning the English... or at least their performance on homework and quizzes says they are. Some of my classes have a little too much fun with the games and we've had to shut our doors and suffer in the heat for our fun. I've been left alone with a couple of classes, which was quite surprising, especially since no one told me I'd be teaching solo and there would have been a major language barrier had anything gone awry. Luckily, the classes were full of good kids and we somehow got each other to understand everything we were saying. Explaining "real person" (vs. character) was easily the hardest thing I've had to convey to a Japanese person since I arrived. But somehow, it all turned out okay.

The most difficult part of my job is fitting into the Japanese workplace. At my previous job at an eikaiwa, I was alone in a room with my students. Once a month, I met with my foriegn coworkers for a 2 hour meeting, and twice a year, I met with my Japanese coworkers. The only other interaction I had with my Japanese coworkers was weekly phone calls, notes written in a classroom communication book, and the occassional social situation. Being surrounded by Japanese coworkers all day is more difficult than I'd imagined. Though I'm trying very dilligently to study Japanese, I'm finding very little time for it in this new life. My level of Japanese is greatly inhibiting my ability to mingle with my coworkers. I speak with my Japanese counterparts (the English teachers) in broken English, but they are hard to track down, so when I do find them, I usually take the opportunity to discuss lesson plans. I have one middle-aged male coworker friend, who thinks my Japanese is better than it is, because I agree to most of what he says. We've talked about the World Cup and the Gulf Oil Spill, but I'm not sure exactly what about those things we discussed. He did tell me that Japanese society values harmony above all else, so I think that was a hint to try better to fit in. I guess I should really hunker down on that studying. I'm signing up for a Japaese Proficiency Test that I'll take in December, so hopefully that will be a bit of motivation.

The greater motivation is the thought that I might be able to invite my coworkers out for a drink after work and be ale to converse once we get there, or be able to discuss my lessons with my English teachers in Japanese. Somehow, despite the fact that we're all speaking English, things often get lost in translation with my English teacher counterparts. It's really frustrating to walk into a class thinking that you're going to read a passage aloud and introduce new vocabulary for ten minutes, only to find out once you're there that you're teaching the entire 50 minute period. Eeeek.

There are plenty of good things to counterbalance the bad. I get a kick out all of the kids asking if they can touch my hair, asking why I love my husband, or asking if I like them. The chorus of "かわいい" (cute) that follows me in the hall was funny at first, but I'm kind of over it. I wonder when they will be. If you ever want to feel like a celebrity, work at a junior high in Japan. I feel loved everyday.

Overall, it's very demanding, a lot of work, a bit scary at times, but extremely rewarding. It's challenging, but in a positive way. The good outweighs the bad. I laugh in every single class. The kids are having a blast learning English. I'm learning so much about teaching. It's not exactly what I dreamed I'd be doing with my teaching degree, but I'm ok here for a little while longer.

Finally settled?

2010-06-01T16:42:00.000-07:00

We are once more connected to the rest of the world through the internet. I can't believe we lived without it for a month! (Well, besides that one night in Dallas where we stayed up for hours on the internet, and all those times I used my phone to use a portion of the internet, and the many many times I could catch 5 minutes on the internet here or there at work...) The fact of the matter is, Dustin and I are internet junkies, so it was a bit weird to be without it. We still haven't seen the finale for Lost, which is killing me. I haven't kept up with the way too many web pages I'm used to reading daily. I haven't been downloading the podcasts that normally keep me entertained on my train rides. I haven't heard a lick of news in English. And, of course, I haven't been able to tell you all about our new life in Nagoya.

Things have been stressful to say the least. We shared a single futon on a bedframe that I believed would be coming with a mattress, but which showed up as just a bedframe. After four uncomfortable weeks on that single, worn out, very flat futon, we have a plush mattress! It was the final piece of putting our apartment in order. We went to Nitori (a Japanese version of IKEA) and purchased all of our accoutrements, so our apartment is super homey. I love love love it. I really liked our apartment in Nagaoka, but this one blows it out of the water. It's hard to leave the apartment on the weekends, because it's just so inviting (and I'm exhausted), but thus far, I have not spent a single entire day in the apartment. That might change now that we have a comfy mattress.

Moving to a new city requires lots of little errands. Being an adult is hard. There's so much to deal with. We haven't had a proper day off since returning from our honeymoon. Every "day off" has been filled with buying necessities for the apartment, going to the ward office to change our foreigner cards, spending hours at the post office trying to figure out how to get a money order in US dollars to renew my passport (to make my new name official), finding a new set of doctors, finding a new Japanese class, and on and on. We've even had to work on 2 of the 4 Saturdays!

The new jobs are quite different from our Peppy positions. We are now working in junior high schools (Dustin has two, and I have one.) as assistants to the Japanese teachers who teach the English classes. "Assistant" is a very relative term I have discovered. Perhaps I set the bar too high with my first lesson, but I have found that I am anything but an assistant in my classrooms. All of my teachers are giving me the full class period to teach by myself for almost all of my 20 classes, and I am expected to create between 3-5 original lessons with worksheets, games, and conversation activities each week. Oy! I'm happy that they trust my teaching style and have been enjoying my lessons enough to give me more responsibility than they initially intended, but boy is it hard work. I've been coming in early and leaving very late almost everyday, just to keep my head above water. Thus is the life of a teacher, but I didn't think I was a "real teacher" yet. I suppose this is excellent practice for when I get to teach elementary school in America... soon (fingers crossed).

I haven't had the time to explore the city too much, since I've spent every free moment taking care of little things here and there, but after tonight's dentist appointment (I have to finish up that root canal!), all of my little errands will be done for a while... until my new passport arrives, and I have to go around changing my name with a million places.

With a bike, it is much easier to explore. Dustin and I rode about an hour from our house into the main shopping area of Nagoya to get some office supplies this weekend (really exciting, no?). I still really want to explore my own ward, or neighborhood. There's a famous shrine almost literally outside my door, and there will be a festival there on Saturday, so that will be a great opportunity to see more of where I live. After that, there is just so much to see and do. I want to visit a million art museums and gardens. And there are special concerts, sumo tournaments, and other events to go to. I also want to give some of the Japanese cultural experiences that I didn't do in Nagaoka a try. There are so many classes on Saturday mornings that I want to join. Once we've paid off a little more of the wedding, maybe I will be able to learn tea cermony or Japanese calligraphy.

For now, we're laying low. We go to work, go to Japanese class once a week, and try to engage in free activities on the weekends. We are both amping up our Japanese studying. Dustin hopes to pass the test he tried for last December this coming December. I want to take the test to pass the level below his in December. We're both some what on track for that, but we'll need to stay diligent about our studying. Supposedly, we should have oodles of free time at our work in which to study, but I haven't seen that yet...

Hopefully, this weekend will involve one full day in our apartment! I really love Nagoya. I can't wait until we have the funds to better involve myself in all that it has to offer. We haven't connected to any groups yet, so I'm still waiting to make some good friends. I imagine if I get involved in things I'm interested in, that will lead to more natural friendships. I'm really excited to be living here. Nagoya holds a lot of possibility.

Almost Home

2010-05-08T22:33:00.000-07:00

My first post about my new life in my new home, Nagoya, is being written from a hotel bed in Dallas, TX. I'm currently in the midst of the longest stretch of travel I've ever experienced. We've just finished up a whirlwind two weeks of fun and excitement in the U.S. and Jamaica, and we're diving head first into our new jobs almost as soon as we arrive back in Japan. We left our resort in Jamaica at 9:00 a.m. today, and we've spent many many hours on planes, a couple of hours in Chicago O'Hare airport (I could totally live at Burrito Beach, by the way.), and a few blissful moments in this comfy bed at the Hilton right outside of Dallas-Fort Worth Airport. We only have a few more hours to rest up here before heading right back to the airport at 7:30 a.m. for our 14 hour flight to Tokyo, followed by a 2 hour train ride to Nagoya. All in all, we will have been traveling for almost two days straight...

BUT, it was worth it. We arrived back in Springfield, MO, the town where Dustin and I first met, six days before the wedding. Shortly there after, the madness ensued. My mom and I tackled the honeymoon shopping, as well as buying an entire wardrobe of grown-up clothes, since my new job requires "office attire," and I had about 2.5 outfits that fit that description. The rest of my "free time" was filled with wedding preparations. Thankfully, my amazing bridesmaids joined me on Wednesday and relieved so much of the pressure. With Dustin's family and my aunt helping, we somehow got everything done in time.

Somewhere in the midst of the craziness on Wednesday, I had a bridal shower. Bridal pictionary got a little questionable when my mom started making up clues... beauty shop? I had to chew a lot of gum, because I didn't know as much about Dustin as I should have. Samantha, Dustin's sister and our flower girl, suggested musical chairs, and some of the attendees got a bit too competitive. It was all fun and games, with some yummy food, especially the cupcakes. And my lovely bridesmaids gave me an awesome new camera. You can tell how much I love it by all the pictures I've taken with it in the past week and a half.

I also had a very nice bachelorette party on Thursday that included delicious Mexican food at Maria's, an almond margarita (It's better than it sounds.), some frozen goodies at Trop's, amazing Mudlounge martini's, and a bit of hookah to end the night. I wanted to confront the boys' bachelor party in the street á la West Side Story, but we amicably changed locations when they were ready for some Mudlounge and we were ready for some hookah. A good time was had by all.

On Friday, the bridesmaids and I put down our scissors for an hour or so, donned some big floppy hats and white gloves, and sipped on some tea and ate lemon tarts and finger sandwiches. We had a quaint little tea party, despite my very rude phone conversations with the limo driver who was confused about the time of my wedding the next day. Sorry, girls. It was great fun nonetheless.

We had a bit of a chaotic rehearsal, because we were counting on the weather to continue its trend of being sunny of May 1 and the day before. As the week of our wedding approached, however, the weather report was iffy. I checked the weather countless times each day, and watched the forecast go from 60% chance of thunderstorms to 40% chance of scattered showers. With fingers crossed, we planned to have the rehearsal at the garden where we wished to be married. As the time for the rehearsal approached, however, dark clouds burst open and all of Springfield was drenched. Dustin and I had kind of sort of talked about what the ceremony would be like if it was at the Doubletree, but neither of us was exactly clear on what would be going on. As the wedding party mingled in a meeting room, Dustin and I began to talk over the alternate ceremony. Dustin gave everyone instructions, but we were all confused. We went through the ceremony as if we were having it at the Doubletree, but by the time we finished that, there wasn't much time to go through the ceremony if we could have it in the garden. We talked about it briefly, but I left the rehearsal with a great deal of uncertainty. My job was pretty easy, so I just hoped everyone else knew theirs as well.

The rehearsal dinner was great. Dustin's dad made a sweet slideshow of the two of us. We also saw our proposal video for the first time. It was all very sentimental and gooey and highly appropriate for a rehearsal dinner. It was good to have everyone involved in the nitty gritty wedding planning in one room to have fun and relax before the big day.

I had planned to host a bridesmaids' slumber party where we watched Father of the Bride, Honeymoon in Vegas, and The Wedding Singer, but when we reached the hotel at 10:30 the night before the wedding, there were still so many little things to do. So, instead of relaxing in front of the tube, we glanced up from our crafting from time to time to see Nicholas Cage in an Elvis suit or Sarah Jessica Parker with those crazy 90's curls. After miraculously finished everything that had to be done, we were all too pooped for anymore movies. Katie and I tried to watched a bit of Father of the Bride, but I barely made it to the scene where Annie tells her parents she's engaged. It was for the better though... several nights of only 4 hours of sleep will lead to quite large circles under the eyes. Mine didn't need to be any bigger on my wedding day.

The morning of my wedding provided a few hours of relaxation before the true insanity began. The bridesmaids and I had a nice little morning at the spa, and I have to tell you, it was desperately needed. I could have used about four more of those. The spa was great, but after our morning of pampering, we had to get all dolled up. I ran down to check on the reception site before hopping in the shower, and of course, I was in full bridezilla mode. There were a dozen little details that no one would have noticed that I just didn't find perfect. Looking back on it, I see how unreasonable I was being, but just wait until your wedding day; something takes over, and if it's not exactly what you imagined, it's the pits. After yelling at my dad in front of the band, I was told to go away and take a shower, and I'm not sure what happened after that, but everything was fine in the end. Those girls are amazing!

The rest of the day is a blur at best. I know that I got ready and that it took all three bridesmaids to tie me into that dress. I know that we were almost dropped off at the Horton Smith Golf Course instead of the Hosta Gardens (and that contributed slightly to me being late to my own wedding, but mostly that was the fault of the dress). I know that my dad was trying desperately to hide me from Dustin and the rest of the guests once we did finally arrive, but that everyone probably saw me anyways. Everything else, I don't know.

Since we hadn't really gone over the ceremony if it was going to be in the Hosta Garden, and since I hadn't physically been there in about two years, when I'd first decided I wanted to get married there, I wasn't exactly sure what to do. I didn't even remember which song I had chosen to walk down the aisle to. Dave and Jason, the ushers, were apparently supposed to roll down the runner in front of me, but I forgot about it, and started walking before they had a chance to do that. Oops. And I didn't know that I was supposed to turn and face the audience once I reached the end of the aisle, so I just stood there awkwardly staring up at the minister, Dustin, and the rest of the wedding party. Somehow, we got through the ceremony, despite my confusion. I let a laugh escape when Dustin started his vows, because his were so similar to mine, despite the fact that we didn't share them with each other before our wedding. It was short and sweet, which was good, because the weather was threatening. It held off in the end, thankfully.

The reception was even more of a blur. There were a million people to say hello to, and unfortunately, that's about all I got to say to most of them. I barely sat down. I scarfed my meal, but only had a few bites of my wedding cake. It was all fun though. Dustin and I didn't embarrass ourselves during the first dance, despite the fact that we were both stepping all over my dress. And the dance party with Black Box Revue was a blast. The concert with Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin was incredibly awesome. It was the best wedding I could have hoped to have. It took two years of planning, but man was it worth it!

And then, the honeymoon. I won't elaborate, because it was pretty similar from day to day, but it was a bunch of pretty good food, great sun and beach, a few board games here and there, and a bunch of "Yeah mon." It was over too soon for me. I could have relaxed on the beach reading for another week or so, but Dustin is anxious to get back to his video games.

We've had a great time, and we are so thankful to everyone who helped us make the last two weeks possible. It was a truly amazing wedding experience. Thank you!!!!!! And now... back to the real world, as Ms. Asby.

Once we get internet in our new apartment in Nagoya, I'll try to post something that's actually about Nagoya!