Hello Everyone!

It has been far too long since I have written � so bare with me, this is going to be a lengthy email!

As usual, I hope that you are all well and healthy in your respective corners of the world! Japan is as unusual and surprising as ever! Since the last time I wrote many things have happened here in the land of the rising sun! I have no idea where to start.

I believe I finished last time by saying that I was off to Osaka the following weekend! I made the trek from little Mikame to Osaka without incident last weekend � though I did come close a few times! A one way trip is as follows:

Bus from Mikame to Yawatahama (next town)
Train from Yawatahama to Matsuyama (capital city of prefecture)
Local train from Japan Rail Matsuayama Station
Bus from local train to ferry port.
Overnight ferry to Osaka.
Local tram and subway from the port to downtown Osaka!

It was surprisingly quite easy! The ferry was nice and there was a space on the tatami (floor) for each person to sleep so I was not too tired when I arrived on Friday morning.

Osaka was one crazy shopping spree for me! The city is not known for it�s heritage or sites so I took advantage of the opportunity and went to den-den town (from the word denki meaning �electronics�) and purchased a digital camera! (lucky you - - you will now get to see what I am up instead of just reading about it!). I will send links of my trip following this email.

Since I arrived on Friday morning, I had most of the day by myself to shop before meeting up with the Ottawa JETs. It was nice to see some familiar faces and to catch up with everyone! We are each having a totally different experience here in Japan! All positive � but very very different. From big city to small town!

On Saturday we continued to shop and sampled some of Osaka�s yummy cuisine! Wow, was the food ever good! Later that night we all headed out to a local hot spot called �under lounge� � it was a blast! Everyone had a good time dancing until 4am!

Needless to say, we did not get off to an early start the next day. After a leisurely lunch we headed off to Osaka-jo (Osaka Castle) park, which was very close to where we were staying. I must say now, that after seeing one Japanese castle (most of them are new, being rebuilt over the past 50 years � there are few of historical importance survived the war) you have seen them all! They are very very similar, what you see is what you get! That being said, they still make for good photo opportunities � see the Osaka-jo photo.

While in Osaka I also went to Dotombori St. which is the street to locate if you are a restaurant owner. The entire street was lit up with thousands of flashy lights and bright signs. Never in my entire life have I seen so many larger that life moving replicas of sea creatures in one spot! I must have walked past 3 HUGE (ie 5M diameter) crabs with moving legs! There was also a huge blowfish (famous in Osaka � have to risk my life next time� they�re poisonous), lobster and 2 large squid! Nuts I tell you! No shortage of seafood here!

Ok, so the trip TO Osaka was without incident�.the trip HOME was far more eventful! After saying goodbye to my Ottawa friends, I headed back to the Osaka port to catch what I thought was the 9.10 pm ferry � there was my first mistake. The ferry was actually due to leave at 9pm�. After catching the subway and then the local tram I realized that I was going to cut it a bit close. After arriving at the end of the tram line, there is a 10 min walk to the ferry terminal � or a 3 min run as the case may be�� The tunnel to the terminal was much like the ones found connecting airplanes to the airport and occasionally they incline slightly. I will not even try to pretend that I am not a klutz � you guys have all witnessed many of my less than elegant moments. So, as I am running down this terminal (in my flip flops, with many many shopping bags under both arms and even tied to my back pack � try to picture this!) the floor made one of those damn inconvenient inclines and poof � there I was, sprawled out on the floor � books, bags, gifts all over the place! Typical Emma! What can I say��(I can hear you all laughing now�). Anyways, all joking aside, I had hurt my knees quite bad and had trouble getting up � but I am fine now.

I gathered my things as best I could, with lots of help � causing quite a spectacle � I continued, now staggering to the ticket counter. If I was smart (or spoke any Japanese) I would have booked my ticket in advance, however I did not. Just my luck, the ferry was sold out! I was put on a waiting list and all I could do was hope and try not to panic as I saw the nose of the ferry closing after the last car was in�. finally they called my number! Oh, off again! Running towards the ferry yelling and screaming with the other 2 lucky souls who were given the other last tickets�..we managed to make enough noise and they rolled back the stairs needed to get on to the ship. Whewwww, just made it!

After catching my breath and dropping off my bags on my allotted tatami mat, I went to the restaurant to get some well deserved dinner. Not two bites into my meal I felt a tap on my right shoulder�..the lady sitting behind me felt it was very important that she congratulate me on my ability to use chopsticks! (Warning to anyone coming to Japan � you will be asked this at least 2 times per day � no joking!) I politely replied that I have known how to use them since I was 7 years old! She seem quite nice and was alone to I joined her for the rest of my meal. After speaking with her for a while (in very broken Japanese � more like sign language actually�) I learned that her mother had just passed away and that she was going to attend the service in Matsuyama. This explained the 2 empty bottles of sake sitting on the table�. After chatting for a while, I wished her well and headed to bed.

The ferry arrived at 6am in Matsuyama (Capital of Ehime) and I headed to the city to meet up with my friend Amanda from New Zealand. We spent most of the day going to Matsuyama-jo (Matsuyama Castle) and the Dogo Onsen (Dogo hotspring). The castle was quite nice and offered a great view of the city � and the weather was very clear which made for some good photos!

Dogo Onsen is one of the most famous in Japan and apparently one of the oldest � though you wouldn�t know it. Onsens are a very important part of Japanese culture and it is believed that each onsen holds it�s own healing powers. Some are good for colds, others are good for back pain etc. Onsen etiquette is confusing to say the least but after a few explanations Amanda and I thought we were up to the challenge. After paying 600 yen we were escorted up to the second floor where we were given gowns called ryokka and shown to the change room. (for those of you wondering, onsens are almost always divided into male and female areas) After changing, we headed into the onsen where you have to shower before you are allowed into the bath. After scrubbing until I was pink, I ventured into my first real onsen (the one on the ferry � yes, they had one on the ferry- didn�t really count!). It was soooooo hot! But it was also very relaxing! We lasted no more than 20 min before we had to get out � too hot! After bathing, we headed upstairs to have some tea and a light snack! It was really pleasant to sit on the tatami as there was a wonderful breeze going through the room, which was totally open to the outside! It was great! If you ever have the chance (or come to visit me!) you must go to an onsen!

This past weekend was the Mikame Undokai (Town sports festival)! For those of you who read my last email � it was largely like the JHS Undokai! There were a number of teams from different parts of Mikame that competed in a variety of events! There were events for young and old alike. In the plus 70 category, everyone ran (ok, they didn�t �run�) to the middle of the field and picked up a box of chocolate � if it had a number on it, you got the prize that corresponded! The event that I was in was not nearly as easy � and the prizes were not nearly as cool! I was in a relay race � an eating relay race to be exact � go figure�

My job was to run up to buns that were hanging from a string, grab one with my teeth then run to the next stage and open a bottle of pop and drink it! Sounds simple enough � right! Haa! I wish! After grabbing the bun with my teeth I quickly realized that there was another surprise � red bean paste! For those of you who know � I HATE RED BEAN PASTE. Ok, I know that I am in Japan and that I should be open to new things, but this I can�t stand! I�m allowed to hate one thing, right? Anyways, after gagging through that, I was on to the bottle. Now, this was no ordinary bottle there was a catch! It had a very particular way in which it had to be opened � which I did not know��after some help I finally got the silly thing open! But it didn�t end there � inside there was a marble that will block the pop from coming out, if you are not careful. I mastered this quickly and ran off to tag my teammate � we got first place! Woohooo I won a towel to clean the sticky pop off my face � sweet! ;)

I also participated in a town-wide game of Junken � rocks, paper sizzors. As I mentioned in an earlier email � this is THE way to decide anything in Japan! So it seems quite fitting that we played at the Undokai! In true Emma form, I was out after the first round � I�ll have to work on my strategy!

As the photos show, it was a fun day!

These past few weeks I have been getting into the swing of things around here in terms of teaching etc. I am quite enjoying myself and each day poses many new challenges � you have to think on your feet! At my main school (Mikame JHS) I teach with 3 other English teachers � they each have a totally different approach to teaching! This makes things very interesting! One teacher (2nd year) is very old fashioned and does the same format each and every class � it is apparent that the students are often bored. Another teacher is much more laid back and not as concerned with the text book � this is first year, they don�t have HS entrance exams to worry about. These students are quite genki and happy to learn and listen. The third year teacher similar to the first year in terms of classroom environment etc but she also has to make sure that the students learn the material so that they pass their entrance exams for high school. In Japan, students must pass these tests to continue their education � HS is not mandatory in Japan. (There are 3 years of JHS and 3 years of SHS).

It is challenging working with people with such different styles but it has also made clear to me what does and does not work in the classroom! I must work within the structures set around me but I hope that I can make learning English fun!

Ok, well that about wraps it up for now! I will be heading to Beppu � a town on the island of Kyushu (for you geographers, the forth of the 4 main islands of Japan, N to S). Beppu is only a few hours away by ferry (leaving from the next town - Yawatahama) and is famous for it�s Hells (bubbling hot water � not for bathing) and Onsens. It also has a number of hot sand baths with numerous therapeutic qualities � should do my bruised knees some good after that fall on the way to the ferry! I will be going with some of the surrounding JETs as well as some of my Japanese friends � I can�t wait!

Must be off for now! Hope that you are all well!

All my love,
Emma


PS I will send links to my photos of these adventures � enjoy!

emma found her way @ 11:40 p.m. | 0 comments

Hello to everyone! Hope this email finds you all well!

I have no idea even where to begin�..so I�ll start with Mud Soccer which took place the first weekend of September (the day before the first day of school). Let me start by saying that I have never been so thoroughly exfoliated in my entire life! The weekend�s events started the Saturday evening before with some yummy food with the other team members � including octopus sashimi (raw octopus), which was surprisingly palatable! The games started at 9am sharp the next day. There were quite short due to the considerable effort needed to run through 2-foot deep mud! There were 3 teams of foreigners (2 girls, 1 boys) and about 70 Japanese � this was no small potatoes! Everyone had a wonderful time � my team was the only one to actually win a game!! The boys team tied after a shootout. If you don�t already know, Junken (otherwise known as Rock/Scissors/Paper) rules in Japan. As a result, the two team captains played Junken to decide the winner�.. the �super suds� (male foreigner team name � not chosen by us�) did not win. Tuff luck, but this is Japan! I swear, if the Japanese government was ever undecided about some major international affair, I am sure Junken would be used. In fact, I would be surprised if it has not already taken place!

After collapsing in my bed that night due to the sheer exhaustion after mud soccer, I was ready for the first day of school! It is largely a blur of ceremonies, speeches and genki (very very enthusiastic) children hanging off my extremities! Needless to say, it was a lot of fun! I spent Monday through Wednesday at the Junior High School (JHS) giving my self-introduction to first and second year students. Some of you are famous here in Mikame � at least your pictures are! They couldn�t believe that I know how to horseback ride � they thought that was soooo cool!

At the same time, every student in all of Mikame is practicing for the yearly sports festival! I have yet to experience one of these festivals but if the preparation is any indicator, it is sure to be an entertaining day! Aside from a number of sports and games, both the boys and girls do a choreographed sequence. I asked one of the male teachers about what the male students do � his literal English translation was �a muscle dance�! It was all I could do to keep a straight face and inform him that perhaps �a fitness demonstration� would convey the same message! After watching some of the �muscle dance�, I quickly learned that it was quite dangerous. After asking one of the teachers about this he agreed, saying that �at least one or two students are injured every year�!!! That would explain the 3 students sitting beside me on the sidelines with various casts and bandages!! No joke! The sports festival will take place this upcoming Saturday so I will be sure to give you an official casualty count!

On Thursday and Friday I visited two of my five shogakko (elementary schools). The kids were great! They are sooo eager and not shy at all (sometimes a problem at JHS). I had a great time but I have never been soo tired in my life! At the first school each of the 45 (yes, only 45!) students came up to me and said: �Hello! My name is _______.� It was great! At one of the other schools each of the students had made a picture of things they liked � which they told to me in English! I was very impressed � they did an awesome job! I was also at shogakko yesterday and today (Monday and Tuesday). Today, at the welcoming ceremony the students took a �Canada Quiz� answering multiple-choice questions by showing the corresponding number of fingers in the air. They did quite well � it was very nice and they did a good jog of making me feel homesick! J The Kyoto-sensei (vice principal) also gave an introduction on Canada too! The funny thing was, he knew a whole bunch about me that I had not told him! For example, my favourite colour, hobbies etc. It appears that he had been speaking with the other schools to get info on me! Unbelievable! However, I have been warned about this sort of thing � quite funny really! During one of my self-introductions there was a teacher taking pictures of me. By the afternoon, they had printed out a copy and framed it for me! How nice! It�s great! I also have a digital copy so if I can make the file small enough I�ll try to email it to everyone!

Overall, I am really enjoying teaching! The kids are great and a lot of fun! I still have many many things to get used to but it all seems doable. I hope that the teachers do not translate too much of what I say to the students � otherwise they will never learn to listen to English. I�ll keep you up to date on this front!

This past weekend was the annual JET Nametoko Gorge trip. The Gorge was about 2 hrs away from my home by car. I had a great time � it was nice to be able to do some hiking and catch up with friends that I had made at the prefectural (ie provincial) orientation. The Gorge was beautiful and you could hike all the way up a mountain stream, which had carved its way into the stone (sorry geographers, have no idea about its mineral composition�). The Gorge is also famous for it�s monkeys. They were cute to look at but unfortunately they were spoilt by to many handouts from tourists. Don�t ever leave anything unattended � they took an ice cream right out of the hands of a friend! Crazy.

The weekend after next I am planning at trip to Osaka � I can�t wait! I�ll let you know how that and the sports day go!

Take care and much love,
Emma

emma found her way @ 10:56 p.m. | 0 comments