lifeinabu

[lifeinabu]

Swallowtail Butler Cafe

As I was planning my trip to Tokyo I had a long list of cafes I wanted to visit. There were a huge variety of animal cafes, anime cafes, etc. Number one on that list was always the Swallowtail Butler cafe. 

Maid cafes never appealed to me because while maids are cute and the girls I see on the street are adorable, they just don’t feel classy. Maid cafes are more light-hearted and fun, or if you go to the weird ones, just plain skeevy. I wanted class. So I went for butlers.

I read good reviews of Swallowtail and booked my reservation as soon as I could. I was not dissapointed. I have very few pictures as photography is not allowed inside. I have a few pictures of the outside and will be borrowing the rest from the official website.

The cafe itself is located in the basement of another building, but it never felt like a creepy place. It had no windows so it felt like a very private enclosed space. It was very easy to forget we were under a combini in the middle of Ikubukuro. 

We were greeted at the entry way by a butler who asked for our information. I took over as the Japanese speaker in our party and informed him we were early but had a reservation at 4:05. We waited for a bit outside, then a bit inside. After a short while we were directed to the door on our left. An elderly butler opened the door and let us into the cafe proper. He told us the rules and introduced us to our personal butler, whose name I completely forgot, I am terrible with names so this is no surprise to me. I will just call him Butler-san for the rest of the post. He was dressed formally, had glasses and long hair, and a narrow face. He was very kind and helpful, taking our bags from us as he escorted us to our table.

The cafe itself is gorgeous, there are tables in the center area and booths on the side. We had a small table in the center, I hope to return and get a booth sometime... Our chairs were pulled out for us, napkins put in our laps, and menus presented (Japanese for me, English for Kevin). There was a bell on the table for calling for assistance. Kevin and I were terrified of using it, and only used it once.

Butler-san took notice that Kevin was very nervous and unsure feeling and used his best English to try to make Kevin feel more at ease. I think they were both a little nervous of each other with the language gap, so I tried to be a good translator for them both. The goal of the cafe is for you to feel like you are at home being served by your own butler. Kevin had trouble adjusting to this feeling. I was more prepared for the setting so adjusted quickly.

Kevin and I both ordered the Victorian Tea Set with the Himawari dessert special. I asked for a recommendation on tea since I hardly drink it at home. I ordered the Hephaistos, and Kevin had the Hestia.

We chatted a short bit, and then the tea was brought out. Both smelled excellent. Mine was strawberry flavored, Kevin’s was vanilla I believe? Butler-san presented us with tea cups and told us about the brand and make for each, then they poured the tea before putting a cute cozy over it. Shortly after he brought out the scones and sandwiches. Butler-san asked us which we would like first, we both opted for scones. Mine was honey flavored, Kevin’s was strawberry. I tried the orange and strawberry preserves. I liked the scones but enjoyed the sandwiches more (I love pickles).

Kevin tried to pour his own tea, but was quickly stopped by a butler who came over and did it for him. It’s a full service place, plus I imagine they don’t want customers accidentally damaging their special tea wear.

Later dessert was brought out, this was the only time my Japanese failed me. There was a story with the dessert but I have no idea what it was. Oh well, it was cute and delicious, that's what mattered most. Each time Butler-san came over he talked with us a bit and asked some questions. He was very friendly and polite and I really liked practicing my Japanese with him. Kevin even started to relax towards the end as well. We laughed when he asked us if we like anime. Kevin and I try to play it cool, we enjoy anime of course, but don’t want to be the sterotype tourist.

At the end the old man and Butler-san came over to our table to escort us out and take our bags once more. They also gave us a membership card to fill out and use upon our return. I informed them we might re-visit next year again, and Butler-san joked a little about us returning during O-bon to our “home”.

We paid a short visit to the gift shop across the street where I bought some sugar roses, a napkin, and a notebook. Kevin got some more of his tea to enjoy at home. I was sad there was no postcard with our Butlers face on it :( 

I really enjoyed my visit and want to go again. I think I would always like to go with a friend, as going alone would make me too nervous. Perhaps next year I can enjoy myself once more.

[lifeinabu]

Summer School Time

Things have been really busy the last few months. My first group of students graduated and I started a fresh new school year. For those of you who don’t know in Japan the new school year beings in April and yes we have school almost all summer. I’m really quite happy to be starting fresh. Its nice to be at the beginning with the kids so I know better what level they are at.

I’m a little worried because this is the last year for my favorite school I work at. The mountain middle school is shutting down. It makes sense. There are only 6 students total, and next year there would only be 3. There are more teachers than students. But I really like the teacher I work with there. She’s sweet, likes otome games too, and lets my do activities and help. I secretly hope she gets transferred into my other school, but that’s very unlikely.

I’m closing in on one year in Japan. It’s had its ups and downs. I’m really glad I came here and I enjoy my job when I’m working. I really miss home and count down the days until people visit me, or I get to go home for a visit (one visitor in August, going home for Christmas!). I need to work harder studying Japanese, I am way more comfortable with it, but still shy about talking to people so progress is slow. Kanji is getting better, god bless WaniKani. I made some friends too. We don’t get to hang out often, but I enjoy their company. I need to update the trip post because I traveled some in the spring, and a big trip is in August. I’ll do a nice sum up post on my one year anniversary here I think. Now I have to go because I am FINALLY getting new curtains for my apartment. I want it to really feel like home.

[lifeinabu]

Lunch with the First Graders

At Abu elementary school I eat lunch with different grades each week. First grade lunch is my favorite. The kids are so tiny and cute. They barely come up to my hip!

It always feels awkward when I first come into lunch. I stand around until they get desks set up. Then I sit quietly until lunch is ready. Sometimes the kids will talk some, but they are busy getting the desks clean and getting food set up. After we start eating the atmosphere relaxes some. I try to eat quickly as there is not much time and I need to be ready for the next activity. 

After about 90% of the kids are done eating we go to question time! At first a few kids ask very basic questions (Do you like ______?, they usually mes up and just say, I like___?, until I correct them). Eventually they realize I understand some japanese and ask me more questions. Its really fun. they are suprised by every answer.

After we ask questions we put dishes away and clean the milk bottles. I chat a little with some of the girls. Then we have a little free time until Recess starts. Today they had me draw pokemon. I am not a great artist, but I am passable. To first graders passable is amazing. Today I drew Blastoise, bulbasaur, and Jigglypuff.

When I left they all cheered and kept yelling goodbye. This was my last lunch with them as 1st graders. They become 2nd graders in April. I hope the new 1st graders are excitable and fun too.

[lifeinabu]

A fun short story from yesterdays class.

So the kids had to write speeches about their favorite _____ (movie, game, musician, book,etc). I was asked to use the format in the book and write my own short speech as an example. So I did that and talked about the Princess Bride, one of my favorite books/movies. I always try to keep to book format and only change a little, because i want the kids to understand. The kids listened and were very hesitant to ask questions.

After one boy was brave enough to ask me how many times I watched the movie, I let the next kid go up. I stood at the back and typically checked their speeches as they spoke, giving prompts if they forgot a word. I was give the task by the JTE of asking questions if no kids were brave enough.

It was a lot of fun for me. I recognized most of the kids topics. Yay for knowing about Japanese pop culture! I asked them about favorite characters, songs, when they first watched a movie, etc...

It helped the kids loosen up and copy my questions for the next kid`s speech. The best was a kid who talked about Minecraft. I asked if he like Creepers and the class exploded with raised hnads. All the kids asked him questions. 

I think the class got to know I am a fun person and talking with me can be interesting. I really liked my 2nd year students, and I look forward to helping them start 3rd year in April.

[lifeinabu]

Maintaining Friendships

This is one of those weird posts that are less about life in Japan, and more about a common problem I think any person working abroad faces.  

One of the things I worry about the most over here is maintaining friendships with my friends back in America. I'm not a very social person, but I have a few friends that I worry about losing. I just have a fear that I'll get so wrapped up in my stuff here that I neglect those relationships and come back to America friendless. I am making friends here, but most of us are from very far apart places and will separate after our jobs end.

Many of my friends were already semi-long distance friendships, where I would see them once every few months. Now I am missing out on seeing them at those times. I am trying to keep in contact by using facebook and tumblr to comment and show support more. I hope that even small things like this remind them I still care. A few people I message when I can to try to talk, but I always feel awkward messaging just to say hi.

I'm starting to get more comfortable in my area and considering mailing some fun packages back to a few friends. I did this for my family, fiance and one friend at Christmas (but dang shipping costs are rough). Other ALTs have laughed at the fact I worry and send things to friends like this, but these friends are important to me and I worry about them forgetting me. I certainly think it's importnat to enjoy the now, but I don't want to go into the future alone.    

[lifeinabu]

There Be Rabbits Here

I had always wanted to go to this place since I read about it online. I had a rabbit as a kid, and while I cursed it whenever I had to clean it’s cage, I loved that little rabbit. An island full of tame friendly rabbits sounded amazing. I mentioned it when people asked where I wanted to go, and many Japanese didn’t even know it exisisted. Luckily I got to go there in November. My town has a program where a Canadian student comes to live here for 9 months while working at the Nursery School. That girl wanted to go, so the staff at their work organized a trip and invited some of the staff from my trip along.

We took forever to get there, because everything was sloooow. As a result we only got to spend one hour on the island. I spent that hour feeding rabbits, taking pictures, and just enjoying myself. The rabbits are super friendly, and very lazy. They are in no way lacking for food, some were so full, that they would just sit there while you tried to shove food at them.

This bunny was having none of it

The island also has a history of being a research facility around WWII. If I had more time I might have explored that a bit, but I wanted my hour to be solely focused on the buns. So when my group wanted to into the little museum (you had to pay for it too) I refused and stayed outside with rabbit friends. The rabbits were a little sleepy by this point of the day, so I didn’t get any cute shots of them all over me. I have way too many pictures and videos though.

chubby bunny with spiky hair that I chased for while

We sadly had to go very soon after we arrived, but I will return next summer when my boyfriend visits.

Yes they do tricks for food. This one was very friendly and seemed to be younger.

[lifeinabu]

Let's explore Japan!

This post is going to be updated regularly with places I have visited. I want to explore as much as I can while I'm here.

So Far I have visited:

Yamaguchi Prefecture

Abu-cho (I live here, it's boring but pretty)

Hagi-shi (It’s the neighboring city, I've yet to do touristy stuff, but will in the spring when the weather is nice)

Yamaguchi-shi (The capital isn't very big, but it's got some big stores and a famous pagoda)

Yuda-Onsen (It's sort of in Yamaguchi-shi but is its own separate trip. It's really nice and I want to return again to actually try an onsen)

Hikari (I went to the beach here)

Iwakuni (I went to a party here, so I only saw it at night. I plan to return and see the big bridge here sometime)

Fukuoka Prefecture

Fukuoka-shi (I went here for a weekend trip. Saw a bunch of fun stores, Animate was the best. Went to an owl café, hit the Pokemon Center, got some foreign food. I miss this place)

Hiroshima Prefecture

Hiroshima-shi (Went here on two short trips. Saw the winter Illuminations, went to Okonomi-mura, saw the Atomic Dome, went to the castle, hit up another Animate, and generally had a good time)

Usagii-jima (BUNNY ISLAND! I only got to visit for about an hour because my ride was slow and awful that day. It was super fun and cute. I'd love to be able to go back and spend a few hours there, maybe have a picnic if that's allowed. Next summer…)

Miyajima (A huge tourist trap. I like this place, it's full of history and gives you a very “Japanese“ experience. My group that day was dicks and wouldn’t let me explore properly. I'll go again in the spring/summer)

Osaka Prefecture

Osaka-shi (I got to go here for a weekend. I went shopping and looked around. It is a fun place, but it reminded my too much of NY. I want to experience more unique and distinctly Japanese places, not feel like I am in the city again. I probably will not visit here again for a while, too many other places to go.

Tokyo

Shibuya (I was here for orientation, literally all I saw was the blocks around the hotel. I was too JET lagged, haha pun, to do more)

[lifeinabu]

Lets talk about Lunch

So I grew up in America, home of not really good lunches. BUT, in America there was at least some choice. You could use mushy green beans, or mushy corn. You could get spoiled chocolate milk, or questionable juice. I brought my lunch to school a lot, but for a few years I lived off of my schools bosco sticks, for the unenlightened bosco sticks are breadsticks with molten cheese inside. 

In Japan there is no choice, there is only kyushoku. (Note I teach at Middle and Elementary level, high school kids make or buy their own lunch.) Everyday Japanese children put on little aprons and hats to serve out the days lunch. And everybody eats the same thing. Its quality varies a lot but I only pay 2 dollars for it so it's fine most of the time. Average lunch consists of a bottle of milk, soup, a bowl of rice, and a main dish that usually has meat and vegetables. Sometimes a special lunch happens, like gyudon day, or bread day. Those days are the best! The meals are almost always served with chopsticks, so it’s a good thing I had practice. 

This lunch gets a solid 8/10 on my advanced kyushoku scale.

I usually do just fine with the lunch. The only changes I've had to request is I needed a smaller meal. I'm not a fast eater. If I eat too fast I cough violently for an hour and feel sick. I also hate the rare days we are given a whole fish to eat. I only started eating fish a year ago, so it's still rough to get it down. I cannot handle eating its head and eyeballs. It makes me feel ill. Last time I ate one of those fish I spat out an eyeball. Not a good time.

I know a lot of ALTs end up quitting eating kyushoku after a few months. I plan to stick to it because I'm cheap and lazy. I know myself, I will not prepare ahead of time for lunch the next day. I'll end up eating junk.

I made a bento once, done with that.

[lifeinabu]

Teaching Christmas

Christmas is a thing Japan knows about. Well they at least know about the Christmas I celebrate. I'm not a religious person, but I was raised celebrating the commercial version of Christmas. As a result I really didn't want my Christmas lesson to be about the religious aspect. Maybe one year I'll teach the older kids some history about Christmas, but this first year I wanted it to be fun. So I showed a short video of my Christmas morning, talked a little about some differences, and then played a game.

I love it when something in a lesson shocks the kids. They were all surprised that we don't eat Christmas cake in America, and they were jealous of my pile of presents. But the real fun started when the game began. The game I used is one my friend Ivy introduced to my college club. It's called Pass the Parcel, and it's a fun party game. In the version I learned, you wrap a present multiple times and put a dare inside each layer. People want to hold the present because the last person to unwrap gets to keep the prize, but they also want to pass to avoid the dare. While music is playing they have to pass it quickly, and when the music stops the person holding it unwraps one layer.

For my kids I simplified it by removing the dares. Instead they had to say a set phrase when they got the present before they could unwrap. To keep it simple I had them just say  “I want (any object) “. I could have made it more difficult, but I wanted it to be fun and easy, I had no idea how long the game would take.

The prize was an I <3 NY shirt!

The kids ended up loving it, I know I did well if they ask to play again. I played it in 5th, 6th, 8th, and 9th grade classes. It's the kind of game I could use for any class, but I might want to save it for holidays only.

[lifeinabu]

A Day at the Middle School

 Hi, I haven’t updated in a while because life got hectic, but I have two weeks of nothing but office work, so expect a lot of updates over the next few weeks.

I thought I’s start off with a very typical JET blog post. It’s time for a “ Day in the Life“ post.

I`m going to do two posts, one for my middle school days, and then one talking about my elementary school days/ office days.

First is the middle school day…

7:10am I wake up and do my quick rush to get ready, I have a lot of trouble waking up, so try to get everything ready the night before

7:30am My morning ride arrives. I awkwardly greet whoever is driving me to the school. If it’s the principal the ride will be mostly quiet. If it’s the English teacher it will be nonstop talking

8:00am We arrive at work. I rush from the car to the entrance, my mountain school is always cold and I need to get into the one warm room ASAP. After we get settled in I have a meeting with the English teacher for about an hour. We discuss what we are doing for today, what students are having difficulties, etc. One of my 7th grade students is having a lot of trouble spelling so I suggest practicing stair spelling with her. Since we have so much time we talk about a lot of things. I mention watching The Letter People show, which taught me letters and some phonics, as a kid.

9:20am It’s second period, and time to teach the first class of the day. The English teacher and I speed walk to the 7th grade classroom. The heater is not on because they had a class in a different room. I spend the next 15 minutes trying to hint at the English teacher to turn it on.  We do greetings (Good morning, How are you, How’s the Weather, what’s the date/day) The students are working on questions words (5W1H), so I try to ask them 3 questions using those words. The teacher decides to turn on the heat after I make a joke that the students are slow to respond because their brains are frozen. Victory! Today we are learning greeting cards, so we go over some different examples, I show some example Christmas Cards I made. We don’t have enough time to spell every word, but I stair spell a few difficult ones．I hope that the JTE continues to use stair spelling, it can help a lot with memorization.

10:20am I rush to the 8th grade class, while the JTE runs to get stuff from the teachers room. I try to carry my stuff with me so as to avoid time in the cold hallways. The heater is on! I feel guilty as the students were warming their hands around the heater, when I enter the room they return to their desks, poor kids. I start with greetings without the JTE. We get through them right before she shows up. I ask one questions to each of my three students. Usually I ask about what they did yesterday, and what they will do later. We review the word “should“using some picture cards I drew before. We practice a few should phrases, repeating after me and saying them together. We do the reading from the book; I am a tape recorder here. We ask a few questions to check for comprehension. 2/3 of the students get it, the last student struggles a bit, unless I give him big hints. 

11:20am Last class of the day! I rush over to the 9th graders. Everything starts out the same way. After greetings we dive right into the lesson. They are practicing a phone call conversation. I give the example with the JTE, the students repeat after me, they practice some on their own… To finish the lesson they each have the conversation with me, but sometimes I change it slightly using the example phrases. They're all smart kids, and handle it well.

12:10pm It’s lunch time! I wash my hands and go to check on my portion. The school knows I have a small stomach, so they always have me check to make sure my lunch is the right size. It’s good. It’s bread day! I cheer internally. At 12:15 they let us in the lunchroom, thank goodness, the hallway is cold as can be. We do the lunch greetings, ittadakimasu, and I dive in. I have about 15 minutes to finish, so I have to focus on eating the whole time. At the end my 7th graders try to ask me some questions using the word which. I answer them and respond back with simple questions. I bug the 8th grade students using should phrases (what food should I eat, after lunch what should I do, etc)

12:30pm Lunch is over, it’s lunch break now. I go say hi to the goldfish, and worry about its health. It’s too cold to go outside and say hi to the rabbit. I look at him from the window and feel really bad for him. The kids run about doing stuff, I occasionally help them, and ask some questions. After about 10 minutes of this I return to the teacher’s office to chill.

1:30pm to 3:15pm I meet with the JTE about next week’s class. She makes a few requests, I offer a few ideas. Next week is Christmas lessons, so I have her listen to some songs and choose a simple ones for the kids to learn. She leaves to do stuff around 2:30. I stay and study on my computer, sometimes I play a game of solitaire. At 3:15pm I pack up my stuff, say goodbye, and walk to the bus stop.

3:21pm The bus shows up and I get on. I try to stay awake by playing on my phone. It never works. I sleep on and off for the next 40 minutes.

4:10pm I arrive in Oi, the town over from mine. I secretly hope that my ride isn’t here yet, so I can go buy dinner at Lawsons. Unfortunately my ride is here and waiting. I sigh and get in. I practice Japanese with my supervisor during the ride. I get dropped off at my house and run inside to get to my Kotatsu. I usually snack a bit and then take a nap to prepare for a late night Skype call. The day is over.

[lifeinabu]

Getting Around Part 2

I got busy this week and have a bunch of posts to write before I forget them, but first I'm gonna talk about cars.

Ok so I don`t have a car, yet. I want one so bad because it would solve a lot of issues for me. I could go to the big town and get stuff, I could visit people without 4 hours of train rigamarole, and I could get some practice before my International drivers permit expires. I`m working on getting one by mentioning it constantly to my supervisor. I just hope it doesn`t cost too much.

Ok but the drivers in Japan... They`re OK? hmmmm.... I came from an area infamous for bad drivers, and I`d say the drivers here are just as bad in a different way. I don`t see a lot of people outright pulling asshole moves on the highway, but the drivers all collectively break certain rules CONSTANTLY.

They speed if they can, up to alarming speeds. They drive in the middle of the road on narrow mountain roads. Like I get it, you don`t want to drive near the edge of the road, but when we turn a corner I am in constant fear we will hit a another car doing the same thing and we will go over the mountain together into a ravine. In town there are mirrors to help people see around corners. Many town roads are narrow and only allow for one car, but they go both ways. You are expected to pull over for the other car and let them pass. On the mountain these mirrors are rare and I am terrified the whole time.

A few days ago as I was getting a ride back with my Fukuga English teacher we had a hilarious and terrifying accident. We were chatting and I saw this a million miles away, and thought she saw it too. There was a hawk eating a dead snake in the middle of the road. I should have said something, but I thought she saw it... So we hit it as it`s taking off. It flies away a little wobbly but fine, and it left part of the dead snake on the car. The teacher screamed and was in shock for a few minutes before calming down. I just laughed nervously and was glad no one was dead, except the snake.

[lifeinabu]

Getting Around

Figuring out transportation while I was in Japan, was a scary thing at first, and it took me time to try out the various methods. I worried constantly about getting lost, not having the correct ticket/amount of money.　In the end my fears were unfounded. Japans transportation system is very logical and easy to figure out as long as you know where you are going. That is my main piece of advice, know the name of the exact place you are going, and if possible write down the kanji to help you out.

First there is the train. The trains in my area run about every two hours or so, so they`re not terribly convenient, but they are the cheapest and quickest option if you time it right. It`s about 200yen for a ticket from my town to get to Hagi, the nearest large city. I`m unlucky in that my station has no ticket machine, you have to buy a ticket in person. It can be a little scary, but as long as you can say where you`re going and how many tickets you need, you`ll be fine. The train is a small one, only one cart long. I usually stand because I`m one of the last stops and I try to let the Japanese people sit first since I`m used to standing on buses. On the way back from Hagi I can buy a ticket from the machine, it even has an English mode, so it`s super easy. Opening up the chance to go to a city really helps the inaka seem less scary.

The next common form of transportation is bus. I`ve not yet taken a bus that goes between long distances, so can`t speak as to how those work. I`ve taken the bus to get back from my schools in Fukuda though. The buses don`t have a flat fee, so that was new experience for me. You pay based on how far you`re going. When you get on the bus take note of your stop number. It`ll show up on the machinery next to the bus driver, and on the sign at the front of the bus. There is a big light up sign at the front of the bus that will display how much the next stop will cost depending on where you get on. It`s also a great way to figure out how far away your stop is. I know I get on at four, and then get off around stop 24. It`s about 1130yen, so it`s more then the buses back home, but it goes a great deal of distance.

There`s a really nice little app called Hyperdia that lets you see train routes. It`s English and pretty up to date, I recommend looking it up and giving it a try. It was nice to know when I needed to be back by so that I didn`t miss the last train. Those are the public transit systems, next post I`ll talk about cars and bikes.

[lifeinabu]

Welcome Party

My welcome party happened　about　a　week　and　a　half　after　I　arrived.　As　my　town　was　small　we　didn`t　even　go　out　to　a　restaurant, the　whole　thing　took　place　in　the　BOE　office,　in　one　of　the　meeting　rooms.　Some　food　was　catered　in, and it was all very good, I only wish they`d taken me to a restaurant so I could get more experience going to them here. I`m still nervous about going to a restaurant on my own… The more I go with other people the more I feel confident in what to do.

Anyway the party had about 20 people there, they were the two junior high teachers I would be working with, most of the BOE folk I work with, the principals at the four schools I work at, the mayor, and a few other people that were important in town (one was a sort of senator I believe). We did the normal welcome party things, people asked me questions, I attempted to answer with the English teacher assisting when I had trouble. People ate and drank, I didn`t drink much because it took most of the party to explain I didn`t like beer and would only drink fruity things. They kept offering to refill the beer glass I left purposefully very full.

The toughest thing was I had to do two speeches. One at the start to just say hello and say I was excited to work with everyone. The other was after we ate I did a shortened version of my self introduction lesson, but in Japanese. So I showed where my home is, my family, my pets, and some of my hobbies. Japanese people are really stuck on hobbies, it`s what everyone wanted to talk to me most about. After talking about it with Shimokawa-san, my young assistant supervisor, I showed my cosplay. It went over pretty well. Although the senator guy asked afterwards if I though all of Japan was like anime and full of samurai. I reminded him I`m an Asian studies major, I know reality from fiction.

As the party wound down, we all took a group picture. I got a chance to talk to most people for at least a moment and I think I made a good impression. I almost forgot to mention that they gave me a really nice cup and plate made in Hagi. I don`t drink tea much, but I feel like I should now that I have the cup. For a thing I started out really nervous about, the party went well.

[lifeinabu]

The First Day (Part 2)

So THE BANK, is also the post office in my case. Yep, I was lucky and got my account through the Japanese Postal system. Why is this lucky? Well in Yamaguchi you have a couple choices and one a lot of people take is The Bank of Yamaguchi, which is all well and good in the prefecture. But if you go on a trip outside Yamaguchi? Good luck finding an ATM. Also the ATMS there have an English button, that’s one less hassle.

(Yeah I don`t want to try this in Japanese yet)

Japans bank in the post office is an old system they`ve had for a long time, I won`t go too much into it, other then it`s remained a popular choice. Everyone at the bank was very nice and helpful but it took so long, things kept getting messed up. I corrected forms multiple times, I`d mess up my kana on accident. Every time you make a change you have to stamp it with your inkan. We were there for hours. I was about ready to cry, and almost did. I`m a solitary person so can handle being alone as long as I have a way to entertain myself, but god did I feel alone at that moment. Adult stuff like this is hard in English, doing it all in Japanese was terrifying.

Fortunately, mid-way through the bank process we left the English teacher at the bank and went the few blocks over to my house to set up the utilities. And god bless them, the internet man was there to get it set up right then. Some people don`t get internet right away, but some of us are lucky and get it day one. We quickly set up the gas, electricity, and internet/cable. I was reluctant to get a TV, but the apartment came with it and I might change my mind later and try to watch it. Maybe I`ll finally watch some late night animes? We sadly couldn`t stay at my apartment and had to go back to the bank.

The headache continued there, but we finished it eventually and got out right around when they were closing up. I was hot, sweaty and tired at that point. They told us to dress nice for the first day, so I was wearing a suit jacket and nice dress, and I just wanted it off.

I really just wanted to lay down and rest, but there were two tasks left. We had to go shopping for homegoods, then go grocery shopping. Now I knew I would have to furnish my apartment, but I did not expect to do it the day I got there. They just threw me in the store and said GO. The deal with my town is that for that trip only the town would foot the bill. So I ran around grabbing as much stuff as I could think of. I missed a few important items, and would have to go back on my own a few times… but I:m still eternally grateful they footed the bill that first time. I`m going to make a separate post eventually on Konan, the homegoods store behind my house, and show what it`s like and what I think of it.

(spoiler it`s my favorite place in town)

The grocery store, I had to pay for, but it was so cheap, that I was perfectly fine with it. I bought a few basics, they made me get spaghetti (the spaghetti curse continues on) and I impressed them by getting Mirin to make tamagoyaki with. I then disappointed them a bit by getting a bunch of instant meals and needed to be reminded to get veggies. Honestly though, if you throw me in a grocery store without giving me time to make a list? I`m going to get junk, and easy make meals. I bought a bunch of soda and juice because I need sugar and caffeine to live since I don`t drink coffee. If I go too long without soda I suffer withdrawal symptoms, it`s really weird. The whole cost was waaayyy cheaper than I expected, and it`s one of the perks to being in the inaka, shit is cheap.

They then dropped me off at home and left me for the night. I immediately took off all my clothes and blasted the a-con. I had a few hours of tumblring and then went to sleep early, due to my Jetlag. I got a lot done the first day, but there would be more paperwork and greetings the next day.

[lifeinabu]

The First Day (Part 1)

The first day　was　an　especially　stressful　one　for　me.　All　the　Yamaguchi　JETS　took　a　plane　together　to　out　prefecture, then　we split　up　at　the　airport　as　we　were　collected　by　our　supervisors.　My　supervisor　Yada-sensei　was there with an English teacher at one of my Junior Highs.　He brought her to help translate and I think he was a little nervous because, fun fact, I`m the first female JET ever for Yamaguchi. They were both thrilled I spoke some Japanese, but I tried very quickly to let them know my skills were rudimentary. I took two years of Japanese in college, but am nowhere near fluent.

We chatted a bit about myself and the town as we drove to Abu, at one point we got lost, but it meant I got to see some really pretty mountains and grasslands, so I was ok. They took me to lunch and I ordered one of the first things I could read of the menu, spaghetti. This would have lasting consequences. You see, because I ordered spaghetti once they think I LOVE it and constantly talk about it. I`m neutral on it, I just ordered it because I could read the katakana.

(I don`t even like you that much!)

After lunch we continued on to Abu and began the days work. A lot happens your first day. It`s only been about two weeks and I`m struggling to remember it because it was a big busy blur. First we stopped by the BOE office to greet everyone and grab some paperwork, I got a quick glance and the desk I`d be sitting at for the next month. Then we went to the town hall and filled out my residency information. I just filled in my name and birthdate a few places. The only trouble we ran into was trying to figure out the year I was born in the Japanese calendar. The Town Hall section was easy, the next part was the worst part of the day, THE BANK.

Before I explain THE BANK, a side note on an important item. One of the first things you`ll probably get is your inkan. Sometimes you may have it ordered for you that day and get it later but in my case I got it the moment I saw my first paperwork. DO NOT LOSE THIS. Your inkan is your seal, your signature on everything. If you are asked to “sign” something it`s either, a) JET paperwork so sign away, or b) they really mean print your name. Your inkan will be used on all major paperwork to get you setup. It will help you get a phone, get a bank account, get utilities, etc. Do you need it? Well technically no, you`re a foreigner, so you can live without it and just sign in the little spot for the stamp. By law foreigners aren`t required to get an inkan, but it makes signing easier and it makes a good impression on Japanese people. I mention the inkan because just yesterday I thought I lost it and tore my house and work desk apart looking for it. I found it, but imagine if I had to tell my boss I lost it after only two weeks?

(My inkan in its case, note the little ink pad)

In Part 2 I discuss THE BANK, and shopping.

[lifeinabu]

Introduction to Abu

I had thought about and finally came to the decision to start a blog on my JET life. I`m hoping to use it to give some advice to future and current JETs, and to serve as a diary of sorts for myself. Now that I`m settled into my placement a starting my second week of work I have time to write about some topics.

This first post will be an introduction to myself and little about my placement. My name is Katlyn, I`m originally from the USA. I was living in Connecticut before I moved to Japan, but due to work my family moved all over, so I've lived in Ohio, two parts of Michigan, Missouri, New York, then Connecticut and now Japan. I came into the program used to adjusting to new places. Was I prepared for this? That’s really another post.

My placement was in Yamaguchi prefecture, in the town of Nago in the region of Abu. Basically I`m in the Inaka (countryside) I`m that orange splot in the top right hand of the prefecture.

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The nice thing about being in Abu, is it`s very pretty. I`m surrounded by mountains, most of the homes are old style. Once I get the courage up there`s a lot of pretty land to explore by hiking or biking. I`m by the sea and there`s a beach I can bike to. My town has a homegoods store and a supermarket in it, so I can get by with basic necessities. Everyone is pretty friendly, and the kids are REALLY cute.

Now the bad. I`m very isolated from all the other JETS. The nearest city with JETs in it is a 20 minute car ride away, and I have no idea when I`ll be able to get a car. We have a train line, but it`s a little bit difficult to navigate, I`ll explain about it once I give it a try. The nearest combini is about a 10 minute drive from the edge of town. So from my house that’s about a 30 minute bike ride, I`m going to try going to it one weekend. The restaurants… so far I`ve found two. I'm a little hesitant to go on my own because my Japanese level is still low. The one time I went to one of them, I got a lot of food. I feel bad I can`t finish most meals here, I eat really slowly and at a fill up fast.

Overall Abu is a nice place, it`s very livable, it`s just so out of the way and very small town. Once I figure out the train, I`m sure it`ll get easier. And the view here is very nice.