Today I started my last week of work before my holidays and before leaving for Canada. I really have no idea what I will be doing home, but I am extremly excited about this trip. I don't even know what I will be doing for New Year's Eve, but just the thought of being home is enough for me. I know that counting down the days to my trip must make it seem like I just can't longer stand Japan, but that is definetly not the case. Japan has made me think very hard of many things I have left behind, and it will be nice to go back and revisit all of these wondeful things just for a little bit. I know that once I am back in this country and back at work, the rest of the year will not seem as long. I just need to go to what I know and what I love just for a short time. It's like adding fuel to the fire in a way. Also, there is a great possibility that I travel to Thailand in March and that my mom comes visit in the spring, so that gives me other great things to look forward to before my contract is over. And to tell you the truth, I dont think a year will be long enough. I wouldn't want to stay an extra year, but maybe a few more months to continue travelling and saving up for some upcoming trips. Ive been thinking about doing an European tour when I get back with some of my savings. Anyone interested? Don't worry mom, I will make sure to pay off all of my debts before I pay for an expensive trip. :)

On other news, I really didn't think it would snow this much in Japan. It has snowed non-stop since sunday afternoon and everything is covered in snow. It is quite beautiful especially since we are surrounded by mountains. I'm sure that the skiing in this country is great and I can't wait to hit the slops when I get back from my holidays. Im thinking of investing in some snowblades. I wonder if Santa will be generous this year... *ponder*

Last Saturday, I went to one of many christmas parties. It was the James School christmas party, the school for which my friend Diane and neighbour Jason work for. It was another night spent meeting new people, mostly students and their friends. One of the guests was this one French guy from Paris, who my friend Diane thought of hooking me up with... but meh. She thought, "hey, he's French and she speaks French. This is a match made in heaven." I wish it was that easy, in fact I am looking for a French man to give me European citizenship so that I can live my dreamlife in Paris. Wouldnt that be grand?! But alas, he was 20 years old and although he looked little like Sam Roberts (but much younger without all of the facial hair), I would still give him a few more years to mature. I'm still single and I'm planning on staying that way for a VERY long time. I never thought I would enjoy being alone this much. I just love coming back home from work take a hot bath, make myself some dinner, read a book or watch a movie and go to bed at a decent time to wake up the next day completly rested. I don't owe anything to anyone, no commitment. It's super! And what better thing to do in the winter time anyway!

So here is one picture from that party. Here you see Diane, myself and Donna:

Donna had a good laugh that night when we were returning from the second party. As you can see in this picture, I was somewhat dressed up and of course I was wearing my heals. Heals or no heals, riding my bike has become second nature for me. In fact, I can't imagine not having a bike when I return from Japan. It is just so convenient. Anyway, that night my heal kept on getting stuck in my peddle, something that has never happened before. So after a few drinks, getting my heal stuck in my peddle for a last time was sure to end in some kind of incident. So as we were turning a corner, my foot locked in my peddle and this time I wasnt sharp enough to get myself out of what was about to happen, and this is what I told Donna, "Donna, could you slow down a bit, my heal is stuck again and I will have to fall." Yes, I had time to say this before actually hitting the ground. I literally let myself hit the ground because I knew there was no way for me not to fall. My foot was stuck and there was nothing I could do about it, but fall off my bike to fix it (at that point in time and in the condition I was in). There were a million other options other than falling on my ass, but I chose that one. Needless to say, we had a great laugh as well as other passing drunk japanese business men. I would like to give a big thumbs up to alcohol for making the fall less painful than it actually looked. It was a long and high fall, so I woke up the next day with somewhat of a bruise on my left bum cheek. Playing with the kindergraten kids this morning was somewhat tricky, but it does give me and Donna something funny to laugh about.

The next day, streets were filled with snow and ice and I rode my bike everywhereno problem... go figure. I also had to go to 3 different supermarkets to find some chicken for dinner. It was quite frustrating, but the chicken curry was excellent Diane, thanks.

I would like to give a shout out to Nayeli my dearest Mexicana who has left Canada for an indifinte period of time. I wish you all the luck in the world beautiful and I really hope that you come back to us in September. I have a feeling that we will have a giant reunion in the next year. 2006 is announcing itself to be great.. I can't wait to start fresh in a peaceful state of mind. Life is beautiful.

e.

So I haven't been updating my blog as frequently as I promised I would, but that is because I just didn't want to bore you with my unevventful life. I got really sick for a bit, and I had to postpone my trip to Tokyo. Instead, I have been staying home reading books and watching movies drinking tea and Hot chocolate with Baileys. Its incredible how cheap liquor and spirits are in this country. They dont over tax their alcohol here. For example, my bottle of Baileys only cost me $15, and I saw them selling the good Tequila for only $13 the big bottle. Unbelievable, but true. Just cheap enough to make anyone an alcoholic, including the poor.

I guess the most interesting thing that has happened in Fukushima as of late is the first snow. I didnt think it actually snowed here until I woke up one day and saw everything white. Here is a picture of my street on the first snow day:

The yellow building on the right is my building. Yes it is a horrible colour, but it can be a good thing in a country that doesnt have any street names: "Turn right at the second 7Eleven and you know that puky yellow building at the corner of that street? Yeah, that one. The ugly one that really stands out? That's actually my apartment building.. Pretty ugly huh?" Unless the architecture is not Japanese, every building here is somewhat of an atrocity. Mine just happens to be puky yellow.

Ive had a few parties in the last few weeks, but I have been so sick that havent been able to truly appreciate them as much. I hate not attending or leaving early... but sometimes that can be a good thing. Here parties mean a copious amount of junk food and booze. Everyone bring food and drinks for everyone, and the living room table ends up looking like this:

I truly believe that the one reason I gained so much weight here is because of these parties. So lately I have been arriving at parties with bags of tangerines, popcorn and cheese and crackers, to make the whole feast a little bit more healthy for myself an for everyone else.

One thing that I used to hate doing here (that I have learned to love) is grocery shopping. At first, I had all these people starring at me wondering what I was putting in my basket: "yes I eat tofu just like you!! How crrraazy is that? huh?" Anyway... I have gotten over the whole starring thing and now I really take the time to enjoy the crazy things that I find in the stores. For example, my friend Diane and I were shopping to make a sunday lunch and we found this carrot:

I wish we had bought it, but imagine the foreign freaks riding their bikes with a giant carrot sticking out of their front baskets. Yes, I have a basket on my bike and its considered cool here. The bigger the basket, the cooler.

Anyway, better leave now, I have a class in about 20 minutes.

Love you and see some of you in less then 2 weeks.

e.

Is it an ice cream truck? no. Is it a chipwagon truck? no.
It's a truck selling toilet paper!
Here is something you don't see everyday. This morning as I was biking out of my building at 8:45am, there was a truck passing by announcing on its microphone that it was exchanging one toilet paper roll for a newspaper. Thats right boys and girls. They have such a thing here, but can you imagine for one second a truck passing slowly down your street giving out toilet paper? This country is just becoming stranger and stranger everyday! Yet, toilet paper is not the only thing that gets sold that way, but sweet potatoes and laundry polls. I have to say, however, that the japanese have a weird, yet smart way of making business. These systems work! Japan, or at least Fukushima, is almost devoid of visual advertising like posters and giant billboards. Instead they have cars and trucks with speakers on their rooftops to advertise, promote or announce anything new in town. Another popular advertising method is giving out kleenex packages with printed advertising. At home, Im used to having people in the streets giving me loads of postcard size ads that end up unread and thrown around in the streets. But if they gave out something useful with the advertising like a pack of tissue, you would be sure that their campaign would reach a little bit more people. Something to keep in mind for when I go back home to become maire.

So as you know from my last posting, I went to Denny's with my friends to celebrate my American friend Jason's longest time out of his country and American thanksgiving. While I knew that it wasnt going to be like the Denny's at home I thought that maybe there could be a few things on the menu that could satisfy my American Food craving once and for all! You see for the last few weeks, all Ive been wanting to eat is a huge American meal with the french fries and all the gravy and the grease. When I am at home, I want asian food, like viet, or thai or japanese, or Greek food or Italien food, but here I find the opposite. Denny's did not offer any sort of relief! The whole menu was loaded with Japanese food, some italien dishes and the most American of all was a club sandwish that came in a snack size. I ate a paella... The chocolate sunday was excellent though!

That was basically my meal for the night. A paella topped with mayonnaise... Yep, mayo! They put it on everything here. Sorry if the picture quality is not that great. I was using my camera on my cell phone that night. The taste wasnt better than the rubbery food back at home, but I am sure that it was much healthier. Each meal on the menu tells you the amount of calories.







Here is what the menu looked like. As you can see, it doesnt look remotely close to the Denny's that we have at home! Here you have an assortment of different sorts or rice, noodles and tempura. How American!






Here is my friend Jason savouring his untraditional Thanksgiving meal: some soba noodles, tempura and egg rolls. Yummers. It did look better than my paella though.
















So here is my plan for next week-end... I have waited and waited for some friends to take some days off to go to Tokyo with me one week-end, but none of them have been able to do it. So I have taken the matter into my own hands and will go there alone. I feel very adventurous and extremly excited about the idea. I have the travel bug and I have a feeling that it wont be the first place that I will tour alone. I really wanted to go with someone at first because its Tokyo, its busy, its big, its loud and crazy, but I thought to myself that if I find my way back to the train station on time to go back home I should be fine. Here is what I am thinking of doing: my last class of the week ends at 8:30pm and I usually go out with some friends for a few drinks. So after that I will hop on the midnight bus to Tokyo where I will try to sleep until I arrive at around 5 in the morning. From there I will get off the bus, look to my right, look to my left and randomly decide which way I will go and walk the rest of the day... Ok, I might use my guide book a few times, but I just want to see where my feet will take me without knowing where I am and where I am going. I have been thinking about this trip a whole lot since I have decided to go on my own, and I just get so excited about the idea of being alone thrown in the unknown.

I thought it was ridiculous to go back home for the holidays after being in Japan for four months without having been to Tokyo.

Its sad to say, but im counting the days to go back home for the new years. I miss you all so much!! See you in about 26 days!
e.

A month from today I will be on a plane to Canada! It's only a 12 day trip, but it will be nice to go back to a "normal" country for a few days. Life here is just bizarre... most of the time in a good way, but still it will be nice to go back to what I know. Speaking of what I know, tonight me and some friends are going to Denny's for some good old American dinning. I once went out of curiosity just to check out the menu, and it seemed like your neighbourhood Denny's with a side dish of sushi rolls. We are going tonight to celerbrate my friend Jason's 3rd month in Japan, the longest he has ever been out of his country of the United States. So what better way to underline this event but by going to this all-American establishment. Anyway, Ill see if I will remember to take a picture of my meal tonight and I will post it.

Of all my friends here I am the one that has been here for the shortest time and because of that I think it is strange that I seem to be the one that seem to lead and organize most of our outings and get-togethers. At home, for the longest time I seemed to follow what my friends were doing. Sure I always had some kind of input in what we would do, but it was rare when I was the one completly in charge. I am the youngest of all my friends here and I seem to be the one that takes care of all the party planning. I guess it feels good to be the one in control and to have people think highly of my ideas. So last week-end it was my friend Leslee's b-day and I thought of having a little party for her at the last minute since no one had thought of it. My friend Donna and I spent the whole day planning the little shindig and we had a lot more people coming then we thought. I never had so many people in my apartment before! It was a success! Here are a few pictures:

Here is Leslee opening up some of her gifts surrounded by two of my closest friends in Japan: Donna and Diane. I hang out with these two so much that I always get their names mixed up. I guess its because their names are almost the same, or maybe its because I am just a horrible person for not getting their names right.








Here is Taishin, Kume and myself. You are maybe wondering what we were watching on television. My television and DVD player are also known as my CD player. I think I was trying to introduce my friends to the musical greatness of The Dears that night. Kume, the one in the middle, is a very interesting character. We all love him because he is "Kume." You know these people that everyone likes because "he is just the way he is?" Well he's that kind of guy. He is just this crazy Japanese guy that does really crazy unexplainable things. Well last Tuesday night, Donna, Jason, Kume, Rio and I went Karaeoke singing until 3am because the next day was another Japanese national holyday. Anyway on our way back home, Kume thought it would be funny if he would do some wild tricks on his bike. Unfortunately for him these little stunts would lead him to a really bad biking accident. The bike skidded and Kume took a really bad hit to his head as his bike fell over him. Donna, Jason and I just froze in disbelief! We couldnt believe how badly he fell off his bike. We parked our bikes in the middle of the street and ran to get him out of the way of the cars. He lost consciousness for a few seconds, shattered his glasses and had blood all over his face. After gtting him up he started mumbling something about going to the "bomb" because he exploded... We are still wondering what the hell he was talking about. We were nevertheless suprised to how well he was speaking english after getting such a big hit to the head! We called our friend Rio for some help and as we were talking to him to get us a taxi to the hospital, Kume just got back on his bike and took off! It was the strangest thing... I guess he was going to that imaginary Bomb place that he was talking about. The problem is that he felt really ashamed and he didnt want us to help him! I guess that is something else about japanese culture that I dont quite understand. They think that these kind of accidents are their fault and they dont deserve any help for their mistakes. No one could ever understand the impact of this fall unless they were there with us that night! It was very scary and we all panicked a little bit more then we would have usually because of the language barrier. We couldnt call a taxi and if someone stopped to help us we wouldnt know how to explain what happened. Speaking of which, no one who drove by that night stopped to see if we needed any help. I guess that maybe because it was the middle of the night they thought we were a bunch of holligans playing some kind of prank, but no one even slowed down to check out why we were flarring our arms standing beside our bikes! This whole incident ended with Rio picking up Kume to go to the hospital. Luckily for him, he was not severely hurt and everything was fine. But that was my tuesday night... I guess this made the evening a little bit more interesting. It sure gives Kume a good story to tell! I still wonder what that bomb place was all about...

Ok back to Leslee's b-day party!

Here you have Jason, myself, Matt, Kume, Dean, Rio and leslee at the bottom. My friend Matt sitting behind me is another Canadian living and teaching here in Fukushima. He studied film at Carleton and lived in Lanark in first year: "its a small world after all!" Crazy!

On a total different topic, I always thought to myself before leaving for japan that maybe living there could give me an idea for some kind cinematic project: a documentary, perhaps. This might never happen, but I was thinking of doing some kind of documentary on the Japanese education system. I would have to be perfect in Japanese and learn everything about the subject, and that could maybe be a little too much work with my busy work schedule, but there is nothing bad with throwing a few ideas around. I just never thought that I would be interested in making a film before. I always thought I belonged behind the scenes, but I just keep on getting all these creative ideas for shots and a script, and I really think it could be a really interesting project if I ever find the guts, time and energy.

Before I end this entry, a few week-ends ago my friend Diane and I went to this art exposition of the works of Seiji Fujishiro, a Japanese artist. Here are a few pictures I took before I was asked to put my camera away. You be the judge of what you see. I liked some of it, but I find it a little infantile to my taste. I like the cats and all, I think its cute, but its not something I would put up in my dinning room.

OK, one last thing before I go. It is almost impossible to know about new bands or new songs in Japan unless you are really into J-pop, which I still have a hard time taking seriously. But here are a few tracks that I found on my quest to finding some new tunes and artists:

Spoon - I Turn my Camera On

Sufjan Stevens - Chicago

John Vanderslice - Exodus Damage

The Fiery Furnaces - Evergreen

Architecture in Helsinki - It'5

Aquaduct - Hardcore Days and Softcore Nights

Death Cab for Cutie - Soul Meets Body

If you guys think im missing out on anything good and new back home, please let me know.

well better get all dolled up for my evening out at Denny's! I wonder of they have gritz...

e.

I think the cold season has finally hit the North of Japan. When I first arrived here, I couldnt believe how tropical the weather was in mid september, and I started thinking that maybe Japanese winters were just a myth. But after feeling like a gigantic ice cube all day, I am now becoming to realize that winter is on its way... unfortunately. The good thing is that winters here are not as cold as the ones in Canada. The only problem with Japan is that they have no idea how to heat or isolate houses... So in order to be warm, I need to seclude myself in one room of my apartment shut all the doors and close all the screens, put on my fleece suit, turn on my heater, cover myself with a blanket and make sure that the heat does not escape the room. But then again, this conventional Japanese technique leaves other rooms in the cold, and so I stay stagnant all evening isolated in my living room with nothing to do but try to stay warm. I read books, watch movies and wait by my cell phone to see if any of my friends would like to join me in my fight to stay warm. When I have friends over, there is not much of anything to do indoors or outdoors, and so we just talk and talk about nothing and everything for hours on end. I have gotten to know amazing people that way and so maybe Japanese winters are not only good for skiing, but to stay in the comfort of your own house with friends discussing the meaning of everything. So now you probably have a better idea of what setting I am in as I am writing you this entry.

Last Sunday, my friend Rio and I decided to host a Gyoza Party at my house. Gyozas are like dumplings usually stuffed with spiced pork and vegetables that you dip in soya sauce and garlic. Since Rio once went to cooking school in Vancouver, he knows all of these recipies and wanted to show us different kinds of Gyozas. We invited a few people to come over and all together we started making homemade gyozas from scratch. The first ones we prepared were boiled gyoza stuffed with shrimp, sake and onion and the second kind was fried stuffed with tofu, soy beans and carrots. Needless to say, it was all very delicious. Here are a few pictures of our party:

This is Rio, our cook and gyoza teacher for the evening. He just loves cooking for his friends and showing us tradional Japanese foods, and I love to eat, so he is one of my favourite people I have met here so far.








Here you have Donna and Ryuta carefully making the yummy dumplings.
This is what the dumplings look like before they get cooked. Unfortunately, I dont have a picture of them cooked, even though it wouldnt be very interesting since they dont really change that much...
But here is some of us eating them.. oh so good. This has nothing to do with Gyoza but in this picture you can see something typically Japanese. In this country, people are obssessed with their cell phones. They check it all the time, write intensive long text messages anytime anywhere. In this picture you see Ryuta taking a break from eating to read a text message from a friend. I have to admit that I even find myself writing many long messages a day. Im becoming pretty quick on the dial! I wonder if that is a good thing...

The Gyoza Party People: At the top you have Jax and Donna (both wonderful girls from Australia.) At the bottom you have Chef Rio, myself, Ryuta making a devilish sorta face and my neighbour Jason.

Now I know that some of you are interested to know how my apartment looks like. Well even though you cant really see much of it, all of these pictures were taken at my house, but this next picture is a picture of my living room where I spend most of my time (and where I am right now.)

And for a last picture before I go into my ice cold bedroom, here is a picture of the group hanging out in my bed. You see I am one of the rarest foreigner here who has a western style bed and I think that the only reason why people come over is to re-live the comfort of a normal bed even if it is for 5 minutes. This is the same group again for the exception of Michelle (the girl in the blue shirt), who will also be referred to as my swimming partner from California.

Well time for me to hit the sack. Hope you enjoyed these photos! I know it has been a while since the last time I posted some and I will try to send you some more that I meant to post before. Ihave been quite lazy and I apologize for that.

Hope all is well with everyone and cant wait to see some of you in December.

e.

P.S. by the way, I have good news for some. I have been able to extend my trip by a day. I know its only a day, but it is better than nothing :) I cant wait to see you guys!

Before throwing myself in this experience, I remember doing some research about other people's experiences in teaching abroad, especially in Japan. Some were positive, but most of them were just filled with criticism about the school they worked for and the culture. I said to myself that I wouldnt be like them because I would feel too blessed of doing anything like this to be complaining. And well, it turns out that I am not any better than these teachers who I have criticized for being too negative or closed minded. My last two entries have not exactly given a good impression of this place where I have been able to rejoice one of the most amazing experiences of my life, and I would like to apologize for such negative feedback. I guess it is true, that even for a positive person like myself, the negative side to anything always prevails over the good.

Japan has been great to me so far. My honeymoon months here are over and I guess it has finally hit me that this is not a 2 week vacation but my place of residence for the next year and maybe the next one after that. Home sickness has hit me early. I think of my family and my friends more than anything. I never felt so close to them, being so far away. But I also have made great friends here, deep friendships which I never thought I would be able to make again after the ones I made in Canada. However, because I have such amazing friends at home I have been very picky with the ones I woud meet here. I would not let them in unless they reminded me of the ones i had at home and fortunately I have been lucky to find some that have reached me in ways I never thought was still possible. I think of Diane, Jason, Leslee, Matt, Donna, Rio, Michelle and Jacqueline.

Other than meeting wonderful people, making new friendships, and discovering this beautiful country, Japan has been a soul-searching place for me. I have only been here for two months but this country has changed me and has made me grow quite a bit. I almost feel like a different person. I compare my life in Japan to a retreat where people go to to shut down the rest of the world to be better able to get in touch with themselves and to discover what they want, who they are and where they are going. Each day these three things are becomng clearer in my mind. Sometimes when I wish I was home, I ask myself the question "what would I be doing if I was still in Canada?" And I can see myself living under the safe and comfortable roof of my mom's luxurious apartment, working in a clothing store, going out with my friends on Friday nights, watch movies and just talk about what i want to do about my future without ever doing anything about it. But by being here, Im doing something worthwhile, living a life and an experience that wont equate to anything else I will ever do. All of a sudden, my aspirations have never been so clear, I feel extremly motivated and I am not scared to risk it all for my future. I guess what I am trying to say is that the day I come back home I will know exactly who I am and where I am going, and fight for what I want no matter what it takes. Why settle for less when you know you have the potential to be so much more.

Here is some news: life in Japan is different. No really, it is! So different, that sometimes I have to slap myself in the face a few times to realize that life here is actually real. From going for a pee, to greeting your neighbour, everything here is done differently. This country has rules that you wouldnt even think of in Canada. For example, here are my 2 favourites.　First off, I was always wondering why so many kids were walking back home from school. At around 3:00 in the afternoon, sidewalks are packed with young elementary students in their little navy blue uniforms. Well it's been said to me that no parents are allowed to give their children a ride to or back from school, because appearantly it is unfair for other kids that dont have a ride. But what happens to the kids that live an hour walk away compared to the ones that only need to roll out of bed to get to school? How is that "fair?" Elementary school students are not even allowed to ride their bikes and no schools are ready to make exceptions for different age groups. Another rule that I dont quite understand is that you cant wear a sport watch in public swimming pools, BUT you can wear your locker key around your wrist. And so what is the difference? and should I even dare to ask? Is there even a logical reason behind all of these senseless rules?

It seems to me that everything here is ruled in such a way to control people any way they can, from implementing a silly rule to maintaining their traditions. It is a country made out of boundaries, not only internationally speaking, but emotionally, psychologically and physically. You can't freely express your feelings, you cant state your opinions and P.D.As are frowned upon. Its a culture of restraints. I even had a student friend who asked me once, ''is it not hard for you to breath here?'' And she wasnt referring to the environment. I consider myself lucky to be a foreigner in these parts of the world, because the japanese do not expect me to be like them, so I can act as wildly and openly as when I was in canada. But dont get me wrong, I do have to tone it down a bit because of the respect I have for these people that are not used to a more open-minded carefree atttitude.

So yesterday I tried out this pool for the first time. It took me a while to go, because I was waiting for someone to come with me. It is always intimidating to go to these kinds of places alone. People here stare at you even more when you are only wearing a two piece swim suit; they seem to want to make sure that you have the same body parts as they do . Anyway, it felt great to do something that I was used to do back in Canada. I have never felt so good then after my swim yesterday. Unfortunately, my friend Michelle and I wanted to go back today after work, but the pool is closed until the 15th. Just when I felt so motivated to work out, this had to happen!!

In other news, something that happened last week on my dad's side of the family made me feel very far from home. Two fridays ago, my grand-pa, my dad's father, passed away. I got the news from my mother who called me one late night. I think I was more saddened by the thought that my father and my brother would have really liked me there with them for support. Im usually always present for these kinds of events and I felt like I let my them down. Also, I really didn't know how I was supposed to grieve, and at times it didnt even feel real. Of course, there was no way for me to be there, but it also made me feel really nervous about the thought of having someone else in my family pass away or get really sick while I am so far away. I couldn't bear it if I was here. It would be too hard. So please stay out of trouble while I am in Japan and take care of yourself.

Love you all,
e.

For many years, Japan was an island secluded from the rest of the world. For three centuries, no foreigners were allowed to come to the island and it was almost as hard for Japanese people to leave their own country. It was only a century ago that Japan decided to open its borders to other nations. Today, the country has modernized itself in a western fashion by letting in infuences from North American and European cultures. However, Japan has never lost its strong traditions, and conservative values and has one of the strongest traditional cultures in the world. This is one of the main reasons why I became so interested in coming to live in Japan. I wanted to see how it would be like to live in a culture so different from my own. However, because of this, Japan has many advantages and disadvantages, for me and for many other foreigners.

Let me explain...

Japan can either open up your mind or shut it down. It has been hard for me to be on the same page of many of my Japanese friends because of their attitudes on the world and general social issues. I don't think they are non-interested, I just dont think that they have a slight idea about what goes on in the world around them or have a strong social stand-point. I have always been very interested in world's social problems, I'm always interested to know what i can do to make a difference either in my environment on a day to day basis or within myself. Japan is so extremly rooted in tradition, that the world around them hardly exists. The rest of the world is like a big blur that most of them has never seen or heard of. They cannot even compare their culture to another, because they have hardly ever been in contact with other nations. Therefore, how can they become involved on a global stage if they do not even ackowledge the rest of the world they live in? I am not making this up. My students have admitted this to me a few times. For example, have you ever noticed how the Japanese travel? They are always signed up in these ridiculous organized tours that travel through 5 major big cities in 3 days. They dont even get off the bus to take pictures, how can they grasp anything from another country or another culture in their whirlwind tours of the world? Even the education system avoids any classes about world cultures, social or political issues, and even art... because they are not considered important enough in the educational development of a child.

I know this must seem as though I am criticizing the japanese and their culture. Ive had many people telling me before I leave, that Japan has a culture that might be frustrating at times because it is so hard to understand and so different from my own. Their strong ties to their customs are in a way very admirable. But... there is just one thing... many of them are ignorant of the world they live in, of the atrocities that happen day by day in the country next door, of the Aids victims in Africa, or of the poverty situation in the world, or of the aftermath of war and so on. Its been said to me that younger generations are more aware of these situations, but do they do anything to solve these social realities or even educate others about them? Maybe my town is too small to really see if something is getting done, so I dont want to jump to conclusions right away. But I can assume that a country like Japan that has a strong economy and a seemingly stable society, can have an important impact on the rest of the world, if only they knew what the real matters were and how to fix them. Unfortunately, at this time their only international involvement is in the Iraq war and you can be sure that it will take a while before you hear about a Japanese missionary group in Africa helping Aids victims.

When I started working here, it didn't take me a long time to realize the closed-mindedness of my students. So right away I had the idea to not only teach them a foreign language, but to also incorporate interesting discussion topics and maybe slowly make them aware of social situations of the world they live in. Well my friends, I have tried and I have tested the waters and I think that maybe my efforts here were useless. I dont know if here, the saying "Ignorance is bliss" is a moto that many Japanese unconsciously live by, but I can confidently say that it will take more than one socially conscious foreign teacher to make them aware of what the world today is really like.

I am not saying that all Japanese are oblivious, in fact just their strong interest in acquiring a new foreign language is a big step in the scheme of things. Learning a new language opens many doors to different cultures and different attitudes from around the world. Especially, if the language is English, the most commonly spoken language in the world, you can be sure that they will be in contact with people and ways of thinking that they never faced before. Other people believe that the Japanese only learn English because their company asks them to or that they see learning another language like some sort of hobby, like knitting!

I also made friends with many Japanese people who agree that their society is closed up from the rest of the world. A few of my Japanese friends are frustrated that since in Japan it is wrong to show emotions, public displays of affection or to debate or have strong opinions, they are forced to do the same even if they feel differently.

With that being said, I guess I should take one step at a time: introduce them to a new language first and then maybe slowly take them into the harsh reality of our world.

I am writing this entry because today at school I received a phone call from a student that told me that the topics I bring up in class are too difficult for them to discuss. I assumed that since it was a class of women students it would be easier for me to bring up interesting topics about Japanese culture with a twist of Women issues; like divorce or even fashion. It really seemed as though they enjoyed my class and that they were interested in my topics. I always ended this class with a good feeling; with the thought that maybe this time I got through them. Their English is not perfect, but I am certain that they are well aware of what goes on in class. There is nothing too complicated in my lessons, but I do like to put in a little social reality twist to all of my discussions, and I guess they are just not ready for that yet. But listen to this: they would prefer talking about food and colours! Colours? Is it even possible to talk about colours for a whole hour? "what about you? what is the colour of your bathroom mats?" give me a break...

I hate the idea of having to dumb down my lessons because they don't want to discuss worthy topics, but it is true that my purpose here is not to change the world, but to teach a language, and hopefully that will lead to something positive.

There have been three recent additions to my apartment in the last week: a television, a DVD player and maple syrop. I can now say that maybe my life in japan is finally complete.

Since the purchase of my $50 DVD player, I have been watching movies every night on my caca brown couch that actually turns out to be quite a comfortable piece of furniture which was recently completed with a leaopard print fleece blanket. Tomorrow morning I am planning on trying a new recipe called banana paste based pancakes to finally have some of my new maple syrup.

This morning as I was having my breakfast, I received a very nice phone call from my mother. Can you believe that it was the first time we spoke over the phone since I left Canada? It was 7:30am and I was a little groggy. But it was funny to think that while it was thursday morning for me, it was wednesday night for her. How was it talking into the future mom? It was nice to finally hear her voice and to be able to talk to her without having to type at a computer. Phones are so much more effective in that way.

Tomorrow it is a special day at school since it is Halloween week-end. Saturday we are having some kind of Hallooween parade/trick or treat through Fukushima. So we are basically cancelling all classes to have a 3 hours meeting to organize our Halloween day. Of course I need to have a costume and I just had no clue what I would be without my infamous blonde wig that I left in Canada. I guess it would be a little risque to be a 70s Pornstar as a school teacher, so instead I went to one of Fukushima's second hand stores (which are by the way, 10 times better than any Value Village in Canada, that is also owned by Wal-Mart, did you know?). I found a 60s fashion get up to make myself look like Jackie-O, or some sort of 60s fashion goddess. I have no idea how I am going to pull it off, but the shoes are pretty cool. Ill need a lot of make-up and a major hair-spray job. I will make sure to take as many pictures as possible. In fact I get to wear my costume twice since tomorrow night we are having a Halloween party with all of my foreign friends at this foreign bar in town called The Big Apple.

Sorry, I dont have any pictures in this entry. I will make sure to update on my camping trip that ended up being a cottage week-end because of the bad weather. It was great fun and I took a few pictures. The next day, however, I woke up with a really bad cold. I had to leave work early 2 days in a row, but I was happy to have a few movies and a DVD handy at home.

I would also like to wish a very happy b-day to my very best friend in the world: Heidi! I think about you everyday; I cant wait to see you again, my love and see how much these experiences have changed us. I know they have changed us for the best and I know that our friendship will be even stronger when we are together again. Lots of love and all the best.

Your poopsie, Ivanie

I cannot believe it has been more than 2 weeks since my last entry! I really let you down this time. I just got back from work and I still have enough energy to write an entry for once. It can get very hectic at school and it can easily become draining. Monday and Tuesday I'm off at 5:30pm, but from Wednesday to Friday I have nearly 12 hour days. I could leave in the middle of the day to go home and rest for an hour or 2, but I always find myself staying at school preparing for my classes or riding my bike through the streets of Fukushima. So I guess, it's my fault when I find myself exhausted at the end of the week. But also I never thought that teaching would demand so much energy. Here I have a picture of my kindergarten class. This was taken at a field trip spent in this really beautiful park with the biggest kiddy slide I had ever seen! The grown-ups in the picture are the kids' parents, who are all very nice people, although some can be a little crazy at times. I heard from other staff that Japanese parents can become very jealous of other parents's children for no clear or explainable reason, and sometimes act out against the teachers and the school. Nothing has happened to me as of yet, but I have heard of a few stories about psycho parents who go from worshipping to ripping into the school for the silliest reasons.

Slowly I am making Fukushima and my new apartment my new home. Last week-end I went to shop for some home-deco and some much needed furniture, like a table for my living room. My apartment is slowly coming together, which means it is almost time for a rockin' house warming party. My friend Diane is willing to trade her gorgeous retro pastel green couch for my atrocious 70s caca brown love seat. This thing is an eye-sore, and I just don't know how she sees anything appealing in this piece of furniture. To each its own I guess! Maybe I shouldn't complain so much because the couch was given to me for free, but I promise that once my apartment is all set, I will take some pictures for all of you curious people. I guess I just need to make it more my own, more like Ivanie. I truly believe that I need to do this little effort and spend this little cash to make me feel more at ease in my new environment. That's just how I see it.

Nothing really important has happened here since my mega birthday week. I haven't been travelling as much and I have been trying to get used to my surroundings by staying in Fukushima. I really like it around here and I am becoming more and more comfortable living here. I am making great friends and living alone in my large apartment has not been as big of a challenge as I thought it would be. At the beginning, I found it hard to come to an empty house with no one to talk to. I spent my first 2 weeks here without phone and the Internet, and I lived through some tough times. Furtunately, with time I have made some friends with people who live really close, like my neighbour Jason who lives right upstairs and my British friend Diane who literally lives a 45 second bike ride down my street. Diane has become a really close friend of mine. She is 35 years old and she is another English teacher at James school. She is this wonderful person who has always great advice to give me with a hell of experience to back it up. Every week-end we try to make dinner for each other and finish off with one, two and sometimes even 3 bottles of wine (and a movie). Here is a close-up picture of Diane, myself and of Miho and Naomi in the background when we went to this cute little Japanese style restaurant for some beef ragu, their speciality. It was delicious and this is what the meal looked like. All of this for about $10 and look how beautiful it looks!

Like I said, I haven't been travelling as much as my first days in the country, but i have been spending a lot of time with some of my new friends. I have as many foreign friends as Japanese friends and we go out very often... too often. I think it would be a lot harder to experience another culture if you didn't have anyone with you to share it with, or anyone with you that could help you translate what the hell these people are saying!!! More and more everyday, I become more and more frustrated by the fact that I dont speak the language. I feel totally illiterate at times: I cant read, I cant speak, I cant write and I cant understand what is being said to me. Sure I know a few words, but not enough to get me around the simplest things like ordering food or a drink. I really would like to take up some lessons but all the free ones are during the week-days when Im at work, so I will have to find a method of my own. There are a few internet sites that offer free Japanese lessons, but eventually I should really start some real classes.

Another thing I should really look into is finding a communal swimming pool and start swimming again. Since ive been here, I don't understand why, but I have been eating constantly. I am always so hungry. For the last 2 weeks ive been trying to cut back and Ive been eating really healthy foods (like tofu and vegetables), but the real problem is that I really can't stop eating. So I guess I have been gaining weight since I have been here. People are surprised when I tell them this, because food in japan is very healthy and I also bike long distances everyday. I dont remember being this hungry when I was home and I dont think I was doing as much exercise, but Japan is making me gain a little weight. My friends tell me that Ill eventually get sick of Japanese food and stop eating so much of it. But when is that going to be?

Anyway, 2 week-ends ago I had a really charged, long and fun day. First I had to go to my boss's BBQ where I got to meet a lot of other school owners in the prefecture and some more parents of the children I teach. It was an affair that started in the morning up until 5pm, and I was exhausted when we had to go home. On that same day, Fukushima had this festival that was coming to an end that evening and since it only comes once a year, me and Jason decided to go check it out just for an hour or two. Here are a few pictures of this festival.

The festival consisted of the participation of the different regions of Fukushima. They were all individually identified by their motocars that had paper lamps with their region's names in Japanese. At first, one after another they shout and cheered for their own region, then threw sweets to the crowd for good luck and finally one after another they left screaming and cheering and seperately paraded around town before going back home. So that night we kept on bumping into random motorcars as they were going back. Here are more shots of the festival.

After the festival I found myself with so much energy, that I just couldnt imagine myself going back home. So I went to check out my friends play some soccer and pressured them in going for some beers after the game. We went to this little place called the Chipwagon, where they serve pityful Mexican plates for very expensive. Anyway, the fun part about this place is that almost everynight they have this retro band dressed in 60s fashion with the Elvis hair and shiny suits. So my friend Leslie and I had the guts after a few beers and a shot of tequila to dance the twist in front of all the shy Japanese people in the restaurant. They were cheering us on and whisling at us as we twisted down to the floor. It was great fun and we became known as the crazy geijins, the stars of the evening.

After the Chipwagon for some beer and twisting fun, we went to this ramen shop. Ramen shops are like the Japanese equivalent to Denny's or a poutine restaurant... great for after party food and snacks. Ramen is a large bowl of soup with thin noodles, 2 slices of pork, a whole egg, some tofu and boiled bamboo swimming in a pork broth. I had some Gioza which are basically fried dumplings stuffed with pork and vegetables with a nice sweet sauce. We lost most of the group after the ramen, but although it was already 1am, my friend Leslie and I couldn't just end the night there. So we went Kareoke for 2 hours, singing songs that we usually would not be singing in a large group, like sappy love songs (i.e. Richard Marx, Meatloaf and the like). After singing our heart out to tunes like Bon Jovi's "Always," Leslie came over for some tea and left my apartment at 5am when the sun was coming out. This was one of the longest days of my life.

Next week-end I am going camping for the very first time. Yes I know what most of you might be thinking, and that's fine. I never really wanted to go camping before. I guess I needed to come all the way to Japan to have the guts to finally try it out even though Japan has the biggest spiders I have ever seen and the most vicious mosquitos. So I am just going to hope for the best, wear some extra layers, maybe a mask, some bug repellent that kills, not spray myself with parfum for a week and bring lots and lots of alcohol to help me forget about all the buggy creatures.

Well I'll make sure to update sooner and more often from now on. It is almost 11pm and I should go to bed for another busy school day.

luv u all,
e.

And this is how my birthday party ended.

It definetly did not end on a bad note, but it did end up with finding my umbrella completly torn apart at the front of the kareoke bar where we ended the night at 5am. I dont really recall taking this photograph, nor do I really remember the taxi ride to my friend Jacqueline's apartment. Nonetheless, it was a great party, and I am still paying for the consequences. Waking up this morning for work was not exactly easy, but once at school and after drinking these wonderful little cans of coffee, I felt alright to start my day. Japan is overran by vending machines. Most of them sell this great coffee, either hot or chilled, for about 120yen. I am slowly discovering that I cannot start my day without one or sometimes even two. They are delicious and quite potent; they really work! Canada should really look into those.

Anyway, how about I tell you more about my birthday party on last saturday. We met at an Indian restaurant for dinner that is owned by a friend. He makes delicious curry and serves the biggest pieces of naan I have ever seen. Its a little pricy, but the service is in English and it is always nice to have a break from all of the Japanese. There we met another English teacher that is also a DJ from New Orleans that told us about this House Techno event at this nearby club called As Soon As. So we all went to check it out and see how the clubbing scene in Fukushima was like. It was a very small place and the music did not exactly suit my taste, but we still ended up having an amazing time. Since it was my birthday party many of my friends offered me drinks and wanted to introduce me to new ones, such as Red Rooster (very famous in Hawaii appearantly that happens in 3 shots: tequilla shot, tomato shot and Ginger Ale). Here is a picture of when 2 of my friends tried it out... It is not a great picture because it was dark and I couldnt really see straight, but it will give you an idea. Compai!




Japanese people are known for being very reserved people who avoid at all cost public displays of affection, but that night at the club things were a little different. I mean, unlike clubs in canada, you did not see anyone making out, but people were more touchy and friendlier (not that japanese people arent friendly), but they seemed to be more open that night. I had many strangers come hug me, and wish me a happy birthday and ask me what I was doing in Japan. Many of them had a decent english. I always feel so flattered when they try really hard to converse with me. I also noticed that in Japanese clubs, people are allowed to pass out anywhere and do not get kicked out. So many people were laying across chairs and on the floor to sleep. One guy was sleeping on this one chair all the time I was there (3 hours). Also, I am not sure if that only happens in this club, but I did not have one single sleaze bag hit on me. It was great! I guess people dont exactly hook up in bars here and if they do, people arent as nasty.

Here are 2 other pictures I took that night of me and some friends before we hit the Kareoke bars at 4am. I cant believe how many times I have been Kareoke singing since I have been here. I am really getting the hang of it and it can be really fun. My favourite songs to sing thus far are Mr Roboto by the Styx (which I love to dedicate to all of my Japanese friends, but that is totally unknown to them) and Heart of Glass by Blondie... 2 great Kareoke warm-ups.




Here you have Leslie and Ayako. Leslie is from a small town near Sarnia and of all of the people I have met so far she really reminds me of my friends back home. We enjoy the same dark and goofy sense of humour, and she is a tons of fun.











Myself and Ryota. Look at at those happy drunken smiles!







The birthday party was a success, my birthday week was a success. Thank you so much everybody for making it this fun. However, there is just one thing: I missed having all of you canadian friends here with me this week. If there was one birthday gift I really wanted it was to have you there party with me and meet all of these people and do all the things I have done. I really wish that some of you will come here one day and experience this crazy country with me.

Now I am giving myself a week to recover from all of this hardcore partying. I never thought I would party this hard here, but it has really been exhausting and when you work with kids and all of your energy is gone, teaching a kids' class can be the hardest thing to do. So this week, I am going to bed early, I am going to eat right and concentrate on my challenging job. Teaching kids is not as easy as I thought it would be, but it is what got me here and I am sticking to it.

Have a great day guys and I miss you all tremendously.
e.

Yesterday was another Japanese national holyday. They sure like those here, which is alright with me! So some friends and I decided that we would take another hiking trip up this mountain in the perfecture of Yamagata called Yamadera known for its 1,000 steps and its beautiful sightseeing. I thought that maybe this mountain would have been more challenging then the other one on Monday where you had to use chains to lift yourself up a rock to reach the next step, but all we had to do today was climb up some stairs to a bouddhist shrine.

We were a large group and it was hard to stay all together, as some of us (like myself) couldnt help but take pictures of almost everything in sight along the way. I couldnt believe how gorgeous this place was. It was like nothing I had ever seen before! I felt like I was in a dream, or in What Dreams May Come. I was in complete awe! I have prepared here a few pictures of my excursion to give you a better idea of what I have seen, but no matter how well the pictures turned out, none of them can truly give justice to this beautiful site! I hope you enjoy these next few photographs :)

This morning Jason (my neighbour from New York) and myself left home at 9am to meet our friends at the local train station. The train station in Fukushima is not like your average station. It is quite a large spot, with many restaurants, nightclubs, famous Japanese arcade games, Kareoke bars and it also has some sort of a mall that sells expensive designer clothes (which is something I am going to be looking into today.) Since it is such a big place, it requires huge parking lots, not only for cars but for bikes too. And since every living Japanese owns a bike, you get a few bike parking spots that look like this one. I thought it was pretty overwhelming to see such a huge amount of bikes all packed in such a huge space. Nobody in japan really locks their bikes, even if they are left overnight. Bikes here do not get stolen, in fact stealing anything is seen as one of the biggest taboos around here.



We all left Fukushima in 3 different cars and it took us about an hour and half to arrive to the little town. It was funny watching my Japanese friends finding hard to understand the local's dialect as they were looking for a parking spot. Just like in Fukushima, this town was surrounded by huge foresty mountains that were probably twice the size of the ones here. I didnt know where to look, everything was just so beautiful. There were many little shops selling typical Japanese snacks, so we stopped by at this rice cake kiosk for a taste. They were like these really hard Toaster Struddles without the filling covered in sugar and a little salt. Quite delicious, but a little hard on the teeth.









I really had no idea that Yamadera was going to be a bouddhist shrine until I entered the gates. Of course, as always, me and a few other foreigner friends were the only white people around, so we got a few stares. It is afterall a very small town and Geijins are a rare breed in these parts of the wood. Eventually, you learn to ignore all of the staring and all of the people running into walls to take a better look at you (yes, it has happened). I dont think I have received this much attention in all of my life. It was really intimidating at first, but it is something that you eventually get used to. Appearantly, they think it is an honour to have foreigners come live or visit their small town. So I shouldnt be too worried. Here you have a few people from the group lighting up incents at the entrance of the shrine.



Along the way up the mountain we came across a few little shrines and praying spots. Many of them had a statue of the famous buddha. It took a while, but i finally decided to go rub his belly for luck. I was afraid to look disrespectful among all the other bouddhists and Japanese tourists, but I finally decided to give it a little rub! It was nice and smoothe and round and lovely... next step: my conversion to buddhism.



We also encountered many kiosks that sold fortunes for a 100 Yen. They were all written on this beautiful rice paper in old Japanese that my friend Ryota helped us translate. Some predicted long life, some wealth and some predicted life-long happiness (just like mine actually.) When you are done reading your fortune, the custom is to fold the little paper in four, say a little prayer and wrap it around the branch of a tree or a string for good luck. Many trees are just covered with them. It actually makes me think of the one scene in Lost in Translation when Scarlet Johanson's character crosses a shrine surrounded by some of these trees in Kyoto, probably one of the most beautiful parts of the film.


Most of the people that came along today were Japanese. We were only 4 foreign english teachers. Most of my japanese friends speak english fairly well. Most of them have travelled the world or have lived in English-speaking countries for a few years, either for university or for pleasure. The rest of the group are old english students that have studied english in university or in one of the many language schools accross the country. So it is nice to have a nice group of friends to who you can actually comunicate with but who is also rooted in japanese culture. And if you are wondering, most of them are soccer players for the English Fukushima team and I was invited one night by one of the players to come and check it out. They seemed a little hardcore when I went to see them last sunday night, but I am thinking that maybe I could slowly start playing soccer again (a game I havent played since elementary school... i think) Soccer is very big in Japan and has probably become the second National sport of the country after Sumo wrestling. Here are most of them, left to right Ryota, Kou, Ayako, Jaqueline, Emiko, Kayako, Ryuta and Kume at the bottom.





Here you have some happy Japanese hikers taking a break from climbing sitting at the steps of a praying post.








Mid-way we reached one of the monks "residents", if I can call them like that. My friend Jason thought it was a restaurant and we almost walked in (which could have been a little awkward.) They were just sitting all together on their tatami mats very calmly. I needed to take a picture of this just because it looked so typical. Then again, I didnt want to seem disrespectful towards them, but I took a quick picture and left. I was always afraid to look so ignorant. It is hard to know in these situations if anything you are doing is wrong or disrespectful. Then again, I am obviously a tourist and they probably understand that I dont know any better.





Like I said earlier, the climb was a piece of cake compared to the one we did earlier this week. The hardest part of the trip was to keep the whole group together. Some had reached the top way ahead of time. Here you have one part of the group climbing the last steps. In this picture you can see the profile of the mountains in the background and the clearing of the sky. (Ayako, Kume and Ryota)







Once at a the top we couldnt believe how simple it was to climb these famous 1,000 steps. We sat for a few minutes. Then we had the chance to hear and see a bit of a bouddhist ceremony. I will never forget this moment in my life. I couldnt see very well because we were sitting outside of the shrine, but the priests chants were hypnotizing and so much more powerful then what I had ever expected. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take pictures, since I was told that one monk represented God itself and it was appearantly wrong to take a picture of God. I guess that made sense. Here I believe you have a picture of sacriligious omens and gifts, surounded by encarved stone. Appearantly, the engravings in these stones are short poems, commonly known as Haikus.





The view from the top of the mountain was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I know I keep on repeating myself, but I thought I had seen many nice things in my life before, but yesterday's sightseeing took the cake. So here are a few pictures of this amazing view.



























I took so many pictures at this one spot, but none of them turned out the way I wanted. You can hardly see the detailing of the mountains and the play on shadows.










Emiko, Mariko and myself in front of the stunning view.












Kirei! Beautiful....














After climbing to the top we were all starving. So we decided to got to one of the local restaurants for some Soba, a typical Japanese dish, a sort of soup with thick buckwheat noodles served either cold or hot.










We finished off the evening at Jason's apartment for a few drinks and some disco music... yep. Here are the boys and the girls.

Jason. Ryuta and Ryota strangling Dean, an English teacher from Hawaii.

Mariko, Kayako, Jaqueline and myself, looking a lot more civilized than the boys.

Wow, putting this all together really occupied a huge chunk of my time. Today, I am planning on cleaning my apartment, visit the shopping mall at the train station and later tonight we are having another big party for my birthday so that we can get the whole group together. Ill make sure to keep you posted on the event.

Hope this was interesting!

Ivanie