Oh hi, yes, I had a Blog. 8D
Golden week came and went, and I visited my lovely friend in the wondrous 福岡 'Fukouka', famous for 豚骨 "Tonkotsu" (pork) ramen (noodles), which I slurped in one of the dingy, but tasteful in it's own way, outdoor noodle...cafes? I guess.
I really enjoyed my stay. It was actually what I put down for my first choice for my location when I first applied for this job as an ALT. It was my first time visiting the area, but I'd heard of it and chose it mostly because I knew it was WARMER. Yet I end up in snow. Thanks, JET. (-_-) And during the time I went, the weather was lovely; it was sunny and about 24 degrees! I could walk around in my t-shirt during lunch time! What I also loved about Fukouka is the history it had. It felt like "Japan". I visited an old, beautiful castle called 'Kokura-jyou', and I saw many old temples and shrines, though it was funny to see them smack back in the middle of some modern, tall buildings! The people there also have a certain dialect which I found very cute, and I also managed to see a festival in the centre of the city where sweet old ladies in kimonos and flower shaped hats danced in the streets and there were stalls of food everywhere.
I do love it here in Hokkaido, but I think it's a bit of a shame that it doesn't have much of a history, and there aren't many old, traditional Japanese style buildings or scenery. The town I live in is a lovely little town but the way it's built is very European-influenced, with log style cabin houses and cafes similar to what I saw in Switzerland, and their dialect is basically the same as those in Tokyo apart from the occassional word or two. I guess that because I'm so accustomed to Japanese culture, I wanted to live somewhere where I'd be "plunged into it" more. I would've enjoyed not understanding half of what the people were saying because of their crazy accent, or having to learn about certain mannerisms and whatnot and taking part in traditional festivals.
May is "Sports Day" season" for schools in Japan. As I go to 4 different schools, there are 4 different Sports Day, and they're actually all on the same day. The weird thing is, they're on a Saturday. But then the kids get the day off on Monday to make up for the fact that they had to give up their Saturday...yet that makes me think that they could've just had the Sports Day on a weekday instead, thus, strange Japanese system and their use of time! Which I really do seem to find. I did think Japanese people are always work, work, work, but recently, I think that they tend to drag things out and take more time over things that they could finish in a short amount of time. So, although they are spending more hours in the workplace, they seem to be using only half of their effort...? That is very daring of me to say, as I do know that Japanese people are probably, at an average, more hardworking than the "lazy" British, not to say that all British people are like that. It's something that's come to mind though.
Anywho, I took part in the Sports Day at 1 of my 中学 Chuugaku (Secondary) schools "Bi" last Saturday. "Took part" meaning 1 of the teachers who was meant to be running in the teacher's relay had a bad knee and I was to run instead, gaaah. Those of you who know me also know that running, or sports of any kind, are not my forte. I enjoyed the day nonetheless! It was my favourite school, with my favourite teachers and my favourite students, and it was lots of fun to watch. It's also the school where I happen to be a favourite of a 14yr old boy, who waved frantically at me from afar from the starting line, and apparently "ran like no one had ever seen him run before" when I called out his name to cheer him on during the 100m race, haha. Bless him! The students were all so cute though, and they come and talk to me like I'm 1 of their friends, which I am so grateful for
After the Sports Day, there was a big 焼き肉 "yakiniku" (fried beef) style barbecue outside with the students, their families and their teachers, which was absolutely delicious! I sat with the students who had actually left the school in March (end of Japanese school year), but who had come back to visit, whilst feeling the loving gaze of my 15yr old admirer in the group next to us, haha! I also took part in the usual "drinking session" with the parents and teachers which occurs after every big school event, though I smiled politely and sipped my uulong tea while a jolly farmer downed his drink to the chants of the other responsible fathers and asked me if China was closer to England than Japan. I do believe that was his beer talking, though.
P.S. I sold my soul to 椎名林檎 Ringo Shiina. More to follow with a Live Report soon~
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