This is a carving of the poet Basho's famous Haiku:
"Furu-ike ya,
kawazu tobikomu
mizu no oto"
"an ancient pond
a frog jumps in
the splash of water"
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
More Japanese Gardens
I discovered another Japanese garden today: Kiyosumi Gardens. It definitely ranks among one of the best in Tokyo. I think the most amazing thing will be returning to these various different gardens in the months to come to see them change. Autumn hasn't begun here yet. So I am happy to capture the "end of summer" look and compare it with the changes that are sure to occur as the seasons change. Although overcast, the weather was mild and there was plenty of activity in this park, as well as plenty of quiet peaceful places to sit and enjoy. The park was filled with coy fish and turtles as well as an assortment of ducks. Gardeners were busy pruning and clipping. Friends and families were walking through, picnicking and snapping photos. There were also several wedding parties taking portraits as well.
This is a carving of the poet Basho's famous Haiku:
"Furu-ike ya,
kawazu tobikomu
mizu no oto"
"an ancient pond
a frog jumps in
the splash of water"
This is a carving of the poet Basho's famous Haiku:
"Furu-ike ya,
kawazu tobikomu
mizu no oto"
"an ancient pond
a frog jumps in
the splash of water"
Monday, October 29, 2012
News from Yokohama-shi
I have completed a full week of work!! It's starting to feel a bit more under my control. I arrive to work about 45 minutes early, and usually use most of my lunch break for prep time, but when work is over, its truly over. The students I meet at work have such interesting stories. So far, that is what is most exciting about my job: getting to know about the lives of the students I work with. Although, I am horrible at remembering their names! I used to pride myself on learning 23 students' names by the end of the first day of school, but I can't quite figure out these Japanese names! Just looking at them, I can't tell female or male nor can I commit them to memory! On multiple occasions, little children have corrected me because I mispronounced their names!! Its going to take a bit of time for that!
During Saturday's shift, we had a photo shoot at work. One of the students I had earlier in the week, is a professional photographer, and he went from classroom to classroom taking photos of teachers working with students. I was photographed in three different classes. I am guessing they are for publicity for the school. I will share them when I see the proofs, or the advertisements.
Saturday night, was party night! Maiko, who lives down the hall from me, invited me to a Salsa Halloween party! No way was I going to pass that up. After I came home from work, I sat in her room and she did my hair and make-up! She had spent the previous hour working on her hair and make-up, it looked incredible. Kimonos is a hobby of hers and she was wearing a gorgeous one! She let me borrow some accessories, and I became a cocktail waitress of sorts.
Adorable school kids waiting for the train with me!!
Crossing the main roadway on the way to the station.
Heading up the hill to my apartment!
walking through the neighborhood to the apartment
I live on the top of a hill, so the fastest way up, is up these stairs!
Social Apartment Eda! My window is the second from the left on the second floor :)
During Saturday's shift, we had a photo shoot at work. One of the students I had earlier in the week, is a professional photographer, and he went from classroom to classroom taking photos of teachers working with students. I was photographed in three different classes. I am guessing they are for publicity for the school. I will share them when I see the proofs, or the advertisements.
Saturday night, was party night! Maiko, who lives down the hall from me, invited me to a Salsa Halloween party! No way was I going to pass that up. After I came home from work, I sat in her room and she did my hair and make-up! She had spent the previous hour working on her hair and make-up, it looked incredible. Kimonos is a hobby of hers and she was wearing a gorgeous one! She let me borrow some accessories, and I became a cocktail waitress of sorts.
In downtown Tokyo, we headed into a quiet building. The private party was held on the second floor, about two times the size of an american living room! Everyone was dancing! We got right into it! Salsa, Merengue, Bachata, and Reggaeton- I was in heaven! 90% of the party was Japanese, with a sprinkling of foreigners. The crazy thing was when we rode the train home with a few party-goers, we spoke in Spanish!
Sunday morning, I went back to work! Then promptly came home and took a long nap :)
On my day off on Monday, I finally hunkered down and started studying Japanese. I bought myself some school supplies- always a good motivation :) so with flash cards and a new pen as well as two different aps on my ipod I hung out at a coffee shop and worked on new vocabulary as well as katagana- the Japanese syllabary. Hopefully I will make it to a class later on this week!
Today was beautiful and sunny, so here are some neighborhood photos!
Eda station (its a 10 minute walk from my apartment to the local train station)
Adorable school kids waiting for the train with me!!
Crossing the main roadway on the way to the station.
Heading up the hill to my apartment!
walking through the neighborhood to the apartment
I live on the top of a hill, so the fastest way up, is up these stairs!
Social Apartment Eda! My window is the second from the left on the second floor :)
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Some recent experiences in photo form!
For those of you who don't like to read my long ramblings, here are some recent photos:
Typical mom with her kids on her bike. Can you count how many people are riding this bike! (look closely!)
Statue near one of the major train stations- Ikebukuro
I still cannot get over how many people live in Tokyo!! Everywhere at all times of the day/night. Many of the downtown train stations just have a CONSTANT heavy flow of people
Best fireworks show ever!! Over an hours worth of pyrotechnics!
More than 10 floors of Karaoke rooms! And that is one of about 20 karaoke buildings within a 2 block radius!
Its not yet fall!
These adorable older Japanese were painting the city scape! It was quite impressive as I leaned in for a closer look
Yokohama:
Fruits and veggies tree!
Korean BBQ dinner with my apartment mates: (left to right: Fumi, me, Akiko).
butaniku wa suki desuka? (do you like pork?)
Hai, suki desu! (I like it!!)
Monday, October 22, 2012
Settling in- Finally
So I am finally settling into my new more permanent life here in Japan. Two weeks ago I signed a one year lease to live in a social apartment on the outskirts of Tokyo. Technically I am in the city of Yokohama, but it takes about 1/2 an hour by train to get to downtown Yokohama in one direction and downtown Tokyo in the other. Remember those old college dorm days? Well, that is what I am reliving now. Of course, as is Japanese style, you need to wear house slippers inside. So there are shoe cubbies down by the front door for shoe storage. We have a large shared kitchen downstairs- with an island in the middle with 4 stoves and 4 sinks. Each person has a small cupboard for dry food storage. Other common space includes a dining room, hang out room, fitness room (I use it daily), and a game room. Each private bedroom has basic furniture and a mini fridge. The apartment is nestled in a residential neighborhood up on a hill, about 12 minutes walking from the station.
Slowly I am starting to meet people. Last night I went out to dinner with 4 Japanese girls who I live with- ages ranging from 23 to 35. As my Japanese is still nothing more than a few greetings, they practiced their English on me- and were also very happy when I wanted to learn new Japanese words for different things. Right away we found things in common. Akiko and Fumi like running and invited me to join them in training for a 20k relay (each person runs 5k). Maiko loves salsa dancing, so we are planning to go this next weekend. Last night I tried Korean BBQ for the first time, and found it absolutely delicious. Maybe my body really has been craving meat all this time (haha).
I started work a week ago. The first week was a complete blur, honestly. The training was intense and at times felt very overwhelming. So much needed to be presented in a very short amount of time. Now that I am getting the hang of it, things are running much more smoothly. Each of my training days I taught more and more lessons. I was observed and critiqued after each one and given one-on-one support from the head teachers about how to make improvements and how to handle different situations. Sunday the 21st was my first full day of work on my own and things ran really smoothly.
I am not really working at a school in the traditional sense. Its more like a tutoring service. Students of all ages (3-65 or so) come in for a 50-minute session. Some lessons are private, some semi private and some group (no more than 4). Many students request certain lesson plans because they have particular needs in English- traveling abroad, international work, exam studying, general interest, returning from living abroad and want to keep up their language skills. Each lesson still follows a specific format with warm up activities, vocabulary review, textbook work and games. One of the big perks? I get to wear slippers all day long! (haha)
My coworkers are great. They were very supportive during my first week and as the week ended, a bunch of us hung out with beers and popcorn and watched movies. They are from all over- Australia, New Zealand, England, Canada, Illinois, North Carolina, Iowa and a few from California.
So apartment- settling in
Work - settling in
Today I am off to do two things: take my first Japanese lesson and a zumba class!!
Slowly I am starting to meet people. Last night I went out to dinner with 4 Japanese girls who I live with- ages ranging from 23 to 35. As my Japanese is still nothing more than a few greetings, they practiced their English on me- and were also very happy when I wanted to learn new Japanese words for different things. Right away we found things in common. Akiko and Fumi like running and invited me to join them in training for a 20k relay (each person runs 5k). Maiko loves salsa dancing, so we are planning to go this next weekend. Last night I tried Korean BBQ for the first time, and found it absolutely delicious. Maybe my body really has been craving meat all this time (haha).
I started work a week ago. The first week was a complete blur, honestly. The training was intense and at times felt very overwhelming. So much needed to be presented in a very short amount of time. Now that I am getting the hang of it, things are running much more smoothly. Each of my training days I taught more and more lessons. I was observed and critiqued after each one and given one-on-one support from the head teachers about how to make improvements and how to handle different situations. Sunday the 21st was my first full day of work on my own and things ran really smoothly.
I am not really working at a school in the traditional sense. Its more like a tutoring service. Students of all ages (3-65 or so) come in for a 50-minute session. Some lessons are private, some semi private and some group (no more than 4). Many students request certain lesson plans because they have particular needs in English- traveling abroad, international work, exam studying, general interest, returning from living abroad and want to keep up their language skills. Each lesson still follows a specific format with warm up activities, vocabulary review, textbook work and games. One of the big perks? I get to wear slippers all day long! (haha)
My coworkers are great. They were very supportive during my first week and as the week ended, a bunch of us hung out with beers and popcorn and watched movies. They are from all over- Australia, New Zealand, England, Canada, Illinois, North Carolina, Iowa and a few from California.
So apartment- settling in
Work - settling in
Today I am off to do two things: take my first Japanese lesson and a zumba class!!
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Phase 2 of my Japan life
I just moved into my new apartment today!
Getting settled, unpacking, and heading out to check out the lay of the land and test out the work commute, since I start work tomorrow.
The next chapter of my Japan experiences are about to begin!
Skype or email me, I would love to hear from you
Getting settled, unpacking, and heading out to check out the lay of the land and test out the work commute, since I start work tomorrow.
The next chapter of my Japan experiences are about to begin!
Skype or email me, I would love to hear from you
Friday, October 12, 2012
Kyoto: Day 5- Arashiyama
Before I left on my 1pm shinkansen ride back to Tokyo, I decided to squeeze in one quick visit to the town of Arashiyama. One of the top 30 things to do in Japan in my guide book mentioned a bamboo forest located in Arashiyama. It looked incredible, so I jumped on the train and was in the town in about 15 minutes. I saw 3 amazing sites in this town.
1. A monkey reserve!!
2. A beautiful zen garden
3. The bamboo forest
After paying my entrance fee, I made the 20 minute hike up the mountain- about 165 meters up! At the top was a station that studied the monkeys and also allowed visitors to feed them. They are wild, so we were behind bars! I was the only visitor at the time.
I will post the answers in a comment...
Mom, Dans and Lex, thought you'd appreciate this sign!
Ready for a snack...
I got to feed them apples!
Momma and nursing baby, grandma was nearby and got angry when I came too close!
Views of Arashiyama, and you can even see Kyoto from here too!
My next stop was the gardens of a Buddhist temple: the photos say it all. And even though it was crowded in there, the garden paths can quickly lead you to a quiet place.
Here is the bamboo forest! It was so quiet in there!
Kyoto: day 4
According to my guide book as well as via a recommendation from Larry, I had to join Johnnie Hillwalker on his 'real Kyoto' tour. Check him out at: http://web.kyoto-inet.or.jp/people/h-s-love/
The brochure simply said to meet in front of the main train station at 10:15 on Wednesday, and after paying 2,00 yen each (about 26 US), we would be taken around and shown the real Kyoto. About 30 foreigners showed up and off we went. Johnnie, a Japanese man definitely in his 70s had been doing tours like this for about 15 years or so. It wasn't the most incredible tour I've been on, it was rather slow and he didn't understand many of the questions we tried to ask him. But, I did see some cool things, so I will share those with you.
We went to a large Buddhist temple and rather than sit us in a corner, and talk with us about Buddhist teachings and history, Johnnie knelt down in front of the central alter and prayed. Kind of confused, we knelt down too. Luckily he didn't pray for too long. While we were at this temple, a funeral service began and Johnnie let us watch it. The priests chanted (in a language that even the Japanese don't understand), the ashes were displayed, the mourners came and prayed at the alter. It was a very beautiful ceremony.
Johnnie did walk us through several side streets and we came upon some shops were traditional crafts are still made: a fan shop, a tea canister making shop, a ceramic painting shop and a paper lantern making shop. Here are the photos from the day:
That's Johnnie!
At the Fan shop: he is gluing the wooden pieces to the ends of the fan. She is carefully selecting the perfect sized paper loop to fit on the fan to keep it closed. Believe me, it had to be the perfect sized paper loop, because for each fan, she tried at least 4 or 5 before she found one that fit snugly around the fan.
He is folding the fan and making openings between the fan papers where the wooden sticks can go
He is painting pottery
Johnnie's tour ended at around 3:30, by that point I needed some food, so I went out for a late lunch. There was another evening tour - similar plan as Johnnies: meet at a designated location, pay 1,000 yen and head off to explore insider Kyoto. This one was focused on the Geisha quarter. Having not been all that impressed with Johnnie, I was hesitant to take this one on. But after eating, and realizing that I wasn't going to be able to explore night-life Kyoto any better, I decided to go for it.
This guide was amazing! Since I have been reading Memoirs of a Geisha during my stay here, I was immediately hooked by all she had to say. She referenced so many of the things I had learned from that book already and even showed us some of the exact buildings, streets, rivers and corners mentioned in the book! The only downside, was that my camera did not like taking night shots, so the photos came out really poorly.
Kyoto is famous as a Geisha town. There are several different Geisha districts in Kyoto, Gion being the largest. Some are only small side streets today. Maiko are apprentice Geisha and Geiko is the official name for the Geisha. "gei" means entertainer. These women spend years in schooling and can stay a Geiko well into their 50s and 60s. The girls start learning to play the shamisen, dance, perform tea ceremonies, tell stories and entertain at tea houses. Gion has that old Japan feel to it. There was the small river running through it and we saw the bridge from the movie where Chiyo meets the Chairman (although I just rewatched the movie, and they made the bridge a wooden arch, perhaps it was back then, but today it is concrete and flat). We saw the Ichiriki teahouse, the Geisha school, and even a few okiya (boarding houses for Geisha). That evening we did not see any Geiko, although on a previous night I had meandered similar streets and saw two, moving quickly on their way. As they went by, people noticed and a wave of cameras came out. My photos were poor, at best. Here is a feel of old Japan:
The streets are so narrow, its hard to get a good photo of the buildings...
The brochure simply said to meet in front of the main train station at 10:15 on Wednesday, and after paying 2,00 yen each (about 26 US), we would be taken around and shown the real Kyoto. About 30 foreigners showed up and off we went. Johnnie, a Japanese man definitely in his 70s had been doing tours like this for about 15 years or so. It wasn't the most incredible tour I've been on, it was rather slow and he didn't understand many of the questions we tried to ask him. But, I did see some cool things, so I will share those with you.
We went to a large Buddhist temple and rather than sit us in a corner, and talk with us about Buddhist teachings and history, Johnnie knelt down in front of the central alter and prayed. Kind of confused, we knelt down too. Luckily he didn't pray for too long. While we were at this temple, a funeral service began and Johnnie let us watch it. The priests chanted (in a language that even the Japanese don't understand), the ashes were displayed, the mourners came and prayed at the alter. It was a very beautiful ceremony.
Johnnie did walk us through several side streets and we came upon some shops were traditional crafts are still made: a fan shop, a tea canister making shop, a ceramic painting shop and a paper lantern making shop. Here are the photos from the day:
That's Johnnie!
At the Fan shop: he is gluing the wooden pieces to the ends of the fan. She is carefully selecting the perfect sized paper loop to fit on the fan to keep it closed. Believe me, it had to be the perfect sized paper loop, because for each fan, she tried at least 4 or 5 before she found one that fit snugly around the fan.
He is folding the fan and making openings between the fan papers where the wooden sticks can go
He is painting pottery
Johnnie's tour ended at around 3:30, by that point I needed some food, so I went out for a late lunch. There was another evening tour - similar plan as Johnnies: meet at a designated location, pay 1,000 yen and head off to explore insider Kyoto. This one was focused on the Geisha quarter. Having not been all that impressed with Johnnie, I was hesitant to take this one on. But after eating, and realizing that I wasn't going to be able to explore night-life Kyoto any better, I decided to go for it.
This guide was amazing! Since I have been reading Memoirs of a Geisha during my stay here, I was immediately hooked by all she had to say. She referenced so many of the things I had learned from that book already and even showed us some of the exact buildings, streets, rivers and corners mentioned in the book! The only downside, was that my camera did not like taking night shots, so the photos came out really poorly.
Kyoto is famous as a Geisha town. There are several different Geisha districts in Kyoto, Gion being the largest. Some are only small side streets today. Maiko are apprentice Geisha and Geiko is the official name for the Geisha. "gei" means entertainer. These women spend years in schooling and can stay a Geiko well into their 50s and 60s. The girls start learning to play the shamisen, dance, perform tea ceremonies, tell stories and entertain at tea houses. Gion has that old Japan feel to it. There was the small river running through it and we saw the bridge from the movie where Chiyo meets the Chairman (although I just rewatched the movie, and they made the bridge a wooden arch, perhaps it was back then, but today it is concrete and flat). We saw the Ichiriki teahouse, the Geisha school, and even a few okiya (boarding houses for Geisha). That evening we did not see any Geiko, although on a previous night I had meandered similar streets and saw two, moving quickly on their way. As they went by, people noticed and a wave of cameras came out. My photos were poor, at best. Here is a feel of old Japan:
The streets are so narrow, its hard to get a good photo of the buildings...
This girl is dressed like a Maiko, apprentice Geisha, but I think she is just in costume because she had a guy walking with her and she would pose, and take pictures. But it does give you an idea of their costumes.
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Kyoto day 3: NARA!
Preface...there have been a couple different times in my life when I have seen a photo in a book, or on someone's mantle of a seemingly far off place and I dream about reaching that place. This happened when I saw a photo of my Uncle Walter sitting in front of the ruins of Machu Picchu. I dreamed of someday making it there. Then I did- and it was magical. A big part of the magic was simply in the journey of having traveled so far to reach it. This was also true for the famous Daibutsu, the great Buddha statue at Nara.
This morning, armed with my guidebook and information from the Tourist info booth about train times and schedules I headed off on my own to visit a city called Nara- the first permanent capital of Japan. My guide book offered a great walking tour through Nara park- taking in all the major sites. I got on the 8:08 am express train to Nara from Kyoto and arrived there an hour later. At 9am, shops were just beginning to open up, and the crowds of tourists on their busses had not yet shown up. This was both bad and good.
Nara is famous for its deer- they are considered a living national treasure and are believed to be messengers of the gods. About 1200 roam freely through Nara park. Pay 100 yen (about $1.30, and you can feed them). Supposedly the Nara deer "bow" to be fed by visitors. I don't know if it was because I was the only one around or what, but these deer were anything but friendly! As soon as they saw me buy deer food from the vendor, I was swarmed and they butted my legs, purse and then began chomping on my shirt- its got a hole in it now! It turned out to be no fun to feed these aggressive animals, and I stayed far away from them for the rest of the day!
You can't see his face, because he is currently chomping on my shirt!
Being chased!
Finally, I was far enough down the sidewalk, that they did not follow!
My guide book took me to visit some gorgeous gardens- I just couldn't get enough of the serenity, and balance of water, bridges, rocks and small pathways. I saw not a soul in these gardens- it was wonderful. Lex taught me about "borrowed scenery" which means that the garden utilizes the mountains, forests and sometimes the temples in the background to be a part of the garden scene. In this one amazing Isuien Garden, every turn brought me pure joy.
Scenery borrowing is clear here- see the mountains in the background? and the temple top too?
I'm loving these Japanese gardens!
Another highlight of Nara and what took my breath away was visiting Todaji temple- where the Great Buddha is housed. Most of the excitement was in realizing how much of a journey it has been just to get here! From deciding to move to Japan, from flying to Tokyo, to traveling to Kyoto, to traveling to Nara to walking to this incredible place, and to really be there. I was grinning all day, from ear to ear. You also wouldn't believe how frequently so many of you were in my thoughts- I had you all there right beside me in my mind. From the comments you would make, to the things you might appreciate or laugh about with me. You travel with me, or maybe I'm just going crazy from traveling on my own!
Anyways, here is the Todaji temple with its Nio guardians (and deer guards- haha).
This temple is not the original one built to house the Buddha statue. Even though it is the world's largest wooden building, its only 2/3 the size of the original!!
So grand and unbelievable to walk right up to it!
Supposedly the hole in this pillar is the same size as one of the Buddha's nostrils (hard to believe right!) and if you can squeeze through, you will attain enlightenment!
At least the buggers weren't that mean...
This morning, armed with my guidebook and information from the Tourist info booth about train times and schedules I headed off on my own to visit a city called Nara- the first permanent capital of Japan. My guide book offered a great walking tour through Nara park- taking in all the major sites. I got on the 8:08 am express train to Nara from Kyoto and arrived there an hour later. At 9am, shops were just beginning to open up, and the crowds of tourists on their busses had not yet shown up. This was both bad and good.
Nara is famous for its deer- they are considered a living national treasure and are believed to be messengers of the gods. About 1200 roam freely through Nara park. Pay 100 yen (about $1.30, and you can feed them). Supposedly the Nara deer "bow" to be fed by visitors. I don't know if it was because I was the only one around or what, but these deer were anything but friendly! As soon as they saw me buy deer food from the vendor, I was swarmed and they butted my legs, purse and then began chomping on my shirt- its got a hole in it now! It turned out to be no fun to feed these aggressive animals, and I stayed far away from them for the rest of the day!
My guide book took me to visit some gorgeous gardens- I just couldn't get enough of the serenity, and balance of water, bridges, rocks and small pathways. I saw not a soul in these gardens- it was wonderful. Lex taught me about "borrowed scenery" which means that the garden utilizes the mountains, forests and sometimes the temples in the background to be a part of the garden scene. In this one amazing Isuien Garden, every turn brought me pure joy.
Another highlight of Nara and what took my breath away was visiting Todaji temple- where the Great Buddha is housed. Most of the excitement was in realizing how much of a journey it has been just to get here! From deciding to move to Japan, from flying to Tokyo, to traveling to Kyoto, to traveling to Nara to walking to this incredible place, and to really be there. I was grinning all day, from ear to ear. You also wouldn't believe how frequently so many of you were in my thoughts- I had you all there right beside me in my mind. From the comments you would make, to the things you might appreciate or laugh about with me. You travel with me, or maybe I'm just going crazy from traveling on my own!
Anyways, here is the Todaji temple with its Nio guardians (and deer guards- haha).
This temple is not the original one built to house the Buddha statue. Even though it is the world's largest wooden building, its only 2/3 the size of the original!!
So grand and unbelievable to walk right up to it!
Supposedly the hole in this pillar is the same size as one of the Buddha's nostrils (hard to believe right!) and if you can squeeze through, you will attain enlightenment!
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