Week 2

Our second week is now drawing to a close. It certainly feels a lot longer than that since we stepped off the plane in Tokyo.

Kobe skyline

We kicked off the week with a trip to a junior high school and some talks on how to be a good ALT. We picked up plenty of useful info to get us going.This then finished quite early so we had a chance to go shopping in the Sannomiya (the main shopping area of the city).

On Tuesday we headed to our schools for the first time. I set off a touch too early and ended up getting to school over an hour early! The school itself looks like something out of the cold war. Technology is certainly very sparse inside the school too. I will try to remember to take some pictures soon.

The teachers are all very friendly and the Kyoto Sensai (vice-principle) speaks English which is a huge help as he is my boss. I was taken on a tour of the school which is pretty empty as no classes are running. The school sports clubs are all in full swing so I got to watch some of a girls basketball match. I am to be teaching 2^nd grade only. This will amount to about 7 lessons a week with one day spent in an Elementary school. My first day was only a half day as I had to get back to the flat to have the landline phone connected.  With landline fitted we are now only a few short weeks from having our own internet. Over 50mbps speeds at £15 a month oooooooh yeaaaaah!

Wednesday was a full day in school and I was taken out to a lovely soba restaurant as a welcome to the school. The teachers I was with told me I looked very old for 24 but otherwise they were nice. The rest of the day was spent reading teaching materials to figure out what I am supposed to be doing. I’ve been told to keep games to a minimum as some of the classes are difficult to control. We shall have to see how much of that is true and think of other ways in which to motivate the kids into speaking English.

Thursday and Friday were spent at the board of education building doing Japanese language lessons. This was great fun even though Rachel and I were put in the intermediate class so it was quite challenging. However, in the end the difference between the intermediate class and the beginners wasn’t too great. The advanced class on the other hand just spent their time chatting away in Japanese. We were taught a lot of vocabulary and verb use that would help us make construct self-introductions in Japanese. I will be required to stand up in front of the school in September and a give a short speech in Japanese.

After Thursdays lesson we went over to a 280 Yen restaurant (where all dishes and drinks are 280 yen) and had a little party. The grub, the beer and the company were great. Was a good way to have a cheap night too!

ALTs unwind after a hard days learning

We finished off our lessons on Friday by giving a speech about ourselves in Japanese in front of the other jets and some of the board of education staff.  I managed to memorise my little speech and it seemed to go down well. After speeches it was time to head to the Hub for happy hour. The Hub is a British themed pub with cheap drinks and giant Gin & Tonics. The place pretty much had every JET in Kobe in it. Dining was catered for a nearby Ramen restaurant. I had a spicy Ramen at level two spiciness (out of a total of five levels), which was still enough to make my lips go numb. An after party was then held at a tiny place owned by the brother of one of the board of education managers.  The place was miniscule but we had some nice snacks of fresh tomatoes and deep fried shrimp and the drink was kept flowing. The Board of education manager actually ended up popping in and taught us all a good Japanese drinking game.

The smallest bar in the world

To round the week off there was the beach party on Saturday. We volunteered to help deliver the food and booze from Costco to the beach via a bus and a train. This meant having to get up in the morning but we were willing ot make that sacrifice for the greater good. This was especially as we wanted a Costco membership so that we can get things delivered from there. The food included two foot wide pizzas, wraps, sushi, cookies, crisps and muffins the size of a baby’s head!

A feast fit for gaijin (foreigners)

Throwing the wannabe rugby ball

On the beach I tried my hand at some American football and wasn't terrible at it. Throughout the day I did a bit of swimming along with general mingling and getting to know people. Plenty of food, drink and fun was had by all.  The evening was then concluded with fireworks on the water’s edge, although the firework operators were somewhat inebriated. We all got out alive and another crammed full week is now over, plus we have summer school games to look forward to next week!

Japan Week 1

The view of Tokyo from our hotel room

What a whirlwind week it has been. After a long a laborious flight we finally landed in Tokyo and were met with a solid wall of heat and humidity. Luggage successfully claimed we were guided through Tokyo airport by many existing JETs, so many in fact, that getting lost would have required some serious talent. From here we were bussed to the Keio Plaza Hotel and given keys to our luxurious double room. We had a full sized writing desk, a toilet with control panel and even a heated bathroom mirror. Alas we were jetlagged and, despite the excitement of bustling Tokyo, it was time to grab some grub and head to bed. Grub consisted of a cool little place where each table boasted its own touchscreen for you to order from. We used the English language setting and ordered ourselves a tasty selection of Ramen, Sushi and a hot beef bowl (this is a dish served in a stone bowl still sizzling). My choice of beverage was Hoppy. This is non-alcoholic beer served with a good slug of wheat liquor (a bit like vodka).

Ramen with Hoppy. . .mmmmmh

Our two day orientation consisted of many workshops on various subjects, many we were too jetlagged to remember all that clearly. We met many people from all over the world who had come to join the programme and generally had a good laugh. On the Tuesday evening we were treated to a trip to the very posh British Embassy in Tokyo, where we were welcomed to Japan and told to behave. Cucumber sandwiches and tiny pasties were served along with wine and beer. There was then a performance of Taiko drumming on the embassy lawn.

The Kobe gang all seem like a great bunch but we have mostly spent time with the other couples so far and this had been great fun. There are three main areas where jets are placed around Kobe so there are also little communities within each area as well as an overall community of about one hundred Kobe city jets.

From Tokyo it was then onto Kobe itself. The gang was gathered together for a short (50min) flight to Kobe. The city looks great, sandwiched between mountains and the sea –much like Hong Kong. Since we have arrived we have been taken on tours, met the teachers we will be working with and gone to the Kobe earthquake museum – which was very moving. A lot of time has also been spent waiting around, as alien registration and getting mobile phones is a lengthy process. Importantly, we now have shiny new iPhones which are great fun and full of useful apps, such as a kanji dictionary (the Chinese alphabet where each word is its own symbol) and a GPS system in case we get completely lost.

Our flat in Gakentoshi was very bare upon arrival and we were sad about this at first. However, we have the essential air conditioning, washing machine and fridge freezer to make life comfortable. The rest of the stuff we can buy gradually and really put our stamp on the place. Shopping here is certainly a lot of fun and we have already bought a beanbag, bath mat, two sets of shelves, many neat baskets to fill up our shelves, kettle, iron, table top ironing board, zebra print frying pan and various other essentials. Things are really starting to take shape, and we will probably buy a nice sofa and TV etc. as the pay checks start rolling in.

Dining has been great and relatively inexpensive. You can pay £2 - £8 for a meal and get something really tasty and filling. So far we have eaten Japanese, Thai and even some Italian food.  There are several restaurants in Gakentoshi itself and the first two we have tried were both lovely.  Drinking out on the other hand is extremely expensive. The beer is heavenly but costs £3-£5 a pint. We have been shown a good couple of happy hour pubs and drink all you can places which are used on nights out. We will probably have an enkai at some point soon, which is a work drinking party. This can also be expensive but it is a great chance to get to know your colleagues as their guard comes down a lot.

Highly trained and qualified engineer constructs furniture purchase

Transport is also a breeze here as most of the stations have their names in romanji (English lettering) on the maps and on the station signs. We also have IC cards to pay for fares (like oyster cards) so we don’t need to mess around with ticket machines. We are about 30mins from the main shopping area, although there are some large shops in Gakentoshi itself.  Sadly I am a good 90mins from my school so I will have to get up early and commute.

Roo in awe of our new shelving and baskets ;)

Our micro-kitchen (now with Zebra frying pan!)

The view from our balcony

Our sparse living room complete with our shiny new beanbag

Next week holds summer school, our first days at our base schools and teaching and Japanese language training. So far so good and we are both looking forward to getting fully settled in our new home.

Our first home cooked meal (great success)