Today's Halloween Highlight:
1. Middle school students. Even though they didn't wear costumes they did come all the way to my apartment in the rain just to trick or treat. It was very cute. Two boys and two girls came. I think it wasn't raining very hard on the way over but after I gave them candy and said goodbye I could still hear them talking outside of my door for a while. I figured they were waiting for the rain to stop but it must be cold outside, so I made them some hot chocolate and gave it to them in the various cups and mugs I have lying around the house. I hope it wasn't too sweet for them. I think they liked it. By the time they finished their hot chocolate, though, the rain was even worse so one of the girls called her mom to pick the two of them up and I lent my plastic umbrella to the two boys who were walking home. I think they may be my only trick-or-treaters this year but they were some of my favorite 9th graders so I'm glad I could give them candy and hot chocolate. Yay! Happy Halloween!
~Season's Greetings~
In other news tomorrow is November. WHAT?! I honestly don't know how it got to be November. October was so busy! I'm happy I got to see so many friends but I'm definitely not used to December being so close... my time here is dwindling!
I have made significant progress on my applications so hopefully there will be something amazing for me around the next corner but I just don't know what that is yet. Whatever it is I hope it allows me to be home for Christmas in 2011. I'm starting to get really sad that I'll be missing Thanksgiving again this year. Actually my good friend Erina who lives in Kyoto will be going back to Minnesota for Thanksgiving for the first time in four years! And I'll be here :( We're hoping she'll be able to join me when I go home in August, though, so we can have fun in Minnesota then.
Wishing you all a happy November!!!
xoxo
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Gas heaters and steaming bowls of daikon... it must be winter
懐かしいな〜
Today when the kids left school I could hear them screaming さむい！ (it's cold!) in the halls, and indeed it was. My three quarter sleeve sweater did not cut it. Then this evening I went to Mamiko's house and we had oden with big hunks of daikon (Japanese radish) and on the bike ride home from Mamiko's I could smell gas from space heaters spilling out into the dark streets. It's winter in Japan.
Today was cold, thus only one highlight:
1. Vocabulary diversification. Today one of my teachers had a few extra minutes at the end of class and decided to have me say a list of colors while the kids repeated after me. I was really not in the mood for rote memorization stuff. So as "revenge" (adopted into Japanese as a much cuter word) I contributed a new color to their vocabulary: a whole class of Japanese fifth graders saying, "cerulean".
Honorable mention: Mamiko. It always brightens my day to go to her house and chat. Also she makes a mean café au lait.
Today when the kids left school I could hear them screaming さむい！ (it's cold!) in the halls, and indeed it was. My three quarter sleeve sweater did not cut it. Then this evening I went to Mamiko's house and we had oden with big hunks of daikon (Japanese radish) and on the bike ride home from Mamiko's I could smell gas from space heaters spilling out into the dark streets. It's winter in Japan.
Today was cold, thus only one highlight:
1. Vocabulary diversification. Today one of my teachers had a few extra minutes at the end of class and decided to have me say a list of colors while the kids repeated after me. I was really not in the mood for rote memorization stuff. So as "revenge" (adopted into Japanese as a much cuter word) I contributed a new color to their vocabulary: a whole class of Japanese fifth graders saying, "cerulean".
Honorable mention: Mamiko. It always brightens my day to go to her house and chat. Also she makes a mean café au lait.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Persimmon月
October has been busy. Let's go weekend by weekend.
1. Nicole. My friend Nicole came from Virginia to tour around Japan with her friend Elizabeth but lucky for me she came a few days early so we had some time to catch up and shuffle around Kyoto together, reminiscing about our times in Nagasaki. Actually Nicole and I have only ever met in Japan, but we're pals. Haha. Highlights include Ginkakuji, an organic cafe with amazing sandwiches and even cooler people, a cake shop, and wandering around my town in the rain. However, I think the most memorable part of the trip was leaving a note in a drawer for two cute guys we saw at a coffee shop. I'm pretty sure the only person who will come across that note will be a very confused waitress.
2. Heather and Joe. Heather D'Evelyn and Joe came to visit me the next weekend and we met up in Kyoto for dinner one night and had Italian in Uji the second night. Unfortunately Joe lost his phone so the first day was hectic but he got it back and everything worked out just fine on day number two. It was so wonderful to see Heather, it almost felt like being back home! (Siri, we missed you!!!Beee!!!)
3. Shinichi. This weekend my friend Shinichi came over from where he works in Mie and we had fun catching up and seeing some really amazing spots in Kyoto. We went to Nanzen-ji, which may be my new favorite temple in Kyoto, discovered a magical thatched roof house (actually probably part of a secret temple where monks get to meditate in the mountains all day... luckies) and had delicious green tea flavored cream puffs with Godiva milk shakes.
General life updates:
The grad school application process is still underway but I'm such a slow writer I'll be amazed when the TC application is done and astounded if I have enough energy to finish two or three more.
Looked at the Bank Street application and it requires at least three essays. Buh.
In other news it's already started to get really dark really early. I am in danger of becoming a bear and hibernating all winter under my living room table under a blanket with a bag of chocolate and some books. Hence I may undertake joining a Japanese gym in the near future. Wish me luck.
Finally, it is persimmon appreciation month. Since the fall leaves aren't out in full force yet, bright round shapes of orange persimmons stand out against the dark green mountains, anticipating winter. It's still cheery, but getting colder.
1. Nicole. My friend Nicole came from Virginia to tour around Japan with her friend Elizabeth but lucky for me she came a few days early so we had some time to catch up and shuffle around Kyoto together, reminiscing about our times in Nagasaki. Actually Nicole and I have only ever met in Japan, but we're pals. Haha. Highlights include Ginkakuji, an organic cafe with amazing sandwiches and even cooler people, a cake shop, and wandering around my town in the rain. However, I think the most memorable part of the trip was leaving a note in a drawer for two cute guys we saw at a coffee shop. I'm pretty sure the only person who will come across that note will be a very confused waitress.
2. Heather and Joe. Heather D'Evelyn and Joe came to visit me the next weekend and we met up in Kyoto for dinner one night and had Italian in Uji the second night. Unfortunately Joe lost his phone so the first day was hectic but he got it back and everything worked out just fine on day number two. It was so wonderful to see Heather, it almost felt like being back home! (Siri, we missed you!!!Beee!!!)
3. Shinichi. This weekend my friend Shinichi came over from where he works in Mie and we had fun catching up and seeing some really amazing spots in Kyoto. We went to Nanzen-ji, which may be my new favorite temple in Kyoto, discovered a magical thatched roof house (actually probably part of a secret temple where monks get to meditate in the mountains all day... luckies) and had delicious green tea flavored cream puffs with Godiva milk shakes.
General life updates:
The grad school application process is still underway but I'm such a slow writer I'll be amazed when the TC application is done and astounded if I have enough energy to finish two or three more.
Looked at the Bank Street application and it requires at least three essays. Buh.
In other news it's already started to get really dark really early. I am in danger of becoming a bear and hibernating all winter under my living room table under a blanket with a bag of chocolate and some books. Hence I may undertake joining a Japanese gym in the near future. Wish me luck.
Finally, it is persimmon appreciation month. Since the fall leaves aren't out in full force yet, bright round shapes of orange persimmons stand out against the dark green mountains, anticipating winter. It's still cheery, but getting colder.
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