Journal 6 - Ichi, Ni, Sen ... Konpai .... Ichi, Ni, Sen ... Konpai ... Ichi, Ni, Sen ... Earthquake?

Ichi, Ni, Sen ... Konpai .... Ichi, Ni, Sen ... Konpai ... Ichi, Ni, Sen ... Earthquake?

Hello all, hope all is well ... geesh, I'm a few days late and I get the concerned emails ... very understandable though and thank you to those who have expressed their concerns. I'm thinking of re-making the movie "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and calling it "Three Typhoons and an Earthquake" ... What does everyone think? OK, first of all the earthquake was nowhere near where I'm living now, so that is good news. However, on Saturday night I was teaching my class and it felt like there was a huge semi-truck driving by. When I realized that it was impossible for a truck that big to go by, I figured it was a small earth tremor. Little did I know that that was the result of a huge one in the Niigata prefecture, which is about 300 km north of where I am. I actually felt 2 tremors that day, but the odd thing was, my co-workers only felt it once. I guess it depends where you are or if you're standing or sitting. Now, I guess yesterday the same prefecture experienced another huge earthquake, almost the same as the one on Saturday. I didn't feel that one at all. All I can say is, my heart goes out to all the people who suffered in that area. I heard that was the biggest one in about 9 years.

So, I am still alive and kicking ... except, well ... I noticed a few weeks ago, especially on the colder nights that everytime I was walking home, there was some kind of presence, like someone was following me, creeping up closer and closer. I ignored it at first, but then realized that this was becoming a concern. It only seemed to be the cooler nights and since it's been getting cooler more and more lately, it became even more of a concern. I tried dodging him by taking different routes, sometimes running home or walking fast, but each day seemed worse then others. I even had nights where I thought I managed to lose him. But, then finally one night, when I least expected it, my feeling became reality ... he managed to catch up to me and eventually caught me ... yes, that damn "cold" got the better of me. So, I've spent the last 2 days sneezing and sniffing, feeling miserable. That's actually why I'm late with this email. Oh, by the way, thought I'd give you a little bit of a Halloween thrill for ya ... were you scared?

Anyway, so because I wasn't feeling that great, I really didn't do that much in terms of site seeing. However, saturday night I did end up going out with another teacher and 4 other Japanese people, not students, just people this other teacher met a few months ago. I ended up going to a Japanese pub, which isn't really that much different from an ordinary pub only you're sitting on the floor and your shoes are off. There was a lot of "Konpai" happening which is Japanese for cheers. It was fun spending the evening with these people even though the language barrier was an issue ... of course after a few Konpai's, we all understood each other. We actually ended up going until the wee hours of the night, 4:30 to be exact. I pretty much had no choice because all the trains stop at midnight. So, I waited until the first one in the morning which was about 5:00 ... Yes, Sunday was pretty much a write off. But, I had fun, drinking with the Japanese locals, going out for more Karaoke, playing darts. Oh and for those of you who were concerened about my cold ... remember, the doctors say drink lots of liquids.

So, that's my story for this week. This weekend will be a Halloween party as well as a welcome party for me. So, that should be interesting. Hopefully there will be a good turn out. Japan does not celebrate Halloween except when it comes to partying (any excuse to party). Halloween was introduced maybe about 10 years ago. The children do not go out Trick-Or-Treating. In fact, the kids I teach have never even said it until I taught it to them last week. I think now, they're expecting me to make them say it every week ... any excuse to get candy, little monsters.

K, so I'm going to close now ... it's Thursday 10:30 am and I have to get ready for work soon. I hope all is well with everyone. Thank you again for your emails and again, I'm trying to get back to you all, but ... internet cafe. Need I say more? There's one thing I've learned here is patience ... I'm being very patient waiting for my internet at home to be set-up. Hopefully, very soon.

Take care,
Joe

Journal 5 - I see a little sillouetto of a man, scallamoosh, scallamoosh will you do the fandango ....

"I see a little sillouetto of a man, scallamoosh, scallamoosh will you do the fandango .... "

Ah Karaoke; what fun we had. Hello again all, hope you're all doing fine. Another week has passed. I just realized that today is October 18th. I arrived in Japan on September 18th ... wow a month already. Let me see, where did I leave off last ... oh yes ... Our hero, that's me, had mentioned that he was going to experience his first night of Karaoke in Japan. Well, I did and oh what fun I had. I must say, it's very different. First of all, it's not an open bar like we have. You don't write down the song and hand it up to the person in charge and wait to sing. What you do is rent a separate room. You choose a song and enter the code into a little remote control. Very high tech. If you want drinks or food, you just call up the front desk like you're ordering room service and they'll bring it to you. Yes, much much different. Unfortunately, renting a room also means paying for it, so a night of Karaoke in Japan can get very expensive. But, I was fortunate enough not to pay because it was a welcome to Yaizu night for Joe ... So, I scored big time. We were only there for a few hours though, because it was a long weekend, so it was very busy. So, we ended up going to another bar for some beers. One of the customs that's going to take a bit for me to get used to and don't think I particularily care for is, when you go out with a group of people, no matter what you eat or drink, the bill is split evenly. So, you could end up paying a lot of money for one beer. Solution? Drink lots!!!

The rest of the week was my normal teaching week ... it was fun with the kids because it was Halloween week for them. So, there were a lot more games then normal. My Saturday class loved it, they were really getting into it. We have a Halloween version of Old McDonald, which allows the kids to roam around acting like monsters ... so I got them to put on their scariest face and walk around growling and snarling ... Yeah, well at least I tried; they laughed when I was doing it. Course, now that I think about it, I don't recall actually putting on my scariest face and growling and snarling ... So, what were they laughing at? Hmmmmm!!!! Anyway, moving on. So here's something interesting; I knew Japan was very expensive and I also knew that things like fruit and vegetables can be even more ridiculous. Well, did you know Honey Dew mellon can cost up to 5000 yen (about $50)? One of my students works in agriculture and he offered one to me (very common to get gifts around here). So, naturally I accepted the gift because of course it's the polite thing to do. When he told me afterwards how much one of them goes for, I nearly died. I tell ya, it was good, but not $50 good.

So today, my day off, I decided to go farther away from here and see more of Japan. I was going to go to a city called Kamakura, but realized it was too far. So, I went to a city called Hakone which is closer to the mountains. I took the Shinkansen (bullet train) to Odikara and then took a 15 minute train to Hakone. I had absolutely no clue where I was going, what I was doing or anything. So, instead of doing my usual walking around for an hour and then getting back on the train, I decided to ask someone. Luckily I found 2 Americans and asked them. Well, it turns out one of them had been there before. So, I asked what there is to do and she told me there's a day pass I can get that takes you all around the city. It's not like a normal train pass, this allows you to take the bus to 1 location, then take a boat ride to another location, then ride the gondola up the top of the mountain to see sites, then back down and then you can take the train back to your original destination. The whole thing cost about 3000 yen. So, I thought, what the hell, something different. I went to the tourist information, grabbed my english map and my ticket and away I went. It turns out, I had the best day ever. I actually ended up hanging out with these 2 Americans, don't know if they wanted that at first, but I don't think they minded after a while. I tell ya, as much as I enjoy travelling on my own and getting into the culture, there's nothing like being able to talk to other people who speak the same language. You need that. So, the first thing was the scariest bus ride ever. The bus was full, so I ended up standing the whole way. It was the windiest road ever and obviously this driver didn't care, because he was nuts. I nearly fell on an old gentleman sitting down below me. I think I added another 10 years to his life. When we finally reached our first destination, we got off the bus (nearly lost my lunch), walked around the area for a little bit and then got on the next tour which was the boat ride. Normally during this ride, you could take amazing pictures of Mt Fuji, but again it was behind clouds. It's as if that sucker was saying "Quick hide, Joe's coming". Oh well, the ride was nice anyway. I think I want to go back in a few weeks, when the leaves start changing. The next tour was the gondola. This allowed us to take amazing pictures of the entire area ... again, would've been amazing if that damn Mountain wasn't behind clouds. At the top, was a huge sulphur mine ... yup, didn't stay up there very long. Apparently you can get yourself a black egg and it's supposedly good luck to eat it. Yeah, I'll just throw salt over my shoulder thank you very much. We got on the gondola ride down the mountain and then took the train back to the original destination. There we ended up walking around the city and then decided to go for a drink ... Had some Sake, finally. That was very good. Then it was heading home time, well first here to write you guys, then home. All in all it was a good day. Oh, by the way, I finally got myself a camera ... but, ummm I forgot the computer chord to plug into this computer so I can send you pictures. Sorry!!!! next time I write you guys, I will definitely send some pictures.

Anyway, I'm thinking this is extra long, so I better close now. I hope all is well with everyone. I just want to say welcome to the new email addresses I recently added. Sorry, I didn't get it sooner, but now you can enjoy the adventures of Joe.

Take care everyone,
Joe

Journal 4 - "We enjoy having your bussines"? ... Oh boy! I have my work cut out for me.

"We enjoy having your bussines"? ... Oh boy! I have my work cut out for me.

Hello all ... Well it's another short story on the new adventures of Joe. I feel I should have a song or something. So, I want to start off with the quote I just put up there, because it's a pretty funny story ... well, at least I think it was. So, I'm walking around my city. I finally find the beach area; a little too late now since it's fall and cold. But, man what an amzing looking place, can't wait until summer. Anyway, I'm walking around and as I'm walking I see this truck, parked near the port. It looks like some kind of shipping company or something. Anyway, on the side of the truck is the name in Japanese and this quote, "We enjoy having your bussines". Well, I see this and I pretty much lost it ... I am absolutely busting a gut. I'm sure I was getting looks from the local folks ... course I always get looks from the local folks. I have to admit, I think it's great that they made the effort putting an english sign and of course only an english person would pick up the error. But, seeing that I know ... I am needed. My name is Joe and I ... am ... needed!!!! Anyway, that's my story. So, remember last time I was mentioning the Typhoon and how cool it was? I also said it I was told it was a mild one ... well, that was the under statement of the day. Yesterday, I watched the most incredible Typhoon ever. It was supposedly one of the worst one's. My classes were actually cancelled yesterday because it was so bad. Things were flying everywhere, the fire department was having themselves a hey day. There were cows in the air, dogs, cats ... k, that was an exaggeration. There were no cats. Fish? Yes!!! I think it lasted a couple of hours and then just pored the rest of the day. Actually it's been poring a lot lately. I've been teaching my students a new word ... "drenched". And explaining it means "very very very wet". So, finally today, my day off, I have a nice day. I'm so excited I have no idea what to do with myself. Maybe do some hiking or explore a new city, who knows. Tonight for the first time I'm actually going out with my co-workers. I was getting a little worried after talking to some other teachers who started the same time I did. Some of them have been going out almost every night. So, tonight? I'm going Karaoking ... haha!!!! Apparently, it's not like the bars at home. People actually rent rooms with a big group of people and sing and drink ... sounds like fun!!! I'll be sure to let you know how it turns out. Anyway, there's really not much new to report ... like I said it's been raining, so very difficult to get out and do something. Today, I think I'm going to go look for a punching bag. Why you ask? Well, remember that stage mom ... yeah, well she got worse. Now, she expects me to create more work and create a whole new lesson just for him, which includes assigning homework. She also thinks it's OK, to let her son run around the school, hit people, call me names (in english) and not listen to me. And, according to head office, I have to grin and bear it, because she is a paying customer ... So, the punching bag is for after that class every week. But, hey 1 annoying class out of about 37 is OK with me. So, hope all is well with you all and I will talk to you later.

Take care,
Joe

Journal 3 - Ahhhhh ... so that's what a Typhoon is like.....

Ahhhhh ... so that's what a Typhoon is like.....

Hello everyone, hope you are all doing fine. Well, it's now been 2 weeks and I'm still alive. I finally met all my students and actually managed to complete an entire week teaching by myself without any help (The first week I had a trainer most of the time). I really like my students a lot ... the age ranges from 3 to 50+. But, my manager just signed up a new student, his name is Ippei (ee pay) and he's almost 2. I think I now have the youngest student out of all the teachers. But, he seems like a pretty smart kid, just ... active!!! I'll certainly be earning my money with this one. Speaking of kids ... all you theatre people will know this term, "Stage Mom's". To you non theatre types, a stage mom is a parent who feels their child can do no wrong and is often around questioning the director and asking why their child is not the star or doesn't have more exposure on stage ... in other words a directors nightmare. Anyway, going back ... I have 2 stage moms. These mom's are housewives of very wealthy dentists and every week my manager is getting calls about their child wondering why they are not learning enough english or why they cannot talk in full sentences yet ... Their child is 5 and comes to english class once a week for 40 minutes ... hello? Give it some time here. Anyway, theses mothers are mine and my managers stage mom's. And to top it off ... 1 of the mothers lives next door to me ... oh lovely.

Anyway, enough of that ... So, I haven't had a chance to see much more of Japan, just my area and Shizuoka city which is 15 minutes by train. The weather has not been the greatest lately. Today is my second day off (I always have Sunday and Monday off) and it's rained like mad both days. So, I've been basically hanging around my area mostly. Which is actually fine ... I need to budget this month, I don't get my first real paycheque until the end of October ... yup once a month. I had that 1 other time and that was when I was working for Canadian Regional. So, back to the budgetting ... I guess that's not always a bad thing to do. So, back to the weather, as I mentioned in the first sentence ... I experienced my first Typhoon. It was funny, some of my students told me the beginning of the week that a Typhoon will be coming ... I think they were kind of excited that I was going to experience my first Typhoon or maybe just laughing at me. So, they told me it was going to come on Wednesday or Thursday, I'm thinking yeah right, how can you predict that this early (still use to Canada's weather system). Well, sure enough Wednesday night, I'm walking home at 11:00 pm and right in the middle of a Typhoon. Apparently it was a mild one ... but lots of wind and rain. I got absolutely drenched (Itaught all my students this word). The next day I wake up and there isn't a cloud in sight. Very interesting. So, I was telling my students that was the first time I ever experienced a Typhoon ... they were amazed that there aren't any in Canada. I said no, but we do get the snow storms. I think they all agreed that a Typhoon is better then a snow storm.

Anyway, I better get going. I did want to mention however that I finally got my phone today ... now I feel like I can keep in touch with the world. Those of you who didn't get my address information, here it is again as well as my phone number.

Joe White
LeosPalace Yaizu II #202
1-8-25
Yaizu
Yaizu City, Shizuoka
Japan

phone# 011 81 080 3659 9670.

My phone is a cell, so I will have it all the time and you should be able to get a hold of me starting tomorrow. Remember I am 15 hours ahead MST, 13 hours ahead EST and 12 hours ahead AST. Sorry, I don't know what it is for you people in Europe.

I better go ... hope all is well with you. Again, keep on sending the emails and eventually I will get back when I can actually set up my internet at home ... maybe this week or early next week, hopefully.

Take care everyone,

Joe