Friday February 6, 2009 11:42pm
Okayama, Japan- I finally have internet hooked up in my apartment now. I am slowly settling in now, yet it still hasn't quite set in that I live in Japan. Being busy with work during the week has a lot to do with it, but still I thought it would be a huge shock to the system. Maybe it just hasn't come yet. It has been a bit tough. The main thing I have been dealing with is not being able to go out for coffee whenever I need it. Mister Donuts, however, does offer bottomless cups of coffee, so I usually go there for a bit on my days off.
Last weekend, I went out with this guy Tom who I work with who is from Sheffield, England. He was meeting one of his friends from America at this place called the Aussie Bar. Man, it was sad place. The bar was basically filled with foreigners who have been here for awhile and hate it here. Not one of them could speak a word of Japanese, not one of them cared that they couldn't. I had planned on studying Japanese while I live here anyway, but this place motivated me even more. It really bothered me. Why did they come here anyway?
The teaching is going well. I absolutely love teaching the higher level courses. Very interesting and everyone has a great time. The kids classes, however, I'm not sure how I feel about those yet. That's completely new to me. I teach one class of two 4 year olds and have to sing songs, dance around, and basically act like a kids TV show host and thankfully nobody besides them sees me do it. Again, pictures should be up soon. Also, I'm sure that everyone has specific questions that they would like me to answer. There is so much to write about in great detail and is very difficult for me to try and put down in a 'blog entry', so feel free to leave questions in the comments and I will try to answer them for you. Talk to you soon
-ian
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Ian glad to hear you are doing well and acclimating yourself to the Japanese lifestyle.
ReplyDeleteIf possible can you post a picture of your self while entertaining the young ones???
Hey! I am now an official "follower" of your blog :) I'm excited to see pictures soon!
ReplyDeleteoh yeah...and how are the people from the bar getting around with absolutly no knowledge of the language?? And imagining you dancing around and acting like a crazy gameshow host puts the best mental images in my head...thanks!!!
ReplyDeleteHey cousin! Glad to hear you are settling in over there. If you're struggling with entertaining the young ones, just remember to look to your childhood hero "Doobie" for some inspiration. Can't wait to hear about all your adventures! :)
ReplyDeleteIan picturing you as a bilingual Barney without a costume dancing in front of small japanese children brought much joy to my day. Hope you continue to enjoy the experience and fuck the aussie bar.
ReplyDelete-Cory Masonis
It sounds like you are on quite an adventure! Singing songs and dancing around, huh? That sounds like a youtube video of the year! Just remind yourself of the many "Cousin Show" episodes we created! Can't wait to hear and see more!
ReplyDeleteHey, Ian.
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear that things are going well. We look forward to hearing about your experiences there. Sayonara and guddorakku!!
Aunt Lorraine and Uncle Gene
Hey man I didn't know you were teaching english over there that rules congratulations. I'm trying to actually get a job in the fall. What company are you with? since you are nice on the blogtip, you should check me out here-
ReplyDelete4000flavors.blogspot.com
its the blogsite for a short story zine I just started. jyaa ganbatteyo!
sean hamilton
hey ian! we all miss you at the store but i am happy to hear that you are getting settled in. maybe as a lesson plan you could fit "trapped in the closet" in. nothing could compare to r kelly's take on the english language and seriously, everybody loves midgets(little people...which ever one is appropriate to use these days). i look forward to hear more about your time in japan. bye bye
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