October 30th was my last day of teaching at elementary schools in Sapporo and let me tell you I have missed it since. Teaching at elementary schools in Japan is not like teaching back home. I taught at 9 schools in the month of October, I am not going to lie some were definitely better than others. Yet, no matter what school I taught at I was always treated like a celebrity. Everyday consisted of me introducing myself to all the 5th and 6th graders of that school and then teaching them a simple lesson.
THE CON:
As I said some schools were better than others. First let's talk about my worst school, as in the way I was treated. Just like in schools back home once you enter a school and meet the students you can somewhat tell where the school ranks in the city. Just like every other school day since I have been in Japan I got ready and set off to school. Since I had never been to this school I was excited and eager to see my new students. Luckily, this school was not too far from my apartment, maybe like 40 minute commute, which is pretty decent. Once I got there, I knew this school was going to be a lot harder than the others. Not one person, not a student or a teacher spoke English. This is actually not that big of a problem, I have gotten used to having no idea of what is really going on since I've moved to Japan. This school was a little more difficult though. Not only did they have no clue what to do with me (even though they had been expecting me for months), they also had nothing (lesson plans, eating situations, etc) prepared and the students didn't speak a word to me . Since they had no idea where to put me they put me in a closet. This closet was on the 3rd floor of their school and it was really cold. October was the beginning of our cold season and being placed in a closet with no heater is actually a pretty sucky thing. The teachers told me that this closet was my waiting area until they needed me for my classes. So I waited, and waited, and waited for three hours in this closet all wrapped up with every piece of clothing I brought. Naturally, I would have done what all the Japanese do when they have one spare moment- nap! But I literally had two boys waiting outside my closet door keeping an eye on me. I felt it was not respectful to be sleeping when I had two pairs of eyes keeping guard of me.
Eventually, it was time for me to teach. My bodyguards, actually more like my jail guards finally let me out. I walked into class and once again the teachers didn't know what to do with me. It was time for me to break out my last minute super teacher powers. I had to create a lesson plan on the fly after my self introduction. Luckily, all went well but the moment I was done I was back to the closet. The benefit of teaching at elementary schools is that usually when you are done with your lessons your school lets you leave because honestly they just want you out of their way. So as my lessons finished and the clock was about to strike 2 I figured I was on my way home. As I was getting mentally prepared for my break out a teacher walked in and managed to tell me I was not allowed to leave until 5. I was frustrated but not able to really communicate to her. I wanted to tell her that the room was freezing, that 5 was later than my contract allows and that really they just sucked for putting me in a closet for days. But I wanted to be a professional, so I sucked it up and stayed until 5. The next day though I wasn't going to take it. Once 3 hit and I was done with my classes I walked up to the teacher (the one I though might understand me) and I handed her my boss's business card. I told her call him because I was going home. Under any other circumstances I wouldn't pull that but as my fingers turned blue I knew this had gone too far. Luckily, my boss agreed with me and allowed me to go home. FREEDOM!!!! Once again, this was my worst experience and it definitely could have been worse but sometimes a girl's got to rant!
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
California Girl Gone Cold!
It has been a while since I have written on this blog but what other to reason to write an entry than to talk all about the SNOW!
Five months ago I was sitting on Adam's doorstep talking to my brother on the phone and all of a sudden my phone beeped! I had just received a new email. It was the email I had been waiting for since I decided to try for the JET Programme, it was my placement email. As I read every word out loud to Adan there it was in bold lettering SAPPORO. My first reaction was cool, I am being placed where my favorite Japanese beer is made. Adan's reaction was a little different, he chuckled. He then proceeded to tell me that Sapporo was on Hokkaido, the ALASKA of the United States. My reaction immediately changed, I started to freak out. I am a California girl to the core. I like sun, food, beaches, taking walks late at night and not having to wear a jacket. My winter outfit consists of a pair of jeans, a long sleeved shirt, a leather jacket and a scarf on those really cold nights. Right away I thought maybe this move to Japan is not meant for me. Yes, it is just weather some of you might think but weather is a big deal to a girl who lives for the sun. While I have lived in extremely cold weather before in Japan, Holland, Germany and in Italy, I wasn't sure if I wanted to go back to that kind of lifestyle. Well, as we all know I did.
On October 25th I was checking the weather online because the day before the weather had been perfect and suddenly the weather dropped. Sapporo weather is not reliable, it's hot one day and the next it's overcast but there it was, the word SNOW! It said that on Oct. 26th it would snow for the first time. My reaction was ok, let's do this. We all knew it was coming those darn snow bugs had been warning us for a month. On Tuesday morning I wake up and the sun is completely shining. I'm talking to Adam on Skype around 6:20 A.M and I am describing to him how beautiful it looks outside, then all of a sudden my kitchen got dark. I look outside again and realize in the far mountains there is snow on them. I describe to Adam how the sky all of a sudden went from being really bright to darn to pure white. He tells me that's what snow weather sounds like. Then literally out of now where it starts to pour snow.
Once I am done getting ready for work I run outside to grab my bike. I figure this will probably be the last time I will be able to use my bike, which is what I was really dreading. I have come to love my bike and I like riding it everyday. As I ride to the subway I am getting sprinkled with snow. By the way, I have never been as cold as I have been today in maybe over a decade. My commute to my new elementary school takes around 2 hours and 45 minutes and when I get there I realize where I am. I am in those mountains in the boonies where there is snow on the tips. As I am walking from my bus stop to the school there is no sign that it will continue to snow, I was wrong. Through out my entire day of teaching I can not take my eyes off the windows. It starts off slow and quiet and continues all day getting heavier and heavier.
By the time I am walking back to the bus stop at the end of the day I realize this isn't going to stop. As I stand there waiting for my bus I look across the street at a ski slope, it is so beautiful. The hills are filled with beautiful red, orange, green leaves and white snow. This is going to be a long 6-7 months of winter and it will really take me out of my comfort zone but it will be an interesting change. I look forward to: learning how to ski or snowboard, manning up to this cold weather and most of all to Adam moving here on December 27th when he will keep me warm in my cold apartment :)
Five months ago I was sitting on Adam's doorstep talking to my brother on the phone and all of a sudden my phone beeped! I had just received a new email. It was the email I had been waiting for since I decided to try for the JET Programme, it was my placement email. As I read every word out loud to Adan there it was in bold lettering SAPPORO. My first reaction was cool, I am being placed where my favorite Japanese beer is made. Adan's reaction was a little different, he chuckled. He then proceeded to tell me that Sapporo was on Hokkaido, the ALASKA of the United States. My reaction immediately changed, I started to freak out. I am a California girl to the core. I like sun, food, beaches, taking walks late at night and not having to wear a jacket. My winter outfit consists of a pair of jeans, a long sleeved shirt, a leather jacket and a scarf on those really cold nights. Right away I thought maybe this move to Japan is not meant for me. Yes, it is just weather some of you might think but weather is a big deal to a girl who lives for the sun. While I have lived in extremely cold weather before in Japan, Holland, Germany and in Italy, I wasn't sure if I wanted to go back to that kind of lifestyle. Well, as we all know I did.
On October 25th I was checking the weather online because the day before the weather had been perfect and suddenly the weather dropped. Sapporo weather is not reliable, it's hot one day and the next it's overcast but there it was, the word SNOW! It said that on Oct. 26th it would snow for the first time. My reaction was ok, let's do this. We all knew it was coming those darn snow bugs had been warning us for a month. On Tuesday morning I wake up and the sun is completely shining. I'm talking to Adam on Skype around 6:20 A.M and I am describing to him how beautiful it looks outside, then all of a sudden my kitchen got dark. I look outside again and realize in the far mountains there is snow on them. I describe to Adam how the sky all of a sudden went from being really bright to darn to pure white. He tells me that's what snow weather sounds like. Then literally out of now where it starts to pour snow.
Once I am done getting ready for work I run outside to grab my bike. I figure this will probably be the last time I will be able to use my bike, which is what I was really dreading. I have come to love my bike and I like riding it everyday. As I ride to the subway I am getting sprinkled with snow. By the way, I have never been as cold as I have been today in maybe over a decade. My commute to my new elementary school takes around 2 hours and 45 minutes and when I get there I realize where I am. I am in those mountains in the boonies where there is snow on the tips. As I am walking from my bus stop to the school there is no sign that it will continue to snow, I was wrong. Through out my entire day of teaching I can not take my eyes off the windows. It starts off slow and quiet and continues all day getting heavier and heavier.
Friday, October 1, 2010
First Day of Japanese ES: Humiliating or Just Another Day in Japan!!!
For the last month and a half I have been teaching at Motomachi Junior High. This school is my base school so I will be returning there in February until I leave in August. October 1st marked my first day of teaching at elementary schools. I will teach at 9 different schools in the month of October all over Sapporo. Sapporo has 200 elementary schools and 2 million people in the city alone. So while everyone was excited for me to move over to elementary all I could think is one thing- I am bound to get really LOST! When it comes to sense of direction I don't have any. If I have been to a place I can most likely get back with no problem but finding a new destination is just trouble. In the United States I used my GPS for everything and honestly I never remember street names.
October 1st- the big day of going to my first elementary school. The name of the school is Atsubetsukita Elementary School. The directions I was given come on a piece of paper giving me the name, address, the bus stop, the phone number and a drawing that consists of a square with the name of the school. The stop's name is Atsubetukitashogakkou Mae. I had asked my co-teacher at my last middle school how the bus stop was pronounced and he told me not to worry about it "it's too long." The moment he said that I knew somehow that was going to bite me in the butt.
I started off my day like every other: I wake up, talk to Adam, get dressed and run out of my apartment with a coffee in hand. I bike to the subway station, hop on the subway and head in the direction of my school. Once arriving at Shin Sapporo I automatically am surrounded by people running in every way. I figure out where the bus terminals is and then realize that this is not a small bus terminal. In fact, I can literally count over 30 buses scattered all over. I have 6 minutes until my bus leaves, no worries I think just find number 38. 10 minutes later I am still looking. I get enough balls to ask a woman who is sweet enough to drop her cigarette and lead me through the terminals. After 10 minutes of wandering she shrugs and I figure out she has no idea. I am starting to panic, I have 30 minutes to be at the school and the ride alone takes 20 min. *SIDENOTE: In Japan it is extremely rude to arrive late, let alone for work. If you are late they look at you like you just spat on their mother.* Finally after running around I find it! Success is mine!! I concurred finding the bus. Yes, I know that sounds sad but it's the little things that keeps me from going crazy in a land where I don't know the language.
In order not to screw myself over I decide the best idea would be to talk to the bus driver about my final destination. He looks at the paper and nods- "ok." I arrive at the stop and the bus driver says that is the school and points. I get off and think this is awesome I have 10 minutes to spare, I have to be there by 8:30 A.M. I straighten myself out and chug my iced coffee. I walk into one of the most beautiful schools I have ever seen, I feel confident and am thinking "Ariel you got this." I look around and am a nice maintenance man shows me where the office is. I walk into the teachers room where there are around 18 teachers. They all look at me with excitement and greet me with smiles. They then lead me to the middle of the office and I automatically bust out my Japanese introduction. They continue to smile and hand me a cup of coffee. I drink it and politely hand them my directions paper. They all crowd around, look at the paper and burst out laughing. YES, I had gone to the wrong school. This school was not Atsubetsukita it was another school with almost the exact same name!
By now I was already late to my real school, it was 8:35 A.M. A teacher is nice enough to drag me out of the school while the other teachers are still laughing at me. He puts me into his car and drives like we are on the way to the emergency room. He runs red lights, swerves and grins at me once in a while. My body automatically goes into freak out mode. If I was going to have to speak Japanese, this was the moment. I talk to 3 people who have no idea what I am talking about. I feel completely defeated but I figure I will try my Japanese with 1 more person, they don't understand me. Finally I say "I will be there in 5 minutes etc." my driver yells "now 3 minutes.. now 2 minutes... now 1 minute." The person on the other end of the phone finally says call you please just speak English. WHAT?!?!?!?! I was speaking English!!! All I could do was laugh it off and smile from how hilarious this story would be in a couple of hours.
My driver pulls up at my school, he jumps out, grabs my door open and helps me out. He stops the passing traffic and literally hands me over to the kyoto-sensei (vice-principal). I use my broken Japanese to apologize and basically give him a 90 degree bow. A 90 degree bow is really only used when you majorly screwed up..this consider this a major screw up moment. I walk into the school and am placed in the kochosensei's (principal) office. They bring me a cup of coffee coffee, black coffee. I knew this would be deadly to my kidneys but drank it anyways. I finish and am still waiting, they come give me another cup of black coffee. Once again, I drink it because I don't want to offend them and am already messing up big time at this school. So within 45 minutes I had drunk 4 cups of coffee, oh man. Literally four hours later, I was still trembling.. never again.
Luckily, my school was just really excited I was there! After waiting in the kocho-sensei's office they escorted me to an assembly. Where kindergarten through fifth graders sang in unison songs from The Sound of Music. As they left the gym I said goodbye to every single student. My beauty queen wave practicing at Chez Panisse with Melissa finally came in handy! I end up teaching five classes through out the day. The other teachers even took time off from their classes to come see me teach. Everyone was curious about me asking me questions about everything little thing. A little boy left his desk to ask my semi-English speaking guide if everyone in California looked like me. The best part of the day was when I handed out American dollars for the students to see. I handed out ten and one dollar bills, then a penny. This literally could have kept them busy the entire class period. They bent them, felt every crevice, brought out dictionaries to translate the writing and then they SMELT them! I loved that, kids are so awesome!
Since I am the first foreigner that most of these kids/ teachers had ever seen I was treated like a real celebrity. I signed books, got thank you letters and had pictures taken of me with every step I took. As I left at the end of the day all the teachers were waiting for me outside. They all bowed, thanked me and tried to express how excited they were that I was coming back on Monday. I was then taken by a staff member to the bus stop where I should get off and on the bus. All together teaching at elementary schools in Japan is living the good life. Now I have to find 8 other schools this month, lets see how those commutes go down :)
October 1st- the big day of going to my first elementary school. The name of the school is Atsubetsukita Elementary School. The directions I was given come on a piece of paper giving me the name, address, the bus stop, the phone number and a drawing that consists of a square with the name of the school. The stop's name is Atsubetukitashogakkou Mae. I had asked my co-teacher at my last middle school how the bus stop was pronounced and he told me not to worry about it "it's too long." The moment he said that I knew somehow that was going to bite me in the butt.
I started off my day like every other: I wake up, talk to Adam, get dressed and run out of my apartment with a coffee in hand. I bike to the subway station, hop on the subway and head in the direction of my school. Once arriving at Shin Sapporo I automatically am surrounded by people running in every way. I figure out where the bus terminals is and then realize that this is not a small bus terminal. In fact, I can literally count over 30 buses scattered all over. I have 6 minutes until my bus leaves, no worries I think just find number 38. 10 minutes later I am still looking. I get enough balls to ask a woman who is sweet enough to drop her cigarette and lead me through the terminals. After 10 minutes of wandering she shrugs and I figure out she has no idea. I am starting to panic, I have 30 minutes to be at the school and the ride alone takes 20 min. *SIDENOTE: In Japan it is extremely rude to arrive late, let alone for work. If you are late they look at you like you just spat on their mother.* Finally after running around I find it! Success is mine!! I concurred finding the bus. Yes, I know that sounds sad but it's the little things that keeps me from going crazy in a land where I don't know the language.
In order not to screw myself over I decide the best idea would be to talk to the bus driver about my final destination. He looks at the paper and nods- "ok." I arrive at the stop and the bus driver says that is the school and points. I get off and think this is awesome I have 10 minutes to spare, I have to be there by 8:30 A.M. I straighten myself out and chug my iced coffee. I walk into one of the most beautiful schools I have ever seen, I feel confident and am thinking "Ariel you got this." I look around and am a nice maintenance man shows me where the office is. I walk into the teachers room where there are around 18 teachers. They all look at me with excitement and greet me with smiles. They then lead me to the middle of the office and I automatically bust out my Japanese introduction. They continue to smile and hand me a cup of coffee. I drink it and politely hand them my directions paper. They all crowd around, look at the paper and burst out laughing. YES, I had gone to the wrong school. This school was not Atsubetsukita it was another school with almost the exact same name!
By now I was already late to my real school, it was 8:35 A.M. A teacher is nice enough to drag me out of the school while the other teachers are still laughing at me. He puts me into his car and drives like we are on the way to the emergency room. He runs red lights, swerves and grins at me once in a while. My body automatically goes into freak out mode. If I was going to have to speak Japanese, this was the moment. I talk to 3 people who have no idea what I am talking about. I feel completely defeated but I figure I will try my Japanese with 1 more person, they don't understand me. Finally I say "I will be there in 5 minutes etc." my driver yells "now 3 minutes.. now 2 minutes... now 1 minute." The person on the other end of the phone finally says call you please just speak English. WHAT?!?!?!?! I was speaking English!!! All I could do was laugh it off and smile from how hilarious this story would be in a couple of hours.
My driver pulls up at my school, he jumps out, grabs my door open and helps me out. He stops the passing traffic and literally hands me over to the kyoto-sensei (vice-principal). I use my broken Japanese to apologize and basically give him a 90 degree bow. A 90 degree bow is really only used when you majorly screwed up..this consider this a major screw up moment. I walk into the school and am placed in the kochosensei's (principal) office. They bring me a cup of coffee coffee, black coffee. I knew this would be deadly to my kidneys but drank it anyways. I finish and am still waiting, they come give me another cup of black coffee. Once again, I drink it because I don't want to offend them and am already messing up big time at this school. So within 45 minutes I had drunk 4 cups of coffee, oh man. Literally four hours later, I was still trembling.. never again.
Luckily, my school was just really excited I was there! After waiting in the kocho-sensei's office they escorted me to an assembly. Where kindergarten through fifth graders sang in unison songs from The Sound of Music. As they left the gym I said goodbye to every single student. My beauty queen wave practicing at Chez Panisse with Melissa finally came in handy! I end up teaching five classes through out the day. The other teachers even took time off from their classes to come see me teach. Everyone was curious about me asking me questions about everything little thing. A little boy left his desk to ask my semi-English speaking guide if everyone in California looked like me. The best part of the day was when I handed out American dollars for the students to see. I handed out ten and one dollar bills, then a penny. This literally could have kept them busy the entire class period. They bent them, felt every crevice, brought out dictionaries to translate the writing and then they SMELT them! I loved that, kids are so awesome!
Friday, September 17, 2010
1.5 Months into the Experience!
I wrote the first blog a week after arriving in Japan but did not post it until now. Since I have not written a post for over a month, I will give a summary of my last month's experiences!
Sentence of the day: Watashi wa Ariel Gallegos desu.
Meaning: I am Ariel Gallegos. * Remember this, funny story to follow*
Sapporo the City:
When I first arrived in Sapporo, I was a little overwhelmed with how big it was. I had never lived in a city of two million before, it is massive compared to Oakland. Since I have the worst sense of direction, I automatically became stressed. A month and a half later, I still have the worst sense of direction but I am enjoying the adventure. Sapporo literally has everything you could want: indoor malls, a Ferris wheel, bars, restaurants, beer gardens, an amazing subway line and a whole lot more. I am grateful everyday I wake up to have been placed here. Other JETs have been located in little towns where no one but themselves can speak English. I applaud those people but I know I could not handle that kind of lifestyle for a year.
Higashi- Sapporo aka The Gash!
I live in an area called Higashi-Sapporo (also known as The Gash among JETs), it's around 4 subway stops away from downtown. The day we arrived in Sapporo only three JETs, including myself, were allowed to move into their apartments. The whole ride there I was a nervous wreck, questions raced through my brain. As we drove up to a massive complex of apartments I prayed that this would not be where I was living. It was. A fellow JET's exact words were "this is like Marxism housing." I am not going to lie, tears built up in my eyes but I did not cry. I went from living in this amazingly cute apartment in Oakland with my awesome roommate McKimmie to living in an eleven story apartment building by myself. Luckily, I had been given a brand new apartment which was located on the tenth floor. My view is to die for, it overlooks the TV Tower, the Ferris wheel and the mountains of Hokkaido! Since my apartment was new it didn't have much in it, including no lights. On the bright side though some JETs had junk in their apt. from over ten years ago. So again, I am grateful for what I was given and I now call that little Marxist Apartment complex my home and I love it!
With a Little Help from my Friends!
The best part of being a Sapporo JET is the amazing friends I have made, no joke. I am so happy to have been placed with some of the most amazing characters I have EVER met. The coolest thing about my group is that we are from all over the world: Singapore, Ireland, Britain, Canada, New Zealand and the U.S.
Since most of my friends love to be busy it keeps me active and entertained. Once a week I host a dinner party at my apartment. I miss cooking so this gives me an excuse to cook for people, which is one of the reasons I earned the nickname 'Mama Ariel.' My other nicknames in the group are 'Tequila Queen' and 'Angel Gabrielle.' See dad not much has changed from living in California, I am still known for my tequila drinking skills ;)
While adapting to living in a foreign country has been hard, these amazing people have supported me the whole time. Thanks you cool cats! Plus, now I have people to stay with when I want to travel in the future!
Wakan Nai- I Don't Understand!
If you know me, you probably know that my language skills are pretty much horrible. While I have lived all over the word, the language(s) I speak consist of English and a little bit of Spanish. Well, here you go kids, I am learning Japanese!
Let me tell you the story of what led up to this big decision of learning Japanese. On your first day of school in Japan you have to do two self introductions. The first in front of the entire school in English and the other has to be done in front of all the teachers in Japanese. After having at least ten different people give me outlines of what to say in Japanese I was a little fed up and a whole lot of confused. The night before my first day of school I had the brilliant idea that I would take a little bit of everyones and put it all together. BAD IDEA! So there I am in front of all the Japanese teachers, they are all standing up bowing to me waiting for me to give my speech. I am nervous, sweating but at the same time pretty confident since I had been practicing. I look at the teachers and proceed to say ' Sagara Ariel Gallegos desu' and continue on with my speech. Some teachers giggle and I automatically think they just think I am funny. WRONG! Two days later I am hanging out with my friends and they beg me to do my speech because they know how horrible I am at Japanese. I say every Japanese word as if it's Spanish. I tell my friends that I totally rocked it and I recite what I said to the teachers. Literally five seconds into my intro my friends burst out laughing. Sagara is not I AM, which I thought it was, Sagara is the name of my Japanese teacher!!! I introduced myself as someone else. Talk about butchering the Japanese language in a matter of seconds...what can I say, that's what I do.
Five Japanese language classes later, I know watashi wa is I AM. I have a pretty good grasp of Katakana and Hiragana and am now addicted to reading signs. Also, I am able to understand some of teachers instructions, which is pretty awesome. All together, I hate to say it but my Japanese will probably be better than my Spanish by the time I get home. My goal is to be able to go back to California and know conversational Japanese, let's see how that works out :)
What I am Teaching 8th Grade Again????
Over the next year I am teaching at twelve different schools, a mixture of elementary and middle schools. During the months of August and September I have been teaching at Motomachi Junior High School. Which means one thing, I once again have to teach 8th grade (3rd year in Japan), the true bane of my existence.
Teaching in the United States is totally different from teaching in Japan. While I thought the students here in Japan would be better behaved, they really aren't. This just proves the point- kids will be kids. In the U.S the teachers are more strict, which I actually really miss. I have students that literally just sleep through class and the teachers don't say anything. Luckily for them, I am not that kind of teacher. It seems that some of the teaches I work with are actually intimidated by their students, they would prefer to ignore the situation than have to handle it. Teaching in North Carolina really prepped me for handling students with attitude and laziness. My students know not to mess with me because they are scared to death I will call on them and they will actually have to speak English. Oh the power of fear.. it works in every country!
While I may complain about the students sometimes there are so many aspects of why I love teaching in Japanese schools. Here are some reasons:
- All the teachers sit in one room where we all have our desks. The kocho-sensei and the kyoto-sensei (principal and vice-principal) are there as well. It really makes teachers bond and makes us have a sense of community.
- The kocho-sensei personally greets almost every student when the students walk into school.
- Students stay until 7:00 P.M or later doing after school activities, they are totally committed to their clubs.
-When class starts one student conducts the class to straighten up and then they all bow and say good day to the teacher.
-Japan is all about respect and in school it's no different. Students might be bored but they still honor their teacher as an elder.
-Students eat lunch in their homeroom with their homeroom teacher. A group of students serve the rest of the students lunch. Lunch is not allowed to be eaten until every student is served and the menu has been read.
-At the end of the day there is a set time dedicated for students to clean the school. They clean the bathrooms, classrooms, hallway etc. Love it!
- My students are my biggest fans. They believe that I look like Angelina Jolie, that I dated DiCaprio and that I am friends with Obama. I have a pretty awesome life in their heads!
-When I leave school the students poke their heads out of the windows and yell goodbye or kawaii (cute) to me. I am constantly on parade at school!
There are a lot more stories I would like to include but it's time for bed. I will continue them in my next blog post. Oyasumi nasai (good night)!
Sentence of the day: Watashi wa Ariel Gallegos desu.
Meaning: I am Ariel Gallegos. * Remember this, funny story to follow*
 |
When I first arrived in Sapporo, I was a little overwhelmed with how big it was. I had never lived in a city of two million before, it is massive compared to Oakland. Since I have the worst sense of direction, I automatically became stressed. A month and a half later, I still have the worst sense of direction but I am enjoying the adventure. Sapporo literally has everything you could want: indoor malls, a Ferris wheel, bars, restaurants, beer gardens, an amazing subway line and a whole lot more. I am grateful everyday I wake up to have been placed here. Other JETs have been located in little towns where no one but themselves can speak English. I applaud those people but I know I could not handle that kind of lifestyle for a year.
Higashi- Sapporo aka The Gash!
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| Not the best picture but it gives you an idea of my view. |
With a Little Help from my Friends!
Since most of my friends love to be busy it keeps me active and entertained. Once a week I host a dinner party at my apartment. I miss cooking so this gives me an excuse to cook for people, which is one of the reasons I earned the nickname 'Mama Ariel.' My other nicknames in the group are 'Tequila Queen' and 'Angel Gabrielle.' See dad not much has changed from living in California, I am still known for my tequila drinking skills ;)
While adapting to living in a foreign country has been hard, these amazing people have supported me the whole time. Thanks you cool cats! Plus, now I have people to stay with when I want to travel in the future!
Wakan Nai- I Don't Understand!
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| While I don't have a picture of how stumped I look during Japanese class I do have a picture of me drinking with Sagara Sensei! Only in Japan! |
If you know me, you probably know that my language skills are pretty much horrible. While I have lived all over the word, the language(s) I speak consist of English and a little bit of Spanish. Well, here you go kids, I am learning Japanese!
Let me tell you the story of what led up to this big decision of learning Japanese. On your first day of school in Japan you have to do two self introductions. The first in front of the entire school in English and the other has to be done in front of all the teachers in Japanese. After having at least ten different people give me outlines of what to say in Japanese I was a little fed up and a whole lot of confused. The night before my first day of school I had the brilliant idea that I would take a little bit of everyones and put it all together. BAD IDEA! So there I am in front of all the Japanese teachers, they are all standing up bowing to me waiting for me to give my speech. I am nervous, sweating but at the same time pretty confident since I had been practicing. I look at the teachers and proceed to say ' Sagara Ariel Gallegos desu' and continue on with my speech. Some teachers giggle and I automatically think they just think I am funny. WRONG! Two days later I am hanging out with my friends and they beg me to do my speech because they know how horrible I am at Japanese. I say every Japanese word as if it's Spanish. I tell my friends that I totally rocked it and I recite what I said to the teachers. Literally five seconds into my intro my friends burst out laughing. Sagara is not I AM, which I thought it was, Sagara is the name of my Japanese teacher!!! I introduced myself as someone else. Talk about butchering the Japanese language in a matter of seconds...what can I say, that's what I do.
Five Japanese language classes later, I know watashi wa is I AM. I have a pretty good grasp of Katakana and Hiragana and am now addicted to reading signs. Also, I am able to understand some of teachers instructions, which is pretty awesome. All together, I hate to say it but my Japanese will probably be better than my Spanish by the time I get home. My goal is to be able to go back to California and know conversational Japanese, let's see how that works out :)
What I am Teaching 8th Grade Again????
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| While my students can't write a sentence in English they are always my biggest fans! |
Teaching in the United States is totally different from teaching in Japan. While I thought the students here in Japan would be better behaved, they really aren't. This just proves the point- kids will be kids. In the U.S the teachers are more strict, which I actually really miss. I have students that literally just sleep through class and the teachers don't say anything. Luckily for them, I am not that kind of teacher. It seems that some of the teaches I work with are actually intimidated by their students, they would prefer to ignore the situation than have to handle it. Teaching in North Carolina really prepped me for handling students with attitude and laziness. My students know not to mess with me because they are scared to death I will call on them and they will actually have to speak English. Oh the power of fear.. it works in every country!
While I may complain about the students sometimes there are so many aspects of why I love teaching in Japanese schools. Here are some reasons:
- All the teachers sit in one room where we all have our desks. The kocho-sensei and the kyoto-sensei (principal and vice-principal) are there as well. It really makes teachers bond and makes us have a sense of community.
- The kocho-sensei personally greets almost every student when the students walk into school.
- Students stay until 7:00 P.M or later doing after school activities, they are totally committed to their clubs.
-When class starts one student conducts the class to straighten up and then they all bow and say good day to the teacher.
-Japan is all about respect and in school it's no different. Students might be bored but they still honor their teacher as an elder.
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| One of my students serving all of the other kids broth for their soba. |
-At the end of the day there is a set time dedicated for students to clean the school. They clean the bathrooms, classrooms, hallway etc. Love it!
- My students are my biggest fans. They believe that I look like Angelina Jolie, that I dated DiCaprio and that I am friends with Obama. I have a pretty awesome life in their heads!
-When I leave school the students poke their heads out of the windows and yell goodbye or kawaii (cute) to me. I am constantly on parade at school!
There are a lot more stories I would like to include but it's time for bed. I will continue them in my next blog post. Oyasumi nasai (good night)!
The Journey Begins!
Word/ Phrase of the Day:
Ohayo gozaimasu- Good morning!
Today I left the comfort of my amazing apartment in Oakland and made my way to SFO where I would board an airplane to Tokyo, Japan. Adan, Laura, Adam and my father stayed with me as I waited for my noon flight. As I walked through the security gates it hit me that I was not only leaving the comfort of my home but leaving those who mattered the most to me for an entire year. All of a sudden sh*t got real!
As I was walking through first class the Japanese customs became apparent right away. It triggered all these memories I had from when I lived in Japan as a child, ages: 0-5. Everyone started taking off their shoes, putting them in bags and putting on their slippers. When we finally took off I was handed a warm wet cloth in order to wash my hands and face. As a child, that was one of my favorite traditions but I had simply forgotten it since living in Europe and the U.S. The flight lasted only 9.5 hours, which seemed to go by really quickly since I have flown across the United States and it has sometimes taken longer.
Finally, we arrived in Narita Tokyo Airport at 2:30 P.M. on Sunday! There is a 16 hour time difference from California, which meant, I had flown into the future!!! The moment I stepped off the plane it hit me hard- that humid 90 degree weather that actually takes your breath away. All the SF Jets then put on our super cool JET stickers and made our way through customs. Since it was around a 2 hour wait we all started discussing where we all got placed and what our expectations were of this year. I am not going to lie, I was a bit on the quiet side since I was still pretty upset that I had left Adam and my family. There we were in line, the Americans were jumping with enthusiasm and all these other beautiful cultures were watching us with curious eyes. I honestly was more intrigued with hearing the other languages like Russian, Ukranian, Japanese, Chinese and more than anything else. This reminded me of why I loved to travel!
From there we went to our hotel in Tokyo where we would had orientation for the next three days. The bus ride was somewhat longer than I had expected but the amazing thing was I sat next to this girl, Kate Bohan, who was from the Bay Area. Kate's best friend happened to be a girl, Jenny, that I know and worked with at Chez Panisse. This brought me some comfort and reminded me that no matter where I was in the world I am never that far from home.
Over the next three days we basically stayed in the hotel which meant we were surrounded by other JETs. It didn't feel like we were in Tokyo because everyone we talked to spoke English. On the last day, instead of going to orientation classes, which we were told were pointless, I went with my two amazing roommates to the Harajuku District. We didn't see many Harajuku girls but the ones we did see made quite the statement. It was amazing how thorough they were in their outfits and creativity.
I was really happy that we flew into Tokyo first thing when we arrived in Japan. It gave me a taste of the city and left me feeling grateful to have not been placed there. It was way too busy for my taste. On August the 3rd, we said goodbye to the hotel and made our way to the airport where we boarded the plane which would take us to our new home, Sapporo.
From there we went to our hotel in Tokyo where we would had orientation for the next three days. The bus ride was somewhat longer than I had expected but the amazing thing was I sat next to this girl, Kate Bohan, who was from the Bay Area. Kate's best friend happened to be a girl, Jenny, that I know and worked with at Chez Panisse. This brought me some comfort and reminded me that no matter where I was in the world I am never that far from home.
Over the next three days we basically stayed in the hotel which meant we were surrounded by other JETs. It didn't feel like we were in Tokyo because everyone we talked to spoke English. On the last day, instead of going to orientation classes, which we were told were pointless, I went with my two amazing roommates to the Harajuku District. We didn't see many Harajuku girls but the ones we did see made quite the statement. It was amazing how thorough they were in their outfits and creativity.
I was really happy that we flew into Tokyo first thing when we arrived in Japan. It gave me a taste of the city and left me feeling grateful to have not been placed there. It was way too busy for my taste. On August the 3rd, we said goodbye to the hotel and made our way to the airport where we boarded the plane which would take us to our new home, Sapporo.
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