earth + quake

a couple hours ago there was some shaking in japan. i was sitting on my bed and felt a few rumbles. at first i thought it was a big truck going by because sometimes rattles the building but this rattle lasted way longer than a truck. maybe 10 to 15 seconds. i wasn't scared but i was ready to be and got up off the bed trying to think of the safest place in my apartment. a doorway, right? anyways, no damage or anything but it was shaking pretty good. maybe i can catch some news on it tomorrow. it happened at about 8:30 monday night. 

in other news, schools are going well. everyone is so incredibly welcoming, it just makes me want to work hard and be a good help for the staff and the students. i have my first introduction presentation tomorrow. wish me luck! i will be doing it 19 times i calculated, to about 665 students total! yowzers!

1st classes + bike

i have survived my first two official days of school without any major problems. the staff are very friendly and have given me a very warm welcome. there are a few teachers (mostly the one's who speak english, teach english) who i can communicate with without problems. and the others who don't speak much really try and get out dictionaries to help me understand what they are saying. i found out today (day 2) that the teacher who sits next to me  lives in my same neighborhood. i immediately asked her where a bike shop was because i have been looking for one but it is a bit hard doing internet searches since everything is in japanese so i had not found one near yet. she pointed one out to me on my map just down the road. she even called the shop for me two times because i told her i wanted a second-hand bike. she got me prices, bike details and the store hours! i went there after work and the store owner knew i was coming and greeted me by name! i bought a $60 used bike but when i rode off with it there was an ungodly squeaky break (and i already stand out, i don't need a screeching sound to draw extra attention/annoyance) so i rode right back and ended up getting all set up on a brand new cruiser for $120, what i was expecting to pay anyways. (lesson here: do more than a 3 ft test drive when buying a bike.) my new bike is a lightish metallic blue and super sweet; came with a basket, a rack on the back, a peddle powered front light, a kickstand, and a built in lock. in the states all of those accessories would probably add up to 100 bucks as it is! my bike just the basic style most seem people have. i am so excited. now my radius is so much bigger and faster. on the way home i stopped at the store and it was so quick to get home and throw my groceries in the front basket! 

as for classes, i have just done a brief hello speech because they have big tests next week so the following time i see them, i will do a longer presentation about myself and where i am from. i have been getting it together now. mostly so far, i have just been doing readings aloud from their english book. it is a big strange though as the english class is primarily taught in japanese so i am still in the dark for much of the time.

on day 1, i said a quick hello at a morning meeting in front of the whole school. i did ok but it was a little weird, oh well! they asked me to give a short speech in japanese for the teachers so i did that this morning. i memorized a simple thing that said: good morning, how do you do, i am noelle. i am from america. my hobby is photography. i am very happy to be here at this junior high school. please come talk to me, please watch out for me (a friend told me this saying and that it is good to say although it sounds weird in english), and a polite very nice to meet you. later i was told they were impressed by my good japanese; boy have i got them fooled! then after lunch they had a short reception welcoming me. they brought japanese cream-puffs and a bubbly, teddy bear type younger teacher read me an speech in english. it was so cute, i could have nearly teared up. i also gave my salt water taffy and tea. everyone said thank you. even though it was a small token, i think it was appreciated. so far, i really like everyone. i am sure it will only get better! i think being here will teach me about respect, kindness and perseverance. not to mention being on time, 100% of the time, all the time. always good. now... am i going to ride my bike tomorrow or not? i haven't quite figured out the whole bike parking situation yet... if the lots are free or pay. the lady from my neighborhood said at the station i use it costs 100 yen to park but i don't know how it works out so i don't know, i might need more information before i move the bike down there!

meetings + first day

today and yesterday i met with my schools. i will be at nagara jhs one day per week and at kumaiden the other days. everyone was very nice and welcoming. i will be preparing an introduction lesson that i will give next tuesday at nagara (i am there every tue) and at my other lessons at kumaiden next week. i start work tomorrow at kumaiden and am scheduled to arrive early in the gym to say a short hi & hello at the morning meeting in front of 550 students then i will introduce myself to the 35 teachers in the teachers room. they want that introduction in japanese, i need to study it tonight but luckily it can be short! the rest of this week at kumaiden there is grade 3 testing so i will not be doing anything on my own, just assisting as they prepare for the exams but next week i will give my introduction and a quiz game to go with it to each class i assist. i am relieved to have the weekend to prepare for my first presentation! i am a little nervous but confident i can do just fine. i sure was a little relieved to not have to prepare much for my first few days. i think it will be good to get my bearings and get comfortable in a new environment before doing any lessons of my own. it should be fine. also, one of the main english teachers at kumaiden studied abroad for a year at good ol' university of oregon and has also spent time in portland. small world! wish me luck tomorrow for my first day!!!

settling in + iwatsuka

well... i am now in the comfort of my permanent apartment in nagoya! and by comfort, i mean comfort. i bought a lovely futon that is leaps and bounds better than what i was sleeping on in chiba. thank goodness! yesterday was the big move, and boy it was big. i hauled all my things in one trip and had to keep repeating to myself, "you can do this, you can do this" because it was so heavy and i could hardly move. i had a 50+ pounder on my back and was pulling my rolling duffle bag (60+ lbs.) with my computer case / backpack (25 lb) attached on by a clip and hanging from the handles i had two shopping bags with overflow. so i guessing it was over 150 pounds. i did it and arrived to my new apartment in the afternoon. it is a bit older than the last super new and hightech chiba place and also a different layout. it is a loft style. still very small and efficient. in the main room there is a tv on a little stand, a coffee table and a low twin wooden bed frame which i put my new comfy futon on. my plan is to get an additional futon or air mattress to put up in the loft so if i have guests, there will be 2 beds and 2 sleeping areas. its nice to have the futon in the main room too as it acts like a couch. i was missing a couch!

my neighborhood is pretty cool. lots of resources nearby like grocery store, drugstore, a 100 yen shop, a small department store, a few cafe's, restaurants and mini marts. i am pretty set as far as all that stuff goes. yay. the subway stop, iwatsuka is about a ten minute walk from my front door. i haven't met any neighbors yet or explored too much. i'd like to get a bike so i can start checking out the area a bit more efficiently. i am only about 5k from the city center so it seems plausible to ride to downtown.

haven't taken any photos yet but they will come soon. i wouldn't dare try and photograph my apartment in it's current state anyhow. i'd call it a disaster zone for sure.

nagoya city + me

today i took the shinkansen (bullet train) from chiba to nagoya city, my new home! the train ride was smooth and fast. very fast, they go up to 300 km per hour (186 miles per hour for us americans). it's almost like a cross between taking a train and an airplane. there is tons of leg room and plenty of space like a train but it hauls fast more like an airplane. pretty cool. the trip was 108 minuets. and as everything here in japan, runs perfectly on time without any hitches. we were scheduled to leave at 11:33 am and when we pulled away i checked my phone, and it was exactly on the dot 11:33. (this is why being late in japan is just not a possibility).

upon arrival in nagoya we were met by our coordinator and taken to the branch office here where we went over paperwork and got maps of our apartments and schools. i will be at two junior high schools and my apartment is between the two. on googlemaps it shows the location of the apartment right next to a very fat green line. i asked what that was and learned that it's an elevated highway... so i am surely be curious to see what that is like tomorrow when i check everything out for the first time. seriously, the map makes my apartment look like it is on top of this highway! there's also a dennys logo is right next to the little house icon along with a mos burger, a couple 7-11's, a circle k and a subway stop near as well. my new neighborhood (ward) is just southwest of the nagoya city center in a ward called nakagawa. i am excited. looks like i will also have some co-workers near by (and even share my apt. building with a kid from portland! small world). overall i am pretty happy about everything so far. the aptartment is a leopalace, like the one in chiba so it will be interesting to see if it is the same, i am hoping for maybe a tad more space that the last one but i can make anything work! 

the first thing i am doing when i land in my apartment is unloading every single thing, however big or small, from each one of my bags. there a few sections in my luggage that haven't seen the light of day yet so it will be nice to see everything and start to settle in. i imagine it will help solidify the fact that i am here, in japan living and working permanently for the near future. i am kind of also preparing to feel some homesickness and culture shock set in once i get into my new daily routine because up until so far, it has kind of felt like an extended vacation. 

although i haven't seen much yet, i'm thinking nagoya has a nice feel. seems a little more laid back with less hustle 'n' bustle than tokyo/chiba and today, a cool ocean breeze. i read that the average august temperature here is 35 C (again... 95 F for us americans) so i am trying to enjoy this moderate weather while it's here! walking back to the hotel tonight after an indian curry dinner the air was a bit chilled without any of that tokyo humidity. it reminded me of a spring evening in portland, it was nice. 

randoms + the big move

i am sorry for the lack of blog postings. i have no excuse as i had just about every day off over the last two weeks. i kept my self busy and also took it easy over one of the biggest holiday seasons in japan known as golden week. travel plans and attractions are really packed during this time so i didn't really do much to avoid the madness. headed into tokyo a couple times. got a cell phone! hung out in chiba. had a few rainy days in the apartment. i have now killed almost all of my "temporary" chiba time though. yay. we head out on wednesday for nagoya to our real apartments, jobs and new lives. here are a few photos from the last two weeks.

friends i made during my tokyo training out for a day in akihabara, harajuku and shibuya. peter from the east coast, ramon from california, nuala from australia and i waiting for a train.

this is a store floor sign showing how three dimensional japan is; stores extend back, up, and down. this electronic place had 8 floors! very different that american style. 

more traditional wedding ceremonies at meiji shrine in harajuku. 

club womb. had a night out on the town clubbing and got this not allowed photo. it was quite an experience, lazers and lights everywhere, thumping music and a busy crowd of all types. all for only a $40 cover. since we are reliant on trains to get around, we also had to stay out all night because the trains stop running from about midnight until 5. i think i made it to bed about 7, this is after my 2 hour commute home. let's just say i am a-ok to have only done this once!

i couldn't resist. i heart hello kitty!