"Sleeping in a Recliner is Random" Week 3-September 21rst-September 27th

Week 3 begins with my enjoying my new (not purchased new but new to me) bike here in Kasugai.  As my outgoing teacher has now departed Kasugai I have become the default owner of the hand me down NET bright orange bike.  I started out this morning taking full advantage of the freedom by riding through the rainy remnants of the typhoon that passed over Japan last week by riding to the coffee shop in the shopping district of Kasugai.  As I said last week I previously had to walk to most of the stores and restaurants so the bike allows me to reach there in 10 minutes or less.  I spend the remainder of my first day off taking my first ride into Nagoya in another desperate but fruitless search for free WIFI.  An interesting find in Nagoya was something that had been explained to me many times but I had never been able to visualize, namely the Japanese Internet Café.  Since the trains to my town much like those that serve the Philadelphia suburbs stop running at just after midnight I was wondering how I could enjoy a night out in the big city without suffering thru a $60 dollar one way cab ride.  One option certainly is the capsule hotel, which is little more a grouping of super small pods in which you climb into and sleep for the night.  These hotels which run about 30 dollars a night have showers, coin lockers and are popular for the “salary men” who miss trains back to their towns.  The second option is the internet café in which you pay by the hour, are taken to a small private changing room size room which has a large recliner, ottoman, computer with WIFI as well as a TV and DVD.  These small rooms, which even boast slippers, headphones, locks on the doors as well as a hangar for your coat, are real tiny sleeping quarters.  For roughly 400 yen (3.85) an hour you are even given a cup for which to use the ample drink bar, which is stocked with soda, coffee etc.  With showers, clean bathrooms as well as vending machines serving hot Nissan cup of Noodles, sandwiches etc. many Japanese stay till the bars close at 3PM then head to the internet café to sleep and hang out until the trains begin running around 6AM.  So for fewer than 15 bucks it is a safe option should you decide to take Japan up on some of its nightlife.  After checking out the Internet café I spent the remainder of my first night in Nagoya walking the city, trying Mos Burger (Japanese hamburger chain, good!) and having a Guinness at the Elephant’s Nest English Pub in Nagoya.  The Guinness, which was a welcome taste of home, was the first thing I found in Japan that was quite inflated in price, my pint cost me 1000 yen or roughly $9.50.  After returning that night I was back on the train to Nagoya the following morning to meet my friend, Garnett from my Amity training group.  The 1-mile bike ride from my apartment to the station was without incident other than the scare I put into an elderly woman who was unloading a van on the sidewalk near the station.  To explain all people in Japan ride on the sidewalks exclusively on their bikes, while this makes for easy biking ones must watch always when walking the streets.  One of the first skills you need to master is when exiting a store or restaurant you almost need to look both ways when stepping onto the sidewalk so as to see if any bikes are approaching.  And while there are many more bikes to concern yourself with say during rush hour in Nagoya then 11AM on a weekend in Kasugai you need to keep an eye out.  The fright I put in to this poor woman was compounded by the fact that most of the trip to the Kasugai station and the JR train to Nagoya is downhill so once I get rolling with the help of some good traffic lights I can usually give one good pedal and coast a good portion of the way rather easily.  As I neared the station before it flattens out slightly I saw this woman unloading something from a van not realizing I was flying towards her.  Realizing she was not to see me I began slowing up, the problem is she walked unknowingly from sort of in my way to right in my path just as I was decelerating, which I did not expect.  As she still unknowingly moved into my path I hit the brakes hard making a loud squealing sound.  As she heard the sound she tore around in my direction and immediately let out a shriek that I feared would raise the policeman from the small office they maintain near the station.  Not only that she went into a modified fetal crouch position right on the sidewalk as if a runaway locomotive when heading right for her.  I was so surprised I could not even summon an “Excuse me” to calm her down instead I just tore off towards the station.  I did laugh as I thought of her relating that story to like her grandkids later that day.  I am sure it was like a tall tale type story, “He was a mile high and a mile wide if he was a foot, he had red eyes and smoke pouring from his nostrils, and he nearly killed me”.  After having a less exciting train trip I again made it to Nagoya for Day 2 of my three-day weekend and met up with my friend, at the Hilton Hotel.  From there we decided we were looking for some more “gaijins” like ourselves and we headed to the Hard Rock Café across the street for some lunch.  I know this sounds lame but the food was really good and cheap, a burger platter with fries, soda, soup and a salad set me back only 10 bucks and as I have grown to love no tipping in Japan.   After eating we headed out into Nagoya and decided to walk the 2 miles to the Atsuta Jingu Shrine in Nagoya as unexpectedly most of the other attractions in town are closed on Mondays (Aquarium, Toyota Museum etc.).  The shrine, which is one of the most revered in Japan, is the final resting place of the Kusanagi-no Tsurugi what is known as “The Grass Mowing Sword”.  The sword, which is said to be over 2000 years old was used by Prince Yamatotakeru-no-Mikoto in his fight against the rebels.  The prince became trapped in a field after the rebels had lit fire to it.  The prince then used his sword to cut through the field and thus quell the fire and save the day.  Atsuta actually translates to “hot field” in Japanese.  The unfortunate part is the sword is never shown to the public because of its age and value.  Either way the shrine was said to be nice respite from city life as the shrine is covered with trees and sounded like a nice way to spend the afternoon which it was.  After leaving the shrine we headed via the train back to Ozone to watch the Dragons beat the Yakult Swallows at Nagoya Dome.  After the game Garnett headed for home as did I before stopping in to grab a beer at the bar named Backbeat I spoke of in the last post.  This time I ended up speaking to the owner and his girlfriend, Mina for over 2 hours over 2 Ashai's and a glass of Shochu.  We seemed to hit it off and it felt good to make two new Japanese friends.  They even agreed to introduce me to their Kiwi friend, Dean who they said speaks English as well as Japanese so we could talk better next time.  It is funny how in Japan you will meet people here who will say they know other white people like you and then offer to introduce you as if obviously you have to meet someone who looks like you.  Having just read On the Road by Kerouac I couldn't help wonder if I was living like the title character, Sal Paradise and his friendship with the crazy and wild Dean Moriarity.  

The remainder of the week was much like last week, long but enjoyable hours at school trying to become a competent English teacher.  I also met the replacement English teacher who is very well trained and cool so she is helping me quite a bit.  The only big news was while stopped at a vending machine sipping a soda meeting a guy from California named Ryan who I struck up a conversation with.  He is also an English teacher and we exchanged numbers promising to meet up and maybe grab a drink. 

The last night of the week finds myself and my new teacher heading to Nagoya to meet Ryan.  After some trouble getting together we met Ryan in Sakae and headed to a club called Maverick for some drinks.  Since I am a teacher of children now much of my time is spent making games the kids can play in class.  One popular game is a scrambled list, so to best explain my random night unscramble the following to get a sense of what I did:

1. Japanese girls doing a choreographed Rhianna-style dance.

2. Living on a Prayer by Bon Jovi.

3. a 7 foot tall American basketball player

4. 17 cans of Kirin Beer.

5. 1 Red Bull and Vodka.

6. Sleeping in a recliner in a room with 50 other Japanese guys.

7. "Here is your complimentary pair of boxer shorts".

8. Where is Exit 5 off the Subway?

9. One coin operated locker.

10. The two fingered dance Uma Thurman and Travolta did in Pulp Fiction.

Best Reply to the Blog:  This goes easily to my cousin, Matt who while laughing at my own story of mixing soy sauce and green tea powder related his own story from Asia of sipping a mild lemon soup at a meal only to be told it was a bowl of soap for washing his hands.  Awesome story!

Newest Japanese Thing I Never Thought I Would Try: Saw people eating rice and beef bowl then getting a raw egg and breaking into the bowl.  Actually tried it this week at lunch, not bad!

"Is it Hard Living Your LIfe So BIg"? Week 2 September 14th-September 20th

Well it appears I have made it Week 2 of my Japan adventure though I fear the culture shock is beginning to finally hit me as I begin Week 2.  While Japan has and had its challenges those have become magnified now that I have left the comfort of the Amity training staff as well as my group of 7 other incoming foreign teachers.  If you would have told me a week ago there was going to be genuine sadness at the prospect of leaving these folks behind I would have been surprised but it was true indeed.  Sunday morning myself and the rest of my group headed back to Okayama Train Station to depart for our home school on the Shinkansen (Bullet Train), one teacher stayed in Okayama as that is the location of his home school while 2 went in one direction and myself and 4 others headed out on a different train.  Sitting on the train I got to see by day some of the country of Japan as it rushed by.  The country looks much like at lot of the US would probably look, small to medium size towns dotted with rural enclaves.  Only the people stooping with parasols tending to rice patties might have given away their location.  Their were crowds huddled around little league baseball and soccer matches, large industrial plants, people on bikes as well as curious passer bys watching the train sped by.  Two of the people I was tightest with in my training group were on my train so it was sad dropping one off at Kyoto and leaving the other at my stop in Nagoya.  I had wanted the real Japan experience and was now about to get it without the comfort of a large group of Americans, Canadians, Brits and Aussie’s to buffer it for me.

  When I reached Nagoya I was immediately met by my manager who was waiting for my on the platform.  She seemed very nice (several years younger than me) and proceeded to take us to the local train that was to take me to my new home in Kasugai.  The ride from Nagoya was only about 15 minutes and we chatted on the train about the school, my new responsibilities and about the current foreign teacher who was departing Japan later in the week.  It has been interesting how information is disseminated in a Japanese business culture.  After completing my training in Okayama I was told on my final review that the current NET who was to be my guide in Japan had decided to break his contract and leave Japan after only 6 months.  I am not sure why this was not told to me earlier not that there was anything I could do about it but I found it strange they gave me a welcome letter signed by the staff including the NET explaining how excited he was to meet me and show me around town.

As she was showing me around the apartment, which was bigger than I had anticipated (pictures to follow soon) I did something I was to do another 6 times since I moved in, namely smash my head into the door jam connecting the living area to the kitchen.  Although the apartment is not as small as I thought (about the size of my studio in Northern Liberties) the door jams are clearly “Japanese made” meaning they are not made for the average American above 6 feet to pass thru them.  Learning to duck quickly is a skill I am quickly picking up, so hopefully the many lumps atop my head will soon be a thing of the past.  I am also using it as a learning experience as I get to perfect the art of the Japanese bow every time I enter my bedroom or bathroom.  Another thing I had not anticipated about the apartment is the lack of any furniture other than some shelving and a small computer desk, Japanese do everything on the floor watching TV, eating etc. but I was still surprised to see no couch, chairs or kitchen table in my apartment.  On the positive side my futon bed roll was comfortable as all get out and I slept like a log my first night in my new place.

As for some other new experiences I did my first bit of food shopping this morning and did pretty well.  I was even able to ask the grocery manager where the tamago (eggs) were due to my pre-departure Japanese vocab lessons.  I was even able to find some American products, Ritz, Funions (they are Fun Onions), Heinz ketchup as well as McCain Smiley Face Potatoes which seem to be popular in Japan (I think their popularity is explained by their cuteness, see my sidebar on (The Japanese Addiction to kawaii).  Monday night I checked off one of the things I wanted to do when I took in my first Japanese baseball game at the Nagoya Dome between my new home team the Chunichi Dragons and the very popular Hanshin Tigers from Osaka.  I was proud of myself for even giving the game a try as sometimes the culture shock here wants you to go small so while it would have been easier to stay in my apartment watching DVD’s or working on my apartment I thought I had to go out and take my first train to Nagoya to get it down.  After a short ride bus ride and $2.50 ride on the local train to Nagoya I arrived at the game to find out that of course it was sold out but was able to obtain a ticket from another fan for only 900 yen ($8.50) as the game was already in the 3^rd inning when I arrived.  Although the Dragons got beat soundly by the Tigers and the ticket I obtained was in the top deck of the Dome with all the Hanshin Tigers fans it was fun nonetheless.  As far as experiences go it was pretty similar in many ways to an American baseball game apart from some different food.  I had a hot dog (cabbage and ketchup on it?), fries and a Coke before leaving in the 9^th inning so as to be ready for m first day of work at the school.  The main difference from baseball here and home is the cheering.  At no point during the game is it ever quiet as that team’s cheering squad is leading either group of fans in organized cheers.  Some type of team noisemaker is essential (I got my Dragons noisemaker at the store before entering) and although it is loud in Japanese fashion the other team is never booed or jeered only the home team is supported (loudly!).  When particular players come up there are even special songs, cheers as well as flags, pictures, signs held up for that particular player in the hopes of enticing him to perform well for the home team.

Tuesday was my first day at the school and after the week I can say I am not sure I realized just how difficult the job is going to be.  Most days of this week there is very little to report as I was so whupped from the long day I did little than grab something to eat and immediately head home to go to bed to do it all again the next day.  My first day, my first class and bright and early at 10AM I was to watch my first lesson being taught to 2 toddlers by the outgoing NET. The first girl came in saw me sitting on the floor, stuck out here tongue at me and immediately began crying hysterically so much so that the Manager had to enter the classroom to try and calm her down.  She was inconsolable for the remainder of the 40 minute class and covered her eyes for the entire time so she could not see me all the while the other girl stared at me with a slight smile once in a while glancing over at her distraught classmate.  After the close of the class the interactions with the kids got decidedly better.  Since the outgoing NET is Asian, thin and about 5 foot 6 I seem to be something of a new celebrity at school to most of the kids based on my looks and size.  On several occasions as I planned my classes in the staff room I would look up to see 5 or 6 kids smiling and peering at me thru the window watching me intently.  Any silly faces or movements I make bring about eruptions of laughter from them as in the small town I live someone that looks like I do is something quite rare.  I also need not join a gym since I made the mistake of picking up one of the kids smiling at me early in the week and boosting her towards the ceiling so she could touch it.  After that every kid that enters or leaves the school stops by for me to give them a similar boost as they think it is the most fun thing they have ever done.  Over the week I taught some solo classes, had my other NET sit in on many others but I feel like I am finally finding my stride as far as planning and executing good classes for my students.  In my first week I even had some parents sign their kids up for several weeks of private lessons with me, which hopefully is a good sign.  My first lesson Saturday with the 10 year old who took one such lesson went great as I had my first success a teacher feels when I was able to get him to say the phrase “See you Later, Alligator” which was a little difficult for him.  As I tried to explain it was an American slang phrase he turned his head not understanding the word, alligator.  As I searched the classroom for a picture to show him unsuccessfully I then tried closing my arms together like jaws while repeating “alligator”.  After a few chomps with my arms as the jaws and my fingers as the teeth his face lit up when he realized what an alligator was and then started laughing and repeating the phrase, “See you later, alligator”.  All in all the kids are great and it is the interaction with them that makes the job fun.  The title of this post stems from one of the more interesting interactions I had with the mother of a student after quietly introducing my self as the new ego sensei (English teacher) she stared at me for several seconds before asking me in halting English, "Is it difficult to live you life so big"?  After thinking for a few seconds about the question I answered that I had not given it much thought.

Today was my partner NET’s last day and I think it is more emotional for him than he expected it to be.  It is not hard even being here for just a week to see how these children can become a part of you.  An interesting clash of cultures occurred at the end of the day as the Japanese staff presented the NET with a small gift and a card before he departed for the night.  After reading the well wishes of the staff he seemed really moved by their kindness but rather than hugs goodbye and tears there was merely polite bowing and quiet kind words to one another before departing.  Not trying to judge Japanese society but there is something about us as Americans that can make us appear more rude, loud and boisterous in our interactions with one another than that of the Japanese but we are definitely a people who are more apt to hug one another and share emotion as a people more so than the Japanese where all societal interactions are more guarded and polite.  Something about the scene felt strangely unfinished and incomplete.

After leaving work I met him at a cool bar near work called the Backbeat.  The bar so named for the famous club in Liverpool, England, which launched the Beatles, displays tons of Beatle memorabilia and plays Beatles and American music non-stop.   We talked to the owner, a musician himself and the waitress who keep calling us sensei’s (the teachers) and after a couple of Ashai’s and a glass of Shocu we headed home around midnight to close out Week number 2 in Japan.

Due to an unknown Japanese holiday I am the benefactor of a three-day weekend, which is much needed after the stress of my first week.  That is the great thing about being in an unknown country for me, you say to your coworker, “See you Tuesday” only to be told you are off for Japanese Halloween in September or something to that effect.  That is something cool that never happens to you in the US, you never say, “OK, I will email you Monday with that information”, only to be told you are off due to a holiday you did not even know existed.  I asked someone at work why we were off and they told me they were not sure.  So I’m just going with it.

Monday one of my friends from training, Garnet is going to meet me in Nagoya as she lives about 25 minutes by train from here.  Our plan is maybe grab a real American burger at the Hard Rock and then check out another Dragons game at Nagoya Dome.  In also just as exciting news my outgoing NET gave me the keys to my Japanese bike which was handed down to him from the last teacher so my world in Kasugai just got a whole lot larger as I can now get anywhere in town in 5-10 minutes as opposed to having to walk everywhere.   And when I say “the keys” I really got the keys as Japanese bikes actually have a lock on them like a car so it was like getting my license for the first time. As to how the Japanese are going to be with a okii gaijin (big foreigner) on a bike hurling towards them that will have to wait for Week 3

Interesting English Translations #1: Sometimes either the way it’s phrased or maybe the translation here just make me laugh.   It could also be that Americans are so boastful in their advertising slogans, things like “You’ve tried the rest now try the best “ atop pizza boxes come to mind or Coke “The Real Thing”.  While having breakfast I scanned what could be read on my carton of orange juice in English and saw the slogan

“Let’s try and enjoy this juice”!

Wow they don’t sound very confident.

Interesting English Translation #2:  From the balcony of my apartment I saw a large Japanese milk truck with the words ACID MILK stenciled across it.  Acid and milk are not synonymous with dairy deliciousness for me, but hey that’s me.

"Okayama and Training" Week 1 September 6th-September 13th

Sunday started out well but interesting as I began learning quickly that I was definitely in a new place. After explaining my good fortune at getting my own room at the business hotel I was staying I was excited to take them up on their promise of free breakfast. Envisioning not exactly a Denny's Grand Slam spread I was somewhat surprised to find Onigiri and Miso as well as freshly brewed coffee (kohii) as the only items on the menu. Onigiri are triangle shaped rice balls with some salt and bonito (fish) flakes thrown in. I was never really a huge Miso soup fan while at home but I am enjoying it here in Japan although it is strange having such a salty soup early in the morning. While the food was good it is going to be a bit of a change and it seems Le Cochon Dingue in Quebec City will still retain the title of "best foreign breakfast".

M first morning the rest of the group were nice enough to walk over to my hotel to find me so we as a group could take in Okayama Castle as well as the Gardens that surround the castle.  The day which was extremely hot and humid was very enjoyable as the grounds were gorgeous.  After touring the grounds as a group in which we tended to stand out I'm sure a few vendors who were holding an exhibition on the grounds invited us all in for some cold barley tea, figs and ginger cookies which was extremely hospitable of them.  Fortunately as we had some food and drink and very heavy thunderstorm passed over head so it was fortuitous we stopped in when we did.  After some speaking and translating we decided to head back to the annex and hotel for some rest.

After a break I met the group and we walked over to the interestingly named Great Pumpkin Karoke bar a few blocks from where we were staying. After entering and heading to the top floor of the place we began screaming our way through some Spice Girls, Mama Mia and yes even in Japan, Living on a Prayer. On an even funnier note one of my fellow teachers did a spot on Chris Martin while singing to both Vida La Vida and Speed of Sound by Coldplay.  While the rest of the group wanted to call it an evening myself and Chris Martin headed out for some fun in Okayama (gotta rep for the over 30 crowd) .  Although we did not over do it my fellow teacher and I each had two Ashai's and we split a bottle of Shocu, (a traditional Japanese liquor made from grain that is very potent).  Needless to say upon leaving the karaoke bar we were already feeling good.

One thing is certain you should never trust a cartoon cat holding a carafe of Sake.  This was a lesson hard learned that night as we progressed to a small bar/restaurant across from my hotel.  The night progressed as we ran into 3 young guys heading down the street and asked them to show us a good place to go out and then ending up hanging with us for about 2 hours at the bar.  A memorable moment was the 5 of us singing California Love by 2Pac at the top of our lungs over some large mugs of Kirin. I also got some laughs from the crew by calling 2PAC, "Ni-Pac", Ni being the Japanese word from the number 2 (I guess it is only funny in Japan as I write this it sounds decidedly lame). Perhaps the Asahai and Kirin also helped.  Not only did I learn a new Japanese drinking song "Nonde Nonde" (Drink, Drink!) but learned that gestures and a few words can often get you by when needed. For example just shouting out "Super Dry" and holding up your glass was enough to get all at the table to clink glasses immediately as it was a call to drink (Asahai Super Dry is one of the most popular beers (Biru) in Japan).  Finally at 2am we headed back to our respective places to call it a night.

When I arrived in Japan the first thing I found out about the country was it appears safe to leave anything anywhere. When my Amity contact met me at the airport terminal she explained that while waiting for others to arrive I could leave my bags in the waiting area and could be free to walk around a bit to some of the stores in the terminal. When I began pushing my luggage to take it with me she explained I could leave it where it was as there was no need to worry about any theft. Although ultimately I took at least my laptop bag which contained my computer, camera, PSP and IPOD she assured me there was no reason to be concerned for its safety. This is the first difference from the US or Philadelphia from Japan. In Philadelphia should you happen to leave a used napkin and a half eaten bag of chips on the seat only to wander 40 yards away from it you can rest assured you would find them both gone in 10 minutes. And then realizing your napkin and chips were history you would glance down to see someone had sneakily stolen your pants while you were looking for those chips. Since the airport I have seen many other examples of this very strange thing called "honesty".

As the week progressed as did training nothing much to report other than long, long hours and much information covered.  All in all I think I did pretty well and the trainers gave me some positive feedback on my final review as well.  After the completion of training, myself, all the trainers as well as the rest of my group headed to a local restaurant in Okayama for a final send off.  The food which was varied was great and even more fun the group had a final night to blow off some steam as we walked to a local Aussie bar called Aussie Bar for some drinks before leaving each other and heading to our respective schools tomorrow.

Some photos from the festivites:

Interesting Japan Fact #1

I know I spoke with some of you about the need for slippers in Japan.  And as some of you may know I had to bring mine with me to Japan since of my freakishly large shoe size, or should I say freakishly large shoe size for Japan (Men are hard pressed to find anything over a 9 at a store).  But since I have been here it has gotten even better, once arriving at my first day of work we were clearly instructed to remove our shoes at the door, stow them in the cubicles you see often in many Japanese establishments and then wear your slippers from then on inside the building.  But the Japanese or my office go one better, when wearing those slippers around the office I made my first trip to the bathroom and walked in only to find a red line on the floor instructing me to remove my slippers and do what......put on a 2nd pair of "restroom" slippers.  The restroom slippers which are tiny are a sick blue color and actually bear a restroom emblem on them (lest you try to take a pair and wear them around town).  So as you can imagine nearly 14 percent of my day revolves around either removing my shoes, tying them or putting them back on.  I am seriously considering seeing if Florsheim makes a pair of wingtips with velcro on them so I can save myself the trouble.

Embarrasing Foreign Behavior #1

After a long day of training myself and 5 of the group headed to a local conveyor belt sushi bar a few blocks from the school for a quick and inexpensive dinner, we all sat down without event and began to choose our meal.  As I normally do I took my small dish filled it with soy sauce and opened the wasabi box only to be confronted with green powder.  Not thinking much of it I put two scoops into the soy unsure how hot and spicy it was to be and begin to stir the two together.  Although I had never seen powdered wasabi before when in Japan you will be confronted with many things you have never seen before so you begin to take a "what will the Japanese think of next" type of approach to things here.  Upon mixing the two though I immediately saw a problem as the powder sat coagulating on top of the soy in a very unappealing way, a dip in it from my chopsticks along with a taste confirmed I had gone wrong as the flavor was horrific.  It was then a kind man next to me with a smile on his face tapped me on the shoulder to show me that the wasabi was on the conveyor belt in ketchup like packets.  He then showed me the empty tea cup I had ignored in the place setting in front of me.  And finally showed me the small faucet on the bar for piping hot water.  From there with an even bigger smile creeping across his face he proceeded to show me how to take two small spoonfuls of "green tea" powder and mix it into the water for a hot cup of green tea with your sushi.

If you take anything from this blog, soy sauce and green tea should never meet, EVER!

Awesome Packaging Experience #1

While heading to school I passed one of the hundreds of vending machines I have seen since arriving here.  This time I excitedly saw a machine that contained a Diet Soda option I had yet not seen since arriving, an American favorite, Sprite Zero.  As I dropped my 100 yen coin into the slot, retrieved my drink and began heading toward Okayama Station I smiled when I looked down and saw the can which was covered in Kata Kana Japanese characters had only one line in English which clearly read "Sprite Zero, Sexier Than Water".

Strange Japanese Observances

• Japanese will never cross the street without the OK TO WALK sign turning green.  There could be 100 people at a crosswalk and not a car for a mile either way and they will still wait for the light to turn before heading across.
• Taxi drivers here wear suit pants, shirts and ties at all times.
• Work here is different, no one leaves early.  If you are to work til 7:00PM (as we are) and you finish early you find something else to do rather than take off early.  It is simply not done in Japan.
• It is so hot and humid here I can not begin to tell you yet you will see Japanese woman wearing Ugs, sweaters and jackets around town, its wild.
  

Well all that is it for Week 1 in Japan from the week I had I can only imagine there is much more to see and do as well as more shame and embarrassment to be brought to my country and family.  Sunday I depart for my home in Kasugai, hope to take in a Japanese baseball game at the Nagoya Dome on my day off Monday as well as begin my new life with my new students.

Also sorry for no pictures yet I hope to resolve my camera plug issue soon and have photos for you.

Talk to you soon.

Sayounara

Duffysan