I have been very forgetful lately, and I don’t know why. I’m usually not the kind of person to forget something; I always over pack and double/triple check things over. So why have I been forgetting so much? They aren’t major things, but it still bugs me. It started off with me forgetting my cloth I wipe my face with at home instead of taking it to school. I was extremely gross and sweaty all day. Not cool. The next time I forgot something, I left my English to Japanese dictionary at home when my host mom took me out to apply for Japanese health insurance. Can you say stupid? Then when I went sightseeing with my counselor I brought my camera but forgot my extra batteries. Thankfully, the ones in my camera didn’t die. I was lucky. Now for the big one, I am still extremely mad at myself for this. I forgot my English to Japanese dictionary at school. I have been without it all weekend and it has been so frustrating. And the ironic part is that my teacher offered to lend me her giant English to Japanese dictionary for the weekend but I turned it down because “I would survive with mine.” ARGH!!! What is with me? –Sigh- Okay, sorry about that. I just needed to vent. But don’t worry, I won’t ever forget about my blog! :)
School has been an experience like no other. I have gone for three days and I’m starting to really enjoy it. I get a lot of attention at school though; it can be really embarrassing sometimes. I made a speech to the entire school so everyone knows my name. This is such an abnormally for me. Haha. I’ve gone to just being another human being wandering the school halls to a celebrity where everyone knows me and wants to be my friend. It partly has to do with my blonde-ish hair. There are 39 other students in my class and they all have been extremely welcoming and helpful. Unfortunately, I can only remember a few of their names and that makes me feel a bit guilty at times. I will eventually remember them all though.
Because I am a brand new exchange student, the teachers don’t expect much of me. But I have been surprising a lot of them. Even though I don’t understand what they are saying or writing, I still attempt to write down all of the notes. It’s better than just sitting there and fanning myself. (There is absolutely no air conditioning.) In Math class, they were doing stuff I learned in grade 9 so I was actually able to understand it and my Math teacher was shocked that I was doing the work. I am still learning new things though! During any English classes, I go down to the library or staff room to do my own studies. My teacher, Namae-sensei, is the best teacher in the whole entire world. She went out and bought me a bunch of Japanese textbooks to study from and she said she ordered more as well because they were sold out. She is also buying me an electronic translator this weekend! How cool is that? Oh, and she is the English teacher so she helps me with a lot of things from telling me what’s going on, to making sure I know where I am going, and explaining what some students are trying to say to me. School is looking so much more enjoyable because of the extra mile Namae-sensei is going to make sure I’m comfortable and understand. I am so blessed.
We have a school festival coming up next weekend as well as a field trip on Thursday. The field trip is to watch some sort of traditional Japanese theatre I think. (I’m not quite entirely sure though.) But I am still looking forward to both! This week I am also hoping to get around watching different club actitivies and choosing what club I would like to join. I may also have a chance to see each one at the school festival as well. (This is a span of three days, meaning I get the following Tuesday and Wednesday off!) So despite me and my forgetfulness, things are really looking good for the next week! I am so excited!
~Stephanie
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Festivals, and Orientations, and School - Oh My!
Hey everyone! Sorry I haven’t gotten around to updating this since I got back from the Rotary Orientation. I was busy and when I had free time I really didn’t feel like writing. Haha. My apologies. I’m going to backtrack a little and talk about Friday. I am hoping to squeeze in everything that has happened between Friday and today, but with my detailed writing, this may become very long. Well, let’s try it! Hobey ho! Let’s go!
On Friday, I was asked to help work at my host parents’ business. I was happy to accept the offer and I went with my host grandparents to make deliveries all around Shirakawa-shi and area. We delivered all sorts of things like bulk business cards to stacks of colored paper. It was a great time to talk to my host grandparents and teach them a few English words and they would teach me Japanese words in return. It was a long day and by the time we got home I was exhausted. But I had no time to rest. My friend Yuki and her mother were at my house waiting for me. They were going to take me to the Bon Festival! The Bon Festival (or sometimes called Obon) takes place all across Japan for three days but on different days depending on the area. It usually takes place during the month of August.
We drove to Yuki’s house where I met her grandparents and her sister. Her mom took me to a room where she had everything set up to get us ready for the festival. Yuki’s mother did my hair and I was shocked at how beautiful it looked once she was finished. When I saw the yukata, it is a summer kimono made out of cloth, I would be wearing, I was shocked. It was so beautiful, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to keep it. Yuki’s grandmother helped me put the yukata on…it was a lot more complicated than I thought. Everyone kept saying: “Kawaii!” (cute) or “Kirei ne!” (pretty) when I walked out of the room. It was slightly overwhelming, but Yuki’s mom and grandmother did a great job of getting me ready.
One of Yuki’s friends also came to her house to get helped in her yukata. Her name is Akane and she will be going to my school as well. I can’t remember if she will be in the same class as me, but she is in the same grade for sure. And of course, she was super nice. When we arrived at the festival grounds, I was blown away. Just the other day I had passed this lot and it was completely empty. Now, as I stood before it, there were booths everywhere selling food or trinkets, a huge stage in the middle, and lit lanterns everywhere. I whipped out my camera to take a picture and…it told me to change my batteries. Then I realized I had left my extra set back at Yuki’s house. I was quite devastated, but my moods quickly picked up as the festival began.
I met two more of Yuki’s friends, Kirin and Mihon, and they hung out with me during the whole festival. Mihon is in the same grade at my school as well but Kirin goes to a different high school in town. Yuki and Akane were a part of the performance going onstage. On stage, some older ladies sang traditional songs while traditional Japanese instruments were played. Yuki and Akane were a part of the group playing the wooden flutes. It was pretty cool.
Kirin and Mihon bought me dinner, yakisoba, and a frozen dessert that was sort of like a snow cone. After we ate we continued to wander around the stalls and chat with each other. With Yuki’s encouragement, she got us to start dancing around the stage with other people. It was a traditional styled dance and we picked it up quickly and probably danced for an hour. When we finished, we got free coupons to spend at any booth in the festival so we all bought Cotton Candy. The festival came to a close and Yuki’s mom drove us all home. It was the most fun I have had with new Japanese friends I had ever had.
I had another bright and early morning the next day, Kobi came to pick me up to go to the Japanese Rotary Summer Orientation at 9am sharp. Momoko, the rebound from France, also came with us. On the way to the Summer Orientation, we stopped at a glass and art museum. Both were very fascinating. I had really wanted to get something from the glass museum, but everything was so extremely expensive! Oh well. When we arrived at the hotel/resort we would be staying at for the weekend, I was blown away by its beauty. Everything in Japan is so green and spectacular! We dropped off our stuff and headed up to the restaurant to meet with the other rebounds, Rotex, and inbounds for lunch. The view from the bay windows was breathtaking. There was a crystal clear lake right outside the hotel, with every sort of green tree surrounding it, and as a perfect backdrop, you could see Mt. Bundaisan. It was like living in a photo you see in National Geographic!
I am shocked at how this picture turned out! I might just have to sumbit it to National Geographic eh? LOL
After lunch, we headed off to another part of the resort to begin the Orientation. There I was able to meet the other four inbounds. And they were: Karly – Canada (we already knew each other), Ena – USA, Brenda – Mexico, and Oceanne – France. After introductions were made, we got to listen to both Momoko’s and the other rebound’s, Mashbat (he went to Canada and I have previously met him), presentations about their host countries. Everyone broke off after that and the inbounds sat with our counselors. We pretty much just got the basic round down on how things work there, Rotary wise and they answered any questions we had. After that, we were “released” to explore around until we had to go back to the hotel.
2010-2011 Inbounds! Left to right: Karly, Me, Oceanne, Brenda, Ena.
Once back at the hotel, we had about an hour of free time until dinner so we inbounds continued to explore around the hotel and its grounds. We had a great time and got to get to know each other more. Dinner was jaw dropping. It was like a full 5star course kind of meal. It was soo good and filling. After dinner, we went outside and played with handheld fireworks for an hour. They easily got us to file back inside when they told us they were able to get the Karaoke room for us. I don’t know how many hours we spent in there singing away. It was such a blast. I didn’t have any doubts that a Rotary function could be this much fun. It was late when they finally dragged us out of the Karaoke room, but we still all stayed up until 2am eating snacks and chatting. In the morning, we really regretted staying up that late because we had to be at breakfast by 8am.
Fireworks and Karaoke Night.
Right after breakfast, we took a trek down a 6km trail through the mountainside. It was really long, and really hot, but we still enjoyed ourselves. A lot of our group were stunned by the scenery but Karly and I jokingly said: “Tree, tree, another tree…oh look…it’s a tree! It’s like Canada!” We all had a hoot at that. We both still had so much fun and whenever we would pass a lake or stream, we would stop and just watch the water and take pictures of it. It was so clear and blue, it was shocking. You could see right to the very bottom of the lake, not even kidding. Once our hike was complete, we were rewarded with nice cold water and Gelato. Mmmmm. We then headed back to the hotel to have a closing BBQ, Japanese style! It was such a fun packed weekend and I can’t wait to do it all over again in November.
A picture I took during our hike. See what I mean by the water?
GO ROTARY GET TOGETHERS!!!
Yesterday, I had my school registration day. I was really nervous and I don’t know why because my host dad went with me and two other Rotarians joined us. I was able to put my uniform for the first time and I love it so much. The material is a bit thick so it makes it a bit hot, but the style is extremely cute. I met the principal and some of my teachers at the registration. They also ordered me school shoes and gym clothes after trying some on. I am really lucky to have the homeroom teacher I have. She is the English teacher! And her English is really good. Phew! Her name is Namae-sensei which is really funny because namae in Japanese means name. Haha! She told me she would take good care of me and if I was having any problems or difficulties to just come and see her. I also got my schedule and chose to take Japanese Calligraphy as an option course. Namae-sensei also told me that whenever I have English on my schedule I can have a sort of “free period” and do my own individual studies. She suggested to take this time to study my Japanese. She is also ordering me Japanese study books and textbooks for elementary school-goers for me to study from! I am so lucky to have her looking after me. My teacher also will be arranging me to meet/hang out with the English intern teacher from the USA at their schools on Thursdays. So that’s pretty awesome too.
I start school tomorrow and I have to give a speech at the opening ceremonies in front of the whole student body. Can you say nervous? I am really looking forward to going…and at the same time I’m not. I am kind of hoping one of my host parents will drive me to school on my first day which would lessen my nerves quite a lot.
And while I am on a roll with catching up on my blog here, nothing super interesting happened today. Just one of those relaxing days. I helped my host grandma shuck corn and figured out how to use their washing machine for laundry. My host mom also took me out to apply for my Japanese Health/Accident Insurance. (We went to apply for my Foreigner City Card yesterday as well.)
Hooray I think I am finished! Haha! It was a lot shorter than I thought it may be, but it still is one of my longer posts. Sorry about that, blame my love for writing! Please keep me in your prays as I embark a new world of high school here in Japan.
~Stephanie
On Friday, I was asked to help work at my host parents’ business. I was happy to accept the offer and I went with my host grandparents to make deliveries all around Shirakawa-shi and area. We delivered all sorts of things like bulk business cards to stacks of colored paper. It was a great time to talk to my host grandparents and teach them a few English words and they would teach me Japanese words in return. It was a long day and by the time we got home I was exhausted. But I had no time to rest. My friend Yuki and her mother were at my house waiting for me. They were going to take me to the Bon Festival! The Bon Festival (or sometimes called Obon) takes place all across Japan for three days but on different days depending on the area. It usually takes place during the month of August.
We drove to Yuki’s house where I met her grandparents and her sister. Her mom took me to a room where she had everything set up to get us ready for the festival. Yuki’s mother did my hair and I was shocked at how beautiful it looked once she was finished. When I saw the yukata, it is a summer kimono made out of cloth, I would be wearing, I was shocked. It was so beautiful, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to keep it. Yuki’s grandmother helped me put the yukata on…it was a lot more complicated than I thought. Everyone kept saying: “Kawaii!” (cute) or “Kirei ne!” (pretty) when I walked out of the room. It was slightly overwhelming, but Yuki’s mom and grandmother did a great job of getting me ready.
One of Yuki’s friends also came to her house to get helped in her yukata. Her name is Akane and she will be going to my school as well. I can’t remember if she will be in the same class as me, but she is in the same grade for sure. And of course, she was super nice. When we arrived at the festival grounds, I was blown away. Just the other day I had passed this lot and it was completely empty. Now, as I stood before it, there were booths everywhere selling food or trinkets, a huge stage in the middle, and lit lanterns everywhere. I whipped out my camera to take a picture and…it told me to change my batteries. Then I realized I had left my extra set back at Yuki’s house. I was quite devastated, but my moods quickly picked up as the festival began.
I met two more of Yuki’s friends, Kirin and Mihon, and they hung out with me during the whole festival. Mihon is in the same grade at my school as well but Kirin goes to a different high school in town. Yuki and Akane were a part of the performance going onstage. On stage, some older ladies sang traditional songs while traditional Japanese instruments were played. Yuki and Akane were a part of the group playing the wooden flutes. It was pretty cool.
Kirin and Mihon bought me dinner, yakisoba, and a frozen dessert that was sort of like a snow cone. After we ate we continued to wander around the stalls and chat with each other. With Yuki’s encouragement, she got us to start dancing around the stage with other people. It was a traditional styled dance and we picked it up quickly and probably danced for an hour. When we finished, we got free coupons to spend at any booth in the festival so we all bought Cotton Candy. The festival came to a close and Yuki’s mom drove us all home. It was the most fun I have had with new Japanese friends I had ever had.
I had another bright and early morning the next day, Kobi came to pick me up to go to the Japanese Rotary Summer Orientation at 9am sharp. Momoko, the rebound from France, also came with us. On the way to the Summer Orientation, we stopped at a glass and art museum. Both were very fascinating. I had really wanted to get something from the glass museum, but everything was so extremely expensive! Oh well. When we arrived at the hotel/resort we would be staying at for the weekend, I was blown away by its beauty. Everything in Japan is so green and spectacular! We dropped off our stuff and headed up to the restaurant to meet with the other rebounds, Rotex, and inbounds for lunch. The view from the bay windows was breathtaking. There was a crystal clear lake right outside the hotel, with every sort of green tree surrounding it, and as a perfect backdrop, you could see Mt. Bundaisan. It was like living in a photo you see in National Geographic!
After lunch, we headed off to another part of the resort to begin the Orientation. There I was able to meet the other four inbounds. And they were: Karly – Canada (we already knew each other), Ena – USA, Brenda – Mexico, and Oceanne – France. After introductions were made, we got to listen to both Momoko’s and the other rebound’s, Mashbat (he went to Canada and I have previously met him), presentations about their host countries. Everyone broke off after that and the inbounds sat with our counselors. We pretty much just got the basic round down on how things work there, Rotary wise and they answered any questions we had. After that, we were “released” to explore around until we had to go back to the hotel.
Once back at the hotel, we had about an hour of free time until dinner so we inbounds continued to explore around the hotel and its grounds. We had a great time and got to get to know each other more. Dinner was jaw dropping. It was like a full 5star course kind of meal. It was soo good and filling. After dinner, we went outside and played with handheld fireworks for an hour. They easily got us to file back inside when they told us they were able to get the Karaoke room for us. I don’t know how many hours we spent in there singing away. It was such a blast. I didn’t have any doubts that a Rotary function could be this much fun. It was late when they finally dragged us out of the Karaoke room, but we still all stayed up until 2am eating snacks and chatting. In the morning, we really regretted staying up that late because we had to be at breakfast by 8am.
Right after breakfast, we took a trek down a 6km trail through the mountainside. It was really long, and really hot, but we still enjoyed ourselves. A lot of our group were stunned by the scenery but Karly and I jokingly said: “Tree, tree, another tree…oh look…it’s a tree! It’s like Canada!” We all had a hoot at that. We both still had so much fun and whenever we would pass a lake or stream, we would stop and just watch the water and take pictures of it. It was so clear and blue, it was shocking. You could see right to the very bottom of the lake, not even kidding. Once our hike was complete, we were rewarded with nice cold water and Gelato. Mmmmm. We then headed back to the hotel to have a closing BBQ, Japanese style! It was such a fun packed weekend and I can’t wait to do it all over again in November.
Yesterday, I had my school registration day. I was really nervous and I don’t know why because my host dad went with me and two other Rotarians joined us. I was able to put my uniform for the first time and I love it so much. The material is a bit thick so it makes it a bit hot, but the style is extremely cute. I met the principal and some of my teachers at the registration. They also ordered me school shoes and gym clothes after trying some on. I am really lucky to have the homeroom teacher I have. She is the English teacher! And her English is really good. Phew! Her name is Namae-sensei which is really funny because namae in Japanese means name. Haha! She told me she would take good care of me and if I was having any problems or difficulties to just come and see her. I also got my schedule and chose to take Japanese Calligraphy as an option course. Namae-sensei also told me that whenever I have English on my schedule I can have a sort of “free period” and do my own individual studies. She suggested to take this time to study my Japanese. She is also ordering me Japanese study books and textbooks for elementary school-goers for me to study from! I am so lucky to have her looking after me. My teacher also will be arranging me to meet/hang out with the English intern teacher from the USA at their schools on Thursdays. So that’s pretty awesome too.
I start school tomorrow and I have to give a speech at the opening ceremonies in front of the whole student body. Can you say nervous? I am really looking forward to going…and at the same time I’m not. I am kind of hoping one of my host parents will drive me to school on my first day which would lessen my nerves quite a lot.
And while I am on a roll with catching up on my blog here, nothing super interesting happened today. Just one of those relaxing days. I helped my host grandma shuck corn and figured out how to use their washing machine for laundry. My host mom also took me out to apply for my Japanese Health/Accident Insurance. (We went to apply for my Foreigner City Card yesterday as well.)
Hooray I think I am finished! Haha! It was a lot shorter than I thought it may be, but it still is one of my longer posts. Sorry about that, blame my love for writing! Please keep me in your prays as I embark a new world of high school here in Japan.
~Stephanie
Friday, August 20, 2010
First Rotary Meeting and Bike Ride Through Town!
Hello there my blog followers! I have been getting some questions about if I will be writing up such detailed entries every time. My answer is yes and no. I enjoy writing and telling stories as well as journaling. This blog is kind of like my public journal so I want to include every little thing in it so one day I can look back on this and remember all the good and bad times and reflect on what an amazing experience Rotary has provided me with. As for the no part of my answer, once school starts I do not know if I will be able to post as often or as much. I guess we will all find out in a few days. (School starts on August 25th.) Now onto today’s entry!
When I woke up on August 18th, excitement sent chills down my back. This was the day when I would be going to my first Rotary meeting at my host club, Shirakawa Minami! (Shirakawa South.) At breakfast I found out that their Rotary meetings took place in the evening so we wouldn’t be leaving until 6pm. My host dad explained to me that it was a special meeting because it was a Welcoming Party for me and a Farewell Party for Maria, who is going to Edmonton. I was expected to give a small speech introducing myself and as soon as I finished my breakfast, I ran downstairs to get my Japanese Dictionary/Phrase Book and start working on my speech.
Just as I put the finishing touches on my speech, my host grandmother (I call her Obaa-san) came into my room and told me that her and my host grandfather (I call him Ojii-san) were going out and wanted me to come along. They took me to their little garden on the edge of town where they grew all sorts of vegetables. We dropped off Ojii-san and Obaa-san took me to Nanko Park. This was the second time that I went to Nanko Park and I was still blown away by its beauty. I was able to tour it alone and at my own pace this time as well because Obaa-san went back to her garden. As I was walking around and snapping pictures of pretty much everything, two teenage girls wearing my school’s uniform passed by me. I had a sudden urge to go up and talk to them, but I was extremely nervous because I have a slightly limited vocabulary. After a lot of self talk, I told myself to march right up to them and put the first Rotary “B” to action, “Be First”! Looking back on this, I am so thankful I took action. When I first walked up to the two girls they were giving me slightly weird looks. How surprised would you feel if a complete stranger and foreigner came right up to you? Haha. I explained to them, in Japanese, that I was an exchange student and would be attending Asahi High School. What happened next was not at all what I expected. They literally jumped up off the seat they were sitting on and started to squeal and jump up and down. They had heard an exchange student had would be coming to their school and they were super excited to meet me. Their names were Ana and Konoko and they were both 2nd years like me. (2nd year in high school is equivalent to Grade 11 in Canada.) Ana will be in my class and they both tried to convince me to join their school club. Both girls insisted we take pictures together then stop at a small ice cream shop in the park. The time we spent together went by quickly and before I knew it Obaa-san was back to pick me up. She was overjoyed to see I had made some new friends as well. I can’t wait to start school now!
Nanko Park.
6 o’clock rolled around quickly and my excitement turned into nerves. I had no idea what to expect for this Rotary meeting and I was worried I would mess up my speech or something. Shirakawa Minami’s Rotary meetings took place inside a very fancy hotel in their own separate rented out room. I was relieved to see a few familiar faces when I stepped in. Of course my exchange counselor, Kobi, was there and so were Maria and her mother. Maria and I were not the only exchange students there either. A girl named Momoko sat with us and she had just come back from her exchange in France! There were between 20-25 people at that meeting and 7 were guests (not including myself). Business was taken care of first, reverse of what it is like back at my Sponsor club in Athabasca. They also did not have one specific guest speaker. What they did, and I am not sure if this is what they always do this because this was a “special party meeting”, was invite each guest up to the front podium and ask them to give a small speech. Most of the guests quickly explained who they are, what they did for a living, and would give encouraging words to both Maria and I for our exchanges. Finally the moment had come, they invited me to stand up and give me speech. I am pretty sure I was shaking when I got up to the mic.
“Konban wa. Nihon go ga sukoshi hanasemasu. Watashi no namae was Stephanie Krulicki desu. Juroku sai desu soshite Kanada karaka mashita. Arubata-shu, Asubasuka ni sunde imasu. Watashi ga ichi nen tomaru shimasu. Arigatou gozaimasu.”
“Good evening. I can speak a little Japanese. My name is Stephanie Krulicki. I am 16 years old and I am from Canada. I live in Athabasca, Alberta. I will be staying here for one year. Thank you very much.”
My speech went smoothly and everyone applauded my effort at speaking their language.
Relief! Haha.
Once business was taken care of, the meal was served! I can’t list every single thing we had because I don’t know what most were called, but the meal was very gourmet. So gourmet, they served a Japanese delicacy called sashimi. This is basically…raw fish. I was way to chicken to try some at that time, but maybe I will try sashimi later on in my exchange. Maybe. Haha. Everything else that was served was so delicious; I have really fallen in love with Japanese food.
The meeting was about 2 hrs in length and I was completely tuckered when we got home. Overall, it had been a very sugoi (good/cool) day.
The next day wasn’t as “exciting”, but I still experience a lot of new things. My obaa-san took me out for a bike ride through the streets of Shirakawa-shi. Man that was scary. The sidewalks are extremely narrow and you have to avoid other cyclists and pedestrians as well as try not to fall into the road or run into a pole, all while maintaining speed. Obaa-san led me to my high school, which will be about a 30min bike ride there and back. She made me take the lead on the way home and I was doing pretty well in going the right direction. When we were halfway home, Obaa-san told me to turn around and take us back to the school. I am very glad she acted like a sort of drill sergeant because now the route to school is fairly similar and I am more confident that I won’t get lost.
After a short rest at home, I was asked by my host grandparents to help prepare that evening’s meal. We were having Kerokke!! Kerokke is kind of like Shephard’s Pie, but it has a “shell” that is deep-fried. I have actually made it a few times back in Canada for a project in Foods class. I helped shell soft/hard? boiled eggs and mashed potatoes, Japanese style! What my obaa-san did was she cooked the potatoes first, then she was able to peel off the skin with her own hands, and then she put it in a bowl where I used this long, wooden stick to mash them. It was a lot of fun.
At dinner, I think I ate 3 of these Kerokkes and my host family was laughing so hard because they hadn’t seen me eat this much since I got here. They were sooo good and they put a good end to a good, more relaxing day.
That’s it for tonight folks! Tomorrow I am heading out for my “summer camp”/Japanese Orientation weekend, so I probably will not be able to update my blog until Monday. See you all then!
~Stephanie
When I woke up on August 18th, excitement sent chills down my back. This was the day when I would be going to my first Rotary meeting at my host club, Shirakawa Minami! (Shirakawa South.) At breakfast I found out that their Rotary meetings took place in the evening so we wouldn’t be leaving until 6pm. My host dad explained to me that it was a special meeting because it was a Welcoming Party for me and a Farewell Party for Maria, who is going to Edmonton. I was expected to give a small speech introducing myself and as soon as I finished my breakfast, I ran downstairs to get my Japanese Dictionary/Phrase Book and start working on my speech.
Just as I put the finishing touches on my speech, my host grandmother (I call her Obaa-san) came into my room and told me that her and my host grandfather (I call him Ojii-san) were going out and wanted me to come along. They took me to their little garden on the edge of town where they grew all sorts of vegetables. We dropped off Ojii-san and Obaa-san took me to Nanko Park. This was the second time that I went to Nanko Park and I was still blown away by its beauty. I was able to tour it alone and at my own pace this time as well because Obaa-san went back to her garden. As I was walking around and snapping pictures of pretty much everything, two teenage girls wearing my school’s uniform passed by me. I had a sudden urge to go up and talk to them, but I was extremely nervous because I have a slightly limited vocabulary. After a lot of self talk, I told myself to march right up to them and put the first Rotary “B” to action, “Be First”! Looking back on this, I am so thankful I took action. When I first walked up to the two girls they were giving me slightly weird looks. How surprised would you feel if a complete stranger and foreigner came right up to you? Haha. I explained to them, in Japanese, that I was an exchange student and would be attending Asahi High School. What happened next was not at all what I expected. They literally jumped up off the seat they were sitting on and started to squeal and jump up and down. They had heard an exchange student had would be coming to their school and they were super excited to meet me. Their names were Ana and Konoko and they were both 2nd years like me. (2nd year in high school is equivalent to Grade 11 in Canada.) Ana will be in my class and they both tried to convince me to join their school club. Both girls insisted we take pictures together then stop at a small ice cream shop in the park. The time we spent together went by quickly and before I knew it Obaa-san was back to pick me up. She was overjoyed to see I had made some new friends as well. I can’t wait to start school now!
6 o’clock rolled around quickly and my excitement turned into nerves. I had no idea what to expect for this Rotary meeting and I was worried I would mess up my speech or something. Shirakawa Minami’s Rotary meetings took place inside a very fancy hotel in their own separate rented out room. I was relieved to see a few familiar faces when I stepped in. Of course my exchange counselor, Kobi, was there and so were Maria and her mother. Maria and I were not the only exchange students there either. A girl named Momoko sat with us and she had just come back from her exchange in France! There were between 20-25 people at that meeting and 7 were guests (not including myself). Business was taken care of first, reverse of what it is like back at my Sponsor club in Athabasca. They also did not have one specific guest speaker. What they did, and I am not sure if this is what they always do this because this was a “special party meeting”, was invite each guest up to the front podium and ask them to give a small speech. Most of the guests quickly explained who they are, what they did for a living, and would give encouraging words to both Maria and I for our exchanges. Finally the moment had come, they invited me to stand up and give me speech. I am pretty sure I was shaking when I got up to the mic.
“Konban wa. Nihon go ga sukoshi hanasemasu. Watashi no namae was Stephanie Krulicki desu. Juroku sai desu soshite Kanada karaka mashita. Arubata-shu, Asubasuka ni sunde imasu. Watashi ga ichi nen tomaru shimasu. Arigatou gozaimasu.”
“Good evening. I can speak a little Japanese. My name is Stephanie Krulicki. I am 16 years old and I am from Canada. I live in Athabasca, Alberta. I will be staying here for one year. Thank you very much.”
My speech went smoothly and everyone applauded my effort at speaking their language.
Once business was taken care of, the meal was served! I can’t list every single thing we had because I don’t know what most were called, but the meal was very gourmet. So gourmet, they served a Japanese delicacy called sashimi. This is basically…raw fish. I was way to chicken to try some at that time, but maybe I will try sashimi later on in my exchange. Maybe. Haha. Everything else that was served was so delicious; I have really fallen in love with Japanese food.
The meeting was about 2 hrs in length and I was completely tuckered when we got home. Overall, it had been a very sugoi (good/cool) day.
The next day wasn’t as “exciting”, but I still experience a lot of new things. My obaa-san took me out for a bike ride through the streets of Shirakawa-shi. Man that was scary. The sidewalks are extremely narrow and you have to avoid other cyclists and pedestrians as well as try not to fall into the road or run into a pole, all while maintaining speed. Obaa-san led me to my high school, which will be about a 30min bike ride there and back. She made me take the lead on the way home and I was doing pretty well in going the right direction. When we were halfway home, Obaa-san told me to turn around and take us back to the school. I am very glad she acted like a sort of drill sergeant because now the route to school is fairly similar and I am more confident that I won’t get lost.
After a short rest at home, I was asked by my host grandparents to help prepare that evening’s meal. We were having Kerokke!! Kerokke is kind of like Shephard’s Pie, but it has a “shell” that is deep-fried. I have actually made it a few times back in Canada for a project in Foods class. I helped shell soft/hard? boiled eggs and mashed potatoes, Japanese style! What my obaa-san did was she cooked the potatoes first, then she was able to peel off the skin with her own hands, and then she put it in a bowl where I used this long, wooden stick to mash them. It was a lot of fun.
At dinner, I think I ate 3 of these Kerokkes and my host family was laughing so hard because they hadn’t seen me eat this much since I got here. They were sooo good and they put a good end to a good, more relaxing day.
That’s it for tonight folks! Tomorrow I am heading out for my “summer camp”/Japanese Orientation weekend, so I probably will not be able to update my blog until Monday. See you all then!
~Stephanie
Thursday, August 19, 2010
First Full Days in Japan
I first just want to apologize to everyone who had been asking when I would be updating my blog. I was unable to get Wi-Fi at my counselor’s house and when I got to my first host family’s house, I was only able to get Wi-Fi on my iPod. And for some reason, it would not let me update my blog on my iPod. It was very frustrating. But when my host dad came home for lunch the other day, he gave me the password so I could connect with my laptop. Anyways, where did I leave off?
Because of my jet leg, the next morning I got up around 6am. I stayed in my bed for about an hour, just staring at the ceiling trying to get my head wrapped around the fact that I was actually in Japan. After a quick breakfast, Kobi and his granddaughter (I can’t remember her name but I think she was around 10 years old) took me out to tour Shirakawa by car. The city is nothing like I have seen before. First of all, the drive on the opposite side of the road so that threw me off a couple times. I swore we were going to crash into oncoming traffic. The streets and sidewalks are also extremely narrow so when you are driving down Main Street, it doesn’t feel like Main Street. It feels more like you are driving on a side road. Another interesting thing I noticed were the vending machines. THEY’RE EVERYWHERE! You can get drinks, snacks, and even cigarettes from them. Kobi drove us to Komine Castle first and it was just spectacular. We didn’t get close to it this time, but I am sure I will get to soon. I couldn’t how green everything was at the grounds of Komine Castle. I’m still blown away just thinking about it. Natural beauty at its best. Next, we drove to Asahi High School, where I will be attending starting August 25th. The school is open all summer long so students who want to get extra help or have club activities can get in. The school was huge and if my exchange counselor wasn’t there I am sure I would have gotten lost. There was even a rock/Zen garden in the courtyard! (I wasn’t able to get a picture of it but I will when I start school.) I met the Vice Principal as well and he was very gracious to let us walk around as we pleased. Soon we had to head back to Kobi’s house because his family were leaving that morning. Before Kobi’s family left, they gave me a Totoro key chain and I gave them some Canadian gifts in exchange. I hope to see them again soon; they were extremely nice to me.
This is the keychain I got from Kobi's family.
Soon after they left, Kobi took me to Nanko Park. I was speechless when we got there. It is the oldest, public, park in all of Japan and oh my goodness is it ever beautiful. We didn’t even go into the main part of the park! We went to a quaint little restaurant in the park area and the food was by far the best I have had thus far. It was really neat because we took off our shoes and sat on pillows at low-to-the-ground tables.
After lunch we did a whole bunch of visiting. I was able to meet the mayor’s secretary, Eriko, who is the secretary of Shirakawa Minami Rotary Club, and my second host parents. My second host dad is actually a Buddhist priest and their house is located right on their cemetery/temple grounds he takes care of. His mother also lives with him and she is such a sweet little old lady.
When we got back to Kobi’s house, jet lag hit me hard. I told my counselor that I was going to lay down for a bit and he reminded that we were having guests over for dinner. I slept for a good three hours. Haha. When I came out of the bedroom our guests were already there and they were just putting dinner on the table. I felt really bad, but I had really needed that sleep. The guests that came over were Maria, her mother, and Maria’s friend Yuki. Yuki will be in the same grade as me but in different classes. I felt much more confident about school knowing I will not be “alone” on my first day.
Top: Maria's Mom, Yuki's Mom
Bottom: Yuki, Me, Maria
The following day, I moved into my first host family’s house. My host parents are in their 50’s and my host dad’s parents live with them. They have a cute dog named Hari and a son who currently lives in Tokyo. My host parents own and run a paper/printing company that is a short walk down the driveway. No one in my host family speaks English so it can be a bit of a challenge sometimes but we have gotten used to using hand signals at each other and using my dictionary to translate words I don’t understand. I am actually very glad that they don’t speak English because that means I have to apply myself more to their language and I am picking it up a lot more quickly in practice.
After a quick tour of the house, I unpacked all my stuff in an hour and stored away my suitcases to make my room feel more “homey”. One of the strangest things in the house has got to be the toilets. They look like regular North American toilets but that is really deceiving. The seats are heated, which is a really weird sensation, and there are different buttons you can press to get “special features” from the toilet. One of them sprays water up as you sit on the toilet seat. I haven’t tried any of the “features” yet. The toilet upstairs has a sink built into the top of it so when you flush, water comes out of the tap. And the toilet on the main floor has option buttons on how you want to flush. As I said, these toilets are very alien.
This is the toilet that has the sink built in on top. Haha!
I had another nap that day, still weary from jet lag, but I made sure to set my alarm so I would wake up in time for dinner. I was still pretty tuckered after dinner and pulled an early night, marking the end of my third day in Japan.
Hooray I am done this blog entry! It’s dinner time so I will continue with my adventures tomorrow. Ja matane!
~Stephanie
Because of my jet leg, the next morning I got up around 6am. I stayed in my bed for about an hour, just staring at the ceiling trying to get my head wrapped around the fact that I was actually in Japan. After a quick breakfast, Kobi and his granddaughter (I can’t remember her name but I think she was around 10 years old) took me out to tour Shirakawa by car. The city is nothing like I have seen before. First of all, the drive on the opposite side of the road so that threw me off a couple times. I swore we were going to crash into oncoming traffic. The streets and sidewalks are also extremely narrow so when you are driving down Main Street, it doesn’t feel like Main Street. It feels more like you are driving on a side road. Another interesting thing I noticed were the vending machines. THEY’RE EVERYWHERE! You can get drinks, snacks, and even cigarettes from them. Kobi drove us to Komine Castle first and it was just spectacular. We didn’t get close to it this time, but I am sure I will get to soon. I couldn’t how green everything was at the grounds of Komine Castle. I’m still blown away just thinking about it. Natural beauty at its best. Next, we drove to Asahi High School, where I will be attending starting August 25th. The school is open all summer long so students who want to get extra help or have club activities can get in. The school was huge and if my exchange counselor wasn’t there I am sure I would have gotten lost. There was even a rock/Zen garden in the courtyard! (I wasn’t able to get a picture of it but I will when I start school.) I met the Vice Principal as well and he was very gracious to let us walk around as we pleased. Soon we had to head back to Kobi’s house because his family were leaving that morning. Before Kobi’s family left, they gave me a Totoro key chain and I gave them some Canadian gifts in exchange. I hope to see them again soon; they were extremely nice to me.
Soon after they left, Kobi took me to Nanko Park. I was speechless when we got there. It is the oldest, public, park in all of Japan and oh my goodness is it ever beautiful. We didn’t even go into the main part of the park! We went to a quaint little restaurant in the park area and the food was by far the best I have had thus far. It was really neat because we took off our shoes and sat on pillows at low-to-the-ground tables.
After lunch we did a whole bunch of visiting. I was able to meet the mayor’s secretary, Eriko, who is the secretary of Shirakawa Minami Rotary Club, and my second host parents. My second host dad is actually a Buddhist priest and their house is located right on their cemetery/temple grounds he takes care of. His mother also lives with him and she is such a sweet little old lady.
When we got back to Kobi’s house, jet lag hit me hard. I told my counselor that I was going to lay down for a bit and he reminded that we were having guests over for dinner. I slept for a good three hours. Haha. When I came out of the bedroom our guests were already there and they were just putting dinner on the table. I felt really bad, but I had really needed that sleep. The guests that came over were Maria, her mother, and Maria’s friend Yuki. Yuki will be in the same grade as me but in different classes. I felt much more confident about school knowing I will not be “alone” on my first day.
Bottom: Yuki, Me, Maria
The following day, I moved into my first host family’s house. My host parents are in their 50’s and my host dad’s parents live with them. They have a cute dog named Hari and a son who currently lives in Tokyo. My host parents own and run a paper/printing company that is a short walk down the driveway. No one in my host family speaks English so it can be a bit of a challenge sometimes but we have gotten used to using hand signals at each other and using my dictionary to translate words I don’t understand. I am actually very glad that they don’t speak English because that means I have to apply myself more to their language and I am picking it up a lot more quickly in practice.
After a quick tour of the house, I unpacked all my stuff in an hour and stored away my suitcases to make my room feel more “homey”. One of the strangest things in the house has got to be the toilets. They look like regular North American toilets but that is really deceiving. The seats are heated, which is a really weird sensation, and there are different buttons you can press to get “special features” from the toilet. One of them sprays water up as you sit on the toilet seat. I haven’t tried any of the “features” yet. The toilet upstairs has a sink built into the top of it so when you flush, water comes out of the tap. And the toilet on the main floor has option buttons on how you want to flush. As I said, these toilets are very alien.
I had another nap that day, still weary from jet lag, but I made sure to set my alarm so I would wake up in time for dinner. I was still pretty tuckered after dinner and pulled an early night, marking the end of my third day in Japan.
Hooray I am done this blog entry! It’s dinner time so I will continue with my adventures tomorrow. Ja matane!
~Stephanie
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Flight and First Day
Wow. Just…wow. I have been in Japan for almost 72hrs and I have no idea where to start. It has been an incredible first few days. Okay, how about we start in Edmonton?
Saying goodbye to my family was tough; we kept exchanging multiple hugs before I had to go. Going through security and finding my terminal was easy peasy. I found myself a seat and listened to music and played a few rounds of Solitaire before they called for general boarding. I got an awesome window seat near the front and there was a seat between me and the lady sitting on the aisle. She was extremely grumpy so I just smiled at her. It was only an hour flight to Vancouver and it was crazy short. You took off, they gave you snacks and a drink, you use the washroom, and then you land.
Getting off and finding the baggage claim was also very simple and smoothly. My bags were one of the first ones to be unloaded and relief swept through me. (I can be a worry wart sometimes.) The employees at the Vancouver Airport were so kind to me and helped me find my way back to the departure gates. As soon as I got into the International Departure Check-In, my world got a whole lot smaller. I am almost 100% sure that I was the only white person for miles in there. My heart sunk a little when I saw this gigantic line for check-in, but I stepped into the back of the line and waited. As I said, I was the only white person there, and with my bright red blazer I looked pretty foreign and out of place. So out of place that an English speaking employee came to talk to me to make sure I was in the right spot. I was in the right place, just the wrong line. He directed me to these machines where you can print off your boarding pass if you had your booking reference number and then I was able to detour the giant line and go through a direct check-in line which was a lot shorter. Security was once again, simple and it was easy to find my gate. I settled down with my iPod and connected to their Wi-Fi for a 5hr layover. Karly Hilgers, the other exchange student going to Japan in District 5370, came and found me around 12:30pm and we chattered with excitement.
Our plane was HUGE!! It is the biggest aircraft in Air Canada’s fleet, Boeing 777-300. Look it up and be amazed. Haha! Karly and I were not able to sit together but during the flight I would go sit with her because the middle seat in her row was empty. The flight was long. It was a 9-10hrs direct flight. We hit a lot of turbulence which resulted me in feeling very nauseous by the last two hours of the flight. I watched Clash of the Titans, which was really good, listened to my iPod, slept, and played card games with Karly. A very sweet Japanese couple sat next to me, but I kind of regret not talking to them more to practice my Japanese. When we started to descend, I grabbed my camera and began to snap photos of Japan as we flew over it. (I was lucky enough to snag a window seat.) My tiredness was swept away by pure adrenaline.
My first reaction to Japan when Karly and I stepped off the plane was hot. And we were inside the airport! It was extremely stifling but we refused to take off our red blazers. It was a long walk along the moving floor things. I can’t remember how many we stepped onto and off in a row. While we traveled down this strip to the baggage claim, someone from behind tapped our shoulders. It was a Japanese girl about our age and she was wearing a Rotary shirt! She asked us, in English, if we were exchange students from Canada. Turns out she was just coming back from her Rotary exchange in Ontario! We exchanged cards and helped each other get to the baggage claims. Before we could get to our bags, we had to clear customs. On the plane we had to fill out custom cards that we had to give to the custom employees. They took our photo and our fingerprints and then we were off to get our bags! Karly was able to get her bags right away, but mine, didn’t come. I was starting to get really worried that my bags got lost. But finally, they rolled onto the caracal. They were the last two bags to be taken off the plane. I guess that’s what I get when they came off first in Vancouver. Haha! Now comes the best part. Karly and I will be laughing about this for years. We got lost. Inside the baggage claim. It was a huge area and we couldn’t find the exit. After asking a lot of employees, who didn’t understand English, we managed to get out.
I was greeted by my exchange counselor, Kobiyama Hiroshi, and Maria Tsubota, who will be going to Edmonton on August 20th. It was roughly 1am for me so I was extremely exhausted. After getting to the car and answering some questions, I quickly fell asleep and missed the drive through Tokyo. When we arrived at Kobi’s house, I would be staying there the first two nights, it was pitch dark and it was only 8pm! Kobi’s daughter and two grandchildren were also staying over as well as Maria’s mom. We had an amazing dinner, and I immediately fell in love with Japanese food. After a quick shower in their strange shower, I was off to bed, too tired for words.
This is all I am going to type for now, for I still have slight jet-lag and may take a short nap. I congratulate you if you have read this entire post! Stay tuned for my next post where I will share the rest of my experiences thus far! Sayonara!
~Stephanie
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