melissa joins the pen
Another night out with more people joining the pig pen. Last night we decided on Pizzeria to fill our tummies and it was surprisingly good. The usual array of Japanese Italian food consists of mayo and corn on pizza or octopus pasta with Greek sauce was absent at the restaurant but I can't say I was sad about that. Instead we had some good old seafood alfredo, eggplant marinara, and marinara basil pizza. In true form, Grace, Melissa and I licked our plates clean. Afterwards, still being hungry, we decided to stop at a conbini (also known as a convenience store) for some good cheap ice cream. With me being the biggest pig of them all, I decided to grab a big american dog for old times sake. For those that didn't go abroad with me the first time, a big american dog is the fancy name for the great 7eleven corn dog. Granted it is not Minnesota State Fair quality, which by the way I am missing yet another year of food on a stick, but when you are in the land of rice and raw fish it doesn't matter too much what it tastes like just that it is Western food. The amazing thing about Japan is that convenience stores over here (mainly 7eleven, Lawson's and Save On) are actually convenient: cheap food, well prepared, and at almost every corner. So we took our dollar ice cream, plus one big american dog, and headed to my apartment. Where the following picture of me eating a big american dog was taken and let's just say I know how to down one of these. Ok bad joke but Melissa and I were laughing almost to the point of crying when it was taken. It was just one of those nights where it felt like I was sitting around the Brichacek table with my stomach getting the ab workout of its life. Sadly the night was broken off early as some people, namely the two others which I won't name, had to get to bed. Anyway, mark this one as another fun night in Tsubame-Sanjo.
oze = minnesota?
This weekend I went hiking with some of the teachers from one of my middle schools, sanchu. It was pretty much a low key drive out with quite a few pit stops. One stop for a morning break, visiting a small town for reasons that weren't explained to me, lunch, and then a wood shop where if you wanted a 4' x 6' thick piece of wood for a table top this is where you would browse them. Shortly after arriving to our inn we went to an onsen, also known as a natural hot spring, for some much needed relaxation. Onsen's, by the way, are one of my favorite things about Japan because of how soothing they can be after a long day. I would have taken some pictures but, for some strange reason, I don't think that the old Japanese men wouldn't have appreciated naked pictures of them on the internet.
Look, it's Minnesota or Oze National Park in Fukushima-ken. Some of you will remember Mark, Johnny, and I went camping in the boundary waters for 5 days after graduation. Most of the hike reminded me of that trip and how peaceful it is to be surrounded by nature. It was the kind of place I would want to go with my roommates, friends, and Gavin. Furthermore I was allowed to kind of be on my own because no one was really speaking English to me and let's just say my Japanese isn't really at a point of having a ten minute conversation, let alone six hours worth. For the most part I have no regrets about not being incredibly social on the hike itself because over here I really need time to recharge in order to fully absorb the Japanese language and culture.
Eventually they cracked. By the end of the trip most of them were at least attempting to speak English to me and I even busted out a little Japanese to, in my own way, show that I was definitely appreciating their efforts. As you can see they were a fairly older group and I was flattered that they invited me to go with. The picture below is right after our very Japanese dinner the first night which included, but not limited to: deer, bear, and fish on a stick. On our way back to Sanjo we traveled through the mountains but were constantly being detoured. Finally I glanced past one of the barriers and realized that the road that once bridged the gaps between valleys had given way in the previous few earthquakes. Let's just say I was happy we were taking the scenic route.
and the pig lives on
In light of certain comments made by she who shall not be named, I have decided to dedicate this post to the fact that I eat way too much food. Tonight, not only did we manage to take this amazingly hot picture, we went to a restaurant called Tonkatsu Sanjo which serves tonkatsu, a type of deep fried and battered pork chop of sorts. Melissa and I both had katsu curry, which is tonkatsu and curry smothering a bed of rice. Can anyone tell that I have been writing the specials board at a restaurant every weekend for the past two summers? Anyway, after the pig comment on the last post I couldn't disappoint her by not polishing off my meal tonight but finishing off some gyoza, or potstickers as some people call them. I had to laugh a bit at the fact that she didn't finish even her meal but then again she isn't a pig.
talk about ginormous
Japan, and pretty much everywhere else in the world, has small portions of food compared to the United States. However, on our way back from Sado we all decided that a night out would be a good thing for all of us. So after well deserved showers, most of us headed into Niigata city and went to the Asian Kitchen. Great food, good ambiance and they even had this little curtain, music show when we got there. The best part of the night though was this amazing desert we saw in the window. After some debate between us, Emily and I took charge and decided to get the big dessert. Good thing we did because it was amazing! I mean look at how big that thing is, it's the same size as my head. Between the eight of us we couldn't finish it. What a great way to start a night off. Then it was off to a 50's bar, which was actually really cool. That was until we found out that once the band started we each had to pay about the equivalent of $18. So after a quick drink we decided to head to the Hot Spot, which is where we went for the orientation party, see the way orientation should be if you forgot.
taiko gods
Friday night was a blast! It involved going to Sado island for the Earth Celebration. We pretty much went for Kodo concert, which is a group of taiko drummers. What is taiko drumming you ask? It is a traditional Japanese drum that also incorporates various other traditional performing arts. If you want to know more about Kodo or taiko, check out the Kodo link. The drive took us an hour and a half to the port and then the ferry was another two hours to get to Sado. We arrived right as it was about to start but no one warned us about the massive hill we had to climb for the venue.
Once we got in though it was amazing. Granted I think any kind of music is great, especially since I can't play and instruments. However, this was mind blowing how fast the could be the drums and create great a rhythmic flow with fantastic beats. I really wanted to take pictures for everyone but we were not allowed to use cameras. We tried, believe me I tried and got yelled at plenty of times for even turning my camera on, oh well. After the concert we headed to the beach via taxi to set up tents. Quite the experience when you are slightly entoxicated. Well we did manage to get the tents up and have a good time in the process. The night was good except for a few fun night time experiences: mosquitoes in the tent, no pillow, and hippies playing the drums until sunrise. Needless to say it was kind of a long morning but I got back to Sanjo in one piece with a new cd and I got to talk to Gavin! Oh and a quick comment about the picture, see if you can find Melissa with the money protecting wandering eyes.
the way orientation should be
So last Monday and Tuesday we had prefectural orientation for all the new Assistant Language Teachers (ALT) in Niigata. Let's just say the information was pretty much the same as the orientation in Chicago and Tokyo. It was still a blast, as you can see above, to meet some of the people that live around me. Plus there was a nomihodai (all you can drink) and tabehodai (all you can eat) at the bar we went to in Niigata city on Monday night. A couple hours into the night we were all starting to feel the affects of the alcohol and ended up dancing the night away. It is amazing how drinking tends to loosen people up.
The next morning was a little shaky, quite literally, not because I was definitely hung over but there was an earthquake in Japan on Tuesday. It was actually on the Eastern seaboard and, for those that don't know their Japanese geography, Niigata is on the Western coast. Basically that means everything was fine but when we felt it in Niigata I wasn't sure if the ground was shaking or my head. Some of my friends thought it was my head but obviously they were wrong. Kristi's email subject line said it best, "it wasn't just you." In case you missed the news you can check it out in the links section, thanks for the link Kristi!
homestay
This last weekend I traveled 30 minutes by bullet train to the small city of Shiozawa, located inbetween Sanjo and Tokyo. In this village, more famously known for growing the best rice in all of Japan, was my homestay from my previous stay in Japan. The trip marked the third time to their home, although this was the shortest visit of all three. As usual the family feed me a rediculous amount of food and drink, which I gladly accepted. Let's be honest, cup of ramen wasn't really cutting it anymore. Other than that it was actually a very relaxing weekend, filled with sleep, laying around, and the occassional tradition (for example we went to pay respects to thier grandfather). Overall a great weekend and exactly what I needed to recharge.
The family below is my homestay. Although, only the two older adults and grandmother actually lived in the house I stayed in and the other famiy are the cousins of the mother. It was great to see them, especially since they had a daughter since last time I was there. However, the daughter that is my age, who is actually the only one who speaks any English, went to a high school reunion so I was left with my little green dictionary, poor Japanese, and so sporatic English words that they would conjure. Sometimes I feel like thier adopted son because of how well they treat me all the time but there is this small thought in the back of my mind that they are trying to hook me up with thier daughter, obviously not going to happen. In any case, they have always gone out of thier way to help me and take care of me.
the man
I figured my first post on this website should be a happy one. For those that don't know this is my boyfriend, his name is Gavin, and he is an amazing man. He always puts a huge smile on my face, no matter how flustered or down I am. It just makes sense to have a smiling picture of the two of us on here. He is also coming out here to visit at the end of September so I am extremely excited for that.
