I took Janice too work again yesterday to Iwaki Koko, my main school so that she could see my office and meet some of the teachers that I work with. She was also to be somewhat of a guest of honor at a Christmas party that me and another ALT from Sakura high school were having. Attending the party, we had 23 students, 2 ALTs, a Japanese English teacher, and Janice. With the exception of myself and the other Japanese English teacher, everyone at the party was of the female gender. While the Japanese English teacher spent his time reading in the foyer of the building, I spent the duration of the party among the 25 sugar-charged girls – Janice being no exception.
Again, Janice seems to be quite popular at this school – more popular than me. Aside from all of the dinner invitations that I’ve been receiving from the other teachers since Janice arrived, the girls from the Conversation Club loved her. They were in awe of the earrings that she wore – the students not being allowed to where them at school, they were eager to share their candy with her, and when I was making my rounds around the snack table, I noticed that many of the students had portraits of themselves with Janice as their profile screen. That’s cool though; I didn’t want my picture taken anyway.
I think that before Janice left Canada, she was looking forward to seeing Japan and hopefully me as well. What she wasn’t prepared for was how excited everyone in Japan was looking forward to seeing her. She told me that being in Japan makes you feel really good about yourself because everyone is so fascinated by everything about you. It’s true; many people in Japan are very isolated from other cultures. Janice has been told many times, “we don’t get much of a chance to meet foreigners.”
Since we arrived back in Iwaki from Tokyo, I’ve settled back into my routine, but I often forget that everything is still very new for Janice. I think she’s settling quite well though – it feels as if she’s been here the whole time with me.
We managed to acquire a bike for Janice last night, from another ALT who’s going back to Hong Kong for a couple of weeks. It’s a typical Mamachati with one gear, fenders, a basket on the front, rack on the back, and a light on the front wheel. I’m still getting used to seeing her ride around in anything other than her black Sunfire, but it’s one more step in adjusting to life in Japan – and Janice seems to like cruising around on two wheels instead of four.
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These photos are from Shibuya. They are the third set of photos from our time in Tokyo.
Janice and I are off to Tokyo again for New Year's Eve. We've spent the last week and a half living in Iwaki enjoying work and Christmas. The last few days we've spent mostly at my apartment and the area around it. It's also given me a chance to get back in the kitchen to show Janice a few of the things I've learned living on my own.
