My First Week

WARNING: This is going to be a pretty long post since it covers the first week of a crazy new adventure for me. You’ve been warned…

After a fast paced three day orientation in Tokyo, my fellow Tokushima prefectural JETs and I hopped on a plane for a 70 minute flight before parting ways across the prefecture. We hit the ground and were met with signs and welcomes from all kinds of different people. I was met by Ms. Watanabe (my supervisor), Ms. Tanaka (a Jr. High school teacher) and Mr. Mitsuhashi (a senior high teacher).

As we stepped out of the airport, it became quickly apparent that the heat and humidity of Tokyo were nothing compared to our weather farther south here in Tokushima. The humidity is oppressive! We hopped in the car and started driving. It became clear that due to my complete lack of Japanese and their working, but not fluent abilities in English, we would have some communication issues. They were fantastic and patient, and I can’t thank them enough for picking me up and taking me around.

The first stop was at a kind of home store to pick up a new futon mattress, sheets, pillows, and blankets. This more or less consisted of my being lead around the store while everyone spoke Japanese, and every once in a while being motioned to, “choose, prease choose.” They got me set up, and we were off to lunch.

They were really nice in working to make conversation in English, even though it was clearly difficult. They asked me what kinds of foods I like, and what I ate since I had arrived in Japan. When I told them I had eaten Udon, they all went, “Ooo!” as if it were shocking and crazy for an American to like Japanese food.  I guess that happens a lot out here. They asked me if I wanted a hamburger. I said that was ok because I did not want to be rude, but I wanted to say that I am in Japan! I don’t want a burger!

It was only when I was fortunate enough to be asked if I prefer meat or fish that the tides turned. When I said fish they had another moment of shock and surprise, partially because the former JET here did not eat fish (which is crazy to me because there is certainly no lack of fish here). We changed course and went for sushi. I think eating sushi in Japan is kind of like eating clam chowder on the east coast; it doesn’t matter where you go it is bound to be delicious. By far my favorite was a piece that had a kind of sweet plum sauce on top that only is served in Japan in the summer. It was AMAZING.

Next we stopped by the school to meet the principal and a few of the teachers. It was fantastic and difficult because of the language challenges, but a few of the English teachers spoke fairly decent English, so that helped.

Johnouchi Jr. and Sr. High School

Next came the bombshell. I asked if there was sometime during the week that I could purchase a cell phone, and Mr. Mitsuhashi decided that it was very important and that we should go today. When we arrived at the store, everything went a bit sideways. Trying to understand a cell phone plan in English is difficult enough, but when everyone is speaking Japanese? Forget it. I didn’t know how much the phones cost, or if they were free, or if I would buy a phone and pay for it in installments as a part of my monthly bill (an awesome service here that I wish they did in the states, it would save people having to spend money up front and I’m sure people would be more willing to buy more expensive phones if they could pay in installments).

We spent the next hour and a half trying to figure things out, including throwing in the curve ball of trying to set up internet (which I don’t think actually happened). The worst part was, I would have to bike back to the store in an hour and pick up the phone. That meant trying to figure out where I was going in a brand new city where I can’t read signs or ask for directions. That being the case, I left the store with no phone and no clue as to what plan or services that I was paying for once I did get it. I was pretty frustrated and overwhelmed (looking back on it the next day, I’m sure they were just as frustrated and overwhelmed as I was, and they really did their best to help me).

We drove to my apartment with Mr. Mitsuhashi imploring that I pay attention so that I could make it back on my bicycle (another awesome amenity of my new apartment).

My ride

I tried desperately in my exhausted state to remember landmarks and directions as we made our way back.

The apartment was pretty great. It is western style (wood floors instead of tatami mats), and has an air conditioner, washer and dryer, and a really cool loft area upstairs that is hot as balls even with the air conditioner on, but with some ingenuity I think would be an awesome and useful space. I digress. I laid down to get my bearings after setting up my new bed and relaxed for a minute knowing that I still had one more adventure ahead of me.

Washing Machine instructions, another learning adventure!

I left the apartment around 6:30. Over the next two hours I took wrong turns, backtracked, went sideways, got turned around, and somehow, miraculously made it back to the store. The women who helped us the first time set me up, and then apologized continuously to me. That’s the amazing thing I realized immediately entering this country. She had no reason to apologize, I’m making things difficult by not knowing the native language, and yet she still was very nice to me, and did her best to make me feel a little less overwhelmed. This is something I think we could benefit from a lot more of in the United States.

Phone in hand, I attempted to put in my address to more easily make my way back to the apartment. Unfortunately, I must have put in the address wrong or something because it wasn’t showing up on the map. So, after another hour of fumbling around in the dark, I made it back to my apartment relatively unscathed (I say relatively because in the process of being lost and in the dark I rode into what I thought was continued pavement and ended up being very well smoothed over sand and dirt, so I crashed softly and wound up with little more than very dirty legs and arms).

The next day I went to work, and was met midway through the morning by an English teacher I hadn’t met the day before. She was awesome. Her English was better, and she immediately took me around and showed me the school. She definitely had a teacher presence, because every time she would walk me into a room with multiple people in it, she would introduce me, and then say, “Now you please introduce yourselves, in English please, not Japanese.” It took everyone back a bit, and they struggled to introduce themselves. It made me appreciate how difficult it is to speak in a non-native language, and they all did a million times better than if I tried to introduce myself in Japanese.

The best part of the tour was running into some girls that were practicing for track and field. They waved and ran up excitedly. They were just like little kids, bouncing all over the place and giggling and laughing. The following day would be even better as I met a group of about ten girls as I was nearing the top of the stairs, who broke out laughing, ran back to catch up with me, and made me take a picture with them! I wish I could get a copy; it was awesome. Here’s about how it went down between all of them excitedly laughing and talking in high-pitched Japanese while one brave girl took the initiative:

Clint: Hello, my name is Clint

Lead girl: ?

Clint: Um, Ka-rin-to-sensei

Lead girl: Ah! Ka-rin-to! Mista Ka-rin-to!!!

Sensei is what students call the teacher in Japanese, and since Japanese words are structured consonant-vowel-consonant, syllables are often added to make English words fit their structure. There are also no l and r sounds in the Japanese language, with the pronunciation of the “r” being similar to the rolled “r” in Spanish. Therefore, Clint becomes Ka-rin-to, with the “r” sound being somewhere between an l and an r.

 She got so excited trying to show me the picture after we took it that she dropped her phone from about head height, bouncing the phone of the floor. Among the accompanying giggles and chaos I never did get to see the picture.

The next couple of days at the school were great, as the English teachers began to approach me about helping out with the English speech contest coming up next month, and talking to me about lesson planning and how I might be able to work as a positive team teacher in their English classrooms. As always, regardless of the barriers, I always seem to be a lot more comfortable when I get inside a school. I can’t wait until I get to be a part of the classroom.

I eventually found a much more direct route to the school, and have gradually been figuring out my immediate neighborhood. Instead of going on and on about it in this already long post, I’m going to let the pictures do the talking. All of the buildings in the pictures are within a mile of my apartment, showing how fortunate I am to have so many necessary services so close to home.

Supermarket

Direx has everything from food to clothes to soap to towels to whatever...and it's cheap!

Coffee! They also have pictures and English on the menu, which is certainly helpful for me

I forgot the bank, the baskin robbins, and the numerous convenience stores, but you get the idea. Tokushima Station is only about a 15 minute ride away as well in case I need to get out of town.

I certainly had at least two or three more embarrassing moments where I messed something up (I had to go back to the bank three times just to turn in some paperwork because of tiny, easily fixable issues that I couldn’t understand until I talked to someone back at the school), but I’m beginning to understand that as long as I am humble, keep working hard to learn Japanese, and approach things with the right perspective that people are more than willing to help out.

I’m sure there will be a lot of bumps in the road in my time here, but I can’t help but be excited about being in such an amazing place. Heather gets here in a few days, and I can’t wait to explore this place with her. Enjoy the pictures, and keep checking back in to keep up with my stumbles and successes!

Clint