Dancing Queens

I don't know if it is our personality, the way we dress, because we look like we can make people laugh, or just because we are foreigners but people really seem to pick Katie and I out of a crowd. Let me take you back two months ago to our last night in Guam. It was a great BBQ dinner at the Hilton hotel. It also included a dinner show in which the Chamorros (native people of Guam) performed cultural dances on stage. There we were, the four of us: Koni, Kaori, Katie and I, enjoying the show when all of a sudden a man comes over to Katie and brings her on stage. So, Katie takes part in this on stage dancing and not 15 minutes later a different guy drags me on stage to compete in a dance contest on stage (I won by the way;) )

Fast forward to Thursday, July 27th. Katie and I go out with two of our Japanese friends to Dotonburi where they have an old fashioned Japanese town set up. There is tons of food and little booths and you can even watch a small dramatic performance every hour or so. It was 3:30 and we were standing around getting ready to watch the performance. I was excited. Suddenly the show was starting. The host was making jokes in Japanese and introducing the play. She then mentioned something about a special member in the audience and pointed at Katie.
Moments later she said there would be another special member and just as she said that I tried to hide behind the little Japanese boy next to me. I had a feeling who that other special member would be...


And of course we couldn't leave without dancing on stage-again!

The Takoyaki Home Cooking Show

One of the most famous foods in the Kansai area is takoyaki. The word "tako" means octopus and "yaki" means to fry or to cook. So, "takoyaki" is basically pieces of octopus in balls of batter that are cooked in a special pan. They are then served hot with sauce and mayonnaise and little dancing fish flakes on them. You can also add other ingredients like corn and cheese and even chocolate (not with the octopus of course). Though it sounds repulsive, it is actually very delicious!
Last night I had a takoyaki party with some friends.
Straight from my kitchen-here's how you make takoyaki...


Intro to takoyaki

Me making takoyaki

Goodbye is so hard to say

Last weekend I went on an overnight retreat with my English club students. The purpose of the trip was for them to have a big chunk of time to practice for their Scenario Reading contest this summer and their play in November. We also got to play some dodgeball, which I discovered I love, but am horrible at. Amazingly enough I was named MVP even though I was out most of the time. That night the kids threw me a surprise farewell party. It was the sweetest thing ever! They gave me presents and sang songs to me. I have the best kids in the world! There was a lot of crying, but that was one night I will never forget. I love you guys!


Here's me and my 12th graders after our dodgeball game

iT iS Finished-or is it?

Today concludes my day as "Shiona sensei", "Mr. Shiona", or even "Shiona teacher". I gave my two speeches and only managed to cry when I spoke in English and when one of the students gave a speech to me. After that I had lots of students coming into my office, giving me last minute notes and puricura, or taking last minute pictures. It was surreal in a way. Saying goodbye as they left my office. My desk is nice and tidy, totally opposite of what it was yesterday, or even this morning. And that's it.
For all who are teachers or have thought about becoming one-it's worth it. Through all the ups and downs, the good times and bad, the hard work, the endless hours, the smile and tears, at the end of the day you had an impact in the lives of students. It's worth it.


Wait, do you hear that?


It's the sound of another page turning in my life. Here we go...

They issued a rain warning today so half of the students didn't come to school and the other half are soaking wet from walking to school in the rain. As for me, I took a taxi ;) The students who came to school were just sent home and I have to stay for another 3 hours. Hmmm, what should I do? Maybe I'll watch the Guam DVD again :)

Today I had the great privilege of participating in the BIG CLEANING. I had to look after 33 8th graders while we cleaned the floors and waxed. There were a couple of times when I walked in on one group of students using the brooms as guitars and singing songs around the room. The good part of this was that I got to wear sports pants all day instead of dress pants.
After school I had some good quality time with my 9th graders and 12th graders where I gave them all gifts for their graduation which I will miss in March. Then I gave a present to all of my English Club girls; a song I wrote. The best part of it was seeing their faces light up. I just hope they know how much they mean to me.

My foot tastes good

So yesterday I went out to Hard Rock Cafe with some friends. Afterwards on our way to karaoke (oh yeah!) we were stopped by some asians and asked directions on how to get to the subway line. They didn't speak Japanese too well and they spoke a little English. One of the Japanese girls with us said she thought they were Chinese. So, we told them if they wanted, we would take them to the Subway gate. On the way there I kept thinking of all the Chinese words I knew so I might be able to start a conversation with them or at least let them know I like China (tryin' to be international and all ;). Except, the only things I really know how to say are hello, goodbye, ice cream, nap and "I am Chinese." None of which would be of much use in this situation. Well, we finally arrived and they got their tickets and thanked us for helping them. As they were leaving I waved and said "zai jien" (goodbye) in Chinese. They went through the ticket gate and as we were walking to karaoke I was telling one of the other Japanese girls how I wish I knew more Chinese so I could talk with them. She then turned to me and said, "but they were Korean, not Chinese." Yep, that hurt!

gh-ee-tt-oo Fabulous!

Last night some of the teachers held a going away party for me. To get to this restaurant we had to catch a shuttle bus from the train station. The 5 of us barely fit into this tiny, Japanese minivan driven by this nice old man who, on the way home, suggested I should marry him. (After thinking long and hard, I have decided to decline his offer). The restaurant was unlike any I had ever been to in Japan. It was in the basement, and as you were walking down, the walls were covered in a decoritive painted design that looked a little like aboriginal art. We wound our way through the tiny restaurant to the VERY back room where our table was. Unfortunately there was no tomato juice so I had to settle for pineapple juice. (note: pineapple juice does not go very well with raw fish). When we were ready to order we found out that we had to go upstairs to where this little old lady and man were and pick out our food. Some of the food looked a little, well, unappetizing. There was a fish there that looked like it was having a very BAD day. We later saw that fish at our table downstairs, but I didn't eat any of it. So, we picked out our dishes, as the little old Japanese lady kept putting samples into our hands. It actually tasted a lot better than it looked. And at the end of the night I got a bouquet of flowers from the teachers. There is good things to be said about ghetto fabulous places!

So-um, yeah, just found out that next Wednesday I have to give a goodbye speech in front of all the teachers in the staff room and THEN give a speech in front of all of the students (all 2,700 of them)- IN JAPANESE! Kill me now.

Is there a chicken in your garden?

Last night Chihiro, Liz, Katie and I went out to eat at this great Italian restaurant with an all-you-can-eat bread bar. While we were there a conversation started about the Japanese phrase, "niwa niwa niwa niwa tori ga iru." This is a play on words and the word niwa can mean "garden" "two chickens" "to be"... So the phrase translates to "there are two chickens in the garden." And it sounds fun when you say it. However, in our discussion, Katie was a little confused about the garden, and who's it was and if there was a Mr. Niwa in the story. Here is our conversation

Hanshin Tigers Game-video bits

The Game

Hanshin Tigers score!!

The 7th Inning

Hanshin Tigers

Yesterday was my first time to have the experience of a Hanshin Tigers game. Koshien stadium is about 15 minutes by foot from my house and is famous in this area. It is a landmark. The stadium is covered in ivy and the team that plays there is called the Hanshin Tigers. Fans of the Hanshin Tigers are said to be the most wild and dedicated in Japan. Everyone comes decked out in Tigers attire and they all have noise makers. Everyone knows the same cheers and when to sing them and when to stop. Everyone knows that in the 7th inning AND at the end of the game you are supposed to blow up balloons and let them go together. Hanshin Tigers fans are like family. So, after getting 2 free tickets from a friend, Katie and I, wearing our matching Hanshin Tigers outfits (NOT on purpose, but we looked pretty darn cute!), went to the game.

Katie and I in front of Koshien Stadium

Our matching T-shirts. The back says,
"Whether we win or lose, always a Tigers fan."


The Game


True Tigers Fans

Even in the rain!

The 7th Inning!! We blew up our balloons and let them go! Then, towards the end of the game, we noticed people blowing up MORE balloons and realized we were supposed to save some for the end. So there we sat, balloon-less at the end of the game. Katie suggested picking some up from off the ground, but I didn't think that was very hygienic.
What a great game though! The Tigers beat Yokohama Bay 2-1! Woo-hoo! I am proud to be a Hanshin Tigers fan. Even if it was only my first game.

I like FREE things and I cannot lie...

Today was filled with wonderfulness :) First, I got to accompany the exchange students to the tea ceremony. During this, I got to drink tea and eat about 7 different sweets. Wonderful, simply wonderful. Afterwards, we went to the train station in Nishinomiya because they were having a "Spokane Fair". Nishinomiya and Japan are sister cities, so we often hear or see things about Spokane. This fair was pretty small, consisting mostly of pictures and videos. As I was looking through the pictures, who should I see but ME! Yep, I saw a picture of me at Mukogawa Fort Wright in Spokane. Sadly, I forgot my autograph pen and couldn't autograph it. Actually, we were the only ones there, except for the workers. But I made sure they knew it was me in that picture ;) They were also having a Japanese Paper Art exhibition. It was beautiful. They make people, and villages completely out of paper. They were so beautiful. One person takes 2 months to make. I asked the lady if I could buy them anywhere around here and she said no, but you can buy the paper to make it. Judging by my origami skills, I definitely could not make one :) As we were leaving to catch the taxi back to the school, they stopped us and told us that we could come back and each choose one to take home with us; for free!!! I was shocked. I was amazed. Tears almost stung my eyes. Seriously though, I couldn't beleive the kindness they showed us, just because we are foreigners. This is Japanese hospitality. Wonderfulness, simply wonderfulness.

A Weekend Out

This weekend I was invited to spend the day with one of the teachers at my school and her husband. We went to Mt. Rokko and while I'd like to say I climbed the mountain, well, we really just drove to the top. It was beautiful though. We looked at flower gardens and ate lunch there. It was great weather, too.






For dinner we went to a traditional Japanese restaurant where the food served was not only delicious but beautiful.


This was raw fish served inside a hollowed out snowball with a candle on the top.

The LaSt day

Three classes. Yesterday I had three classes. As the bell rang at 3:25 and the students stood up, I realized, this is it. My last class of my two years in Japan. Wow. It is hard to believe that just 2 years earlier I was just getting started. My desk is covered with pictures and notes students have given me. I have been spending my free time at work sticking the little "puricura" pictures into a book and writing the students names next to their pictures so I won't forget who is who. As I walk through the hallways and students say hello or run up behind me or even try to bite my arm :) I realize how much I love teaching and how much I'm going to miss it. I can honestly say this is the hardest job I have ever had. But it has also been the best! I have taught over 1000 students in the past 2 years. I don't remember all of their names, and to be honest, not all of their faces. But I love them. And I hope I can continue to be a part in at least some of their lives. I realized yesterday (a lot of things I know), but it's not English I love teaching, it's Communication. By teaching them English I am giving them the tools to communicate with people around the world and with me :) And that makes me happy. I just praise God for these kids and this opportunity. I hope He has teaching for me in the future. So, here's sayonnara from Shiona sensei. Here are some pcitures from the past week.

Eating lunch with students






Tanabata Festival











Where's Shiona?